Receiving input from Arduino devices

[mightytook]

I have a couple Arduino-based buttons I'd like to modify to integrate with HomeSeer. A couple pushbuttons and then a trimpot for volume. Has anyone done this? Is there a plug-in? Or, is it more of hooking the Arduino in as a serial input on the HomeSeer server and then working from there? Should I add on an Xbee shield and send it that way? Is there an Xbee/Zigbee plugin? Just curious to see how people have solved this before.

Thanks.

[mrhappy]

I have not seen any plugin myself, although I have been thinking of getting a clone for some time and trying myself to write a plugin for some sort of GPIO module (possibly using Firmata which seems to be a suitable protocol and has vb.net controls here http://www.acraigie.com/programming/...b/default.html) but time has been against me recently...a couple of things were putting me off 1) everyone has different needs for input/output - ie how many inputs how many outputs, although i'm not sure if that is solved with Firmata or not 2) lack of opto isolation on inputs - personally for me I might go down the Picaxe route as i'm more familiar with them.

If you are just reading inputs then you may be able to get away with a script, open the com port on HS startup and write some Arduino code to send the values (comma seperated?) every second down the com port, then set some virtual devices accordingly.

[ESSCHENK]

Hello,

There is some activity around the Jeenode (arduino) on the Dutch forum
www.domoticaforum.eu
its based on this http://sourceforge.net/projects/jeeseer/
there is also a script to make it work within Homeseer

Ed

[TechnoJunkie]

- personally for me I might go down the Picaxe route as i'm more familiar with them.

Picaxes and Homeseer were made for each other. I've got a few Picaxe projects connected to my HS setup.

[mightytook]

Sorry for the delay in post; I can't figure out how to get notifications when a thread is updated in the forum.

Thanks for the info. I'll check into those projects. I've taken a quick look at JeeNode; fairly involved. It seems like it's pushing the data through a comport. I'm hoping so, as I'd rather have that than something that regularly polls.

[Raptor]

hi guys,

has anyone managed to get anywhere with this?

I keep thinking up ideas but have no way of controlling them.


Raptor

[ESSCHENK]

Hello,

Here you can download a sketch for the jeenode
with 4 inputs .
http://www.domoticaforum.eu/viewtopic.php?f=63&t=5871

I have 2 jeenode's working with Homeseer
1 with humidity/temp/light
1 with 4 digital inputs
Till now its works well

Also there is a explanation how to make your sketch
with input and output

Ed

[cadillackid]

im using zbasic.net based boards communicating with homeseer both using Xport directs on the board.. and also through serial ports... it was as easy as just writing my own protocol for each of my boards to talk to homeseer.. based it on the ENQ, ACK, STX,ETX model..

then wrote a VB program that runs alongside homeseer so as to not have to go through the hassle of writing a true plugin.. my devices and homeseer communicate..

I highly recommend the Zbasic.net chips and modules.. they are similar to basic stamps but have a much richer command set.. and their software is free...

I use them for such things as communicating to my proprietary A/C units.. controlling dampers.. reading in ductung static pressures.. , temperatures, etc...

-Christopher

[zakrzep]

I use and Arduino for a few temp/humidity sensors and send the data every min. Not pretty, but has worked flawlessly. Here is part of my Arduino code. I just send a name=value to the serial port. You can do all of your calculations/conversions on the Arduino and send it to the Arduino or send the raw data and do all of your calculations in a Homeseer script.

IndoorTempSensor.measure(&temperature, &humidity, &dewpoint);
Serial.print("Temp1stFloor=");
serialPrintFloat(temperature*9/5 + 32);
Serial.print(13, BYTE);
Serial.print("Humidity1stFloor=");
serialPrintFloat(humidity);
Serial.print(13, BYTE);

Then in Homeseer, I have the following script run on homeseer startup:

' com port script to send data to a COM port
' this script registers a callback script named com_event.txt
' when data is received on the COM port the com_event.txt script is called and the
' data can be processed there
' this script only needs to be called once as the com port will stay open

sub main()
dim e
e=hs.OpenComPort(5,"9600,n,8,1",1,"com_event_Ardunio1.txt"," main",chr(13))
if e <> "" then
hs.writelog "Error opening com port",e
end if

hs.writelog "comport_open_Arduino1.txt","Script Complete"
end sub

Then one more script file named "com_event_Ardunio1.txt" that fires on com port activity from statement above:

sub main(data)

' process the com port data here
i = Instr(data,"=")

varName=trim(left(data,i-1))
result=trim(right(data,len(data) - i))
result=cint(Round(result,2))

If varName = "Humidity1stFloor" and hs.DeviceValue("[14") <> result Then
hs.setDeviceValue "[14", result
End if
If varName = "Temp1stFloor" and hs.DeviceValue("[15") <> result Then
hs.setDeviceValue "[15", result
End if
end sub

[ScottRennie]

Picaxes and Homeseer were made for each other. I've got a few Picaxe projects connected to my HS setup.

Any information what you used and how you did it? I'm intersted in using the wireless 433MHz addon with RFXCOM ?

Cheers
Scott

[enigmatheatre]

Hi all,

I have a script I have been working on with a little help from Jon00 that you can use with the arduino boards. I have a little more work to do on this but it is close.
At the moment you can Select the pins you want as input or output and the devices are auto created in HS for you then the device values are updated from the switch inputs and the outputs are triggered from the on/off buttons in HS.

If anyone is interested then give me a shout and I will work something out as I need to test it with other people first.

Greig.

[Raptor]

Hi all,

I have a script I have been working on with a little help from Jon00 that you can use with the arduino boards. I have a little more work to do on this but it is close.
At the moment you can Select the pins you want as input or output and the devices are auto created in HS for you then the device values are updated from the switch inputs and the outputs are triggered from the on/off buttons in HS.

If anyone is interested then give me a shout and I will work something out as I need to test it with other people first.

Greig.

Hi Greig,

that is awesome, what interface does it use for the arduino? usb or ethernet?

Raptor

[TechnoJunkie]

Any information what you used and how you did it? I'm intersted in using the wireless 433MHz addon with RFXCOM ?

Cheers
Scott

Hi Scott

I've never actually used an RFXcom reciever with any of my projects, the nearest I've come is standalone 315Mhz Rx and Tx modules I used in my power meters. I'm not a great fan of RF so where possible I'd use good old fashioned copper cable.

Here's a quick starter:

I was looking to measure the power (not just current like the Owl or Current cost)going to the House, the loft (Boys toys are up there ) and the garage. I bought a couple of electricity meters, opened them up and fitted a Picaxe with a transmitter. A picaxe input is basically piggy backed on to the meter LED and count's the pulses (it also sticks the value in EEPROM in case of a powercut) It then transmits the total to a reciever which has a serial output straight into HS.

I've also just finished a Caller ID circuit which I built because I couldn't find anything that would work with Virgin Media.
The picaxe doesn't actually do much in this, it just reformats the data from the MT8843 IC which the circuit is based on, to emulate a CTI meteor and squirts it back out. Again its just serial into HS.

A simple one I built was just to measure the temperature and light level. One input on the picaxe has a DS18B20 on it which reads in the temperature and another has an LDR for the light level. The two values are sent from the Picaxe as serial in to HS.

If you are interested in any of these I'll post up a circuit diagram and some code if you want?

[mhn]

Hi all,

If anyone is interested then give me a shout and I will work something out as I need to test it with other people first.

Greig.

Shout. I am interested. :-)

Regards
Morten

[Raptor]

Shout. I am interested. :-)

Regards
Morten

me too