Hi,
I have the older smartthings on a ups (as is my internet) so I don’t see the reason to upgrade yet, however I am now starting to look at integrating my vista20p alarm panel into smart things. I have read all about the AD2Pi project but am wondering if the new smartthings hub plus the AD2USB would allow you to skip the Arduino which really just acts as a pass through. I think the big question is can you write device types that use the usb ports in the new smart things or are they just for expansion?
In your opinions if its possible should I go with a new hub and AD2USB or keep with the AD2Pi > Arduino Mega > SmartThings Shield approach?
I think that the V2 USB Hubs are just for looks! They are NOT functional and there are many theories what they perform, for example a place to insert old USB sticks or USB wireless devices that will never be supported by SmartThings. Just like the promised Bluetooth capability that the V2 hub is suppose to has, but is not functional, nice to have it, but when not active, does it really exist? (See tree falling in woods when no one is there…)
I have the AD2Pi system connected to my Vista 20p home alarm system. The AD2Pi acts as a fully functional Vista alarm panel which can be programmatically accessed from within the Raspberry Pi.
I have developed a Python program that traps for all my home alarm contacts, IR motion sensors, smoke detectors and glass break detectors. The Python program sends a HTTP update to a SmartThings device driver for each alarm system event, effectively making all my Vista 20p contacts/switches/motion, glass, smoke detectors accessible to SmartThings to act upon via SmartApps. This custom integration saved quite a few $$$ and I did not have to duplicate costly Z-Wave devices on areas in my home where I already have coverage by the Vista system.
I also do not have to be concerned about the Z-Wave distance limitation is our large house, since the Vista system is hardwired to all alarm switches.
If the SmartThings backend cloud was halfway dependable, I would allow SmartThings to automate critical security routines based on events & presence, but that concept was thrown out the door when SmartThings V2 arrived and has made false positives and false negatives routine in my hub.
The Raspberry Pi is the master for my home at this point and it makes Home Automation decisions based on API’s to other presence services and can access the few Z-Wave devices I have installed from SmartThings and make decisions.
The USB ports are not usable currently and no timeframe has been published on when they will or even what you can do with them. If you go with the AD2USB you will need a computer on 24x7 to use with it, which is why the AD2Pi + Arduino + ThingShield is much better, but more expensive. I also have been using this for many months now and love it. The project is documented here:
You will see a post from me at the bottom where I add features to Stan’s work by allowing the zones to work independently with more processing on the Arduino.
Got it, thanks everyone. Disappointing they didn’t take advantage of the USB ports on the smart things v2.
Looks like there is plenty of docs on getting the arduino solution running.
AC
Just went to order and found this. EYEZ-On EVL-3 device which I believe is doing all of this in a single package. In addition to that company offering a monitoring package thats cheaper than my current one it looks like they have an API for all their functionality which should be easy to write a smartthings device type for. Has anyone tried this yet?
Yes, I have this circuit board installed as well as AD2PI Network Appliancei connected inside my Vista 20p cabinet. I choose not to use their API for control, but use the AD2Pi/RaspberryPi which came with a robust Python/API interface with basic example scripts. The AD2Pi also came pre-installed with the AlarmDecoder server system which allows one to access the Vista alarm console from any PC/mobile web broswer or iOS app.
The Envisalink serves to allow one to control the Vista 20p home security alarm system safely from Envisalink’s secure website for free. Installing an Envisalink board avoids having to open inbound ports on ones’ home network router for port forwarding since the Envisalink connects to their website and provides a secure two way communication with the Vista 20p (and other alarm models).
Envisalinks’ web server does not store your home alarms’ on/off codes. One must enter them when one desires to enable/disable your alarm via the Envisalink website.
The Envisalink website will alert one (or a group) via emails or text message (eg. emailaddress@vtext.com) when an alarm condition has been detected or ones’ Home Network cannot be reached (ISP Provider outage).
The Envisalink requires a hard wired ethernet connection. I was able to install a wireless repeater/bridge to connect the ethernet cable and make the Envisalink system essentially wireless. I also connect the Raspberry Pi/AD2Pi server to the same wireless bridge/repeater.
In my installation, I eliminated the monthly home surveillance costs and phone line charges with this Envisalink’s DIY product.
@kurtsanders do you have an documentation on your python code and devices your using with your Raspberry Pi/ad2pi appliance that you would be willing to share?
@slockner: I wish I did, but it is built specifically for my home alarm installation and would require some knowledge of the Raspberry OS, Python Coding (eg. installing several package dependancies, changing alarm zone maps, etc) in the code and installing a SmartApp with OAuth API and a custom device driver.
I thought about making this system more sharable at one time, but I did not see any value in this extra effort and it was faster/easier to code making the code specific to my needs.
Is anybody here using AlarmDecoder’s new-ish smartthings device handler and smartapp? I’m using it with the AD2Pi Network Appliance and it does a decent job but it could really use some work to do things like integrate with Smart Home Manager, etc.
Just curious to see if anyone has tried working with it and what your experience has been.
They are NOT functional and there are many theories what they perform, for example a place to insert old USB sticks or USB wireless devices that will never be supported by SmartThings. Just like the promised Bluetooth capability that the V2 hub is suppose to has, but is not functional, nice to have it, but when not active, does it really exist? (See tree falling in woods when no one is there…)