SensDesk Technology: Portal overview

Comparison of the SensDesk.com and the HWg-cloud

The www.HWg-cloud.com is basic service provided by the HW group with the products free of charge.
Professional service is the www.SensDesk.com ith several paid annual subscription plans.

Same services you can find on other portals based on SensDesk Technology.

You can test on your own - the demo account

To test the service, neither HW group devices nor sensors are needed. 
Clicking on the "TRY DEMO" button, the demo user is filled in. Using the "LOG IN" button, the portal is entered.  

In all versions of the Subscription plans, the SesnDesk.com service includes the option to notify an alarm by an Email, an SMS and a Telephone call (Voice Call) to the specified phone number.

When the phone is picked up, the system plays a message. In a real situation, the call is faster to be rejected and a text message (SMS) to be read (that has been already probably received). 

The number of SMS and calls per month may vary according to the subscription plan and an individual portal provider. The limit of messages and Voice calls is always related to the period from the first to the last day of the month. The limit is always related to the team (company), and not to the connected users. 
Sending SMS and Voice calls is a part of the SensDesk service. Neither additional fees nor own SMS Gateway are required.

Each sensor contains its own SafeRange. When this range or other adjustable values (notice range) are exceeded, an alarm SMS message can be sent. 
In order to emphasize the alarm, the Voice Call can be added (to be checked as an SMS extension). 

The www.SensDesk.com uses the preset Twilio service to communicate with the mobile phone network. 

Customer’s SMS-GW

The HW group produces the SMS-GW (a GSM/LTE device).

This gateway is a physical device with a LAN port, an antenna and a SIM card slot. Thanks to this gateway, the individual HW group products can send alarm SMS and telephone calls. 

Owning the SMS-GW allows the gateway to be connected to team's account on www.SensDesk.com. Then, SMS and phone calls can be done via the SIM card. In that case, the above-mentioned limit of SMS and voice calls 

 

 

 

The SafeRange is adjusted for each sensor. When the value exceeds the set SafeRange limit, the portal sends an email within few seconds.

 

What does SafeRange mean

The SD SafeRange (the safe range of values) can be set for each sensor. When the measured value in the device exceeds the limit, the SafeRange communicates with the portal immediately. The subsequent alarm leaves the portal within few seconds. Response to the change of a measured value is very fast when the SafeRange limit is exceeded. In case of battery-powered products, the reaction speed may vary with powering (the external one / the battery one; the low-energy mode). 

Note: For correct and fast operation of the whole system, the SafeRange value has to be set for each sensor used; default values should not be kept. 

 

The portal sends a notification when:

• Value of the sensor is out of the SD SafeRange
• Power supply is not available for the device with the connected sensor
• Internet connection is not available for the device with the connected sensor

 

Notice / SD SafeRange actions

Action (email or SMS alert / switching Output) can be initiated by any value exceeding the Notice range or SD SafeRange.
There are several differences between them.

• SD SafeRange can be used only one per each one sensor
• SD SafeRange is synchronized from the portal to the device = device communicate much faster to the portal vhen value passing by the range limit = there are much faster reaction to value changes.
• Notice range is analyzed in the Portal only.
• You can have unlimitted amout of Notice ranges.

Device / Portal	Portal alert fast	Portal alert
Alert initiated from	SD SafeRange (one per sensor)	Notice Range
Alert initiated (triggered) by	Device (local) alert - sensor value	Portal compare value when received
Sensor value hysteresis	Yes	Yes
Time from sensor value to Alert	Fast (1-10 seconds)	Variable (1sec - 15min)
Alert type	Email, SMS, Voice Calls	Email, SMS, Voice Calls
Alert is sent (realized) by	SMTP server in the Portal / ext. service	SMTP server in the Portal / ext. service
Internet connectivity	Required	Required
Alerting costs	Email is free, other by subscription plan	Email is free, other by subscription plan
Conditions limit	Only 1 SafeRange per sensor	Unlimitted
Definable text in alert message	Yes (editable templates)	Yes (editable templates)
Repeating alerts (reminder)	Yes	Yes
Alert escalation options	Yes (as Notice Range)	Yes
Alert delay	Yes	Yes
Alerting options: HWg-cloud.com	Email only	Email only
Alerting options: SensDesk.com	Email, SMS, Voice Calls	Email, SMS, Voice Calls
Alerting options: Portal providers	Defined by provider	Defined by provider

 

