Intrusion detection / perimeter security motion sensors that integrate well with HA?

Hardware
1

Which intrusion detection / perimeter security motion sensors that integrate well with HA would you recommend?

Ideally those sensors should:

  1. alarm about intrusion via Android App (by sending the ID of the triggered sensor) on any number of registered phones no matter where they are located.
  2. be DIY/open-source.
  3. be inexpensive (so one can cover big areas without spending a fortune).
  4. be powered via solar panels.
  5. be radio-based.
  6. be interconnected with each other by means of some sort of wireless mesh network protocol.
  7. if there are cameras covering the perimeter - relevant video stream should be shown automatically upon alarm (after the closest camera was focused on the relevant spot).

Thank you in advance!

2

So what kind of sensors are you talking about, door / contact sensors? Motion sensors?

  1. This you set up with automations in HA.
  2. https://esphome.io
  3. How many sensors? What is a big area?
  4. This probably needs to be DYI and also adds cost.
  5. What kind of radio?
  6. This rules out wifi and Zigbee. For wifi you would need a network they can talk to, for Zigbee you need the devices to be mains powered to do meshing and most (if not all) door sensors are battery powered. You would need routing capable devices near the sensors.
  7. This you set up with automations in HA.

It’s easier for everyone if you explain a bit more what scenario you want to solve.

3

I’m talking about motion sensors.

  1. Enough sensors to cover a field of ca. 300x300 meters.
  2. If battery-based only - I need warning when a battery of a sensor is about to deplete.
  3. Whatever radio is suitable in this case. If there are wire-based options - I’m glad to know about them either.

Thank you very much!

4

Since you have a requirement of it being DYI / open source, then you probably need to build something your self, esphome being the go-to and then you would probably use wifi (meaning you need wifi coverage for all spots where you want the sensors).

You could look at the Hue outdoor motion sensors, they are built to be used outdoors but they break 2, 3, 4 and 6 and you would need zigbee coverage.

5

Preferably those sensors should be able to differentiate between an animal and a human.

6

Ok. Are you aware of wired-based sensors? (may break 2, 4, 5, 6)

7

wired as in power or connectivity? I know there are plenty of PIR sensors that require wired power but they are generally not built to be used outdoors, and I haven’t tested them my self so no idea what range they have. As for communication you could maybe use a esp ethernet module, or even better a PoE module (power and communication over the same cable).

You should research the ESPhome site for ideas for sensors you could use.

This is an example of a presense sensor based on ESPhome.

8

Wired as in power and connectivity… so PoE sounds great. It’s probably actually even better than radio-based approach as it seems to be more stable/simple/cheap. I wonder whether anybody has ever tried to implement such an outdoor intrusion detection project…

9

Example of PoE powered ESP32. You would need either a PoE capable network switch or a PoE injector in the other end to supply power of course.

Good luck on your project, sounds fun :slight_smile: