madmartian Posted June 26, 2015 Author Share Posted June 26, 2015 I'm pretty sure any "module" at this point would be a software update on the Amazon side. No need for anything else on the ISY side. It would basically add direct support similar to the Hue, which does not require additional modules. For anyone waiting for direct support who has not tried the Hue emulator, I highly recommend giving it a try. Pros: It works! It's fast! Only 4 words needed - "Alexa, turn on kitchen" Cons: 28 device limit (not a problem for me as I only use the Echo in one room, which reaches about 8 devices). You have to run an app on the PC (not a problem for me as I have my PC on 24/7 for my security system anyway). Since the only two cons don't affect me, I am pretty happy. I will use direct support when it's available, just to have one less program running in the background on my PC, but this works well. And much thanks to g1of4 for the awesome configuration app that makes setup simple. Link to comment
MikeB Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 I'm very tempted to give it a try. Any issues with 2 Echoes in the home and the Hue emulator? Link to comment
michael53 Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 Hello I have a couple of echo's which are really great. And would love to be able to control my ISY lights,program's ect. I don't is possess the particular set of skills required to pull this off. I installed the Hue Emulator set it to port 80. Port 8080,8000 wouldn't work hopefully 80 is good enough. I do have the Network Resource Module and think I have everything else needed. Iv'e read pretty much everthing on this subject but again I don't get it. I'm a paste and cut guy. I've read you need to add a device..I do have ISY controlling Hue Lights and work great. I was able to program a Insteon Keypad to turn the Hue light On/Off 1) How and where to add a device ? (insteon lights) 2) How to set up a network resource a screen shot would be great ? 3) Does the Hue Emulator need to be running 24/7 ? My goal is to be able to say Alexa "turn my tv on" Alexa turn to channel 3 so on so on. I have a global cache setup running my IR,IP and Serial AV Devices Any Help Would Be Much Appreciated Thanks Michael Link to comment
Quietminded Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 Is there a post or forum that walks you through the whole Hue emulator process? Downloading, installing, running... Yes I need hand holding I think Link to comment
jruben4 Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 This one is pretty good: http://community.smartthings.com/t/playing-around-with-amazon-echo-technical-interface-discussion/14887/50 Just change the onURL and offURL to be the correct REST commands for ISY. Link to comment
madmartian Posted June 26, 2015 Author Share Posted June 26, 2015 I'll summarize here so you don't get lost in the mud or miss steps that aren't there or download the wrong version since folks had issues with version 0.1.1 of the JAR file. 1. Install Java runtime 8 2. Download Hue Emulator JAR file v 0.1.3 3. Download user g1of4's awesome configuration app from this thread. 3. Run the JAR file: Open up a command prompt by clicking the start button and typing cmd Copy and paste the following line at the prompt: java -jar -Djava.net.preferIPv4Stack=true FULLPATHOFJARFILE\amazon-echo-bridge-0.1.3.jar --upnp.config.address=192.168.X.X The "X.X" is the IP address of your computer, NOT the ISY You can minimize the window, but don't close it - it stays active 24/7. 4. Run g1of4's configuration tool. Remember to use the Computer IP address on the left and the ISY IP address on the right. 5. Click "Get Devices". 5. Double-click on each item you want to add. You have the option of selecting a voice command different from the name of each device. 6. When happy with your device list, ask Alexa to "discover my devices". All should work now by saying "Alexa, turn on/off XXXXXXX". 7. You want the JAR file to run automatically when you reboot your computer. Create a text file called "HueEmulator.bat" or some such and copy and paste the JAR run command from above as the only line in the batch file. 8. Put this batch file in the Startup folder. You can get to the startup folder easiest by clicking on the Start button, clicking All Programs, right-clicking on Startup, and selecting Open for All Users. Then just drag the file there or create it there in the first place. That's it! Notes: If you delete any devices, you will need to ask Alexa to forget all your devices before discovery, which can only be done through the Echo app. Go to Settings/ConnectedHome, scroll to the bottom, and click Forget. When completed, click Discover (or ask Alexa to discover). If you are adding devices but not deleting any, then you do not need to run Forget, just Discover. If g1of4's awesome configuration tool freezes when you click "Get Devices", that just means you got the address of either your ISY or your Computer wrong. Exit and rerun the app and try it again. He has not added error trapping yet. If Echo cannot find any devices after you have configured some, it is likely you have a port conflict on your computer. Of course make sure the JAR file is still running. In my case I had to uninstall CyberLink PowerDVD and reboot the computer. 1. Open another command prompt (cmd) 2. Change to the Windows\system32 folder (cd \Windows\system32) 3. Copy and paste the following, one at a time: netstat -ano | find "8080"netstat -ano | find "1900"netstat -ano | find "50000" You are only interested in conflicts listing your computer's IP address. Run Task Manager, click on the Services tab, click on the PID column to sort by PID, and look up the PID numbers listed next to the conflicts from the netstat commands that are next to your computer's IP address. You can ignore normal processes used by Windows (wcncsvc, SSDPSRV, FDResPub). You are looking for applications. Do not risk doing something bad by playing with services - once you discover the problem app, just uninstall it like you normally would and reboot. I will update this IN POST #1 as needed so it can remain the only thing you need to read to get your ISY and Echo working together via the Hue Emulator. Link to comment
