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Home Automation
without the cloud
by Dr David Maddison
Home automation can bring significant benefits and convenience, but it comes with
major concerns over security and privacy. Regardless of whether you own your home,
you should control it, not someone else. So it’s vital when setting up a ‘smart home’ to do
your homework and choose a secure solution that will work in the long term.
H
ome automation allows lights, heating, cooling and various appliances
to be operated by a central controller
or hub. These may operate according
to a pre-programmed schedule, using
sensors (eg, to detect the presence or
absence of a person in a room), by
voice control or remote control, such
as with a smartphone.
For example, you can turn on a
heater or an air conditioner before you
get home so the house is comfortable
when you arrive.
That sounds great, but many home
automation products are ‘cloudbased’, and there is some truth to the
saying that “the cloud is just someone
else’s computer”. Most home automation jobs can be performed entirely
within your home and without using
proprietary, closed solutions with
unknown security.
The “Internet of Things” (IoT)
and home automation are closely
related. IoT devices connect directly
to the internet, while home automation devices usually communicate
with each other and can be part of a
closed system if no internet access is
enabled. However, some devices like
voice assistants, Ring cameras and
video doorbells are IoT devices that
can also be part of home automation
systems.
Home automation can also be used
in mobile homes or caravans. Fig.1
shows a screen from a Home Assistant
in a caravan.
A little history
The history of home automation goes back much further than
many would think. Any domestic
labour-saving device could be considered home automation.
We might not think of the following as home automation because they
are ubiquitous, but examples include
washing machines, dishwashers,
water heaters, sewing machines, motorised lawnmowers, clothes dryers and
Fig.1: Home Assistant
set up in a caravan.
Source: ArsTechnica
– siliconchip.au/link/
abqz
14
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Australia's electronics magazine
siliconchip.com.au
electric irons. They all save a tremendous amount of labour compared to
earlier methods.
The modern twist is that computerisation makes it easy to change
programming without, for example,
changing an electromechanical timer
in a switchboard. You can even control
many appliances now from a smartphone or similar device; sometimes
via the internet, when not at home.
Devices can also be made responsive
to the environment, such as switching
on an irrigation system when conditions are dry, turning on interior lighting at night when someone enters the
room and automatically turning lights
off when they leave. Some home automation products available today are
shown in the panel on the right.
Two main approaches
There are two main approaches to
central control. One is via a third-party
cloud-based system such as Google
Home, Amazon Alexa or Apple Homekit over the internet. The other is a system that uses control hardware located
within the home, with or without an
optional connection to the internet.
One concern about cloud control is
the possibility of losing control of your
own home, as you are at the mercy of
the company that operates the service. For example, in the United States
recently, a delivery driver misheard
a ‘smart’ doorbell greeting and complained to the company, which consequently shut the owner out of the
home’s smart system for a week while
the mess was sorted out.
You can read about that in the NY
Post article at siliconchip.au/link/abq5
Another concern is that the provider could go out of business and
shut down the cloud services. Many
cloud-controlled devices are propriety and locked to the specific company, meaning that the devices (which
can cost thousands of dollars in total)
become useless.
That happened with Insteon products (www.insteon.com). Cloud services became unavailable, although
local control of devices was still possible in that case. Fortunately, the
company was purchased by a group
of “passionate users” who reactivated
the cloud services.
Also, Home Assistant integration
was developed for Insteon products,
ensuring they could still be used
regardless (see www.home-assistant.
siliconchip.com.au
io/integrations/insteon/). We will discuss Home Assistant later.
A further example is Philips Hue
light globes, which started as locally
controllable, but after purchase, the
terms were changed, making them
cloud-dependent (see the panel for
more details). Similarly, TP-Link
made Smart Plugs that once worked
without the cloud, but now require a
cloud connection for their Tapo device
(see www.tp-link.com/au/support/
faq/3417/#A11).
Insteon users were lucky, but events
such as the above mean it would be
wise to retain full control over smart
home devices.
In this article, we will explore home
automation options that don’t rely on
a connection to ‘the cloud’, or at least
where such a connection is optional.
We will also give a brief overview of
cloud-connected options, which might
be required for certain services, such
as voice control.
There are also privacy problems
with any cloud-based home automation; for example, see siliconchip.au/
link/abq6
Ideally, a smart home product
should be directly controllable and
usable without having to give your
personal details to a third party or
fees beyond the purchase price. Most
should not even require an active
internet connection, although it’s fine
to have internet connectivity as an
option, so you can make an informed
choice about whether to use it.
Communications protocols
Home automation devices such as
lighting systems and temperature sensors need to communicate with each
other. All devices used will need to be
compatible with your controller system. Most devices connect wirelessly,
although some can be wired.
Some smart devices can be controlled directly from a smartphone,
tablet or laptop computer via their
inbuilt protocols, such as Bluetooth or
WiFi. However, to support a broader
range of protocols like Thread, Zigbee, Z-Wave and LoRaWAN, a central
controller, known as a hub (or server),
is needed.
We have an overview of various protocols used in home automation in the
dedicated panel (on page 24).
