Very late to this party! Bought this kit, and was confused by the pairing socket 1 vs. 2, so took the easy route and typed it into UA-cam. And lo and behold, an ES video from the days when I imagine the view count was not yet in the millions. The acoustics have improved somewhat :) I inherited a box (!) of Pi from a mate's dad, and this is one of those things that are perfectly suited to a v1 board, of which I now have half a dozen, all looking for an excuse to be plugged-in and ssh'd-up. So, belated thanks for a great video.
I couldn't find Energenie here in the states, but I found a nice four outlet unit at Adafruit for about the same price. I'm sure Amazon might have similar hardware also. I do like this video series... Been thinking a lot about how to automate this way versus using one of the pre-configured "hub" systems. I know that this Energenie project isn't on the network, but there have been problems with the hub systems and network security (TV's, refrigerators, information hubs like alexa/Google/Bing... ). Building and coding your own automation let's you put as much or as little security in it as you want. Excellent Chris. Thanks and looking forward to more in the series.
What a bright idea, programming a pie with a snake to turn two lights on and off! This video is simply electrifying. It is amazing what a little Raspberry can do. Thank you for the video and looking forward to your next one.
I personally like how all of this is done without needing the use of the internet, makes things feel much more secure. :) Take care and thanks for the great video!
Agreed. Ppl don't understand the holes these little wifi gadgets punch in their network security. I could almost accept the risk setting up a barrier with another router if these wifi gadgets were cheap BUT $75 FOR A LIGHT SOCKET?!? I guess if you don't care about your customers security you could make some real money...until the class action lawsuit...
@@semperparatus3685 Although a lot of 'Internet of Things' gadgets seem cool and nifty, I really don't see the point in them. As far as I am concerned, if a product doesn't actually add value (aside from being a cool gimick), then I'd rather not waste my money. And, of course, the security concerns alone are enough to make you heave. Remember, you are the product with these things! I like to keep my digital footprint as minimal as possible.
not only the internetuse of other products is the problem. You also need a closed source app. As soon as burglars wise up there is going to be such a rise in breakins...
Update:I have X10 security and lights which HAD a serial PC interface that is no longer supported. After watching this episode I've found X10 updated a while back to a USB interface which is still not supported. After some digging I found some clever people have given me an ancient roadmap (tongue and cheek) to use the USB with Rasp pi. With that I am using it to control my lights, fans,etc and X10 even has modules for 220V (US) for controlling AC units. My home and my fathers home are 100% Solar powered with 70 KWH battery banks and he has had trouble with large draw appliances depleting his batteries. I am using the Rasp Pi to read the batt volts and if below set linit send signal via X10 to shut down his appliances so he doesn't have to rush home if it rains. Thanks Professor for the inspiration and in your own way helping to solve a very real problem in our homes. Cheers!
Resource-wise, Python isn't really well suited for small embedded machines as it's a VM language which is almost always much slower and memory hungry than a language which compiles to native code (Python is less bloated than Java though). But Python is rather easy to learn, I guess that's why they chose it as a "main" language for programming the Pi.
Hi Christopher. Thanks for such helpful content. I'm new to RPi and will be buying soon. I'm particularly interested in using the Engine type plugs. We had solar PV installed recently, unfortunately using excess solar is not so straight forward which is how I came to your videos. A very useful and cost effective solution would be for a Pi to be connected to a CT sensor to switch the plugs on as the export rises above say, 100 watts. If inductive loads are plugged in e.g. oil filled radiator, then better value would be taken instead of the feed in tarriff. Commercially available systems are expensive and less flexible needing hard wiring on the 240v side. So a Pi controlled smart plug could simply use existing wiring. Regards.
Those devices are nice when wanting to setup a quick electronics project. There was a similar product marketed in the US called X10 about 10 or so years ago. I'm not sure what happened to them but you could add sensors, light switches, and remotes to control 256 devices. I wrote a bunch of scripts in Perl that worked pretty well. I still want to see a better Pro-sumer version some day.
Hi Christopher. Thanks for a really instructive video. Please can you tell me if the EnerGenie keeps it's connections and settings if there is a brief power cut? Or do you have to press the button again to reconnect, once the power comes back on? Thanks
I buy cheap TP-link switches and have installed HomeBridge on a Pi that links directly to Apple Home - saves me quite a lot of electricity a month. Those switches are also Wifi so it's more reliable in my opinion. But great video to get into home automation :)
Very cool stuff! Good for when no one is home but you want to make it look like someone is home. Could also work for a disabled person who is wheelchair bound.
Great video professor. I was thinking to implement this with a relay connected to the GPIO. And I have a Ruby script (gem rpi_gpio is needed) that utilizes the GPIO pins!
Hello professor Dumbledore. 👋🏻 No need for magic wand. Excellent video and yes, exciting! Love it! Raspberry and python! Excellent! My favourite tinkering with small functional useful SBCs I can use all around house for all possible and impossible tasks.
Hi Elvira -- here we are again. Hope life is treating you well. I've been tinkering with an Orange Pi the last few days, more of a trial that a Raspberry Pi! :)
ExplainingComputers That's wonderful! I always wanted to see Orange Pi in action! Can't wait. 🤩 Considering the life, yes, indeed! Sunny weather finally! Last Saturday: my bike, my device {photography purpose}, airplane/flight mode on. Life mode: relax on. Brain mode: low power consumption mode on. 🤣
I've had one of these running several years now on a Pi2 and is solid as a rock. I made a simple web page that enables the sockets to be controlled from anywhere. You can increase the reliability of the range by soldering a small antenna to the board. They give instructions what length to do that, only a basic bit of copper wire..
Hi Richard, I hope you read this. I am trying to set-up the same thing! However my cgi gateway only runs python3 code and despite downloading Christophers re-coded Python code I can't get it to run. Please point me in the right direction!
@@almurray2000 my little pi is still running fine. I don't think it's even been re-booted in ages, although I would have to try to find the code running on it. Let me check tomorrow and get back to you. I will have to remember the login to the pi! I recall a basic php script and a simple shell script.
