Non-priority multi-knock action plans allow you to set an auto-complete timeout.
Although it is not possible for Patriot to automatically and definitively identify a false alarm, there are cases where a certain alarm zone is known to be common source of false alarms. Patriot has a "multi-knock" feature which is designed to help deal with this problem, with minimal input from operators.
There are two types of multi-knock action plan: priority and non-priority.
A priority multi-knock action plan, when assigned to an unreliable alarm zone, will immediately generate a lower priority alarm when the zone activates, if a subsequent alarm signal is received from the same client (any area if the client is partitioned) then the alarm escalates to a higher priority alarm.
A non-priority multi-knock action plan will not immediately generate an alarm, instead it creates a sleeping alarm which may later be escalated to a priority alarm or automatically removed if no subsequent alarm signal is received.
For this case study, we will use a non-priority multi-knock action plan.
Open Action Plan Maintenance, from Maintenance -> General -> Action Plans. Create a new action plan and set the priority to zero. It is a good idea to mention multi-knock in the activation plan description e.g. "Burglary - Multi-knock Required". In the Automated Alarm Handling section choose the action plan of the alarm that will be escalated to if a multi-knock alarm signal is received. Set a timeout after which the sleeping alarm will be automatically removed if no multi-knock alarm signal is received.
Next locate a client PIR zone known to produce frequent false alarms. On the Action Plan tab, override the Burglary Action Plan with the new multi-knock version of the burglary action plan.
Now, when a burglary alarm is triggered on Zone 3, if no current activations exist on the client, then no new alarm will generate, instead a sleeping multi-knock activation will be created. If a second alarm signal of any type or zone is then received within the next 5 minutes and 30 seconds, from any area of the client then the sleeping alarm awaken and escalate to a Burglary alarm. If no second alarm signal is received within the timeout, then the multi-knock activation will be automatically completed by Patriot.
