DRAFT
TD 93021US
17 July 2017 / Ver. PF3
132
Installation Guide
teleCARE IP
8.4
teleCARE IP Wireless Planning
8.4.1 RF Planning Considerations
The room controller NIRC3 (with transceiver module NIRX installed) functions as a base station and must
be situated where it can reliably receive the RF signals of the wireless devices in the designated coverage
area. The optimum indoor coverage area is approximately 100 feet from the NIRC3 base station
(depending on the environment).
The designated area must have complete RF coverage to ensure that any event triggered by a wireless
device in that area will be received, therefore more than one NIRC3 base stations might be required to
achieve full coverage of an area. At all possible locations, an NITX must be seen by at least one NIRC3
base station. To avoid an overload of RF messages being sent to the wireless server, for example in
overlapping areas, an NITX must not be seen by more than a maximum of three NIRC3 base stations.
The NIRC3 base station should be installed away from metal objects such as beams, cable conduits and
pipes.
Background RF noise will affect the NIRC3 base station, therefore it is important to install the NIRC3 base
station as far away as possible from sources of RF interference such as transmitters, wireless telephone
system repeaters, large electrical motors, electronic ballasts, microwave ovens and air conditioning units.
The signals transmitted from the wireless devices can penetrate obstructions such as walls, ceilings and
doors but the signal received by the NIRC3 base station will be reduced and can be blocked completely
depending on the materials and characteristics of the obstruction.
With medium or heavy wall construction, such as concrete and metal, the penetrated signal strength
from the wireless device can be significantly reduced or totally blocked. Therefore, where constructions of
these types are relevant, it is important to check the signal strength to determine the locations and
quantity of NIRC3 base stations which will be required to ensure adequate coverage.
The following diagram shows an example of the NIRC3 base station coverage area in the vertical plane.
Depending on the type of construction signals could be received through floors and ceilings, as shown in
the following illustration:
Figure 172. NIRC3 base station vertical coverage
The NIRC3 base station has a circular coverage distribution pattern in the horizontal plane. The optimum
indoor coverage area is within approximately 100 feet of the NIRC3 base station, as shown in the
following illustration.
