Home Automation Starter

First step with cameras... and further planning to be done

2007-04-17T11:14:00.000-07:00

After my incident last week, I immediately went up to Automated Outlet and ended up buying two of their Panasonic IP cameras (a huge thanks to Martin). The cameras themselves were pretty easy to set up (one in the kitchen, one in the living room to check up on motion sensor alerts), and they come with their own http servers so they can be accessed over the internet. However, since my HomeSeer site is already using port 80, I set up the cameras to use ports 52 and 54 (quite randomly, I assure you). Unfortunatley, these ports are blocked by my firewall at work, so I can't even view the cameras at work. I'm working with a security guy at work to set up VNC over SSH so I can view the cameras appropriately, but that will probably take a couple of days. In the meantime, my wife can view the cameras from her office, and I can access them with my cell phone since they have special built-in access for phones as well.

I must say, although the camera setup was fairly easy, the installation took some creative planning, due to the lack of wiring in my house. The camera in the living room (across the house from the office where the server is) is hooked up to a Netgear wireless print server which happened to have 4 ethernet ports as well. The camera in the kitchen is using ethernet over the powerlines. So far, the one in the kitchen has a faster refresh rate, and the ethernet over the powerlines doesn't seem to be interfering with UPB communications at all.

Also, this weekend is another meeting of the North Texas Home Automation Users Group, and I'll be taking plans of the house up there to see what we can do about wiring the home for security purposes. This has been just a terrible week (capped off by my 2-year-old daughter hitting me in the nuts last night), and I'd like to get it behind me as quickly as possible.

It happened to me...

2007-04-17T11:11:00.000-07:00

I'm tired of talking about it... I'm tired of writing about it... All I will say is that it happened last Wednesday, April 11 and point you at my post on cocoontech

Next Step: Cameras!

2007-04-03T14:38:00.000-07:00

Well, I was at work yesterday when my phone got an email from HomeSeer saying there was unauthorized motion in the kitchen (i.e., nobody home, but motion anyways). I called my wife to see if she was home, but she was also at work. I then logged onto my remote access website to see if there was anything else wrong. It only showed motion in the kitchen, but not in any adjacent rooms, so I thought it was just probably shadows or something. But this gave me an idea of what to do next (and my wife had the same thought!): cameras.

I need to find some way to figure out what is going on at my house should this type of alert happen. They don't really need to be hooked up to a DVR yet (although that would be nice in the future), but just something where I can log on the internet and make sure everything is okay. A new project begins...

Electrical problems

2007-03-04T09:04:00.000-08:00

So, ever since I installed the switch in the bathroom, it has been having problems. It made noises and couldn't keep the lights on, often rebooting itself. So this weekend, I was starting to replace it, and looking at the instructions, and saw that the switch only supports 600V, which I knew, but didn't even think about when installing the switch. Well, I decided to look at what kind of bulbs were in the fixtures, and sure enough, the bulbs left over from the previous owner were all 120V bulbs... so, it seems there was somewhere between 800V and 900V coursing through this switch rated at 600V.

I replaced all the 120V with 100V-equivalent (actually 26V) CFL's and tried the switch again. Sure enough, it worked.... except for a single fixture, which was making buzzing noises. I turned off the breaker again and pulled down the fixture from the ceiling. The wiring sheath had been burned off the wires, and the wires were exposed. Turns out those wires were only rated for 60V or 80V, and the previous owners were more than happy to put 120V bulbs (2 in each fixture!), thereby ruining the wiring.

So I called my electrician out for a minor emergency Saturday call, and he came and replaced the burned out wiring. I turned the breaker back on and turned on the lights... wa la! The lights worked great. Then I tried to test the communications of the switch... . Turns out the overload of the voltage seems to have burned out the communications of the switch, so I essentially have a $38 light switch (sans UPB capabilities). So, I had to replace the switch anyways.

On the software side, I set up HomeSeer with an email address, so it can email me under certain situations (e.g., nobody is home, but the front door opens).

Finally, more switches installed...

2007-02-25T14:49:00.000-08:00

Yay, got a few hours this afternoon with the kid asleep and the wife busy enough elsewhere that I could install some of the switches I bought from Fry's in Austin several weeks ago. My first priority was to address lights that are used most often (and thus, left on by my wife most often!). So, I installed switches on her closet in the bedroom, her closet in the bathroom, my closet in the bathroom, and the main light in the bathroom (as well as a slave in the 3-way for the main bathroom switch). Programming these are straightforward as I don't need to the send any links, and they only need to receive All Off and Bedtime links.

This brings my total up 17 UPB devices, 2 of which are slave switches (bathroom, living room), and 2 of which do not control loads (tabletop controllers on our nightstands), so maybe it's more correct to say 13 UPB controlled loads. I still have left to install 4 more US11-30's from Fry's, a single US-240 that I have leftover from starter kits, and a slave switch for the top of the stairs. For self-documentation purposes, here's where I want to install the switches:
Slave - top of stairs
US2-40: playroom, so I can control living room lights from there as well
US11-30's x 4: laundry room, garage light, dining room, office

EDIT: rather than the garage light, I think I would rather do the front porch exterior light

On more philosophical notes, I continue to reference Smart Home Hacks (the book that got me into this mess in the first place) on a regular basis for ideas on what I could/should be doing. I do have a list of ideas somewhere (and it should be here at some point), but simply lack the free time to implement these for now. As I read through the book more and more, I wonder more and more why the author chose to make the large majority (>90%) or his examples using software that is only Mac compatible. I think it would have served him equally well or better to write his scripts in a PC based software (such as HomeSeer), or at least to make equivalent scripts available over the website. At least that way, I could have a good reference (again, lack of basic VB skills on my part) for the logic that I want to perform. OK, I'm off my soapbox.

Quick status update

2007-02-19T07:04:00.000-08:00

Nothing in depth to report... just a status update.

Had a few minutes over the weekend in between building bookshelves, hanging large batik artwork, and doing my taxes. I set up door sensors on the front and back doors, although I'm not really sure what events to program them for at this point. All I have for them now is to tell me if one of them is open for 15 seconds. I'll probably set up some sort of notification (you know, once I get HomeSeer email working) that let's me know if one of these devices goes to Alert status while nobody is home. But I know I didn't want a sound every time a door opened or closed... that would get annoying (but not a bad idea for windows that are not supposed to be open).

Also, I put up an outdoor motion sensor over the front stoop. Managed to totally strip one of the mounting screws in the process, so I ended up mounting it with velcro (hope that holds up outside). Not entirely sure whether or not the event set up for it works or not... I told HomeSeer to make an announcement that somebody is at the front door when the motion detector is changed to active, but only if the door is closed. I didn't want to make the announcement when someone is leaving, just when they are arriving (and I haven't yet opened the door for them, obviously). It also turns on the foyer lights at night, as I don't have a UPB switch set up for the porch lights yet.

