Patent ID: 8290551

Claim:
A method to position a wireless antenna module to receive from or transmit to a network, the method comprising: a) positioning the wireless antenna module to a first initial position, the wireless antenna module comprising an antenna array having a main beam with a beam width; b) rotating the main beam of the antenna array substantially azimuthally 360 degrees in steps of N degrees, wherein N is a fixed or variable number; i) for each step of N degrees the main beam of the antenna array is rotated, performing a scan to detect available networks; and ii) for each of the detected available networks, recording, in a database, an entry associated with the network wherein the entry comprises an azimuth angle, a name, and a signal quality parameter; c) selecting a network from the detected available networks by: i) manually selecting a desired network from the detected available networks in the database; or ii) automatically selecting the desired network from the detected available networks in the database using a plurality of predefined parameters comprising a network name, a network profile, an encryption status, and a signal quality parameter; d) determining a new position for the main beam by: i) reviewing entries recorded in the database, and using a closed loop control structure to move the main beam of the antenna array to the new position corresponding to a substantially maximum signal quality parameter recorded in the database for the selected network; or ii) moving the main beam of the antenna array in steps of N degrees, recording at each step, a signal quality parameter and comparing the recorded signal quality parameter to a maximum value in the database, and if the recorded signal quality parameter is equal to or larger than the maximum value, stopping at the corresponding step as the new position; and e) connecting the wireless antenna module to the selected network.