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May 30, 2017May 30, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

Olimex ESP32-EVB Board with Ethernet, CAN Bus, and Relays up for Sale for 26 Euros

One of the new feature of Espressif ESP32 SoC over ESP8266 is the inclusion of an Ethernet MAC interface, but so far few boards come with an RJ45 jacks. ESP32 Monster board is an option, also including an OLED Display and CAN Bus, and sold on Tindie for $35, but Olimex has now stocked their ESP32-EVB board with Ethernet, CAN Bus, and two relays, and you can purchase it for 26 Euros per unit, and less in larger quantities. Olimex ESP32-EVB Rev. B specifications: Wireless Module – ESP32-WROOM32 module with 802.11 b/g/n WiFi and Bluetooth LE Wired Connectivity – 10/100M Ethernet with RJ45 jack (via LAN8710A) External Storage – micro SD slot Relays – 2x 10A/250VAC relays with LED status Expansion 40-pin GPIO female header (2.54mm pitch) UEXT connector for sensors and modules CAN Bus USB – 1x micro USB port for debugging (CH340T) and power Misc – Reset and […]

May 23, 2017May 23, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

This $8 USB Transceiver Can Add 433 MHz Device Support to your Home Automation Gateway

With the advent of WiFi and Bluetooth IoT, 433 MHz devices are becoming less popular but are still used for doorbells, motions sensors, windows/door sensors, etc… If you have such devices at home, one way to integrate those into your home automation system is to use an ESP8266 WiFi to 433 Mhz bridge between your gateway and 433 MHz capable products. However, you don’t even need the middleman if you use a USB 433 MHz transceiver connected directly to the gateway. Nathan Chantrell found such USB dongle on Banggood for about $8, and managed to make it work with his Debian Gateway using Node-RED. 433 MHz USB dongle and features: Connectivity 433 MHz transceiver Range – up to 30 to 100 meters (Line of Sight) Tx and Rx for PT2262, PT2260, PT2264, PT2240, EV1527, HS2303-PT codes Can transmit multiple signals independently Control interface – Serial over USB @ 9600 bps […]

May 5, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 11 Comments

AIY Projects Voice Kit Transforms Raspberry Pi 3 Into Google Home, Comes Free with Raspberry Pi Magazine

We’ve just reported about the preview release of Google Assistant SDK that works on the Raspberry Pi 3, and other boards with a microphone, speakers, and access to Internet. The Raspberry Pi foundation and Google have now made it even easier, as they launched AIY Projects Voice Kit with a Google Voice HAT, a speaker, a stereo microphone Voice HAT board, a button, a few cables, and a cardboard case. You’ll just need to add your own Raspberry Pi 3, follow the instructions to assemble kits, load and setup the software. Once this is all done, you’ll be able to press the top button, asking anything you want to Google Voice, including the weather. Price? Sort of free, as it comes with MagPi 57 magazine, where you’ll also find detailed instructions for the kit. Google AIY Projects got its name from a mix between (DIY) and artificial intelligence (AI), and […]

May 3, 2017May 3, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 9 Comments

Google Assistant SDK Turns Your Raspberry Pi 3 into Google Home

Google Home allows you to select music, control your home automation system and more with voice commands, but now you can do the same with a Raspberry Pi 3 as Google released a developer preview (alpha v1) of the Google Assistant API that works on Raspberry Pi 3, and other development boards running Debian or Ubuntu. Functionalities are limited right now, with RPC API and Python sample code, but it only works with English language, and features such as timers & alarm, playing music, news, or podcasts, and precise location are not supported. Location is determined using your IP address only, and if you’re using some third party services / products such as Uber or Hue, you’ll need an actual Google Home device for initial setup. Google has provided instructions to use Google Assistant SDK with Raspberry Pi 3 board. First you’ll need a USB microphone ($5.99 on Amazon), and […]

April 20, 2017April 22, 2017 by Karl Johnson - 4 Comments

Karl’s Home Automation Project – Part 4: MQTT Bridge Updated to Use YS-IRTM IR Receiver & Transmitter with NodeMCU

In a previous article, I wrote about an MQTT bridge by 1technophile. I added a DHT temperature and humidity sensor as well as a light sensor. Previously it included a software decoder to decode the IR signal. I never did test the IR transmitter on the gateway, as I didn’t have the parts. But thanks to IC Station, who sent me over a small YS-IRTM hardware based decoder and NodeMCU that I am writing about today. I have replaced the software based version with the YS-IRTM module in the latest update. I found this project challenging. I admit I am a little weak in my programming skills. It was difficult to find documentation but I found a forum talking about this device and basics of how it works. When an IR code is recognized it sends 3 hex codes via serial connection on the transmit pin. To transmit, it expects […]

April 9, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 7 Comments

ESPurna-H is a Compact Open Source Hardware Board with ESP8266 WiSoC, a 10A Relay, HLW8012 Power Monitoring Chip

ESPurna is an open source firmware for ESP8266 based wireless switch as such Sonoff POW, which I’ve been personally using to monitor my office’s power consumption. The developer, Xose Pérez (aka tinkerman), has now developed his own hardware with ESPurna-H board, as existing wireless switches with power monitoring functions would not fit into a gang box. ESPurna-H board specifications: WiFi Module – ESP12 with Espressif ESP8266 WiSoC Relay – Songle SRD-05VDC-SL-C 10A relay with NO and NC connection Power Monitoring – HLW8012 chip as found in Sonoff POW Expansion – 2x 5-pin header with the programming GPIOs, and two connections for external button and LEDs Misc – Reset button Power Supply Input – 100 ~ 240V AC Output – 5V up to 600 mA via Hi-Link HLK-PM01 Safety – Optical isolation between the logic circuit and the relay circuit Dimensions – 50x50x20mm Xose designed the board with Eagle 8.0 and released […]

April 8, 2017April 8, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 8 Comments

Cambrionix PowerPad 15S is a 15-Port USB Hub with 2.1A Output, Control API, Serial Console, Power Consumption Monitoring

Many development boards are powered over USB, usually via a micro USB ports, and if you have one board, you’d just use a 5V USB adapter with the right amperage, and it will work fine as long as you have a low resistance USB cable (AWG20 cables recommended for higher loads). But when you start to running multiple boards using power strips with USB adapter start to take space, so USB hubs are much more convenient. However, you need to find one that delivers enough power, is reliable, and possible allows per port power control. The guys at LAVA (Linaro Automated Validation Architecture) are using a lot of boards to validate software developed by Linaro and their members, with the boards having to run 24/7, and they had various misfortunes with USB hubs, but as Dave Pigott reports they’ve now found that USB hub of their dream with a 15-port […]

March 27, 2017April 22, 2017 by Karl Johnson - No Comments

Karl’s Home Automation Project – Part 3: Adding Light Detection to a Motion Sensor

This is the 3rd part of my Home Automation light project. In the first part, I wrote about basic setup with basic Sonoff Wifi MQTT switches and setting them up. In the second one, we added some 433 MHz motion sensors and a 433 MHz to MQTT bridge. And finally in part 3, we are going to modify the 433 MHz motion sensors to only work when it is dark in the room. Motion Sensor The motion sensor I linked in part 2 is run by a common chip called a BISS0001. We are interested in pin 9. If voltage is below .2v it will not trigger a motion. This solves the problem discussed in part 2, when we have a gloomy day or if blinds are closed etc. By adding an GL5537 LDR (Light Dependent Resistor) shown as R3 in the diagram above, you will achieve the desired effect. […]