And that brings us to what really needs to get done... I MUST find time to install those switches. I know, a boring post... but remember, I started this blog for my own documentation purposes, not necessarily for your enjoyment :-)

More motion detection... and a little retrospective

2007-02-15T12:31:00.000-08:00

Last night (Valentine's Day!), the wife and kid went to bed early, and gave me some time to set up more stuff (you know, aside from the blinds I'm supposed to hang the bookshelf I'm supposed to put together). So of course, I started messing with more motion detectors.

After having already set up a motion detector for the kitchen/breakfast room, the actual hardware setup of the motion detectors is easy. But since my living room is so large, and has two separate entrances, I decided to use two motion detectors in the living room. HomeSeer's ACRF plug-in has a nice shadowing feature which allows a single motion detector to control a device (or multiple devices), I don't believe it allows for multiple motion detectors to control a single device (and thus, I believe, was the genesis of HomeSeer's DooMotion plug-in, which I am attempting to avoid spending more money on).

Once the hardware was setup, I created virtual devices in HomeSeet with the appropriate house/device codes I set the motion detectors to. And with HomeSeer's UltraStatus plug-in, I'm able to set it up to say Motion/No Motion instead of On/Off on the main status page. But the logic of interacting with two motion detectors is quite a bit different than a single detector.

With the kitchen light, it turns on whenever there is motion, and off whenever there has been 8 minutes of no motion (we tend to move enough during dinner time). But in the living room, I don't want the lights to turn on during the daytime (sufficient light), even when there is motion. So, I set up separate events for receiving each motion detector's ON signal (to be precise, I triggered the events based on a status change in the virtual devices, not on a received X10 code like shadowing would... I don't know how much of a delay this introduces, but there's already a considerable one between RF/HomeSeer/UPB/CFL, so an extra 0.1 of a second wouldn't make a difference). When either status is changed to ON (i.e., Motion), and it's early in the morning or late at night (i.e., the sun is not yet up), and the lights are still off, then turn them on. I suppose I could add to the condition that somebody must be home... not a bad security idea for the future.

However, when one of the virtual devices has its status changed to off (i.e. No Motion), it checks the other device's status, and if both of them are OFF, only then does it turn out the lights. That way, only a single motion detector active is sufficient to keep the lights on. I'm sure more fine tuning of this rule will need to take place, but for one night, it seemed okay.

With this pretty much in place, I decided to take a look back at my original list of priorities that I wrote down during my first week, and surprisingly, I've accomplished much of it.

1. Turn on/off the lights in the bedroom without getting up.
This is taken care of using a single rocker switch for the overhead light and two lamp modules for the bedside lamps. Additionally, both my wife and I have tabletop controllers on our nightstands which control the bedroom lights and lamps both individually and as scenes. Furthermore, I have voice command over those lights, individually and scenes, through the tablet PC on my nightstand running HomeSeer's speaker client.

2. Automatically turn on the lights in my living room when someone walks in.
You can see why completing this task caused me to look back at this list... it was my #2 priority! As described above, I'm using two motion detectors for this, and I'll tweak the logic on the HomeSeer event as necessary. I may just end up writing scripts for this if the logic becomes too convoluted.

3. Automatically turn on the lights in my kitchen/breakfast room when someone walks in.
Accomplished with a single motion detector set up to shadow my UPB Kitchen and Breakfast link. Very straightforward, no event required.

4. Set up a computer with smart home software.
As should be painfully obvious by now, I'm invested in HomeSeer and its plug-ins.

5. Install in-wall terminals around the house, both controllers as well as jacks.
I do have several in-wall controllers using 8-button and 4-button+rocker layouts on SAI's US-240 universal transceivers, and overall, I'm very pleased. What I don't have yet are UPB controlled outlets, and that has turned out not to be a terrible thing. But it does count as the highest priority on this list that is not fully complete.

6. Control things with my Harmony remote control
This is not even started yet, and I still don't know how I'm going to accomplish it. I have a Harmony 880, which emits IR signals (i.e., not RF signals). As to how to convert these IR signals into something HomeSeer will recognize, I'm not yet sure. PCS does make a UPB switch with an IR receiver, but I wouldn't really know where to put as I don't have good line of sight to any switches in my living room from my couch. X10 has something called a PowerMid which translates IR to RF (and then to X10 by a receiver to put on the powerline), but the generate RF is not standard X10 RF and cannot be received by the W800RF32, so that's out. If anyone has any suggestions as to how to get IR commands from my remote control in the living room up to (preferablly wirelessly) the HomeSeer computer upstairs so it can transmit UPB links, I'm all ears.

7. Install webcams for remote monitoring
This is probably the farthest out. I will likely use IP cams in the future, but for now, cameras cost too much, and I've pretty much used my budget for the year (yes, 2007) on switches, software, and X10 RF devices, the setup of which will probably take me the whole year anyways.

8. Automatically turn on porch lights when a visitor walks up
This one is in the very near future (as in, next)... I do have a couple of outdoor X10 RF motion detectors, and it should be easy to put one over the front stoop to detect motion only on the porch (rather than in the yard). My concern here is that we tend to have cats run across our porch, and that would set off the motion detector. Well, I'll think about this..

9. Set up a state machine
Well, I have a state machine setup (as of a couple days ago), but it doesn't really alter any behavior yet. All it does is turn off lights when we're both gone. There are other ideas (alarm clock auto-set, for example) that need to be taken care of when I have the time.

10. Set up a sensor on my garage and back door, so I know if they are left open
I do have half a dozen door/window sensors that use X10 RF... just need to find the time to do it. What will be more interesting here is if not only could I sense the garage door, but also control it. There are several articles on this at CocoonTech, plus one in a home automation book my parents got me for Christmas... one step at a time.

11. Install thermostats
This will probably happen before cameras, but after everything else :-) So far off in the future, I won't even speculate.

12. Program garage controllers in our cars
This may not need to be done after all... If the CheaperRFID thread on the HomeSeer forum is any indication, I can stick active RFID transmitters in our cars and let the computer automatically detect when they are in range rather than us having to push a button to inform it. This is tentatively scheduled for the end of this year (after installing switches, basically).

13. Setup computer to email me events
Actually, this can be done now if I took the time to do it. HomeSeer has native email functionality... I just haven't felt the need to use it yet.

For 6 months worth of work, I'd say I've done okay. I might even say that I was too naive to set my priorities correctly earlier, but that's how the cookie crumbles.

It's probably also good here to warn my readers (apparently, myself and Dave at this point) that things will slow down. I do have other things around the house I need to take care of (see blinds and bookshelf reference earlier), plus some personal things to advance my career (learn Java, as painful and dumb as that may sound). More updates as things happen.

State Machine

2007-02-13T09:01:00.000-08:00

Well, I guess I now have a rudimentary state machine. My original plan was to take an X10RF Slimline switch (one of the wireless switches I mentioned in an earlier post) and put that by the entrance from the garage so that we could press it whenever we came or went. Well, it turns out the wireless reception was not good from ALL THE WAY ACROSS THE HOUSE, so that didn't turn out too well. Fortunately, the next room off the laundry room (where the garage entrance is) is the breakfast room, and right there, 4 feet away from the garage entrance is one of the 8-button controllers I had installed months ago. And it had 3 unused buttons... wait for it... wait for it... Eureka!

