To make a USB extender with your own hands, first of all you need to understand how it transfers information from one device to another and vice versa. Of course, you can go the usual route and purchase a Universal Serial Bus in a store, but there, as a rule, the longest cord is only two meters. In addition, the signal attenuates as the distance for its transmission increases, so you will have to buy a high-speed option with ferrite filters, but this is expensive. So it’s better to put in a little effort and make such an extension cord yourself.
Source usb-cable.com.ua
About the pinout of USB plugs and sockets
The picture shows the pinout of the USB 2.0 socket and plug.
To transmit data (+Data and –Data), you can use any of the four available twisted pairs.
To connect power, you can use any of the three remaining twisted pairs or all three pairs connected in parallel.
DIY electronics
If you need a USB extension cable for various purposes, then it is not entirely necessary to buy one, especially if you already have a USB socket from something and some old USB plug. Speaking in the popular language - “dad” and “mama”.
Well, the connecting cable is not a problem at all: it is inexpensive, and perhaps, again, you have some leftovers. In the end, it can be woven from thin flexible cores and threaded into the same flexible tube.
The latest version of the cable may be even better than the purchased one.
I would even dare to say that a DIY USB device like this is much more pleasant to use, and the manufacturing process brings considerable satisfaction, you will agree.
How to attach a USB socket to a hard network cable
The assembly of my cable was somewhat complicated due to the fact that I had at my disposal not a USB cable socket, but a socket for printed circuit boards.
I had to first isolate the contacts from the back wall of the case.
And then from the bottom wall of the case (shown in the photo above).
For a cable that is not very rigid, for example, consisting of only two twisted pairs, you can use this method of attaching the socket to the cable.
First, using sewing thread, we attach a piece of polyvinyl chloride tube (cambric) to the cable. The end of the thread can be secured with melted rosin. We make two longitudinal cuts on the cambric and cable insulation.
It should look something like this. The resulting “petals” should be arranged in the form of a cross.
You can then solder the ends of the twisted pairs to the corresponding pins.
We attach the “petals” to the nest body with sewing thread. Secure the end of the thread with rosin.
Now you can improve the nest by putting on a heat-shrink tube or covering it with polyethylene (from a gun).
But, I only had a very rigid cable, so I had to make a more serious fastening.
First, I wound a copper wire with a diameter of 1.3 mm around the edge of the cable. Then I soldered the ends of this wire to the side walls of the USB socket.
To give additional rigidity to the structure, I covered the junction of the cable with the USB socket with low-temperature hot melt adhesive.
To give it a more attractive shape and improve the appearance of the connector, I covered it with heat-shrinkable tubing. IN
Attention! As the tube shrinks, hot melt adhesive may seep through the cracks into the inside of the socket. To prevent this, you can insert a gasket between the tube and the socket body or a plug into the socket. Then you won’t have to pick out the hot-melt glue from the socket.
Homemade twisted pair USB extension cable.
a homemade twisted pair USB extension cable as follows: - I had a piece of PRIME CAT5 E UTP cable - 18 meters. Conventional unshielded computer twisted pair cable for indoor installation. The cheapest network cable. To connect the web camera via USB, I needed a piece of cable 10 meters long, but I decided not to cut the piece I had and connect it all - for the experiment. As it turned out, it was quite successful.
the twisted-pair USB extension cable with dismountable female and male USB connectors purchased at a radio store.
Important point! I connected the blue pair of cable wires to D+ and D-. Why blue? – All four twisted pairs of the cable cores have different lay pitches. This is clearly visible if you remove the overall sheath of 10 - 15 centimeters from the UTP cable. So, the USB extension cable worked perfectly if the D+ and D- signals were sent through a blue or green pair of wires . If we put D+ and D- on the orange pair, then the USB extension cable did not work at all. The brown pair worked intermittently. Probably, the laying pitch of the blue and green pair of cores is ideal for the passage of a high-frequency USB signal (resonance, impedance, etc.).
I paralleled the other three pairs of cable cores and ran power through them - three colored wires plus, three striped wires minus.
A homemade twisted-pair USB extension cable works great - all USB devices connected to it are detected and work without problems. USB flash drive , USB card reader , USB Wi- Fi adapter , 3 MTS modem EasyCap – video capture device, USB DVB- T receiver – SDR radio, USB web camera . This is all that I tested on this homemade USB extension cable .
