CAI WebControl as IR blaster?

[roussell]

Soooo, I'm putting together a Jwilson-style audio distribution with 7 Insignia NS2000 receivers. I know I could use an Ocelot, IRtrans, or other similar pre-built device for IR control but whats the fun in that??

Instead I'd like to build my own - I'd like it to have 8 outputs, be able to learn IR codes and then 'blast them out on 1 or more of the 8 outputs. In investigating the LIRC devices, I noticed that it works by pulsing the DTR line of the serial port to reproduce the IR protocol. It occurred to me that it might be possible to do the same thing with the CAI board digital inputs and outputs. So (specifically directed to CAI) whats the possibility of tying an IR receiver to an input read in the IR codes and then fire them out one of the outputs. If the only place to store the code internally are the 8 variables then it may be a lost cause, but I thought I'd ask, for this project, I'd only need to store one complete set of IR codes since all of the receivers are the same brand.

If it's not possible with this firmware, how about a custom CAI IR control board? You could probably use the same board, with IR-specific firmware.

TIA,
Terry

 

[JimS]

Interesting but that platform seems like a hard way to go about it. From my (very limited) view it would be something quite different from what the software now does. I don't see why the hardware couldn't do it.

You could hang several MCE IR blasters off a USB hub (several hubs) off a PC that is close or a router running dd-wrt and lirc. If you don't need a lot of bandwidth maybe just make an output switcher for a single channel IR blaster.

If your main objective is a multiple output blaster with ethernet control then routers have been modified to use the GPIO lines. That seems like it has possiblilties with a router with enough gpio lines. These links are fairly old but on the second one some of the links to source still seem to work.

http://www.irblaster.info/blog/2007/04/lirc-on-router.html

https://forum.openwrt.org/viewtopic.php?id=735

This might also provide some ideas...
http://www.huitsing.nl/irftdi/

 

[CAI_Support]

Terry,

If we know all the IR code, or a fomular to format them, we could do similar thing like X10 RF code transmission over a TTL port.
It is hard to remember all the IR code, since there could be a lot of them out there. The best way is to figure out the formular.
Another way is to "learn" them one by one. To be able to learn them, we need to design a IR receiver module that can count
pulses, their width and spaces.

Thanks!

 

[roussell]

@ JimS - Thanks for the links. I want IR over ethernet due to the distance between the audio rack and my HA gear so I'll investigate the router mods.

@ CAI - Most of the IR receivers I've been playing with have output the IR as a series of pulses/spaces when viewed on an oscilloscope - my guess would be that with some firmware changes, provided there is enough memory on the WebControl to store the IR codes, you could simply tie the IR receiver to an input and count/store the pulses.

Terry

 

[CAI_Support]

Hi Terry, Thanks for the suggestion. We will think about it. We may have to develop a separate IR receiver module.

 

[apostolakisl]

The global cache itach units will do what you want right out of the box. They have a wifi and hardwired version. They are more expensive than a CAI unit (about $100 as rain man would say), but will work as is right now without any futsing.

 

[roussell]

Thanks, yeah I know about the GC units and actually just missed a great deal on a gc-100-12 on eBay... :unsure: I have a spare CAI board lying around along with a big box-o-parts so I thought it'd be fun to try to throw it together. I may still try, not with a CAI as originally thought but with something based on LIRC - possibly a parallel port output - one data line per IR blaster - on a mini-itx, or maybe just one IR blaster and use the CAI to switch between 8 IR emitters as JimS eluded to. or I might just cave and get a GC the next time I see a deal on eBay.

Terry

 

[JimS]

if you are wanting to do a multiple output parallel port version there was someone who did this some time ago. Pages are available via the wayback machine:

http://web.archive.org/web/20090602023412/http://www.freelancelogic.com/Projects/lirc_pport/lirc_pport_mod.html

Not sure if the changes made it into later versions of LIRC or not.

Here is the page where I found reference to that. Looks like several other links there under "LIRC with Multiple External Tuners"
that may be of interest.

http://www.mythtv.org/wiki/LIRC

 

[dahlheim]

interesting to find this thread. i have a webcontrol, also a couple of arduinos. i have just finished successfully implementing the arduino with ethernet shield as an IP IR blaster. i had to add to the IR library such that i could control my Pace DVR. the library already includes code for sony and the many devices with NEC chips. i'd be glad to share the info i have.

 

[fwd03]

Hi Dahlheim,

That is interesting. Maybe you could post your IR blaster code, so that we can see how good is it.