michael53 Posted June 27, 2015 Share Posted June 27, 2015 madmartian Sorry. How do I get to the g1of4's configuration app ? I had already downloaded v0.4 of the Hue Emulator, is that one ok ? Thanks Michael Link to comment
madmartian Posted June 27, 2015 Author Share Posted June 27, 2015 madmartian Sorry. How do I get to the g1of4's configuration app ? I had already downloaded v0.4 of the Hue Emulator, is that one ok ? Thanks Michael Click on the link and message him, requesting access to his program. The 0.4 emulator is written by a different programmer. In theory they should do the same thing, but I haven't tried it. The one I posted a link to is written by "armzilla". The one you have is written by "steveyo". Both programs are considered "alpha" at this stage, so there could be issues. Has anyone tried both emulators and has a preference for any reason? Link to comment
Dracarys Posted June 27, 2015 Share Posted June 27, 2015 ... 1) Voice Commands. Right now you have to say "Alexa, ask ISY to turn on kitchen light". vs. Hue you can just say "Alexa, turn on kitchen light" It's only three words. Additionally, you can say "Alexa, launch ISY" Then you can say "Turn on kitchen light" and then "turn on basement light" without having to re-launch. Not a huge deal and can be coded in preparation for UDI to make a deal with Amazon to get rid of the three extra words. ... I just wanted to chime in as a complete HA rookie (10 Insteon devices for lighting, Nest, ~2 months with Insteon Hub II, and now ~2 months with the isy994iZw). I also have iRule setup on iPad and iPhone to run my main floor media (projector, tv, avr, multiple sources, multiple zones, etc). I'm very intrigued by the possibility of integrating voice control and definitely would pay for a module. I read the dev email/support site details about ASK. For me, a standard ASK approach won't work. It must be native - without the three additional words. It must be more elegant than "launch ISY" or "ask ISY to...". However, if this one deal breaker for me is removed the only other issue I have is with the cloud processing of voice commands. Apologies if this has already been covered, but is it possible to restrict ISY requests to the LAN, but leave the ability to ask for the weather (or other random cloud thing)? Link to comment
Goose66 Posted June 27, 2015 Share Posted June 27, 2015 Now, the main question is: how can we get Amazon to let us have our own app instead of all the acrobatics with Hue. Great news on the spoken name attribute and notes. Thanks much! As far as getting Amazon to "have our own app," what they need to do, IMO, is continue to support core voice functionality (list management, web searching, device control, music searching/playback, etc.) in the device but allow users to select plugins to interface to those core functionality. So user 1 may utilize Evernote for list management, Hue for home automation, and Amazon Prime Music for music source, and could assign those plugins to the corresponding voice functionality. User 2 may utilize AnyList, ISY UDI, and iTunes and therefore would select those plugins. Of course, shopping and product ordering would remain Amazon. This is the way it should be done, and I have suggested it to Amazon. If it were Apple, I wouldn't have bothered, but Amazon engineers are really motivated to make great products, IMO, even if it means only a subset will use those products with Amazon Prime Music service. Link to comment
Goose66 Posted June 27, 2015 Share Posted June 27, 2015 The other thing that needs to be added (and I have suggested this) is that there needs to be a way to "gang" these so that multiple units in the house can work together. For example, if I shout from the bathroom to the Echo on my bedside table, the unit in the downstairs great room can also hear me, and they may both answer. What needs to happen is that they quickly decide between the two of them (or the N of them) which one received the wake-up word with the strongest confidence level and all of the others then ignore it. Link to comment
Dracarys Posted June 27, 2015 Share Posted June 27, 2015 Great news on the spoken name attribute and notes. Thanks much! As far as getting Amazon to "have our own app," what they need to do, IMO, is continue to support core voice functionality (list management, web searching, device control, music searching/playback, etc.) in the device but allow users to select plugins to interface to those core functionality. So user 1 may utilize Evernote for list management, Hue for home automation, and Amazon Prime Music for music source, and could assign those plugins to the corresponding voice functionality. User 2 may utilize AnyList, ISY UDI, and iTunes and therefore would select those plugins. Of course, shopping and product ordering would remain Amazon. This is the way it should be done, and I have suggested it to Amazon. If it were Apple, I wouldn't have bothered, but Amazon engineers are really motivated to make great products, IMO, even if it means only a subset will use those products with Amazon Prime Music service. Great direction - that would be a game changer. Link to comment
