Putting it all together: PiXHub/HA-Bridge/Alexa

[Geewiz]

I have my Raspberry Pi Zero W loaded with the PiXHub image and everything seems to be working.  I can access HA-Bridge and Home Genie and have created my first light control module.

Now I'm trying to figure out how to get Alexa working and keep doing searches in circles.  I'm getting dizzy and any quick guidance on the process to put it all together would be GREATLY appreciated!

Thanks!

[alzy]

I'm in the same boat. If u learn anything useful post it. I will do the same.

[Tuicemen]

Have you looked at the HA-Bridge tutorial?
http://forums.x10.com/index.php?topic=30664.msg178626#msg178626
failure to enter the correct ip of your pi will cause hours of frustration.

[alzy]

Ok so the bridge is working and I can turn a lamp on/off from the bridge gui. I added the dim item. When i do a Test Dim from the bridge a screen pops up to select dim level. I set level to 50 and click OK. Get flag that says command Executed but lamp does not dim. What am I missing?

[Brian H]

Are the Lamp Modules the newer Soft Start ones where they ramp On and Off or the older ones that go to 100% and then get dimmed down?
I don't know what is bring sent. If it is an Extended X10 command to dim to set a level. The older ones will not do anything with an Extended X10 command. Only the Soft Start ones will. If a On is sent and a series of Dim commands are being sent. Then both types should respond.

[alzy]

Brian, thanks for the reply! I don't know if its extended or not, but the module is an old module and not soft start. I send an on command from the bridge. It Turns on. I then send it the dim command as described by me in last post it does not respond. So what am I doing wrong?

[Brian H]

I don't know enough about the bridge.  On how to determine Lamp Module type or what is sent.

So I can't say if it is sending a single Extended X10 Dim Level command or a stream of Dim commands to step the old Lamp Module down to the dim level you wanted from 100% On.

From your description it maybe sending the single Extended X10 dim level command.

Do you have any other controller that you maybe able to monitor the X10 command when they are sent?

[alzy]

AHP activity monitor with cm15 captures on and off commands but does not record any dim commands. The interface I use with the hub is a cm11a. So can the Pi really control the cm11 wrt dim or is it sending the wrong info to cm11?This is what is in the bridge Dim Item slot. And the IP is correct.

http://192.168.1.10:8080/api/HomeAutomation.X10/B16/Control.Dim

[Tuicemen]

I suggest you brush up on the HA-Bridge dim calls found in its documentation.
there are at least three ways of sending Dim commands which adds to the confusion you may also wish to look at the HG documentation for dim command as there are two methods the set level I would expect would work better with HA-Bridge.
However I can't be of any more help then that as I don't use dim/brighten commands in my setup.

Does dim work from inside HG?
If you don't have the device setup as dimmable in HG then it will ignore dim commands to that device I suspect.

[bkenobi]

If you have the module set as an on/off rather than dimable, it will not have any way in the interface to control dim within HG.  You can still send the dim command with an external controller.  HG will see all commands sent over PLC if you use a CM15A but I do not know if the interface would do anything with them (assume not since it doesn't have a dim level for the module).  I don't use dim so I can't say how the dim commands other than those on the widget work.

[alzy]

I have been trying to dim from the bridge. Are those commands processed by HG or do they go to the cm19a via some scrip that bypasses HG?

[Tuicemen]

I have been trying to dim from the bridge. Are those commands processed by HG or do they go to the cm19a via some scrip that bypasses HG?

The commands in HA-Bridge go to what ever is in the on/off/dim call scripts. nothing in the script nothing gets sent.
if your script points to mochad the call gets sent to it then the cm19.
if the script goes to HG then HG handles the Cm19.
the only Hardware HA-Bridge will auto connect to is an Alexa device and even then it has to be given device names.

[alzy]

So the Pix10Hub image comes with example entries ith the Bridge. This is what is comes with and this is what I have been trying:

http://192.168.1.10:8080/api/HomeAutomation.X10/B16/Control.Dim.

What sw on the hub is processing this command/script?

[Tuicemen]

Is your pi IP 192.168.0.10 ?
the port should be correct unless you changed the HG port.
The backups were meant as examples
the IP has to be changed as well as the X10 address.
you can try a simple test from your PC web browser. Just copy the  call into the browser press enter and see what happens.

I believe it should dim your lamp by 10 % if set in HG correctly

[alzy]

Is your pi IP 192.168.0.10 ? No 192.168.1.10 and thats what I have in the Bridge entries as I sited above.

the port should be correct unless you changed the HG port: I did not change the HG port. I access HG at port 8080

The backups were meant as examples: Examples aren't useful unless they fundamentally work!

the IP has to be changed as well as the X10 address: As I said several times the Bridge works with on / off not with DIM. The IP and port are the same in all 3 cases.