Raspberry Pi user shows home-automation feats using iPhone

Feb 08, 2013 by Nancy Owano weblog
Raspberry Pi user shows home-automation feats using iPhone Enlarge

(Phys.org)—The latest hacker enthusiast who is out to demonstrate Raspberry Pi's potential has a system that pairs SiriProxy with Raspberry Pi to perform numerous home automation feats, just by speaking commands into the iPhone. "Elvis Impersonator" has shown in a YouTube video how he can change Siri from a glamorous job as Concierge to a role as domestic helper. With the Pi running SiriProxy, his commands via iPhone result in his desired reactions based on his predefined instructions. "Elvis Impersonator" can order garage doors to open and close; he can adjust a thermostat, and can change channels on his TV, among other feats.

For those with the skills and time to spare, the good news is in how he did it. "All my SiriProxy plugins are on my GitHub page and are all open source, non-commercial use. In an effort to help further interest and development of SiriProxy based applications, I created a RPi SD card image with SiriProxy pre-installed to make it that much easier for people to get started."

This video is not supported by your browser at this time.

His system components include:1. Elk M1 Gold security panel; 2. ISY99i Series X10/Insteon lighting controller; 3. Trendnet IP cameras; 4. Nest Thermostat; 5. RedEye IP2IR controllers; 6. SiriProxy running on a RPi; 7. iOS MobiLinc HD; and eKeypad Pro for /iPad touch control (not in video).

"Elvis Impersonator" said he started exploring what can be done in and control in 2008, visiting the pursuit "as time and disposable income permitted." He said he worked with iOS app developers during this time, beta testing and suggesting capabilities for their apps. He had been following the development of SiriProxy since its initial appearance in late 2011. (A developer in 2011 created a proxy server third-party , designed specifically for Siri. The developer used a plug-in to control a WiFi thermostat with . Last year, DarkTherapy in a Raspberry Pi forum, said he had a project involving SiriProxy running on the Raspberry Pi along with wiringPi to access the Pi's GPIO pins and turn a relay on/off. The relay was hooked up to his garage door system. That gave him control of the door with Siri on his iPhone.)

"Elvis Impersonator" got SiriProxy installed and working on a Marvell SheevaPlug ARM based plug computer. After acquiring a Raspberry Pi, he ported SiriProxy and plugins and then set out to make the video.

Explore further: Raspberry Pi posts news about camera board and prize winner

More information: www.youtube.com/channel/UCkgOfVAb1D3mzD7oqsnmX-w

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gwrede
not rated yet Feb 08, 2013
There are lots of people doing things like this, now that a good computer running Linux costs a mere $35. And you can write programs for it in Python, C or any other language you want.

Now that computers and programming are accessible to everyone, I'd expect an explosion of applications.

Maybe we'll never actually see the proverbial programmable and internet connected toaster, but almost everything else. And who needs Java now that Python is already here and can be picked up by an average person.

-------

More interesting is, what happens now to the PC market? I've just spent three months using a Pi for net surfing, dong my spreadsheets and word processing and some movie watching. (Heavy web sites are too much for the Pi, though.) (Uptime: 98 days!!) Within two years I expect to see a multicore Pi with a little more RAM. And some competitors, too.

If this is huge for us, imagine what it does in the Third World!!
FMA
not rated yet Feb 08, 2013
I think it is more meaningful to add a function to monitor the energy consumption and improve it.
Mike_Massen
not rated yet Feb 08, 2013
gwrede must be nostalgic with
Now that computers and programming are accessible to everyone, I'd expect an explosion of applications.
How familiar, I recall Apple, MS, Sinclair, Amstrad saying just the same thing decades ago...
gwrede
not rated yet Feb 17, 2013
@Mike_Massen: Lol, true. But then, today we have as many apps in Apple's app store as the grand total of programs and application software in Sinclair's day. Even totaling the apps of all brands at the time!
Mike_Massen
not rated yet Feb 17, 2013
..But then, today we have as many apps in Apple's app store as the grand total of programs and application software in Sinclair's day..
The thing that dissapoints is the architecture of the system hardware/OS doesn't easily lend itself to writing ones own apps directly from primitives in the operating system which creates a resistance to thinking for efficiently by general public.

Script design of various types could have been built in much earlier & decades ago, it either isn't in people's mindset at the design level or if it is its brought out as a commercial package much later.

I recall using Teco (Text Editor & Corrector) on the KL-10 decades back, it was dead easy to add keystrokes for macros, recursion & all sorts of complex methods of simplifying & making more efficient routine and diverse editing.

Admittedly this was on a command line basis but the equivalent hasn't yet been achieved in any direct way with UI & pointers, whether mouse or fingers :-(
gwrede
not rated yet Feb 21, 2013
@Mike: Well, on Linux you can write "man 2 syscalls" and you get a list of "primitives in the operating system". (For windows, you probably have to find some pdf file.) But programming with these is like building a real house out of Legos, in essence a huge lot of work. At the other end are languages like Python and Java, where you can even write a Web Server in less than a half page of code.

But I agree, the trend, especially with single-user operating systems (i.e. Windows) applications, is to gobble up all the horsepower. Luckily, at least Linux programmers have some restraint here.

Text editors used to be targeted for intelligent people, who also read the manual. Today everything is created for the masses, and that unfortunately means it has to be usable with only primary school abilities. And it means using macros, especially with recursion, branches or iteration, is simply too abstract. Unfortunately.

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