After a series of unsuccessful experiments with a short shielded wire, the functionality of the 18-meter USB extension cable seemed unrealistic. Subsequently, I made many USB extenders using this technology, and they all worked up to a length of 20 meters . For a longer length, I was never able to get the USB extension cord to work properly. USB devices are no longer detected.
Extension cable for 4G modem: maximum length, principle of operation, installation
An extension cord for a 4G standard modem is a very useful thing at home or when away when you have to use the mobile Internet. It is a portable external amplifier that is quite easy to assemble with your own hands.
A standard modem extension cord is used to move the device a long distance from a laptop or PC. In this case, a wire or cord is used based on an ordinary twisted pair with a USB output at the end. The length of the modem can be up to sixty meters, which allows you to select a location with maximum quality of the received signal.
How to do
You can easily make a standard 10-meter USB extension cable for a 4G modem yourself. For this, improvised means are suitable. The manufacturing algorithm is as follows:
- For the base of the device, a regular flashlight with a USB output is suitable; its tip with the lamp must be removed;
- Next, you should cut the connector plug with a knife and open the contacts. Using a soldering iron, you need to remove the wires from the connector, and then remove them and the stiffening wire from the connector;
- you need to shorten the flashlight tube to a length of fifteen centimeters, and then prepare four conductors with a length of 25 centimeters;
- insert the conductors into the tube and create a bend at the end of the wire so that the modem has good support;
- install wire into the tube for rigidity;
- in the case where the conductors are difficult to tighten, they may break after some time. Therefore, it is necessary to choose a tube with a large diameter so that all the elements in it are free;
- Next, you need to solder the conductors to the connector and connect the screens using stiffening wire, screwing pieces of copper to the ends;
- a socket for attaching a modem can be made from an adapter from an old PS/2 mouse to USB; to do this, one side of the case must be cut and the connectors and socket parts removed from it;
- then you need to solder the conductors to the connector;
- after soldering, you need to check the functionality of the extension cord using a regular flash drive;
- if the personal computer can see the flash drive, you should start assembling the device;
- the plug to the PC or laptop must be assembled and glued or taped;
- Carefully lay out the conductors and stiffening wire so that there are no mutual short circuits.
Note! You can also use a regular plastic bottle as a base.
Characteristics
The use of extenders within urban areas is much more effective compared to the use of active amplifiers or additional MIMO antennas.
If the user lives in an apartment, then it will be enough to place the modem near a window or secure it outside. Amplifiers are recommended for use in rural areas, where everything depends on distance.
It is for extended range operation that the antennas are designed.
How can you increase the speed of your modem?
Main characteristics of extension cords:
- a standard that uses a port and a USB cable for a 4G modem;
- distance of applied extension. The connection speed depends on the length of the wire; the shorter the wire, the higher it is;
- information transfer speed;
- food type. This can be an external unit or powered from a USB output;
- power consumed by the device;
- used connectors. RJ45 and regular USB connectors;
- cable category.
Extension cords purchased at retail outlets can be divided according to the place of use. They can be external or internal. The former will be well insulated and protected from moisture and dust. In the second case there will be a simple case.
Important! If you create the device yourself and plan to use it outdoors, then measures should be taken to ensure high-quality insulation of contact points and connectors.
Applications in other areas
Crimping a twisted pair of 4 cores - diagram and instructions
USB extension cables are used not only to move the modem to a place with the best signal. There are many other areas in which the presented equipment has actively proven itself. The use of extension cords is common in the following areas of activity:
- in security systems for installing CCTV cameras or regular web cameras;
- in mobile communications for installing modems that operate in the gsm standard;
- for scanners and printers that are shared over a local network;
- when holding various conferences and presentations, extension cords are used to connect a mouse or keyboard;
- all kinds of diagnostic and measuring equipment;
- interactive machines, terminals and barcode readers.
Completeness
How to share Internet from iPhone via USB to external devices
Often the supplied kit is minimal and includes:
- USB device directly over twisted pair cable (there must be a Host block and a Dev block);
- The second one comes with instructions.
Often the power supply itself is not supplied in the kit. In addition, you need to pay great attention to the wires used. If they are thin, the equipment may not have enough power. They also have insufficient shielding. This is fraught with the fact that the voltage will drop quite sharply and can drop to five volts.
