does anyone know how the sensors talk to the hub, does the hub poll the sensors every few seconds/minutes to see if they are still up? or does the sensor talk to the hub only , when it changes state from open to close?
“Wireless keyboards and mice use RF links at 27Mhz or 2.4Ghz. Cordless phones use 900Mhz, 2.4Ghz, and now 5.8Ghz. Key fobs, garage door openers, and some home automation systems use 315Mhz or 434Mhz.”
My understanding is the bridge polls the sensors once each hour regardless of the sensor state. The sensors send status changes whenever they detect an event. Unfortunately, I was unable to find the polling info in the existing documentation.
(MOD NOTE: Please avoid crossposting questions in multiple threads.)
sry for the cross post & thanks for the info.
that info about the one hour poll time might be the key to solving this.
Maybe sensors are remaining up for 59 minutes & then go offline after a poll. or the poll time is too long (i guess the poll frequency partly determines the battery life)?
Yes, polling was kept to minimum in an attempt to extend battery life in the sensors.
could you find the frequency for us? it could be interference with another RF device ( wireless keybord/ cordless phone/ garage opener) at home.
Sensor Communication Method 915MHz RF
From the specs
thanks, 915mhz is commonly used RF in homes. any guess on how to switch frequency, or increase the antennae size?
I have a contact sensor that does not register “close” state some times (or most of the times). The red light still turns on when I close it, I was thinking that the state message to the bridge was lost. But if bridge is polling every hour, the next poll the correct state should be reported. Then it looks like the sensor is not registering the close action and still thinks it’s open?
On the OP’s off-line problem, why hasn’t anyone mentioned distance?
In my experience, ‘off-line’ is mostly due to distance, metal objects, and walls if the sensor is working. I had a motion sensor that was about 35 feet away from my bridge going thru 4 walls with a big metal box called a refrigerator in between, and that sensor would go off-line about half the time.
I moved the bridge to a more central location where the sensor only had to transmit 20 feet thru 2 walls with no metal, and it works great now.
If you have a big house you may need multiple bridges in multiple cams to keep all sensors within easy reach.
Mine keeps going off line. The sensor is less than 5’ from the camera. Both are near the wireless router. There are three other WiFi devices in the room and no other radio sources. The sensor connects when I remotely reboot the camera, but it won’t stay online.
here is a post including someone who was able to increase the size of the antenna and said it has worked quite well…
has anyone tried soldering a mains supplied DC 3V supply to the sensor in lieu of the battery? would a full plus 3v remove distance issues?
OK, I tried the method of attaching a wire to extend the antenna, signal strength is definitely boosted. Now it looks like working correctly. I will need to wait and see in daily use how well it is holding up. I am curious why the weak signal would affect the “close” status getting to the bridge, but not the “open” status. Maybe the door itself is interfering with the signal?
Can someone post pics of how to do this please?..
Thanks!
It’s frustrating, while the sensor with the extended antenna works ok, another sensor got the same problem right after I fixed the first one! Not sure if there is a bug on the bridge, causing the sensor with the weakest signal to drop some messages! If that’s the case, then there is no point fixing the signal strength.
I imagine that one was marginal and you didn’t notice it. Try the antenna trick there too. I have 3 sensors on-line and none drop ever.
Just did the trick on that sensor, working normally, but need more time to see if it’s stable.