Home theater shade control

[photonmech]

Hello, new user, first post.  Wanting to get automated motors for three shades - 2 windows, 1 sliding glass door.  Ultimately want to control with Google Home and alternately via phone app.  Which control system do you recommend?  What components do I need?  Already using Google Home for lighting and theater components with the help of Harmony for IR devices.  When I looked into this over a year ago I think I had settled on Kit #1 (http://rollertrol.com/store/en/diy-motorized-window-blind-kits/25-projector-screen-motor-or-large-blind-kit.html) plus a BroadLink Hub.  Does that still sound like a good start for one roller?  Will that get me going with Google Home?  Once I get one figured out I think I can then purchase 2 additional tube motors for the others.  Thanks

[admin]

Hello, thanks for your question; we get that a lot these days.

The BroadLink hub is very nice because it can control both IR and RF for a very affordable price. There are different ways to connect with Google home, and it's very likely that someone has done more work with it since we last looked. In the meantime, the BroadLink hub is a very good starting place for your journey into home automation.

Here is our article series on setting it up with the phone app that can also run on tablets:

http://RollerTrol.com/blind-motor-phone-app-introduction

We have taken it a step further by using the BroadLink hub connected to the excellent (free) Home Assistant (HASS) program running on a Raspberry Pi. We use it with the Alexa plug-in, but HASS also has a plug-in for Google Home.

We have had HASS (written in Python, btw) running on a Raspberry Pi with the BroadLink hub plug-in for several years, without any problems whatsoever. Here is a link to our article series about that:

http://RollerTrol.com/raspberry-pi-smart-home-with-home-assistant-and-broadlink-part1

We have about 5 Raspberry Pi computers running here, for various purposes; it is a very versatile, affordable platform. For instance, we also use it with the built-in software called Node-RED, running with Alexa voice control, which is another amazing home automation program that is worth a look. Here is our article series about Node-RED, BroadLink hub, and Alexa:

http://RollerTrol.com/blind-and-shade-control-with-alexa-part1

This RPi has also been running for over a year without any problems. I just walk into our great room, say "Alexa, turn on Theater Mode" and it closes all the blackout blinds on 3 windows, deploys the 10 foot projector screen over the 4th window, and turns on the 8.1 channel Dolby sound system and HD 1080P projector.

Another way of using voice control is with our new Z-Wave group controller; you can use with any Google Home enabled Z-Wave hub. Here is the link to the website (NodeSwitch Controls is our manufacturing division):

https://NodeSwitch.com

By the way, if you need blackout blinds, please check out our custom blind and shade division:

http://AutomaticBlindsAndShades.com

In short, there are actually numerous ways of integrating Alexa or Google home with your system; it's up to you which way you want to go, but just getting the BroadLink hub with phone app is a great starting place.

Regards, Adrian

Adrian Biffen
Senior Tech
RollerTrol Automation Systems