smart home News - Page 18 of 23 - CNX Software

May 3, 2021May 3, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

AIO-CM4-101 “All-in-One Pi” is a Raspberry Pi CM4 based 10.1-inch industrial PC

We’ve previously written about Chipsee CM4-70 Industrial Pi 7-inch Panel PC based on Raspberry Pi CM4 module that is offered either as an embedded model to be integrated into the customer enclosure or as a fully integrated panel ready to be mounted into a wall or machine. The company has now launched another model with AIO-CM4-101 “All-in-One Pi” industrial PC offering a 10-inch touchscreen display that can be mounted by using 75x75mm VESA holes, for example on a display stand. AIO-CM4-101 All-in-One Pi specifications: SoM – Raspberry Pi CM4 with Broadcom BCM2711 quad-core Cortex-A72 processor at 1.5 GHz, up to 8GB RAM, up to 32GB eMMC flash Storage – MicroSD card slot for storage expansion Display – 10.1-inch IPS LCD with 1280×800 resolution, 10-point capacitive touchscreen, 350 nit brightness: Camera – Optional front-facing camera Audio – Mic input on the front panel, 2W internal stereo speaker, 3.5mm audio In/Out connector, […]

April 22, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 10 Comments

Samsung Galaxy Upcycling at Home program aims to repurpose older phones into IoT devices

Electronics waste, also as known as e-waste, has been a problem talked about for years, and in 2015 we asked the question “What do you do with your old devices and boards?” as many devices just end up collecting dust or stored in a drawer. Some better ways include giving or selling them to others, or repurpose them. For instance, a cheap Arm HDMI dongle can make a torrent downloader, an old phone can be transformed into a surveillance camera, an ATX power supply could be converted into a bench power supply, etc… But repurposing devices require some technical skills which many of the smart CNX Software readers have, but it’s unrealistic to expect the typical consumer to be able to hack their old devices into new ones using some tutorials found on the Internet. Samsung Galaxy Upcycling Program aims to make recycling upcycling easier for owners of Galaxy smartphones, […]

March 19, 2021March 23, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

ESP32-S2-HMI-DevKit-1 development kit ships with 4.3-inch touch display, 1,950mA battery

Espressif Systems ESP32-S2 single-core WiFi processor features an RGB LCD interface that makes it suitable for multimedia applications, and about two years ago, ESP32-S2-Kaluga-1 Multimedia Development Board was introduced with a touchscreen display & a camera. But now the company has launched another ESP32-S2 based development kit specifically designed for HMI (human-machine interfaces) found in smart home automation controllers, smart speakers with display, smart alarm clocks, and so on. Meet ESP32-S2-HMI-DevKit-1 equipped with a 4.3-inch color LCD display and a touch panel. ESP32-S2-HMI-DevKit-1 specifications: Wireless module – ESP32-S2-WROVER module with ESP32-S2 Xtensa single-core 32-bit LX7 microprocessor, up to 240 MHz with 128 KB ROM, 320 KB SRAM, WiFi 4 connectivity, 4MB flash, 2MB PSRAM Storage – Micro SD card slot Display – 4.3-inch display with 800×480 resolution, I2C capacitive touch panel Audio – Audio amplifier, built-in microphone, speaker connector USB – 1x USB-C OTG (DFU/CDC) port, 1x USB-C debug port […]

March 5, 2021March 8, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

NXP i.MX 9 processors to integrate Arm Ethos U-65 microNPU, EdgeLock secure enclave

NXP i.MX 6 and i.MX 8 processors are widely used in industrial boards and systems-on-module, and the company has now teased a new family with i.MX 9 processors integrating Arm Ethos-U65 1 TOPS microNPU, as well as the company’s EdgeLock secure enclave for increased security. The company did not provide that many technical details, so we still don’t know which CPU cores, GPU, and exact peripherals will be found in the processor. But we do know the i.MX 9 processors will be manufactured with a 16/12nm FinFET class of process technology optimized for low power, and features the “Energy Flex” architecture that combines “heterogeneous domain processing (independent applications processor and real-time domains with a separate low-power multi-media domain), design techniques, and process technology to maximize performance efficiency”. That means most blocks of the processor can be turned off for low power audio or CAN networking use cases, and other industrial […]

