ISY RF - How to start my truck remotely??

[snownh2o2]

Good moring everyone.

 

As always, I am starting a new project before finishing all of the rest. On work days, every morning, I wake up, turn on the radio, open the garage door, remote start my truck located in an unattached garage, shower, remote start my truck again, get dressed, and finally leave for work. It takes about a half an hour.

 

I now have created a KPL button to handle turning on the radio and opening the garage door, however to take it to the next level, I would like the system to remotely start the truck also. Security/saftey is not an issue in my situation.

 

The OEM GM remote start feature has a few flaws. It turns offf after 10 minutes which does not allow enough time to get the truck warm/cool. Also it will only allow for the vehicle to be started twice for a maximum of 20 minutes. Twenty minutes is enough even on the extreme cold or hot days, however it must be done twice.

 

I have tried getting RF codes from both the dealer and online with no luck. I definately understand the security reasons that they may have.

 

How would I go about getting my truck's RF codes and then having the ISY send or activating something that sends the codes to the vehicle. The key FOB procedure is LOCK the doors, then press and hold the START button for 5 seconds. Doing this sequence again while the system is remotely started will add 10 minutes to the run time. Example: I the truck was remotely started at 8:00am and the key FOB sequence was pressed again a 8:04am, the truck would shut off at 8:14am.

 

Thanks for any input,

Matt

 

PS...The vehicle is a 2008 Chevrolet Avalanche LT equipped with Onstar (subscription not active.) I think that the Onstar system can also remotely start the system. I am not sure if that uses a seperate system from what the RF key FOB uses to start the truck, nor if it could be another viable way to access the start fuction for my project.

[Xathros]

If you have a second Fob that you can sacrifice for the project, you could wire that up to an EZIO or a couple IOLincs in place of the Lock and Start buttons. Even if OnStar is capable, I guarantee they won't give you the necessary access to operate through their system with network resources.

 

-Xathros

[snownh2o2]

Xathros, thanks for the great idea.

 

I finished this project last week.

 

I had some I/OLincs laying around, bought a pair of extra key fobs of ebay for around $15 and took out the soldering tools. (Truthfully I never actually put them away because I use them daily.)

 

To save money, anything with relays that your ISY contols should work including Global Cache and ELK. Each button pressing function requires a seperate relay. I needed one for lock, one for unlock, and a final one for remote start which requires a pressing/timing sequence of the lock button and the start button.

 

I opened up the key fob and found the coresponding buttons. I soldering on a pair of wires to each button, and connected them to the seperate relays. The battery was glued in place since the cover no longer snaps on.

 

Finally I setup the OPTIONS for the IOLinc relay. I used momentary setting with the lock and unlock buttions having a .2 second hold and the start button have a 4 second hold (required by my make and model vehicle.) For some reason the IO Lincs were a bit of a pain to get to hold the correct settings so it took a few tries. Be sure to test while being near the vehicle because intially my truck kept locking over and over again. In time it would have killed both the battery in the truck and the remote.

 

A simple ISY program sets the trigger (control) to be a button that I press before entering the shower each weekday morning. DIY this at your own risk. I do not have neighbors, wandering pets, nor childern. Plus my garage is not attached to the house and has plenty of garage door status sensors for safety. Anyway, after the control button is pressed (I chose fast-ON), if all sensors are valid, the garage door begins to open, waiting for 13 seconds to fully open, the system again does a sensor status check, if okay the trucks door lock button is pressed (.1 second) immediately followed be the start button (3 seconds). Now since my truck has a 10 minute max run time with the capablility of a single 10 minute maximum restart/extension, the ISY wait 9 minutes and 30 second and the sends the 10 minute extension command sequence of buttons presses. When a motion sensor signifies that I am showered, dressed, and walking out to the truck, the ISY unlocks the all of the doors with a double unlock and I do not have to put my stuff down to search for the key in my pocket. For some reason my hand are alway full on my way out the door.

 

Now, one cool (or warm) fact about the newer GM vehicles, mine being a 2008. Many come with remote start built in and have a heat seat option also. Mine had the starter, but not the seats. I opted to DIY the OEM heated seats, which took some time, but really weren't too bad for my specific truck. Though it was much more expensive (ebay $300 including a trim panels, factory harnesses, heaters, and modules) and more intensive wiring (though totally plug and play). I went this route for one big reason. I did not know how too have the ISY get the interior the a comfortable temp, cool in the summer and warm when its freezing out. With the GM factory heated seat kit, the truck automatically senses the temperate both inside and out when remote started. Using the auto climate control set to 71 degrees, the truck automatically gets the air temp correct. (AC occurs rather quickly, however the heat takes most of the 20 minutes on a cold day because it needs the engine heat to warm the interior.) The bonus that the OEM factory system gives is that when it is cold out, it automatically pre-warms the seats in remote start mode. And pre-warmed seats make you feel like a KING!

 

Hope this help, however for safety do at you own risk,

Matt

 

PS... Search for my other post on using the I/O Lincs unused status sensor terminals to link the HomeLinc buttons in your vehicle to you ISY. I turn on my entrance lights with one of my extra buttons and arm/disarm the homes alarm and set Home/Away lighting/temp using the other. Flashing the garage light shows a confirmation of the status.

[Vyrolan]

This is awesome if for no other reason than for the image of the double-stacked (and mental image of the triple-stacked) IOLincs... I really wish SH made something with more connections. Although I guess the SHN ones work well enough if not as straight forward. Thanks for sharing!

[OverloadUT]

This is a fantastic idea that I am going to steal to do the exact same thing with my Chevy car!

[apostolakisl]

This is awesome if for no other reason than for the image of the double-stacked (and mental image of the triple-stacked) IOLincs... I really wish SH made something with more connections. Although I guess the SHN ones work well enough if not as straight forward. Thanks for sharing!

 

Webcontrol board (amazon) plus a compatible relay board (ebay) will give you 8 digital inputs, 3 analog inputs, 8 digital outputs, 8 temp inputs (using 1-wire sensors), and optional humidity sensor. All this connects to ISY using io_guy's program listed on this forum. Total cost would be about $100 if you also picked up a housing and other accessories.

 

Something like the sequence that does the car start could all be programmed into webcontrol (using PLC code) and ISY would send a single command to initiate the action.

[Vyrolan]

Webcontrol board (amazon) plus a compatible relay board (ebay) will give you 8 digital inputs, 3 analog inputs, 8 digital outputs, 8 temp inputs (using 1-wire sensors), and optional humidity sensor.

Yea but Amazon doesn't even have the things and there was only 1 for sell on Amazon Marketplace.

 

All this connects to ISY using io_guy's program listed on this forum. Total cost would be about $100 if you also picked up a housing and other accessories.

That's a lot more work than just plugging something in... Admittedly it's more inputs and outputs, but for not much more money you could just buy a SHN device, plug it in, and be done.

 

Something like the sequence that does the car start could all be programmed into webcontrol (using PLC code) and ISY would send a single command to initiate the action.

That's also added complexity since you have to program different things in different places. A SH product would likely be completely programmable and managed by the ISY once U-D added support. It would just be one ISY program as the "single command to initiate the action".

[apostolakisl]

Webcontrol board (amazon) plus a compatible relay board (ebay) will give you 8 digital inputs, 3 analog inputs, 8 digital outputs, 8 temp inputs (using 1-wire sensors), and optional humidity sensor.

Yea but Amazon doesn't even have the things and there was only 1 for sell on Amazon Marketplace.

 

All this connects to ISY using io_guy's program listed on this forum. Total cost would be about $100 if you also picked up a housing and other accessories.

That's a lot more work than just plugging something in... Admittedly it's more inputs and outputs, but for not much more money you could just buy a SHN device, plug it in, and be done.

 

Something like the sequence that does the car start could all be programmed into webcontrol (using PLC code) and ISY would send a single command to initiate the action.

That's also added complexity since you have to program different things in different places. A SH product would likely be completely programmable and managed by the ISY once U-D added support. It would just be one ISY program as the "single command to initiate the action".

 

I have 10 of these. You can buy them direct if Amazon isn't working out for you. In fact, I believe the marketplace seller is the actual company.

 

If you want easy, fine, but nothing about soldering a remote control together to run your car is easy. If you know how to use the ISY network module you will find that this is a process where the vast majority of your time is spent soldering the little tiny contacts in the remote and the rest is "easy". So I think the easy folks left the room a while ago. The car remote is a simple control which can all be done in ISY using only the network module to post commands directly to the board. You will need ioguy program if you want comm going from the webcontrol to isy, but that isn't necessary for this application.

