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    PH location & Ibeacons

    Hi all,

    Been using PH location successfully for a while now but newbie as far as ibeacons are concerned.

    I have purchased one of these and trying to familiarise myself with them.

    I sort of understand the major minor principle and its uses. I have added ibeacon to PI but my question is, does the Major/Minor settings set in the ibeacon have to match those set n the PI, or can I set them all to 1. Currently set to Major 17698/ Minor 39104 and same in PI. Do these setting matter for just a home/away use?

    The Ibeacon appears to work ok but logs in/out randomly on its own even when ibeacon is a few inches from mobile. Power setting is set to max (30 meter range)

    I am using beacon with iphone 6 plus. I notice that if I pick up the phone to do something with it it logs back in/out. Is the Bluetooth going to sleep on the phone, hence drops in and out ???

    Or....am I missing something in settings or setup procedure?

    Help appreciated.
    Steve

    #2
    Anyone?


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    Steve

    Comment


      #3
      Hi all,

      Anyone tried this and been successful? Mine are now sitting in box after numerous tweaks trying to get them to work!
      Steve

      Comment


        #4
        Originally posted by Stevieboy View Post
        Hi all,

        Anyone tried this and been successful? Mine are now sitting in box after numerous tweaks trying to get them to work!
        I (like Randy - "rprade") am using USB iBeacons in my cars. Mine are RadBeacons from Radius Networks. They are configured with different Major/Minor IDs so that they can be distinguished between. I also tweaked the signal strength somewhat using the RadBeacon app on my iPhone 6S+.

        GeoFency is the app I use on the phone to detect the Beacons and communicate with the PI, currently over a port-forwarded port on my router, but I believe Paul is working with HST to support myHS.

        The only issue that I experienced once on one beacon only was that it reset the Beacon ID and I had to remap that in the HS device. No idea why it did that.

        I also use GeoFency for fences and then in combination with the iBeacon presence to run events etc. e.g I am in my car and cross the "Near Home" fence and I pop open the garage door and turn on some lights etc if required.
        cheeryfool

        Comment


          #5
          Cherryfool,

          Thanks for response. Appears you have same setup as myself, however, I have plugged Ibeacons into a usb charger here in the office and the same at home.

          Appear to work OK ( in/out) but constantly drop in and out as although the bluetooth has dropped connection. This of course makes them useless for monitoring near/not near.

          I am completely stumped as to where I can go with these, I simply wanted to monitor near/no near within a few metres.

          I have setup an event that unlocks front door when I arrive home but this is using the geofency near radius which is some 100 metres away, works fine, but wanted to narrow it down to a few metres using an ibeacon near front door. Then senses phone and unlocks door.

          Of course when it drops near/not near will simply keep unlocking front door

          Any pointers greatly appreciated.
          Steve

          Comment


            #6
            Ok,

            Update

            Can confirm when ibeacons (in cars) are powered up from usb/cigarette when ignition is switched on, bluetooth does not drop out. they "hold" their near status until powered off (ignition switched off). This is perfect for this scenario and how Randy and others are using them.

            As previously stated, they do not hold their "near" status if the beacon is already powered up and you enter the their fence.

            Anyone has any luck with getting this to work as proximity detectors in this setup, please share.
            Steve

            Comment


              #7
              Originally posted by Stevieboy View Post
              Ok,



              Update



              Can confirm when ibeacons (in cars) are powered up from usb/cigarette when ignition is switched on, bluetooth does not drop out. they "hold" their near status until powered off (ignition switched off). This is perfect for this scenario and how Randy and others are using them.



              As previously stated, they do not hold their "near" status if the beacon is already powered up and you enter the their fence.



              Anyone has any luck with getting this to work as proximity detectors in this setup, please share.


              In our household we have a 10yo Audi A4 and a 2 yo Toyota Highlander. The lighter outlets and USB ports on the Toyota are controlled by the ignition. The lighter socket on the Audi is always on. So, when my Audi is parked in the driveway and I am outside with my phone it triggers in/out status on Geofency every time I go near it. As I only use the iBeacon status when I cross my 100m fence this doesn't cause me any issues and I haven't bothered trying to solve for it.

              I think this sounds contrary to your experience, however it's the phone or other Bluetooth device that keeps the near/not near status in relation to the beacon. If the beacon is powered, moving in/out of range should trigger every time and if it's in range it should stick that way. What I haven't tested positively is if the beacon loses connectivity to my phone if I use the phone for a Bluetooth call. It's certainly fine with other usage.
              cheeryfool

              Comment


                #8
                Originally posted by cheeryfool View Post

                If the beacon is powered, moving in/out of range should trigger every time and if it's in range it should stick that way. What I haven't tested positively is if the beacon loses connectivity to my phone if I use the phone for a Bluetooth call. It's certainly fine with other usage.
                Cherryfool,

                Thanks. This is exactly what I would expect to happen but thats not the case, when beacon is already powered and I cross the fence, Geofency acknowledges fence, but then drops it randomly even when i'm still in the fence, so appears that its a phone/bluetooth issue.

