I have set up and installed my new Everspring SP816 motion sensor and successfully added it to my SmartThings app. It came up on the App as a Open / Close door/window device. I set it up as an automation that when it open or closes it should activate my Lifx lights.
Nothing is happening though. It states that the motion sensor is closed and it seems that no matter what I do it is stuck in this position.
What am I doing wrong? Can someone explain in LAYMAN terms how I can simply set up an activation that turns on my lights. Why is this so difficult?
Do I need to try and change the name of the device? Iâm doing this on my iPad.
If the device is a motion sensor, then itâs not going to work if the hub thinks itâs a contact sensor.
Sometimes when a device is paired to the hub, the wrong kind of device handler gets assigned to the device.
Are you using the ST classic app or the newer ST (samsung connect) app?
Youâll probably need to login to the hubâs admin interface (also known as the integrated developer environment or IDE) with a desktop web browser to change the handler that was assigned to the device.
Since it sounds like thatâs something youâve never done before, start by reading this FAQ post on the use of custom code in ST. It doesnât 100% apply to this situation, but itâs written in plain language and will introduce the web-based interface to you.
Alternatively, you could try to exclude and then re-pair your device to the hub. Itâs possible that when it connects again, the hub will assign the correct handler.
Iâve uploaded both apps, ie old and new but to be honest, the newer app seems half finished. Either way, both of them are registering my sensor as an open close device and itâs not working.
So, I have to log into the admin interface and write a program to convert it?
Really? I kind of hoped I didnât need to be a IT expert to get my lights to come on when somebody walks passed!
Any ideas? Can I copy and paste someone elseâ programme?
The post that I linked to is just a good introduction to the concept of device handlers and also discusses how to navigate the IDE.
In your case, itâs possible that by reassigning the device handler to a generic z-wave motion sensor, itâll work just fine.
If you read the post that I linked to carefully, youâll see these step listed as part of the process of assigning a device handler to a physical device. In the context of that FAQ, the device handler is a custom one that the user has just created, but in your case you just want to assign a âcorrectâ device handler that already exists in the list of handlers.
I donât have one of those everspring motion sensors, so I donât know whether it will work with a device handler thatâs already in the ST database.
If not, itâs possible that someone has already developed a handler for it, and in that case you could follow the steps in the FAQ to add the community-developed handler and assign it to the device. Obviously youâd have to confirm that such a handler exists first.
Last resort is to create a handler from scratch, or to modify a similar existing handler, but that doesnât seem to be an option for you.
To avoid issues like this, you might want to consider limiting your selection of devices to those that are on the official âworks with SmartThingsâ list. For one thing, devices on that list should pair to your hub easily without a need for any of the above steps. And if you do run into any issues, tech support can help you when itâs an official approved device.
Just to confirm Markâs suggestion : install the SP816 as per the manual so it shows in the Smartthings app. Then open up IDE on a PC, click on Devices, scroll down to the new entry for the device (mine=Z-Wave Door/Window Sensor), click on its Display Name, click Edit, in Type select the down arrow and change to âZ-Wave Motion Sensorâ, click Update and finished. Check the app and you should now see the device as a motion sensor
Completed steps as above (GertR) but still not joy.
Itâs continuously detecting movement in the app.
Live logging doesnât actually show itâs transmitting data.
The only logs shown are in the app when it was still type âDoor/Window sensorâ
Any ideas?
UPDATE
Adapted an existing device handler so that it detects the device as an âEversrping SP816â upon adding the device to smartthings. https://github.com/c240amg/SmartThings/tree/master if youâd like to add the device handler yourself.