Controlled indoor items
• Heating, ventilation and air
conditioning
• Air purifiers
• Lighting
• Motorised window blinds,
curtains, shutters and external
shades
• Chain pullers for blinds
• Curtain activators
• Door openers
• Domestic robots like vacuuming,
sweeping and mopping systems
• Pet feeders
• Motorised button pushers
• Smart TVs
• Smart washing machines, dryers
and dishwashers
• Smart audio systems
• Remotely switched power points
and ‘smart plugs’
Indoor sensors and controls
•
•
•
•
Occupancy sensing
Temperature and humidity meters
Voice control
Internet control
Home security devices
• Indoor and outdoor cameras
• Access control (smart locks),
including garage doors
• Fingerprint scanners and keypads
• Door/window open/close sensors
• Intercoms with cameras
• Alarms (burglar, fire) and sirens
• Detection of gas or water leaks
• Smoke sensors
Garden devices
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Irrigation
Automated greenhouse
Robotic lawnmower
Swimming pool control (heating,
filtering, cleaning etc)
Weather station
Water control valve
Rain gauge
Soil condition sensor (moisture,
nutrition, light and temperature)
GPS tracker for pets
“Integrations”
An “integration” allows smart home
Australia's electronics magazine
January 2024 15
The Philips “Hue” light globe letdown
Philips Hue light globes can have their on/off state, brightness and colour controlled via Bluetooth. One of their main attractions was that they did not require
the creation of an account with Philips to use them. But now, their terms of
service have changed, or soon will.
Philips has told users who had purchased these lights hoping for accountfree (local) operation that they will need to have a Hue account to control their
own lights; see https://twitter.com/tweethue/status/1704535648437256657
For further details, see www.androidpolice.com/the-philips-hue-app-
require-log-in-account/ and the Louis Rossmann video titled “Philips changes
terms AFTER the sale: requires data-sharing account to use a light bulb” at
https://youtu.be/vR2j-r3pmng
hardware or software from different
organisations, companies or software
suppliers to work together. An example is how the IKEA DIRIGERA smart
hub provides integrations so that voice
assistance and control by Amazon
Alexa, Apple Home and Google Home
work with the IKEA system. Another
is that there are over 2500 integrations
available for Home Assistant.
If buying a device you wish to control via your home automation system,
make sure it works with the system or
has vendor or third-party integrations
available.
Systems that require an
internet connection
The following systems require a
cloud connection but are mentioned
here to give a more complete overview
of home automation. Many local home
automation systems like Home Assistant can have integrations for voice
assistant products.
Access to voice assistant products
like Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri,
plus IFTTT and Ring products, are
among the reasons that internet access
might be desirable for an otherwise
offline home automation system.
These are examples only; we can’t
possibly cover every manufacturer or
type of system.
Amazon Smart Home
and Thread, to ensure compatibility
with a wide variety of devices. Many
smart devices can be controlled without needing a hub; you just need your
home WiFi, with an internet connection, and the app.
Google Assistant
https://assistant.google.com/
Google Assistant is an AI-based virtual voice assistant that can also perform home automation tasks or answer
inquiries by voice command. It is
used via the Google Nest (hub) smart
speaker on Android, Chrome OS and
iOS devices.
Homekit
www.apple.com/au/home-app/
Homekit is Apple’s home automation system. Some devices within the
system require an active internet connection, but others may not. Siri can
now work (with some restrictions)
without an internet connection for iOS
15 and later with certain iPhones, as
voice recognition is now done on the
phone, not in the cloud.
IFTTT (If This, Then That)
https://ifttt.com/
IFTTT is an internet-based service
that allows users to program conditional statements with “applets” (like
programming macros) for a home automation system. The applets can be
used to change the colour of a light
at sunset, have a porch light turn on
when you arrive home or synchronising an Amazon Alexa to-do list with
Google Calendar etc – see https://
youtu.be/Y3u6rsXJas4
A huge number of applets are available, or you can make your own.
Zapier (https://zapier.com/) and Microsoft Power Automate (siliconchip.
au/link/abq8) are similar services for
businesses.
Ring
https://ring.com/au/en
Ring makes a variety of security
cameras, doorbells and home automation devices. The devices require
an active internet connection, plus a
subscription to record video. Amazon
Fig.2: the SmartThings Station hub and smartphone app. Source: Samsung –
siliconchip.au/link/abqw
www.amazon.com.au/b?ie=UTF8&node=5425665051
Amazon Smart Home comprises
Alexa and Echo. Alexa is the artificial intelligence (AI) service, while
Echo is the physical device, the
hands-free speaker unit. It requires
an active internet connection. There
are many Alexa-compatible smart
home devices, such as smart lighting, switches, thermostats, cameras
(including Ring) etc.
Google Home
siliconchip.au/link/abq7
Google Home is based on Matter
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Fig.3: the structure of the cloud-dependent SmartThings automation system.
Australia's electronics magazine
siliconchip.com.au
owns Ring; it has been the subject of
controversy, as they were handing
private videos over to police without
warrants or owner consent.
