Looking for a battery powered Z-way device that would allow me to temporarily close a low power/low voltage contact for a small project (trying to turn on my old robot vacuum cleaner by emulating pressing the start button). Does anything like that exist?
If you want to super DIY it you could use a ESP8266 or ESP32 and the ST_Anything project: [RELEASE] ST_Anything v2.8 - Arduino/ESP8266/ESP32 to ST via ThingShield, Ethernet, or WiFi then use the vacuums own battery to run the board.
That would actually be pretty cool come to think of it…you could even “schedule” a old roomba that doesn’t have WiFi/BlueTooth by scheduling the point in SmartThings to turn on at a certain time.
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This question has been asked before, but there aren’t any. 
That said, if all you need is a button pushed, there is a battery powered networked microbot device which is intended as a tiny robot finger. I use these in my own home. They aren’t Zwave: they use Bluetooth to their own bridge, which uses Wi-Fi and has an IFTTT channel, so you can get integration with SmartThings or echo that way. The biggest drawback is the cost: typically $89 for the bridge and $49 for each microbot, although you can sometimes get a set on sale for less.
I’m tired today so I’m just going to give you a link to a recent thread where we discuss them and you can find out more that way if you’re interested. But it’s a really nice simple way to integrate a non-smart device that just needs a Button press. No wiring required and it won’t void the warranty on the original device.
And a previous discussion thread on the relay topic, but with the same answer:
There arn’t BUT a ESP8266 or ESP32 running ST_Anything draws almost nothing compared to the vacuum itself. Plus it docks to recharge afterward effectively keeping the controller powered up all the time. Its a little hacky, you could mount it in a box on top of the vacuum and make it look good, but it should work.
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Thanks for the feedback @JDRoberts and @vseven. The robotic arm is too pricy for this application, so I’ll explore the ESP solution.
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ST_Anything can be a bit much for beginners but Dan the guy that wrote it is more then willing to help. Just off the bat I would think you need a ESP8266 ($10), a relay ($3), a power converter of some sort to convert whatever the battery is putting out to 5v ($5 - $10) and probably a little enclosure to mount on top of it. If there is any room inside the thing you could possibly even mount it internally but from what I remember of mine it’s pretty tight inside.
For the price, it’s definitely worth a look. I’m comfortable with coding or electronic assembly (I’m an engineer by trade), just have limited time… I already have an elaborate ST setup mostly leveraging webCore.
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If you end up doing it please post the results…I’m very curious.
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You could even run ST_Anything on a tiny ESP01 module to reduce the footprint even more. There are also some all-in-one relay/esp boards that you could possibly use as well.
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not exactly what you’re asking for, but the newer robot vacuum cleaners already come with remote activation capability. I use the Xiaomi Mi Vacuum which can be bought for under $300. Its an excellent robotic cleaner and can be controlled via the Mi Home app, the Mi Home home automation eco-system, and also has Amazon Alexa integration so i start mine up with a voice command.
Will look into the ESP001
My next vacuum will definitely by network ready, but I really want to be able to use my current unit (Neato) and simply start the cleaning process when my ST mode switch to Away. I can event disable the alarm motion sensors when the cleaning cycle is on.
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Good catch, but we should note that that device is only available on the EU zwave frequency. It will not work with a US frequency smartthings hub.