Hi, I was wondering if anyone has come up with a good solution for controlling Hunter Douglas shades via IR. I was going to try to do something with an IR blaster (high powered) in each room - but am stumped on how to bridge to IR using the M1. I will probably end up using a text message from the Elk to MLServer to send out IR commands, though this is not super robust because it relies on a PC.
IR Shade control with M1?
- Thread starter jlegault
- Start date
Rupp
Senior Member
Not sure what you consider super robust but my mini blinds have been opening and closing for well over a year without a missing a single opening via HomeSeer and using my Ocelot in combination with PowerMid blasters. I open and close 10 blinds X number of times per day based on my weather stations solar reading and it works without fail. Doesn't the ELK interface with an Ocelot?jlegault said:
Guy Lavoie
Active Member
Yes, a M1XSP (serial expander) can send a simple text string to an Ocelot to have it send any IR code.
Steve
Senior Member
I agree. It sure would be nice to have the 'IR Expander' that simply attached to the bus like the other Elk products. At first it could just respond to Ascii strings but would be nice to ultimately have it fully controllable by embedded rules. Something sort of like a stripped down Ocelot that attached to the bus.
Not sure what languages are spoken at Elk, but...
Squeak, Squeak, Squeak
Chirrido, Chirrido, Chirrido
Grincer, Grincer, Grincer
Quietschen, Quietschen, Quietschen
Squittio, Squittio, Squittio
Sorry if it mis-spelled, at the mercy of the translator...
Edit: Wrote this before the other posts (like Spanky's) but got sidetracked and just posted before seeing other replies. But still squeaking for an Elk only solution.
Not sure what languages are spoken at Elk, but...
Squeak, Squeak, Squeak
Chirrido, Chirrido, Chirrido
Grincer, Grincer, Grincer
Quietschen, Quietschen, Quietschen
Squittio, Squittio, Squittio
Sorry if it mis-spelled, at the mercy of the translator...
Edit: Wrote this before the other posts (like Spanky's) but got sidetracked and just posted before seeing other replies. But still squeaking for an Elk only solution.
I had originally planned on using the Ocelot for this, though it's not going to be fun keeping track of the text commands in RP.
While we are putting out requirements for this IR support in the M1:
5+ Addressable channels of IR
12v xantech support - not this goofy 5v stuff everyone else uses (USB-UIRT, Ocelot, GlobalCache, WACI, etc)
Support in RP for a database of IR Devices and commands
While we are putting out requirements for this IR support in the M1:
5+ Addressable channels of IR
12v xantech support - not this goofy 5v stuff everyone else uses (USB-UIRT, Ocelot, GlobalCache, WACI, etc)
Support in RP for a database of IR Devices and commands
ricklearned
Member
I've been thinking about the same thing. I looked at a Xantech 590-10 which converts contact closures into an IR signals. It costs $150 at Worthington, but you must also have Xantech Dragon Drop software. If you already have a Xantech network then the incremental cost is small since the 590 can handle 16 contact closure inputs.
I am trying to control a venting skylight based on room temperature so the simplicity is appealing to me. I am thinking of other applications to justify the cost of the 590-10. My analysis also assumes you alsready have a relay board to make the contact closure.
I am trying to control a venting skylight based on room temperature so the simplicity is appealing to me. I am thinking of other applications to justify the cost of the 590-10. My analysis also assumes you alsready have a relay board to make the contact closure.
That's an interesting idea I had never thought of before! There are plenty of outputs on the Elk (208). But, I don't have the Dragon software, which is about $270. I would also need a RT8 IR router ($180) because I want each room to be controllable (the hunterdouglas stuff only has two addresses). And then there is the price of the 590-10. I think, despite the fact it is a 9volt device that is not compatible with my xantech network and not very easy to integrate with the ELK, the Ocelot, its 16 IR channel expander, and the 9v to 12c IR converters, is a more flexible and cheaper solution in this case. This is all starting to infringe on my track tire budget....
Hi Guys
Just a pity the M1 didnt have an onboard ir receiver and single ir emitter jack....
You could then connect my FirM Hardware to the M1 via some i/o and this combo would give you a multizone (8) transmitter + 8 zone receiver...This is what i done with my Homevision setup....The nice thing about the FirM Hardware is that it informs Homevision via 3 i/o pins which zone an ir signal was sent from......
http://www.armaghelectrical.com.au/page7.html
Frank
Just a pity the M1 didnt have an onboard ir receiver and single ir emitter jack....
You could then connect my FirM Hardware to the M1 via some i/o and this combo would give you a multizone (8) transmitter + 8 zone receiver...This is what i done with my Homevision setup....The nice thing about the FirM Hardware is that it informs Homevision via 3 i/o pins which zone an ir signal was sent from......
http://www.armaghelectrical.com.au/page7.html
Frank