@@almurray2000 not sure if it helps, but I have managed to check what I did. Firstly, I am only using two remote switches. I have a very small php file serving a basic web page interface. I then have a small python file which is called every time the web page user hits a submit button. Obviously your web server needs admin over these files to execute. Don't ask me to explain any of it as it was a few years ago and I was basically pulling together sample code and praying!!! But, maybe it helps you! This is the file which runs the code to set the switch status. It gets the sys.argv sent from the php call and decides which (1 or 2) to turn on or off. FILE: "switches.py" #import the required modules import RPi.GPIO as GPIO import time import sys cmd = sys.argv lamp = cmd[1] state = cmd[2] print lamp print state # set the pins numbering mode GPIO.setmode(GPIO.BOARD) # Select the GPIO pins used for the encoder K0-K3 data inputs GPIO.setup(11, GPIO.OUT) GPIO.setup(15, GPIO.OUT) GPIO.setup(16, GPIO.OUT) GPIO.setup(13, GPIO.OUT) # Select the signal to select ASK/FSK GPIO.setup(18, GPIO.OUT) # Select the signal used to enable/disable the modulator GPIO.setup(22, GPIO.OUT) # Disable the modulator by setting CE pin lo GPIO.output (22, False) # Set the modulator to ASK for On Off Keying # by setting MODSEL pin lo GPIO.output (18, False) # Initialise K0-K3 inputs of the encoder to 0000 GPIO.output (11, False) GPIO.output (15, False) GPIO.output (16, False) GPIO.output (13, False) # start checking what we need to do if lamp=='1': if state=='on': # lamp 1 on print "lamp 1 on" GPIO.output (11, True) GPIO.output (15, True) GPIO.output (16, True) GPIO.output (13, True) # let it settle, encoder requires this time.sleep(0.1) # Enable the modulator GPIO.output (22, True) # keep enabled for a period time.sleep(0.25) # Disable the modulator GPIO.output (22, False) else: # lamp 1 off print "lamp 1 off" GPIO.output (11, True) GPIO.output (15, True) GPIO.output (16, True) GPIO.output (13, False) # let it settle, encoder requires this time.sleep(0.1) # Enable the modulator GPIO.output (22, True) # keep enabled for a period time.sleep(0.25) # Disable the modulator GPIO.output (22, False) elif lamp=='2': if state=='on': # lamp 2 on print "lamp 2 on" GPIO.output (11, False) GPIO.output (15, True) GPIO.output (16, True) GPIO.output (13, True) # let it settle, encoder requires this time.sleep(0.1) # Enable the modulator GPIO.output (22, True) # keep enabled for a period time.sleep(0.25) # Disable the modulator GPIO.output (22, False) else: # lamp 2 off print "lamp 2 off" GPIO.output (11, False) GPIO.output (15, True) GPIO.output (16, True) GPIO.output (13, False) # let it settle, encoder requires this time.sleep(0.1) # Enable the modulator GPIO.output (22, True) # keep enabled for a period time.sleep(0.25) # Disable the modulator GPIO.output (22, False) # Clean up the GPIOs for next time GPIO.cleanup() ----------------------------------------- This is the file you open from your web browser via your web server on the Pi. The UI is just four buttons which send a bespoke message to the Pi to execute the switches.py code. Either '1' or '2', followed by 'on' or 'off': FILE "switches.php" Messaging Page Select a lamp... Lamp 1 on Lamp 1 off Lamp 2 on Lamp 2 off
Thanks for knowledge.. Sorry i am speak in indonesian language because i am can't speak english.. I used google translate.. Thanks again for the knowledge
i would recommend you buy a "manual" remote control set and hack into the manual remote control. For that price you could buy two identical sets, get double the sockets and have a spare "manual" control left. - Bonus would be, you could simply override the RasPi with your manual remote control any time. And you would have a approved and "allowed to transmit" product.
I think it could be done in program in node red with dashboard and timer. Just my opinion, if you intent to let other people to operate without python knowledge.
I have just been thinking about trying to set up a raspi to control an outlet! I was going to use a relay, but this way is a little less invasive with the wiring in the walls!
Just by a standard cheapo set with a "manual" remote control and hack into the remote control (optocoupler or directly, usually switches to gnd or vcc). But please keep in mind, that those power sockets take power all the time because they always listen, AND take even more power if they have to hold the relay in ON state.
Great video Christopher. I should look more into IoT like this. I'm now reviewing a USB3 low light camera. I'll compare it with the raspberry cam V2, the NanoPi DUO2 with it's cam, and my action camera's I use to film my videos. It works amazingly with low light. Great colors in the dark with only my pc display for light. The other camera's only have blurry dark image then. I'm going on a big cycling trip thru the UK next month. I'll take that camera along to film myself at night in my tent. I'll go to Calais -> Dover, and then ride under London along the sea, then go up and above London to Harwick to take the boat to Rotterdam. And from there back to Belgium. I've been enough times in London. And I don't want to ride my bicycle with my trailer thru London. I hope the British roads are ok for me. I see many small roads when watching British movies. I really need the trip. I've had some very bad things happening last years/week. And now would like to be able to put it to rest. Have a great day. Thank you for all your great content. It has helped me when I was doing bad. And it brought me to making my own videos too. Greetings, NicoD
Thanks for this Nico. I have thought about you this week as I've been making a video on an Orange Pi 3. :) Should post a couple of weeks today (unless my Atomic Pi arrives very rapidly!).
@@ExplainingComputers I would have loved to buy the Atomic Pi. But since I'm saving money for my trip I'm not buying anything now. I should have some great gadgets comming for free. When back from my trip I'll have enough work to do. I'm also changing jobs. I might have a bit more time then to make UA-cam videos. You could try the nightly Armbian images for the Orange Pi3. dl.armbian.com/orangepi3/nightly/ These are untested. But the latest builds. You can not yet get official Armbian support for it since it's still in development. Some things don't work yet. In a few months things should be a lot better when kernel 5.2 matures. Greetings.