I reprogrammed two of the buttons to just send links (received only by the software, not any other switches) to tell when my wife and I were home. I set them up as multibuttons (as is common in my house... one press for ON, two presses for OFF). As a confirmation, and this also fulfills my novelty wish of more voice announcements, the Audrey in the kitchen says hello and goodbye phrases appropriately when these links are activated. When both of us are out of the house, the lights turn off automatically, although my wife complained about a 15 second delay in that this morning. I set up the event in HomeSeer to be triggered by the condition that both of us were away using a condition trigger, but I don't know how often HomeSeer decides it wants to check if conditions are true (feel free to comment on this if you are one of the 4 people who read this blog and know the answer). Maybe it would be better to set up two events using device value changes (one for each of us) that checks if the other is home or not. I know those types of events are run immediately when the value changes.

As for the RF Slimline switches, I bought two with the initial thoughts that I would use one to turn on the kitchen lights from outside the bedroom (obviously, not well thought out since these are motion activated) and one by the garage. Now, looks like I'm not using either! Plus, the tactile feedback on these is minimal; although, I'm used to the audible click on the SAI UPB switches and controllers.

What is really holding me back at this point is my complete lack of VB or VB.NET scripting skills. I want to be able to have our alarms set automatically depending on who is home when the bedtime link is activated, but this is more than simple conditional logic and likely requires a script. I suppose I could use Perlscript (since that's what I know) as it is supported by HomeSeer, but that would put me in a HUGE minority as seemingly nobody elects to go this route. I'll probably try it anyways just to see what I can do. Plus, scripting would certainly clean up my events list as I have multiple events for many things that can be scripted. All in good time, I'm sure... Rome wasn't built in a day (but we can watch it in nice little hour snippets on HBO).

Taking the plunge

2007-02-12T05:53:00.000-08:00

I can't believe it was just last August that I discovered this whole industry. And now, people are actually leaving more responses on my blog! Unbelievable.

So, this past week has been a busy week. I finally took the plunge and registered my copy of HomeSeer (along with the plug-ins for my 3COM Audreys, UPB, and ACRF). Yes, you did see the ACRF plug-in in that list. I happened to be at Automated Outlet over the weekend for a meeting of the North Texas Home Automation Users Group. So, while I was there, I purchased the WGL W800RF32 to receive wireless X10 (and X10 security) signals. Additionally, I got some motion detectors, wireless wall switches, a PalmPad remote, and Martin through in a keyfob for me (which I didn't want initially, but turned out to be great for testing the receiver!).

The hookup of the receiver was extremely straightforward, and the documentation for the ACRF plug-in explains everything clearly. The first thing I did was to shadow the entry way light (the only currently automated light I can see from my office, where the home automation computer is) to the first button on the keyfob... and presto! I had wireless control of at least one light.

I then managed to set up one of the motion detectors the way I wanted to so that now, when I walk into the kitchen (which has very badly placed switches, not my fault!), the lights come on automagically. I think this will probably save some money as the lights in the kitchen spent significantly less time on than they normally would have.

Still to do: motion sensors for the living room, a wireless wall switch next to the garage so the house can know who is home (will have to wait for RFID until later), door/window sensors in appropriate places, and when I get the time, I still have 10 or 11 switches to install around the house. Also, I have a 3rd Audrey that needs setting up somewhere. On the software side, I'd like to set up our morning alarm clocks to be set automatically rather than having to manually (i.e., voice activated) set them every night. And I'd like to have a few more voice announcements (novelty factor at this point... but something useful at least).

Almost 2 weeks of HomeSeer now...

2007-02-01T15:09:00.000-08:00

It's been nearly two weeks with HomeSeer, which already puts me beyond the point I lost patience with MisterHouse. There are still a few conditions I need to work out on events so that the setup doesn't annoy my wife so much, but I see these sorts of things as fine tuning that can be worked out over time.

I did manage to find some Big Ben wavs to play on the hour over the speaker client and my 3Com Audreys, and that lasted all of 3 hours before my wife said to get rid of it.

I found a pretty nifty interactive, multi-person alarm clock script. Had a little bit of trouble with it the first couple of nights which caused me to miss taking my parents to the airport (and they ended up driving themselves), but I'm sure they'll understand when I tell them what happened. Fortunately, I know enough about programming to interpret whatever language the script was written in (I think it's VB, but not VB.NET... still not sure what the difference is). I made a couple of changes based on the style the script was written in (i.e., awful!), and it seems to work how I want it now.

Also, I got an alert script for woot.com, especially useful during Woot-offs. I also made slight modifications to this script (definitely written in VB.NET, and the style is much better... kudos to the author) to play the woot alerts over the Audreys. This annoys my wife as well, but less than the hourly chiming. However, unfortunately do to some bad logic (mine), it always plays a Woot alert the first thing after I wake up (and the wife is still asleep). I'll need to put a time condition on it as well.

One thing we're still struggling with is voice recognition. I ended up having to create a new voice profile on the tablet PC and start over with it, since it pretty much stopped recognizing my voice. I'm thinking the new profile is heading that direction as well. If it happens, I'll need to create a new profile and start over again, but turn off profile adjustment every time I speak to it, and only modify the profile when I am training it. We also couldn't decide what our attention word (to let the computer know when we were talking to it) should be. The default was 'computer', but I tend to use that word a lot in casual conversation, and the tablet would often end up activating while I was just talking to my wife. Then, I changed it to 'smart home', but that just sounded dumb. Then I changed it to 'tablet', again pretty dumb. Then my best friend suggested 'Smithers', and now that is the name of our home.

Another minor annoyance at this point is our weather getting script. It will tell me the high and low for the day, but can't for the life of it tell me what the temperature is outside right now, whether outside my house or at the airport. I need to investigate other weather scripts.

I do want to customize the webpages a little as well as expose it so I can access it from outside the house, but those are lower priority. I'm also still waiting for my extra UPB switches to arrive from Austin.

So, in summary, still very happy with everything. HomeSeer is so flexible, it's pretty much what I spend my free time on at this point. And it looks like I'm becoming more active on the HomeSeer forum than on the CocoonTech forum, although I still check both multiple times per day. What I worry about is when my 30 day trial will run out, and I don't know when I will be able to actually purchase the software.

The future is pretty well planned out though. Purchase the software (and appropriate plug-ins), install the UPB switches coming up from Austin, then invest in X10 RF stuff including the ACRF plug-in, the W800RF32, motion sensors, door/window sensors, keyfobs, and stick-on switches.

Plus, I found on the HomeSeer boards a very active discussion of what they caller CheaperRFID, plus a member who is front-ending a site for bulk buying at http://www.wingsnwakes.com/. This will also definitely be a future investment for occupancy sensors and state machines.