The action can be set directly in settings of the Sensor or DI

• For each DI alerthas to be defined the alarm state (Open/Close or 0/1)
• A template has to be selected for SMS and email (can be changed)
• A useful button Save and Send Test can send a test SMS and an email

 

Advances alarm options

• An email can be sent with a delay. E.g., open doors can be alerted when being opened for 10 minutes at least. 
• The user can edit the text of the email and SMS using templates
• Alarm at different values (to different recipients) can be sent from the same sensor

Alarm escalation

• The alarm message is repeated after a certain time interval when the alarm status still lasts (e.g. every 4 hours)
• The alarm message (email) is forwarded to another user after a certain time
• The alarm is reminded to the same/ different user if the situation worsens (temperature is even higher for example)

Switching on the top tab from the item Sensors to Detectors, the DI (detectors) and their status can be listed. 

Tabular display of sensor values or DI inputs.

In case of a large number of sensors or detectors, the display of indicators is recommended to be switched from the default view to the table view of values (the upper right marked option next to "Sort By" or "Clear filter"). 

The meaning of symbols at State can be found here: https://www.hw-group.com/support/dashboard-and-my-dashboard-functions-in...

The team Dashboard is focused to 4 essential indicators. This type of Team summary is appreciated in case of larger projects with dozens of devices mainly

The dashboard is the main page of the portal for users. The dashboard summarizes the status of all connected devices and sensors for users. For proper operation, the SafeRange has to be correctly adjusted on each sensor. The dashboard summarizes the account into 4 categories:

 

1. OK (green) is an overview of all the sensors + DI those operate and measure the value in the adjusted "SafeRange" / out of the Alarm status. 
2. Alarm (red) is an overview of all the sensors + DI those operate and measure the value in the alarm range / status. 
3. Invalid (yellow) is an overview of all the sensors + DI those do not operate 
4. Disabled (gray) is an overview of all the deactivated sensors + DI.  

• The dashboard is a clear list of sensors and devices from the viewpoint of the system administration.
• The user can have several dashboards. The dashboards can be divided by the location or by the customer. 
• The dashboard is a quick summary showing which sensors are OK / Alarm in a location / in device group. 

Overview of all the sensors in the Dashboard  

The list shows all the changes from last 2 hours (in the example, the list is empty). 

All the sensors sorted by alarm events can be displayed by clicking the Show All sensors button. 

Note: The system can operate only if the SafeRange and the Alarm status for DI are adjusted for all the sensors correctly. 

Portal provides automatic output responses depending on conditions from different sensors and devices in the same user’s account. E.g., the heater or the alarm light are being turned on when the temperature exceeds 30°C.

 

The portal displays the graph of value responses of individual sensors. The graph of a value can be displayed for the entire period of the stored history. The time of keeping the stored data can vary according to the selected tariff (the annual plan). 

The data displayed in the graph can be manually:

• Saved as a PDF / PNG / JPG / SVG image
• Exported to a CSV / XLS file

Graphs of responses of DI and sensors 

In the detail of each device, a graph with an overview of all values of sensors / DI and DO states can be found. However, these are only the sensors connected to the device. 

The data displayed in Graph / MultiGraph can be exported (only manually). 
For automatic processing, the CSV report attachment can be used. 

 

MultiGraph 

In order to display multiple values in a single graph, the MultiGraph function can be used on the Portal. The number of MultiGraphs is limited by the annual subscription plan.

The MultiGraph can be assembled as an overview of arbitrary values in the account. The MultiGraph is popular for comparing time events. 

• In the picture, two temperature values are shown on the blue axis on the left. 
• On the red axis on the right, the DI input is displayed in red.

• The PDF file can be signed. 
• Reports can meet Gamp5 requirements.
•  For battery powered products, an overview of the battery status can be interesting.

 

Open API: SNMP + XML  

The SensDesk.com portal has an open API which values can be connected to third-party systems. 
All the instantaneous values of sensors and DI are available via open interfaces:

• SNMP (version 1 / version 3)
• XML via http get

• Shared values can be related to the whole Team (company). Then, the access data on the Team page apply
• For individual users, the displayed values can be limited by permission groups. Then, the access data for the user apply (see the figure). 
• By default, values from the API can be read once per minute.

Devices and sensors can be sorted by their physical location (postal code / ZIP) or into the groups. This function is not needed for few devices but is very important for 15 devices, 50 sensors and a long-term use. 

• Device groups serve to sort the devices (only) 
• Locations / Sub-locations can be used to sort both the devices and the sensors

For example:

• Sensor Location = Prague office
• Sensor SubLocation = 2nd floor