If you have already some set with a remote, you can buy a cheap 433mhz rf-module set (transmitter and receiver) ,about 0,99 euro on ali. It is very easy to use with Arduino so I guess it might also work with rasbpi. The only thing you have to do is find the right frequency however when there is an remote, you can listen to the remote to find the correct code. Cheap! ;-) With the rasbpi you can connect it to the internet by designing a webpage with controls that you can access over the web.
Great video, would love to see if you can integrate this device, with Amazon Alexa or Google Home, so you could use those devices to tell the Pi to turn them on or off
I have used these type of controllers for a number of years now but not with a Pi only the supplied controller. I have found that after a while the units have a tendancy to 'Stick On' (Inductive loads that take large currents on switch on, (high powered lamps and I think Google Home)) and the only way to turn your device off is to select off and give the unit a good single sharp hard knock. This must be because the cheap circuit inside must be arcing when transitioning from On to Off to On and 'Welding' the relay contacts shut. I haven't bothered to implement a solution yet but a Y (or X, probably Y as these are designed to fail open) class capacitor across the contacts may prevent this arcing and stop the contacts from welding together. Also, when you take the unit out from the socket, they (After about a minute or so) lose their pairing and you need to go through this process again. (On the devices I have used anyway) Hope this helps.
Very useful feedback, thanks for sharing here. I had the sockets removed from power for about an hour and they remained paired when reinserted. I did not test longer than that though. They are clearly intended to be left inserted.
I would think 433 as this is a general spectrum band used for toy walkie talkies and other packet radio stuff ala door bells / garage door controllers. 868 would be the other free to use iirc ( the UK is somewhat more fickle so do check ).
Another fascinating and detailed guide. I note the 4 socket pack dates back to 2010 on Amazon. Is there potential for major "improvement" in a new version should one be released in the foreseeable or can I order one now even though I don't have a pressing need atm?
@@ExplainingComputers Yes unfortunately the least intelligent product version the uneducated hordes use brainlessly to make things very easy for future thieves burglaring their homes keep winning out. Even governments are pushing 'smart' electricity meters which are basically n invitation for e-stalking or worse.
Hi this is a great video, as was the previous chapter with the lightbulbs. I have a question: the remote control functionality is very much down to the Energenie product. I can't find this online, maybe they went bust. Can you recommend a suitable alternative product. I'd really like to use this format, rather than your wired example, because a few years ago I had an Arduino catch fire and obviously this method keeps the 220/240V away from the Raspberry itself.
Those MASSIVE UK mains sockets look positively FRIGHTENING compared to the diminutive US sockets! It looks as if you could power a land excavator with a single one of those!
You can, but as every British person knows, its two main purposes are to power fast-boiling kettles for making tea quickly, and for inflicting pain when stepped on barefoot in the dark at night. :-)
We also have less anxiety about home invasion here because every single one of us has at least one three pronged deadly weapon within easy reach at all times.
Thank you very much your IoT project and review helps us alot thank you. I have question I want make nas-storage for home which bord I used to get well performance and work 24x7 and I connect multiple hhd or sad to it ?
The multiple drives is the issue with SBCs. :) A Rock64 makes a nice NAS -- ua-cam.com/video/gT-EGNl9bZA/v-deo.html -- but for multidrives, consider something like a RockPro 64: ua-cam.com/video/9CCQicHwfDI/v-deo.html Or maybe a Rock Pi 4B, as it has two USB 3.0 ports.
Hi I think this is really cool, I'm really looking forward to your update on this for the lux sensor, the little project I'm working on hopefully with your help is I've got solar panels on the back of my house and a wemo plug on my hot water tank so my plan is when the sun comes out it turns my wemo switch on that is connected to the heating element in my hot water tank ,ideally I need to put some rules in when the sun gets brighter it will trigger the switch when it goes over 1kw, if you have any ideas please let me know, I'm extremely new to this but this idea has been banging round in my head for sometime, I look forward to any replies.
That would be the Rock64 -- video here: ua-cam.com/video/gT-EGNl9bZA/v-deo.html Or comparison video including other options here: ua-cam.com/video/U5Y6XwFyU2s/v-deo.html
I am very surprised that they work at 30 meters, that's a long way for 433Mhz radio, thanks for the video very interesting, looking forward to the sensors.
Nice product for the control of mains-powered device control. Is it certified as safe for everyday use by a recognized consumer product safety authority? Also, is there any type of security built-in, or can it be switched using _any_ similarly equipped Raspberry Pi, Arduino, etc. (i.e., by a drive-by hacker)?
The Energenie products are CE certified. I drive-by hacker should not be able to get in, as the device has to be paired with the transmitter on the Pi.
Nice video as always. If the Timer function is in the RPi code, what happens if the mains supply fails, or there is a 'brown-out?. Does the code re-start (but no Timer?) I don't think you've covered it, but perhaps time for a proper RPi UPS HAT or add-on?. Not the usual cheap ones which under-power -with the 'lightning strike' always displayed.
The code would only restart if the Pi were set to run it on boot (which I have covered in other videos, if not here). I like the idea of a Pi UPS HAT. :)
Interesting things Raspberry Pi can implement in home automation compared to home automation of yesteryear, looking forward to the motion sensor edition and hopefully include video survellience stored on a device (or view with Mobile Phone capabilities) along with security lighting.
Thanks for this. I did a video on setting up a motion controlled surveillance camera using the Pi here: ua-cam.com/video/8YUM7jio6dk/v-deo.html There are so many possibilities here! :)
@oceania68 MotionEye of course uses the camera to detect motion (very processor intensive). In the next video in this series I'll be using a PIR dectector. :)
Excellent 👍 those GPIO lines were what I needed today, thanks! Python is not that fast performancewise but it's great for quick proofs of concept, really liking it.
At 14:10 and 14:16 mins, I'm curious if you wouldn't have gotten the Traceback (on ctrl+c) if you had used: except KeyboardInterrupt: # as they did in ENER002-2PI_Py3.py GPIO.cleanup() # I like clean exits
You are correct. An Arri 150 is indeed about £/$350+. Most of the lighting on this channel is done with two Arri 650 Plus Fresnels, with the 150 added in as necessary for various highlights or shadow fills -- most commonly illuminating the inside of USB ports on side-angle close-up shots of SBCs. All not cheap -- until you compare them to the LED options! :)
Hmm, why don't they make a Python 3 version of their script available? Clearly they are both aware of it and know what changes are needed, so it would be nearly effortless to provide that script as a third download link.
Hi, is this rather limited compared to other systems in that only energenie things can be controlled, compared to other systems with multiple vendors such as zigbee or z-wave ?
It depends on your point of view. The sockets here are not networked devices, so yes, can only be (directly) controlled from the Pi (although the Pi itself could be accessed over a network). However, some may see this as an advantage, as there is no security risk as devices are not being put online. :) I will be covering networked controllers later in this series.
Thank you Christopher, I've been patiently waiting for this one since you mentioned it some time back. Only disappointment for me was the limitation that they must be more than six feet apart. Others may be interested to know there is a solution... Energenie ENER010-PI Radio Transmitter PCB and 4 Gang RF Extension Lead.
Well presented video as usual. Radio and WiFi are only any good for experimenting. If anyone is going to do things actually in your home use Ethernet. LAN is the best for a permanent installation. Also, Chris, show them how to use IoT MQTT broker with the two way communication units.
Have you had problem with updates on windows 10 pro - mine updated all but 1 file and it won't update the other 1 for nothing - chatted with 2 windows techs and office 16 won't install right either - no luck it said it was Intel audio software - updated that - then USB hardware - so I disconnected my Blueray player - - I've restarted my desktop several times - just curious - I've heard they have problems with windows 10 pro updates and I believe it - thank for listening - my desktop does work by the way just the 1 file and office 16 pro
@@ExplainingComputers Microsoft came out with a major update yesterday and I downloaded it and that was that - the file is gone - and now office is on my desktop working again - that major update took care of the problem so far - thanks
Raspberry Pi + OpenHab + tons of different HW. E.g. Shelly Smart Plug - connected over Wi-Fi, controlled by MQTT or HTTP. Please make review of OpenHab
Interesting. I suppose you could separate the scripts to an on script and an off script and setup cron jobs to have them operate via dates, not just time.
Could you connect it to the Nvidia Jetson so when the camera sees a specific object the lights turn on? E.g. put banana in front of camera, lights on. Put granny smith in front of camera, lights off? Would be an amusing project
@@ExplainingComputers What mini computer would be your first advice for someone being stuck with Arduinos that I'm unable to ping although it happened two years ago? I want to program it, use it, and it must be working with a macbook or linux. Be hassle free.
I think you've missed the point -- what I am demonstrating here is one part of a potentially wider solution where that computer could have wired and wireless control of a number of devices, which are operated via time settings and a range of sensors.
@@ExplainingComputers I wasent actually talking about you personally, sorry. I guess I been spoilt with MCU's lately. They seem to do all that too. But what I really meant was, Id like to see someone use or better yet, program a Pi to even 10% of its potential.
Very late to this party! Bought this kit, and was confused by the pairing socket 1 vs. 2, so took the easy route and typed it into UA-cam. And lo and behold, an ES video from the days when I imagine the view count was not yet in the millions. The acoustics have improved somewhat :)
I inherited a box (!) of Pi from a mate's dad, and this is one of those things that are perfectly suited to a v1 board, of which I now have half a dozen, all looking for an excuse to be plugged-in and ssh'd-up.
So, belated thanks for a great video.
I couldn't find Energenie here in the states, but I found a nice four outlet unit at Adafruit for about the same price. I'm sure Amazon might have similar hardware also. I do like this video series... Been thinking a lot about how to automate this way versus using one of the pre-configured "hub" systems. I know that this Energenie project isn't on the network, but there have been problems with the hub systems and network security (TV's, refrigerators, information hubs like alexa/Google/Bing... ). Building and coding your own automation let's you put as much or as little security in it as you want. Excellent Chris. Thanks and looking forward to more in the series.
What a bright idea, programming a pie with a snake to turn two lights on and off! This video is simply electrifying. It is amazing what a little Raspberry can do. Thank you for the video and looking forward to your next one.
This channel's music and format remind me of my Electronic training and Mr. Wizard type shows. I watch them over and over! Much love Professor!
I personally like how all of this is done without needing the use of the internet, makes things feel much more secure. :) Take care and thanks for the great video!
Agreed. Ppl don't understand the holes these little wifi gadgets punch in their network security. I could almost accept the risk setting up a barrier with another router if these wifi gadgets were cheap BUT $75 FOR A LIGHT SOCKET?!? I guess if you don't care about your customers security you could make some real money...until the class action lawsuit...
@@semperparatus3685 Although a lot of 'Internet of Things' gadgets seem cool and nifty, I really don't see the point in them. As far as I am concerned, if a product doesn't actually add value (aside from being a cool gimick), then I'd rather not waste my money. And, of course, the security concerns alone are enough to make you heave. Remember, you are the product with these things! I like to keep my digital footprint as minimal as possible.
not only the internetuse of other products is the problem. You also need a closed source app. As soon as burglars wise up there is going to be such a rise in breakins...
Update:I have X10 security and lights which HAD a serial PC interface that is no longer supported. After watching this episode I've found X10 updated a while back to a USB interface which is still not supported. After some digging I found some clever people have given me an ancient roadmap (tongue and cheek) to use the USB with Rasp pi. With that I am using it to control my lights, fans,etc and X10 even has modules for 220V (US) for controlling AC units. My home and my fathers home are 100% Solar powered with 70 KWH battery banks and he has had trouble with large draw appliances depleting his batteries. I am using the Rasp Pi to read the batt volts and if below set linit send signal via X10 to shut down his appliances so he doesn't have to rush home if it rains. Thanks Professor for the inspiration and in your own way helping to solve a very real problem in our homes. Cheers!
Is there anyplace where you have uploaded your project so that I could build one too
I implemented cloud controllable relays, thanks to your tutorial. I am grateful to you.
Great to hear. :)
I've had 4 sockets and the rpi board for quite a while now. They work well and have good range.
Good Afternoon from Slovakia!
Greetings from the UK. Here we are again, communicating from all over the world! :)
@@ExplainingComputers
Yes. Hello from Oz!
