Alarm Sensors For Glass

Temasek Polytechnic graduate Luke Lim developed a sticker sensor that can detect cracks in surfaces like glass doors or window screens. Called Shatter Alert, his innovation is patent-pending.

Sticker sensor detects cracks in glass doors, windows: Imagine a sticker that can detect cracks in surfaces like glass doors or window screens. Mr Luke Lim, 25, has designed just that, after three years of toying with the concept and testing different materials. The idea started as a project with a course mate when he was in his final year at Temasek Polytechnic (TP), reading computer engineering.

"We wanted to create a sensor that would activate only when the window is broken. Existing alarm and sensory systems are reactive to other sounds like thunder," said Mr Lim, who graduated from TP in 2012. "But we couldn't commercialise it at that point because the technology was too expensive and we had to find a way to bring the cost down."

After graduating, Mr Lim, with the help of his lecturer Kok Boon Kiong and guidance from TP's entrepreneurship centre, developed a prototype that has been on the market since September last year.

It is available through Glass Security, a company Mr Lim set up with a co-founder, who is graduating from university this year.

Mr Kok, a senior lecturer in infocomm and network engineering, said Mr Lim worked hard on his project, even during his national service. "He would burn his weekends coming to TP to find me, continue working on the product and doing research. There's a lot of trial and error and using different methods, and he learnt a lot. He has the belief and passion in his idea, and so I supported him," he said.

In 2013, Mr Lim was awarded a seed grant of $50,000 from Spring Singapore for his patent-pending technology, now known as Shatter Alert. "Based on the touchscreen technology of smartphones, we made the film thinner and more flexible, so that it's possible for it to be attached to surfaces," he said.

The transparent sticker sensor can be stuck on surfaces of any material such as plastic, glass or concrete. It costs about $300 to be installed on two car windows, along with an alarm system. Mr Lim said that he has finalised talks with a Malaysian distributor to supply the product there and is also exploring the market in India. The technology can potentially be used in support structures such as bridges and buildings, he added.

Top Ten Alarm Sensors On The Market Right Now: Glass Break Sensors Review - Why Buy a Glass Break Sensor? A burglary in the night or while you're away from home can cost you valuable items as well as your sense of security. One way to protect your home is to install a glass break sensor that alerts you when a window is broken in your home, allowing entry without your knowledge. These window sensors include the Honeywell FG-730 Glassbreak Detector, Bosch DS1108i Glassbreak Detector and ELK-6040 Two-Way Wireless Glass Break Sensor.

There are several basic types of glass sensors. These types of window alarms come in hard-wired or wireless models and are available as surface mounts or audio discriminators. Surface-mount sensors work by detecting a shock to the glass panels of a window, which is good for windows that don't open, such as decorative side panes alongside a front door.

Audio discriminators work by triggering an alarm when a noise occurs that is on the same decibel level as the sound of breaking glass. This type can be a better option in large rooms with multiple windows. Audio discriminators are normally mounted on a wall or ceiling and can be used to protect windows in an entire room, patio doors and other types of operational windows. Others are designed to work with a transceiver to provide protection for the room.

Glass Break Sensors: What to Look For. Window alarms come in different types to protect stationary and opening windows. Learn about the differences to choose the right one.

Breakage Detection

There are two main ways in which a sensor can detect a broken window: via ultra thin strands of wire or by monitoring the typical audio frequencies that accompany the sound of breaking glass. Those in the first category tend to require extensive wiring and costly glass, whereas those in the second category are much simpler to install, and you don't need to place them on the window. The downside to sound-based glass break detectors is their propensity for false alarms, although discrimination algorithms can ignore some similar types of sound.

Vibration Detection

Vibration detection window sensors work by monitoring windows for vibration. When a window is struck by an object, it vibrates before shattering, which sends an alert to the alarm system. These systems are particularly useful for non-opening windows, but they can be set off by natural events, such as birds flying into the window or hail and high winds. Sensitivity settings may allow you to adjust the level of vibration that sets off the alarm.

Power Source

Power sources can be either hard-wired or battery operated. Hard-wired sources are vulnerable during power outages and can be disabled by cutting power to the home, but the power source doesn't need to be swapped out every few years. Battery-operated models don't have this vulnerability, but they do require a battery to run, and these batteries can run out. Some systems combine the two in the event of power outages.

Ease of Installation

Not all window alarms are easy to install. You can choose stick-on sensors, sensors that are wired to the window and operated by battery, or hard-wired sensors that require professional installation. Anything that requires hard installation usually takes longer to set up and may require regular servicing.

Automatic Reset

Some alarms are not equipped with an automatic reset. In alarms with automatic reset, the alarm sounds for less than one minute and then the device resets itself. While this can be a useful option, some homeowners prefer the option of resetting the alarm themselves.

The Window Socket - A Panefully Clean Suction Solar Sticker

The Window Socket - A New Pain or extra Pane Charges?

Stick the Solar-Powered Window Socket on Glass and Watch it Charge: Here’s a design that rivals the light bulb in its ingenuity: the Window Socket.  The disc-like socket designed by the Korean duo Kyuho Song and Boah Oh has a base of mini solar panels and a suction cup that ensures effective adhesion to virtually any transparent glass surface that is exposed to the sun. The panels absorb solar energy, which is then converted into electric energy by an embedded converter.

“This product is designed to enable you to use electricity freely and conveniently in a space restricted by the use of electricity such as in a plane, a car or outdoors,” according to Song and Oh’s design brief on Yanko. “Thus this product was designed to draw a socket used indoors outdoors. We tried to design a portable socket so that users can use it intuitively without special training.” It doesn’t get more simple that sticking the window socket on a pane of glass and watch it (or not) while it charges for five to eight hours.

Once completely charged to 1000 mAh, it stays charged for up to ten hours. Although we’re not in love with the plastic components (who needs more plastic in the world), the Window Socket impresses us as a fantastic solution for nomads, off-grid dwellers or other people living alternative lives. It would also make a great backup for small appliances and phones during power outages like those we experience so regularly in Egypt and Lebanon.

Could future power be more personal and off the grid?

Solar outlet gives power from your windows: Your window might be an unlikely place to plug-in your smartphone, but a team of designers has made that possible with a novel take on the portable electronics charger. Industrial designers Kyuho Song & Boa Oh created a solar charger called the Window Socket that suctions onto glass and converts solar energy to function like an electrical socket. The units also contain a 1,000mAh battery, which is equivalent to a smartphone’s lithium-ion. The battery takes 5-8 hours to get fully charged.

“This product is intended to enabled you to use electricity freely and conveniently in a space restricted in the use of electricity, such as in a plane, a car, and outdoors,” the inventors wrote in a design brief. “Thus, this product was meant to draw out a socket used indoors outward. We tried to design a portable socket, so that users can use it intuitively without special training.”

News about the invention was published in Yanko Design on Friday. The Window Socket appears to use the Korean specification for wall outlets, but could become more widely available in the future, the environmental news Web site Grist speculates. Note that there’s one downside: the charge only lasts for 10 hours. The designers do not appear to have created a product Web site with any further information.

An immediately available product is the “OffGrid” solar backpack by New York startup Voltaic Systems. They are available in a variety of styles, with either built-in or detachable solar cells. The solar charger powers an internal battery that connects to devices via an integrated USB port for an output of up to 4 Watts.

A less conventional alternative comes from another New York startup, SiGNa Chemistry, a maker of miniaturized fuel cells. All that’s required to power your smartphone is a tiny chemical hydrogen cartridge and some water, or even urine. The liquid initiates a chemical reaction that generates power instantly.

Plug It On The Window: The Window Socket offers a neat way to harness solar energy and use it as a plug socket. So far we have seen solutions that act as a solar battery backup, but none as a direct plug-in. Simple in design, the plug just attaches to any window and does its job intuitively.