I am in the unenviable position of having two HDTVs without either discreet on/off IR codes or serial control. That makes it pretty difficult to set up macros that turn the TV on or off, as my HA software can never know what state the TV is in.
The solution is current detection, as I have long known. AC wiring is, however, the only thing I don't feel comfortable mucking around with, and I have yet to see a ready made current detector that I can just plug the TV into (with sense wires going to a DS10A or something).
Then I see these surge protectors:
Amazon
It has one outlet it uses to sense on/off, then 4 that are switched based on that load.
So if I put the TV into the sense socket, I should be able to put some sort of X10/INSTEON device into the switched outlet that can be used to set a variable in my HA software (Indigo). So, how to do it?
Could I take a X-10 Powerflash, and wire the two contacts together? Would that send an "On" every time power was applied to the Powerflash? So switch the TV on with IR, the surge protector turns on the Powerflash, it sends ON, Indigo sets a variable that the TV is on, that I can then check for when running macros of IR commands.
If that works, then how do I get an OFF? Can you poll a Powerflash? Lack of an answer would translate as OFF.
Let me know any ideas or suggestions you have.
Thanks.
Brian
The solution is current detection, as I have long known. AC wiring is, however, the only thing I don't feel comfortable mucking around with, and I have yet to see a ready made current detector that I can just plug the TV into (with sense wires going to a DS10A or something).
Then I see these surge protectors:
Amazon
It has one outlet it uses to sense on/off, then 4 that are switched based on that load.
So if I put the TV into the sense socket, I should be able to put some sort of X10/INSTEON device into the switched outlet that can be used to set a variable in my HA software (Indigo). So, how to do it?
Could I take a X-10 Powerflash, and wire the two contacts together? Would that send an "On" every time power was applied to the Powerflash? So switch the TV on with IR, the surge protector turns on the Powerflash, it sends ON, Indigo sets a variable that the TV is on, that I can then check for when running macros of IR commands.
If that works, then how do I get an OFF? Can you poll a Powerflash? Lack of an answer would translate as OFF.
Let me know any ideas or suggestions you have.
Thanks.
Brian