If you think this observation relates to most of the current generation of networked access control solutions, you’d be wrong. While end-to-end IP video has been around for ten years now, access control is a different kettle of fish. Hybrid access gear has been with us for about 3 decades and the market seems in no particular hurry to implement change.

Some of the sticking points holding back the move to IP access include the importance of distributed local intelligence with remote battery support, as well as the need for additional power to handle electron-hungry locking devices.

But while there’s been no headlong charge towards IP access, the past 5 years has seen a push towards globally networked solutions that’s driven by clever old hands and big corporations - each side bent on a slice of the action. It’s into the latter category that Honeywell fits, though it would be churlish not to recognise the company’s longstanding position as a manufacturer of high quality analog and hybrid access control solutions for the top end of town. Honeywell is an access control blueblood, nothing surer.

System features and functionality

 With this Honeywell NetAXS solution you’re not getting a revolutionary new IP-based access solution that’ll shift every door onto blue cable and make it an edge device. Instead what you get is a wonderfully modular hybrid animal that’s packaged so it gives users the ability to program and manage their access systems from a central control point in the usual way, or via a web browser from any remote location, while retaining the ruggedness of analog door controllers.

Modularity is the key here and it benefits manufacturer, installer and end user. At its core NetAXS features a controller with an embedded Linux Web server, a 4-reader control panel expandable to 30 control panels over RS-485, an onboard I/O able to handle 4 readers, 14 inputs and 8 outputs, and a downstream networked I/O with 64 inputs and 64 outputs. Along with this unit – it’s called the Large Enclosure there’s what Honeywell is calling the Small Enclosure – a smaller box with a controller and power – it’s really just a network gateway for existing Honeywell access panels.

With NetAXS, networking is handled through built-in RS485 multi-drop communications, 10/100 onboard Ethernet and RS232 serial communications. Honeywell says that the embedded Ethernet and secure communications ensure that NetAXS can work on new or existing IT infrastructures. Data is communicated using Secure Socket Layer (SSL) encryption and NetAXS is designed to withstand open-port and denial of service attacks, making it robust and secure in a network environment.

The controller’s enclosure incorporates everything else you’d expect to find there – a power supply, distributed relay module and battery backup. There are also some things you might not expect to find - pre-wiring, colour coded removable terminal blocks, power for door locks, multiple grounding points and large wiring channels. The idea is obviously to make this beastie plug-and-play as much as possible.

According to Honeywell, NetAXS is designed to add next-generation Web capabilities to the company’s access control products. For example, it extends the functionality of the popular N-1000 access control panels to ensure easy upgrades. This means that whether a customer is installing a new system or upgrading an existing one, the intuitive NetAXS configuration allows the installer to hang it up, plug it in and walk away, Honeywell says.

The design and specifications of NetAXS guarantee the system will be adaptable and user-friendly. It offers simple installation and programming for small and medium-sized organizations including commercial offices, retail establishments, light industrial facilities and warehouses, and convenience stores.