How to control an RF controlled device with Smartthngs

Devices & Integrations
1

I would like to control an RF controlled device with Smartthings - how can I do this?

Also, is there a way to control Bluetooth devices with Smartthings?

Thanks for any help from the community!

2

Can you be more specific? Both Zigbee and Z-Wage are RF devices.

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3

" RF" just means “radio frequency”. Under US law, this covers many different frequencies, including Wi-Fi, zigbee, Zwave, Bluetooth, 433 MHz, the proprietary Lutron clear connect protocol, and many more. Transmission by all of these is controlled by the FCC.

IR (infrared, used by most television remotes) is technically not an RF protocol, but many people look at it similarly since it is also used for wireless remotes.

Smartthings supports a couple of different RF protocols. For the exact details see the following

http://thingsthataresmart.wiki/index.php?title=Supported_Network_Protocols

There is a Bluetooth antenna in the V2 smart things hub, but it has not been enabled and at present time there is no way to directly control Bluetooth devices. If the device has a cloud service with an open API or an IFTTT channel, you can get indirect integration that way.

4

My solutionn is using RF transmitter/receiver with Arduino.
Arduino communicate with Smartthings via Smartshield.
With this method I can control 4 ceiling fans & some RF switches from Etekcity (which use RF 433 remote).

Check this thread
https://community.smartthings.com/t/st-anything-433mhz-rf-devices-arduino-thingshield/19084

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5

Thank you. But what is Arduino and how exactly would I set things up to control the RF device.

By the way what I want to control is a vertical blind smart device called EZ Wand. It looks great for adding o to an existing vertical blind

6

EZ Wand is a clever approach.

It is using the 433 MHz frequency, but I don’t know exactly which protocol.

7

hey.
Is the Smartthings support RF 433 MHz?

8

Did you mean does the smartthings hub support RF 433 MHz?

If that was your question, then it does not. It doesn’t have a radio on that frequency.

Some people do use an additional device to act as a bridge. @ogiewon might know more about what’s available in 2019. I know some people are using a broadlink pro device as a bridge, but then you also need an android phone to use with that.

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9

@fixman you can take a look at my ST_Anything project, which has basic support for controlling 433MHz devices using the RCSwitch library. This is definitely a DIY solution.

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10

Thank you @ogiewon. I will learn the system and will try to use it.

11

@ogiewon

Hi, I am trying to do the same thing- I am pretty techno stupid. is there someway I can contact you to get help on this? My email is Kashif.khan3@gmail.com

Thanks

12

ST_Anything is very much a DIY solution, that requires quite a bit of technical expertise. You don’t mention exactly what you’re attempting to accomplish. Perhaps there are some off-the-shelf solutions that would be simpler to implement? :wink:

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13

@ogiewon

Basically the same thing as everyone else - I have a RF remote that is 433.92 from my bedroom shades and I would like to control these via Alexa.

What are the list of things I need to buy?

14

I really don’t have any idea what you’d need to buy to control those blinds. Hopefully another user will add their thoughts.

15

Old thread, tacking on an answer

BroadLink rf hub with Alexa BroadLink skill
Pair the rf remote to BroadLink
The shade device can be added to an alexa scene (solar shades down) and can be controlled by voice

16

Bond Bridge and Bond Bridge Pro can handle this Bond Bridge | Bond

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Hi. I’ve looked at the Bond Bridge a number of times but haven’t pulled the trigger.

I have two Fanimation ceiling fans in two different rooms next to each other. Both have an RF control.

Since I last looked at the Bond website they’ve added Bond Bridge Pro and only list SmartThings integration for that.

  • Does the basic Bond Bridge integrate with SmartThings?
  • If yes, how? How reliable is the integration
  • Given that there’s no feedback from the fan, how often does the actual state get out of sync with what SmartThings thinks is the state?
  • If you own one of these, would you buy it again?
18

yes, the Bond Bridge (non-pro) connects to ST.
My integration is reliable but I am not using it with Fans.

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19

Yep. It’s reliable. The cheaper one also does IR, which the Pro doesn’t. Needs line of sight for IR, but it is compatible with things like fireplaces. It gets out of sync on the fans if you use the RF remotes that come included with the fans. Pair the bond with a scene controller or smart switch (non-load) and the smart switch can call out to the bond bridge, so that part stays synced.

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20

Thanks! I’d definitely have to do that as there is a Decora-style dumb switch that powers the fan off now.