'Panic button' to SMS for reception

[superatticman]

Hi All

 

We're looking at implementing the following:

 

Physical button to be able to alert relevant staff to a situation in reception. This to convey an instant message either to an app or text message.

 

We've looked at 'pager' systems of which will struggle to work in a large old building. Also at higher end products such as 'Digital Alert' which will do 'panic button to text' may just be too elaborate for our situation.

 

Does anyone on here have a working solution for this?

 

Cheers

[mavhc]

So you can use a) the school network, b) the cell network, or c) another wireless system.

 

On the sending side, which of those is possible?

 

On the receiving side, which?

 

How many people do you want to alert, in what manner, are they all in wifi range? What reliability do you want to pay for?

[psydii]

Do you have 2 way radios on site? Our Motorola radios have a panic button:

 

https://www.radio-links.co.uk/two-way-radio-sales/motorola-digital-radio/health-safety-features

 

https://learning.motorolasolutions.com/node/7408/download

Edited January 19, 2022 by psydii

[HPlum78]

You could home brew this with some pi zeros and such likes (I would be all over that!) or something like the following https://www.safezoneapp.com/how-it-works. It depends on what you want to spend/ how much you want to develop/ support after implementation...

[mullet_man]

https://www.littlegreenbutton.com/

 

I remember this got mentioned on here a while I think, we did trial it and it did what we needed. You install the app on machines around the building and it then can alert all those machines by pressing a green button on the screen.

 

Am pretty sure you can purchase a physical button too.

[JATSO]

Netsupport Notify?

[HPlum78]

On the point of two way radio Teams can do this now... not saying that's the solution mind.

[pete]

Doorbell wired to a mushroom switch that can ring a unique tone in N+1 staffed places.

 

It's not elegant, but it has limited points of failure during the working day when people are around.

[MatthewL]

Little green button used in our office, reception on its own on ground floor offices above.

[superatticman]

So you can use a) the school network, b) the cell network, or c) another wireless system.

 

On the sending side, which of those is possible?

 

On the receiving side, which?

 

How many people do you want to alert, in what manner, are they all in wifi range? What reliability do you want to pay for?

 

 

Hi MAVHC

 

Sending = School network.

 

Receiving = School network and Cell Network.

 

We are looking at around 10 users at present. Alert by SMS or APP (via data) Not all in school wifi range but phone should default to cell data.

 

Reliability has to be high.

 

cheers

[msi_school]

I am always concerned that if it is important enough to not be an email or just walking away is a SMS system going to be suitable?

[JJonas]

Another vote for Little Green Button

 

and mullet_man is correct they do a physical button as well https://www.littlegreenbutton.com/the-big-green-button/

[slugshead]

I've got a system in place for this, which I spent most of last summer installing.

 

 

Backend

 

Site wide communication platform with Motorola Radios running their "Trbonet" software, including alarm management module. https://trbonet.com/solutions/alarm-management/

 

 

Email (G-Suite)

Hosted voice for desk telephones

Onsite 3cx PBX with a couple of trunks

MOXA modbus/IP interfaces https://www.moxa.com/en/products/industrial-edge-connectivity/controllers-and-ios/universal-controllers-and-i-os/iologik-e2200-series

 

What's interesting is how it's possible to integrate everything using the alarm management software. The radio software can monitor a mailbox, act as a SIP extension, connect to modbus IP devices (Both read and write) and even has a text to speech engine.

 

 

Someone presses a button connected to a MOXA (Think the emergency stop style).

 

Radio system notices the state of an input on a moxa is up.

 

Radio system sends a prewritten email to a distribution group, plays TTS message over all radios on all channels, dials a designated tannoy extension (one phone per room added to the tannoy group) and plays the same message and then triggers various outputs on other MOXAs, connected to sirens/strobes.

 

But think bigger, more rules/interfaces, you could use this to lock your buildings down with some clever wiring.

 

The other thing I've done with the exact same back end, fire panels to email the radio system when an alarm is triggered with the details of which building/thing has triggered it. Rules on the alarm system to inform the correct people and play a message over radios.

Edited January 19, 2022 by slugshead

[pete]

@slugshead - what fire panels is your site running?

 

The "let site team know which building/thing was triggered" sounds useful.

[mavhc]

How much did that cost @slugshead ?

 

The nice thing about an IP based system is you can confirm people got the message, and they could even reply saying they're responding

 

Same system as a messaging software group chat.

 

So, a chat program with group chat, that has an API so that programs can also send messages, and has presence detection.

 

If you're using google chat or MS teams that could be used, you'd want the ability to set a different notification sound for the emergency chat though

[slugshead]

@slugshead - what fire panels is your site running?

 

The "let site team know which building/thing was triggered" sounds useful.

 

Mixture of different panels some advance, mostly older conventional panels.

 

But we've actually got this in place, https://www.drax360.com/alarm-management?hsLang=en It reads as an alarm management suite, but it's just fire really. the alarm management package in the radio system does the real integration

 

little interfaces that connect to the serial ports on the panels and reports back to a console in reception, that system generates an email to the radio system, which then generates the audible messages to radios etc.

Edited January 19, 2022 by slugshead

[Davit2005]

Look for a system off the shelf, don't over compiacte it or over engineer it.

[slugshead]

How much did that cost @slugshead ?

 

Doing these kind of things in house means you can hunt for a product that works for you, not just what a sales person says. This solution parts were pricey, other parts not to. The cheaper bit is the bit that scales.

 

The radio software was a like £3000, but then the radios/repeaters are expensive (imo) handsets are £350 a piece, the masts and repeaters were again a few thousand.

 

3CX - Free

4 x SIP Trunks - £30/mo

 

The scaleable bit consists of., just multiply it up by the number of places you want sirens/call points

 

MOXA - £150

Rack mount DIN Rail - £15

Solid state DIN Mount relay - £10

12v DIN mount PSU - £20

240v Air raid Siren - £90

Emergency shutdown red button - £5

Then just the cost of some electrical cabling to connect it all together (200m 3 core flex is like £100)

 

 

the moxas will do snmp, sms etc natively too

[round2it]

we use little green button

 

works very well

 

we also use if for oncall as sims is garbage for requesting help

 

added bonus you can use it for workers out side of school it as a phone app

[superatticman]

we use little green button

 

works very well

 

we also use if for oncall as sims is garbage for requesting help

 

added bonus you can use it for workers out side of school it as a phone app

 

Thanks for all the feedback.

 

Yes, little Green Button (The BIG Green button version) looks promising. Awaiting a call with one of their sales team.

 

Can it send an sms or is is purely app based?