ISONAS IP Access Control:  The Full Topology Of The ISONAS Solution.  To show the full topology of the ISONAS solution, we will review a simple single-door installation.

1. A PowerNet reader-controller is installed at the door location.
2. Additional components at the door location, such as a request-for-exit device, connects to the PowerNet’s Pigtail.
3. The pigtail will control the door’s lock and monitor the door open sensor. So the items located at the door are connected to the PowerNet reader/controller itself.
4. The PowerNet reader-controller is connected to the data network. In our installation, PoE power is used, which allows the Cat-5 cable to provide power for the reader, the door lock, and any other additional components.The PowerNet supplies .6 amps with standard PoE, and over 1 amp with PoE+.
5. Next, the Crystal Matrix software package is installed on a host computer, and Crystal Matrix configures and controls the PowerNet over the customer’s network. The customer might also use EasyWeb or Easyweb-Mobile, in parallel with Crystal Matrix, to maintain and control the system.

We’ve just covered a single-door configuration. Here we will see what changes when multiple doors are being controlled.

1. We add a PoE Switch to the network, to provide power and data for the multiple door locations. Then each door’s components are installed and the door’s PowerNet is connected to the network. The Crystal Matrix software is easily updated with the new door’s information. This continues in a cookie-cutter manner, until all of the customer’s doors are up and running.
2. One important item to note is that the increment of growth of the system is door by door. You never run into the issues that panel-based systems have of door count limitations, or door location limitations.
3. When using PoE to provide power, your project should include planning for the system’s backup power supply. A simple UPS might be used, and many times, the project can take advantage of UPSs that are currently installed and backing up the rest of the customer’s IT infrastructure.
4. Some sites will have backup generators, to provide power for longer duration outages.

So far we’ve covered the details of the ISONAS solution and how it differs from the systems you may be used to.

But the superior & powerful flexibility of the solution becomes clear when we understand how a single integrated system can be used to control disparate resources within an organization, such as a school or university. To illustrate this, next we will discuss controlling different assets on a college campus.

We start with the network of doors that we saw previously, all being administrated from the central host.

1. The system is extended to the school’s weather research station, located on a remote mountain top. A standard PowerNet is installed there. One important benefit of this usage is realized the next time a graduate student drives to the mountain top, and forgets their card. The student can call back to the school, and request to have the station’s door remotely opened.
2. To control who is allowed to operate loading equipment at the school’s receiving dock, PowerNets are installed on the school’s forklifts. This allows the school to meet safety requirements, by enforcing that only properly trained personnel operate the equipment. Wireless technology allows the forklifts to report on who is operating the equipment, and to allow the forklifts to be notified of any changes to the pool of qualified operators.
3. The same wireless topology can be used when controlling isolated storage areas on the campus. These are locations where the school’s hard-wired data network is not available. Standard wireless bridges are used to connect the remote location to the campus’s network.
4. Built-in cabinets located inside science research labs can be controlled. The PowerNet’s ability to control multiple cabinet doors simplifies this type of installation. This enables the lab to control access to dangerous materials, and generates a log of who accesses the materials, and at what time.
5. Installing a PowerNet with a long-range reader at the entrance to the faculty parking lots reduces conflicts, and makes it quick and easy for the teaching staff to park their vehicles.
6. The school equipped their data center’s computer racks with the PowerNet solution to improve control and accountability of these critical assets.

So with one simple-to-install system, you can address many different challenges throughout the campus.

And to review, even though all of these items are controlled by a central system, the Crystal Matrix software has the ability to give different administrators control over different portions of the system. So, the weather station and research labs might be managed and monitored by the science department, the computer racks could be managed by the IT staff, and the building entrances and parking access could be managed by the school’s security office.