2 meters apart? That’s crazy. Great video btw. Thank you.
Your videos fire up my neurons. Keep me coming!
Love this channel, really nice to see Python in use since I only have experience with Java. Keep up the good work :)
Resource-wise, Python isn't really well suited for small embedded machines as it's a VM language which is almost always much slower and memory hungry than a language which compiles to native code (Python is less bloated than Java though). But Python is rather easy to learn, I guess that's why they chose it as a "main" language for programming the Pi.
This is amazing!!! Please continue this series!!
I will!
Hi Christopher. Thanks for such helpful content. I'm new to RPi and will be buying soon. I'm particularly interested in using the Engine type plugs. We had solar PV installed recently, unfortunately using excess solar is not so straight forward which is how I came to your videos. A very useful and cost effective solution would be for a Pi to be connected to a CT sensor to switch the plugs on as the export rises above say, 100 watts. If inductive loads are plugged in e.g. oil filled radiator, then better value would be taken instead of the feed in tarriff. Commercially available systems are expensive and less flexible needing hard wiring on the 240v side. So a Pi controlled smart plug could simply use existing wiring. Regards.
Those devices are nice when wanting to setup a quick electronics project. There was a similar product marketed in the US called X10 about 10 or so years ago. I'm not sure what happened to them but you could add sensors, light switches, and remotes to control 256 devices. I wrote a bunch of scripts in Perl that worked pretty well. I still want to see a better Pro-sumer version some day.
spot on... was reminded of the same...
Hi Christopher. Thanks for a really instructive video. Please can you tell me if the EnerGenie keeps it's connections and settings if there is a brief power cut? Or do you have to press the button again to reconnect, once the power comes back on? Thanks
Thanks for this. The connections are kept -- the unit maintains its settings until you choose to reprogram it.
@@ExplainingComputers Thanks Christopher. I appreciate you getting back to me so promptly.
HOLY SOLDERLESS BREADBOARD BATMAN! I've been trying to control my 433mhz with arduino or pi so THANK YOU!
I buy cheap TP-link switches and have installed HomeBridge on a Pi that links directly to Apple Home - saves me quite a lot of electricity a month. Those switches are also Wifi so it's more reliable in my opinion. But great video to get into home automation :)
WiFi is much less reliable than 433
Very cool stuff! Good for when no one is home but you want to make it look like someone is home. Could also work for a disabled person who is wheelchair bound.
Great video professor. I was thinking to implement this with a relay connected to the GPIO. And I have a Ruby script (gem rpi_gpio is needed) that utilizes the GPIO pins!
This is very exciting Prof., thank you very much for these projects.
Why This Respberry Pi is So Amazing
Hello professor Dumbledore. 👋🏻
No need for magic wand.
Excellent video and yes, exciting! Love it!
Raspberry and python!
Excellent!
My favourite tinkering with small functional useful SBCs I can use all around house for all possible and impossible tasks.
Hi Elvira -- here we are again. Hope life is treating you well. I've been tinkering with an Orange Pi the last few days, more of a trial that a Raspberry Pi! :)
ExplainingComputers
That's wonderful!
I always wanted to see Orange Pi in action!
Can't wait. 🤩
Considering the life, yes, indeed!
Sunny weather finally!
Last Saturday: my bike, my device {photography purpose}, airplane/flight mode on.
Life mode: relax on.
Brain mode: low power consumption mode on.
🤣
I like the idea of a lower power consumption brain mode. I will seek that out. :)
@@ExplainingComputers
Try Armbian for OPi
I've had one of these running several years now on a Pi2 and is solid as a rock. I made a simple web page that enables the sockets to be controlled from anywhere. You can increase the reliability of the range by soldering a small antenna to the board. They give instructions what length to do that, only a basic bit of copper wire..
Great to have this feedback, thanks.
Hi Richard, I hope you read this. I am trying to set-up the same thing! However my cgi gateway only runs python3 code and despite downloading Christophers re-coded Python code I can't get it to run. Please point me in the right direction!
@@ExplainingComputers Chris, your python3 code doesn't seem to execute for me, have you tried it recently?
@@almurray2000 my little pi is still running fine. I don't think it's even been re-booted in ages, although I would have to try to find the code running on it. Let me check tomorrow and get back to you. I will have to remember the login to the pi! I recall a basic php script and a simple shell script.
@@almurray2000 not sure if it helps, but I have managed to check what I did. Firstly, I am only using two remote switches. I have a very small php file serving a basic web page interface. I then have a small python file which is called every time the web page user hits a submit button. Obviously your web server needs admin over these files to execute. Don't ask me to explain any of it as it was a few years ago and I was basically pulling together sample code and praying!!! But, maybe it helps you!
This is the file which runs the code to set the switch status. It gets the sys.argv sent from the php call and decides which (1 or 2) to turn on or off.
