Outdoor, wireless passive infrared sensors (PIRs) from OPTEX have proved so successful in the field that they have changed the way an expert at Amron Security specifies and installs security equipment.
OPTEX outdoor PIRs
OPTEX worked with Amron Security to protect an isolated residential property in a rural location in the West Midlands (UK). Exposed on all four sides by main roads and fields, the owner was concerned that the property, including detached garages, would be a vulnerable target for intruders.
Paul Bishop, Contracts Manager and Senior Installer at Amron Security, was at first sceptical when OPTEX proposed using wireless PIRs: “As an installer I feel more comfortable using outdoor sensors only when alarms can be visually verified remotely, as it is far from ideal for false or nuisance alarms to trigger with no possibility for verification,” he says. “However, I haven’t experienced any false alarm problems with OPTEX’s outdoor PIRs, which have performed flawlessly.”
Low false alarm rates, high detection rates
The PIRs specified by OPTEX include five of its VXI-R and two FTN-R sensors, featuring some of the lowest false alarm rates and highest detection rates in the industry. They are both battery-operated outdoor detectors that wirelessly connect to a Ricochet®-enabled alarm panel via OPTEX’s recently launched, pre-configured and pre-connected Ricochet®-enabled wireless transmitter, the BGR-01, which is fitted into the back of each sensor.
The VXI-R sensors have a 12m wide angle of detection, while the FTN-R sensors provide a shorter – up to 5m – detection range in a curtain-like pattern. Combining the two variants therefore provides the optimum security defence.
OPTEX analytics programming
All the sensors are equipped with OPTEX’s latest analytics programming that includes small animal tolerance, vegetation detection, and enhanced weather protection to ensure false alarms are avoided. The sensors are tamper-proof and have a battery life lasting around three years.
Amron Security maintains the sensors and provides a remote monitoring service; it is automatically informed if an alarm occurs. “Since the installation in 2016 there has not been a single false alarm,” Paul adds. “The technology has performed to such a high standard that my PIR concerns have been mitigated and we are specifying OPTEX’s sensors at further sites.
“My concerns over battery life have also been dispelled, since it is now more than 18 months since the first detectors were installed and they continue to work without interruption.”
Jacques Vaarre, Managing Director of OPTEX Europe, EMEA headquarters, says the state-of-the-art sensors are specifically manufactured to reduce false alarms: “The stability of our outdoor PIRs is paramount – and that they are so reliable to change the opinion of industry experts is very encouraging.”
