The tin-can antenna: A boon for third world

Elisabetta Povoledo International Herald Tribune
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2006

TRIESTE, Italy A physics research institute here is using a low-cost but effective tool to bolster communications in developing countries: the tin-can antenna.

Made from a can (the best are those used for seed oil, their creators say), a screw-on connector and a short brass wire, the "cantenna" is promoted by researchers as a cheap and efficient tool to amplify access to information and communication technologies in some of the world's poorest and often most remote areas. Cantennas work like regular antennas but cost around €2, or $2.40, to build, while those purchased in a store can cost several hundred euros. They are directional antennas and can be used for short- to medium-distance point-to-point links. They can also be used as feeders for parabolic dishes. That means that by aligning a series of cantennas, it is possible to receive signals from a distant receiver using one or more repeaters, which send, amplify and redirect radio waves, and send signals to remote areas...

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