In addition, with a large length of the wire itself and a small diameter, the transmitted electrical impulses will be weak and quite distorted by various interferences. In this case, the PC or laptop will have problems distinguishing the ones received from the zeros. This is fraught with frequent loss of connection as a result of the lack of transmitted data.
How to determine the quality of the purchased device
The extension cord itself has one most important part in its composition - this is the wire. It is by this that you can determine how high-quality the product was purchased.
A wire with an increased diameter has the lowest resistance value, and therefore its conductivity is increased. The material from which it is made also plays an important role.
Note! The highest quality wires are made from copper, since this material provides minimal resistance. Next come copper-plated and tinned wires.
You should pay attention to the build quality of the connectors. In the case of cheap Chinese devices, quite often they do not use the required gold plating, but rather the spraying of cheap paint, which quickly peels off. As a result, this leads to rapid oxidation of the contact site and an increase in resistance.
Making the right purchase is all about choosing the best wire. To do this, it doesn’t hurt to know its markings. The dependence of the thickness of the conductor on the length of the cord is shown here:
- 28 AWG = 0.81 meters;
- 26 AWG = 1.31 meters;
- 24 AWG = 2.08 meters;
- 22 AWG = 3.33 meters;
- 20 AWG = 5.00 meters.
AWG represents the cord gauge. As the number in front of it decreases, the cable diameter increases. As an example, a maximum wire length of five meters should be made from the thickest 20 AWG cable.
Extensions for modems that operate in the 4G standard can be assembled yourself or purchased ready-made. You need to know the main characteristics of the devices and points regarding the correct choice.
Podgornov Ilya Vladimirovich All articles on our site are audited by a technical consultant. If you have any questions, you can always ask them on his page.
Method 4: Purchasing a guide antenna
For anyone who does not want to build their own antennas, or for those who are simply not satisfied with this option, we recommend that you resort to ready-made solutions, which are called guide antennas. They can be difficult to find because not all electronics stores carry them. Therefore, you may need to order online or go to a radio market. Look at the parameters and technical characteristics of available devices and choose the best one for yourself. Do not hesitate to consult with the seller to get practical advice.
Setting up an adapter for a computer
But for a computer you will need a special program (driver) that would ensure communication between the gadget. Usually the driver comes with the device on a CD, but not in our case. The adapter has a small built-in memory, and when you connect it to a computer, it will be defined as a separate storage device with software on it. Next, you will need to launch the distribution and configure it, following the instructions on the screen. After this you can use the adapter.
Connecting a regular TV to the World Wide Web
Regular TVs (not Smart TVs) do not have network adapters, so you won’t be able to simply connect such a device to the Internet. But it is very easy to get around this limitation. It is enough to connect a special set-top box to the TV - Android TV Box, Apple TV or their equivalent. To the delight of owners of old TVs, such set-top boxes are now sold at affordable prices and their choice is very large.
A set-top box (media player) is a compact device that looks like a large flash drive or plastic box that will not only equip your TV with network interfaces, but also give it other “smart” functions. This is, in fact, a miniature computer with its own processor, memory, operating system and other attributes, the monitor of which is a TV, and the input device is a remote control. By the way, special keyboards and similar mice are produced for television set-top boxes, and many of them are compatible with regular ones.
TV set-top boxes are distinguished by technical parameters. They, like computers and smartphones, can be more or less productive. They have different processors, different amounts of RAM and permanent memory, and different interfaces. Such devices can connect to the Internet either by wire or over the air.
Set-top boxes, unlike removable Wi-Fi receivers, are universal, that is, compatible with various brands and models of TV. The only important thing is that both devices have the same connection interface. Usually this is HDMI, less often USB, and even less often other types.
Setting up the Internet on a TV with a media player is unlikely to cause difficulties for those who have at least once connected a smartphone or computer to the network. After all, they run on the same operating systems as mobile gadgets on a PC: Andriod, iOS, Windows.
How to properly connect the set-top box to the TV
- Turn off the power to both devices (if the set-top box does not have its own power adapter, then only the TV). To be safe, it is better to unplug the plugs from the sockets. Although the HDMI interface supports hot plugging, in fact it often burns out, especially if you connect devices, each of which has its own power source.
- Insert the media player or its cable into the HDMI or USB socket of the TV.
- Turn on your devices.
- Using the remote control supplied with the set-top box, go to the menu, and from there to the network settings.
Adapter device
We revealed the essence of this gadget, its main areas of application and talked about the tasks it copes with. Now it's time to find out about its structure.
