Low voltage multichannel relays to operate disassembled remote or blind button

Devices & Integrations
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I finally took the plunge and ordered my hub and a couple of devices for lights. I’d really like to automate my Hunter Douglas Platinum blinds, but reading the forum posts it looks difficult to do using third party wireless*. So, I have a couple of options:

  1. open up the motor and connect the manual switch to a little relay. I have no power up there, so I’d need a little battery powered relay. Apparently, according to google and past forum posts, these do not really exist. Any ideas? Note this would be momentary close only, so the relay wouldn’t continuously drain the battery, only the z-wave radio would.

  2. Buy another Hunter Douglas remote and tear it apart, connecting each button to a relay. So, I need seven little tiny relays, for the seven buttons. I bought the Vision In-Wall Z-Wave MicroSwitch for my lights, https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B00R883YKU/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 this could work but it’s a high voltage load relay, I only want to simulate pushing seven little tiny buttons in a low-voltage remote.

  • The blinds use RF and IR. Direct IR integration is hard because the receiver is recessed so line-of-sight selection can be used, and also because it goes to sleep. The factory remote always sends an RF signal to wake up the blinds, and then will either send an RF signal or an IR signal to control them. Programmable RF blasters seem to be difficult to configure. Programmable IR blasters won’t send the RF wake-up signal, and would have to be placed accurately underneath each blind.
2

You can use ST anything with a bunch of isolated relays. It will not be small but it will be relatively inexpensive ($10 chip, $3 each relay).

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Seconds after posting I find this option
http://a.co/0dgi1jg
The Fibaro RGBW controller has 4 outputs. So, if I bought two I could potentially hook it up to the remote. It can be run off of 12V power, but claims the loads need to be the same voltage as the power supply.

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Oh, that’s good to know. “ST Anything” is the Arduino, right? Can you point me to some example relays? That sounds wonderfully promising.

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Search for ST_Anything. Its pretty DIY but the fact you said you were going to disassemble the remote hints that you can probably deal with DIY.

Otherwise the fibaro idea should also work and you could put some isolated relays on that too.

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  1. if you have motor then you have power there - transform that to what you need for relay. Could make a sizeable wart on your motor box.

  2. hack a remote is the low-power way. I like that better than defiling the motor but seven relays! Like 0-16-33-50-67-83-100?

Actually I like not controlling the blinds at all. RF and IR sheesh

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yes, silly me, I do have power up there. It’s 12 AA cells so 18V. I meant no mains power. Any 18V z-wave or zigbee relays?

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So I don’t need the ThingShield anymore to use ST_Anything? Just an Arduino, right?

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A ESP8266 is the preferred chip as it has built in wifi. Check out that thread if you are going to go that way…there is a ton of information.

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In case anyone stumbles on this thread, the best way to automate Hunter Douglas Platinum Blinds is using the Platinum Bridge and this smartapp