OK, time to stop rambling...

Another day of HomeSeer

2007-01-23T08:56:00.000-08:00

Well, after a full day into it, it keeps getting cooler and cooler.

I installed the touchpad interface, which I was told on cocoontech that it wouldn't support UPB since UPB support was added after the touchpad interface was originally added... well, the touchpad interface has been updated for HomeSeer v2.1, and now supports UPB devices. This is a wonderful, natural interface to use on the Audreys. The only downside is that I don't like the stock skins for the touchpad interface all that much... have to do a little design work on that.

Also, from the HomeSeer message board, I got this script (http://board.homeseer.com/showthread.php?t=111661) that is a multi-user voice activated alarm clock. I can now just tell my tablet 'Wake up Adam at 7:20 AM', and it will do so. I even added some church bells to the beginning of the announcement so I won't be startled awake by the voice of Microsoft Mary.

I think I'll go look for some wav files of Big Ben in London and have a virtual grandfather clock via speaker clients and Audreys... see if the wife likes it.

Also, I'm looking for common events that other people have so I can test out the event engine further... if you happen to read my blog (thanks, Mom), please feel free to suggest events that you use in your home. Thanks!

Finally, I got more time

2007-01-22T09:28:00.000-08:00

I finally got some time this past weekend to work on something that I find fun... my house! After the holidays, and spending three weeks with the in-laws in Indonesia (and recovering from three weeks with the in-laws in Indonesia), my kid finally spent a day with my parents and the wife was out of the house for most of the day, so I did what any good geek would do... got on the computer (yes, I am a geek).

Over the past couple of weeks, I had dipped my fingers into the pools of getting some 3com Audreys, and lo and behold, I put my name to three of them (although, only two have arrived yet). Of course, I hadn't planned on getting 3, but that's what happens when you put your fingers into too many pools.

So fresh with my Audreys, I managed to flash a compact flash card with the Inifinty Audrey image and put it on the two Audreys (you know, after the regular trials and tribulations of trying to figure out how it's done and running into firewall problems when trying to mount a PC drive on the Audrey). So, the Audreys were ready to go.

On my own PC (more powerful than the free ones I got from friends), I downloaded the HomeSeer 30 day trial software with the UPB and mcsAudrey plugins, and first impression, I love it. With mature UPB support, something MisterHouse still can't claim, it was easy to setup the lighting and link statuses. Plus, with the mcsAudrey plugin, it was fairly easy to get the Audreys speaking status messages based on HomeSeer events.

Furthermore, I busted out the Fujitsu Stylist ST4110 tablet PC that my father-in-law gave to me over the holidays and installed the HomeSeer speaker client, and as easy as that, I have a voice-recognition client in my bedroom.

I must say, what it took me weeks to accomplish and feel comfortable with in MisterHouse (plus stuff I never even thought of), it took me all of a day to get it up and working with HomeSeer.

Here the questions I now have:
1. Is there a way to get voice recognition on the Audreys? They have output capability, and I know they have microphones on them because you are theoretically able to send emails with voice attachments, so why can't they use the mics for voice recognition similar to what the HomeSeer speaker client does? I understand the HomeSeer speaker client probably parses the sound and sends some info to the HomeSeer server, and Audrey probably doesn't have enough computing power to do that. But the HomeSeer server regularly sends .wav files to Audrey for output, so why can't Audrey record input as .wav files and send it to the HomeSeer server for processing?

2. Is there a way to improve the voice recognition of the speaker client? That is, can I train it to my voice to understand me better?

3. Will I need additional PC's (tablets or otherwise) for additional speaker clients, or is there a way to have wireless microphones (IP mics?) that are connected to the one speaker client I have for voice control in other places around the house?

Well, I'm sure I'll have more questions after spending time with it over the next couple of days, but for now, I can't complain. I'll post these questions on cocoontech and possibly the HomeSeer message boards, and see what answers I can get.

EDIT: It should also be noted that I went to my local Fry's this weekend and asked about the HAL-branded SAI US11-30s (but priced half of standard retail on 11-30s), and there are none in the metroplex. However, they told me there were 8 in Austin and 30 in Houston. I called the Austin Fry's and had them put all 8 on hold for me. Then, I called a buddy in Austin to have him pick them up for me and I can pay him back next time he's up north (Dallas). In any case, it should be noted that there are a lot in Houston still in the stores should anybody feel the need to go down there and get em.

Personal to-do list

2006-12-02T21:26:00.000-08:00

1. UPB switch installs: laundry room, kitchen sink, dining room, bathroom main (+1 remote), 3 closets, baby room, office, upstairs living, porch light
2. buy a PC powerful enough to run Homeseer... the Linux box that was running MisterHouse was just a P3, and the Windows box I got from my parents is a P4 800MHz with 256KB memory, which would require a memory upgrade to meet the minimum requirements, and just barely meets the processor requirements. Also, be sure to get multiple serial ports.
3. get a 3com Audrey off of ebay
4. buy homeseer $189.95 + UPB Plug-in $39.95 + AC RF Processor Plug-in $29.95 + mcsAudrey Plug-in $29.95
5. think about the SMS Plug-in (and getting an extra line + free cell phone to send them)
6. from AutomatedOutlet, purchase W800RF32 whole house transceiver, motion detectors, palm pad controllers, keychain controllers, and slimline decorator switches.

worrying about automation first... security concerns will come later.

more switches... future plans... software ponderings

2006-11-11T21:55:00.000-08:00

I know, I know... I've been very bad about updating my blog in a timely manner. After buying some additional starter kits from individuals who decided against UPB, I got some extra switches, so I spent last weekend installing switches for the entry way, kitchen, and breakfast room. I now have every commonly used light in the downstairs (and therefore, my house since the only commonly used room upstairs is my daugheter's room) with a UPB switch. From my bedside or as I walk in or out of the house, I can control any room... very cool stuff considering what I knew about home automation just a couple of months ago (i.e., nothing).

I guess what needs to happen next is get some single switches, not the more expensive universal switches, for lights around the house that are less commonly used, but still should be automated. Looks like the best deal for this is at Fry's, where there are SAI single switch dimmers for $37.99 (although they are branded as HAL due to Fry's partnership with HAL). Just for my own documentation purposes, the lights that I would need these single switches are:
porch light, dining room, office, playroom, 3 closets in bedroom.

As for software ponderings... I think I'm starting to get tired of MisterHouse (already!). The problem with this software, in my opinion, is that the only thing constant about it is that it is in a constant state of flux. There are new check-ins made everyday to the SVN source, which I guess is a good thing if they are largely bug fixes and new functionality, but that's not always the case. Also, each individual module is written by a different developer, and it shows... the interfaces are different (in general), not well documented (in my opinion), and I'm not entirely sure everything will work together once I get things up and running.

