[tech] Serial Port Games: Smoke Detectors.

[James Bromberger]

Idea:

	Smoke Detector connected to a standard Serial port (or, for that 
matter, a multi port blackbox like door). Daemon monitors port(s) and waits 
for a signal(s). On alarm, raises alert by some means, possibly smssend, 
possibly email (to several email addresses, at least one of which 
should probably be remote!), possibly by picking up a modem on a different 
port and sending SMS SOS!


How:
	The example smoke detector I have looked at has a 9 volt battery. 
I havent taken it fully apart, but my gues is that I could wire the contacts 
going to the siren in parallel to GND (pin 5 on a 9 pin) and RxD (pin 2 on 
a 9 pin), and poll until something happens.

So, can anyone tell me if this would work? What about multiple smoke detectors 
in parallel with one way diodes so one going off wont start the sirens on 
all of them/drain the power from the battery too much?

Is 9 volts enough for a signal (I think it is, but others know more than I 
on this)? Is a simple link to two pins enough?

Thinking about it, you can easily test the alert system by pressing the button 
on the smoke detector to raise voltage! Shame about the noise though...


  James
-- 
 James Bromberger <james_AT_rcpt.to> www.rcpt.to/~james

       * *  C u in Bordeaux - 1st Debian Conference, July 2001 * * 
 Remainder moved to http://www.rcpt.to/~james/james/sig.html
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