HouseBot

Hello everyone!



What would be the best way to get HouseBot to control my external devices? I would like to control my amplifier (Denon), control volume on it etc.. and also would like to use HouseBot to turn on my projector, and all this would happen through my Pocket PC.



Is this possible? And any real life comments would be nice to have.

Controlling a projector and receiver via PDA is exactly what HouseBot was built to do.... with a little configuration.



First determine how you want to control them. IR is almost always an option for projectors and receivers. If the units have an RS232 port and allow you to control it that way, its a better alternative because it's faster and typically 2-way.



Once you determine how you want to control the equipment, you need to figure out what HouseBot supported PC equipment (hardware interface) you will need to send the IR or RS232 data. Once you've determined the hardware interface, you can read through the online help to get an idea of the specifics on configuring your system.

ScottBot wrote:First determine how you want to control them. IR is almost always an option for projectors and receivers. If the units have an RS232 port and allow you to control it that way, its a better alternative because it's faster and typically 2-way.

Ok thanks,



I guess IR is always an option and I also guess in that case I would be using USB-UIRT, correct? Can UIRT be learnt to use any device and from any remote?



But please tell me what is a RS232? I have Panasonic AE500. I'll try to figure out if my projector and amp support RS232.

HouseBot supports several IR hardware interfaces. The USB-UIRT reasonably priced and is great if you only want to do IR. If you're interested in X10 you could also consider the Ocelot. The USB-UIRT can learn most remotes. You might want to check on the UIRT forums for more info on whether it will support a particular remote.



It doesn't look like your Panasonic AE500 has an RS232 port that you can interface to. Some equipment will have a RS232 port (serial port like on your PC) that allows it to be controlled using a different protocol.

Is there a place where I can read more about HouseBot and USB-UIRT working together. Is there always Girder involved or in what cases I need to use Girder?

housebot works with the usbuirt directly so there is no need for girder. however, since i set up girder first with all the IR codes i needed - it was pretty easy to setup the girder bridge and have housebot send girder the appropiate eventstring, then girder will send the IR code.



both ways work.

switzch wrote:housebot works with the usbuirt directly so there is no need for girder. however, since i set up girder first with all the IR codes i needed - it was pretty easy to setup the girder bridge and have housebot send girder the appropiate eventstring, then girder will send the IR code.

both ways work.

Can Girder be used to control X10 devices or is there a Girder plugin for it?