SCx SCx Wireless Sensor

DESCRIPTION

The Paragon Robotics SCx device lineup provides a wide range of wireless sensing capabilities. SCx devices support a number of built-in sensor types, as well as a variety of external transducers and metering platforms.

Utilizing Paragon Robotics' innovative Halo/S technology, SCx devices can acquire and log data, communicate wirelessly, and even execute custom programs autonomously. Each SCx device is powered by 2 AAA batteries and requires no external power wiring. For more information on the Halo/S platform, please visit paragonrobotics.com.

Fig 1: SCx device

FEATURES

Several built-in sensor options
Support for external transducers & meters
Wireless data acquisition with minimal setup
No external wiring required
High performance RF transceiver
+20dBm wireless transmit power (+13dBm for base models) with -110dBm receiver sensitivity
Up to 10 years of battery life
Full AES-256 encryption and authentication (FIPS 197 compliant)
Compliant to RoHS Directive 2002/95/EC

Description and FeaturesPage 1
Product LineupPage 3
Specifications and Electrical CharacteristicsPages 4-5
InstallationPage 6-7
Connecting with other equipmentPages 8-9
Software SetupPages 10
Operation & FunctionsPage 11
Troubleshooting GuidePage 12
Mechanical DimensionalPage 13
Regulatory ApprovalPage 14
Revision HistoryPage 15

*Table 1: SCx Device Lineup*
Device	SC1	SC11	SC12	SC22	SC13	SC23	SC14	SC8	SC18	SC50	SC60
Sensors	Temperature		Humidity		Light & proximity		Ext terminal	External jack		Motion
Sensor accuracy	± 1°C		± 3% RH		±1000 lux		± 1mV	± 1mC		–
Sample rate	10Hz - 32hrs
Battery life	7-10 years(@ 1 minute sample rate)									2-3 years
Indoor/outdoor	In	In	In	Out	In	Out	In	In	In	In	Out
Wireless range	Good	Excellent	Excellent	Excellent	Excellent	Excellent	Excellent	Good	Excellent	Excellent	Excellent
Upgradable firmware	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes

Device	SC31	SC32	SC33	SC34	SC70	SC71	SC72	SC75	SC76	SC77	SC100	SC101
Sensors	In-situ temp			Small-voltage	Accelerometer	Ambient pressure	Magnetometer	CO2	Differential pressure		Relay control	Relay w/ current sense
Sensor accuracy	± 0.1°C	± 0.3°C	± 0.1°C	± 0.03mV	± 3%	± 0.01mb	± 0.10uT	± 100ppm	± 200Pa	± 2.5Pa	N/A	± 0.1A
Sample rate	10Hz - 32hrs
Battery life	7-10 years(@ 1 minute sample rate)							4 months without A/C	7-10 years(@ 1 minute sample rate)
Indoor/outdoor	In
Wireless range	Excellent
Upgradable firmware	Yes

Specifications

Electrical Characteristics

*Table 2: Electrical Characteristics*
Parameter	Conditions	Min	Typ	Max	Units
Operating temperature	–	-40	–	+85	°C
Power Supply Voltage (Vdd)	–	1.8	3.0	3.6	V
Average Operating Current	V_IN = 3V (2xAAA), Wake cycle = 0.5Hz, No peripherals active	–	35	–	μA
Average Operating Current (Sleep mode)	V_IN = 3V (2xAAA), "Sleep mode", No peripherals active	–	4.5	–	μA

Digital I/O Characteristics

*Table 3: Digital I/O Characteristics*
Parameter	Conditions	Min	Typ	Max	Units
Digital output low voltage	I_OL = 1.4mA I_OL = 10μA	– –	– –	0.6 0.1	V
Digital output high voltage	push-pull I_OH = -1mA I_OH = -10μA	– –	– –	2.3 2.9	V
Digital input low voltage	–	–	–	0.6	V
Digital input high voltage	V_IN = 3V	2.4	–	–	V

ADC Characteristics

*Table 4: ADC Characteristics*
Parameter	Conditions	Min	Typ	Max	Units
Resolution (with oversampling)	–	–	12	–	bits
Input voltage range	Single-ended	0	–	3.3	V
Sampling capacitance	1 x gain 0.5 x gain	– –	16 13	– –	pF
Input multiplexer impedance	–	–	5	̵	kΩ

Specifications cont.

