Space Protection Design

Motion Detector
Motion Detector
Photo Beam

What is "Space Protection"?

It means that you will monitor the interior spaces for any sign of movement.  The advantage is that you do not need to monitor every pane of glass in the building, but rather catch the intrusion when they walk through the protected area.  Many homes can get away with one motion detector in a high traffic or hub area of the house and therefore can have a very economical solution.  The more motion detectors you use, the more rapid the detection can occur.

The draw back of the approach are that the motion detectors assume that there is not going to be any motion in the protected area while the system is armed in "Away Mode".  When people are home or if pets are going to have run of the house while the system is armed, we recommend using "Stay Mode".  For this reason, many people use a hybrid mode that consists of a combination of motion detectors and glass break detectors.

How Motion Detectors Work

Motion detectors are an important part of many security systems.  They provide efficient, versatile protection of spaces within a home or business.  In most security system designs, all of the exterior doors are contacted, leaving the task of detecting an intrusion through windows or elsewhere.  That is where motion detectors come in.  If an intruder got into your property, it would be the job of the motion detector to detect that unauthorized intrusion and signal it to the control panel.

Where to put Motion Detectors

It is usually good to place motion detectors on levels of your property where window entry is feasible.  A single motion detector in the basement is often used to cover the entire space.  It is normally placed in a location where it would detect the intruder before they could go upstairs.  On the main level of the home, we often place a motion detector in the foyer of the home as a high traffic area, and more importantly, to prevent an intruder from getting upstairs undetected.  In larger homes a second motion detector in the back of the home is sometimes also recommended.

Characteristics of Motion Detectors

As discussed in the section on Space protection security systems, motion detectors are very efficient and even in a perimeter protection security system, they make a good second line of defense.  There main limitation is that they are only effective in protecting a space where no one is expected to be.  Therefore, when you are moving around your home or business, the motion detector will need to be disabled.  You can disable your motion detectors by arming the security system to ‘stay’ mode.  In this mode the motion detectors are not active.  In newer Honeywell security systems, there is also a ‘night’ mode that allows you to select which motion detectors are active.  With night mode, people often turn the basement motion detector on.

Types of Motion Detectors

  • Wireless motion detectors are battery powered and are used in situations where running a wire to the control panel might not be practical or efficient.  While the equipment costs a little more, installation is simpler.  Honeywell offers several different wireless motion detectors including the 5800PIR, 5800 PIR-RES, 5800 PIR-COM, and the 5898.
  • Pet Immune: One of the most important developments in motion detector technology is the introduction of the pet immune feature.  This is accomplished in one of two ways.  The original way of doing it was to mask off areas where the pet was likely to be walking, such as the floor for example.  This approach was also called “Pet Alley”.  The newer technique attempts to determine the size of the moving object and tries to ignore anything under 40, 80, or 100 lbs that is moving near the floor.  While these motion detectors deliver outstanding results, they still will occasionally yield a false alarm when several animals are moving together or when they climb on furniture or come down the steps.
  • Outdoor Photo Beams: Motion detectors can also be used outdoors to protect equipment and inventory stored outdoors.  False alarms are difficult to prevent with traditional motion detectors when animals might be present.  Photo beams provide effective perimeter protection by detecting when someone crosses the beam at a particular height
SHIELD Security Systems | 7111 W. 151st Street, Suite 30 | Overland Park, KS 66223 | (913) 667-7500