Installing beacons

Installation site visit is a crucial part of a successful project. Installation is good to do towards the end of the project, when the application is ready to be tested. It is always best to test the application in real-life location, to ensure that nothing unforeseen pops up. Depending on how far away your venue is, it is usually best to do the testing during the same trip as the installation.

Preparation

Make sure your venue is properly setup on the Proximi.io platform, including the floor plans and navigation setup. Proximi.io team will assist you with the onboarding. They will also provide you an installation plan, and remote training for the installation. Remember to coordinate your installation time with the Proximi.io team, so that our technicians will be available for quick support, in case that is needed. It is recommended to avoid weekends and public holidays as installations dates for this purpose.

Preserve plenty of time for the installation. In one day, one person installs between 2500 - 5000 sqm of installation area. If you are screwing the beacons to the walls/ceiling, the installation will take even longer. Proximi.io technicians will provide you the installation plan, along with an estimation of the hours the installation will take. Remember to coordinate the installation times with the venue, e.g. in an office building you need to ensure that meeting rooms are not fully booked during your visit.

Installation training + installing the devkit takes about 2-3 hours.

*You will receive the installation plan from Proximi.io team, after delivering an accurate, detailed CAD or PDF format floorplan to them. The floorplan must have written information on scale and orientation.

**If you ordered the Proximi.io devkit or otherwise beacons through Proximi.io, your beacons will arrive readily configured. If not, you must take care of configuring the beacons beforehand. The transmission power should be between -12 dBm and -16 dBm. Transmission interval should be around 200-350 ms. Specific settings will be given to you by Proximi.io technicians. For instructions on how to configure beacons, refer to the beacon manufacturer's documentation.

First steps

Start the installation from a straightforward location, such as a corridor. Start with just 2 beacons. Proximi.io Management App is a great tool for the installation. It visualizes where all the beacons are located, which ones can be heard by the SDK at the moment, and the relative strength of the different beacon signals.

The installation plan has beacon locations marked with coloured dots, but not the names of specific beacons. You can pick any 2 beacons from your boxes - unless told otherwise. Write down the names of the beacons on the floorplan, next to the coloured dots. Install the beacons as close to the location marked on the map as possible. Ideal installation location is the ceiling, when the ceiling height is about 2 - 4 meters. If that is not possible for some reason, you can also install them on the walls at around 3m height. With your laptop or mobile phone, login to the Proximi.io web portal. Import the two beacons and drag them to the correct locations following this documentation. Install the Proximi.io Management app from Play Store. Login with the same username and password as you use to login to the portal.  You should see the application recognizing your location and zooming to your venue. Start walking from one beacon to another. You should see your position fixing very close to the beacon, when you stand next to it, and then start smoothly moving towards the next one, when you walk towards that. If the behaviour is not as described here, contact Proximi.io team, and they will help you debug what is happening. If you are happy with the behaviour, you can continue with the rest of the installation.

Best locations to install beacons

Remember that beacons should always have a line-of-sight to the mobile device. Ideally, beacons are placed in the middle of the walkway, directly above the path that users will be walking. Don't forget to install beacons also in elevators.

Areas that will need special attention are locations with an open ceiling to upper floors. These are quite typical in malls and other large buildings, and Proximi.io team will be able to assist you with these.

Don't hide beacons behind structures, and especially avoid placing beacons just next to large metal objects. Locations with very high electromagnetic interference (such as server rooms), may need additional beacons. Leave a few centimeters between the beacon and any corners. Remember to install beacons above an arms' reach, to avoid any unwanted attention to the beacons.

This video gives you quick tips for installing beacons in optimal locations:

Testing

Once you are all done with the installation, test with your own application. If you are experiencing any issues, test again with the Proximi.io Management App. That helps you in analyzing, whether the problem comes from the installation or the application. Proximi.io team will be happy to support you through any problematic areas.

Other questions regarding beacons

Is it possible to paint beacons?
Yes, even though not highly recommended in order to ensure that no paint goes into the electronics, it is possible to camouflage beacons by painting them. Just make sure the paint is not something special that includes metal or magnetic elements.