Campervan automation borrows jargon from three different worlds: smart home, marine electrics and IT networking. We keep that vocabulary out of the rest of the site on purpose. This page is where it lives, so there is one place to look it up.
Terms are grouped by where you will meet them.
Control systems
- Home Assistant
- Open-source software for controlling smart devices locally. It runs on a computer you own, in your vehicle, rather than on a manufacturer’s cloud service. Sensa is built on Home Assistant, which is why a Sensa system keeps working with no internet connection and cannot be switched off remotely by a vendor. It is a trademark of the Open Home Foundation.
- Digital switching
- Replacing mechanical switches and fuse panels with electronically controlled circuits, so a screen or app can turn things on and off. Common in boats and higher-end motorhomes. Marine-grade digital switching typically costs £1,300 to £3,000 or more and is usually a sealed, installer-led system.
- The brain
- Our word for the computer that runs the control system inside the vehicle. On Sensa Nomad this is a Raspberry Pi 5 for Base and Pro, and a Mini PC for Vision.
- Entity
- In Home Assistant, a single controllable or readable thing: one light, one temperature reading, one switch. A single physical device usually provides several entities.
- Integration
- The piece of software that lets Home Assistant talk to a particular brand or protocol. There is a Victron integration, a Starlink integration, and so on.
- Scene
- A saved set of states applied together, for example dimming lights and setting a temperature in one action. In the Sensa product interface these are called Modes.
- Instinct
- A Sensa term. A protective behaviour that ships switched on and needs no setup, such as warning you if you start the engine with the shore power lead still connected. Every Sensa Nomad includes 13 of them.
Power and electrical
- MPPT
- Maximum Power Point Tracking. A type of solar charge controller that adjusts continuously to extract the most power from a solar panel. More efficient and more expensive than the simpler PWM type.
- BMS
- Battery Management System. The electronics inside a lithium battery that protect it from over-charging, over-discharging and, importantly for winter, charging while too cold.
- Shunt
- A precision resistor fitted in the negative battery cable that measures current flowing in and out, so the system can report an accurate state of charge rather than guessing from voltage.
- Shore power
- Mains electricity supplied from an external hookup, on a campsite or at a marina, rather than from the vehicle’s own batteries.
- Inverter
- Converts 12V direct current from the battery into 230V alternating current for household appliances.
- DC-DC charger
- Charges the leisure battery from the engine alternator while driving, at a rate the leisure battery is happy with.
- Relay
- An electrically operated switch. It lets a low-power signal from the control system switch a high-current circuit such as a water pump or a heater.
Networking and connectivity
- PoE
- Power over Ethernet. Sends electrical power and network data down a single Ethernet cable, so a sensor or relay board in a distant part of the van needs one cable rather than two.
- Zigbee
- A low-power wireless protocol used by many sensors and smart bulbs. Devices form a mesh, so each mains-powered device extends the range of the network.
- Z-Wave
- A competing low-power wireless protocol to Zigbee, on a different radio frequency. Fewer devices, generally longer range, and frequencies differ by region.
- Network topology
- The map of how devices connect to each other and to the router. Worth planning before you start cutting cable runs.
- Starlink
- Satellite internet. Useful where there is no mobile signal, at the cost of significant power draw and a visible dish.
Vehicle
- OBD2
- On-Board Diagnostics version 2. The standard diagnostic port fitted to modern vehicles. Reading it lets a control system see engine and chassis data such as fuel level, coolant temperature and fault codes.
- IMU
- Inertial Measurement Unit. A small sensor that measures orientation. In a campervan it tells you how level you are parked, which is what our Van Level project uses.
- CAN
- Controller Area Network. The internal data bus that vehicle components use to talk to one another.
- Habitation side
- The living area of the vehicle and its systems, as opposed to the chassis side, which is the engine, gearbox and driving controls.
Sensa products
- Nomad
- The Sensa control system for campervans, motorhomes and RVs. Four tiers: Base at £699, Pro at £999, Vision at £1499, AI at £1999.
- Helm
- The marine edition of the Sensa control system, scheduled for 2027.
- Radar
- The Sensa amenity finder with vehicle-aware routing, which routes around low bridges and weight limits using your vehicle’s dimensions. Finding places works worldwide; route planning covers Great Britain today. Free, with Premium at £3.95 a month.
- Studio
- The Sensa system design tool, producing topology, power budgets, shopping lists and wiring diagrams. Free, with Premium at £19 a month.
Prices are in GBP and correct as of August 2026. See the pricing page for what each one includes.