adding devices to a bridge

Posted on
Wed Jun 29, 2022 7:23 am
jalves offline
Posts: 744
Joined: Jun 16, 2013

adding devices to a bridge

I'm not sure I fully understand the steps needed to add a device to a bridge using this plugin. Lets say I start with a single camera, which Indigo see's using the Cynical Security Spy plugin. With HomeKitLink Siri, I
    create a new bridge (call it CameraBridge)
    then add the single camera (call it MyFirstCam).
    Set it up as a security spy camera in the plugin configuration.
    Save the bridge.
    Go back in to the Indigo bridge device and click on the show QR button.
    On my iPhone I go to the home app, click on Plus and point the camera at the screen on my computer.
    That recognizes the new bridge and adds it to the Home app.
All correct so far?

Now, let say I want to add another camera (call it MySecondCam) to the CameraBridge. I
    go to the existing Indigo CameraBridge device
    Click on edit and add MySecondCam) to the bridge setting it up as a security spy camera
    Save the bridge
    Go back into the Indigo device and click on the show QR button
    On my iPhone I o to the hot app, click on Plus and point the camera at the screen on my computer
    That recognizes the bridge, but at this point it says the bridge is already included.
How do I get Home to recognize MySecondCam?

Running Indigo 2023.2 on a 24" iMac M1), OS X 14.4
Jeff

Posted on
Wed Jun 29, 2022 3:09 pm
GlennNZ offline
User avatar
Posts: 1555
Joined: Dec 07, 2014
Location: Central Coast, Australia

adding devices to a bridge

Hi

You are over-complicating it slightly.

Once the bridge is started and added to your HomeKit App you do not need to do that step again. Basically scanning QR Code is once and done for each/every bridge.

Simply:
Go to bridge device
Edit
Add devices - by selecting Device in PullDown. As before enable publish checkbox and press ** Save ** Button.
There should be a message in Indigo log

Keep doing this for as many devices as needed (up to 95 per bridge). After 95 create another Bridge.
However if adding custom unusual devices, via “Show All Options” would add one device at a time and check works.

Once finished.
Press Save Config Button and bridge will be restarted

Devices will appear in HomeKit momentarily - they also appear in the same room as the Bridge was assigned to..


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Last edited by GlennNZ on Thu Jun 30, 2022 3:09 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Posted on
Thu Jun 30, 2022 8:01 am
jalves offline
Posts: 744
Joined: Jun 16, 2013

Re: adding devices to a bridge

Thanks Glenn. I'll give that a try when I am back at my Indigo server machine. Probably not until tomorrow.

I'd also like to say a big thank you to your work in creating this plugin. Its really great to be able to use Home for many things controlled through Indigo.

Running Indigo 2023.2 on a 24" iMac M1), OS X 14.4
Jeff

Posted on
Thu Sep 22, 2022 5:57 pm
dduff617 offline
Posts: 659
Joined: Jul 05, 2006
Location: Massachusetts, USA

Re: adding devices to a bridge

This is very useful to know. It will make it way more convenient to add multiple Insteon devices to a HomeKitLInk Siri Bridge.

I was in the same boat as jalves on my first attempts. I'll explain one bit of counter-feedback that I was getting:

I add an Indigo device ID1 to HomeKitLink Siri Bridge device, then check the "publish" button, then hit the ***save*** button, then hit the regular save button at the bottom of the configuration dialog. Then, next time when I come back to edit, I see that ID1 is in menu "publish:" menu down in the section below where it says "devices on this bridge published to HomeKit:". Thus I got positive confirmation that I successfully added a device, albeit only one device at a time.

On the other hand, when I do the same as above, except I leave the configuration dialog up (i.e. I don't hit the regular "save" button and exit the dialog), then I do NOT see ID1 in the list of published devices. When I first attempted adding multiple devices at a time, and I observed this, I concluded that adding multiple devices was not working.

Posted on
Thu Sep 22, 2022 6:45 pm
GlennNZ offline
User avatar
Posts: 1555
Joined: Dec 07, 2014
Location: Central Coast, Australia

adding devices to a bridge

Hi

As described above - you can add as many devices as wish, but until the config dialog is saved and the bridge/thread/library/and a few other linked aspects are restarted - these devices will not show up.

Basically these devices have been linked to the bridge selected, marked for inclusion into the bridge, but until the bridge is restarted they haven’t been setup/pushed to the homekit library to support to setup/and start.

The risk with multiple devices is if one is odd, or setup incorrectly it may break the whole bridge with homekit giving us little feedback. Hence the advice to add one at a time if using showALL options or a ‘strange’ device.

I believe there is some logging as to when the device is saved? … once this dialog is pressed - although will double check and as suggested may need to add it.

Glenn


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Page 1 of 1

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 1 guest