A laser security cameras alarm system is a great way to secure your home or office from intruders. This type of alarm system uses lasers to detect movement and trigger an alert.
The principle behind laser security alarm systems is simple: they send out invisible beams of light that bounce off objects and return to sensors. When something moves within range, the sensor detects the change and triggers an alert.
There are two main types of laser security alarm systems: passive and active. Passive systems rely on reflected light to detect motion. Active systems emit their own beam of light, which bounces off objects and returns to sensors. Both types of laser security cameras for your home can be installed indoors or outdoors.
Laser Security Alarm Systems Explained
In order to understand how laser security alarm systems work, let’s start with some definitions.
Invisible Light – The term “invisible light” refers to electromagnetic radiation that does not carry energy (heat) or cause any other kind of detectable physical effect. Invisible light has wavelengths that fall into the wavelength ranges between 400 nanometers (nm) and 700 nm.
Radiation– Radiation is defined as waves of electric and magnetic fields that travel through space at the speed of light. Radiation includes visible light, ultraviolet light, X-rays, gamma rays, etc.
Reflected Light – Reflection occurs when an incident wave strikes a surface and part of it is reflected back to the source. In this case, we use the word “reflected” to describe the process where the incoming beam is bounced off a target object, such as a wall, ceiling, window, car windshield, etc. Some of the reflected beams will continue past the reflecting surface and strike another object, creating more reflections. If our sensor is able to pick up those reflections, then the sensor will register them as new movements.
Reflective Sensors – Reflective sensors have a mirror image of whatever you want to detect. These sensors can only sense changes coming from straight ahead and perpendicular to the direction of light. They cannot detect any object moving diagonally.
Passive Laser Security Alarm System – A passive laser intrusion detection system uses lights to determine if there is any movement in the area. It relies on infrared lights to measure distance and time. It works by detecting changes in brightness caused by the reflection of the light off different surfaces.
Active Laser Intrusion Detection System– An active laser intrusion detection system sends out its own beam of light. This beam travels across the area covered by the sensor and reflects off of anything in its path. Once the beam hits the detector, it measures the distance, angle and time of each reflection. This information allows the laser intrusion detection system to calculate if the intruder was moving towards or away from the system.
Types of Laser Intruder Alarms
Passive vs Active Laser Intrusion Detection Systems
There are two basic types of laser intrusion detectors used in today’s market: passive and active. Each type of laser intrusion system operates under slightly different principles, but both types offer similar features like camera resolution and sensitivity settings.
Passive Laser Intrusion Detections Systems
A passive laser security alarm system consists of one or more reflective sensors and a central unit. Reflective sensors contain mirrors and are connected to the central unit using wires or wireless technology. When something moves within range of the sensor, the central unit detects the change in reflected light. The central unit may send an alert via email or text message; it also records the data on a cloud server so that law enforcement officers or property managers can access it later.
Active Laser Intrusions Detecting Systems
An active laser intrusion detection system consists of a transmitter and receiver. The transmitter sends out its own beam, which bounces around the area being monitored. Any objects that reflect the beam are recorded by the receiver. Objects detected by the receiver can be viewed live on a mobile device.
How Does Passive Laser Intrusion Detection Work?
The purpose of a passive laser intrusion detection system is simply to monitor a certain location. There are two main components involved with this system:
1) the sensor and
2) the central monitoring station. Let’s take a closer look at how these work together to track intruders.
Sensor – A passive laser intrusion detector contains a special sensor that senses movement. As mentioned earlier, all sensors come in three forms: 3-D (3-dimensional), 2-D (2-dimensional), and 1-D (1-dimensional). Only 1-D sensors are capable of sensing motion.
Central Monitoring Station – The control centre for passive laser intrusion detection is composed of a computer, display, and sounder. The computer records any activity that occurs within the zone being monitored.
If a break-in takes place, the police or building manager will receive a notification either through email or text message. The display provides visual cues to help the authorities identify who broke into the premises. Finally, the sounder plays a prerecorded message when anyone approaches the protected zone.
Types of Passive Sensor
Laser Distance Measurement – These sensors use multiple beams of infrared light to measure the distance between them and their target.
Passive Infrared – These devices sense changes in heat energy. They do not need direct contact with the intruder. Anybody that moves into the field of view triggers an alarm.
Video Motion Sensors – Some sensors combine video motion detection with other methods of detecting movement. For example, they might detect people passing by and trigger an alarm based on that fact alone.
How Does Active Laser Intrusion Detection Work?
Active laser intrusion detection uses lasers as both transmitters and receivers. This means that each device must have a separate wavelength.
Each zone has its own set of detectors and associated alarms. Because the laser signal is very powerful, it is hard to avoid creating false alarms with this kind of system. In addition, it is difficult to distinguish between actual intrusions and reflections off of stationary objects such as walls.
Safety Tips
If you have a laser alarm system installed in your home, make sure to follow these safety tips:
- Never point the laser beam directly at someone. Do not aim at the eyes. Instead, aim at the ground and lower yourself down slowly until you reach the floor.
- Make sure that children know that it is unsafe to play with laser pointers. Explain why they should not touch anything that is emitting a laser beam.
- Always keep the equipment where you can see it and easily access it.
- Never install the equipment near windows or glass doors. It could result in damage to those areas.
Conclusion
There is no doubt that laser technology has become indispensable in today’s society. From simple medical procedures to sophisticated scientific research, the applications for this type of technology are endless.
How Do Laser Security Alarm Systems Work?
Laser security alarm systems operate similarly to traditional lighting systems. There are two main parts to these systems: the sensors themselves, and the central monitoring stations.
Sensors – LASER ALARM SYSTEMS
Laser sensors consist of a transmitter and a receiver. A laser emits a low-frequency pulse of infrared rays. This laser beam travels outward from the sensor and reflects off of anything that interrupts the path of the beam.
In response, the receiver picks up the returning beam and converts it into electrical pulses.
Monitoring Stations – Central monitoring stations perform several functions. First, they record the time and date of each incident. Second, they provide details about the type of item that triggered the alarm.
Third, they may store images captured by the camera. Fourth, some remote sites have integrated software that allows users to remotely start or stop the alarm.
Criminal Activity Tracking & Prevention Solutions
Alarm System Integration
We are going to discuss a brief overview of a typical CCTV security cameras installation. It is our hope that you find the content useful in helping you make an informed decision as you move forward with your own CCTV project.
There are many different types of CCTV cameras available today. These range from stand-alone models which require cabling to internal networked models where the footage is streamed over the internet. One of the most common CCTV security cameras applications is to cover public areas such as parks, shopping centres, schools, hospitals etc.
Stand Alone Models
These security cameras are usually used in small spaces such as offices, shops, banks and residential properties. Typically, they contain a lens that captures the area under surveillance. The recorded image is then stored internally at the camera and reviewed using special software.
Network Cameras
These cameras stream live footage directly back over the internet. Due to this, there is no need to connect cables externally. Network cameras can be installed almost anywhere within a building. They also offer more advanced features than a stand-alone security cameras system.