motion detector output gets stuck on

[jryan15]

Hi all,

I'm using a few RMS-18 motion detectors around the house and am having some issues with a couple getting stuck in the "on" state.

Can someone tell me how the status of the motion detector broadcasts? Do the motion detectors broadcast both on and off commands? Is it possible that HS3 received the original "ON" command from the motion detector, but failed to receive the delayed "OFF" command? If yes, does that mean that the senor will not re-broadcast an off command until after it is re-triggered on?

[mfisher]

X10 motion sensors only send an ON when motion is detected and an OFF after not sensing motion for a preset period of time. However, the wireless X10 protocol does not handle situations where multiple devices transmit at the same time and it is very possible that HS will miss OFF events when multiple wireless devices are in use.

The best solution to this problem is to use one of the motion senor plugins (like BLRadar) as these will automatically issue an OFF (inside of HS) after a preset time to account for this shortcoming.

[jryan15]

Thanks for the info. Really appreciate your taking the time to help me around the neighborhood. It sounds like my initial impression of how the sensors communicate wasn't too far off. I like that BLRadar plugin, but I can't afford to keep spending so much money on the various addins. Maybe if they were a little cheaper, but dropping $29 to $49 on all these addins is pretty rough.

I think that I've got a work around for the time being. I changed the status of the motion detectors from status only to a standard device which appears to let me have more control over the state.

I used this block of logic to monitor the sensors. Don't know how reliable it will end up being, but I'll try and post back if it requires more of an overhaul.



Thanks again!

[Uncle Michael]

I have a script that checks each HS3 motion sensor device every 30 seconds. If the device is on, it turns the device off. (It also does other stuff, but just having an active method to assure motion sensor devices turn off is useful all by itself, as you've discovered.)

[Dave W]

I am real late to this party, but for future reference. I configure all my MSxx motion detectors as Appliance Modules in HS. Then turn off the detector within the event it triggers.