Guy Lavoie

How do you think I feel about my 25 year old Ocelot controller, that's never missed a beat? It's like an old friend. It's still running a few things, like my solar pool heating. One of my projects is to make a PG3 plugin for it, so I can keep using the relay modules and other features. Right now I do that with X10 commands, not the best way. I've already tested serial communications with it from the eisy in Python. So it's just a question of getting it done.

I might add that an alternative to making this mod would be to use only external magnetic contacts (wired on series) connected to the screw terminals, and mount the open close sensor module itself nearby, but with no magnet near it. This would leave the internal reed switch open, allowing just the external wired ones to work.

That's the very first thing to check. If you have a spare device that was never added to a z-wave network, try adding that one first. If it works, that would pretty well indicate that this is the problem. To know if your eisy is seeing the adapter, in admin console, go to z-wave -> advanced -> z-wave information. Check that it says "Connected".

I already had a few of these on doors and just got some more as part of a lot I bought, so I thought I'd add some to windows now. I have several windows that open as two separate panes, so I thought it would be convenient to use the external sensor option on the modules to monitor both panes with one 2843-222. I want to get an "open" condition if either pane is open. These modules have two screw terminals to add an external set of contacts but upon reading the documentation, the screw terminals are in parallel with the internal normally open magnetic reed switch. This means that both window panes would need to be open to have an "open" condition. Hardly useful, especially with most magnetic reed switches being open when no magnet is present. So I looked around on the web for a modification to have the switches in series (surely, I can't be the only one wanting this!). I didn't find anything, and the Insteon support forum has been down for a while. So here is my own little mod to get this functionality. It involves cutting a trace, cutting one lead of the reed switch, and soldering in a wire. Dismantle the circuit board from the case (remove two screws) and turn it over to see the underside. Position it vertically, with the negative battery terminal at the bottom. Be careful not to break anything when sliding the negative battery terminal off the plastic mount. Step 1: Cutting a trace. Ignore the yellow wire for now. On the underside you will see one trace going from JP1 to the screw terminal on your right. Cut it near the screw terminal using an xacto knife or something similar. It's a good idea to verify that continuity from JP1 to the screw terminal is indeed cut, using a multimeter. Step 2: Cutting reed switch lead. Flip the board over to see the component side (with the screw terminals still at the bottom). Cut the top lead near where it enters the hole in circuit board, then bend it a bit, towards the center of the board. Because the reed switch is now held to the board by just one lead at the bottom, I put a small dab of hot glue to help in keeping it in place. Step 3: Adding a wire. Add a small wire (I use wire wrap wire) from the screw terminal that was isolated in step 1 (that's the yellow wire), through a hole, and solder it to the free end of the reed switch that you bent towards the middle in step 2. Don't go through the screw hole! There is a convenient smaller hole near JP1. That's it! Now, both the internal reed switch and an external switch (or several, in series) are in series and have to be closed to get a "closed" condition. If you ever need to use this modified module without an external sensor, now you'll need to put a small jumper wire between the screw terminals to bypass the missing external reed switch. Put it back together and enjoy.

Ah yes, the "use a bigger hammer" approach. Works as a short term solution, but will leave you unsatisfied over the long term, and cynical about the technology. As Paul said, the real solution is to try and work out the communications issues by testing, making small fixes or changes and observe if it improves, by not using the programming workarounds that you have added. Are your devices dual band? Are the ones that aren't reliable in an isolated location, where signal strength might be a problem. If you put other types of Insteon devices in the same area, so they also fail to respond? Sometimes, just adding something like a lamplinc to act as a signal booster/coupler helps. All things to consider. The Insteon support forum also has good suggestions, though it appears to be down, has been for at least a week.

Yes, and the learning curve is quite steep. There is little or no tutorial information, it's mostly just reference material. The way to learn for most (including myself) is to install a simple plugin, and reverse engineer it to try and understand what does what. So far I've done two simple plug ins, mostly as an exercise to eventually make a more complex one. I'm also learning python at the same time. It's rewarding, but consider it mostly as a hobby, if you're counting the time you're putting into it.

The currently installed firmware version will remain. I've factory reset a ISY994i with a 300 series Zwave card and it didn't cause any issues.

So the second scene did the trick. In my naming convention (to avoid going crazy) I'll usually give the scene a name (eg: "scn kitchen") for the scene where the keypadlinc controls the light, and "scn kitchen rev" for the reverse scene that updates the keypadlinc if the light is operated directly from the switch.

The networking module comes by default with the eisy. Not sure about the Polisy.

Did you create a second scene with the on/off switch as the controller and the keypadlinc button as a responder?

Well since 14.1 seems to be part of the promised January upgrade, I'll just wait until it's announced (and let a few early adopters dip their toes first). Maybe UDI will streamline the process too. I'm in no rush.