SmartThings
of devices via Zigbee, Z-Wave Plus,
Matter, Thread and WiFi. Aeotec also
produces its own devices.
www.smartthings.com/
SmartThings is a powerful home
automation system based upon the
SmartThings Station hub, shown in
Fig.2 (which doubles as a wireless
phone charger).
It is Matter compatible, so it supports any device with the Matter logo.
It also supports IFTTT style conditional automations. The Station does
not support Z-Wave.
An active internet connection is
always required for SmartThings – see
Fig.3. There is an Android and an iOS
App to interact with it. A supported
devices list is at www.smartthings.
com/supported-devices
Home automation systems
that may work offline
The following smart home systems
can work without an active internet
connection but may require an internet connection for initial setup or
to update software. They could also
require an optional internet connection to support voice assistant or other
services.
Our research shows that the most
popular and well-supported offline
home automation systems are Home
Assistant and Hubitat. Readers should
make up their own minds, but they are
great starting places.
No one wants to buy a smart device
and discover that the company has
gone out of business, and your device
is no longer supported. That is much
less likely to happen for open-source
devices since others can easily take
them over. Both Home Assistant and
Hubitat are open-source.
Note that not all home automation systems will support everything,
but it is possible to connect two systems if one does not support particular devices. In fact, we have heard
of Home Assistant and Hubitat being
joined, to name one example (an integration exists for that).
These are examples only; we can’t
cover every manufacturer or type of
system. There are simply too many.
Aeotec
https://aeotec.com/
Aeotec can work without the internet except for voice control via the app
– see Fig.4. It supports a wide variety
siliconchip.com.au
Fig.4: the Aeotec Smart Home Hub
and related devices.
Aqara
www.aqarastore.com.au
Aqara uses Zigbee and will work
without an internet connection as long
as remote access, updates and thirdparty cloud services such as voice
assistant aren’t used. A wide variety
of products are offered.
C-Bus
A cautionary tale
If you install a proprietary home
automation system, you might
end up having to pay a lot for a
contractor to alter it in future, as
the original installer may lock the
code.
I have a friend with a C-Bus
system but the original installer is
unknown, the system is passwordlocked and he would have to pay
another installer a lot to reprogram
the system to add to or alter it.
Make sure any installer gives
you the password if they use one.
We can’t see any reason why it
shouldn’t be written on a label on
the system itself; if someone has
access to the hardware, they can
do whatever they want anyway.
www.clipsal.com/products/c-bus
C-Bus is an Australian-developed
system for professional installation.
Components must be connected to the
main electrical distribution board, and
expensive training courses are needed
to become qualified for its installation
and programming (see Fig.5).
It is mainly used for luxury homes
and commercial and industrial applications. It can operate without an internet connection, depending on the configuration and options.
DIRIGERA
siliconchip.au/link/abq9
DIRIGERA is a smart home hub from
IKEA (Fig.6) that can operate without
an internet connection. It supports a
variety of IKEA smart home devices.
DIRIGERA uses the Matter standard
and supports Thread, WiFi & Zigbee wireless protocols. It has iOS
and Android apps and supports integrations with Amazon Alexa, Apple
Homekit and Google Home via the
cloud.
Domoticz
Fig.5: an example C-Bus installation.
Various “output units” are available,
such as relay modules, analog
outputs, current measurement units
etc, all designed for a standard DIN
rail. Source: Clipsal – siliconchip.au/
link/abqu
www.domoticz.com/
Domoticz is a lightweight opensource home automation system that
can interface with lights, switches,
environmental sensors, electricity, gas
& water meters and more.
It can run on various hardware
including the Raspberry Pi and integrates with MQTT and Apple Homekit.
Once set up it does not need an internet connection (unless using specific
integrations).
Australia's electronics magazine
Fig.6: the IKEA DIRIGERA smart hub.
Source: IKEA – siliconchip.au/link/
abqv
January 2024 17
Fhem
https://fhem.de/
Fhem is an open-source system
using Perl scripts that can run under
Windows, macOS and Linux. It supports numerous protocols but seems
to be for advanced users.
Fibaro
www.fibaro.com/en/
Fibaro is a Polish company making
smart home devices (siliconchip.au/
link/abqa). The system uses Z-Wave
and will work without an internet
connection.
Home Assistant
www.home-assistant.io/
Fig.7: one of a large variety of Home Assistant dashboards, this one showing a
floor plan. Source: Home Assistant – siliconchip.au/link/abr2
Home Assistant is a popular opensource home automation system for
the enthusiast that can be run on a
Raspberry Pi, under Windows, Linux
or macOS, on an Odroid or ASUS Tinker Board single board computer (see
Figs.7 & 8).
Home Assistant supports a vast
number of integrations, currently 2577
(see siliconchip.au/link/abqb). Note
that depending on the platform chosen, you may need to purchase USB
dongles or modules to support Zigbee,
Z-Wave and Thread. There is a subscription fee payable if remote access
is required.
Home Assistant Green is a readyto-go product that comes with Home
Assistant already installed, available
from their website. The Yellow version
has Zigbee and Thread built-in and is
more extendable. See siliconchip.au/
link/abqc for setup instructions, and
the video guide at https://youtu.be/
Y38qRYYAwAI
HomeGenie
https://homegenie.it/
Fig.8: another Home Assistant dashboard. Source: Home Assistant –
siliconchip.au/link/abr3
YouTube videos with more information
● https://youtu.be/hAdDtbNMYPM – “How to Install Home Assistant on a PC (Easy!)”
