What is the coolest feature of your Indigo setup?

Posted on
Thu Jan 05, 2012 9:53 am
midd offline
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Joined: Apr 18, 2010

Re: What is the coolest feature of your Indigo setup?

Got my remote start for my truck hooked up with an I/O Linc. Many, many thanks to raneil for his help and patience. For right now I'm not using a script. Before the action takes place, Indigo checks the temperature. If its over 50 degrees F, it will not start. If it is below, the remote fires up and a text is sent to my phone.

LIke he mentioned, I am in the process of hooking up with iCal to omit vacation days etc from starting my truck. Just had a sidebar has I had to configure iCal and iCloud. It's no problem at all with Lion, but with Snow Leopard there is some configuring as iCloud isn't designed for 10.6. I've got it all configured. Now I'm looking at the iCal script and have to figure out how to tie it all together.

Thanks again raneil!
Last edited by midd on Thu Jan 05, 2012 12:58 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Indigo 7, Monterey (12.1) on a 2009 Mac Pro..

Posted on
Thu Jan 05, 2012 12:21 pm
raneil offline
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Re: What is the coolest feature of your Indigo setup?

Glad to hear you got it working!

Posted on
Fri Jan 06, 2012 4:07 pm
midd offline
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Re: What is the coolest feature of your Indigo setup?

Just an update as I found a script in the Applescript forum that is exactly what I need. It checks my calendars in iCal to see if I have a scheduled day off. If I do, my truck will not start.

I am also going to integrate the iphone (or smartphone) script. So if my phone isn't around, I must not be home for it to try and start.

I gave a thanks in the thread in the Applescript forum to bump it to the top.

Indigo 7, Monterey (12.1) on a 2009 Mac Pro..

Posted on
Sat Jan 07, 2012 10:01 am
dstrickler offline
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Location: Boston, MA

Re: What is the coolest feature of your Indigo setup?

midd wrote:
I am also going to integrate the iphone (or smartphone) script. So if my phone isn't around, I must not be home for it to try and start.

You might want to check out "FindMyiDevices" plugin. It works with iCloud (now free) and tracks all kinds of iDevices as well as Macs. It works quite well, and the developer is responsive when bugs have come up in the past.

Dave

Posted on
Tue Apr 03, 2012 11:43 am
moscomedve offline
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Re: What is the coolest feature of your Indigo setup?

Complete control of TV, XBox 360, PS3 and AppleTV using an insteon keypad, IR Transmitter programmed with macro's, and apple remote. Also needs Remote Buddy Express, Logitech PS3 IR reciever.

When the thermostat turns on (needs separate triggers for Fan, AC and Furnace), an increase volume scene is activated that runs an IR macro on the IR transmitter to increase the volume by 5. When the thermostat turns off, it decreases it.

The keypad sends scene commands to the IR transmitter. On: turn on TV, Off: turn off TV. A on: set input to RGB then HDMI 1, send on to Apple TV. A off: send menu hold to AppleTV, send select hold to AppleTV (puts to sleep). B on: set input to RGB then Component 1, send on to XBox 360. B off: send off to Xbox 360. C on: set input to RGB then AV1 (cannot control Wii by IR), C off: nothing. D on: set input to RGB then HDMI 2 (send 2 hdmi IR commands) then send on to PS3. D off: nothing. Each tv input change goes to RGB input first to put the tv into a known state.

The entire setup can be controlled by the simple apple remote (I hate universal remotes) by pairing it to a computer with an IR receiver that is in sight (or reflected sight) of the remote. Remote Buddy can then be configured to intercept IR commands and re-map them to insteon scenes. For example, holding up will direct the IR transmitter to raise the TV volume, holding down will lower it. If the keypad is set to A (appleTV) then up, down, right, left, play/pause, menu and select are mapped to IR macros that transmit the required commands to the Apple TV. If the keypad is set to D (PS3), then the same buttons are mapped to macros that control DVD/Bluray playback, with the exception that menu brings up the playback control menu, and menu hold returns to the disc menu; also holding right will go to the next chapter, holding left will run a macro that sends previous chapter twice (the first instance goes to the start of the current chapter, the second goes to the previous chapter). There is a bit of latency, but it's not too bad, and I designed the mappings only around the DVD/Bluray control features I use the most (of course anything else needed can be accessed through the playback control menu). In practice the setup is quite simple, and there is no need to fumble around with multiple remotes, or use a magnifying lens to figure out which button out of 200 to press on a universal remote.

Posted on
Thu Apr 05, 2012 12:16 pm
automatr offline
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Mail Alert

Well maybe not the coolest, but one of the most useful features is the magnet switch in the mailbox door. I used to hate walking out to the mailbox only to find the mail had not been delivered yet. Now when the mail arrives, a voice announcement is made inside the house and a text is sent to my iPhone.

