Is there a way to know when another PLM has controlled a device?

[sbueffel]

I have an Amazon Echo linked to a Hub for voice-controlling some devices. But the Hub is limited because Echo can't activate scenes, nor does it have the nifty feature of "Sync linked responders" like the plug-in does. (I know Echo has a HomeSeer skill, which I do have enabled, but it is not nearly as reliable as Hub integration.)

My kitchen lights have are controller by a three-way switch, plus there is another "bar" light that really should have been part of the same circuit, so I linked it to the kitchen switches. When either kitchen switch is locally controlled, it controls the other kitchen switch and the bar light. If I use the Echo to control the lights, however, it only will control the master switch, leaving the slave as is, and not even controlling the bar light.

What I want to do is have HomeSeer react to the Hub controlling the kitchen lights switch (so I can have it make up for where the Hub lacks controlling multiple devices with one command and have "Alexa, turn off the kitchen lights" result in control of all three switches). The log shows that the plug-in doesn't see the switch being controlled by the Hub. I thought the switch would report to HS, but I see the link is actually labeled "local control reports to HS," and local control isn't what is happening.

Do you have any ideas how I can have the plug-in know when the kitchen switch has been controlled by another PLM? Can the Hub be configured to have a link to report all controls to the HS PLM?

Thanks,

Scott

(Saying, "Alex, tell HomeSeer to turn off the kitchen lights" is not reliable, for whatever reason. It may fail the first time, then be successful the second time, perhaps indicating a connection to MyHS timed out the first time. But if it doesn't work 100% of the time, I don't want to use it. It defeats the purpose of automation if I have to ask Echo to do it two, three times and your wife is giving you this look like, "Why did you spend all this money when I could have turned it off and on like 10 times by now." I wish Echo could be configured to connect directly to my HS installation instead of proxied through MyHS.)

[mnsandler]

i think this will help, but no guarantees..

add the following to the [config] section of your insteon.ini

ProcessACKs=true

this assumes the device is registered with the plugin so the plm knows about the insteon id.

[sbueffel]

Should I see something in the HS event log? I stopped HS, added the entry, and started it. I told Alexa to turn off the kitchen lights, which was successful. I then checked the HS log, but there is still nothing in it. (All my devices are registered with the plug-in; it is just the ones I want to control with the Echo I have also added to the Hub.) So I am wondering if I didn't do it correctly when adding to the .ini file...I put it as the last line in [config] and made the case the same as you typed.

Thanks,

Scott

[mnsandler]

you may need to enable detailed logging to see the device ACK msgs. but the results of the ini change should be that the hs ui is in sync with commands initiated from outside hs.

this assumes the device is registered with the hub via the smarthome app and with the plugin

[joegr]

Are you using the same hub with HomeSeer as you are with the Echo, or does the Echo use one hub and HomeSeer uses another (or a PLM)?

[sbueffel]

Are you using the same hub with HomeSeer as you are with the Echo, or does the Echo use one hub and HomeSeer uses another (or a PLM)?

Sorry, Joe, I must have anonymously viewed Mark's response from my phone because I didn't get an email that you had replied. I use the hub with the Echo and a serial PLM with HS.

Scott

[sbueffel]

you may need to enable detailed logging to see the device ACK msgs. but the results of the ini change should be that the hs ui is in sync with commands initiated from outside hs.

this assumes the device is registered with the hub via the smarthome app and with the plugin

I tried it this morning (since you can't control the Echo when out of home and the Hub beta web site isn't able to control my devices for whatever reason). I had the Echo turn off the dining room light. HS never updated the status so it still said it was on. I checked the log, nothing. I went back to the status page, and it still said the light was on.

My goal isn't just to have HS reflect the real status, but to have HS run an event when the Hub controls a device.

Scott

[mnsandler]

i don't think this setup is going to work. since you have the dining room light linked to the hub, when the light responds to the hub cmd, the response msg will not be picked up by the plm connected to HS. The Insteon ID of the hub and plm are different.

[sbueffel]

i don't think this setup is going to work. since you have the dining room light linked to the hub, when the light responds to the hub cmd, the response msg will not be picked up by the plm connected to HS. The Insteon ID of the hub and plm are different.

I thought the ProcessACKs entry would mean that any ACKs traveling on the wire (or RF) seen by the HS PLM would be processed even if not sent directly to the HS PLM. (I haven't read the Insteon protocol doc in a long, long time, and when I did it was because I was curious how it is different from X10.)

All this is just to work around shortcomings in the hub (at least when controlled from the Echo), so it isn't a critical thing. I haven't done much in the hub except add a couple devices for use with the Echo, so I don't know all of what it can do that might help provide an alternative solution. (It doesn't help that the Android app (I don't know about the iOS version) is completely unintuitive and I find myself going from page to page, tab to tab, trying to find what I want to do.)

Thanks for trying to help, Mark.

Scott

[mnsandler]

the ProcessACKs only works if the PLM sees the msgs. in your case, the plm isn't going to see the hub msgs.

other users have linked hs to the hub as well (ie removing the plm for the equation).you still have to manage devices through both apps (insteon and homeseer) but you may get the results you want.

[gustavo]

sbueffel,

I had the same problem right when Insteon Hub (Alexa) came out, my curently working setup is:
- HS3 controlling Insteon via Hub(Alexa) - not the USB PLM(disconnected now)
- ProcessACKs=true
- Homebridge Running on the HS3 machine to interact with Siri

it works very well, we are having some understanding issues on all of the 3 Echos in the house right now, I believe its a firmware update issue

Siri is way more responsive and quick to interact with HS3, but there is the annoying need to hold the iPhone's home button, I used the Apple watch for 3 months in the hopes of just say "hey siri..." but the lag was too long, its quicker to pull the phone out of my pocket and say what you want, maybe Apple Watch 2 will solve it.

Combination of Kinect, Siri, Alexa is amazing, while in my car Siri works like a charm, giving me home status and taking actions. Things like siri, what's the CO2 level on living room, siri, open the windows..., lock the door, set temperature....

Alexa in other hand is more to dim lights, run scenes, welcome home, setting away mode as stand alone, if you want to bring it to the next level (so I hope), add the alexa plug-in, I amrunning with Kinect plug-in and the Kinect itself i picked 4 up for $24 each at gamestop, so far my small advances are proving it very worth it. I now able to use alexa and tap in the voice recognition for more complex stuff; set like so: 3 Echos around the house for local random music and all the goods of alexa on it's own, and 4 Kinect (if my HS can handle i will add more) around handling some crazy stuff like "Alexa, text my wife _leaving in 5min_" and so HS3 will send text, set my home away in 7(mesage time +2min), send my wife a update ETA after my car has been on via SMS. That's just amazing...

let me know how if it helped guide you to a better direction...