● https://youtu.be/FXkkytHSTcI – “No Raspberry Pi For Home Assistant? No
Problem!”
● https://youtu.be/cVWVr_T7kQ0 – Creating a weather dashboard with Node-RED
● https://youtu.be/_FktMQSD5LE – “Building my PERFECT Smart Home Control
Panel!”
● https://youtu.be/cSzuWKsyuKI – Opinion: “The TRUTH About Home Assistant [Vs
SmartThings]”
● https://youtu.be/3xMvjOig8J4 – Opinion: “SmartThings to Home Assistant: Joining
the Dark Side”
● https://youtu.be/Q10nVFbP0ME – Opinion: “Hubitat vs Home Assistant – Best
Smart Home Hub 2023”
● https://youtu.be/c5MF3MnMmJw – “Smart Home Automations 101 – The Ultimate
Guide to Build Better Automations”
18
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Australia's electronics magazine
HomeGenie is an open-source system that runs on Windows, Mac, Linux
and ARM-based computers such as the
Raspberry Pi – see Fig.9. It requires
a certain level of Linux expertise. It
can run without an active internet
connection.
HomeSeer
https://homeseer.com/
HomeSeer is a mostly closed-source
system that does not require an active
Internet connection for automation,
but one is needed for registration and
updates – see Fig.10.
HomeSeer supports a wide variety of
products and integrations. It runs on a
Raspberry Pi or one of the HomeTroller
products. A list of compatible devices
is at siliconchip.au/link/abqd while
integrations are listed at siliconchip.
siliconchip.com.au
Fig.9: an example of a HomeGenie control panel that includes security features
(alarm settings and a camera feed) plus an energy usage monitor.
au/link/abqe (Android and iOS apps
are available).
HomeSeer products can be purchased from Black Cat Control Systems
(siliconchip.au/link/abqf).
Homey Pro
https://homey.app/en-au/
Homey Pro claims to control any
smart device and has a wide variety of
features. It supports WiFi, Bluetooth,
infrared (eg, for TVs and air conditioners), Z-Wave Plus and Zigbee.
It can work partially without an
active internet connection, but it
requires periodic connection over the
internet to receive an ‘access token’.
So, without an available internet connection, it will eventually stop working (see siliconchip.au/link/abqg).
Hubitat
https://hubitat.com/
Hubitat is based on open-source
software but requires the purchase of
a proprietary hub. It can work without an internet connection if remote
access, voice assistants and other
cloud-connected services are not
needed.
It can control most smart home
appliances and is programmed via an
app or internet browser such as Firefox or Chrome – see Fig.11.
The Hubitat hub (shown in Fig.12)
connects to your home network WiFi
router. It is compatible with Alexa,
Google Assistant, Zigbee, Z-Wave,
Lutron, LAN and cloud-connected
devices.
Fig.10: a sample HomeSeer app
screen. Source: Google Play Store –
siliconchip.au/link/abr0
Hubitat can optionally be integrated with Google Home, Home
Assistant, Amazon Echo and numerous other devices. There is no subscription for basic remote access, but
there is a fee for full remote administrative access.
Insteon
www.insteon.com.au/
Insteon uses power line and wireless RF to create a dual mesh network.
Available products include a hub,
motion sensor, remote control, door
open/close sensor, thermostat, LED
bulbs, relay (wired or plug-in), wired
dimmer, cameras etc.
Insteon devices will work without an active internet connection,
although setup and certain actions
Fig.12: the Hubitat
Elevation C8 hub.
Source: Smart Guys –
siliconchip.au/link/abr7
Fig.11: an example of a Hubitat dashboard. The screens displayed can be
customised. Source: Hubitat – siliconchip.au/link/abr4
siliconchip.com.au
Australia's electronics magazine
January 2024 19
may require an internet connection
(Insteon didn’t respond to our email
inquiry to clarify).
Jeedom
www.jeedom.com/en/
Jeedom is an open-source system that runs on Raspberry Pi and
Linux systems. It has mobile apps for
Android and iOS.
LinuxMCE (Media Centre Edition)
www.linuxmce.org
LinuxMCE is an open-source home
automation suite that also controls
media and allows it to be distributed
to any room. Unfortunately, it appears
to no longer be under active development.
MisterHouse
https://misterhouse.sourceforge.net/
MisterHouse is one of the oldest
home automation software suites,
started in 1998 – see Fig.13. It is opensource and uses Perl scripts. It supports many platforms, including the
Raspberry Pi and operating systems
such as Linux, Unix, Windows and
macOS.
It can execute events at certain
times or via web control, email messages, instant messages, socket messages, voice commands, serial data,
Bluetooth proximity, infrared signals,
X10 and Insteon powerline signals,
and more.
It is very versatile but requires
knowledge of Perl scripting and is
not recommended for beginners. It
has been described as being “entirely
geeky”.
It supports X10, Z-Wave, MQTT,
Insteon, XPL, XAP and other protocols.