We live in an area where there are a lot of summer thunderstorms, so to make the setup safe and reliable, the sensor wire goes through a gas tube outside the house and an isolation relay inside the house before it connects to the EasyDAQ I/O card.

Posted on
Sat Apr 07, 2012 11:44 am
anode offline
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Location: NC

Re: Mail Alert

automatr wrote:
Well maybe not the coolest, but one of the most useful features is the magnet switch in the mailbox door. I used to hate walking out to the mailbox only to find the mail had not been delivered yet. Now when the mail arrives, a voice announcement is made inside the house and a text is sent to my iPhone.

We live in an area where there are a lot of summer thunderstorms, so to make the setup safe and reliable, the sensor wire goes through a gas tube outside the house and an isolation relay inside the house before it connects to the EasyDAQ I/O card.


I've been contemplating this myself. Though mine is at the street. (and a little too far away for a DS10) Was going to make a ZigBee set up with a few solar cells to recharge. (Really only needs a quick 'ping' once a day or so.)

Posted on
Sat Apr 07, 2012 6:08 pm
nsheldon offline
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Location: CA

Re: What is the coolest feature of your Indigo setup?

Some of my home automation features using Indigo Pro 5 that I think are kinda cool:

  • Integration of my entire home theater system with an iPod touch, Indigo Touch app, and Indigo control pages as the remote (see the Blu-ray player integration, TV integration, and A/V receiver integration threads for details). This setup also has a repeating Indigo schedule running every 15 seconds that executes a background AppleScript. That script polls the Mac mini media server (same machine as is running Indigo), the Blu-ray player and the TV to see if media is playing. If so, it dims the lights. If not, it raises the brightness of the lights to full (if it's dark and there's motion in the room, based on the INSTEON motion sensor state in the room). The system also automatically mutes the A/V receiver and pauses whatever Mac media software is playing (or internet stream, or Blu-ray/DVD, or TV internet stream) if someone rings the doorbell.
  • A full-featured front door RFID access control system that uniquely identifies each RFID holder to Indigo. I use this networked RFID reader/HTTP client, a few 125 kHz RFID tags like these, an Apple AirPort Express (Ethernet connected to the RFID reader), a Morning Industries deadbolt, and a Smarthome MorningLinc module, all integrated using Indigo Pro 5, PHP, SQLite, and the osascript command-line utility. This "roll your own" system has a password protected web administration interface to maintain RFID keys and users, and allows specific access date ranges and times-of-day per key/user. It also keeps a web-accessible access log. It has the advantage of allowing Indigo to know when specific individuals are home and thus taking customized actions based on who locks/unlocks the door.
  • I use AirFoil and Play Sound with 4 different AirPort Expresses and attached speakers to direct spoken alerts and messages to specific rooms as appropriate, based on the message and estimated occupancy in the house.
  • Since I use all Apple AirPort routers, I developed my own lightweight Smart Phone detector by having each AirPort send syslog data to my Mac mini server, then keep a shell script running (using a Launch Control Daemon) that sends every line of network logs to Indigo (using osascript), which then checks to see if any of the iPhones (or other devices) are attaching or detaching from the routers (identified by MAC address). It's similar, though less sophisticated in function to travisc's Smartphone Radar plug-in, with the advantage that 1) this method would work with Indigo Pro 4, and 2) this method detects when the phones detach from (or are dropped by) the router rather than assuming the phone is gone when not heard from by the router in a given time period). The disadvantage is that when the OS automatically rotates the syslog log files (about once a week), the log tracking script looses its connection to the logs and must be restarted.

Posted on
Sun Apr 08, 2012 7:55 am
anode offline
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Location: NC

Re: What is the coolest feature of your Indigo setup?

I've always been scared of automating the locks. (the fingerprint locks are easy to fool too.) I'm also ditching WiFi as much as I can. Its WAY too easy to crack (yes, even WPA2 especially if WPS is turned on)

But then I'm probably a bit paranoid. Its a lot of tech work to set up and break this stuff. And on some random house, odds are I'm safe.

Posted on
Sun Apr 08, 2012 2:17 pm
nsheldon offline
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Location: CA

Re: What is the coolest feature of your Indigo setup?

anode wrote:
I've always been scared of automating the locks. (the fingerprint locks are easy to fool too.) I'm also ditching WiFi as much as I can. Its WAY too easy to crack (yes, even WPA2 especially if WPS is turned on)

But then I'm probably a bit paranoid. Its a lot of tech work to set up and break this stuff. And on some random house, odds are I'm safe.


