Auto Dimming light activated via switch

jonwhoward · January 12, 2021, 8:03pm

Hello all!

I am hoping our collective brains can figure this out. I used to have a setup that I loved and now its broken. Whenever I would put my children to bed, I would turn on a “Gentle wake up” switch that I had reversed to slowly dim a lamp in their room. They would use this to read in bed and then knew it was time to stop reading and go to sleep once the light reached 0%. I had it dim from 99% to 0% over 15 minutes. It helped them transition to sleep time much like the Gentle wake up feature does for waking up.
Well now Gentle wake up no longer works with the new app as many have discovered. I have tried other options but with no luck. This feature worked so well and now it no longer is an option. I have tried the third party app “Wake up Light” in the iOS app store which kinda worked through homekit but doesnt allow me to activate it whenever I wanted. Only at a certain time of day. Which as parents know, small children dont go to bed on time/the same time every night.
Has anyone come up with a solution or gotten the smartapp “Gentle Wake up” to work with the “Gentle wake up controller” ?

MarkTr · January 12, 2021, 8:09pm

My existing Gentle Wake Up devices still work - I can schedule them via Smart Lighting and they come on - but I can’t interact with the device at all. If you already have them created you might be able to keep using them, but if someone moves to a new bedroom or you have to replace the switch/bulb in question it sounds like you’re hosed…

JDRoberts · January 12, 2021, 8:16pm

You can do this with an Alexa routine. It allows you to select gradual dimming options as the “that“ part of the routine.

For the If, you can use an Alexa voice command or time of day or a sensor activating.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=G4XRFPC74SLMCK72

You should be able to do it with a virtual sensor from smartthings, which would let you trigger it as a switch, but that’s been kind of glitchy for people since the new smartthings skill was released. So I don’t feel 100% confident that that method works all the time now, but you can try it.

FAQ: Can I trigger an Echo Action without Speaking to It?

For better reliability you could use any nonSmartThings sensor that Alexa recognizes and use that instead of a switch. For example, I have a motion sensor mounted on the side of my bed pointing towards the nightstand. A hand swipe over it triggers some lights to come on.

So just some other options.

jonwhoward · January 12, 2021, 8:37pm

Yes you are right, I recently switched triggered devices and bedrooms so double whammy. Thats when it all stopped working.

jonwhoward · January 12, 2021, 8:40pm

thanks JDRoberts! I will try to incorporate Alexa into it. I will see if I can create a Virtual Switch in ST to trigger a routine from Alexa. I might have to use a middleman like IFTTT if I cant find another way to link them. Especially now that IFTTT has forced you to go PRO if you use more than 3 applets.

MarkTr · January 12, 2021, 9:05pm

People have also reported success using APKs of old Classic versions. From what the ST staff have been saying here, any separate infrastructure supporting that won’t be available indefinitely but it might be worth trying to quickly reconfigure your existing setup. Of course that’s only an option if you have an Android device available, and you mentioned iOS.

Update on SmartThings Classic Shutdown Announcements

I’ve posted that in a new tread but it became hidden. I’ve found few features that can’t be reached in the official app. I’ve downloaded an old SmartThings Classic app APK and this features are working again . Here is the list: Bring back Smart Lightning smartapp, and create automation with it that also shown in Official ST App Easily calibrating Fibaro modules Since the calibrate and Sync buttons came back. Store parameters in Fibaro modules just because the Sync button came back . I was unable to store with official ST app. bring back “Something Left Open” Smartapp. It will be really appreciated if this can be done also in the Official SmartThings App. I don’t want to use the Classic App but I found no other way to use the above features.

JDRoberts · January 12, 2021, 9:15pm

You can set it up so that when you just say “Alexa, it’s bedtime“ (or any other phrase you like) to either the Alexa app or an echo device it will start your dimming routine. That definitely works.

Mariano_Colmenarejo · January 14, 2021, 7:52pm

@jonwhoward, If you want to try the “smartapp gentle wakeup” that I modify?
I modified it in IDE and published it for me. I installed it in the new app and it works perfectly, except for the phrases that does not exist in new app and the link with other app’s.
It works by increasing and decreasing light. I have tested it with a dimmable light bulb, I don’t have dimmable switches, but I hope it will work the same.
It is the link to post about smartapp modification:

The link to modified smartapp code:

github.com

Mariano-Github/Smartthings-smartapp/blob/main/Gentle Wake Up

/**
 *  Copyright 2016 SmartThings
 *
 *  Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); you may not use this file except
 *  in compliance with the License. You may obtain a copy of the License at:
 *
 *      http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
 *
 *  Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software distributed under the License is distributed
 *  on an "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. See the License
 *  for the specific language governing permissions and limitations under the License.
 *
 *  Gentle Wake Up
 *
 *  Author: Steve Vlaminck
 *  Date: 2013-03-11
 *
 * 	https://s3.amazonaws.com/smartapp-icons/HealthAndWellness/App-SleepyTime.png
 * 	https://s3.amazonaws.com/smartapp-icons/HealthAndWellness/App-SleepyTime%402x.png
 * 	Gentle Wake Up turns on your lights slowly, allowing you to wake up more

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Paul_Oliver · January 14, 2021, 9:28pm

There’s also gentle wake up app in Smartthings Labs under the 3 dots in smart apps

Mariano_Colmenarejo · January 15, 2021, 12:25pm

@jonwhoward,
As the control dimmer can be created, but I can’t get it to work in the new app and you need a quick start control, this works and it may be useful for you:

Activate “gentle wake up” by Mode change
In IDE create a mode in your location, for example “Children to Sleep”
In the app create a scene to activate the location “Children to Sleep”.
In the final options of “gentle wake up”, recover the location mode you want.
If you are changing the location mode with some automation and you want to recover the mode you had at that time:
5.1 Create another mode, for example “Recovery”
5.2 In final options of “gentle wake up” put change mode to “Recovery”
5.3 Create an automation that changes to the mode corresponding to the conditions you have established when the mode condition changes to “Recovery”
5.4 You can also add the condition of the “Recovery” mode in the automation that you use to change the mode of your location.

Auto Dimming light activated via switch

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