The reason I went with MisterHouse in the first place was two-fold: the price (free) and the fact that it works with both UPB (at least in a fledgeling state) and the W800RF32 so I could use PIR's and door/window contacts as a rudimentary security system. Well, now that the end of the year is approaching, I will likely have a budget for home automation purposes, and I think one of my purchases is likely to be Homeseer. Although it is infinitely more expensive than Misterhouse ($177.95 at AutomatedOutlet), it has plugins for UPB and the W800RF32 (although, they both cost more money). It also has a plugin for 3com Audreys should I choose to purchase one or two of those around the house. I think more research into this is warranted.

In other news... Go Hogs.

New Wireless Handheld Touchpad!

2006-10-25T07:08:00.000-07:00

Okay, not really... While my in-laws were here over the weekend, my father-in-law bought a Nokia 770 Internet Appliance (http://www.nokiausa.com/770/). From what I can tell, it doesn't do much but access the internet in wi-fi hotspots and do instant messenger. I thought it would be a pretty useful handheld touchscreen device to use as a remote in our house. Since the house has a wi-fi network setup, it could just connect to MisterHouse in the palm of our hand.

But then I got to thinking... it's not really necessary to buy one of those. My wife used to have a Sony Clie PEG NX70V, a PDA with Palm OS on it. And with it, she had a wireless network adapter, enabling this PDA to surf the internet at wi-fi hotspots... eureka! With the hardware that we already had, we have a remote touchscreen interface to MisterHouse (you know, once I found the appropriate software... damn Sony).

I set it up and it seems to work okay, but it could really use a specialized interface. Fortunately, MisterHouse provides the capability of customizing interfaces depending on what type of device is connecting, so I'll have to find out how to do that.

In other news, I'm still in conversations on the MisterHouse mailing list about how to get Jabber working (although, it's been a couple of days since the last reply). With the finding of the Clie, I'm not sure that it's as high a priority immediately as I had originally thought, but it would still be nice to have for notification purposes while I am away from the house and on the computer (i.e., at work). I'd also like it to be able to send SMS to my cell phone, and I'd like to get telephony working so I can talk to it over the phone line... but for now, those are things for my to-do list, and can't be considered realistic for the immediate future.

What the immediate future does hold is installation of a few more switches, this time in the entry-way, the kitchen, and the breakfast room... I'll give another update when that finally happens.

2006-10-14T16:50:00.000-07:00

Well, wouldn't you know it, the day after I found mrhousefromscrach.tk, I went back to it and it was gone... fortunately, through appropriate channels, I was able to contact the author and he pointed me at the new location http://wiki.cyberjunky.nl/doku.php

After several tries, I got my computer updated with CentOS and misterhouse installed properly. Over the past couple of days, I have been in touch with the guy that wrote the UPB module for misterhouse. I must say I very much appreciate his help... from the initial support of the UPBPIM just a couple weeks ago, and UPB devices last week, he added UPB links just this weekend. Plus, he's been sending me new versions of the libraries as he updates them, so I can help him stress test.

One complaint that I currently have right now is that the states of devices and links can very easily get out of sync. If you activate a link, it doesn't update the local (MH) status of the device. There are many little things like that that need to be fixed, but for 3 weeks of development, it's actually quite good!

My plan is, once I get MH in a state where I like the way it works and I can leave it on for more than a day at a time without messing with the code myself, then I can invest in the X10 RF stuff and destabilize MH again :-)

Thinking of Misterhouse...

2006-10-10T07:22:00.000-07:00

Well, it's been a little over a month since my last post. In the interim, I have taken a 2 week trip to Italy and not much else (except recover from my 2 week trip to Italy).

Although I haven't made any changes on the home automation front, I certainly haven't stopped thinking about it. I've decided that my previous solution of using wired motion detectors and a UPB I/O module isn't really the way I want to go... it's a little ponderous (with the wires) and expensive.

My next thought was to have a wireless receiver which receives wireless signals from the motion detectors, and the receiver would send the contact closures to the UPB I/O module. This again gets expensive as you have to buy special wireless PIR motion sensors for a specific model of wireless receiver. For the Visonic brand, this uses prices like:
200 series 4-channel receiver: $72.99 from Smarthome
200 series 2-channel receiver: $54.99 from Smarthome
200 series wireless PIR: $109.99 from Smarthome
UPB UMI: $94.95 from Automated Outlet

This is certainly more than I wanted to spend. A fuller explanation of how I came to this idea is detailed in this thread: http://www.cocoontech.com/index.php?act=ST&f=7&t=5483

In the same thread, Martin from Automated Outlet mentioned that WGL (http://www.wgldesigns.com/) is designing a whole house transceiver that would take signals from wireless X10 RF transmitters and send out resulting UPB signals. He indicated the product was currently in beta testing. Since there is a meeting of the North Texas Home Automation Users Group this weekend at Automated Outlet, I will certainly be sure to ask about this module and his experiences with it. However, I'm also pretty sure I don't want to wait around for it.

So, my conclusion is I have to do something that I wanted to save until later, and that is add a PC to my home automation setup. I have an old computer that was given to me by my friend Kelly (who has since moved to New York City). I plan to set this computer up with Linux and the free home automation software Misterhouse (http://misterhouse.wikispaces.com/) based on the instructions on (http://mrhousefromscratch.tk/), straight down to the version of Linux he used. Misterhouse is written in Perl, a language with which I am familiar, but the learning curve on this particular product appears steep, so I'll go with the tutorial and learn a bunch on the way.

This software also has an external web access which would be immediately available over my wireless network for local clients (like our two laptops), but which can also be setup for external access (password protected of course) so I can check on the status from my cell phone or an external computer (assuming I have my dynamic IP setup through a dynamic DNS website).

But how does this relate to Project #2, you may ask? Well, Misterhouse recently updated to have UPB interface (and I have an extra computer interface from a recent Simply Automated KPE-06 purchase from a fellow cocooner), it also handles WGL's (http://www.wgldesigns.com/) W800RF32 module, which is described on their website as:
"The W800 receives all X10 RF commands from key chain remotes, palm pad remotes, motion sensors, and even X10 security modules. Unlike the transceivers, this receiver sends X10 RF signals directly to a computer..."

This means that Misterhouse will be able to take the X10 RF signals and perform UPB actions based on what it receives. This makes the addition of not only motion detectors easy (particularly the cheaper X10 ones, around $10-12 instead of $100+), but also door and window sensors and wireless remotes (great for the living room or keychains). And the only part of the setup I have to purchase (besides the motion sensors and such) is the W800RF32, which makes it a cheaper solution than the one cited above, and as a bonus, I can set up Misterhouse for free now with the web access, and add the W800RF32 and wireless parts when I'm ready.

As always, I'll update the blog with my progress.... I'll also make an attempt to take notes at the NTHAUG meeting this weekend and post them here as well as on cocoontech.

Project 1: COMPLETE!

2006-09-02T10:55:00.000-07:00

I dropped by Automated Outlet this week to pick up the tabletop pedestal, and while there, picked up a slave switch, and some lamp modules on sale with an open box discount. This allowed me to do a little more for project 1 than I had planned, but I could do the whole living room and master bedroom.

I took the universal transceiver initally installed in the bedroom and moved it to the living room and put the 1 rocker/4 button faceplate on it. That, combined with a couple of the new lamp modules allows me to control all the living room lights both together and individually from the single switch. I also took the slave switch and installed at the other end of the 3-way switch so that we can once again control the overhead lights from both switches.

Furthermore, I took the standard transceiver initially installed in the living room and moved it to the bedroom to control only the overhead light. I installed the extra universal transceiver that came with the starter kit into the new tabletop pedestal with an 8-button faceplate, so I can control the overhead light, both of our reading lamps (individually as well as together), plus be able to turn out the lights in the living room if necessary.

Project 2 is supposed to turn on the lights in the living room automatically when someone walks in. Fortunately, the extra modules I picked up for project 1 go a long way to making project 2 easier. The only things left for project 2 are appropriate motion sensors and a UPB I/O module (which I'm still a little unclear on). However, it doesn't look like I'll be able to get to any of this until after the new year, when we get bonus checks... so for now, Home Automation Starter blog is unlikely to be updated for a while, unless something goes wrong with the current modules, or I decide to re-program them for some reason... until then, happy automating.

Reprogrammed...

2006-08-29T07:13:00.000-07:00

Last night, based on some advice from Event5 at cocoontech, I reprogrammed my switches in UPStart from toggle (toggling on off) to multibuttons (one tap = on, double tap = off). This fixes the problem I was having with the switches in the bedroom where I had to press them twice after the All Off event. Furthermore, it fixes the question my wife was having about turning off the lights in the living room, i.e., how do we know if we're really turning them off, or if we are just turning them back on? Well, the double-tap takes care of that.

Now that this is fixed, I'm MUCH happier with the way the system works. The one last thing I need to do is run to Automated Outlet to pick up the tabletop pedestal enclosure so I can install my last universal transceiver into it and have control from my nightstand instead of only from the wall. Then, I will consider phase 1 to be complete.

UPB, day 2

2006-08-27T20:59:00.000-07:00

Today, I installed a standard transceiver (not universal) with a single rocker in the living room to control the overhead lamps. Again, I got some of the wires mixed up since there are two black wires coming into the box, but got things figured out on the second try.

What took longer this time was that the switch did not fit into my original wall box. I went to home depot and got a new, bigger box which fit things well. I have not yet programmed it into the UPB system with UPStart, so for now, it's still a dumb dimmer.

I'm still having to press buttons twice after an all off event, but to be fair, I haven't tried to diagnose the problem (again, in UPStart). One inconvenience here is that the only computer in the house with a serial port is the desktop in the upstairs office, which is a long way from the master bedroom downstairs. The home laptop we use is a slim form factor and has no serial port. I'll try to remember to bring home the laptop I use at the office and install UPStart on it so I can program the network from the same room.

In answer to some of my questions on cocoontech, someone suggested that I try different brands of 8-button controllers which have an LED for each button to indicate the status of the activities assigned to each. He suggested HAI or PCS controllers, so I'll look on Automated Outlet at these, but this would involve re-wiring the switches that I have already done.

As long as I'm consider re-wiring switches, I'll have another look at Insteon. Supposedly, some (but not all) of the firmware issues have been worked out. Someone suggested that Automated Outlet won't be carrying Insteon anymore, so I may have to look elsewhere.

Finally, to anyone on cocoontech who is nice enough to follow my progress, read this blog, and make helpful suggestions, thanks so much. It was today that someone first told me they were actually reading this (does that make me a public media figure?). I certainly appreciate all your help.

First impressions after my initial UPB install

2006-08-26T20:07:00.000-07:00

Underwhelmed. That's the best word I have for it. My brother-in-law Nick was over at the house today, and he and I installed a UPB universal transceiver and a lamp module in the bedroom, so I guess this makes me officially a home-automator, even if I still only have two modules installed. I'd like to talk about the good of this whole process before I start complaining.

The good:
1. The software package for UPB, UPstart detected very little signal noise and was relatively straightforward to use.
2. I have yet to require a phase coupler, even though one came with my KPE-08 starter kit
3. The install process was relatively easy. I had never even opened up a switch or outlet until a couple of days ago when I had to check the type of wiring we had. Taking all the commonsense precautions (turning off breakers; buying a live-wire detector from Home Depot), it didn't take very long to install the switch.

The bad:
1. My very first complaint was going to be that the responsiveness of the switch was not ideal. There have been several times when I tried to turn on the overhead light, and the switch required two presses to turn on. However, through further experimentation, it actually turns out that after I have activated the "All Off" scene (through button 8 on my 8-button switch), it takes two presses to turn on any of the lights, whether it's the overhead (button 1) or my wife's lamp (button 2). This happens without fail. This is definitely a question for cocoontech.

2. Local control on the plug-in lamp module didn't work. When I had local control enabled through UPStart, the light wouldn't turn out at all, even when sent the UPB turn off signal. The second I disabled local control, the lamp module started functioning as expected. However, the wife was incredulous that she could no longer turn off her bedside lamp from her bedside... instead, it must be turned off from the wall (currently no tabletop controller)

3. There is a noticeable delay with UPB. I suppose I'll get used to it, but it is exacerbated by the fact that we use compact fluorescent bulbs to save energy, and they take their own half a second to turn when power is supplied.

4. No tabletop controller came with my starter kit. I guess that's really my fault, though. I bought the KPE-08 for $125 (normally $175), and it has:
1 computer interface module
1 wired-in phase coupler (not necessary yet)
1 plug-in lamp module
1 standard transceiver switch
2 universal transceiver switches
3 faceplates

For the same money, I could have bought the KPE-06, which has:
1 universal transceiver
1 computer interface module
1 plug-in appliace module
1 plug-in lamp module
1 tabletop controller
3 faceplates

All in all, I still think I got a very good deal, but just no way to control my stuff without having to get out of bed. This is partially mitigated by the existence of ZTP2, the tabletop pedestal enclosure into which I can install a universal or standard transceiver and use it as a tabletop controller, for only $9.95. And since my KPE-08 came with 3 switches (2 universal, 1 standard), I guess I can spend the extra $9.95 for one of these. Comparatively, SAI also makes available a pedestal with a built-in universal transceiver and an 8-button faceplat for $119 (note, a universal transceiver with 8-button faceplate sells separately for $99.95, so it seems you're paying an extra $10 for someone to put these in the pedestal for you).

5. One of UPB's big selling points is true 2-way status notification. That way, if a call fails and an acknowledgment is not received, the sender can re-send the original message. What this does NOT mean (to my great disappointment) is that you can know the status of a light across the house. My new switch gives an indication that the overhead light is turned on by switching the color of the LED. However, when I activate the lamp module, no positive indication is given anywhere. Obviously, I can see the lamp come on since I'm in the same room, but what if I was trying to turn on the lights in the living room? How would I really know if they came on? I suppose I was expecting two-way status notification of every link on the switch, not just the primary load.