If I log into my eisy with ssh and do the unix command "uname -a", I get: FreeBSD 13.2 release p11

Well turning on/off keypadlinc button backlights isn't something distinct or particular, it's just a regular Insteon device as far as commands go. You're controlling a light. I'm grateful that Insteon designed-in the capability and programmability that the keypadlinc has. The toggle mode would really be annoying to use if there was no way to keep a button's next on or off command in sync with the actual status of the device it's controlling. Now not only is the next button press always correct, but you also get a visual indication with the backlight. I love it. Yes, I've done scenes similar to "all off". My previously mentioned kitchen lights are a good example. I can (by programmed Insteon commands or Alexa) I can control individual lights, I have a kitchen scene that control all 3 together, a "back of the house" scene that controls those 3 lights plus two others, and a "ground floor" scene that controls those and every other light on the floor, which gets turned off when I arm my alarm system. The beauty with Insteon scenes is that the response speed stays the same, whether you control 2 lights or 20. The multiple link system can appear to be daunting at first, but it is very well thought out.

Yes, that should solve your need. You can keep it simple because there is only one way to turn on the fan. When you have more than one trigger, such as a 3 way setup, then you need to create a second scene that gets triggered by that alternate switch so that it can also "turn off" the keypadlinc C button. I actually call those scenes "reverse" scenes. The alternative is to use a program, as you have done. A program will work fine if it's a single device like the fan that is being controlled because you can watch it's status with If statements. If there are multiple devices though (I have 3 switches in the kitchen that often get turned on and off as a scene, but can also be controlled individually) well there is no "If scene Status..." command in IoX to trigger on. That's where the virtual switch comes in. I have the virtual switch turned on and off as part of the scene, but it can't get turned on manually... So now my program can watch the status of that virtual switch to keep the keypadlinc button correctly lit or not. Keypadlinc buttons are great in toggle mode, but need a bit more programming to keep in sync.

The way I do that kind of thing is to have the button turn on a scene, and include a virtual switch in the scene (use the "Virtual" plugin to create the switch). Then have a program that looks for the status of the virtual switch getting turned on, waits 1800 seconds (30 minutes) then turns off the button and virtual switch.

That goes for most plugins where you configure it by making parameter changes or doing some type of discovery. You need to exit the admin console and log back in to see the results.

Yes, that's the idea: to redo the variable reference. I still have your mention in the back of my mind that this worked fine on the ISY but not on the eisy. This problem potentially popped up between the two. I'm looking forward to hearing how it goes this evening.

Well that should be easy to troubleshoot, if it's repeatable. One thing: In both the program(s) that sets the variable, and the program that looks for it being set to 1: edit the program, select the variable again from the list (as if you were selecting another variable), click on update to save the line, and save the program. I've seen odd stuff happen with variable references looking right but not working. It could be an admin console thing.

Scheduled event - [ID 000E][Parent 0001][Not Enabled] If On Wed Dec 25 Time is 12:01:00AM Then // Merry Christmas! Else - No Actions - (To add one, press 'Action')

That's good to know. I would have thought that the PLM would have done that, not the ISY. That way, a failed scene command could have been reported back to the ISY as a communication error with a device.

Interesting. I did think about motor noise interference, but hadn't looked up the fact that the i/o linc is powerline only, which would certainly make the problem more likely. I also have a separate closed door sensor and Insteon thermostat in the garage (which is detached from the house but close by). Maybe adding an unused lamplinc might be an idea for signal strength.

I thought I'd start this thread after another user (oberkc) mentioned a problem similar to one I've been having, where the status of the door closure detector doesn't seem to be updating. In my case, it seems that the status of the door detection remains On (ie: the door is closed) even after opening the door. The result is that a command to then close the door doesn't do anything. In testing it, I would issue a Query from the admin console and that seems to update the status. In response, I've added a few Query commands, spaced with Wait statements after opening the door. This hasn't been implemented for long enough to know if it's a viable workaround, but I'd like to know if others have experienced the same thing with this module?

Interesting, a few days ago I also created a test program (but simpler than yours) to test that a series of waits would always complete, as part of trying to understand this problem. I created 9 integer variables, and a program like yours that incremented one variable, sent a few Insteon commands (turning off basement lights), wait a few seconds, then increment the next variable, etc, all the way to the end. Then I had a second program trigger it every few minutes. My thinking was that if the program ended before all the waits had executed, then some of the later integer increments would be missing. I let it run overnight. The next day, all the integers had incremented to the same value, about 550. None were missing. Both our tests seem to indicate that the problem is elsewhere. Having motion sensors in the mix can certainly be a factor. I suggest that CoolToys try to simplify it down to something more linear (without anything that might cause random triggers, like motion sensors) and/or break it up into several programs that would make it easier to troubleshoot.

Yes, I hope they give out a few more details of how it works, what's needed, etc. A teaser screen shot of the new admin console wouldn't hurt

Not to hijack the thread, but are you talking about the Insteon garage door kit that has an i/o linc? Just reply yes or no. If yes, it might be worth starting a separate thread on it. Thanks.