FILE: "switches.py"
#import the required modules
import RPi.GPIO as GPIO
import time
import sys
cmd = sys.argv
lamp = cmd[1]
state = cmd[2]
print lamp
print state
# set the pins numbering mode
GPIO.setmode(GPIO.BOARD)
# Select the GPIO pins used for the encoder K0-K3 data inputs
GPIO.setup(11, GPIO.OUT)
GPIO.setup(15, GPIO.OUT)
GPIO.setup(16, GPIO.OUT)
GPIO.setup(13, GPIO.OUT)
# Select the signal to select ASK/FSK
GPIO.setup(18, GPIO.OUT)
# Select the signal used to enable/disable the modulator
GPIO.setup(22, GPIO.OUT)
# Disable the modulator by setting CE pin lo
GPIO.output (22, False)
# Set the modulator to ASK for On Off Keying
# by setting MODSEL pin lo
GPIO.output (18, False)
# Initialise K0-K3 inputs of the encoder to 0000
GPIO.output (11, False)
GPIO.output (15, False)
GPIO.output (16, False)
GPIO.output (13, False)
# start checking what we need to do
if lamp=='1':
if state=='on':
# lamp 1 on
print "lamp 1 on"
GPIO.output (11, True)
GPIO.output (15, True)
GPIO.output (16, True)
GPIO.output (13, True)
# let it settle, encoder requires this
time.sleep(0.1)
# Enable the modulator
GPIO.output (22, True)
# keep enabled for a period
time.sleep(0.25)
# Disable the modulator
GPIO.output (22, False)
else:
# lamp 1 off
print "lamp 1 off"
GPIO.output (11, True)
GPIO.output (15, True)
GPIO.output (16, True)
GPIO.output (13, False)
# let it settle, encoder requires this
time.sleep(0.1)
# Enable the modulator
GPIO.output (22, True)
# keep enabled for a period
time.sleep(0.25)
# Disable the modulator
GPIO.output (22, False)
elif lamp=='2':
if state=='on':
# lamp 2 on
print "lamp 2 on"
GPIO.output (11, False)
GPIO.output (15, True)
GPIO.output (16, True)
GPIO.output (13, True)
# let it settle, encoder requires this
time.sleep(0.1)
# Enable the modulator
GPIO.output (22, True)
# keep enabled for a period
time.sleep(0.25)
# Disable the modulator
GPIO.output (22, False)
else:
# lamp 2 off
print "lamp 2 off"
GPIO.output (11, False)
GPIO.output (15, True)
GPIO.output (16, True)
GPIO.output (13, False)
# let it settle, encoder requires this
time.sleep(0.1)
# Enable the modulator
GPIO.output (22, True)
# keep enabled for a period
time.sleep(0.25)
# Disable the modulator
GPIO.output (22, False)
# Clean up the GPIOs for next time
GPIO.cleanup()
-----------------------------------------
This is the file you open from your web browser via your web server on the Pi. The UI is just four buttons which send a bespoke message to the Pi to execute the switches.py code. Either '1' or '2', followed by 'on' or 'off':
FILE "switches.php"
Messaging Page
Select a lamp...
Lamp 1 on
Lamp 1 off
Lamp 2 on
Lamp 2 off
Good morning from Florida’s Space Coast. Apple Pi👍🏽
Alhamdulillah..dapat ilmu lagi..
Salam dr indonesia..
Greetings from the UK! :)
Thanks for knowledge..
Sorry i am speak in indonesian language because i am can't speak english..
I used google translate..
Thanks again for the knowledge
I too used Google Translate. :)
Nice product and I'm in luck it's available in Canada Amazon.ca. Around $65.00. Thanks for bringing it our attention Chris.
i would recommend you buy a "manual" remote control set and hack into the manual remote control.
For that price you could buy two identical sets, get double the sockets and have a spare "manual" control left.
- Bonus would be, you could simply override the RasPi with your manual remote control any time.
And you would have a approved and "allowed to transmit" product.
I think it could be done in program in node red with dashboard and timer. Just my opinion, if you intent to let other people to operate without python knowledge.
I like Node-RED!
I have just been thinking about trying to set up a raspi to control an outlet! I was going to use a relay, but this way is a little less invasive with the wiring in the walls!
Just by a standard cheapo set with a "manual" remote control and hack into the remote control (optocoupler or directly, usually switches to gnd or vcc).
But please keep in mind, that those power sockets take power all the time because they always listen,
AND take even more power if they have to hold the relay in ON state.
@@PsiQ I was planing one doing some stuff with Internet Of Things, so they could be controled remotly and just for fun as well!
Great video Christopher. I should look more into IoT like this. I'm now reviewing a USB3 low light camera. I'll compare it with the raspberry cam V2, the NanoPi DUO2 with it's cam, and my action camera's I use to film my videos.
It works amazingly with low light. Great colors in the dark with only my pc display for light. The other camera's only have blurry dark image then.
I'm going on a big cycling trip thru the UK next month. I'll take that camera along to film myself at night in my tent.
I'll go to Calais -> Dover, and then ride under London along the sea, then go up and above London to Harwick to take the boat to Rotterdam. And from there back to Belgium. I've been enough times in London. And I don't want to ride my bicycle with my trailer thru London. I hope the British roads are ok for me. I see many small roads when watching British movies.
I really need the trip. I've had some very bad things happening last years/week. And now would like to be able to put it to rest.
Have a great day. Thank you for all your great content. It has helped me when I was doing bad. And it brought me to making my own videos too.
Greetings, NicoD
Thanks for this Nico. I have thought about you this week as I've been making a video on an Orange Pi 3. :) Should post a couple of weeks today (unless my Atomic Pi arrives very rapidly!).
@@ExplainingComputers I would have loved to buy the Atomic Pi. But since I'm saving money for my trip I'm not buying anything now. I should have some great gadgets comming for free. When back from my trip I'll have enough work to do. I'm also changing jobs. I might have a bit more time then to make UA-cam videos.
You could try the nightly Armbian images for the Orange Pi3.
dl.armbian.com/orangepi3/nightly/
These are untested. But the latest builds. You can not yet get official Armbian support for it since it's still in development. Some things don't work yet. In a few months things should be a lot better when kernel 5.2 matures.
Greetings.
If you have already some set with a remote, you can buy a cheap 433mhz rf-module set (transmitter and receiver) ,about 0,99 euro on ali. It is very easy to use with Arduino so I guess it might also work with rasbpi. The only thing you have to do is find the right frequency however when there is an remote, you can listen to the remote to find the correct code. Cheap! ;-) With the rasbpi you can connect it to the internet by designing a webpage with controls that you can access over the web.
I have Tasmota Wifi sockets. These can be switched on and off with a wget command on the Rasp Pi.
Wish there was a US version of this so I could try it out.
Great video, would love to see if you can integrate this device, with Amazon Alexa or Google Home, so you could use those devices to tell the Pi to turn them on or off
I have used these type of controllers for a number of years now but not with a Pi only the supplied controller.
I have found that after a while the units have a tendancy to 'Stick On' (Inductive loads that take large currents on switch on, (high powered lamps and I think Google Home)) and the only way to turn your device off is to select off and give the unit a good single sharp hard knock.
This must be because the cheap circuit inside must be arcing when transitioning from On to Off to On and 'Welding' the relay contacts shut.
