virtual remote for blinds and light

[xantony 0]

Hello all,

i splitted my house into 2 main areas (sections) day zone and night zone. Since i am going to install some tablets mounted on the wall i found not very useful the actual fibaro interface. devices and scenes requires many gesture to be reached and not so intuitive menu.

here's my idea. I was looking at virtual device and i was wondering if it would be possible to build virtual remotes for my blinds and light in the 2 main zone. the final goal would be have the 7" tablet mounted on the wall showing that remote with all the button reachable at glance

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i am at zero level in coding, so i hope for some suggestion on how to proceed.

project is at the end two remotes with let's say 6 buttons for blinds, 6 for lights and 2 or 3 buttons for scenes. this in order to have a simple and smart interface on the wall very intuitive.

any experience?

thanks in advance!

[speedy 64]

I use iRule to design my own look and feel on top of hc2 for small stuff like this.

I then use the Fibaro app for everything else.

So control hc2 over wifi with iRule.

The you can get the exact look and functionality you want for every device.

I does not support sliding dimmers, but for me I only use 3 presets and scenes To control lights.

And to walk around the dimming dimming issue I made a script that does the dimming if I hold a button.

A bit crude but it works.

Just one of many ways of doing it.

[xantony 0]

thanks for your answer, i am looking at irule builder, what i am missing is how do you link fibaro device since irule use ip or rs232 device only???

[speedy 64]

You can control anything (almost) with iRule.

Not just GC devices.

You specify in the builder software the commands you want to send.

Ex, create a custom device with commands you send to HC2 over IP.

Create a command something like this:

api/callAction?deviceID=6&name=setValue&arg1=0

This sets the device with ID 6 to 0% = Turn off.

Do this with all your required devices and create the layout you want, add some buttons, done.

There are many "Control HC2 over IP" threads that can get you started with basic commands.

And in the iRule app you then add a gateway (your HC2) with IP and password.

You then send the commands you created in the Builder software.

This might seem overwhelming at first but once you set it up its easy to use.

Edit*

You could also make virtual devices to start with in HC2 and have that always displayed.

This is easier to start with and might suit your needs.

[xantony 0]

speedy, thanks for your help. what i am missing is how to point at HC2 via ip from irule builder.

i don't want to bother you with my total ignorance about coding, so if you have any template or guide i can read and learn about this topic i would really appreciate. ( i quicly browsed iRule support and community but found any)

Moreover, as you seem to be very well prepared about i am looking for some source of simple documentation in order to get familiar with lua, learning how to use variable in variable pannel in HC2 and learning how to use virtual device. if you have any good and simple source or community it will help me a lot.

thanks again for your advices.

[j.nowacki 5]

xantony, full documentation can be found on developer.fibaro.com but it was created for beta versions, so little differences can be found. But basics are the same.

[speedy 64]

xantony, full documentation can be found on developer.fibaro.com but it was created for beta versions, so little differences can be found. But basics are the same.

Yes that's the best place to start.

And go trough the forum here in the coding section for inspiration.

Everything I have learned is thanks to this forum and Google and some tinkering.

Start with a basic scene with some on and off commands in lua and learn from there.

I have something similar to what you want but it's never just cut and paste.

It's not that I don't want to share my stuff but if you want to learn lua it's easy once you get going and you can then get exactly what you want.

Do you want to learn lua or do you just want a quick solution, and some help to get there?

If you want a blinds controlling virtual device and a scene to control it we can move to the coding forum and continue from there.

[xantony 0]

Speedy,

I very much appreciate your post. My goal is to learn something about lua, and i will start registering an account and begin reading the basics. As i told you i am not into coding so this is absolutely new for me but i take it as something to have fun with. thank you for your advices.

The iRule idea was coming from the need of having a simple but functional interface on the wall.

that i would need it to understand quickly as i am going to buy 3 tablets and need to be sure wether i can realize or not a decent interface. As far as i understood in order to build a simple interface with iRule i don't need to code to much in lua. at the very beginning i need just to play with lights and blinds. You think i can proceed buying a irule license??

[speedy 64]

That's a great mindset to get started, keep that up and all will go well.

Well, you don't need iRule to get started.

It might just complicate things.

But if you want to try the there is a free for 30 days trial with iRule. Ad funded.

So you can get started today

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For me iRule is good for adapting the interface for all resolutions on all platforms.

So it doesn't matter what type of pad you buy, specify the resolution and your done.

So it's a nice way I think for bridging the gap between the full Fibaro app and

The small everyday stuff with an interface you can change to your liking.

And with iRule as you say, you only need simple controls in iRule and let hc2 do the heavy thinking and specific control.

Some might say it's a bit of a hassle switching between apps but for me and my personal experience I use scenes wich are adapted according to

Light, temp, states etc so one scene in LUA can be really powerful.

And with this in mind I only need 3 "smart scenes" for a room so basic buttons is enough.

I seldom use scenes or the app at all. It's all automated.

My personal goal is to have no buttons at all

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Got a but carried away here I see..

Well to sum it up, try iRule for free, get IP control working and see where it takes you.

The goal usuall changes along the way, in a good way

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[silviu2688 0]

Hello,

Could anyone explain me how can I integrate the Fibaro system with an alarm system, like Paradox EVO192. I found a module PRT3 that uses RS232. My question is how can I link it with Fibaro through RS232 protocol?

Thank you,

Silviu