Pulse counter, PWM & Frequency I/O Characteristics

*Table 5: PWM & Frequency I/O Characteristics*
Parameter	Conditions	Min	Typ	Max	Units
Input voltage range	–	0	–	3.3	V
Digital frequency output	–	3.25	–	800	kHz
Digital frequency input	–	100	–	50000	Hz

RF Characteristics

*Table 6: RF Electrical Characteristics*
Parameter	Conditions	Min	Typ	Max	Units
Indoor range (typical)	V_IN = 3V, temp = 25°C	–	30	–	meters
Transmit Power	V_IN = 3V, temp = 25°C	–		20	dBm
Receive Sensitivity	V_IN = 3V, temp = 25°C	–	-121	–	dBm
Transmit Data Rate	–	32	–	128	kbps
Frequency	–	902	915	928	MHz
Hopping Channels	–	–	25	–	–
Modulation Type	–	–	GFSK	–	–

Installation

Placement

Devices should be placed as close to a gateway as possible in order to ensure wireless performance. Outdoors, the gateway can wirelessly communicate up to 1/3 mile with other devices. In noisy indoor environments, the gateway can cover 30,000 sqft of floor area (100' radius).

Fig 2: Typical wireless range

Many factors can contribute to the degradation of wireless performance. Adherence to the following guidelines will help achieve the best wireless performance possible.

Install the gateway in a central location
Placing the gateway in a central location, relative to all connected devices will help ensure robust wireless performance.
Avoid physical obstructions & reflective surfaces
Metal, water, thick walls all degrade wireless performance, and care should be taken when placing the gateway in order to maximize wireless range. Range will be best when line-of-sight can be established between the gateway and devices. Likewise, reflective surfaces (sheet metal, windows, mirrors, etc.) can increase multi-path interference and degrade wireless performance and range. Place gateway and devices away from such surfaces if possible.

Elevate the gateway
Placing the gateway in an elevated location can help in avoiding physical obstructions, which are generally found closer to the ground. Chairs, file cabinets, desks, etc. all are physical obstructions whose wireless-degrading effects can be minimized by placing the gateway in a higher location.
Install away from other wireless sensors, electrical equipment, & wiring
Interference from electrical equipment and building wiring can cause degradation of wireless performance. The gateway operates in the 902-928MHz ISM band and should be located at least 1m away from any appliances or equipment using this band. Motors, fluorescent lighting, and other low-frequency equipment can also degrade performance and proximity to such devices should be considered when placing the gateway. Separate all your wireless sensor devices as far as possible, as the wireless signal strength can be greatly reduced when devices are next to each other.

Mounting

SCx devices can be installed in a variety of different orientations. It is recommended the SCx device be elevated as high as possible in order to extend the wireless range. A separate installation kit is available which contains a magnet, cable tie + anchor, and hook & loop attachments. These installation anchors are self-adhering and can be quickly adhered to the back of the SCx device. The adhesive anchors should ideally be placed in an area which does not cover the device label.

For more permanent mounting to a wall or horizontal surface, the SCx device case can be directly attached to a wall or other structure with 2 mounting screws. To mount the device using screws, first remove the two screws on the front face. The front face assembly can then be separated to expose the back case panel. Drill through the back case in the 2 molded drill starting spots, and use #4 machine screws (or equivalent) to attach the device to the surface.

Fig 3: Wall mounting

Power

The SCx device is powered by the included AAA batteries. The device has two power modes: "Sleep" and "On". The current power mode of a device can be determined by pressing the security button for 1 second. If the LED lights up, the device is in "On" mode.

Devices are shipped in the "Sleep" power mode in order to maximize battery life. To turn the device on, press and hold the power button until the LED blinks. The device will then actively search for a nearby gateway and attempt to join the Halo/S network.

Connecting with other equipment

SC14, SC8, and SC18 devices are designed to be used with external equipment. Special attention should be paid when making any external connections to an SCx device to ensure correct and safe operation. Improper connections can damage SCx devices and external equipment. Paragon Robotics is not responsible for any damage to devices or equipment that occurs as a result of incorrectly connecting an SCx device to external equipment.

Locating the jack/pin numbers

The jack/pin numbers are located on the back label on the devices. Flip the device over and look for the numbers on the edges of the label near the corresponding jack/pin. These numbers will be needed when you configure new external sensors using the dataRecorder software.

SC14

SC14 devices are equipped with a 5-position female header and accompanying male plug with screw terminals. Users can connect external equipment to the SC14 using this connector. SC14 devices support the following user-configurable external inputs... Digital I/O, up to three 0-1.65V or 0-3.3V analog inputs, single or dual pulse counter, up to three capacitance sensors, pulse-width modulation (PWM) I/O, digital frequency I/O, I²C, and UART.

