Multiple modes based on who is home

SmartApps & Automations
1

I was wondering if I could get some clarification on the best way to control modes based on who is home.

My idea is to have 4 modes that represent when both my wife and I are home, just my wife, just myself and both away. How have other people done this?

I have the app on both our phones so they can be used as presence sensors. For the both at home option when I create the routine and select our phones in the someone arrives does it rely on both mobiles arriving at the same time or can they arrive at different times? Same for setting away because both left, but at different times?

For the one of us at home routines do I need to do:
Both at home routine changes to wife at home because I leave, then when my wife leaves it goes to away because of the away rule. Then would switch back to both home if I come back and my wife is still here?
Or do I have to do a rule for wife at home using someone leaves AND someone arrives to define who is there?

Let me know if any of that isn’t clear!

2

I have just two simple routines set for:

  1. Home (one or more registered iPhones arrive or are at at the home location)
  2. Away (all registered iPhones are not presence at the home location).

The Home/Away routines check for and set the correct status of our garage doors, alarms, locks, window shades, lights, deck awning position, hot tub temperature and mode, etc.

If I need more granularity for other items or presence states, I use WebCore pistons and the various device states and environmental sensors to perform more decision based home automation actions.

I also have other routines for Vacation (sets Alarms to a more sensitive Away State, performs dynamic lighting routines, shuts off main water valve, turns up/down home temperature settings based on season, etc)

3

I’m not sure if you can accomplish that via the app, but it could certainly be done via webCore. In essence, you would set the mode based upon the conditions in an IF statement. You could watch for departures as well, changing the mode accordingly.

4

Thanks both, I’ve read people mention webcore in a number of threads, I think I shall have to investigate that!

5

Curious as to why you would like a separate mode depending on the combination of who’s home? What’s the end goal here?

6

The end goal is to have certain routines that only run based on who’s home, like if I’m home on a weekday certain lights will come on for when I go to work, or if no one is home certain lights will turn on at certain times. Just to give me a lot more control over everything rather than say having lights always come on at sunset if even if no one is there.

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