Amazon Echo - Connected Home Feature!

[Michel Kohanim]

Hello everyone,

 

First, I must sincerely thank Amazon for their dedication in being one of the most professional and success oriented companies with whom I have dealt with. It's been quite a refreshing experience.

 

Amazon has enabled the Connected Home feature for ISY on a Beta basis and here are the instructions for enabling it:

1. Login to alexa.amazon.com

2. Click on this link

3. Login to your Amazon account and ISY will show up in your app under Connected Home

4. In the Echo app, go to Settings | Connected Home and then choose Discover Devices. This will bring in all the devices you have created a mapping for in your ISY Portal

 

Please see this link for more detailed instructions.

 

 

Please note that since this is beta, only the first 450 will be allowed access.

Edit 01/24/2016- NO LONGER IN BETA!!!! Everyone is welcome.

 

 

Please provide feedback.

 

With kind regards,

Michel

[mwester]

Done - I removed everything from the portal and added in one scene and one device with simple spoken names. Then ran discover from the echo.amazon.com web page -- it found the two new items and added them to the existing 18 items I have defined using the Hue emulator.

 

The two new items work exactly as expected. (Edited to add: neither spoken word will work with the skill - but work just fine with the connected home integration!)

 

Very nice. Now off to try some more interesting things - some programs to manage timed things, like engine block heaters (it's COLD here!), and add my "good night" program...

[Shawn Aruch]

This is great news. Can't wait to try this when I get home. 

 

Thanks!

[nathanep]

I've been following the emulator threads closely, but would prefer to use the integrated version.

I've gotten through step 3, however upon attempting discovery, nothing happens.

Is something needed to provide user/pw login to the echo to authenticate with the isy? Or do I need to purchase some other plugin for the isy to authorize echo access? I have the 994pro/ir model, is the network module required?

[imagamejunky]

YES!

It works fantastically!

Thank you thank you!

So far Alexa has not missed a single command. Not even one.

Light, lights, bar, landscape, master bedroom, etc..

I'm SO happy.

Great work guys

 

Junky

[wolfpup]

Awesome news. Just enabled and testing with a few devices. So far everything works perfectly. Alexa understands everything perfectly as well! I had issues in the past with using "Bookcase" or "End Table Lamp", works flawless now.

Great work UDI! Will update as I add more devices.

[Big517]

For those unsure of how to Link the devices for this.

Go To: 

https://my.isy.io/index.htm

Click on Tools: Amazon Echo

 

Then choose from the following:

Device | Scene | Program

 

Then select the device and type in the "Spoken Name" you expect to ask Alexa to control.

 

I can't wait to get home and play with this!  Thanks Michel!

 

[dywicked]

This is awesome! Great work.

 

-David

[Teken]

I've been following the emulator threads closely, but would prefer to use the integrated version.

I've gotten through step 3, however upon attempting discovery, nothing happens.

Is something needed to provide user/pw login to the echo to authenticate with the isy? Or do I need to purchase some other plugin for the isy to authorize echo access? I have the 994pro/ir model, is the network module required?

 

I believe you need to purchase the $49.XX module for the UDI Portal which the fee covers for a 2 year subscription. 

[Scottmichaelj]

Just to verify you must have a current subscription to the ISY Portal and you can not be on v5 beta firmware on the ISY, correct?

 

Is anyone on v5.0.2 ISY firmware and connected to the portal?

[dywicked]

I've been following the emulator threads closely, but would prefer to use the integrated version.

I've gotten through step 3, however upon attempting discovery, nothing happens.

Is something needed to provide user/pw login to the echo to authenticate with the isy? Or do I need to purchase some other plugin for the isy to authorize echo access? I have the 994pro/ir model, is the network module required?

You need to purchase the ISY portal if you haven't already and once you do click "My Profile" in the upper right corner of the Portal. From there you can log in to link your Amazon account to portal.

 

Michael K: you may want to add that to your steps above.

 

Regards,

 

-David

[nathanep]

Thanks for clarifying. I have no problem buying the portal, but noticed it mentioned that the mobilinc plugin would no longer work.

I don't' actually seem to have the mobilinc plugin active on my isy account, but I do have the paid mobilinc app on my ios devices, currently working fine.