                I also find my phone is OK on calls, so still a little stumped!
                Steve

                Comment


                  #9
                  Originally posted by Stevieboy View Post
                  Cherryfool,

                  Thanks. This is exactly what I would expect to happen but thats not the case, when beacon is already powered and I cross the fence, Geofency acknowledges fence, but then drops it randomly even when i'm still in the fence, so appears that its a phone/bluetooth issue.

                  I also find my phone is OK on calls, so still a little stumped!
                  So a few further thoughts.

                  You mention this is for unlocking your door. What do you have it powered by and which beacon do you have? Have you tried reducing the power of the beacon, so that the phone only detects it within a few metres?

                  Randy and I are not using these to trigger events based on connecting/disconnecting with the beacon (unless Randy also has another use case that I don't know about). We are both triggering events based on crossing a regular GeoFency fence (in my case 100m radius from my house) but only IF we are already 'near' to our beacons. In my typical work day, as I walk up to my car in the parking lot in the evening, the phone detects the beacon and GeoFency tells HomeSeer that I am in the car. As I drive up my street and cross into my 100m fence, GeoFency tells HomeSeer that I crossed that fence. Homeseer uses that as the event trigger and the 'near' status of the beacon as the event condition and then one or more actions kick off from that.

                  I am sure that there are other folks using fixed beacons and near/not near to the beacon as the trigger, which is what I think you are doing here.
                  cheeryfool

                  Comment


                    #10
                    I have now started using the same method as you and Randy, the Ibeacon serves as a"event condition" and triggers only when the 100 metre fence is crossed. This works fine for other events.

                    however, you will see from the screenshot that originally I wanted to locate an ibeacon near the front door with a power setting of a couple of metres. When I arrive home it would detect the beacon and unlock door (via a solenoid and z wave module) As stated this doesn't work properly as the beacon ( is already powered up, it accepts the "near" but then drops it a little while after. The event condition in this case is that the virtual occupancy has to be on, this serves as security and will only unlock the door when one of us are at home. If I can get it to be reliable enough I will unlock the door even when the house is empty.The current event works when the 100 mtr fence is crossed, using an ibeacon near front door with give me a fence of a couple of metres.

                    ibeacons are https://accent-systems.com/product/ibks-usb/

                    Hope that makes sense!
                    Attached Files
                    Steve

                    Comment


                      #11
                      For clarity, the beacon isn't in a particular state, other than just USB powered and broadcasting it's signal. The device in your Geofency app is the one that switches from 'not near' to 'near' as you approach the beacon and that should be updating the equivalent PHL device in HS3 via the GeoFency webhook to the plugin. I am sure that's what you have, but the wording confused me.

                      I presume the 2 trigger devices in your event are those PHL devices that represent your GeoFency iBeacon devices?

                      If all of the above is how you have things set up, it shouldn't even matter if it becomes 'not near', as the first change to 'near' should trigger the event.

                      One thing I do notice is that you are using a group condition. Humour me and delete that and add the same condition to each of the triggers. There's been enough noise about group conditions and actions that I don't ever use them at this point and I don't know what works and what is broken. Likely not the problem, but might as well eliminate it from the mix.

                      Another possibility, though unlikely... Do you have a strong enough cell/Wifi signal as you walk up to this door, for the webhook to be quickly sent to HS3? We have awful cell service where we live and I had to put an extra WiFi AP on the front of the house to ensure that it was able to send the 'near' state reliably.
                      cheeryfool

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Hi Cheeryfool

                        Originally posted by cheeryfool View Post
                        For clarity, the beacon isn't in a particular state, other than just USB powered and broadcasting it's signal. The device in your Geofency app is the one that switches from 'not near' to 'near' as you approach the beacon and that should be updating the equivalent PHL device in HS3 via the GeoFency webhook to the plugin.

                        Correct, but the problem is although it becomes "near" when you would expect it to, it then drops to "not near" a few mins after, it then obviously re triggers event and so door would open, hence ive reverted to screenshot to try and resolve problem. My current setup with the 100 metre fence doesnt drop to "not near" unless I want it to.


                        I presume the 2 trigger devices in your event are those PHL devices that represent your GeoFency iBeacon devices?

                        Two devices are not beacons, they are two separate fences setup on myself and wife's phone Geofency with a 100 metre fence

                        If all of the above is how you have things set up, it shouldn't even matter if it becomes 'not near', as the first change to 'near' should trigger the event.

                        Agree, first "near" should trigger event but beacon keeps dropping to "not near" then re triggers event.

                        One thing I do notice is that you are using a group condition. Humour me and delete that and add the same condition to each of the triggers. There's been enough noise about group conditions and actions that I don't ever use them at this point and I don't know what works and what is broken. Likely not the problem, but might as well eliminate it from the mix.

                        Will take your advice and remove group condition, once its working as I want it to, I will not need this.

