Xbee remote sensors tell you when someone enters your home
posted Dec 18th 2011 2:17pm by Mike Szczysfiled under: arduino hacks, security hacks
[Bill Porter] is helping a friend out by designing a simple security system for her home. It relies on Xbee modules to alert a base station when doors are opened, or a pressure mat is stepped on.
The door sensors are quite simple, and you’re probably already familiar with them. One part mounts to the door and has a magnet in it, the mating part mounts to the jamb and has a reed switch that closes a contact when the magnet is in place. The floor mat uses two sheets of conductive material separated by bits of foam. When it is stepped on a circuit is completed and can be sensed by the Xbee as a button press.
These sensors report back to an Arduino base station that has a buzzer and three 8×8 LED modules to scroll a message saying which sensor was tripped. [Bill] does a good job of showing what goes into configuring an Xbee network if you’ve never worked with the hardware before.
You’ll find his demo video after the break.
Whenever I see these xbee networks, I can’t help wondering if there’s a cheaper possibility for digital wireless communication, because at $25 a pop, the cost of a larger project can get out of hand quickly.