Infrastructure Controls:
A&e is pioneering a new and exciting area in the Home Automation business; Infrastructure Controls. Some of our clients have estate properties that require a specialized approach to monitoring and controlling the sophisticated systems these properties require to function. These can include sophisticated power distribution systems, water purification, pumping and storage, emergency back-up power generation and distribution, firefighting systems, large irrigation systems, data storage, etc. We are delighted to have been recognized by the Home Automation industry’s leading trade association; CEDIA with a Gold award in the “Special Projects” category for Best Technical Design and by Crestron with a Silver in the “Unique Applications” category with our innovative infrastructure controls. If your project demands an innovative control system, Automation and Entertainment is the “A” Team, we can help.
From the electrician to the pool cleaner you can give access to parties that will then be able to monitor, adjust, and diagnosis all of your home's systems from the comfort of their offices. Say goodbye to constant home visits.
The “Dashboard” you see in the picture is the remote monitoring and control panel that can be accessed and used on any Web browser (provided you have the proper credentials that is). ”Clicking” on one of the dials, gauges or bar graphs on the remote dashboard expands it and opens up a control window where the user can adjust that function’s parameters as necessary. This integrated approach allows the owners and their service contractors to remotely monitor and control every aspect of their water, fire protection, back-power, and fuel storage systems from a single intuitive interface. The software’s logic was programmed to alert the appropriate people if and when any pre-set parameters are out of spec. Once notified, they can use the dashboard to pinpoint the problem, adjust what the system is doing in real-time and if necessary shut a system down and/or dispatch a repairman. Another benefit of the system is that the repairman knows what he needs to do and can bring the proper parts and tools with him making the service call faster and more efficient.
Leaving nothing to chance; as a back-up we installed a powerful PTZ camera in the utility shed where the systems are located to give us a back-up view of what’s physically going on with the systems. Sensors are nice but seeing is believing. The camera is mounted in such a way that by using its remote Pan, Tilt, and Zoom capabilities we can view and read the actual dials and gauges on the systems themselves that are replicated in our Web based dashboard.
Believe it or not, the camera has already earned its keep. Once we were demonstrating the remote dashboard system to a potential client and Paul noticed that one of the water systems circuits was showing a small drop in pressure, not out of the programmed parameters but lower than expected. He switched t the camera and to our surprise it looked like it was raining in the Utility building, what the heck? Controlling the camera via the Web, Paul was able to zoom in on the suspect gauge and saw the culprit, a small crack had developed in the fitting where the gauge was installed. Calling the plumbing contractor, we had them log in an pull up the camera view on his screen too. Seeing the same thing we did, they were able to dispatch a repairman with the right fittings in hand to fix the problem immediately. The plumbing contractor was duly impressed, not only were they able to remotely diagnose the problem but he could send out his serviceman with everything necessary to fix it on the first trip. He’ll be paying closer attention to the remote dashboard and is looking forward to working with us again at other clients.
If you have special control and/or monitoring needs call us for a consultation.