MyController
Linux and the Raspberry Pi Zero, 1,
2, 3, and 4.
Mycroft
MyController is a privacy-focused
open-source system that runs locally,
so no internet connection is required,
even for setup. It works on Windows,
openHab is an open-source Linux
system that can run on a Raspberry Pi
– see Fig.14. It supports various technologies and devices.
www.mycontroller.org/
https://mycroft.ai/
Mycroft is an open-source hardware/software platform that was
crowdfunded with a privacy-based
voice assistant and natural language
interface. It is capable of running without an internet connection.
Unfortunately, the project ceased
development in 2023 (siliconchip.au/
link/abqh). However, OpenVoiceOS
(https://openvoiceos.org/) appears to
have taken it over. OpenVoiceOS provides a voice interface for controlling
smart home devices, playing music,
setting reminders and more.
openHab
www.openhab.org/
Fig.15: the OpenMotics “Brain”
module.
Fig.13: a
screenshot
of MisterHouse.
Fig.14: a sample openHab page. In this example, data is derived from Google
Calendar, an Autelis pool interface, Wemo (Coffee Maker), Z-Wave Sensors
(garage and front gate), EcoBee (heating/cooling), a CCTV system and a custom
pool filter pressure sensor. Source: openHab – siliconchip.au/link/abr5
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Silicon Chip
Australia's electronics magazine
Fig.16: an arrangement of hardwired
modules in the OpenMotics system.
Source: OpenMotics – siliconchip.au/
link/abqx
siliconchip.com.au
OpenMotics
www.openmotics.com/en/
OpenMotics is an open-source commercial platform that automates a
house, building or more. It uses opensource hardware and software:
• siliconchip.au/link/abqi
• https://github.com/openmotics
It features various extensions and
integrations with products like Google Assistant for voice control, Philips
Hue, OpenWeather, Siemens PLC for
industrial systems, Mitsubishi heat
pumps and many others; Android and
iOS Apps are offered. The system is
capable of operating without an internet connection.
OpenMotics focuses on hardwired
control of appliances rather than wireless communications, which makes
it more suitable for new buildings or
renovations. It uses hardware control modules based on open-source
designs, such as the Brain module
(Fig.15), the system’s foundation.
The Brain connects to other modules such as an analog control module,
relay module, CAN control module,
energy module (to monitor power consumption), bus extender module and a
P1 concentrator module to read smart
meters via the P1 port – see Fig.16.
OpenMotics has a YouTube channel
(www.youtube.com/<at>Openmotics).
SwitchBot
www.switch-bot.com/
SwitchBot is a series of automation
products, including battery-powered
products that attach to existing rocker
switches (such as lights or power
points) to turn them on and off, a
similar device for door locks, plus a
variety of typical home automation
products. SwitchBot uses Bluetooth in
Connecting an Arduino to a smart home
Enthusiasts can build their own home automation devices. For example, the
Arduino Cloud commercial service (https://cloud.arduino.cc/) lets you connect
your Arduino project to Amazon Alexa. There are also open-source libraries to
connect your Arduino project to Home Assistant:
● www.arduino.cc/reference/en/libraries/home-assistant-integration/
● https://github.com/dawidchyrzynski/arduino-home-assistant
some low-power products, with WiFi
for other devices like cameras.
The Bluetooth products can connect
directly to your phone; a hub is also
available. SwitchBot hubs can also
operate infrared remote-
controlled
appliances. An internet connection is
needed for third-party cloud services
to provide remote access.
X10
www.x10.com/
X10 is both a home automation control protocol (see the panel on “Standards, Protocols and Certifications”
on page 24) and a complete home
automation system (siliconchip.au/
link/abqj). It was one of the first such
systems that were commercially available.
As early as 1979, Radio Shack in the
USA was selling X10 products under
their own “plug ‘n power” brand (see
Fig.17). They also sold a controller for
the TRS-80 computer to control up
to 256 lights and appliances. Many
X10 products are still available and
in use today.
Advantages of X10 include ease-ofuse because the system consists only
of individually addressable receivers
and senders, with no software needed,
the use of existing mains wiring for
transmission of signals (or wireless),
no internet requirement, and an affordable, modular design.
Disadvantages of X10 include a low
data rate (over power lines) and susceptibility to interference.
X10 can be controlled from a PC,
Android, iOS device or simply from
a handheld or benchtop controller.
Its basic commands are fairly simple such as ON, OFF, DIM, BRIGHT
etc. Australia/NZ standard light controllers and appliance modules are
available from Envious Technology
(siliconchip.au/link/abqk); they are
no longer importing them, although
they still have stock.
Cloud-based devices and
local alternatives
Two important device types that
are generally cloud-dependent are
video doorbells and cameras. Noncloud alternatives for video doorbells
include the LaView Halo One and DB5,
Hikvision DS-HD2 and Doorbird. Noncloud smart cameras include the Wyze
Cam v3, Wyze Cam Pan V2, SV3C WiFi
and IP cameras, and Amcrest cameras.
In each case, you should check their
compatibility with any proposed home
automation system.
