These days it is common practice to have an alarm system installed in your home. But have you ever considered what makes up this security measure? I am not talking about the complexity of its circuits, but just the actual components that link together to form the entire system.
As far as most people are concerned, an alarm system is the thing that makes a racket when someone breaks into your house and sends a signal to the security company that you have a contract with to come and investigate. It is not quite that simple. Each alarm system is made up of a lot of different components, each with their own function.
To start with, there are the detectors that are placed in doorways and windows. These inconspicuous little items are one of the ways that an intrusion is detected. Should the alarm be activated, these detectors form a magnetic connection which breaks if the door or window is opened. Breaking this connection will cause the alarm to sound and notice sent to the security company that a potential problem has occurred.
As additional detection measures, motion detectors are placed at strategic locations around the house. These are usually placed in areas that would be unavoidable when moving through the house and also in areas that cover especially valuable goods. These motion sensors are also activated when the alarm system is turned on and will alert the system to any movement in the covered areas.
Naturally, you then need to be able to turn the alarm system on and off as you enter and leave the house. One of two methods can be employed to accomplish this. Either a keypad will be installed which activates or deactivates the alarm system when a code is entered and allows you to select which areas of the house you wish to have activated, alternatively, the alarm system can be tuned in to a certain frequency which corresponds with a remote similar to that which is used for automated gates and garages. Pressing the button on the remote will change the status of the alarm to either on or off, depending on what it is currently set to.
An additional safety measure that can be linked to an alarm system is the panic button. These are placed around the house and can also be keyed into a remote. The panic button is there for when an intrusion occurs whilst the alarm is switched off and people are in danger. Pressing the panic button activates the piece of circuitry that sends an alert to the security company linked to the alarm system.
The door magnets, motion detectors and panic buttons are all linked to a single central “brain” which keeps track of what state the alarm system is in (on or off) and what the status is of each peripheral component (correct or tripped). It is also this central component that sends the signal to the security company when an error occurs whether by intrusion or system fault.
As you can see, an alarm system is not a simple thing that just anyone can put together. You need to know what you are doing in order for it to work properly.
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