I just got this job installing alarm systems. Now, listen, I am not a certified technician, but more of a helper. So please bare with me with these questions I have. My boss is a dick and I think is just a miserable bastard. So I do not communicate with him at all. Plus, I have not attended any technical or alarm installing classes. I just am intrigued with the way this electronic equipment works(communicates via airwaves, rf, ir, etc.). I know I am putting myself at risk by asking such trivial questions and therefore will probably be flamed with such responses like read a damn book, or search on technical websites for the information. I do not have the books, or any manuals and even the manuals I do get to read are only related to the system we are installing at the time. It doesn't inform me with the information I am about to ask about. The last post I posted, resulted with a with a few replies but did not inform me with the technical details for which I was hoping for. I am concerned with wireless systems and the way the sensors communicate with the Main Control Panel. Now, if you think that the answers are a bit top secret and should not be described on a security forum such as this, I understand and will find the information elsewhere, someday. It is not a life or death situation here, with me. I am just intrigued. I have some interesting thoughts on this subject and depending on the responses I receive, I will disclose my thoughts about this wireless intruder(burglar) industry. I think some of you will be interested with what my thoughts are. My name is not Paul(whoever that guy is). From what I understand by now, this guy Paul has been a pain in the ass to many of this newsgroup's members. Okay, we have the Main Control Unit, along with the pir sensors and all the perimeter units on the doors and windows. I know there are many other sensor units that detect noise, vibrations, etc. As I stated in one of my first posts, when the owner of the house, or retail store, or whatever warehouse or building is being secured by a wireless system, leaves the premises and activates their alarm system, the system is now in the armed mode. My question is, while in the armed mode, the sensors are up on the wall probably with a green diode light blaring without a blink. If the information I have already, the sensor transmits a certain code every so often as programed. This periodic transmission is a packet of some sort telling the MCU that it is working properly(that is is still there, the battery is still in good condition, all is well, etc.). Other than that, the sensor is just there in an idle mode. That is until an unidentified object consisting of a certain amount of heat passes through it's protected area. At that point, if I am correct, the unit transmits a message that tells the MCU that the closed alarm loop has been broken at that zone. An alarm message is then sent to the central monitoring station. Am I correct at this point? Please comment as to what I have written so far. Okay, if while the system is armed and the owners of the facility are away, the sensor is idle and only transmits to the MCU the "all is well" packet periodically as programmed. Now, without any detection of an intruder passing by, how often does the unit transmit these packets. There is probably an industry set amount of minutes or hours that these are sent, right? At that moment is there a blink in the green diode on the unit, or no? I am aware that most of the frequencies used in the USA operate on either 315mhz, 433mhz, or
868mhz, am I correct? When these packets are sent to the MCU what do they consist of? Is it just a burst of one of these frequencies, or are they encoded or encrypted with a particular message? Once again, exactly how many minutes apart are they sent. Don't get me wrong, I think if I just sit under the sensor in a blind spot with a rf frequency counter, I would be able to determine exactly when they are transmitted. We are talking only about wireless systems here. I do have an underlying interest for asking these questions and when an expert in this forum addresses my post, I will initiate a very interesting discussion. Please give me a full explaination to all parts of my post. Trust me when I say that you will be interestingly surprised to what my thoughts are regarding this subject matter. Thank you, Frank Accavanno- posted
12 years ago