 

It is a lot less money than SHN Device. You are at $200 for the device plus the PLM. The $100 price I listed is for all the bells and whistles. $60 buys all the parts you need including shipping if you just get the board and the relays and mount it to a board or in a can that you already have.

 

Also, the webcontrol does not rely on insteon power line commands. It is all done over IP. In most settings, IP is going to beat out PLC reliability by a factor of 10 or maybe even way higher depending on your PLC failure rate.

[Xathros]

I also use a CAI Webcontrol board along with IO_Guy's program running on a Pogoplug with Linux. Yes, the initial setup was much more complex. I had to get all the bits, hack Linux into the Pogoplug and configure everything. Took a day or two (maybe 6 hours total) to get it the way I wanted. Now I have a much more capable system with digital and analog IO, A real Apache web server, ProFTP ftp server, Syslog server, Network control of a few devices with OR without the ISY being involved. The parts totaled out around $65 for the CAI Webcontrol board and the Pogoplug. The capabilities I have gained are worth so much more. Ethernet communications reliability between the CAI Webcontrol, Pogoplug and the ISY are orders of magnitude better than Insteon communications and faster to boot!

 

I recommended the IOLinc/EzIO method due to it's simplicity. If I were doing this myself, it would be through the CAI Webcontrol board for sure.

 

-Xathros

[Vyrolan]

If you want easy, fine, but nothing about soldering a remote control together to run your car is easy. If you know how to use the ISY network module you will find that this is a process where the vast majority of your time is spent soldering the little tiny contacts in the remote and the rest is "easy". So I think the easy folks left the room a while ago.

You seem to equate a lack of ease with quality. You also seem to assume that ease is absolute and everyone is exactly the same as you... Somebody else might say soldering tiny little contacts is trivial but dealing with the configuration and programming of the board is hard. It also depends greatly on the situation. If this remote thing is the absolute only I/O thing he does, your solution is overkill. A simpler device like an IOLinc that had more outputs would be preferable. I really don't understand why you decided to rail on my disagreement with condescending tones and snarky remarks. My saying that it would be nice to have more options for IOLinc-like devices from SH is not an affront to your way of doing things...

 

It is a lot less money than SHN Device. You are at $200 for the device plus the PLM. The $100 price I listed is for all the bells and whistles.

I was unaware that $100 qualifies as "a lot less".

 

Also, the webcontrol does not rely on insteon power line commands. It is all done over IP. In most settings, IP is going to beat out PLC reliability by a factor of 10 or maybe even way higher depending on your PLC failure rate.

That's again assuming IP is actually making it to those places. If he wants to put it in his garage near the truck, he probably has power running there and outlets available. He may not have network over there.

 

I recommended the IOLinc/EzIO method due to it's simplicity. If I were doing this myself, it would be through the webcontrol board for sure.

You at least can see the difference. =)

[apostolakisl]

Curious comments for sure.

 

CAI as a relay controller is quite simple.

 

You need

1) CAI

2) TTL relay board ($15 on ebay)

3) some wire

4) A couple wall warts

 

Connect the 8 outputs on cai to the corresponding 8 relay inputs on the board with your wire.

Connect your wall warts and plug it in

Plug cat5 into switch/router

 

Log into your CAI and set the IP, port, username, and password you desire.

 

Go to Network resource settings on your ISY

Http

Get

IP on your LAN of CAI

Port number of CAI (often left at 80)

Path /api/setttloutput.cgi?output=1&state=1 (this turns output 1 on, sub out the 1 to 0 after state to turn it off)

Click "ADD", then "authorization" and put your CAI user/password

Click "Update"

Click "Save"

Click "Save" on the main screen.

 

Create 2 of these for each output, one to turn it on, and one off. Just use the "copy" function and change just those values and give it a name that corresponds.

 

Now, in ISY, just write your program

 

If
       Event of your choice

Then
       Resource 'CAI Webcontrol Output 1 On'
       Wait  1 second
       Resource 'CAI Webcontrol Output 1 Off'
       Wait  1 second
       Resource 'CAI Webcontrol Output 2 On'
       Wait  1 second
       Resource 'CAI Webcontrol Output 2 Off'
       Wait  1 second
       Resource 'CAI Webcontrol Output 3 On'
       Wait  1 second
       Resource 'CAI Webcontrol Output 3 Off'

Else
  - No Actions - (To add one, press 'Action')

 

Once you get the soldering done, I am guessing 15 minutes for the setup. This would "push" the three buttons for one second each with one second delay in between.