*Table 7: SC14 Connections*
Pin Number	Function
1	A/SDA
2	A/PC1/SCL/TX
3	A/PC0/RX
4	+3.3V
5	GND

Analog inputs

Pins with an 'A' designation can be configured as analog inputs, and can be assigned independently of one another. Analog inputs on SC14 devices access the built-in 10-bit SAR ADC and are gain-selectable to support both 0-1.65V & 0-3.3V signals. External buffering of input signals may be required depending on the user's design specifications.

Digital I/O

Pins with an 'A' designation can be configured for 0-3.3V digital I/O, and can be assigned independently of one another. Digital I/O pins can be configured as either push-pull(output only) or open-drain I/O. Digital inputs can also be set to log and/or alarm on any change of state. (See Table 3 for more information)

Capacitive sense

Pins with an 'A' designation can alternatively be configured for capacitive sensor inputs. When configured a such, capacitive sensors can be directly connected to the pin with no external circuitry required. The built-in capacitive sensor driver will report a value proportional to the charge or discharge time of the connected capacitance, enabling users to implement custom capacitive sensing applications. Capacitive sensor inputs can be configured independently of one another.

Comparator

'A' pins can also be configured as comparator inputs, either single-ended(any 'A') or differential(pins 2(+) & 3(-) only). Comparator inputs can be set to log and/or alarm on any change of comparator output state.

Pulse counter

Pins 'PC0' and 'PC1' can be configured as pulse counter inputs. The pulse counter accepts either form A or form C (also called kyz) style inputs (see Figure 4) and can be configured for single or dual input operation. When configured for single input operation, 'PC0' becomes the active input. When configured for dual input operation, 'PC0' and 'PC1' are both active. It is not possible to configure only 'PC1'. If any form of pulse counter is configured on the device, the PWM, frequency input/output, and UART functions are unavailable.

Fig 4: Switch configurations

PWM and Frequency I/O

The 'PC0' pin can alternately be configured as PWM I/O or digital frequency I/O. This option is only available on 'PC0'. If either PWM or digital frequency I/O is configured on the device, the pulse counter, and UART functions are unavailable.

I²C

The SC14 supports I²C communication at 100kHz on the 'SCA' and 'SCL' pins. The SC14 can be configured as an I²C master to interface with any number of external devices using the popular I²C communication protocol. Users must supply external pull-up resistors according to their design specifications, if configuring the SC14 for I²C.

UART

Serial UART communications are supported by the SC14 on the 'RX' and 'TX' pins. Implementation of UART communications is an advanced feature and developers wishing to configure devices for UART should contact Paragon Robotics.

SC8/SC18

The SC8 and SC18 devices can connect with up to four external sensors or meters via standard 2.5mm TRS input jacks. Each input jack can be configured as a 10-bit 0-2.5V analog input. Additionally SC8 and SC18 devices directly support connection to 3rd party sensors with 2.5mm plugs. The location of each jack can be found on the label on the back of the device.

Jacks 1 and 2 can also be configured for pulse counter inputs, PWM I/O and digital frequency I/O. Please reference the corresponding sections under the SC14 header in this document for more information on these features.

Software setup

Once the gateway is mounted and powered, additional software setup is required. This setup can be performed with any device with a web browser using a variety of connection options. Open your web browser of choice (Chrome, Firefox, IE, etc) and navigate to paragonrobotics.com - Click on the + App button and select 'Settings'. Click on Find and Add to setup your network and configure your GWx Wireless Gateway & other devices. Refer to the Settings manual for additional details of the setup procedure.

Operation & Functions

Buttons

Each SCx device is equipped with 2 buttons: power and security . The power button is used to change power modes, while the security button is used in the initial configuration of the device.

Power modes

Two power modes are available to SCx devices: 'full power' and 'sleep'. In 'sleep' mode, all device functionality is disabled and power consumption is minimized. To determine the power mode, press and hold the security button for 1 second. If the top LED turns on temporarily, the device is currently in 'full power mode'. If the LED remains off, then the device is in 'sleep' mode. SCx devices are shipped in 'sleep' mode and must be switched to 'Full power' mode before they can be used.

To switch to 'full power' mode, press and hold the power button until the LED begins to blink for 2 seconds and then remains on. The button can then be released, and the LED will turn off to save power. NOTE: When changing to "full power" mode, holding the power button down for an extended time will trigger a full factory reset (see the "Resetting the device" section). To switch to 'sleep' mode, press and hold the power button until the LED begins to blink for 2 seconds and then turns off.

Batteries
Each SCx device is powered by 2 AAA alkaline batteries. The batteries shipped with the device can provide up to 10 years of life, depending on the configuration and environment. Should batteries require changing, access the battery holder by removing the 2 screws on the front panel of the case and then remove the back section of the case. Remove the old batteries and replace with fresh ones, then reassemble the case and screw in the front panel screws.

