Help with ideas to cross-communicate between OmniPro II and Elk M1G

[jcd]

Like many, I've had to migrate off the OmniPro II platform, sadly, due to lack of support, parts, etc. and also like many I've moved (or am in the process of moving) to the Elk M1 Gold platform. Except I'm not really - because I have SO much that is built around the OmniPro II, most notably touchscreens running Myro:home that simply cannot be easily (from a UI user-acceptance POV) replaced.

Anyway, the current state is that Elk is my security system and HAI is my automation system - which works fine for 99% of things, except my automation rules knowing when things are armed or not. I've partially solved this by setting up a relay as follows:

• I have a relay output of the Elk connected to a zone input of the OPII such that when the Elk is armed the OPII knows and can set a flag accordingly, which is then used in automation events.

Now I'm trying to do the reverse, which is to find a way to let the Elk know when the OPII is armed: the reason for this is that while the Elk is my security system, the Myro:home touchscreen interfaces in every room provide a more user-friendly way to arm/disarm and thereby also keep total system status of all things (automation AND security) in one place with an easy-to-use UI. I'd like to be able to "arm/disarm" the OPII, which then sends a signal to actually arm/disarm the Elk.

I'm having trouble properly understanding the OPII relay outputs. Historically I've gotten them to work through trial-and-error more than understanding, and I currently have a bunch of OPII outputs feeding into ELK912 relays, so I understand the basic premise that the HAI outputs are voltage On/Off. I'm trying to in this case use the OPII outputs without the need for an additional relay, which I don't think I'd need for my intended purpose (i.e., I'm only signaling, not actually switching anything on/off).

I thought I could connect an OPII output to an Elk input but that's not working. The OPII output turns voltage On/Off, so I get that part, but the Elk input is showing a constant 13VDC, so switching voltage On/Off into it doesn't do anything. The Elk input setting options are: "0 = EOL Hardwire/Wireless, 1 = Normally Closed, 2 = Normally Open" I've tried switching between NC and NO with no effect, and I would think that the EOL wireless setting wouldn't apply.

The above detail outlines my whole thinking process, but the TL;DR is this: I want a way for the OPII to communicate to the Elk, "Hey, I'm armed/disarmed."

I'd be grateful for any nudge to improve my understanding of how to do this and why it isn't working as I think it should/would.

Cheers,
Jcd

 

[dwalt]

Have you tried connecting an Omni output to the + and - on the Elk 912B relay then connecting the NO and Com of the relay to an Elk input?
You can set the zone to Normally open.

 

[jcd]

Have you tried connecting an Omni output to the + and - on the Elk 912B relay then connecting the NO and Com of the relay to an Elk input?
You can set the zone to Normally open.

Thanks @dwalt - I have not, only because I don't have any handy at the moment, and I was wondering if it's possible to to this without having to buy and insert a relay in the chain. But it seems that's the only way to go so I'll have to go that route.

My understanding is thus: the OPII outputs can do nothing but turn voltage on/off, and the Elk (and OPII) inputs for that matter can only read contact closure from another device (i.e., a relay, PIR, etc.) but are not capable of doing anything with simple voltage on/off presence alone. Would that be correct?

Something I find interesting is that it DOES seem to work in reverse, that is: I have the Elk outputs feed into the OPII inputs without any relay in the middle and it works fine. I just was hoping it'd work the other way around the same way.

So:
Elk outputs into OPII inputs - works without a relay
OPII outputs into Elk inputs - requires a relay?
This is where I'm puzzled.

 

[dwalt]

Some elk outputs are contact closure only not voltage (built in relay). Please look at the Elk output descriptions in the manual. Some elk outputs are voltage.
It's best not to feed voltage from one device to another unless you are sure they share the same ground and they are designed for it. Using a relay to isolate each device is always safer.

 

[jcd]

Ah, okay - that helps me start to better understand this, thank you! I'll just grab some Elk912's and call it done