IF I purchase the isy portal, does that mean by mobilinc would no longer function? That is my preferred method of controlling things remotely, and having to choose between it and the echo is not something I'm looking forward to. 

[Teken]

Thanks for clarifying. I have no problem buying the portal, but noticed it mentioned that the mobilinc plugin would no longer work.

I don't' actually seem to have the mobilinc plugin active on my isy account, but I do have the paid mobilinc app on my ios devices, currently working fine.

IF I purchase the isy portal, does that mean by mobilinc would no longer function? That is my preferred method of controlling things remotely, and having to choose between it and the echo is not something I'm looking forward to. 

 

No, this only applies to the Mobilinc Portal has nothing to do with the remote control App.

[rwsani99]

My Amazon Alexa account and my ISY Portal Account are under two different names and email addresses. I've tried using the correct info in each page to sign up for the connected home feature but I get a blank page on http://alexa.amazon.com/partner-authorization/establishand when I go into my Alexa/Echo account - no new devices are found

[mwester]

Just to verify you must have a current subscription to the ISY Portal and you can not be on v5 beta firmware on the ISY, correct?

 

Is anyone on v5.0.2 ISY firmware and connected to the portal?

It works very nicely with 5.0.2 ISY firmware

[Scottmichaelj]

It works very nicely with 5.0.2 ISY firmware

That is very strange because I purchased the portal and then couldnt get v5.0.2 connected and Michel said the portal was not compatible with the beta. Glad its working for you, thanks for posting and letting me know.

[imagamejunky]

Alexa with Connected home is having difficulty running isy programs for me. For example she can't run my simple "good bye" program. Are programs supposed to be fully supported?

 

After further testing I know she doesn't like the spoken names "nook" and "chandelier" either.

 

Junky

Edited January 12, 2016 by imagamejunky

[imagamejunky]

Will Scenes and programs eventually have spoken names?

Scenes are working great for me with spoken names. Not programs though.

 

Junky

[Scottmichaelj]

Scenes are working great for me with spoken names. Not programs though.

 

Junky

Im on v5.0.2 FW and cant get the portal to connect to my ISY so I cant test but have you tried running the emulator with programs and the connected home with scenes? How does that work then as a workaround?

[jsmith6]

Hello everyone,

 

First, I must sincerely thank Amazon for their dedication in being one of the most professional and success oriented companies with whom I have dealt with. It's been quite a refreshing experience.

 

Amazon has enabled the Connected Home feature for ISY on a Beta basis and here are the instructions for enabling it:

1. Login to alexa.amazon.com

2. Click on this link

3. Login to your Amazon account and ISY will show up in your app under Connected Home

4. In the Echo app, go to Settings | Connected Home and then choose Discover Devices. This will bring in all the devices you have created a mapping for in your ISY Portal

 

Please note that since this is beta, only the first 450 will be allowed access.

 

Please provide feedback.

 

With kind regards,

Michel

 

Michel and Benoit,

 

You and all of UDI deserve congratulations. This is a beautiful, elegant implementation of home automation. It works very, very nicely. I have run into some problems with programs, and a couple of hiccups with some scenes, but overall, it works really well. It took me a while to find something that did not work, or did not work the way I expected. I expect that as this moves out of beta, all or most things will be ironed out. This is a great step forward.

 

The only remaining question: do I really need to buy several Echos to have all around the house? Or should I just hold off?

 

Thank you very much, and I wish you all the best in your great development work. Amazon should be proud to have you as a partner.

 

Best,

 

James

[stusviews]

I just got back from amazed. Sill awe struck, but I'll return.

[Eric2XU]

Please excuse my ignorance but does this require the paid ISY cloud service from universal devices? So if I am running stand alone then I still need to use the HA bridge? 

[Teken]

I believe you need to purchase the $49.XX module for the UDI Portal which the fee covers for a 2 year subscription. 

 

 

Please excuse my ignorance but does this require the paid ISY cloud service from universal devices? So if I am running stand alone then I still need to use the HA bridge? 

 

As quoted . . .

[randyth]

This is fantastic.  It's working great for me.

 

-Randy

[nadler]

I guess I'm the only one have trouble.  Upon trying to discover devices Alexa says the dreaded "I couldn't find any connected home devices."  I tried discovery about 8 times at this point.  I also disconnected the echo and reconnected.  The skill still works well.  Should I disable the skill?