Page 10 - Security Today, March 2021

Cutting the Cord How wireless is advancing the security industry
By Paul Saldin
Long before anyone coined “Internet of Things,” the security industry began to lay the foundations for what would become the 21st cen- tury smart home.
In the early 1990s, engineers working at ITI perfected a new kind of transmit- ter that, over time, catapulted the security industry into the future.
These wireless sensors were complex because they were designed with custom Integrated Circuits and discrete transmit- ter circuits. The transmission frequency was tightly controlled by a quartz crystal. This allowed them to have great range us- ing narrow-band receivers.
Many forward looking security dealers began installing wireless sensors when it became clear they were reliable and much easier to install than pulling wires.
Wireless sensors made the first self-con- tained alarm panel possible, and soon we had the Simon panel by ITI. It wasn’t long before other security technology companies grasped the importance of this innovation, and came out with their own new sensors.
The self-contained panel--with its user interface on the front and battery and elec- tronics on the inside--was an architectural innovation that proved to be a game-changer for the security industry. For the first time, security panels did not need to be installed in basements and utility closets. They could be placed on a wall near the front door, or on a kitchen counter -- a more convenient location for homeowners and installers alike.
This was also the dawn of a fundamen- tal change to the industry: the gradual move by installers away from charging for a full day’s labor pulling cables and instead shifting to the recurring revenue model.
ADVANCING THE TECHNOLOGY
The quick installs of wireless systems changed the economics of the security business. While some dealers fretted over lost revenue from stringing wires, the scrappier among them saw the obvious opportunity to serve more customers and scale the business with RMR.
These are the installers who have gained
the most in the past two decades as wireless interfaces have proliferated, cell connectiv- ity has become ubiquitous, and home auto- mation formats have become reliable.
Today, dealers who have cut the cord can also serve their customers more effectively. The remote control and access of security systems—including software and technology upgrades—enabled customer service without having to roll a truck every time someone needs a configuration change or an upgrade.
RMR and remote control have brought many benefits to the installer, but there is another advantage to wireless systems that’s crucial today and will only grow increasing- ly more vital in the years ahead: flexibility.
Twenty years ago, consumers didn’t en- vision placing sensors in their front yards, hundreds of feet away from the porch. They couldn’t imagine small cameras at- tached to trees in their backyards.
But a series of technological advance- mentsopenedupaworldofnewpossibilities. Low-power microcontrollers and off- the-shelf wireless IC’s have simplified the design of wireless sensors and opened up new applications. Cellular and broadband communication paths have become wide- spread, reliable, and economical. Stan- dardized wireless LAN protocols like Wi-
Fi, Zwave, Zigbee, and Bluetooth LE have evolved to the point of being cost effective and reliable. These are just a few of the innovations that added flexibility, quality and reliability to wireless security systems.
Now that consumers know that long- distance signaling, and extending their se- curity perimeters to include the yard and exterior reaches of their properties, can be accomplished without a major landscap- ing effort, it has expanded the address- able market for each installation. Today, multiple wireless technologies are used to address the various needs of a modern se- curity and home automation system.
Now that wireless technologies have achieved superiority, they are being fully utilized in our continually-evolving systems. There are many advantages to cutting the cord, including the ease of install and re- mote system management. But one advan- tage towers above the rest: Now Security Pros can future-proof
their customers in ad- dition to keeping them safe.
Paul Saldin is vice president of engineering at Alula.
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MARCH 2021 | SECURITY TODAY
WIRELESS TECHNOLOGY
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