February 21, 2021February 21, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

ESP32-PICO-V3-ZERO-DevKit targets Amazon Alexa Connect Kit (ACK) development

Last summer, Espressif and Amazon jointly announced the ESP32-PICO-V3-ZERO Alexa Connect Kit module providing out-of-box connectivity to ACK (Alexa Connect Kit) cloud services, support for features such as Alexa control, “Frustration-Free Setup” and Amazon Dash replenishment for connected devices. At the time, the module was still at the developer preview stage, and you had to create your own carrier board for the module. But now development has been easier with the companies launching ESP32-PICO-V3-ZERO-DevKit compatible with Arduino Zero development board. ESP32-PICO-V3-ZERO-DevKit specifications: Wireless module – Espressif Systems ESP32-PICO-V3-ZERO with ESP32-PICO-V3 System-in-Package (SiP) based on ESP32-V3 dual-core Xtensa LX6 WiFI and Bluetooth SoC, a 4 MB SPI flash, a crystal oscillator, filter capacitors, and an RF matching network. Expansion – Arduino Zero compatible pass-through headers Debugging – 1x micro-USB port Misc – Power & Status LEDs, Reset button, jumpers to route specific signals to the headers, DSN (Device Serial Number – […]

January 20, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

Valetudo is a cloud-free web interface for robot vacuum cleaners

Valutedo cloud-free vacuum cleaner web interface

In my review of Kyvol Cybovac S31 LDS smart robot vacuum cleaner, I noted that app permissions meant both the map of your house and GPS coordinates may be sent to the cloud. But it was pointed out to me that earlier LDS robot vacuum cleaners from Roborock/Xiaomi were supported by Valetudo project that removes the need to connect to the cloud, and implements a mobile-friendly web interface as well as MQTT support for integration with Home Assistant or Node-RED. The project is not a custom firmware for the robots, and instead, the stock firmware is patched with Valetudo which developers describe as an “alternative App implementation + mock cloud which runs on the robot itself.” The good news is that you don’t necessarily need to teardown your vacuum cleaner to root it and install Valetudo, but it will depend on the model, and manufacturing date/firmware installed. The less good […]

January 18, 2021January 19, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

Cybovac S31 Review – A smart robot vacuum cleaner with visual SLAM support

I’ve been asked to review robot vacuum cleaners in the past but refused because they were quite basic with a simple vacuum function, obstacle detection, maybe a mopping function, and not much else. But Kyvol Cybovac S31 is different as it integrates a laser distance sensor (LDS) enabling visual SLAM to create a map of your house, and can be controlled with a mobile app for Android or iOS which ended up even more useful than I initially expected. S31 Smart Robot Vacuum Cleaner Unboxing The package was much bigger than I expected, mostly because the charging station also includes a dust bag where dust from the main unit is automatically vacuumed each time cleaning is complete. Key features of the system as shown above: LDS robot vacuum cleaner (main unit) 4 levels of suction power Cleaning modes – Auto, area, spot, edge Anti-drop and anti-collision features 2.4 GHz WiFi […]

December 21, 2020 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 9 Comments

DIY project creates Zigbee to Ethernet bridge with WT32-ETH01

We previously wrote about Ebyte E180-ZG120B-TB an inexpensive ($9.90) Zigbee 3.0 evaluation board based on Silabs EFR32MG1B Arm Cortex-M4 wireless MCU and the equally cheap ($7.78) WT32-ETH01 ESP32 Ethernet board. What do they have in common? Absolutely nothing! But GitHub user tube0013 decided to connect both boards over UART to create a Zigbee to Ethernet DIY coordinator/bridge running open-source firmware. The hardware also includes a Micro USB adapter for power, several 10cm jumper wires, and he/she also designed a 3D printed case. EZSP-Firmware is used for the Ebyte Zigbee 3.0 board, and ESPHome open-source home automation firmware for the ESP32 board. You’ll also need serial to IP code and ESPHome config. Note that flashing firmware to the Ebyte requires a programmer, and the developer used a J-link EDU Mini together with Silicon Labs’ Simplicity Commander. As mentioned above, a 3D printed case has also been designed, so everything is neatly […]