                        Another possibility, though unlikely... Do you have a strong enough cell/Wifi signal as you walk up to this door, for the webhook to be quickly sent to HS3? We have awful cell service where we live and I had to put an extra WiFi AP on the front of the house to ensure that it was able to send the 'near' state reliably.
                        Possibility, I am looking at relocating the router this weekend to rule this out.

                        To recap, my ideal setup
                        would be

                        One ibeacon located near front door (always powered on via usb)
                        Two iphones "connected to same beacon"
                        Two "near/not near" devices in HS via geofency

                        When one iphones is "near" beacon (either mine or wifes)

                        Either iphone will reliably trigger event.

                        Sorry if ive confused the issue with different events
                        Steve

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Originally posted by Stevieboy View Post
                          Hi Cheeryfool







                          Possibility, I am looking at relocating the router this weekend to rule this out.



                          To recap, my ideal setup

                          would be



                          One ibeacon located near front door (always powered on via usb)

                          Two iphones "connected to same beacon"

                          Two "near/not near" devices in HS via geofency



                          When one iphones is "near" beacon (either mine or wifes)



                          Either iphone will reliably trigger event.



                          Sorry if ive confused the issue with different events


                          Stevieboy,
                          Ever since Randy posted about using iBeacons in his car I have been looking into using them around the house for proximity detection. They are advertised as being able to detect your location very accurately so I thought they would be great for various home automation events.
                          After reading quite a bit, there are ways of reducing the power of the iBeacon so that it only transmits around a smaller circumference but they don't seem to be as reliable, as you have experienced with the signal dropping in and out while standing right on top of it.
                          From what I read, they work best in multiples and the app you have on your phone uses all of them to essentially triangulate your position within a space. So, you would need the app on your phone to determine your distance utilizing several beacons at the same time. If you notice, the Geofency app does not have an option to set a fence around an iBeacon as it does for GPS. My best guess as to the reason is because the app needs to be setup to use several of them to get your accurate distance.
                          I really hope there is an easier way to accomplish what you are trying to do because I can see how they could be very useful for a home automation application! I will monitor this thread too in case someone else out there has figured out a way to do this!


                          Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
                          HS4 4.2.6.0 &HSTouch Designer 3.0.80
                          Plugin's:
                          BLBackup, BLOccupied, BLShutdown, EasyTrigger, Ecobee, Nest, AK Bond
                          EnvisaLink DSC, PHLocation, Pushover, SONOS, Blue Iris, UltraRachio3,
                          weatherXML, Jon00 Alexa Helper, Network Monitor, MyQ, Z-Wave

                          Comment


                            #14
                            I have now started using the same method as you and Randy, the Ibeacon serves as a"event condition" and triggers only when the 100 metre fence is crossed. This works fine for other events.

                            however, you will see from the screenshot that originally I wanted to locate an ibeacon near the front door with a power setting of a couple of metres. When I arrive home it would detect the beacon and unlock door (via a solenoid and z wave module) As stated this doesn't work properly as the beacon ( is already powered up, it accepts the "near" but then drops it a little while after. The event condition in this case is that the virtual occupancy has to be on, this serves as security and will only unlock the door when one of us are at home. If I can get it to be reliable enough I will unlock the door even when the house is empty.The current event works when the 100 mtr fence is crossed, using an ibeacon near front door with give me a fence of a couple of metres.

                            ibeacons are https://accent-systems.com/product/ibks-usb/

                            Hope that makes sense!
                            @Stevieboy, did you finally get your event to work properly and if so would be so kind and share how you solved it, another screen shot would be nice , thanxs Mike
                            Computer: CUK Intel NUC7i7BNH
                            Op System: Windows10 Pro - Work Station
                            HS Version: HS4 Pro Edition 4.2.19.0

                            Plug-Ins: AK Weather 4.0.5.25,APCUPSD 3.3.2.3,BLBackup 2.0.63.0,BLEditor 2.0.11.0,BLGData 3.0.55.0,BLOccupied 2.0.28.0,BLShutdown 1.0.6.0,Blue-Iris 3.1.3.33206,Device History 3.2.0.2,EasyTrigger 3.0.0.76,Harmony Hub 4.0.14.0,iRobot 5.22.41.1,JowiHue 4.0.8.7,Nest 3.0.0.34,NetCam Plugin 1.0.0.5,PHLocation2 3.0.0.64,Pushover 4.0.10.0,Random 3.0.0.2,Restart 1.0.0.7,Ring 1.0.0.9,SDJ-Health 3.1.1.3,Sonos 3.1.0.59,Sonos4 4.0.1.12,UltraCID3 3.0.6681.34300,UltraMon3 3.0.6554.33094,UltraNetCam3 3.0.6413.20219,Unifi 4.0.32.0,Zigbee 4.0.11.0,Z-Wave 4.0.3.0, and Jon00 scripts.

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Hi Mike, not as yet. I still have the beacons dropping in and out randomly. This of course makes them useless for this application. I emailed accent support Saturday, but still no response.

                              Have a couple of beacons in the cars to indicate driving/not driving, these too drop in and out randomly. I too am looking for a fix on this one !


                              Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
                              Steve

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