So, before us is a disassembled accessory, or rather, its adapter. The USB/HDMI adapter is essentially a microcomputer with limited capabilities (the limitations come from the intended purpose of the device).
Any adapter from HDMI to USB has such an internal device, even one that is designed to work with a phone or tablet. It's time to talk about them.
Main tasks of the adapter
The operating mode of the adapter depends on the user's wishes.
In some cases, the device is capable of monitoring in real time what is happening on the main screen, copying all events occurring on it and broadcasting to an external device, i.e. the accessory acts as a backup (used if it is necessary to enlarge the image, for example, from a phone to TV).
In other cases, the adapter can be used in such a way that the additional monitor works independently from the common processor (this case is used when working at a computer, when the main screen is filled with applications and another video source is needed for ease of use).
Connecting TV to the Internet via an electrical outlet
The technology for transmitting data over electrical wires - PLC (PowerLine Communication) has existed for a long time, but is not yet very popular. However, soon, we must expect, its finest hour will come, because with the introduction of the Internet of Things and smart home systems into life, traditional wired communication will be difficult, and the radio airwaves will be oversaturated with information flows. Then the electrical network as a transmission medium will come in handy.
PLC is not an independent technology for connecting to the Internet; it transmits data according to the principle of Ethernet cable communication (if you do not take into account the peculiarities of transmission over power lines), but is devoid of its main drawback - the need to lay and mask wires. The places where devices are connected to the network are ordinary electrical sockets, or rather, special adapters installed in them.
PLC adapters, such as those in the picture, are supplied to the Russian, Belarusian and Ukrainian markets by TP-Link, ZyXEL, D-Link and some others. They cost around 1000-5000 rubles (the price depends on the transmission speed of Ethernet and PowerLine channels, the number of devices included, LAN ports and other options).
For comfortable viewing of high-definition video, it is optimal to buy a PLC with a transfer speed of 100 Mbit/s.
Connecting such devices is not difficult: the LAN ports of one PLC adapter module and the TV are connected with a patch cord, then the adapter is plugged into a power outlet. The second module is connected to the LAN connector of the router and an outlet near it. After this, set up wired Internet on TV in the usual way.
Content:
When working with computer equipment, some non-standard additional devices are often required. For example, when setting up a local network, you may need a cable of various lengths equipped with USB connectors. However, standard factory-made products do not always meet the requirements. In such cases, you have to make a USB extension cable yourself.
We connect the webcam via an active USB extension cable
First, let's try connecting a web camera to the computer using an extension cord. To do this, we connect the camera to an extension cord , and the extension cord is connected to the computer.
Photo: We connect the webcam via an active USB extension cable (click to enlarge).
The computer detects the camera, and the camera can be used almost immediately. Separately, I would like to note that the computer is already “familiar” with this camera. When working with the camera, I do not notice any presence of an extension cord in the connection between the camera and the computer. Next, I take a photo with the webcam itself, connected via an extension cord , of the entire connection.
Photo: Webcam operation via an active USB extension cable (click to enlarge).
The extender with the webcam , no complaints yet.
So, should I buy it or not?
At the beginning it was already said that HDMI to USB adapters are very rare, unusual things and are used to solve highly specialized problems. Their purchase directly depends on the needs of the future buyer. If you are a busy person and your work is done on a computer or you want to transfer a picture from a small phone or tablet to a large screen, then the purchase makes sense and may even be necessary. Since, according to reviews, this is a rather convenient device. In all other cases, the adapter will become just an additional accessory in your collection of modern but rarely used gadgets, as evidenced by some user reviews.
Owners of outdated computers or laptops quite often have problems connecting to a TV due to the lack of appropriate connectors. Today we will look at the possibility of connecting a personal computer to a TV using a USB to HDMI .
I would like to immediately note that we are talking about transmitting a video signal from a USB computer (or laptop) to the HDMI input of the TV, and not vice versa.
Method 3: Construction of a homemade antenna
Sometimes homemade antennas turn out to be very effective, but this depends on many conditions, which include the chosen type of design and the correctness of its implementation. Some recommend using regular wire, while others talk about remaking the satellite dish. You can familiarize yourself with all the available options for manually creating antennas in other material on our website by clicking on the link below. Keep in mind that such a device is not always effective, so think carefully before you start designing.
Read more: Do-it-yourself antenna for a modem
