A Revolution in Monitoring – The Sensor Notification Matrix

AKCPBlog

Bangkok, Thailand. September 16, 2005

AKCP, the world’s leader in environmental and security monitoring, today announced the revolutionary Sensor Notification Matrix. A major innovation, the Sensor Notification Matrix is available in all AKCP Linux-based products (cameraProbe8 and sensorProbe8Linux series).

Never before has such versatility been available to protect assets and infrastructure. Send alerts via Email, SNMP trap, SMS, MMS, Text to Speech, Telephone calls and more. The Sensor Notification Matrix can be customized by users to transmit unique notification messages. With the Sensor Notification Matrix, the flexibility of notification for individual sensors on the sensorProbe8Linux-X60, sensorProbe8Linux, sensorProbe8Linux-X20 and cameraProbe8 is substantially increased.

Play wav file Sound alarms or verbalized custom messages through the built-in and external speakers. Use an optional external modem, telephone to targeted persons and notify them with customized text-to-speech. Alternatively, create your own personal scripts, which can be run whenever specific events arise. If the Ethernet is down, the modem can be used to dial into an ISP and deliver Emails and traps.

For Email, SMS, MMS, Speech, and Telephone calls, the notification message can be completely customized by users. There are also pre-defined “macros” which provide information from the system, and may be used to build up a meaningful message. Some available macros are sensor type, sensor description, sensor status, IP address, and system date and time.

Each individual sensor may have different settings which can execute any alarm. Alarms can also be escalated so that different people are notified with different messages. For example, an e-mail alarm for a temperature sensor is sent to the maintenance staff, while an alarm from the security sensor will be telephoned to the security officer. Or, the alert for a Digital Voltmeter sensor is sent via SNMP trap whereas the alert for a dry contact on another port is sent via both e-mail and SNMP trap. That is just part of what the Sensor Notification Matrix is capable of.

The configuration can even be modified per sensor status. For instance, the SMS notification settings for humidity sensor three can use one set of phone numbers for High Warning and another set of phone numbers for High Critical status. Expensive MMS and SMS messages can be limited depending on the sensor type, the severity status of the sensor, the time of day, the duration of the error, the day of week. SMS and MMS messages can be sent with an optional external mobile phone allowing messages to be sent when the Ethernet is down or when the modem cannot dial out.

To protect against excessive alerts there are filter configurations on every type of notification, where the alarm can delayed for a certain period of time before being sent out. There is also an option to limit notifications in accordance with specific time of day and day of week. The AKCP designed graphical interface makes time and date filter setting very easy.

The cameraProbe8 includes an integrated CCD camera and supports up to 3 additional external analog security cameras. The sensorProbe8Linux allows up to 4 additional external analog security cameras. Pictures can be recorded whenever a sensor event occurs. The Sensor Notification Matrix allows each sensor event to be customized so that the camera and the number of pictures can be configured. For example, whenever the security sensor indicates that the front door has been opened a recording for 2 seconds prior to the event and then for 5 seconds after the event will be recorded. When the motion detector indicates that someone is in the main computer room a single picture is recorded, but only if that motion occurs at night or on the weekend.

Pictures may be stored in the internal flash disk drive or an unlimited number of pictures may be automatically saved to an external server. Pictures from any or all of the 4 cameras may be attached to an email or MMS message.

Up to 8 optional external relays or included control outputs can be configured to control external equipment. For example, a motion detector can turn on a light in a computer room. The light will stay on for 5 minutes after the event occurs if requested.

The internal speaker and optional external speakers can be made to play prerecorded wav files or text to voice messages. In one example the sound that is played when temperature sensor 8 goes to high warning can be a different sound file, played at a different volume when the sensor goes to high critical. Then when temperature sensor 7 goes to high warning a text to voice message can be played that tells the operator send a maintenance crew to the computer room.

The Sensor Notification Matrix is available for free via a firmware update to existing AKCP customers, and is standard for all new sales. All AKCP Linux based products include all software, wall and rack mount brackets, and a sensorRemote with 1,000 foot range dual temperature and humidity sensor. The sensorProbe8Linux starts at $1,395. The cameraProbe8, which includes a high quality SONY CCD pan and tilt camera is available now at $1,795.

About cameraProbe8 and sensorProbe8Linux

The cameraProbe8 and sensorProbe8Linux are the premier environmental and security monitoring devices. The cameraProbe8 integrates a SONY CCD camera which is mounted on a precision stepper motor with the ability to pan and tilt. Both systems support connection with external security cameras. They include full Linux. Hardware boasts a 32-bit ARM processor, 128 Megabytes of Flash and 64 Megabytes of SDRAM along with a 10/100 Mbps Ethernet and 2 serial ports. Software utilities include many applications; such as Apache web server, Bash, Perl, Vi, Telnet, PHP, Email, Nagios, and RRDTool, Video Conferencing. The cameraProbe8 and sensorProbe8Linux supports full SNMP functionality, relying on our 24 years of SNMP monitoring experience.

About AKCP

AKCP Inc., established in 1981, is the oldest and largest manufacturer of IP based environmental and security monitoring solutions. Over 15,000 organizations use AKCP solutions for disaster prevention and infrastructure security. Providing early warning of threats to the integrity of a company’s data and assets, AKCP serves the Rack Mount, Telecommunications, Power, and Food and Beverage Industries, Corporate Data Centers and Wiring Closets, Hospitals, Educational Institutions, Department of Defense, and many more industries requiring the ultimate in natural and man made disaster prevention.

AKCPA Revolution in Monitoring – The Sensor Notification Matrix