Room Specific Alexa Support

[Byron]

Hi everyone!

So today I made the switch form the ISY Portal to MobiLinc Connect. I know, I know hate all you want but it's cool. Everything is working really well except room specific Alexa support so I figured I would ask here to see if I'm doing something terribly wrong.

I *think* the implementation by the MobiLinc team is spot on, but the functionality is being screwed by Amazon. The normal behavior of Echos is to figure out amongst themselves which one you are closer to, and thus trying to address, and that one responds. When you split them up on different accounts, I believe they lose that functionality (can anyone else confirm this?)

It may work great if they are separated by some meaningful distance, but my living room and bedroom are connected, so when I say "Alexa, turn on the lights" in either spot, both Echos say "ok" in chorus, and both sets of lights come on. If I isolate them (close the bedroom door), then everything works as expected.

Also, I guess you're going to have to set up all the skills that you want to use in both accounts?

I really hope I missed a step in the instructions about linking your two Amazon accounts somehow, but I can't find it. Has anyone successfully implemented this with close-proximity Echos?

Thanks,

Byron

[stusviews]

You are correct. Only one Echo device will respond if more than one hears the command. But that's true only if the Echos are on the same account. Echos on different accounts don't follow that rule because they have no way of knowing what's on a different account. The solution is to use a different wake word for Echos within earshot of each other and on different accounts.

 

We have four accounts, Our bedroom (back of the house) and living room (front of the house) are far apart enough to use the same wake word, but the kitchen and dining room are not, so we currently use three wake words.

 

BTW, older Echos have three wake words, current Echos have four.

[Byron]

Thanks Stu's Views, that's what I was afraid of. I'm hoping that at some point in the future, Amazon will address this and allow some sort of differentiation on the same account. Oh well, still a cool feature, and the ML Connect is working out really well so far. Going to start playing with the geofence tomorrow!

-Byron

[stusviews]

You can assign a different wake word for Echos on the same account. It's just that you can't have the same wake word for Echos on different accounts if the Echos are within earshot.

[Byron]

Right, but just to be sure, if they are on the same account, you can't pull off the room specific commands, correct?

[G W]

You are correct. Only one Echo device will respond if more than one hears the command. But that's true only if the Echos are on the same account. Echos on different accounts don't follow that rule because they have no way of knowing what's on a different account. The solution is to use a different wake word for Echos within earshot of each other and on different accounts.

 

We have four accounts, Our bedroom (back of the house) and living room (front of the house) are far apart enough to use the same wake word, but the kitchen and dining room are not, so we currently use three wake words.

 

BTW, older Echos have three wake words, current Echos have four.

My older echo has four wake words.

 

 

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[InsteonNut]

Hi Byron,

 

All Echos on the same account are considered the same room. Until Amazon allows Devs to gain access to *what* Echo heard the command, this is how we can "fake" room commands.

 

Stusviews suggestion is spot on to use different wake words in your case.

 

Wes

[stusviews]

My older echo has four wake words.

 

 

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Thanks for the update. When the Dot 2 appeared it had four wake words, but my Echos and original Dots had only three. I swapped Dots at that time to take advantage of the fourth wake word, "Computer, do this." Now, all the Dots and even the original Echos have four. Again, thanks for the update

[G W]

You're welcome. I have one of the very early Echo units. It works as good as the newest ones. I'm am wondering what the hardware difference is.

 

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[stusviews]

I'd venture a guess and say probably faster and maybe more memory. But my real concern is the software. If Amazon develops backwardly compatible software that gives older hardware the bells and whistles of the latest hardware, then I'm pleased and it appears that they've done that.

 

I've gone from DOS (IBM at first, then MS) to Win 10, from Apple to Mac. I know the difficulty and cost when the old hardware becomes obsolete. A 99i to a 994i, too

[Byron]

Hi Byron,

 

All Echos on the same account are considered the same room. Until Amazon allows Devs to gain access to *what* Echo heard the command, this is how we can "fake" room commands.

 

Stusviews suggestion is spot on to use different wake words in your case.

 

Wes

 

Thanks Wes, I'm sure that functionality is coming. Too many fun uses to ignore it

[G W]

I went from an IBM 360 with TSS to a SuperCray. Then in 1975 I built a real computer. LOL

 

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