Other systems of interest
We found the following systems
interesting but did not include them
in the other sections for reasons such
as a lack of information, slow development, lack of documentation in
English or being for advanced users
only.
Calaos
https://calaos.fr/en/
Calaos is an open-source home automation system that runs on a Raspberry Pi, other single-board computers,
Intel platforms, Android, iOS or Linux.
It can run as a server, on the web or
via a touchscreen interface. Some of
its documentation is in English, but
much is in French.
ioBroker
www.iobroker.net/
Fig.17: Radio Shack “plug ‘n power” products from 1981 that used the X10
system. Source: Radio Shack – siliconchip.au/link/abr6 (p138).
siliconchip.com.au
Australia's electronics magazine
ioBroker is an open-source IoT platform written in JavaScript. It supports
a wide variety of devices and protocols. It is a German project and very
January 2024 21
See the video “What is Node-RED
and How Can I Use it to Create IoT
Applications?” at https://youtu.be/
pVb6Vq84ovg
OpenNetHome
https://opennethome.org/
OpenNetHome is a framework to
integrate functions like lamp control,
temperature measurements and audio/
video equipment control. It is open
source and runs on Windows, Linux,
macOS and Raspberry Pi. It has not
seen much development work lately.
Some instructions can be found at:
siliconchip.au/link/abqm
Pimatic
https://github.com/pimatic/pimatic
Pimatic is an open-source Raspberry
Pi home automation project that is no
longer maintained.
Plasma Bigscreen
https://plasma-bigscreen.org/
Fig.18: a sample ioBroker screen (in German). Source: https://w.wiki/7ovi
popular there; much of the documentation is in German – see Fig.18. It
requires an internet connection. For
more details, see the video at https://
youtu.be/tepIlQtxVuQ
MajorDoMo
https://majordomohome.com/
MajorDoMo is an open-source
system that works under Linux and
Windows and has multi-brand and
multi-protocol support. It is a Russian project and most documentation
is in Russian.
MyPi
https://github.com/sujaymansingh/mypi
MyPi is an Android and iOS app that
controls a Raspberry Pi GPIO port for
driving relays. See the video “Home
Automation with Raspberry Pi and
iPhone or iPad” at https://youtu.be/
yNSkWW9n_dA and the web page at
siliconchip.au/link/abql
Node-RED
https://nodered.org/
Node-RED is an open-source graphical “flow-based programming tool” for
connecting hardware, APIs and online
services. It provides browser-based
editing to create run-time libraries
for event-driven applications – see
Fig.19. It is based on JavaScript. IBM
originally developed it, but they opensourced it in 2016.
This tool is more for advanced users
and developers rather than someone
looking for a turnkey solution. Nevertheless, it is widely supported in
industry and by other user groups.
Plasma Bigscreen turns a ‘dumb TV’
into a smart TV using a Raspberry Pi
or similar single-board computer – see
Fig.20. It provides voice control via
Mycroft AI. However, as mentioned
above, that is no longer under development.
QIVICON
www.qivicon.com/en/
QIVICON is an alliance of companies founded by Deutsche Telekom
that produces various home automation products integrated via their
Home Connect platform (hub) and app.
Smart switches that are
suitable for Australia & NZ
Here are some examples of smart
switches and related products that
comply with AU/NZ standards and
can be controlled by various home
Fig.19: a Node-RED system. Source: Home Assistant – siliconchip.au/link/abqy
22
Silicon Chip
Australia's electronics magazine
siliconchip.com.au
automation suites. Some may require
an internet connection, depending on
how they are set up. These companies
also usually offer other home automation products as well.
You will need to do some research
to determine if these devices are compatible with automation controllers
other than those recommended by the
manufacturer.
Clipsal-Wiser
siliconchip.au/link/abqn
Clipsal-Wiser includes smart
switches, dimmers and blind controllers using Zigbee and BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy), plus other smart
home products.
Deta Grid Connect
siliconchip.au/link/abqo
Deta Grid Connect products are
available at Bunnings, use WiFi and
are controllable by Grid App, Google
Home and Alexa. For the technically
adept, there is a way to connect them
to Home Assistant documented at:
siliconchip.au/link/abqp
IKEA TRÅDFRI
www.ikea.com/au/en/cat/smart-lighting-36812/
The IKEA TRÅDFRI wireless control outlet (Fig.21) also works with
Home Assistant (see siliconchip.au/
link/abqq).
Mercator Ikuü
www.ikuu.com.au
Mercator Ikuü devices use WiFi and
Zigbee and are controllable via their
app, Google Assistant and Amazon
Alexa. Once set up, they should work
without internet access, with some
limitations.
Shelly
www.shelly.com/en
Shelly offers a range of Australian-
Fig.22 (left):
a Shelly WiFi
relay switch
module.
Fig.23 (right):
a Zimi
Powermesh
Smart
Switch.
approved products from various distributors (see Fig.22):
• siliconchip.au/link/abqr
• siliconchip.au/link/abqs
• siliconchip.au/link/abqt
Shelly products connect to a local
WiFi network and can operate without a hub, cloud connection or active
internet connection. They are compatible with most home automation platforms, protocols and voice assistants.
