ISY portal just not working

[Rob Green]

I consider myself an advanced user as i am a linux admin and developer for my day job..  however i can NOT get ISY to work.  I have the ZW IR/PRO v 4.7.3 with UDI portal.  I have added 5 devices - 2 garage door openers and 3 lights as well ask the ELK security system integration.  I can manually and via programs turn the devices on and off so ISY itself is working fine.

1. I have NOT been able to find any documentation on how to connect ISY to alexa using V3.  Everything is V2 and none of the documentation actually matches the screens i get.  I have linked and approved In ISY portal (see attached) and am using the same account when i log into alexa.amazon.com but find devices/scenes never finds anything.  I have the isy portal good until 2020, elk, open on demand, and ZW module enabled.  I have "upgraded" both ISY portal and Zwave to latest versions that the system will let me (see next point).  

2. EVERYTHING says i need version 5.0+ or higher to integrate with zwave however there is NO SUCH VERSION listed anywhere (see proof in pictures).. if i look in the forums i can find "release notes" for things like 5.0.13c beta but i find it hard to believe there hasn't been an update in over 2 years.   Additionally there is no actual download links on how to download the software.

3. I can not find how i am suppose to use ISY from my phone.  Everything says use mobilelync UNLESS you got UDI portal, but there is no such thing as UDI portal on the google app store.

i _think_ i have included all relevant screenshots showing my system working but still not able to do anything in UDI portal or alexa.

 

[Rob Green]

I should also mention that it will _NOT_ allow me to enable internet access so i am not sure if that is needed or if that is the problem.

 

Another question, I am assuming that the machine i am running the java application on does NOT need to be running the app 100% of the time, ie its not a server and the actual physical device is managing the network, program and scenes?

 

rob

[larryllix]

19 minutes ago, Rob Green said:

I should also mention that it will _NOT_ allow me to enable internet access so i am not sure if that is needed or if that is the problem.

 

Another question, I am assuming that the machine i am running the java application on does NOT need to be running the app 100% of the time, ie its not a server and the actual physical device is managing the network, program and scenes?

 

rob

 

Correct! The app only need to run for maintenance of devices and setup..

[MWareman]

In your ISY, under 'Configuration' 'Portals' - what does it say?

It should look like this:

[MWareman]

4.7.3 is the newest non-beta non-alpha release. Only production releases are listed in portal.

The 5.x releases are under the '5.0' part of the forum - and the installers linked from the posts. Since this is beta - You are recommended to get the basics working before attempting that - and making sure to get good backups if you want to try 5.x. Full Portal and alexa functionality is certainly possible with 4.7.3.

[Rob Green]

After playing with this more, i found that i have to add (all 100+ devices) manually into the isy portal (select connectivity, alexa) and specify what i want to name them and the words i want to use in alexa.. i thought it "just worked" and would auto add all the devices, scenes and programs i have?  

 

Playing around by entering some devices in manually, i am finding that alexa wants to do its own thing and not actually execute my scenes/programs..  for example

1. i would like to say "alexa goodnight" or "alexa bedtime" however alexa just politely tells me goodnight but doesn't execute anything.  If i try something like "alexa tell izzy goodnight" it doesn't know what an izzy is.

2. my garage doors seem to only be able to be exposed as "locks" into alexa, so i have to say "alexa lock garage door 1" instead of "alexa close garage door" which is very weird.  i couldn't find any combination of spoken words or naming convention that would have alexa execute it (for example, a scene called "close garage door 1")

3. i would like to be able to close each garage door individually as well as a group but i was unable to figure out how to do this.  "command" dont operate on a group so adding in both garage doors into the scene and it just states "sorry not able to control multiple locks from within a group, please use device name".  I find it hard to believe i am the only person who wants both garage doors to close, front door, back door and inside garage door to lock and arm the system (see next item).

4. I can not figure out how to get alexa to arm ELK at all.  I can arm/disarm in the java app, but elk doesn't show up as something i can add to scenes, and trying to add a program to run doesn't seem to do it either with _no_ condition (see attached).  

5. still no idea how to manage and get alerts on my phone

[MWareman]

I don’t use Alexa, but I do know certain phrases (like ‘goodnight’) are reserved. You should use other phrases that are not reserved for use by Amazon.

 

Generally, add the ‘Program’ to ISY Portal manually, and expose it to Alexa by adding a spoken.

 

Run the ‘Then’ section by turning ‘On’ the spoken. Turning ‘Off’ the spoken will run the ‘Else’ section.

 

Asking Izzy is deprecated. That was for the skill - and you are using the native home automation integration.

 

Finally, there are special rules around security devices (locks, garage doors etc). Alexa restricts what you can do so that people cannot yell at your Alexa from outside and unlock your door.

[larryllix]

The vocalisations have to be set up for each ISY element individually. This is an opportunity to bend names to more suitable vocals.

Alexa requires a command in each case. Star each command with

   Alexa. Turn On
or
  Alexa. Turn Off.

This will take some creativity to make some sound like proper grammar. eg. Alexa. Turn On louder

"Izzy" was the syntax used for the original ISY skill used for Amazon products and is obsolete.

 

Alerts are done by defining notifications in ISY, and calling them from programs you will write in the ISY admin console.

[Michel Kohanim]

HI Rob,

All supported commands are listed here:

https://wiki.universal-devices.com/index.php?title=ISY_Portal_Amazon_Echo_Integration_V3#Supported_Commands

With kind regards,
Michel

[rccoleman]

7 hours ago, MWareman said:

I don’t use Alexa, but I do know certain phrases (like ‘goodnight’) are reserved. You should use other phrases that are not reserved for use by Amazon.

I just want to add that you can use Routines to make phrases like "good night" and "good morning" available for use.  I've been using them for over a year.

[MWareman]

I just want to add that you can use Routines to make phrases like "good night" and "good morning" available for use.  I've been using them for over a year.

Good to know... Google Home has a similar function (“Routines”) but I didn’t know what Alexa calls this function...

[Rob Green]

I found out about routines last night but it can ONLY be set via IOS or Android App, and not via the web site or microsoft phones.

[rccoleman]

2 hours ago, Rob Green said:

I found out about routines last night but it can ONLY be set via IOS or Android App, and not via the web site or microsoft phones.

Interesting.  It looks like the feature was released in Nov 2017, so not quite a year ago.  I imagine that most folks configure their devices through their phones and they've neglected the web app.

[Rob Green]

Ok, so i now have isy and alexa working together using the routines.  i can do "alexa, goodnight" and she will close the garage doors, lock the front/back doors, turn on outside lights to 25%, and turn off inside lights (everything is z-wave at the moment).  I have other questions with ifttt but i will open in right forum.

 

thanks,

rob