Troubleshooting Amazon Monitron device issues

If you have problems with one of your Amazon Monitron devices, use these suggestions to troubleshoot the problem. Then, if you're still having trouble, contact AWS Support.

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Troubleshooting Issues with Amazon Monitron Sensors

As a completely self-contained unit, there aren't many things that are likely to go wrong with a sensor. However, some issues can still occur.

Topics

• If you can't commission your sensors
• If your sensor is offline
• If your sensor falls off

If you can't commission your sensors

Consider the following questions.

• Does the mobile phone running the Amazon Monitron App have a stable internet connection?

  For commissioning a sensor, the mobile phone running the Amazon Monitron App should have internet connectivity.

• Are you holding your smartphone close to the sensor?

  

  At the moment of commissioning, your phone should be within two centimeters of the sensor. Don't move your phone while the sensor is being commissioned.

• Does your smartphone have NFC activated?

  Some iOS devices require that NFC Tag Reader be manually turned on in Control Center. To see if your device is one of them, check the iPhone User Guide.

• Are you holding your NFC antenna close to the sensor?

  On an iPhone, the NFC antenna is close to the top of the device. On an Android device, it could be in a different location. Check the documentation for Samsung, Google Pixel, or your device's manufacturer.

• Does the commissioning progress bar show up? (Android only)

  

  If the commissioning progress bar doesn't show up (Android only), or resets to the beginning, then the NFC communication between the sensor and your smartphone is weak or can't be established. Move your smartphone around to try and establish the NFC connection. Smartphones often have different locations for transmitting NFC, depending on the brand. Check the hardware specifications of your smartphone and tap the sensor specifically with that part of your phone. Confirm that NFC is turned on and broadcasting.

• Do you get an error saying that the sensor is already in use?

  Delete the sensor from its previous asset or position, and then retry the commissioning process. If that doesn't work, try and commission another sensor that is not currently in use.

If your sensor is offline

Once a sensor has been paired to an asset, Amazon Monitron will make two attempts (over the course of 30 seconds) to take the initial measurement. If neither of those attempts is successful, then an alert like the one below will appear in the app.

If your sensor has stopped sending data, try the following:

• Try taking a one-time measurement. If you can do so, then the sensor is working. If you cannot, then the sensor is not working, and may have run out of battery power. Replace it with a new sensor.

• Confirm that an available gateway is within range. Amazon Monitron sensors and gateways communicate using Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), with a typical range of 20 to 30 meters. In a completely open space, a sensor and a gateway may communicate with each other at greater distances.

• Check for obstacles. Concrete walls and metal objects attenuate the signals.

• Check for signal interference. The Bluetooth signal that sensors and gateways use to communicate occupies the 2.4GHz ISM (industrial, scientific and medical) band. Other devices that may use that band include wireless headsets and mice, wireless cameras, microwave ovens, and garage door openers.

• If the measurement action starts (you see a loading bar), but does not complete, try to retake the measurement. If the same thing happens again, try to delete the sensor and recommission it.

• If the measurement action fails, or you are not able to commission the sensor, contact customer support.

If your sensor falls off

Re-mount it.

Troubleshooting issues with Amazon Monitron gateways

Topics

• If your mobile app can't pair with the gateway
• If commissioning the gateway fails
• If your gateway goes offline

If your mobile app can't pair with the gateway

If you choose Add gateway in your mobile app, but the app can't find the gateway, try the following.

Bluetooth pairing with a Wi-Fi gateway

Bluetooth pairing with an Ethernet gateway.

• Make sure that the gateway is turned on.

  Check the lights on the front of the gateway. If at least one of them is on, then the gateway has power. If the gateway has no power, check the following:

  • Is the power cord firmly attached to the back of the gateway and the power outlet?

  • Is the power outlet functioning properly?

  • Is the gateway power cable working? To test this, try using the cable with another gateway.

  • Is the outlet where the cable plugs into the gateway clean, with no debris stuck inside? Be sure to check the outlet in the gateway and the connecting end of the cable.

• Make sure that the gateway is in commissioning mode.

  See Commissioning a Wi-Fi gateway or Commissioning an Ethernet gateway.

• Make sure your smartphone's Bluetooth is working.

  • Try switching it off and on. If that doesn't help, restart your phone and check again.

  • Are you within your smartphone's Bluetooth range? Bluetooth range is typically less than 10 meters.

  • Is there anything that might be interfering electronically with the Bluetooth signal? See If your sensor is offline.

If none of these actions resolves the issue, try the following:

• Log out of the mobile app and restart it.

• Reset your Wi-Fi gateway or reset your Ethernet gateway.

If commissioning the gateway fails

If the Amazon Monitron gateway commissioning process fails, try the following:

• Check that the mobile phone running Amazon Monitron App has internet connectivity.

• If commissioning of a Wi-Fi gateway fails, try commissioning it using a mobile hotspot provided by your mobile device. If that succeeds, it suggests a configuration issue with the Wi-Fi network or in firewall settings.

If your gateway goes offline

Your mobile or web app may tell you that your gateway is offline, or not connected to the network. In such cases, try the following:

• If you recently added the gateway to your configuration, wait for its status to update. A newly commissioned gateway may take up to 20 seconds to go online.

• Be sure that you aren't trying to configure a Wi-Fi gateway with static IPs. The Wi-Fi gateway does not currently support static IPs. However, you can configure your network to always assign the same IP address to the same device.

• Make sure that your firewall is not blocking the gateway. Amazon Monitron gateways use TCP port 8883. You must allow connections to TCP port 8883 for amazonaws.com subdomains in order to provide firewall access to Amazon Monitron gateways.

• Confirm that the issue is not network congestion. There are two ways in which Amazon Monitron may notify you that a gateway is offline:

  • When looking at information about your gateways in the mobile or web app, you may notice that a gateway is listed as offline.

    

    The timestamp for an offline gateway marks the last time Amazon Monitron recieved a signal from that gateway.

    In this case, you may not have received a notification about the gateway's offline status. Amazon Monitron will not issue a notification every single time a gateway appears to be offline. A newly commissioned gateway is considered offline until it connects to the internet. A gateway on a congested network is considered offline if Amazon Monitron hasn't heard from that gateway in 15 minutes.

• Confirm that you're not dealing with a newly commissioned gateway or a newly paired sensor. If so, wait an hour. Sensors send data once per hour. If you don't want to wait, you can take a one-time measurement.

• Confirm that your gateway is connected to a power source. If it is, unplug the gateway and then plug it back in.

• If it's a Wi-Fi gateway, check the Wi-Fi connection. If the password for the Wi-Fi network has been changed since the gateway was added, it won't be able to connect. To reconnect, you'll have to delete the gateway and add it again, connecting to the Wi-Fi network using the new password. For more information about how to add a gateway, see Commissioning a Wi-Fi gateway or Commissioning an Ethernet gateway.

• If it's an Ethernet gateway, check the network configuration.

• Delete the gateway using the Amazon Monitron mobile app, do a factory reset of the gateway, and then install the gateway again. For more information, see Resetting the Wi-Fi gateway to factory settings or Resetting the Ethernet gateway to factory settings.

If none of these suggestions helps to get your Amazon Monitron device working again, contact AWS Support.