[SIZE= 10pt]Overview[/SIZE]
This document describes how to use ElkM1::Control, and custom scripts, to control and monitor an ElkM1 without the use of a Home Automation (HA) program.
[SIZE= 10pt]Introduction[/SIZE]
Many commercial HA applications (i.e. CQC, HomeSeer, HouseBot, PowerHome, etc) provide a means to monitor and control an Elk M1 via a driver. The driver can be an integral, optional, or a user-contributed component of the HA application. An effective M1 driver must create an Application Programming Interface (API) between the HA application and the M1. The API is considered complete if it encompasses all capabilities described in Elk's "ASCII Protocol RS-232 Interface Specification" document.
Normally, an M1 driver is used exclusively with its native HA application. In most cases, the driver is an extension of the HA program and cannot function without it. However, thanks to Neil Cherry's posting in the MisterHouse mailing list, I learned of an M1 API that is not tied to a specific HA program. Early in 2006, James A. Russo created a new project on Sourceforge, called ElkM1::Control, providing a standalone API to the M1.
Developed in Perl, an interpreted language, ElkM1::Control provides most of the capabilities described in Elk's "ASCII Protocol" document. Its source code is freely available to everyone and, by virtue of Perl, can be used on Windows or Linux PCs. Unfortunately, only one version (0.02) was ever posted but it was amply documented, well-designed, and included commented code.
Click here to view the article
This document describes how to use ElkM1::Control, and custom scripts, to control and monitor an ElkM1 without the use of a Home Automation (HA) program.
[SIZE= 10pt]Introduction[/SIZE]
Many commercial HA applications (i.e. CQC, HomeSeer, HouseBot, PowerHome, etc) provide a means to monitor and control an Elk M1 via a driver. The driver can be an integral, optional, or a user-contributed component of the HA application. An effective M1 driver must create an Application Programming Interface (API) between the HA application and the M1. The API is considered complete if it encompasses all capabilities described in Elk's "ASCII Protocol RS-232 Interface Specification" document.
Normally, an M1 driver is used exclusively with its native HA application. In most cases, the driver is an extension of the HA program and cannot function without it. However, thanks to Neil Cherry's posting in the MisterHouse mailing list, I learned of an M1 API that is not tied to a specific HA program. Early in 2006, James A. Russo created a new project on Sourceforge, called ElkM1::Control, providing a standalone API to the M1.
Developed in Perl, an interpreted language, ElkM1::Control provides most of the capabilities described in Elk's "ASCII Protocol" document. Its source code is freely available to everyone and, by virtue of Perl, can be used on Windows or Linux PCs. Unfortunately, only one version (0.02) was ever posted but it was amply documented, well-designed, and included commented code.
Click here to view the article