I haven't bothered to implement a solution yet but a Y (or X, probably Y as these are designed to fail open) class capacitor across the contacts may prevent this arcing and stop the contacts from welding together.
Also, when you take the unit out from the socket, they (After about a minute or so) lose their pairing and you need to go through this process again. (On the devices I have used anyway)
Hope this helps.
Very useful feedback, thanks for sharing here. I had the sockets removed from power for about an hour and they remained paired when reinserted. I did not test longer than that though. They are clearly intended to be left inserted.
Why not just use home assistant and a cheap esp8266 plug? Just a suggestion. Good video.
Or purpose-built programmable plug timers, but I suppose those aren't as much fun since they don't require any tinkering.
I would think 433 as this is a general spectrum band used for toy walkie talkies and other packet radio stuff ala door bells / garage door controllers.
868 would be the other free to use iirc ( the UK is somewhat more fickle so do check ).
Run on python 2 save yourself the hassle.
Why have they not updated the software?
Maybe you should send them your edited code Chris.
Excellent video
I'm sure if he had them at the time, Kevin McCallister would have made good "Home Alone" use of this.
Another fascinating and detailed guide.
I note the 4 socket pack dates back to 2010 on Amazon. Is there potential for major "improvement" in a new version should one be released in the foreseeable or can I order one now even though I don't have a pressing need atm?
I doubt this tech will improve. Development is now focused on online / WiFi hardware.
@@ExplainingComputers
Yes unfortunately the least intelligent product version the uneducated hordes use brainlessly to make things very easy for future thieves burglaring their homes keep winning out. Even governments are pushing 'smart' electricity meters which are basically n invitation for e-stalking or worse.
Can't help thinking this as a modern day Catweazle marvelling "Electrickery" as he flicked the light switch on and off.
Fascinating info Chris, thanks as always!
Love it, thank you for sharing your amazing video. God bless you and your family
Hi this is a great video, as was the previous chapter with the lightbulbs. I have a question: the remote control functionality is very much down to the Energenie product. I can't find this online, maybe they went bust. Can you recommend a suitable alternative product. I'd really like to use this format, rather than your wired example, because a few years ago I had an Arduino catch fire and obviously this method keeps the 220/240V away from the Raspberry itself.
Those MASSIVE UK mains sockets look positively FRIGHTENING compared to the diminutive US sockets! It looks as if you could power a land excavator with a single one of those!
You can, but as every British person knows, its two main purposes are to power fast-boiling kettles for making tea quickly, and for inflicting pain when stepped on barefoot in the dark at night. :-)
We also have less anxiety about home invasion here because every single one of us has at least one three pronged deadly weapon within easy reach at all times.
Thank you very much your IoT project and review helps us alot thank you. I have question
I want make nas-storage for home which bord I used to get well performance and work 24x7 and I connect multiple hhd or sad to it ?
The multiple drives is the issue with SBCs. :) A Rock64 makes a nice NAS -- ua-cam.com/video/gT-EGNl9bZA/v-deo.html -- but for multidrives, consider something like a RockPro 64: ua-cam.com/video/9CCQicHwfDI/v-deo.html Or maybe a Rock Pi 4B, as it has two USB 3.0 ports.
Very informative video, thank you very much!
Greetings from London!!!
Greetings! :)
Hi I think this is really cool, I'm really looking forward to your update on this for the lux sensor, the little project I'm working on hopefully with your help is I've got solar panels on the back of my house and a wemo plug on my hot water tank so my plan is when the sun comes out it turns my wemo switch on that is connected to the heating element in my hot water tank ,ideally I need to put some rules in when the sun gets brighter it will trigger the switch when it goes over 1kw, if you have any ideas please let me know, I'm extremely new to this but this idea has been banging round in my head for sometime, I look forward to any replies.
Hi there can you do a video on the best budget single board computer with USB 3.0 and Gigabit Ethernet for NAS and open media vault. Thank you
That would be the Rock64 -- video here: ua-cam.com/video/gT-EGNl9bZA/v-deo.html Or comparison video including other options here: ua-cam.com/video/U5Y6XwFyU2s/v-deo.html
I am very surprised that they work at 30 meters, that's a long way for 433Mhz radio, thanks for the video very interesting, looking forward to the sensors.
topic suggestion: voice control... just because it's more convenient than clapping or having a timer.
Great Scott Marty.....
You can use this to feed the fish.
Nice product for the control of mains-powered device control. Is it certified as safe for everyday use by a recognized consumer product safety authority?
Also, is there any type of security built-in, or can it be switched using _any_ similarly equipped Raspberry Pi, Arduino, etc. (i.e., by a drive-by hacker)?
The Energenie products are CE certified. I drive-by hacker should not be able to get in, as the device has to be paired with the transmitter on the Pi.
Nice video as always. If the Timer function is in the RPi code, what happens if the mains supply fails, or there is a 'brown-out?. Does the code re-start (but no Timer?) I don't think you've covered it, but perhaps time for a proper RPi UPS HAT or add-on?. Not the usual cheap ones which under-power -with the 'lightning strike' always displayed.
The code would only restart if the Pi were set to run it on boot (which I have covered in other videos, if not here). I like the idea of a Pi UPS HAT. :)
Very interesting video. Thank you.
A new one? Cool.
Thanks. Excellent information.
Very good.
Interesting things Raspberry Pi can implement in home automation compared to home automation of yesteryear, looking forward to the motion sensor edition and hopefully include video survellience stored on a device (or view with Mobile Phone capabilities) along with security lighting.
Thanks for this. I did a video on setting up a motion controlled surveillance camera using the Pi here: ua-cam.com/video/8YUM7jio6dk/v-deo.html There are so many possibilities here! :)
Home automation was soooo going to be the next big thing.
And then it wasn't.
@@ExplainingComputers ahh yes, the motioneyeOS, I forgot about that episode, thanks for reminding me.
@oceania68 MotionEye of course uses the camera to detect motion (very processor intensive). In the next video in this series I'll be using a PIR dectector. :)
Excellent 👍 those GPIO lines were what I needed today, thanks!
