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Tell
Me More About Alarm Control Panels
Zones
- General
The main feature normally used to describe alarm control panels
is the number of "zones" available on the control
panel. A zone is an input on an alarm system to which sensors
are connected. The word "zone" comes from the time
when most alarm systems only had 2 or 3 inputs and so sensors
had to be connected together in groups (called zones) before
being connected to the alarm panel. For example you might
connect all of the basement sensors to zone 1, all of the
main floor sensors to zone 2 and all of the upper floor sensors
to zone 3. Or you might connect all of the motion sensor to
zone 1, all of the door switches to zone 2 and all of the
window switches to zone 3.
Grouping
sensors together this way has several disadvantages;
- When
dispatching emergency response forces to an alarm it is
always better to be able to state that the alarm is coming
from the "upper floor east motion sensor" as opposed
to "a motion sensor somewhere in the building".
- If
you experience a false alarm problem it is much simpler
(and therefore less expensive) to repair the problem when
the alarm technician knows exactly which sensor is causing
the problem.
- You
cannot arm an alarm system until all of the sensors are
secure. If you have left a window open somewhere in the
building it is nice to have the system tell you exactly
which window is open rather than having to check every protected
opening.
- Modern
systems allow you to bypass individual zones before turning
on the alarm system. This allows you to do things such as
turning on all sensors in a home except for the bedroom
window on a hot summer night. If a large group of sensors
were connected together you would greatly reduce your protection
when anything was bypassed.
Modern
alarm systems provide many more zones (inputs) than in the
past and it is very rare to group large numbers of sensors
together. In the majority of cases each zone is now connected
to a single sensor but the word zone has stuck.
So
how many sensors should be connected to a zone? There are
no hard and fast rules but the following are often considered;
- The
type of devices - Motion sensors are far more likely to
cause a false alarm than a door or window switch. Whenever
possible connect only 1 motion sensor per zone.
- The
layout of the devices - It is okay to connect up to 3 or
4 door and window switches to a single zone if necessary
and sometimes it can simplify the system and reduce the
cost. An example might be in a commercial premise with large
numbers of doors or windows all in a row.
- Special
Considerations - Zones can be programmed to have different
functions. For example;
- The
front door might be programmed to provide a delay before
triggering the alarm to allow you to shut off the system
when entering, while the rear door might not require a delay.
- The
basement motion sensor in your home might be programmed
to be active when you arm your system at night, while you
may want the motion sensor in the bedroom hall to be bypassed
so that you can get up and walk to the kitchen in the night.
This type of feature is usually referred to as "stay/away"
(or "home/away") arming. Dedicated buttons on
the alarm keypad are used to select the stay or away mode.
The system can even be programmed to automatically determine
whether or not you are at home and then arm only the sensors
that are required.
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