It’s not released yet but I got a sneak preview of Inner Range’s latest development, Webtegriti, a browser-based security and access control system that simplifies installation and management of small electronic security solutions.

AT its core, Webtegriti is a controller in a compact poly housing incorporating browser-based software and everything else required for a small access control solution. The solution will support doors, cameras and alarm inputs – features and scalability will be finalised by a focus group of installers in the next month or so. The completed core comms for expansion is RS-485 and support for other comms technologies is also in development.

Given some of the cloud-ward movements going on in the market it makes sense that Inner Range should cover this base. That it can do so with a solution like Webtegriti shows the value of owning a serious engineering capability.

For installers coming to access control for the first time, there’s no server and no software setup required. Webtegriti is easy to install and requires no special training, additional software or licensing. There’s intuitive browser-based software that enables users to remotely monitor system activity and perform day to day operations and administrative tasks, such as adding and deleting users as well as for suitably privileged users to configure a new system. You just jump onto the browser and add users and devices through a user-friendly interface.

“Webtegriti is designed for installers who want a very simple solution. It has the software onboard, is accessed via a browser and housed in its own poly housing,” Inner Range CEO Vin Lopes tells me at the company’s Melbourne HQ.

“The key things to take away are that with Webtegriti installers don’t have to buy software, don’t have to buy a UART and don’t have to buy a computer.”

Adam Lopes, who was instrumental in the development of Webtegrit and Project leader Steve Mitchell, both agree that the system is designed to help installers who may not be strong with complex software, but are perfectly happy driving tablets or smart phones.

“Some security technicians don’t like using software – they often say they preferred the old days when you could program the system through a keypad,” Adam says.

“But the same people are capable of operating a smart phone or a tablet. This solution caters to installers who want a small access control system that’s simple to install and that in 5 minutes they will be able to connect to via a tablet. The interface we have put together is really simple – for instance name, notes, entry delay, exit delay are all prominently displayed in an intuitive layout.”

Meanwhile, Vin says Webtegriti will be a capable solution despite its simplicity.

“Modern technology allows us to use  inexpensive computer-grade processors – we don’t have to be stingy with memory – and we can now use all the tools in our development armoury. We can develop this system and its future iterations much faster than ever before.”

Webtegriti app

Remote management

The key to Webtegriti is that installers and end users can access the system using any  web enabled device. The Webtegriti application works on all mobile devices and computers, including Windows and Mac and with mobile devices Android and iOS. It’s a standard web page browser so there are no demons here.

We take a look at the current web browser interface for the system. Readers should note that this system is in the final stages of design, so that although none of these things are cast in stone, this is generally how the system will develop from this point forward.

The overall impression is that Webtegriti is simplicity. There’s a log-in page – it’s designed to work on standard desktop or laptop computers, and automatically resizes to fit optimally onto tablets and smart phones. The interface has been designed from day 1 with touch in mind. On a touch screen the menu is at the top and you can scroll through each item on the menu.

“Webtegriti is designed for installers who want a very simple solution. It has the software onboard, is accessed via a browser. It’s housed in its own poly housing”

The layout is basic in a good way, consisting of touch bars – first is General, then Basic Configuration, then Monitoring Options, Inputs, Outputs, Advanced Configuration, Auto-Arm. As you select a menu, additional options open up in a drop window. For instance, with monitoring you type in Area Number, Client Code, tick the report openings, report openings only after an alarm and report closings boxes.

It’s quick. One click into a menu sees you undertaking setup. At the top right of the screen are touch buttons for Adding New (user, door, alarm input), Save and Delete. These allow very easy management of key functions of the system. Users can also undertake actions like locking and unlocking of doors from a local workstation or a remote smart device.

So long as you have a network connection. It’s the same landing page for installers and end users. Once you’ve touched down then permissions can be setup to authorise different levels of access. You use a PIN entry if coming into the system from a smart phone or tablet.

The team is currently working on the interfaces – all the editing parts are completed to configure the system, status and optimise the end user experience. There are simple configuration menus – assigning inputs to an area – users to an area. Very simple processes – menus and icons and management is very responsive. Once authorised, a user has a different interface to work with and different options but it’s quite seamless.

“We really only started developing the product last year,” Inner Range R&D manager Alf Katz explains. “It was over Christmas that we really broke ground on a prototype and though it’s now only March we are well on the way to having a solution completed. There will be a preview at Security 2014 and the market release will be Q4 this year.”

I don’t get to see the actual plastics for Webtegriti but the art looks very nice and if Inner Range’s other products are anything to go by, this very simple cloud-based Webtegriti system is sure to be a winner.

By John Adams

“This solution caters to installers who want something simple to install that in 5 minutes they will be able to connect to via a tablet, go to the URL of the device and finish their setup there”