Python is not that fast performancewise but it's great for quick proofs of concept, really liking it.
At 14:10 and 14:16 mins, I'm curious if you wouldn't have gotten the Traceback (on ctrl+c) if you had used:
except KeyboardInterrupt:
# as they did in ENER002-2PI_Py3.py
GPIO.cleanup() # I like clean exits
They're huge! Chris, what do you think of the Web Of Things gateway from Mozilla? Can you do a review on that?
I will indeed be covering web-based devices/services later in this series. :)
@@ExplainingComputers Awesome. You do such a great job. I really look forward to seeing it.
Nice Product.
Nice "small movie light"! Costs about a half dozen RPs and Pi-motes or same as AMD PC w/o graphics card?
You are correct. An Arri 150 is indeed about £/$350+. Most of the lighting on this channel is done with two Arri 650 Plus Fresnels, with the 150 added in as necessary for various highlights or shadow fills -- most commonly illuminating the inside of USB ports on side-angle close-up shots of SBCs. All not cheap -- until you compare them to the LED options! :)
Is there a similar product for Arduino?
To make it really magic Display "LUX" on switching on and "NOX" on switching off
I got the notification exactly the same time I need such a socket.
It is really cool
Oh look 👀 it’s an energenie in a box 📦
Hmm, why don't they make a Python 3 version of their script available? Clearly they are both aware of it and know what changes are needed, so it would be nearly effortless to provide that script as a third download link.
ohhh i get so excited when i see those sexy british sockets, they are soooo tiny
@@unlokia well not at all
They’re massive compared to Australian sockets
Thank you very much sir
Hi, is this rather limited compared to other systems in that only energenie things can be controlled, compared to other systems with multiple vendors such as zigbee or z-wave ?
It depends on your point of view. The sockets here are not networked devices, so yes, can only be (directly) controlled from the Pi (although the Pi itself could be accessed over a network). However, some may see this as an advantage, as there is no security risk as devices are not being put online. :) I will be covering networked controllers later in this series.
Thank you Christopher, I've been patiently waiting for this one since you mentioned it some time back. Only disappointment for me was the limitation that they must be more than six feet apart. Others may be interested to know there is a solution... Energenie ENER010-PI Radio Transmitter PCB and 4 Gang RF Extension Lead.
Yes, indeed -- I should have mentioned the 4-way! :)
perhaps a new episode which also could include a simple GUI or commandline menu to control the switches.
This channel, Carey Holzman and Flossy Carter ....my go to for everything tech...Marques Brownlee too
Well presented video as usual. Radio and WiFi are only any good for experimenting. If anyone is going to do things actually in your home use Ethernet. LAN is the best for a permanent installation. Also, Chris, show them how to use IoT MQTT broker with the two way communication units.
this is perfect!! anything from or like this product for the usa?? please help!
Nice video , but I think relay would be cheaper !
Certainly. I covered relay control in this video: ua-cam.com/video/bOGltcgiXiU/v-deo.html
Is it possible to do this with just the Pi functioning as a relay/switch in a extension cord?
is there EU socket compatiable vesrion? it seems that this energenie line is either out of stock or only selling UK plugs
Have you had problem with updates on windows 10 pro - mine updated all but 1 file and it won't update the other 1 for nothing - chatted with 2 windows techs and office 16 won't install right either - no luck it said it was Intel audio software - updated that - then USB hardware - so I disconnected my Blueray player - - I've restarted my desktop several times - just curious - I've heard they have problems with windows 10 pro updates and I believe it - thank for listening - my desktop does work by the way just the 1 file and office 16 pro
Yes, I've seen this issue. I would not worry about it. :)
@@ExplainingComputers Microsoft came out with a major update yesterday and I downloaded it and that was that - the file is gone - and now office is on my desktop working again - that major update took care of the problem so far - thanks
Raspberry Pi + OpenHab + tons of different HW. E.g. Shelly Smart Plug - connected over Wi-Fi, controlled by MQTT or HTTP.
Please make review of OpenHab
I will cover OpenHab. :)
Can i used both energenie wireless socket and power relay?
Yes.
good video
Last...... Preparing dinner while watching
Interesting. I suppose you could separate the scripts to an on script and an off script and setup cron jobs to have them operate via dates, not just time.
Indeed. :)
Could you connect it to the Nvidia Jetson so when the camera sees a specific object the lights turn on? E.g. put banana in front of camera, lights on. Put granny smith in front of camera, lights off?
Would be an amusing project
This could indeed be done!
could you pair 2 or more devices together. so when sending the code "turn on socket 1", it actually turns on 2 or more sockets at the same time ?
Probably, yes - in that you could pair more than one socket as "Socket 1", etc.
Can I use a Pi 4B for such an application, instead?
You can indeed. :)
Your 220v sockets look so big and ungainly to my American sensibilities (or lack thereof).
They're way safer than American-style outlets, though.
Do you know anything about wifi jamming with Rsspberry or equal hardware?
Not something I know about, sorry.
@@ExplainingComputers What mini computer would be your first advice for someone being stuck with Arduinos that I'm unable to ping although it happened two years ago? I want to program it, use it, and it must be working with a macbook or linux. Be hassle free.
A Rasp Pi 3B+.
I like how the sockets are shipped Human Centipede style.
What is the name of the wireless protocol used here? It looks like Bluetooth but you didn’t say.
It is not a wireless networking protocol. It is, I think in the 433MHz, commonly used for short-range control for home appliances.
433
👍
Bought the EU version of these sockets. Switching on/off reliability is pretty low for me. Hardly usable that way.
Is there a North American equivalent of the Energenie stuff?
Why would anyone think using a multicore computer to turn a light on and off is a good idea :/
I think you've missed the point -- what I am demonstrating here is one part of a potentially wider solution where that computer could have wired and wireless control of a number of devices, which are operated via time settings and a range of sensors.
@@ExplainingComputers I wasent actually talking about you personally, sorry. I guess I been spoilt with MCU's lately. They seem to do all that too.
But what I really meant was, Id like to see someone use or better yet, program a Pi to even 10% of its potential.
Ah, now that certainly makes sense. :)