Wireless IR Sender (UK)

Hi - First post, go easy :wink:

New to SmartThings, literally just got the first few devices on it today (4 Samsung multi-room A/C units) - working flawlessly and pretty impressed with it to be honest. I’m looking to integrate two additional devices in the system, but i’m uncertain of the best path to take.

One of the items is a (non-Samsung) A/C unit and i’ve seen various devices out there for controlling them, typically a small unit which is WiFi<>IR and comes with it’s own software. You teach it the codes etc. However - I really want to go with something which i can integrate into SmartThings, presumably via a hub.

So has anyone got some experience they would like to share on this? I’ve written various BMS and control systems and developed software so i’m not against having to do the legwork myself, but if someone has already walked the path it will save me considerable fail-time and avoid reinventing the wheel…!

Thanks in advance!

Welcome!

There are several different ways to approach it. Personally, for an IR air conditioner I would look at the Z wave remotec bridge device as it’s intended for just this purpose. But there are other options as well. See the FAQ:

FAQ: How to Use SmartThings with an IOT Device that has an IR Remote

Or you can jump right to the air conditioner FAQ (it’s also linked to in the IR FAQ)

FAQ: Best way to control a AC (2019)

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Hi! Thanks for that, i was looking at the ZXT-120 earlier today and since i don’t have (any) other components for the system i wanted to be sure i get an appropriate hub and device pair. The Z-wave protocol is new to me, and i’m trying to get familiar with the concepts - so does the ZXT-120 (for example) speak directly with a Samsung SmartHub?

So, you add a SmartHub to SmartThings, and finally, bind the ZXT-120 as a device ‘via’ the SmartHub? Or did i miss the idea here?

Sorry if this is all covered elsewhere, there is such a volume of information out there i’m trying to find the entry point for my (probably rather basic) requirement :slight_smile:

Cheers!

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You’ve got the idea.

A SmartThings hub is essentially one plastic box with multiple IOT radios ( for example, some have a Wi-Fi radio, some don’t; the dual logo ADT/SmartThings model has an additional radio which only works with the dual logo sensors, the European models have radios on the European regional frequency, etc).

But as of this writing, all ST hubs have both a zigbee radio and a zwave radio. They are certified to establish networks of that protocol by the independent third-party organizations.

So that means you can add any certified zwave end device to the zwave network established by your smartthings hub (this process is called “including“ in zwave) and you will get at least “basic“ (that’s a specific zwave term in this context) functionality.

Zigbee is a little more complicated because the profiles also have to match. See the FAQ:

FAQ: Zigbee Application Profiles, or why not all zigbee devices work with SmartThings

(In zigbee, the process is called “joining.“ But SmartThings just says “add a device“ regardless of the protocol.)

Devices of any other protocols are not added directly to the hub, but get added at the account level.

Since it sounds like you have a strong technical background, you might find the welcome FAQ in the community – created wiki also helpful. :sunglasses:

https://thingsthataresmart.wiki/index.php?title=Welcome_FAQ

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Hi - that is excellent info thank you very much! I’ll probably start the an ST hub and one of the IR units, probably the ZXT-120 (unless that sounds like a bad idea?) - since i only want on/off/heat/cool control for it and it /seems/ like it’s meant specifically for AirCon units.

My next mission is the boiler, although that seems like it involves more pieces (a thermostat and something else to wire into the OpenTherm terminals).

I’ll probably open a separate thread later once i’ve got my head around the AirCon :slight_smile:

Many thanks for your help!

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Are you in the UK? (Jumping to a conclusion because of “AirCon,” Americans more typically say “AC.”)

Z wave has regional frequencies and the frequency of the end devices must match the hub exactly. So if I’ve guessed right, you will need to get a UK frequency hub and UK frequency devices.

Some companies, and remotec is one, do manufacture the same device for different regions, so you just have to make sure you get the right model. :sunglasses:

If you are in the UK, Vesternet Has an excellent selection of Z wave devices on the UK frequency, as well as some really good technical articles.

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Hi - yep i’m UK based with my AirCon :slight_smile:
I’ve ordered up a ST hub, a ZXT-120 and a Z-Wave Fibaro Relay (the -222 one for dry contact DC, hopefully). Going to add my main gate on and see if i can get to grips with how they work before tackling the boiler/thermostat!

Thanks again for your help!

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The big advantage of the remotec zwave devices manufactured for air conditioners Is that they will present to the Z wave hub (in this case smartthings) as a thermostat. Rather than a whole bunch of different individual button presses on a remote The way a generic IR blaster would. So that usually makes a lot more sense to the end-user since that’s the functionality they’re usually looking for. :sunglasses: