OmniSense 0001 Users Manual

OmniSense Moisture Monitoring

System (MMS) Operating Manual

Revision 0.1 5/25/04

Table of Contents

1. Regulatory Compliance.................................................................................. 4

1.1. FCC Compliance Statement........................................................................... 4

2. Overview......................................................................................................... 4

3. Preparation..................................................................................................... 5

3.1. When to Install................................................................................................ 5

3.1.1. New Construction..................................................................................................... 5

3.1.2. Retrofit During Residing.......................................................................................... 5

3.2. How To Mount The Sensors........................................................................... 6

3.2.1. Mounting During New Construction........................................................................ 6

3.2.2. Mounting During Residing....................................................................................... 6

3.3. Where to Mount Sensors.............................................................................. 10

3.4. Where to Mount the Gateway...................................................................... 10

4. Pre-Installation Procedure.......................................................................... 11

4.1. Obtaining the Network Address.................................................................. 11

4.2. Configuring the Installer..............................................................................12

4.2.1. Configuring Garmin GPS 76.................................................................................. 13

4.3. Configuring the Gateway............................................................................. 13

4.4. Installation Procedure.................................................................................. 14

4.5. Installing the Gateway.................................................................................. 14

4.6. Operating the Installer................................................................................. 15

4.7. Installing a Sensor......................................................................................... 16

4.8. Sensor Monitoring ........................................................................................ 17

List of Figures

Figure 1 - Sensor Mounted to 2.5" Diameter Wood Plug_______________________________________ 7
Figure 2 - Sensor with Keeper Strap_______________________________________________________ 8
Figure 3 - Close up of Sensor Prior to Mounting from Exterior Side of Sheathing ___________________ 9
Figure 4 - Close up of Sensor Mounted from Exterior Side of Sheathing___________________________ 9
Figure 5 - Typical Window Installation During Residing______________________________________ 10
Figure 6 Finding Gateway's MAC Address_________________________________________________ 11
Figure 7 - HyperTerminal Configuration __________________________________________________ 12
Figure 8 - Screenshot of installer configuration _____________________________________________ 13
Figure 9 - Connecting the Gateway to the LAN _____________________________________________ 14
Figure 10 - Anatomy of a Gateway _______________________________________________________ 15

1. Regulatory Compliance

1.1. FCC Compliance Statement

This Product Contains Transmitter Module FCC ID: RY20001
This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules.
Operation is subject to the following two conditions:

(1) This device may not cause harmful interference and
(2) This device must accept any interference received, including interference that may

cause undesired operation.

Caution: To comply with FCC RF exposure compliance requirements, a separation
distance of at least 2.5cm must be maintained between the antenna of this device and all
persons.

This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a class B digital
device, pursuant to part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide
reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation. This
equipment generates, uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy and if not installed and
used in accordance with the instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio
communications. However, there is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a
particular installation. If this equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or
television reception, which can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the
user is encouraged to try to correct the interference by one or more of the following
measures:

• Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.

• Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.

• Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to which the

receiver is connected.

• Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician for help.

This equipment has been certified to comply with the limits for a class B computing
device, pursuant to FCC Rules. In order to maintain compliance with FCC regulations,
shielded cables must be used with this equipment. Operation with non-approved
equipment or unshielded cables is likely to result in interference to radio and TV
reception. The user is cautioned that changes and modifications made to the equipment
without the approval of manufacturer could void the user's authorit y to operate this
equipment.

2. Overview

The OmniSense Moisture Monitoring System provides for wireless monitoring of
environmental conditions such as relative humidity, temperature, and wood moisture.
The three system components are Sensor, Gateway, and Central Host.

Sensors are battery operated with >15 year expected batter y life in normal
operating scenarios. Sensors measure the local environment conditions and periodically

connect wirelessly to the gateway to allow the gateway to read the sensors monitoring log
file. Sensors use the 915 MHz unlicensed ISM band and frequency hopping modulation
techniques to establish a reliable wireless connection to a gateway.

A gateway can serve multiple sensors, with the total number of serviceable
sensors depending on the period with which the sensors are configured to connect with
the gateway. The wireless range is ~100 meters in a normal building environment. For
larger installations multiple gateways can be configured for complete facility coverage.
Gateways connect to a facility’s Local Area Network (LAN) via a standard 10/100
Ethernet connection, and require WAN access to the Internet to connect with the Central
Host Web application.

The central host is a web application which is responsible for the sensor network
configuration management and monitoring. The central host maintains an extensive
database about customers, approved installers, gateways, and sensors.

3. Preparation

Prior to installation you should do a site survey to plan when the system will be
installed, how the sensors will be mounted, where they will be mounted, where the
gateway(s) will be installed and how the gateway(s) will be connected to the LAN/WAN.

3.1. When to Install

The system can be installed during new construction or as a retrofit to existing
structures. Each installation will have its unique requirements and it is not possible for
this manual to cover all possible installation scenarios. The two most common scenarios
which are covered are new construction and retrofit during residing. In both scenarios
access to exterior sheathing is possible.

3.1.1. New Construction

Installation during new construction offers the obvious advantage of full access to
the structure during the different phases of construction. The best time to install the
system is after the exterior sheathing is on and the electrical and plumbing are roughed in.
This allows for full access, shows where possible plumbing leaks should be monitored,
and helps avoid accidental damage to the system during the plumbing or electrical install
process.

It is not required that the site have internet access during the installation
procedure.

3.1.2. Retrofit During Residing

It is an attractive option to install the system coincident with the installation of a
new siding/cladding system. It is practical in that the sheathing is exposed, and it makes
financial sense to protect the investment in the new siding system. During retrofit it is
possible to install the system at any time prior to the installation of the new siding. By
removing the existing siding only at the sensor mounting points the installer can install
the system independent of the siding installation process.

3.2. How To Mount The Sensors

For both new construction and retrofit the preferred mounting method uses 1.5”
long insulated nylon standoffs to position the sensor in the midpoint of a typical wall
cavity. This is done to minimize the chance of damage from screws/nails applied to
either the interior or exterior wall.

3.2.1. Mounting During New Construction

During new construction sensor mounting options are virtually limitless. The
preferred mounting method will be to attach the sensor on 1.5” insulated nylon standoffs
using #12 x 2” sheet metal screws. The recommended mounting hardware is available
from Dryvit. For best results you should pre-drill a pilot hole for each of the two #12 x
2” mounting screws. Do not use any sort of washer under the screw head as this may
cause a short in the sensor.

3.2.2. Mounting During Residing

During residing, when access to the interior side of the sheathing is not possible,
sensors must be mounted using a method which relies on access only to the exterior side
of the sheathing. The preferred method is to use a sensor mounted to a 2.5ӯ wood plug
as shown in Figure 1 which is then mounted as shown in Figure 3, Figure 4, and Figure 5.

Sensors can be obtained from Dryvit pre-mounted to 2.5ӯ wood plugs for this
type of installation. A readily available 2.5” Ø hole saw is used to make the hole in the
sheathing. Ideally the diameter of the sawn hole will be exactly 2.50”. It is not the least
bit difficult to use a hole saw improperly resulting in a hole which well exceeds the saw’s
rated diameter thus care should be taken to apply slow steady pressure in a single plane
(i.e. perpendicular to the sheathing) during the sawing process for a nic e clean hole with a
proper diameter. Care should also be taken to saw the hole such that it does not intersect
the framing and studs in the wall. Should a hole be sawn which hits a stud, the hole can
be plugged with a blank (i.e. no sensor) wood plug also available from Dryvit.