 

 

Mind you, this is only an output solution. If you want input, you need to use WClink and a computer (or pogo thing a ma jigger). But the car started only needed 3 outputs.

Total Cost for this is $60 assuming you have wire and wall warts.

This also can be accessed not just on your LAN but anywhere in the world. For example: you could control a CAI board at your office from the ISY at home.

 

You could also write this program in CAI if you so choose and simply have one resource command on ISY that serves to trigger the "macro" on CAI. Your choice. But if you don't want to mess with CAI's PLC code, then don't do it that way.

[snownh2o2]

Please believe me when I say I am not laughing at anyone specifially, but I am laughing. I didn't mean to start such a controversy. Just letting everyone know that your ISY can, rather simplistically, start you car if you so desire. There's probally a hundred different ways to do it, varying in simplicity, cost, effort, and reliability.

 

Truthfully, I just grabbed a few I/O links off of my HA shelves in the basement. It turns out in got a 4 pack for Christmas or my birthday or something....so I just grabbed them. I guess I could've used my ELK or GCs or some Ez's or .... I have been meaning to try CAI, however in this case I didn't really think, just grabbed.

 

apostolakisl: Are these the TTL relays you are using? http://www.ebay.com/itm/8-Channels-12V- ... 43ad7aa21c Or are there others (better quality) that you recommend for the CAI. There are also 16 channel versions similar in price. Secondly has anyone seen a good but cheap multiple output 12VDC power source anywhere? 10 or 20+ channels would be ideal. I am sick of wall warts and computer power supplies littering up my board, however every CCTV sources cost a fortune simply because the are often consider industrial. I do have 2 old CCTV 16 channel supply sitting on my shelf but they are 24VAC so not really applicable for most situations. My camera system has 16 12VDC cameras, I have tons of 12VDC PWM LED dimmers, and relays galore. I'd like get it tidied all up without breaking the bank.

 

Actually now that I think about it, even though I have powerline, security wiring, ethernet, and wifi in the garage, I think that I did specifically grab the I/Os for the portability factor. I had also wanted to used the status wires to connect/test a HomeLink reciever which would allow the use of a vehicles factory HomeLink garage door buttons to communicate with the ISY. I recall thinking that with the IOs I would be able to quickly move them around to locate the best combination of the key fob reliability to the truck, and also the best range from the vehicle HomeLink buttons to the HomeLinc Reciever when driving down my driveway. (HomeLink however may soon be obsolete for me as I am excited that MstrDs wifi logging script in DDwrt shows great potentional for quick WiFi logging ellieviating the needing to press the Homelink buttons; I will be trying it out hopefully this weekend; For the ambicious, see his post: HowTo: Proximity Notification Wifi (phone, ipad, laptop))

 

Soldering litterly took about 5 minutes including the 3 minutes to warm up the iron. Remembering back a few years (& 10,000 LEDs ago) it may take a bit longer for those who do soldier too often. The use of some glue/epoxy is also possibly ok for this type of project.

 

All in all it was about an hour of messing around aside from ordering the remotes. The IOs were a bit finicky. Stacking them is not recommended by SH, so you probably should not do so. They claim heat issues. Its always worked in the past but this time it gave me some communication issues. I mounted 4 single gang boxes with some outlets and the problem was solved, though I truely think one of the IOs is actually just a bit tempermental. I don't know the reliability of CAI but I have heard that it is really good. Frankly as far as permenant solutions go, I am a fan of home running seperate wires for all sensors, communication devices, relays, etc... for reliability. Wireless and Powerline module type products I reserve normally just for Internet browsing, temporary use (holiday lights) and test setups. I try to stay away from wireless due to the hassle of restoring them, considering the example that the SH Skylink motion sensors involve removing a screw not to mention that they eat batteries. So they are either a lot of maintence or a power adapter is needed. For a clean install a power wire needs to be run and once runnings wires, why not just hard wire the actual sensor especially since SH charges $35 vs as low as $2 on ebay for a generic. Living in a 120 year old home with 1.5ft thick wall full of wood, plaster, rocks, bricks,... I sometimes argue both sides this point within myself. On a tangent, I personally run my the signal (line) wires on some of my SLs to the actual outlet where I plug in my lamps rather than using an OutletLinc, LampLinc, or APLs. Communication issues are minimized, control is still maintained in an even if the system would crash, and programming/scene setup is often simplified in the ISY. Just my opinion on minimizing errors and hassles.