6. Although the switch came pre-programmed to control the local load (whatever the switch controlled before you installed a UPB switch), I didn't see any way in UPStart to change this. That is, my button #1 controls the overhead light in the bedroom. Suppose I wanted button 7 to do this instead? I didn't see a straightforward way to make this work, but I guess I could have overlooked something.

7. no way to control overhead light on fan separately from fan itself. That is, if I want to turn off the overhead light but leave the fan running (since they are one appliance), I still have to pull a cord on the fan. Would be nice to control these separately (especially once I get a tabletop controller for my nightstand!!!!)

OK, that's all... I'm off to publish my thoughts and ask questions on cocoontech. I'll certainly summarize the answers here.

It's official...

2006-08-25T07:24:00.000-07:00

I'm joining the world of home automation. Martin at Automated Outlet was nice enough to match the $125 price on the KPE-08 that Simply Automated was offering. So, I ordered it. Should be here in a couple of days!

2006-08-23T20:43:00.000-07:00

Finally, some good news. I checked a couple outlets and switches around the house tonight, and they all appear to have copper wiring and neutral wires in each box, which makes UPB a good choice. I think I'm going to buy a KPE-08 produced by Simply Automated. They have it on sale right now for $125 (http://www.simply-automated.com/pep_info_request.htm), and Automated Outlet has it for $175. If Martin at AO wants to drop the price, I'm more than happy to buy it from him, but if not, I guess I'll save the $50 and get it from SAI.

The other good news is that people on cocoontech have helped me clear up some other questions. See forums:
http://www.cocoontech.com/index.php?act=ST&f=7&t=5362
http://www.cocoontech.com/index.php?act=ST&f=7&t=5368

Since there are no PIR motion sensors specifically for UPB technology, I would be forced to get a different kind. But software technologies such as HAL and HomeSeer work with multiple protocols, so it could receive a Zwave motion detector signal, and send out a UPB lighting signal as appropriate.

Further good news is that my house has an existing alarm system, and it may be able to interface with software. At the very least, we can use the existing wiring and sensors... in fact, let me go check what is there...

The panel inside my house appears to be a DSC. There is a sticker on it that has the number AF-5577. The box in the garage looks like it says FBII, with an apparent model STAR XL 4600. It looks fairly old, but I'll put this info on cocoontech and see if they think it is salvagable.

Another protocol to look into...

2006-08-22T12:05:00.000-07:00

Well, I finally made it to Automated Outlet today over my lunch break. I tried to call them over the weekend, but they're not a retail outlet as I had originally thought, so they're not open on the weekend. I did manage to take up half an hour of Jim Houston's time (and Martin's too), and they mentioned that I should definitely look into UPB, a powerline protocol like X-10, but 10x more powerful, plus reliable two-way status acknowledgement (which apparently the other protocols haven't perfected yet). My main reason for not looking into UPB earlier was it has a higher price point than either Insteon or Z-wave.

They also showed me what the Elk M1 hardware controller is, and HAL, a software controller. Jim Houston says he has both running side-by-side at his house. This was good for me, because I really had no idea what the Elk M1 did, and it wasn't all that clear reading the cocoontech posts what it was useful for. Turns out, it's capable of doing everything a software controller running on a PC can do, but you don't have to leave a PC running all the time, and you don't have to reboot it like you would a PC. It's something to consider down the road for me if I start placing too much strain on a software controller.

The first thing I need to do before deciding what protocol to use is check the wiring in my home. Jim said he had a home built around the same time mine was, and it used aluminum wiring which nearly caused his house to burn down. The solution to this was to piggy back a copper wire (via non-oxidizing wire nuts) onto the ends of his aluminum wiring, and hook the copper wire up to each outlet and switch, but this would have to be done for all outlets and switches.

The other thing I need to check is whether or not neutral wires have been wired into my house, as UPB switches and Insteon switches would both require neutral wires. If I have no neutral wires, then I'm practically forced into using Z-wave. I'll post more when I get around to checking my wiring.

Seeking more information

2006-08-18T14:15:00.000-07:00

It turns out that the Automated Outlet is based in Lewisville (10 or 15 miles north of me), so I'm going to try to visit them over the weekend. The people on cocoontech.com say that they have knowledgable people and the best prices, so hopefully I will have a better foundation to make a decision.

Reconsidering...

2006-08-17T16:22:00.000-07:00

Based on reading the entire thread at http://www.cocoontech.com/index.php?showtopic=4294&st=0 (finally, I found a site that discusses this... again, why couldn't I find it earlier?), I'm reconsidering my decision to go with Insteon. Based on recommendations made in that forum, I'll investigate ZWave technology instead, a purely RF technology.

Additionally, here is a set of links to look at (as a reminder to myself) that were gleaned from the www.cocoontech.com thread mentioned above:
http://www.automatedoutlet.com/home.php
http://www.controlthink.com/
http://www.zen-sys.com/
http://www.pcslighting.com/
http://www.shed.com/links.html
http://www.cooperwiringdevices.com/AspireRF/AspireRFguide.pdf
http://www.leviton.com/vizia/
http://www.intouchcontrols.com/productline.htm
http://www.cooperwiringdevices.com/AspireRF/
http://www.control4.com/

Project #1: My introduction to home automation

2006-08-15T19:45:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned in my previous post, this will serve as my introduction to home automation (not really an introduction to X10 since I'll be using all Insteon for this!). My goal is to be simple, and be able to turn on/off the lamps in my bedroom without getting up.

Now, we've been using flourescent lights to save money for a long time, so I thought I would need to buy Insteon ApplianceLinc On/Off modules (you don't want to use dimmers on flourescent lights... another hard-learned lesson). But then, the list of items that I will need to buy looks like this:
Insteon ControlLinc Tabletop Controller ($29.99 http://www.smarthome.com/2430.HTML)
Insteon ApplianceLinc On/Off Module (2x $29.99 http://www.smarthome.com/2456S3.HTML)
this comes to $90 (+/- 3 cents).

For about the same money ($99.99 on sale), I can get the Insteon starter kit (http://www.smarthome.com/2490.html or http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000A0BPCC/ref=sr_11_1/104-7703429-3936722?ie=UTF8) which includes the ControlLinc Tabletop Controller, 2 LampLincs (on/off modules with dimmers) as well as two Insteon SignaLinc RF's that would be used in the future to bridge the phase gap (even though I don't need them now). So, to save money, I can buy this and switch back to incadescents in the bedroom lamps.

Stay tuned to see how this works for me!