Ha! Yes. Unless you're protecting some national secrets or something, you won't be targeted by someone with the resources and know-how to crack your WPA2 wireless network. Believe me, it's not THAT easy to do and, in terms of overall world (or even US) population, virtually no one knows how. As for the door locks, I can understand not wanting to automate that. Detecting the RFID tags from the street might be done with the right radio equipment, computer hardware, and software (though none of it would be very possible by amateurs, and I'm certain I'd notice the huge antenna needed for that). The Morning Industries locks use data encryption so, at least in my area, fear of someone hanging out for weeks on end to gather enough encrypted wireless key lock/unlock signals to hack the door lock encryption is not even a mild concern. :-)

Posted on
Sun Apr 08, 2012 2:33 pm
anode offline
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Joined: May 27, 2007
Location: NC

Re: What is the coolest feature of your Indigo setup?

nsheldon wrote:
anode wrote:
I've always been scared of automating the locks. (the fingerprint locks are easy to fool too.) I'm also ditching WiFi as much as I can. Its WAY too easy to crack (yes, even WPA2 especially if WPS is turned on)

But then I'm probably a bit paranoid. Its a lot of tech work to set up and break this stuff. And on some random house, odds are I'm safe.


Ha! Yes. Unless you're protecting some national secrets or something, you won't be targeted by someone with the resources and know-how to crack your WPA2 wireless network. Believe me, it's not THAT easy to do and,)


If WPS is turned on, on the router it IS that easy to crack WPA/WPA2. Cracked my own in less then an hour.

Posted on
Mon Apr 09, 2012 7:51 am
Swancoat offline
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Joined: Nov 20, 2009
Location: Houston

Re: Mail Alert

automatr wrote:
Well maybe not the coolest, but one of the most useful features is the magnet switch in the mailbox door. I used to hate walking out to the mailbox only to find the mail had not been delivered yet. Now when the mail arrives, a voice announcement is made inside the house and a text is sent to my iPhone.

We live in an area where there are a lot of summer thunderstorms, so to make the setup safe and reliable, the sensor wire goes through a gas tube outside the house and an isolation relay inside the house before it connects to the EasyDAQ I/O card.


I definitely would like to set up a Mail notifier, but have since my mail comes to a neighborhood mail box, I have two problems.

1. It's a few hundred feet away. How do I get a signal that far?
2. How do I keep the mail man from thinking it's a bomb or some stupid thing. Probably have to leave a permanently affixed tag that says, "Mail Notification Device. Do Not Remove".

http://nerdhome.jimdo.com

Posted on
Tue Apr 10, 2012 6:35 pm
paduck offline
Posts: 20
Joined: Jan 08, 2012

Re: What is the coolest feature of your Indigo setup?

anode wrote:
nsheldon wrote:
anode wrote:
I've always been scared of automating the locks. (the fingerprint locks are easy to fool too.) I'm also ditching WiFi as much as I can. Its WAY too easy to crack (yes, even WPA2 especially if WPS is turned on)

But then I'm probably a bit paranoid. Its a lot of tech work to set up and break this stuff. And on some random house, odds are I'm safe.


Ha! Yes. Unless you're protecting some national secrets or something, you won't be targeted by someone with the resources and know-how to crack your WPA2 wireless network. Believe me, it's not THAT easy to do and,)


If WPS is turned on, on the router it IS that easy to crack WPA/WPA2. Cracked my own in less then an hour.


Don't disagree. I think the theory is if someone sees that you have any sort of security on your system, they will go look somewhere else that doesn't. The odds of someone wanting to go through the hour long effort of cracking your WPS/WPA/WEP security and then having the foresight to get into your home automation system to unlock the doors is a little bit of a stretch - if they aren't already targeting you. They're better off just breaking a window.

Posted on
Wed Apr 25, 2012 4:04 am
automatr offline
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Joined: Feb 02, 2012

Re: Mail Alert

Swancoat wrote:

\
I definitely would like to set up a Mail notifier, but have since my mail comes to a neighborhood mail box, I have two problems.

1. It's a few hundred feet away. How do I get a signal that far?
2. How do I keep the mail man from thinking it's a bomb or some stupid thing. Probably have to leave a permanently affixed tag that says, "Mail Notification Device. Do Not Remove".


Not sure if this would work for your application. It's about a hundred feet to our mailbox. I used a run of underground telephone cable (known in the industry as "bugger cable"), the same stuff the telephone company buries between your telephone pedestal at the street and the demarc on the side of your house. It's really nasty stuff to work with. It's designed to be buried for many years with no problems. Inside the mailbox is a tiny magnet switch. The magnet part is on the door, painted to match the mailbox. The wires are concealed under the mailbox so it doesn't freak out the mailman. Haven't even had a comment about it in the 17 years it's been there. Not exactly sure how to adapt this to a community mailbox.

Posted on
Tue Aug 28, 2012 3:35 pm
AlaskaDave offline
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Location: Juneau, Alaksa

Bear caught on camera

Not sure about the coolest feature buy my backyard camera just caught a bear. I have a motion trigger that records video captured with Security Spy. The very short video is posted on YouTube at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvoXlsbw1CY

My first though was, kids not home... good. What about the smoker/BBQ!

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