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Third-party wireless control?
chill
Posts: 186
I have a museum job where the client wants wireless remotes to run their A/V and lighting cues. We actually did the install last summer and fall (2007), and the grand opening was in February 2008. The idea is that the tour guide pushes the button for "I'm in room 206", then presses "next", and the lights go and the video plays. We used TXC-16 remotes with AXR-RF receivers. There are two remotes so they can have two tours going at once, and two receivers (one per floor). Yes, I know about "debounce".
The problem is that this is Washington DC, an extremely hostile environment for anything RF. We have 30 or 40 police radio systems floating around, plus military radar and other unmentionables. The TXC system is experiencing all kinds of interference which causes missed pushes, multiple pushes, etc.
We have considered running the TXCs IR, but this is not feasible for a number of reasons (historic building, the renovation is complete, blah blah).
My first attempt will be to try running the TXC at a different frequency. We are currently running at 310MHz, but I have another set of remotes and receivers at 418MHz, which I will try at the next opportunity. In case this does no good, my question is...
Has anyone tried, for example, a third-party Zigbee device? I like the Mio R-x remotes, but they are too complicated for the end user here. (The tour guides are largely graduate students majoring in history, if you catch my drift.) It would be nice if the Mios were custom-engravable like the TXCs.
The other idea that came up was to use PDAs in conjunction with G3 web control - anyone done something like that?
Thanks in advance for any ideas.
The problem is that this is Washington DC, an extremely hostile environment for anything RF. We have 30 or 40 police radio systems floating around, plus military radar and other unmentionables. The TXC system is experiencing all kinds of interference which causes missed pushes, multiple pushes, etc.
We have considered running the TXCs IR, but this is not feasible for a number of reasons (historic building, the renovation is complete, blah blah).
My first attempt will be to try running the TXC at a different frequency. We are currently running at 310MHz, but I have another set of remotes and receivers at 418MHz, which I will try at the next opportunity. In case this does no good, my question is...
Has anyone tried, for example, a third-party Zigbee device? I like the Mio R-x remotes, but they are too complicated for the end user here. (The tour guides are largely graduate students majoring in history, if you catch my drift.) It would be nice if the Mios were custom-engravable like the TXCs.
The other idea that came up was to use PDAs in conjunction with G3 web control - anyone done something like that?
Thanks in advance for any ideas.
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We as the programmers / installers determine the ease of use factor for the product; though will admit the R-x series would not be ideal in this situation, but I'm sure someone will say you can make an R-4 do anything in any situation.
About the G3 web page idea - G3 web pages and new masters with Duet firmware generally don't mix well and if reliability is your desired result don't go down that path.
There also is the option of using the MX-3000 (http://www.universalremote.com/product_detail.php?model=34) or other URC remote combined with the MSC-400 base station that accepts the RFX-250 RF antenna module. This antenna array should give you much better coverage and reception than the AXR-RF. The MSC-400 can be programmed to output RS-232 which of course can be read by the AMX to do whatever you want and there are a ton of remotes to pick from that will work. Here is a cut from the URC website:
"The RFX-250 displays RF interference via a bright red LED which flickers when interference is present. Simply relocate the RFX-250 out of the interference area. The RFX-250 is separately mounted in the interference-free location and connected to the MSC-400 or MRF-350 base station by a three conductor cable up to 150 feet away.
By combining additional RFX-250 antenna modules in parallel using a three conductor wire connected to a centrally located base station, custom installers can extend "no more pointing" RF automation to all areas and rooms of even the largest estates. "
I vaguely recall somewhere that you can get buttons engraved for the R-3 (possibly other remotes), but before you buy one, I wonder if you have done an RF analysis to see if you will have similar problems with ZigBee or any other wireless. There is a tool out there that costs $200-$400 last I checked (they have 2 different versions) at metageek.net. This will not test all of the RF spectrum, but it can help you figure out how likely you will be to have problems with ZigBee. Also, remember that ZigBee distances are not as far as WiFi and use of repeaters will drastically reduce throughput. This probably won't be a problem if all you are doing is monitoring for a few button pushes though.
You could look into some of the universal remotes out there such as RTI and or URC and see if their remotes work on a different frequency. They may also have some sort of algorithm that deals with some interference. I believe both of them also have the ability to output commands from a serial port so you don't need to add an IR receiver to the AMX system.
Lastly, have you considered the MVP-5200? It's a much smaller option than the 8400 and I think it would be much easier to carry around on a tour. The interface could be made EXTREMELY simple if that is what you need (it could even be made to look just like the current remote). This again relies on a good wireless network tho.
Jeff
what about the RFID stuff?
It?s my understanding that the badges in conjunction with the readers generate level events so that you get ranges of ?closeness? to play with instead of just a yes or a no.
Using chill?s scenario as an example, the tour guides could wear a badge and trigger events simply by standing near the designated ?hot? areas. That of course is assuming the RF isn?t an issue in his RF hostile environment.
I?d like to experiment with RFID in the home environment. I?m not so sure if I?d go for wearing a badge inside the house but I can picture an RFID tag hanging around his and hers car mirrors. Using the tag status along with a garage door opening trigger the system can determine who is coming or going and then act accordingly.
Jeff
P.S.
I hope this is on display at CEDIA.
Jeff
The end-user wants a remote that is discreet. That is, small enough to pocket, and operable by touch without needing to see it. This pretty much precludes touchpanels as well as the lovely but ski-sized Mio R* series. They don't want IR for those reasons, and also because there are no good places to put IR receivers. We are not allowed to put any more holes in the walls.
Joe T said,
...funny you should ask. This job was originally spec'd to have RFID tags that the guides would carry around. The system was going to use the RFID tags to know what room the guide is in, and they would use a TXC-4+ remote to play the media cues. This fell through because the controller for the RFID stuff (http://www.iautomate.com/miracle_5104.html) turned out to be vaporware. At that point we fell back to TXC-16s where the guide would have to select a room manually before pressing the 'play' button. Oddly, the RFID tags and readers specified look *exactly*like the ones AMX is now shipping, but they were not available from AMX at the time. The tags and readers are made by Wavetrend: TG501 tag (http://www.wavetrend.net/products_tags.aspx) and RX201 reader (http://www.wavetrend.net/products_readers.aspx).
BTW, we (not me personally) did do a proper RF sweep, not some PC-based WiFi sniffer. There is activity all over the place, but it looks like there might be 'holes' around 325 MHz and 375 MHz. 310 and 418 look pretty useless. I can post sweep pictures if there is any interest.
And, patb, thanks for the link to the MX-3000. I've seen these, and I can say it's a little too big for the application (see above). Also, this thing looks an awful lot like a certain touchpanel sold by the C-word :^)
Thanks to all for your thoughts.