 

Have fun,

Matt

 

PS...It is fairly obvious when you think about it, but I could see how someone could over look this point initially, THIS SETUP ONLY FUNCTIONS when the vehicle is within range of the hacked key fob! No need to worry about accidently starting when your vehicle is in the shop or out of range. PLEASE note that unless you add the approperiate sensors, this setup will control the truck without reguard to whether or not the truck is in the garage, in the driveway, or a parked nearby on the street. For this reason please take all precausions to prevent the vehicle from starting in a closed garage. This is a very serious issue and has the potential to harm or kill someone. Be extra careful if your garage is connected to the house, and extremely careful if there is a bedroom next to or above the garage.

[apostolakisl]

Yes, those relays will work. I actually have one of those exact boards. The only downside to that model is that it is backwards. In other words, it is ground switched, so when 5v is applied, it turns off, and vice-versa. That board (and some others like it) use regular coil relays which are not physically powered by the CAI. These are dry contact relays and have decently high voltage/current switching so you can switch motors and other full out stuff. CAI has an option to use "state reversed" to help not get confused when using backwards relays. In other words, turning an output on actually turns the 5v off when using this mode.

 

You can also use a true solid state relay board. These cost a little more (like $25 for 8 board). I have not used the board I see for sale on amazon and ebay, but others I have used do not require any power supply (it all comes from the CAI). These are more limited in what you can power off of them.

 

Also, I found the relay board you listed on Amazon for cheaper with free shipping. It probably will come a lot faster too and Amazon in general is a bit more reliable.

 

Searches that bring up the ttl level relays include "arduino relay", "pic relay", "ssr relay", and "ttl relay".

 

As far as power supplies. I have the same issue. I have taken to using old ATX power supplies and wiring up to terminal strips. They are cheap (free) and typically provide high current, stable, clean power. Trouble is, no 9v.

 

Soldering can be quick, or not. I soldered up my garage door opener and it was probably a 5 minute job. It had plenty of room around the 3 micro switches and there were only 6 wires total to solder. But another project required 8 micro switches that each required 4 solders and the board was packed super tight. That one was very tedious and when I was done it looked like the board had grown a mohawk.

[snownh2o2]

Thanks for the reply. Tonight I am going to order a CAI and some relays and see what I can play around with in the future. Maybe I will take my motorized shade prototye to the next level. I want to use cellular shades in the next version but still haven't found a motor/sensor solution that remains cheap yet fully/approperiately functional for my needs.

 

I concure ATXs fit the bill with free ones everywhere and the clean power. Just not as pretty

 

Soldering is fun for me. Similar to welding out in the shop, but I can do it in the house without getting yelled at!

 

Thanks again,

Matt

[apostolakisl]

I think we could have fun. Tried welding inside once too. Don't recommend it. Smoke detectors are very sensitive to whatever the microscopic invisible smoke that comes off when welding.

 

On the CAI units, I would check to see what firmware is shipping. I just sent several of mine back for upgrading to 3.2.16 which might not be shipping yet unless you ask for it. They added GET function for CAI to CAI comm. as well as more email capacity. I am hoping the GET function is flexible enough to use ISY's REST function so that we no longer need to run wclink (not that I don't very much appreciate wclink, I just would rather skip that extra step).

 

Sometime in the next few months cai will have a new bigger board with double everything and other extra features. So if you have any thoughts of controlling anything with lots of ins/outs you might keep that in mind. That board also firmware updates over the internet, so no needing to mail it back.

[Xathros]

Sometime in the next few months cai will have a new bigger board with double everything and other extra features. So if you have any thoughts of controlling anything with lots of ins/outs you might keep that in mind. That board also firmware updates over the internet, so no needing to mail it back.

 

Thanks for that little tidbit. That is excellent news and just changed my mind on ordering a second CAI board this week. That is worth waiting for.

 

-Xathros

[snownh2o2]

Thats of great help, being that I foresee using it for shade control. At 3-4 windows per room, and 2 relays per window, the newer, bigger boards will be well appreciated.

 

Matt