Looking for ideas for integrating multiple inputs

Long time lurker, first time poster.

I’m ready to pull the trigger on an Indigo/Insteon/MacMini setup, however I have one remaining issue that I need some help with.

A little background: I’m an old school engineer that has long been interested in home automation. Over the years, I’ve wired up my house with discrete logic for mailbox, garage door, and gate switches, etc. From the beginning I hoped I would eventually incorporate software control for additional capabilities. Periodically over the last few years, I would research the current state of home automation and for one reason or another declined to jump in. Of course, the more I research, the more I learn and maybe now is the time. My reasoning:

1) The family of Insteon devices is… acceptable. I wish there were more choices but I can live with it.

2) There is a large base of knowledgeable individuals to tap for solutions to problems. In addition, Insteon/Indigo seem to be well suited for one-of-a-kind projects and tinkering.

3) An Indigo/Mac based solution is perfect for me since I have recently completed a exorcising of Windows from my home. Our family of four includes 4 Macs and 3 iPhones and I couldn’t be happier. I would, of course, use individual Insteon devices for lighting control, but the iPhone opens up unlimited possibilities for remote control.

4) Home lighting control is important but it is really secondary to my interest in sensing and controlling real world devices.

OK, so now you understand my reasoning. Now for my existing wiring:

All of my current sensor wiring is star configured in 4 zones. I have sensor/control termination points in the Garage, Utility Room, Front Door, and 2nd Floor areas. This was done as a practical matter, but as it turns out it’s ideal for adding Insteon I/O devices in those four areas without having to do any further wiring. The sensors are a Rube-Goldberg combination of switches, hall-effect sensors, motion-detection, opto-isolators, etc. For simplicity of this discussion, I can simplify this to say all my sensors are simple on/off switches.

Sorry for the extended lead-in, but here’s my issue:

The SimpleHomeNet EZIO6I 6-Input Controller seems like an OK solution to install in each of the zones, (even though I may have to have a couple in each location,) but I really envision something more configurable and expandable. Serial and USB control may not be practical due to the distances. Further, It needs to easily integrate into Indigo and AppleScript. It’s been a while since I’ve used AppleScript but I should be OK. Little programming experience otherwise.

Has anyone solved a similar problem?
Aware of any hardware that may work?
Any ideas for multiple input detection using Insteon/Indigo?
Any rumors about new Insteon hardware?


TomJ

Tom:

IF (big IF here) cost is not a major factor, the Phidgets Controllers are quite flexible and might meet your needs. Probably the 1012 or the 1018.

But, since these are USB devices, they would probably be too far from your Mac to connect via standard USB. That means some type of USB over cat-5 (~ $40) or USB over Ethernet (~$100) device for each location. I have had good luck with the Keyspan products like the US-4a (4-port USB 1.1) and the U2S-2A (2-port USB 2.0) devices.

Also, at the present time the AppleTalk for the Phidgets controller is broken in Snow Leopard (10.6). (Look through this thread) But, it is being worked on and should be available soon.

2) There is a large base of knowledgeable individuals to tap for solutions to problems.

True, true. I/O has been a popular discussion topic here so I am sure you will get other, differing, opinions as well

The EZIO units work wonderfully. I have several units for different purposes from sensing to controlling door locks, etc. I even use some with SONAR sensors to detect which vehicle is parked in the garage.

Since you have sensors wired in already, these would be super simple to implement into an Indigo powered system.

Thanks bjojade and berkinet.

The PHIDGETS Controllers are indeed more of what I'm looking for: More inputs. I'll have to research this more. Cost is not too bad.

I'm glad to hear that the EZIO units do work well. That may be what I end up using. It's certainly a lot easier.

For entertainment I'll post one of my brainstorming ideas. Keep in mind I don't have any hands on experience with Insteon. I'm sure many of you have had the same idea and maybe caught yourself before I did.

How about this Rube Goldberg idea?

I enjoy modifying hardware so opening up Insteon devices sounds like fun. (I don't have any yet) As an alternative to the SimpleHomeNet EZIO devices, I came up with an idea that I THOUGHT was THE answer:

What if I took a Insteon 8-Buttom KeyPadLinc, opened it up and soldered on wires at the switch connections? I could extend these wires a short distance out of the case to an interface board with reed relays (for isolation) and would have a 7-input controller. (Button one, as I understand, is dedicated to the load).

Oh, the possibilities I thought:

1) These KeyPadLinks wouldn’t be used like they normally would, mounted in a wall box, They are actually interface devices and would instead be mounted inside a covered box at my four termination zones so the modification and cable isn’t a issue.

2) Since the existing KPL buttons are in parallel with the remote switches, they could be used as troubleshooting tool to locally activate the remote switch.

And it got better…

3) The KPL switch lights could be used to indicate the current switch state. Another valuable troubleshooting tool.

4) I have the bonus of controlling a load

5) And, it’s cheaper than an EZIO6I.

Since I currently don’t have any Insteon devices I had to rely on research and my understanding of how Insteon worked. Like I said, I thought I had THE answer…until my idea came crashing down. I’m sure you experts out there immediately figured out why this wouldn’t work.

Say I have a door switch wired in parallel with a KeyPadLink button. A typical door switch is normally closed. It’s the same thing as pushing on the button…for hours at a time. It only takes 10 seconds to push on the button to put it in Linking Mode.

Crap!!!

Paralleling the KPL buttons would only work for momentary use, like a doorbell interface, not a door switch.

I could set the KPL toggle mode and have one button for “door open” and one button for “door closed”, but that requires two buttons for every remote switch and begins to get too complicated. Further, doors switches are something that you may need to poll to determine their state and you can’t do that if the button isn’t being pressed.

Heavy sigh

That may be 'cheaper' in the onset, but if your time is worth anything, it's a mess. The EZIO's aren't THAT expensive and do a whole lot more.

What if I took a Insteon 8-Buttom KeyPadLinc, opened it up and soldered on wires at the switch connections?...

While I do appreciate the pleasure of roll-your-own solutions, I agree with bjojade, the cost would be similar to other solutions, and the results probably not what you want. Also, bear in mind that most insteon devices have one side of the +5v internal power supply to the AC line. That can be dangerous for you and the KPL.

However, if you have the time, money and skills, I am sure there would be plenty of people interested in your results if you go ahead with this trial. You might want to take a look at the Efundies forum, in particular this thread. They have a lot of information in Insteon internals.

There is plenty of ways to get I/O and such into Indigo. SerialBridge & AS may become your best friend.

Then there is TCP/IP stuff (my programing skills haven't made that leap yet.)

XBee stuff is nice for wireless. The more powerful ones claim over a mile line of sight (should handle most people's houses/properties) They have 2 modes, one a basic modem, other is packet(?) which allows the onboard I/O and AD to work.

All depends on what you want to do, how much time, skills, and tools you have.