RANGER FAQ

  1. Go to https://www.signal-fire.com/signalfire-cloud-account-setup/
  2. Enter your credentials and submit
  3. You will receive an email confirming a SignalFire Cloud account was created for your company.

*note: If your company already has an account, ask your SignalFire Cloud administrator to create a user for your login

Any account with “User Admin” permissions can add additional users, by clicking the “Add User” button in the Users window. Be sure to assign the new user the appropriate user permissions. All user names must be a valid email address

There is no limit for users per account

  1. User Admins can add, remove, or edit user profiles.
  2. Device Admins can configure the settings on a RANGER, and can control its digital output
  3. Alarm Admins can configure the alarm settings for a RANGER
  4. Alarm Ack allows a user to acknowledge active alarms
  5. Report Admins can configure automated reports

The data is stored for at least 3 years. Data older than 3 years may be deleted

The RANGER will store the last 200,000 events that have changed since the connection dropped, and then send that data to the cloud when the connection is restored

The RANGER uses the Sparkplug B MQTT format. Tag guides that detail all data tags from the RANGER can be found in the download tab for the RANGER on the signal-fire.com website

From the Node Status Tile, select “Hide/Show Tiles”. From this view unused tiles can be hidden from view. These changes will apply for all users within your group.

The RANGER can be configured to report immediately on change for its digital inputs. The Analog, HART, Modbus, SDI-12 inputs are only sampled at the configured reporting interval. The Fast Reporting feature can be configured to start reporting at a faster interval if an input crosses a threshold, or can report all inputs on the change of a DI trigger

Please use the forgot password link on the login screen to reset your password

Yes it is possible to limit a user to where they can make no changes to the Cloud or RANGER settings by editing the user’s role. Removing their “Device Admin” permission will restrict them from changing the settings on any RANGERS, and removing their “Alarm Admin” is required to prevent them from making changes to the alarm configurations

You can customize the columns from the Home Screen.

  1. Click Configure on the top right of the Home page
  2.  Use the drop downs for each row to select content for that column
  3. If using Modbus Registers, use the Button “Show Dynamic Values” and choose a Modbus Register.

Once selected, the Drop Down selector will include “Custom [Modbus Tag]

Yes. If you select a RANGER, from the Node Status tile select Configure Node. From this screen you can “release” the RANGER from the group and it can then be claimed by another user group

You can view the expiration date on the Cloud through two ways:

  1. On the Home Screen, you can have a column that shows the Expiration Date
  2. On a given RANGER node, locate the “Node Status” Tile. There, you’ll find the expiration date

Furthermore, an email will be sent to all users that are marked as a billing contact 60 days prior to expiration.

The RANGER will stop sending new data to the SignalFire Cloud but all data transmitted prior to expiration will still be available

The RANGER supports TLS 1.2 with full validation to ensure a secure connection between the RANGER and the MQTT broker. Customers using their own MQTT broker have the option to load their own TLS certificates into the RANGER in addition to the factory certificates which are used to connect to the SignalFire Cloud

There is no limit for users per account

The fastest reporting interval is once every minute for the standard subscription. Subscriptions can be upgraded to support 15-second and 5-second data

No, each user account only supports one phone number. To add another phone number, you need to create another user

From the SignalFire Cloud, click the Modify button in the row containing the Modbus register to write. In the pop-up configuration window, enter the new register value and click the Set button. Note that the Register must be configured as a read/write register.

  1. Connect the RANGER ToolKit to the Ranger.
  2. Click on the Tools Menu and select Options.
  3. Select the “Show MQTT” Tab to expose the MQTT settings in the main RANGER configuration window.
  4. Under MQTT tab, click on Custom and enter the credentials for your MQTT Broker.
  5. Apply the changes, the RANGER’s modem will reboot. Look under MQTT Status on the main screen to confirm that the broker connected successfully

The RANGER’s modem supports both LTE-M Cat1 and NB-IoT cellular standards. The bands are specific to each carrier. Compare the available bands on the RANGER with the one from your cellular carrier. Currently, the RANGER is certified with Verizon, AT&T and has been connected to other networks like Rogers, TELUS, Bell, O2, Vodafone, Orange. SignalFire currently provides bundled data services through Verizon

The RANGER requires a 4FF size (nano) SIM. The SIM card and data plan must be capable of supporting LTE-M or NB-IoT networks. This is different than a standard 4G data SIM

No further configuration is necessary unless the carrier requires a user configured APN

No, the RANGER requires a IoT data plan specific to LTE-M or NB-IoT service

Many cellular carriers automatically configure the APN from the network side so the user is not required to set the APN manually. Verizon and AT&T automatically configure the APN. Other carriers may require the user to manually configure the APN, in which case the carrier will provide the required APN settings

  1. Connect the RANGER ToolKit to the RANGER.
  2. Click on the Tools Menu and select Options.
  3. Select the “Show MQTT” Tab to expose the MQTT settings in the main RANGER configuration window.
  4. Under MQTT tab, click on Custom and enter the credentials for your MQTT Broker.
  5. Click on Manage TLS Certificates and import your set of certificates into the RANGER
  6. Apply the changes, the RANGER’s modem will reboot. Look under MQTT Status on the main screen to confirm that the broker connected successfully

The RANGER needs a clear view of the sky for the GPS to obtain a position, and is unlikely to get a position fix indoors.

We recommend using the website of the carrier to determine coverage

The RANGER does not have any open TCP ports or a public IP address so it not accessible over the internet. The RANGER initiates a secure connection to a MQTT broker and all data must pass through the broker

The RANGER does not have a public IP address, so this is not configurable

Both LTE-M and NB-IoT were developed by the 3GPP to address the growing need for wireless IoT (Internet of Things) devices, which need to consume as little power as possible, operate in remote areas, and are typically only sending a few bytes at a time.

LTE CAT-M1 (abbreviated LTE-M) is based on the existing cellular LTE framework your mobile phone uses, modified to serve low power IoT applications. For this reason, LTE-M is the dominant wireless IoT platform used in countries that have widely available existing LTE networks such as the U.S., Brazil, and Germany.

NB-IoT (Narrow Band IoT) is based on older GSM and CDMA technology and attempts to use large open sections on those spectrums. NB-IoT is being rolled out in countries that don’t have much LTE coverage and where GSM and CDMA are still popular, such as India, China, and South Africa.

The RANGER is certified as follows:

  • Hazardous locations: Non-Incendive – For use in Class I, Division 2, Groups A, B, C, D. Certified per UL 121201:2017 Ed.9+R:26Aug2019 and CSA C22.2#213:2017 Ed.3+U1;U2
  • European health, safety, and environmental protection: CE, IEC62368-1:2014 2nd Ed, EN 62368-1:2014+A11:2017
  • Cellular: PTCRB, Verizon LTE-Cat M1, AT&T LTE-CAT M1, AT&T FirstNet

The round housing RANGER is rated IP67 and the Wall Mount RANGER is rated IP68

The RANGER900 combines a SignalFire 900MHz gateway and a DIN RANGER into a single enclosure along with a battery and solar panel. The allows users to easily bring data from SignalFire 900MHz devices to the SignalFire Cloud

The Wall Mount RANGER is rated IP68

The RANGER900 combines a SignalFire 900MHz Gateway with the RANGER. You can also connect the SignalFire Gateway Stick or DIN Gateway to the RANGER’S Modbus port. This requires the Modbus option with the RANGER. The number of registers is limited to 32 data points from up to 8 slave devices, or 96 data points with an expanded subscription