The Essential Install Live show comes to Farnborough Exhibition centre on 30th April - 1st May and for the first time Faradite will be there to showcase our range of home automation accessories. The Faradite stand will display the complete range of TAP switches, our tiny Motion Sensor 360 and more...

Where to find us

You will find the Faradite stand near the entrance of the show on stand 36.

 

Motion sensors provide an essential part of most effective 21^st century smart homes and the functionality they allow is vast. Simply speaking, the purpose of a motion sensor is to detect a person entering or moving around the room. The trigger is then passed to the smart home system to decide how the building should respond. Features in a smart home that are linked to motion sensing can include: automatic lighting, alarm triggering, automatic heating overrides and many other specific applications, the imagination of the integrator is the only limit.

Whilst it is becoming more common to see motion sensors in hallways and thoroughfares, a smart home can be greatly enhanced by installing motion sensors in a wide range of places throughout the building. We recommend, as a minimum, that a Faradite Motion Sensor is installed in bathrooms, hallways and all communal areas. We would also advise cabling for any rooms where there may be a requirement to install a motion sensor in the future.

Also, the exact position of the motion sensor in the room should be carefully considered to ensure you get optimal functionality and avoid any unwanted triggering of the sensor. Here are some top tips to consider to ensure perfect motion sensor placement:

Consider how people will use the room and where they are likely to enter - Putting a motion sensor immediately above the door is great to detect people entering the room, but also bear in mind the motion sensor should detect people as they use the rest of the space. Remember: The Faradite Motion Sensor 360 range will detect movement within the ~8m diameter (at floor level) sensing area when installed in a 3m high ceiling. The detection area is reduced to 5.6m by 6.6m when mounted in a 2.5 m high ceiling. The diagram below shows the exact sensing area of the sensor at various heights.

Ensure the motion sensor won’t be falsely triggered by movement outside the intended detection area - a motion sensor in the middle of a small room might be triggered by the feet of someone walking along the hallway. Consider moving the motion sensor towards the corner of the room to avoid false triggers from people using adjoining rooms.

In larger spaces consider multiple sensors to give complete coverage of the room - it is better to have overlapping detection zones than risk missing areas of larger rooms.

Ensure key pieces of furniture where you are likely to dwell are covered by motion sensors - for example, make sure the living room motion sensor detection area includes the sofa is a good idea.

Be aware of glass impacting detection areas – PIR Motion sensors cannot detect through glass, so consider how motion sensor detection areas will be impacted by something like a shower door/screen.

Remember to consider regulations for installations where zoning applies. The Faradite Motion Sensor 360 range is IP20. Please refer to applicable building regulations at the time of installation for guidance.

Bear in mind the 3D detection area - As a motion sensor detection area is a cone shape originating from the motion sensor, if you are near the edge of the detection area only your feet will be detected.

So far we have only considered the ceiling as a possible location to mount Faradite motion sensors. Whilst this is the most common location, motion sensors don’t need to be installed up high. There are many other great locations to install a motion sensor for some specific applications:

Inside wardrobes/joinery - Turn on wardrobe lighting as soon as a user opens the wardrobe doors.

Under desks - If the homeowner decides to work from home, sitting at their desk for more than a few moments can adjust the lights and set the heating to ‘Working from home’ mode.

Vanity Units - Ensure the perfect lighting is automatically triggered for the morning routine by installing Faradite motion sensors in furniture such as vanity units. As Faradite motion sensors can be painted, it is possible to colour match the sensor with the material it is being installed in to, making the sensor almost invisible. (NOTE: The lens itself can’t be painted, only the solid white plastic case. To paint the sensor, remove the PIR first by removing the two screws in the back of the sensor)

Garage - Keep an eye on the car with garage motion sensors linked to the building automation system that can for example send you a notification on your phone if motion is detected. The garage is another essential space to utilise automatic lighting, especially when your hands are full.

On the wall - The Faradite Motion Sensor 360 range is very discreet, why not consider mounting them vertically in a wall to give more detection area flexibility.

There are many benefits of motion based automation and all start by having correctly installed motion sensors. The Faradite Motion Sensor 360 range ensures consistent, reliable motion sensing from one of the most discreet sensors available.

