Luminite Genesis PIR integration
Last updated
Last updated
Giraffe has an extensive integration with the Luminite 'Genesis' wireless PIR system.
The Edge Controller can be connected to any of the Genesis masthead receivers that have an RS232 connection. We support all hardware generations that Luminite have released.
The Genesis integration must be enabled in your Edge Controller definition file before it will be discovered by the Edge Controller. Please reach out to Giraffe support to enable it.
The Edge Controller will attempt to discover the Genesis masthead receiver on one of it's serial port. If a Genesis device is found it will initiate a connection with it.
Once connected, the PIRs tab on the system status page will be populated like below.
Total PIRs is the number of PIRs that have 'called in' to the masthead receiver in total since it was powered up. Any PIRs that are on the same site code as the masthead receiver will appear.
Online PIRs is the number of PIRs that are connected to the masthead receiver currently. The way this works is that the PIR periodically 'calls in' to the masthead receiver. If the PIR fails to call in when it is expected to the PIR is marked as offline.
Offline PIRs is the opposite of Online PIRs; the number of PIRs that have missed their scheduled call in.
Code Violations are an indication that something is wrong. You would expect to see a few because they occur when a PIR first connects, but a large number should be investigated.
The Site Code and Subnet Code configured on the receiver are also displayed.
For each PIR that has called in, you will be able to see it's battery level and the signal strength. You can also see the last time that it has triggered from a detection event. If a tamper, cloak, fault or shock event occurs, this will also be displayed.
Each PIR sensor can be configured individually.
The first setting is the trigger action. This defines what you want to happen when the PIR sensor triggers.
Disabled
No, PIR is ignored.
No
Notify Only
Yes. An event is sent to the API for each trigger from a PIR, including the type of event (tamper, detection etc).
Yes, if enabled.
Alarm Level 1
Yes, same as above. The Alarm Level 1 state will also be activated when a PIR sensor triggers.
Yes, if enabled
Alarm Level 2
Yes, same as above. The Alarm Level 2 state will also be activated when a PIR sensor triggers.
Yes, if enabled.
If the PIR is not being used, it is important to set it to disabled. If it is left enabled but is not online, it will raise an error state for 'Offline PIRs'.
Once the preset has been created, you can select the camera you want to move, and then the preset you want it to move to.
Once the camera moves to a preset position, it will stay there until it is moved again. If you wish for the camera to return to it's home position after a PIR activation, it is necessary to setup a preset as a home position and configure auto return to home.
Note that it is not possible to configure a camera on a different system to move to a PTZ preset. The camera must be connected to the same Edge Controller as the Genesis masthead receiver.
The following firmware versions have been tested and are known to work.
MT434
5.09
PCB615
This PCB is very old, circa 2010.
MT434IP
5.90 -> 5.98
PCB615
This is the same as the MT434 but it also has an ethernet port on it.
You must be running a 'Camwatch' firmware variant in order to support configuration commands via serial.
LGMT434.v2
6.54
PCB755.v2
Other firmware are likely to work but not tested. This is the replacement for MT434.
Other firmware versions are also likely to work. If you receive a message like the below please contact Giraffe support. We can check the device and update the supported firmware list.
The Genesis receiver must be connected to the Edge Controller via a serial cable.
The TX pin on the Genesis board must be connected to the RX pin on the Edge Controller and vice versa for the RX pin.
The RS232 outputs on the Edge Controller have a power output pin which can be used to power the Genesis receiver.
The ground pin is common to the Edge Controller main ground and is not isolated.
TX
RX (IN)
Yellow
RX
TX (OUT)
Brown
+12V
12V
Red
Ground
Ground
Black
The Edge Controller is able to configure some settings on the receivers remotely if it is supported by the receiver firmware.
At the moment the following commands are supported by both MT434IP and LGMT434.v2. MT434 never supported remote configuration via serial.
This allows you to configure the site code for the device. The allowable codes are 1-64. The PIRs must be set to the same site code to communicate with a masthead.
The masthead cannot remotely configure the PIRs; that must be done using the buttons on the PIR itself.
On a LGMT434.v2 we simply issue a makebrandnew to the device.
On a MT434IP it does not have a specific reset command. Instead we issue the following list of commands in order to return it to it's default settings.
When a PIR sensor triggers, an event will be sent to the API. The event also contains metadata showing what triggered it if available (ie. tamper, shock, detection etc).
The event will also be forwarded to the alarm receiving centre if an ARC integration is enabled and the system is armed.
When a PIR sensor sends an alarm in to the masthead receiver, it may flag multiple alarm types at the same time.
For instance, an alarm sent by the masthead receiver may look like this:
This would indicate a tamper and a shock event.
If we receive an alarm with multiple flags set, we do not generate a separate event for each type. Instead we parse them in the following order of priority.
Detection
Tamper
Cloak
Shock
Fault
For instance, an alarm that contains both a detection and a shock event would send an event classed as detection.
An error state will be raised if PIRs are enabled but are not currently offline. At the moment this works in the following way:
we count all the PIRs that have connected to the masthead receiver since it started up
we ignore any PIRs that are disabled in the alarm configuration on the platform
we raise an error if the number of 'online' PIRs drops below this number.
We do not currently raise an alarm if the connection to the Genesis receiver itself is broken, but this will result in an offline PIRs event anyway (as all PIRs will appear offline).
PIR presets and alarm levels will only be triggered if the system is armed. PIR events will not be uploaded unless the system is armed.
Offline PIR notifications will be sent regardless of the arming of the system.
If you are unable to get the Edge Controller to connect to a Genesis receiver there are a number of things to try.
Check the wiring. Check that the TX terminal on the Genesis receiver is wired to the RX terminal on the Edge Controller.
Check that you can communicate directly with the device from a laptop. Open a terminal console (such as Putty) and connect to the masthead receiver (baud rate 19200) and type in reset. You should see a welcome page be displayed for the receiver. If your laptop cannot connect to it the Edge Controller will not be able to either.
Check that the masthead receiver is not being powered by too high voltage. Some of them are very sensitive to over voltage.
If you want a camera to move to a PTZ position when the PIR triggers, it is necessary to first of all .
As part of (internal only) we are going to change the way this works in the future to make it more intelligent. At the moment we do not generate an error state if the wireless PIR never connects to the masthead receiver in the first place (which means the IFU is unable to track it).
