Wireless Contact Closure Control

Transfer a Contact Closure to Another Location
Trigger Relays with a Contact Closure in Another Location
Reliable Contact Closure Control Over a Distance - Wirelessly

Contact Closure Over a Distance

MirC controllers are sold in pairs, a sender board and receiver board. Contact closure inputs such as buttons, switches or other electronic devices (no voltage) attached to inputs on the sender board will energize the corresponding relay on the Receiver board. Communication between boards is Wireless. Pricing shown on our web site indicates pricing for the pair of boards.

Who’s Qualified to Use the MirC?

Anyone. The MirC Series Controllers are the most consumer-friendly devices we have ever manufactured. Whether an electronics engineer or a home hobbyist, anyone is qualified to use the MirC Series controller provided the Quick Start Guide is carefully studied. The Quick Start Guide is available in the resources section to the right or bottom of this page.

MirC Modules

Each board is equipped with a Wireless Module. The wireless module adds wireless communications to the board and will only communicate with it's paired module using their serial numbers. The module is powered from the board and the board itself will require 12 volts of power and can be hard wired or you can purchase a "wall wart" type Power Supply at checkout.

Wireless Range

Once you add your order to the shopping cart you will have the opportunity to choose which wireless modules are installed on the boards. The modules installed will affect the range or distance the boards will be able to effectively communicate with each other. The default option is the "Standard Range", which operates up to 300 feet and includes a small integrated antenna that cannot be moved or positioned. The "Mile Range" Options includes a small external antenna. The "15-Mile Range" Option includes TWO Roof Mount antennas, 20 Feet of Cable for Each Antenna, and 2 cable adapters. Hills, Trees, and Buildings will greatly reduce communication range of all wireless devices, so practical distances may be less. Click the following link for a spec sheet on the XBee® Multipoint RF Modules.

Wireless Module Choices

300 Feet (802.15.4 Communication Technology, Short Range Line of Site)
1 Mile (802.15.4 Communication Technology Medium Range Line of Site)
2 Mile (XSC Communication, Long Range Line of Site, Two Small Antennas)
15 Miles (XSC Communication Long Range Line of Site, Requires Two Large Roof-Mounted Antennas)

Line-Of-Site Operation

As with any wireless technologies, for optimal performance it needs to be line-of-sight. In other words the antennas of the board and modem must "see" each other to get the optimal range or even be able to communicate at all.

Read Status of Remote Relays

The sending device is also equipped with LEDs that display the status of the remote relay. Status information is verified using 2-way wireless communications. If communication is lost between the remote relay and the sending device, the sending device will turn off the LED. Additionally, every MirC controller is equipped with a Busy/Ready LED. If the Busy LED flashes, this indicates the remote device has successfully received and accepted your contact closure status. If the Busy LED does not flash, the remote device is out of range.

Order of Operations

Contact closures are read on one board
Data is sent to other board wirelessly to turn on or off relays
Remote device replies back
Busy light flashes to confirm data was received

Contact Closure Inputs

A MirC controller has as many inputs on the sender board as it has Relays on the receiver board. So a pair of 4 relay MirC controllers will have 4 contact closure inputs on the sender board and 4 relays on the receiver board, the same holds true for 1, 2, and 8 relay versions.

Relay Outputs

MirC Controllers have Relays integrated into the receiver board. A relay is similar to a switch. The only difference between a switch and a relay is the actual mechanism for changing the on/off status of the switch. On a switch, you manually push on a piece of metal or plastic to operate the switch. On a relay, an electric current is used to operate the switch. Relays do NOT provide a voltage output. They provide a contact closure output and simply interrupt the power to the device you are switching. Wiring to a relay will be slightly different depending on the model of MirC controller you choose.

Add Email or Text Notifications

The MIRCC1 is a Push Notification board that will allow you to use a relay from this board as an input and send an email or text message when the circuit is closed. The board will communicate the contact closure information to your computer through a USB or Wi-Fi connection. N-Button Software will then send a text or email from the computer to your selected recipients. A dedicated computer will be needed to run the software that sends the text and or email. The Push Notification board, N-Button Lite Software and a Power Supply can be purchased at checkout.
More on Push Notification