Piano Practice Enforcer

(Adam Mills) #1

It is a nightmare trying to ensure my girls get in 15 minutes of piano practice a day.
I have bought a smart switch so I can disable the TV at certain times, however I’d like to enable it for 1 hour after 10 minutes of practice between certain times.
How might I go about measuring 10 minutes of piano practice???

#2

I have same issue. I just sit down with my girl and hear her play feeling proud.

If you would like to use automation, you could try the power consumption function of a smart socket and write some rules based on that. Good luck…

(Pizzinini) #3

I have not tried - but you may be able to measure vibration if you place a SmartThings Multisensor inside the piano.

(Adam Mills) #4

That might be possible with an electric piano but not with an acoustic one. I’d love to sit down with them but I’m afraid once I get home it’s dinner, bath and bed.

(Robin) #5

If you have to nag her to do just 15 minutes piano practice a day… maybe this hobby is not the right one for her?

If she was truly into it, she would be practicing all the time without the nagging.

(Adam Mills) #6

Now you’re talking, one of these would do it, how do I detect for 10 minutes worth of alerts. Could IFTTT do it for me?
http://www.vesternet.com/z-wave-vision-shock-and-vibration-sensor-gen5?gclid=CJCSo8Tg5dQCFde6GwodpGwKYQ#fo_c=521&fo_k=fa2dcc9595b734080ce3db7b897226a4&fo_s=gplauk

(Adam Mills) #7

Having been there, done that and bought the T-Shirt, learning the piano is neither easy nor fun at the beginning. You can’t play anything particularly interesting and this makes practice boring. For me it’s a skill I wouldn’t want to live without and was definitely worth the effort. My daughter is only 6 and although I have let her drop other activities she doesn’t enjoy, I think given she’s just started playing with two hands we need to persist for a little while yet.

(Pizzinini) #8

I am using the Samrtthings Sensor attached to my doorbell housing to detect vibration if someone rings. I am in the US but I think the US version should have the same capabilities. THe device tyouy posted would probably work, too.

IFTTT will probably work but may not be very reliable and require lots of setup.

There is a Smartthings app “WebCore” that may take some time to learn how to set up but it is well worth it.

Once you set it up there is an existing thread where people are very willing to help with your specific configuration…

Good luck!

(Adam Mills) #9

Many Thanks Pizzini
I’ll let you know how I get on!

#10

You could also possibly use a motion sensor inside the piano also that would detect the motion of the hammers. Or a pressure mat on the seat…

(Ray) #11

I have a motion sensor attached to the piano just above where they sit to play and pointing it to the ground. Mostly sense motion of their feet. My kids both spend half an hour each day and after a couple of years. They are starting to appreciate it now. They still nag here and there but nagging equal even less TV time so they learn it quick.
All the TVs in the house shut off during piano and only parents could turn them back on.