Zimi
https://zimi.life/
Zimi is an Australian company
that makes home automation devices
such as light switches, power points,
fan controllers, blind controllers and
garage door openers – see Fig.23. They
are AU/NZ standard types, so retrofitting is simple (although a licensed
electrician will be required in Australia).
They are controlled via a smartphone or tablet app. Devices communicate with each other via Bluetooth
and create a mesh network. The Zimi
app lets you control and schedule
appliances via WiFi.
A Zimi Cloud Connect device is
used for control from outside the home
and requires an internet connection,
as does Google or Alexa voice control. The Home Assistant community
Fig.20: Plasma Bigscreen is an open-source user interface for TVs, it is based on
a Linux distribution.
siliconchip.com.au
Australia's electronics magazine
is developing integrations for Zimi
devices, but they may require an internet connection.
Conclusion
The home automation field is vast,
so we can only give an overview. If
you are interested in home automation
but unsure where to begin, check out
Home Assistant and Hubitat.
Home automation is not required,
nor is it for everyone. You may be
unable to justify the expense or effort
of automating devices like lights that
are not difficult to switch manually.
When choosing home automation
devices, consider the benefits of having manual overrides. For example, a
door lock should be operable by a key
or by pressing non-electronic buttons
if its battery or WiFi connectivity fails.
A thermostat should be adjustable by
a secondary means, for example, if
the internet goes down or your home
automation hub fails.
While most smart locks have physical keys as a backup, often those
keys are the weakest part of the system; many use cheap cylinders that
are easily picked or even raked open.
When it comes to security devices like
smart locks, it really pays to do your
homework.
Fig.21:
the IKEA
TRÅDFRI
smart plug
sells for $20.
January 2024 23
Standards, Protocols and Certifications
ANT & ANT+
www.thisisant.com
ANT & ANT+ are low-power proprietary wireless protocols primarily
used for activity and environmental
sensors.
Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE)
https://w.wiki/7pRp
Bluetooth Low Energy is a protocol used by some home automation
devices. It supports wireless mesh
networking over the 2.4GHz ISM band
and can be used for indoor device
location services (presence, distance
and direction of another device). A
data rate between 125kbits/s and
2Mbits/s is supported, with a range
of up to 100m.
Philips Hue light globes are an
example of smart home products that
use this protocol. One of its disadvantages is a somewhat limited range and
relatively low data rate.
C-Bus (Clipsal Bus)
www.clipsal.com/products/c-bus
C-Bus is a home and building lighting and automation protocol developed in Australia by Clipsal, now
part of the French company Schneider Electric. It uses low-voltage Cat5
cabling to control appliances. Lighting
and appliances are controlled by dimmer or relay boards near the electrical
distribution board.
CEBus (Consumer Electronics Bus)
https://w.wiki/7pRu
CEBus (or EIA-600) is a 1992 set of
standards and protocols automating
homes, offices and lighting. It evolved
out of a need recognised in 1984 for
a more advanced system than X10.
It is an open architecture and standards are defined for transmission
over power lines, twisted pairs, coax,
IR, RF and optical fibre.
CSA (Connectivity Standards Alliance)
https://csa-iot.org/
Connectivity Standards Alliance is
the new name for the Zigbee Alliance.
The CSA maintains standards for Matter and Zigbee.
Dash7
www.dash7-alliance.org
Dash7 is an industrial IoT protocol
based on ISO 18000-7.
DigiMesh
www.digi.com/
DigiMesh is a proprietary shortrange 2.4GHz wireless mesh network
communications system.
EnOcean
www.enocean.com/en/
EnOcean is a technology that harvests energy from the environment,
such as from vibration, temperature
differentials or light for wireless, batteryless devices such as switches,
controls and sensors.
IoTivity
https://iotivity.org/
IoTivity is an open-source connectivity framework for IoT (Internet of
Things) devices that may form part
of a home automation system. It is
a ‘reference implementation’ of OCF
(Open Connectivity Foundation) standards. It is referred to as ‘middleware’
and is aimed at developers and highly
advanced users.
KNX
https://knx.org.au/
KNX is an open standard for building automation and control. It is
covered by the SA/SNZ ISO/IEC TS
14543.3.1-6:2018 specification.
LoRaWAN (Long Range Wide Area Network)
https://lora-alliance.org
LoRaWAN is a spread-spectrum
wireless communication technique.
It can have a range of up to 10km
or more under good conditions, at a
low bit rate.
Matter
https://csa-iot.org/all-solutions/matter/
Matter is a new interoperability
standard from the Connectivity Standards Alliance supported by Amazon,
Apple, Google, LG, Samsung, TP-Link
and smaller companies like Eve and
Nanoleaf. Its purpose is to unify the
best smart home technologies via
the internet.
A Matter certification allows support for a wide variety of systems
and voice assistants. It was called
Project CHIP (Connected Home over
IP) while under development. Matter
can communicate via WiFi, Thread
and Ethernet.
MQTT (Message Queue Telemetry Transport)
https://mqtt.org
MQTT is a device-to-device IoT connectivity protocol. It is the defacto
protocol for IoT devices in home
automation.