Faradite motion sensors are compatible with Lutron, Crestron, Control4 & Loxone (as well as most other control systems) thanks to the volt free version of our sensors. So whatever your control system of choice is, make sure you use the Faradite Motion Sensor 360 Range for all your motion sensing needs.

For further technical information including electrical connections please refer to our datasheets:

Faradite Motion Sensor 360 – Volt Free Datasheet

Faradite Motion Sensor 360 – 0-10V Datasheet

 

 

 

Ensuring you pick the right sensor for your project is essential to ensuring your overall system functions as expected.

Faradite motion sensors are designed to connect to low voltage smart home / building automation control systems. Our sensors are not designed to turn on/off 240V AC lights directly; they are designed to be connected to a control system. Which will then in turn, turn lights on or off, boost the heating or any other function the integrator wishes to trigger from the motion detected event.

Almost all home, building and lighting controllers on the market have an input available for simple devices that simply report their status by turning on/off. This enables the integrator to integrate motion sensors, door contacts, push buttons etc into the overall smart home automation solution.

TYPES OF INPUTS

These inputs are referred to by many names, depending on the controller used (digital inputs, contact closures and contact inputs etc). For the rest of this blog, we will generically refer to these as “inputs”.

There are two types of input:

1. Voltage detection – these types of input measure the voltage signal of the connected device, typically looking for a ~12-24V signal
2. Dry Contact / Volt Free – these inputs detect if there is a complete circuit between two terminals

The diagram below shows how these two types of input would typically be wired.

 

Please note that with some controllers you will be able to specify if the input is in voltage detection or closure detection mode, when other systems are fixed to one or the other. Please refer to the manufactures' guidance about which type of input your control system expects.

ANALOG INPUTS

Some control systems have analog inputs for use with sensors that have a variable value rather than just 'on/off'. These inputs typically take a voltage between 0-10V. The Faradite Motion Sensor 360 (LUX 0-10V) sensor has a 0-10V light sensor output that can be connected to these inputs.

But be careful - don’t confuse these 0-10V inputs with 0-10V outputs which are typically used in some older systems to dim lighting ballasts.

The Faradite Motion Sensor 360 (LUX 0-10V) has a 0-10V output and can be mapped as follows: 0V = 0 LUX and 10V = 1000 LUX.

Typically, the controller is programmed to make use of this value i.e. only turn on the lights when the motion detected event is triggered if the LUX level is lower than 300 LUX (3V).

VOLT FREE vs DRY CONTACT

To avoid any confusion, there are two main terms used to refer to a device that has a switch or relay with both of its terminals exposed for connection; volt free or dry contact. These terms can be used interchangeably, and, for the remainder of this blog, we will refer to this type of connection exclusively as volt free.

NORMALLY OPEN VS NORMALLY CLOSED

There are two types of volt free devices, 'normally open' and 'normally closed'. Normally open devices are turned off (i.e. no connection between the terminals) when in their default state, when triggered they close and a connection is made. Normally closed devices are the opposite; they are normally closed and when triggered they open. All Faradite’s motion sensors are normally open.

If the control system being used expects a normally closed input then there is generally an option either on the controller or in the controllers' software to invert the input. Care should be taken to select the right type of input when programming the system to avoid any odd behaviour during commissioning.

TIMEOUT

Our sensors have a ~1 second timeout so that after the subject has stopped moving or moved outside the detection cone, the sensor will return to an open state after 1 second.

We therefore recommend using a timer in the control software to turn the light off after a set duration of time, depending on the controller this might require a timer to be implemented in the control logic. Some controllers have the timer functionality built into the lighting control logic and therefore one simply must adjust the software parameters to suit. Please see the manufactures' guidance on how to use volt free motion sensors for more information.

CHOICE OF SENSOR

The table below shows our two sensors and their compatibility with the various types of input that we have discussed in this blog. 

So, to conclude, the choice of sensor is simply based on the type of input that the controller expects. If you are unsure which sensor is most suited to your project, please don’t hesitate to get in contact and we will be more than happy to advise.

If you need any more support, don’t hesitate to get in touch with the technical team.