io_guy Posted June 27, 2015 Share Posted June 27, 2015 Any Canadians here using an Echo? How did you get it? I'd write a program to link with the ISY but Amazon doesn't want to sell to us Canucks. Link to comment
Goose66 Posted June 27, 2015 Share Posted June 27, 2015 Any Canadians here using an Echo? How did you get it? I'd write a program to link with the ISY but Amazon doesn't want to sell to us Canucks. Huh, ... er ..., what? I can't concentrate on your post post because your avatar has me hypnotized! Link to comment
ferdies Posted June 27, 2015 Share Posted June 27, 2015 Any Canadians here using an Echo? How did you get it? I'd write a program to link with the ISY but Amazon doesn't want to sell to us Canucks. Link to comment
ferdies Posted June 27, 2015 Share Posted June 27, 2015 Hi, try eBay! The only issue you will encounter when you get it is setting the location (for weather, etc) since Amazon echo requires ZIP code and our postal code is alpha numeric.At this stage, I just plugged in any US ZIP code and if I want the local weather, I'll just ask "Akexa, what's the weather in <city>, Canada." It is not inconvenient at all but at least I have an echo Link to comment
rossarmstrong Posted June 27, 2015 Share Posted June 27, 2015 Wow, this setup is working sweet! Thanks to everyone for the tools and the instructions to make this happen so easily! Question though, I would like to host these files on my aging Windows HomeServer 2011 machine. While the Javascript and the mapper run properly, the Echo can't reach it. Obviously the higher security of the server OS is blocking the necessary access that is open on my Win8 machine. But I've been unable to figure out what it is I need to open on the server to allow communications with the Echo. Only port 1900 shows activity with some of the standard windows services. And creating in/out firewall rules allowing connections on ports 8080, 1900 and 50000 did not fix it. Any help is greatly appreciated. I will ECHO (pun intented) previous postings that you need to add this voice capability to your home setup now. It is easy and surprisingly cheap. I can only image what the ISY integration capabilities will be 6 months from now. Link to comment
MikeB Posted June 27, 2015 Share Posted June 27, 2015 Going to jump in and try this out. Thanks for the walkthrough madmartian! Would like to give g10f4's configuration utility a try. Sent him a PM. Link to comment
g1of4 Posted June 27, 2015 Share Posted June 27, 2015 Got a bunch of requests for the mapper, and got great feedback on a couple issues folks were hitting. It is hard to manage the requests, so I created a new post here: http://forum.universal-devices.com/topic/16337-echo-mapperconfigurator/and dropped a link. Please use the other thread for feedback, feature requests, etc specific to the mapper. I'll copy a portion of madmartian's post (if they don't get to it first ) over there so the full steps are covered. Link to comment
io_guy Posted June 27, 2015 Share Posted June 27, 2015 Hi, try eBay! The only issue you will encounter when you get it is setting the location (for weather, etc) since Amazon echo requires ZIP code and our postal code is alpha numeric. At this stage, I just plugged in any US ZIP code and if I want the local weather, I'll just ask "Akexa, what's the weather in <city>, Canada." It is not inconvenient at all but at least I have an echo About $300 by the time I get it. Looks like I'll be waiting a while. Link to comment
MikeB Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 Question though, I would like to host these files on my aging Windows HomeServer 2011 machine. While the Javascript and the mapper run properly, the Echo can't reach it. Obviously the higher security of the server OS is blocking the necessary access that is open on my Win8 machine. Check for another application using a port per the previous posted steps. I'm running on Windows Server 2012 R2 64-Bit without issue. I had another application using port 8080 (JRiver Media Center). Link to comment
jruben4 Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 Just set my echo/hue emulator to allow me to arm my elk security. Apparently "turn on alarm" is reserved for echo's wake-up alarm, to I had to call it "security system". I set the off URL to a dummy call, so that you still need to go punch in a code to disarm the system. Link to comment
MikeB Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 Just set my echo/hue emulator to allow me to arm my elk security. Apparently "turn on alarm" is reserved for echo's wake-up alarm, to I had to call it "security system". I set the off URL to a dummy call, so that you still need to go punch in a code to disarm the system. I found that as well. I decided to use a "Goodbye" program to turn off lights, set the alarm, etc. anyway so I just say "Alexa, Turn on Goodbye". Only problem I have is that the ELK will not arm during motion. I think that's more of an issue (at least for me) when using something like the Echo when you're trying to arm the system while walking out the door, especially with kids. The other issue is that if you are triggering a program that's doing multiple things, especially if there's a few WAITS in there, if you run that program again (by voicing the command again to Alexa) before the first attempt finishes the program does not seem to run although Alexa tells you OK. Hope this makes sense. I posted a message in the ELK forum about arming during motion but thought I'd post here as well. For right now I just have the ELK arm 30 seconds after I voice the command via a WAIT in my program but wondering if there's a better solution. Link to comment
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