Projects and Hardware

2006-08-15T19:21:00.000-07:00

After reading Smart Home Hacks, I came up with a list of potential projects that I want to do (roughly, but not necessarily exactly in this order):

1. Introduction to home automation, i.e., turn on/off the lamps in the bedroom without getting up.
2. Automatically turn on the lights in my living room (most used room in the house) when someone walks in.
3. Automatically turn on the lights in my kitchen/breakfast room (second most used room in the house) when someone walks in.
4. Set up computer with smart home software (it's not truly a smart home without a brain! without this, it's merely added convenience, but I want my computer to make decisions based on logic I program into it... this is made easier since I was recently given a free 500 MHz computer by a friend who just moved).
5. Install in-wall terminals around the house, both controllers (press-button, do stuff) as well as jacks (to get rid of those ugly plug-in modules)
6. Control things with my Harmony remote control (you know, in addition to my home theater)
7. Install webcams for remote monitoring (especially in the kid's room... gotta keep an eye on the mischief)
8. Automatically turn on porch lights when a visitor walks up (and maybe even put a webcam out there so I can see who's there and be lazy too)
9. Set up a "state machine", i.e., keep track of who is home and adjust the behaviors of the home automation system based on the status.
10. Set up a sensor on my garage door and back door, so I know when a certain somebody has left them open.
11. Install thermostats that are X10 (hopefully, Insteon by the time I get around this) compatible, so I can turn on the air conditioner before I leave the office and the house will be cool when I get home (also, able to turn up the temperature during the day when a certain somebody forgets to do it).
12. Program the garage controllers in our cars, so that we can do stuff while we pull into the driveway.
13. Set up the computer to email events to me about stuff that happens in my house (motion detectors going off!) when nobody is home.

Looking at those projects, here's a list of potential hardware that I'll need to look into:
(although, obviously, I hope Insteon comes out with a bunch of this stuff before I ever get around to buying the X10 versions)
X10 noise filter
X10 signal booster
X10 signal bridge
X10 whole house blocking coupler
X10 XCam2 Wireless Color Video
X10 motion detector
X10 IrDA receiver (IR-543 X10 command console)
X10 split receptacle wall module
X10 wireless wall switch
X10 powerflash module
X10 220V plug-in coupler & repeater
X10 wireless door sensor
X10 RF transceiver
Insteon SignaLinc RF's
Insteon PowerLinc Controller USB
Insteon PowerLinc Controller Serial
(obviously, I don't need both Controllers for my computer, but look into both!)
Insteon ControLinc Tabletop Controller
Insteon ApplianceLinc On/Off module

Technology

2006-08-15T18:36:00.000-07:00

Dammit... just lost a whole post about technology, so I guess I'll have to write the whole damn thing all over again.

The emphasis of Smart Home Hacks was X10 technology. X10 technology utilizes the existing electrical wiring in your home to send information, so in theory, you can turn your lights off from across the room, or even across the house.

So why haven't I heard about any of this before?!?!? This, in my opinion, is the biggest failing of the home automation industry: a complete lack of publicity. Apparently, X10 technology has been around since the late 70's (ironically, so have I). It was supposedly built into houses in the 80's and 90's, but due to unreliability, never got used and eventually fell into disuse by all but hobbyists and geeks (like me).

The two main sources of unreliability in most X10 systems (or so I've read) are:
1) phased wiring: Our electricity circuits in the house are 110V (and you know this very well if you've ever tried to plug in a European camera). What I didn't know is that it's only the internal wiring that's 110V. Apparently, the power lines that feed my house are 220V, and when it gets to my house, that's split into 2 - 110V lines (phases). If you have a module plugged into one phase that wants to send a signal to the other phase, the signal has to exit your house and cross the 220V line to the other phase before it comes back in your house and (hopefully) reaches its destination. This unreliability is supposedly solved by improved hardware and the use of bridges/couplers (to bridge the phase gap) and amplifiers/repeaters (to boost the X10 signal).

2) electrical noise: A lot of modern technology (desktop computers, laptop computers, home A/V equipment) as well some older (blenders!) tend to leak noise onto your electrical wiring. This can corrupt X10 signals on the line, and even confuse your modules (turning your lights on randomly!). Furthermore, some newer power strips (like mine!) filter out the X10 signals because they think it's electrical noise, and thus, the signal never progresses beyond the powe strip. Both of these problems are supposedly solved by improved hardware (again) and the use of filters which block the noise from your appliances as well as prevent the X10 signal from reaching the power strip which dampens the signal.

One of the companies that offers "improved" hardware (or so advertised) is SmartHome (http://www.smarthome.com). And once you go there, you will inevitably find their Insteon products (http://www.smarthome.com/prodindex.asp?catid=74 or http://www.insteon.com). From my research (again, I'm new to this!), Insteon is kind of the big brother of X10. With its products just reaching the market first in 2005, Insteon also sends signals (albeit larger ones than X10) across your electircal wires and is backward compatible with X10 products. Furthermore, Insteon gets rid of X10's traditional unreliability points by making every Insteon module also a repeater (to replace repeaters/amplifiers) and utilizing RF technology to bridge the phase gap (to replace couplers/bridges). They advertise that Insteon's RF technology makes the whole network more reliable by broadcasting signals over both the wiring network and the RF network, but I have yet to see any Insteon product take advantage of the RF technology other than for bridging the phase gap.

There are other technologies that have come and gone, but X10 appears to have been the most widely used and popular, and Insteon appears to be the movement of the future. They supposedly work OK together (I hesitate to say the work well without actually trying them), but I couldn't find anyone else on the internet who has documented how to use them together very well, so I decided to build my own hybrid X10/Insteon home automation system, and keep track of it on this blog. I decided to use Insteon in addition to standard X10 in part because I'm hoping that modules that are available for X10 but presently unavailable for Insteon (web cams, motion sensors, in-wall outlets) will be available soon, and hopefully soon enough that I won't even have to upgrade, I can buy them straight out before I get to that phase of my installation. After making that decision, there was much more research to do as to what I wanted to do, and how to do it.

First steps

2006-08-15T17:49:00.000-07:00

It was about a week ago, I was rambling my way through the internet and decided to do a search on O'REILLY books (a very geek thing to do). I ran across a couple of books that I might be interested in, one of them being Smart Home Hacks http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0596007221/sr=8-1/qid=1155689161/ref=pd_bbs_1/103-8954581-0415051?ie=UTF8

I thought to myself, "self, this could be kinda cool", so I added it to my amazon wish list. Well, it wasn't on there long enough for anyone to actually think about buying it for me. My wife and I had managed to unload the kid at my aunt's house for a couple of hours over the weekend, and we decided to go to Barnes & Noble, and lo and behold, Smart Home Hacks was sitting on the shelf. Sitting down to read it for a while, I couldn't help but buy it. Needless to say, when I got it home, I finished it that night.

Having read through the book, I decided to implement a few of the projects. A couple of days of research into my options and user experiences, and I still wasn't any closer to making any decisions. That's when I decided to start this blog, to document my research, my decision making processes, and my actual implementations.

Let me stress... I AM NEW AT THIS. I have never touched any of these technologies before. And frankly, there wasn't a lot of information and user experiences by new people out on the net, so for posterity, documentation purposes, and for those times when my wife asks "What were you thinking", here is the Home Automation Starter blog.