NB-IoT
https://w.wiki/84S
NB-IoT is a narrowband IoT connectivity framework.
NFC (Near-Field Communication)
https://nfc-forum.org/
NFC is a short-range protocol for
communication between a device
such as a smartphone, electronic tag
or card and a base unit. It is related
to RFID. Such devices can be used for
functions like opening an electronic
door lock. Two-way communication
is possible.
OCF (Open Connectivity Foundation)
https://openconnectivity.org/
OCF is an industry organisation
that develops standards, interoperability guidelines and certification for
IoT devices. It has numerous members, including ASUSTeK, Cisco Systems, Comcast, D-Link, Hisense, Huawei, Hyundai Telecom, IBM, Intel, LG,
Lenovo, MediaTek, Microsoft, Netgear, Nokia, Realtek, Samsung, Sharp,
Silicon Labs, ZTE and ZyXEL.
PLC-BUS
https://w.wiki/7pSA
PLC-BUS is a powerline communications protocol similar to X10. It
appears to be obsolete.
RFID (Radio Frequency Identification)
https://w.wiki/3opp
RFID is related to NFC but it is oneway communication over longer distances.
SigFox
www.sigfox.com
SigFox is a proprietary LPWAN (Low
Power Wide Area Network) designed
for low power consumption and massive IoT connectivity. Its range is up to
10km at tens of kilobits per second.
Thread
www.threadgroup.org
Thread is a wireless mesh networking standard that uses 6LoWPAN (IPv6 over Low-Power Wireless
24
Silicon Chip
Australia's electronics magazine
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Personal Area Networks), which
in turn is based on existing IEEE
802.15.4 radio technology. It works
with other standards such as:
Matter
HomeKit (Apple)
Weave (Google)
DALI (www.dali-alliance.org)
The KNX open standard for building control (https://knx.org.au/)
BACnet (https://bacnet.org/)
OCF (Open Connectivity Foundation)
As a protocol, Thread competes
with other mesh networks, such as
Z-Wave and Zigbee IP. Thread can be
incorporated into battery-powered
sensor devices such as for temperature, humidity etc, although there are
relatively few such devices currently
on the market.
Tuya
▪
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www.tuya.com
Tuya is a Chinese cloud-based AI
IoT developer and management platform that collaborates with companies like Microsoft, Apple, Google,
Amazon, Samsung, Schneider Electric, Lenovo, Philips and others. It is
a member of the Connectivity Standards Alliance and supports the Matter standard.
They provide a basic free app.
Smart products supported by Tuya
carry a PBT label (Powered By Tuya).
UDP (User Datagram Protocol)
https://w.wiki/3qsK
UDP is a basic internet protocol
used by some home automation
devices.
UPB (Universal Powerline Bus)
https://pcswebstore.com/
UPB is a proprietary peer-to-peer
communications protocol developed by Powerline Control Systems
for transferring data over household
wiring in home automation systems.
It is supported by Home Assistant,
openHAB, HomeSeer, and both Alexa
and Google Assistant via a controller,
among others.
WiFi
https://w.wiki/3jLG
WiFi forms the backbone of most
home and many office networks. It
typically operates at data rates from
a few Mbits/sec to many Gbits/sec
on the 2.4GHz and the 5GHz bands.
Its range varies, but it can typically
cover the area of a conventional
home without repeaters. The lower
siliconchip.com.au
frequency gives a better range, especially through walls and floors, but at
a lower maximum data rate.
Devices such as cameras are often
connected via WiFi. It is important
that your WiFi router can handle an
adequate number of WiFi devices for
a home automation system (some
cheaper types supplied by ISPs may
not be up to the task). Note that a
Smart Hub is required to connect to
devices using other non-WiFi protocols, as typical WiFi routers only support that one protocol.
xAP
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https://w.wiki/7pSH
xAP is an open protocol for home
automation similar to xPL.
xPL
https://w.wiki/7pSL
xPL is an open protocol for controlling devices in a home automation
system over UDP.
X10
www.x10.com
X10 is possibly the oldest home
and commercial automation communications protocol, conceived in 1975
and first released to the public in 1979
(many sources say 1978). X10 transfers data over either household electrical wiring, or wirelessly at 433MHz
(plus other frequencies like 310MHz
in the USA).
Zigbee
https://csa-iot.org/
Zigbee is a protocol with faster
transmission than Z-Wave, defined
by the IEEE 802.15.4 standard. It is
designed for low-power mesh networking and operates in the ISM
band (2.4GHz in Australia) at up to
250kbits/s. Its range is 10-100m.
Many Zigbee sensors (eg, temperature, humidity, motion, rain etc) can
be battery-operated due to their low
power consumption.
Z-Wave
https://z-wavealliance.org/
Z-Wave is a mesh networking protocol operating below 1GHz, thus
avoiding busy spectrum space around
2.4GHz used by Thread and Zigbee.
It has a data rate of up to 100kbit/s
over a range of 100-800m, or 1600m+
for Z-Wave LR. Z-Wave products run
on a different frequencies in different
countries so make sure your devices
are compatible.
As with Zigbee, many Z-Wave senSC
sors can be battery-powered.
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