No settings or configuration will be lost when changing batteries. However, if any of the device's sensors are logging data, the most recent logged data may not be fully saved to the gateway yet, and would be lost during the battery replacement. In order to make sure all logged data will be safely stored during the replacement, you must first stop logging on all sensors first. After waiting approximately 1 minute after stopping all logging, the device can be powered off an the batteries can be safely replaced. Be sure to restart logging on all sensors after the new batteries are installed.

Resetting the device to the factory settings

To fully reset the device's settings back to the factory condition, a special reset procedure can be performed. This full reset can be used if the internal settings have been incorrectly changed or corrupted, preventing any connection via software. This full reset will permanently erase any settings or saved data the gateway currently has.

To perform a full reset, first change the power mode to 'sleep' (see the 'Power modes' section). Next, press and hold the power button for at least 40 seconds and until the top LED turns off. Once the top LED turns off, release the button and wait 10 seconds for the device to fully reset. The device will need to be setup again using the software.

Troubleshooting Guide

Problem	Possible Solution
The power LED on SCx does not turn on when the lock button is held.	Press the lock button firmly for at least two seconds to verify no LEDs turn on. If the LED still doesn't turn on, remove the two screws on the front panel to access the battery holder (see Fig. 5 in SCx manual). Try replacing the batties with new AAAs and try holding the lock button to check again. Try removing the batteries for at least 1 minute before putting them back in the battery holder. This will make sure the device fully resets.
The SCx device does not show up in the device list when using Settings to set up the system.	Make sure the device is turned on by firmly pressing the lock button and confirming the power LED turns on. Force the SCx device to refresh the wireless connection by turning the power off and on again on the SCx. If the device is a large distance away from the gateway, try moving the device closer to confirm it can connect (refer to SCx manual: Installation for tips on improving range).
While using DataRecorder, the SCx device row changes to red (indicating no connection).	Try clicking on the device row to force it to try and check the connection. Make sure the device is turned on by firmly pressing the lock button and confirming the power LED turns on. Force the SCx device to refresh the wireless connection by turning the power off and on again on the SCx. If the device is a large distance away from the gateway, try moving the device closer to confirm it can connect (refer to SCx manual: Installation for tips on improving range).
When trying to claim the device using Settings, an error shows claiming the device already has a key on it.	Perform a factory reset on the device (see the "Resetting the device" section)

* If these corrective actions fail to work, please contact customer support where you purchased your system. *

Mechanical Dimensions

Fig 5: SCx Wireless Sensor Mechanical Dimensions

Regulatory Approval

United States

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.

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.

Caution - To satisfy FCC RF exposure requirements for mobile and base station transmission devices, a separation distance of 20 cm or more should be maintained between the antenna of this device and persons during operation. To ensure compliance, operation at closer than this distance is not recommended. The antenna(s) used for this transmitter must not be co-located or operating in conjunction with any other antenna or transmitter.

Canada

This device complies with Industry Canada license-exempt RSS standard(s). Operation is subject to the following two conditions: (1) this device may not cause interference, and (2) this device must accept any interference, including interference that may cause undesired operation of the device.

Under Industry Canada regulations, this radio transmitter may only operate using an antenna of a type and maximum (or lesser) gain approved for the transmitter by Industry Canada. To reduce potential radio interference to other users, the antenna type and its gain should be so chosen that the equivalent isotropically radiated power (e.i.r.p.) is not more than that necessary for successful communication.

Revision History

2013-12-09: v1.0: Initial release
2014-10-28: v1.1: Updates for latest firmware; document location of SC14/18 jack numbers
2015-02-27: v1.2: Add troubleshooting guide; update device tables for new products
2015-08-24: v1.3: Miscellaneous updates and clarifications
2017-03-21: v1.4: Add new sensors to list; misc additions

Disclaimer

Information contained in this publication regarding device applications and the like is provided only for your convenience and may be superseded by updates. It is your responsibility to ensure that your application meets with your specifications. PARAGON ROBOTICS MAKES NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, WRITTEN OR ORAL, STATUTORY OR OTHERWISE, RELATED TO THE INFORMATION, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ITS CONDITION, QUALITY, PERFORMANCE, MERCHANTABILITY FITNESS FOR PURPOSE. Paragon Robotics disclaims all liability arising from this information and its use. Use of Paragon Robotics devices in life support and/or safety applications is entirely at the buyer’s risk, and the buyer agrees to defend, indemnify and hold harmless Paragon Robotics from any and all damages, claims, suits, or expenses resulting from such use. No licenses are conveyed, implicitly or otherwise, under any Paragon Robotics intellectual property rights.