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HOME AUTOMATION WITH OPEN HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE

Introduction
Automation
Parts list
Installation of the controller
Installation of the extra components for Home Assistant
Implementation of the actuators and sensors
Creation of the automation rules
Demonstration

Introduction

Home Automation with Open Hardware and Software (a.k.a. OpenHome) was a school project made in a few weeks by a student at College of Engineering and Architecture of Fribourg, Switzerland (HEIA).

Context

The main goal of this project is to offer an Open Source alternative to commercialized solutions, like Samsung SmartThings or Philips Hue.

In this project, Home Assistant is used as the controller and the MQTT protocol is used for the communication between the controller and the actuators/sensors.

The controller is installed on a Raspberry Pi 3 and the actuators/sensors are built on top of NodeMCU boards (ESP8266).

Architecture

Network architecture:

Note: For simplicity, a NodeMCU module is used to connect two lamps and a sensor. In reality, a module will be used for each lamp or sensor.

Application architecture:

Automation

In this project, only the lightning is automated, based on the departure/arrival of the occupiers, the state of the television in the living room or the occupancy of the bed in the bedroom. The lightning is also used to simulate a presence when nobody's home.

Automation rule overview:

Change the lightning when the TV is switched on or off
Simulate the sunrise when the alarm clock rings
Simulate the sunset when the person is going to bed
Simulate a presence when nobody is at home

The rules are further explained in the chapter Creation of the automation rules.

Parts list

Hardware:

1 Wi-Fi router
1 Raspberry Pi
3 NodeMCU boards (or any module based on an ESP8266 chip)
2 RGB LEDs
4 White LEDs
1 PIR sensor (HC-SR501)
1 Load cell
1 Signal amplifier (HX711)
1 Photo-resistor
1 iBeacon
1 iOS device

Software:

Arduino IDE (here)
ESP8266 core for Arduino (here)
MQTT library (here)
HX711 library (hre)

Installation of the controller

Home Assistant

To install Home Assistant easily, a Raspberry Pi All-In-One Installer is available here. More recently, a Raspberry Pi image was released here. This image comes pre-installed with everything we need to get started with Home Assistant. For this project, we just need Home Assistant and the Mosquitto MQTT broker, so I prefer to install everything manually.

First, we need to update the system and install some Python dependencies.

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get upgrade
sudo apt-get install python-pip python3-dev
sudo pip install --upgrade virtualenv

Then, we create a new system user, hass, to execute the service for Home Assistant. This is a good practice to reduce the exposure of the rest of the system and provide a more granular control over permissions.

sudo adduser --system hass

We create a new directory for Home Assistant and we change its ownership to the new created user.

sudo mkdir /srv/hass
sudo chown hass /srv/hass

We become the new user and we set up a virtual Python environment in the directory we just created. A virtual Python environment is a good practice to avoid interaction with the Python packages used by the system or by others applications. Then, we activate it.

sudo su -s /bin/bash hass
virtualenv -p python3 /srv/hass
source /srv/hass/bin/activate

And now we are ready to install Home Assistant.

pip3 install --upgrade homeassistant

Finally we can run Home Assistant by typing the command below.

sudo -u hass -H /srv/hass/bin/hass

For starting Home Assistant on boot, we need to create a service for systemd. Someone has already created one and we can just download it.

sudo wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/home-assistant/home-assistant/master/script/home-assistant%40.service -O /etc/systemd/system/[email protected]

This service needs a little modification. We have to replace /usr/bin/hasswith /srv/hass/bin/hass. The line in question should look like this now ExecStart=/srv/hass/bin/hass --runner.

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/[email protected]

We need to reload systemdto make the daemon aware of the new configuration.

sudo systemctl --system daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable home-assistant@hass
sudo systemctl start home-assistant@hass

To upgrade the system in the future, we just need to type the commands below.

sudo su -s /bin/bash hass
source /srv/hass/bin/activate
pip3 install --upgrade homeassistant

If HTTPS is used (link below), we need to add the following lines into the configuration.yamlfile.

http:
  api_password: '[REDACTED]'
  ssl_certificate: '/etc/letsencrypt/live/[REDACTED]/fullchain.pem'
  ssl_key: '/etc/letsencrypt/live/[REDACTED]/privkey.pem'

Important files

Configuration file: /home/hass/.homeassistant/configuration.yaml
Logs file: /home/hass/.homeassistant/home-assistant.log

The entire configuration is available here.

Optional steps:

Allow a remote access to Home Assistant and protect the GUI with HTTPS (here).
Use Tor to make remote access anonymous (here).

Sources:

Mosquitto MQTT broker

To install the latest version of Mosquitto, we need to use their new repository.

wget http://repo.mosquitto.org/debian/mosquitto-repo.gpg.key
sudo apt-key add mosquitto-repo.gpg.key

Then we make the repository available to apt and update its informations.

cd /etc/apt/sources.list.d/
sudo wget http://repo.mosquitto.org/debian/mosquitto-jessie.list
sudo apt-get update

Finally we can install Mosquitto and its client, for testing purpose.

sudo apt-get install mosquitto mosquitto-clients

The MQTT protocol provides authentication and ACL functionalities to protect its use. To create a username/password, we just need to use mosquitto_passwd.

cd /etc/mosquitto/conf.d/
sudo touch pwfile
sudo mosquitto_passwd pwfile ha

And to restrict publishing/subscribing, we need to create a aclfile, in which we specify the username and the relevant MQTT topics.

cd /etc/mosquitto/conf.d/
sudo touch aclfile

ACL examples:

user ha
topic write entrance/light1/switch topic write entrance/light2/switch
...
topic read entrance/light1/status
topic read entrance/light2/status

If MQTT over TLS (link below), username/password and ACL are used, we need to add the following lines into the mosquitto.conffile.

allow_anonymous false
password_file /etc/mosquitto/conf.d/pwfile
acl_file /etc/mosquitto/conf.d/aclfile
listener 8883 (optional)
cafile /etc/mosquitto/certs/ca.crt (optional)
certfile /etc/mosquitto/certs/raspberrypi.crt
keyfile /etc/mosquitto/certs/raspberrypi.key (optional)

To link Home Assistant with the Mosquitto broker, the configuration.yamlfile needs the lines below.

mqtt:
  broker: 'localhost' #127.0.0.1
  port: 8883 #1883
  client_id: 'ha'
  username: 'ha'
  password: '[REDACTED]' (optional)
  certificate: '/etc/mosquitto/certs/ca.crt' (optional)

Important files:

Configuration file: /etc/mosquitto/conf.d/mosquitto.conf
Logs file: /var/log/mosquitto/mosquitto.log

The entire configuration is available here.

Optional step:

Protect MQTT over a secure TLS connection (here).

Source:

Mosquitto Debian repository.

Homebridge

The installation of Homebridge is not mandatory. Homebridge runs on Node.js and this language needs to be installed.

We start by verifying if gitand makeare already installed. It's normally the case on Raspbian Jessie.

sudo apt-get install git make

First, we have to install Node.js.

cd Downloads/
wget https://nodejs.org/dist/latest-v4.x/node-v4.6.0-linux-armv6l.tar.gz
tar -xvf node-v4.6.0-linux-armv6l.tar.gz
cd node-v4.6.0-linux-armv6l/
sudo cp -R * /usr/local/

And install Avahi and dependencies.

sudo apt-get install libavahi-compat-libdnssd-dev screen

Finally we install Homebridge and dependencies.

sudo npm install -g --unsafe-perm homebridge hap-nodejs node-gyp
cd /usr/local/lib/node_modules/homebridge/
sudo npm install --unsafe-perm bignum
cd /usr/local/lib/node_modules/hap-nodejs/node_modules/mdns/
sudo node-gyp BUILDTYPE=Release rebuild
sudo npm install -g --unsafe-perm homebridge

To link Homebridge and Home Assistant together, we have to install this plug-in.

sudo npm install -g homebridge-homeassistant

For starting Homebridge on boot, we need to create a service for systemd. Someone has already created one and we can just download it.

cd ~/Downloads
wget https://gist.githubusercontent.com/johannrichard/0ad0de1feb6adb9eb61a/raw/7defd3836f4fbe2b98ea5a97 49c4413d024e9623/homebridge
wget https://gist.githubusercontent.com/johannrichard/0ad0de1feb6adb9eb61a/raw/7defd3836f4fbe2b98ea5a97 49c4413d024e9623/homebridge.service
sudo cp homebridge /etc/default/
sudo cp homebridge.service /etc/systemd/system

Then we create a new system user, homebridge, to execute the service for Homebridge. We create also a folder /var/homebridge for the configuration file.

sudo adduser --system homebridge
sudo mkdir /var/homebridge
sudo chown homebridge /var/homebridge

We need to create a configuration file for Homebridge. This file will be located in /var/homebridge, with the content displayed below.

sudo nano /var/homebridge/config.json

config.json:

{
  "bridge": {
    "name": "Homebridge",
    "username": "CC:22:3D:E3:CE:30",
    "port": 51826,
    "pin": "031-45-154"
  },
  "description": "homebridge-homeassistant",
  "platforms": [
    {
      "platform": "HomeAssistant",
      "name": "HomeAssistant",
      "host": "https://[Redacted]",
      "password": "[Redacted]",
      "supported_types": ["fan", "garage_door", "input_boolean", "light", "lock", "media_player", "rollershutter", "scene", "switch"]
    }
  ]
}

We need to reload systemdto make the daemon aware of the new configuration.

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable homebridge
sudo systemctl start homebridge

At the end, the Homebridge bridge should be visible inside Apple's Home application.

Configuration of Homebridge in the Apple Home application:

Sources:

Installation of the extra components for Home Assistant

Some extra components have to be installed for providing notifications (with Telegram) with weather conditions (with Forecast.io) to the user and for detecting when the user when is entering/leaving the house (with Owntracks and an iBeacon).

To use Telegram we need to create a bot. The procedure is described here.

Configuration for Home Assistant:

notify:
  platform: telegram
  api_key: [Redacted]
  chat_id: [Redacted]

Forcast.io

To use the data from Forecast.io a account is necessary to retrieve a api_key.

Configuration for Home Assistant:

sensor:
  platform: forecast
  api_key: [Redacted]
  monitored_conditions:
    - precip_probability
    - temperature
    - wind_speed
    - cloud_cover
    - humidity
    - pressure
    - temperature_max
    - precip_intensity_max

Owntracks

Configuration for Home Assistant:

device_tracker:
  platform: owntracks

Configuration for the Owntracks application:

Note: The MQTT broker must be accessible from outside the local network and provide a SSL/TLS secure connexion.

Sources:

Implementation of the actuators and sensors

The sketches are available here. Before using them, we need to modify the Wi-Fi SSID/password, the MQTT username/password, the desired IP address ant the OTA password. The use of TLS is optional.

// Wi-Fi: Access Point SSID and password
const char*       AP_SSID           = "[Redacted]";
const char*       AP_PASSWORD       = "[Redacted]";
...
const char*       MQTT_USERNAME     = "entrance";
const char*       MQTT_PASSWORD     = "[Redacted]";
...
// TLS: The fingerprint of the MQTT broker certificate (SHA1)
#ifdef TLS
// openssl x509 -fingerprint -in  <certificate>.crt
const char*       CA_FINGERPRINT    = "[Redacted]";
// openssl x509 -subject -in  <certificate>.crt
const char*       CA_SUBJECT        = "[Redacted]";
#endif
...
const char*       OTA_PASSWORD      = "[Redacted]";

Entrance

Schematic

LED on the left:

Shortest leg to GND
Longest leg to D1, with a 220 Ohms resistor

LED on the right:

Shortest leg to GND
Longest leg to D2, with a 220 Ohms resistor

PIR sensor:

Red cable to VIN
Yellow cable to D3
Black cable to GND

Configuration for Home Assistant

light:
    # lamp 1
  - platform: mqtt
    name: 'Lamp 1'
    state_topic: 'entrance/light1/status'
    command_topic: 'entrance/light1/switch' optimistic: false
    # lamp 2
  - platform: mqtt
    name: 'Lamp 2'
    state_topic: 'entrance/light2/status'
    command_topic: 'entrance/light2/switch' optimistic: false

binary_sensor:
  platform: mqtt
  name: 'Motion'
  state_topic: 'entrance/door/motion/status'
  sensor_class: motion

Living room

Schematic

LED on the left:

Longest leg to GND
Leg on the left to D1, with a 220 Ohms resistor
Leg on the middle to D2, with a 220 Ohms resistor
Leg on the right to D3, with a 220 Ohms resistor

LED on the right:

Shortest leg to GND
Longest leg to D4, with a 220 Ohms resistor

Photo-resistor:

One leg to VCC
The other leg to GND, with a 10K Ohms resistor and a cable to A0

Configuration for Home Assistant

light:
    # lamp 3 (RGB)
  - platform: mqtt
    name: 'Lamp 3'
    state_topic: 'livingroom/light1/status'
    command_topic: 'livingroom/light1/switch'
    brightness_state_topic: 'livingroom/light1/brightness/status'
    brightness_command_topic: 'livingroom/light1/brightness/set'
    rgb_state_topic: 'livingroom/light1/color/status'
    rgb_command_topic: 'livingroom/light1/color/set'
    optimistic: false

    # lamp 4
  - platform: mqtt
    name: 'Lamp 4'
    state_topic: 'livingroom/light2/status'
    command_topic: 'livingroom/light2/switch'
    optimistic: false
binary_sensor:
  platform: mqtt
  name: 'TV'
  state_topic: 'livingroom/tv/status'

Bedroom

Schematic

LED on the left:

Longest leg to GND
Leg on the left to D1, with a 220 Ohms resistor
Leg on the middle to D2, with a 220 Ohms resistor
Leg on the right to D3, with a 220 Ohms resistor

LED on the right:

Shortest leg to GND
Longest leg to D4, with a 220 Ohms resistor

Load cell to HX711:

Red cable to E+
Black cable to E-
White cable to A-
Green cable to A+

HX711:

VCC to VCC
GND to GND
SCK to D6
DT to D5

Configuration for Home Assistant

light:
    # lamp 5 (RGB)
  - platform: mqtt
    name: 'Lamp 5'
    state_topic: 'bedroom/light1/status'
    command_topic: 'bedroom/light1/switch'
    brightness_state_topic: 'bedroom/light1/brightness/status'     
    brightness_command_topic: 'bedroom/light1/brightness/set'
    rgb_state_topic: 'bedroom/light1/color/status'
    rgb_command_topic: 'bedroom/light1/color/set'
    optimistic: false
    # lamp 6
  - platform: mqtt
    name: 'Lamp 6'
    state_topic: 'bedroom/light2/status'
    command_topic: 'bedroom/light2/switch'
    optimistic: false

binary_sensor:
  platform: mqtt
  name: 'Occupancy'
  state_topic: 'bedroom/bed/occupancy/status' sensor_class: occupancy

Creation of the automation rules

Entrance

Scenario	Description	File
1a	Turn on the light 1 when a person is detected if nobody's home, the sun is below and the person is unknown	here
1b	Turn on the lights 1 & 2 when a person is detected if a occupier's at home, the sun is below and the person is unknown	here
1c	Turn on the lights 1, 2 & 4 when a occupier of the home is detected if the sun is below and it's before 22:30	here
1d	Turn on the lights 1, 2, 5 & 6 when a occupier of the home is detected if the sun is below and it's after 22:30	here

Living room

Scenario	Description	File
2a	Set the brightness of the light 3 to 50% and turn off the light 4 when the TV is turned on if the sun is below	here
2b	Set the brightness of the light 3 to 75% when the TV is turned off if the sun is below	here

Bedroom

Scenario	Description	File
3a	Simulate a sunrise with the light 5 when the alarm clock rings, switch off the light 5 and switch on the light 6, send the weather conditions to the user	here
3b	Simulate a sunset when the occupier is detected in its bed, switch off all the others lights	here

Presence simulation

Scenario	Description	File
4a	Simulate a presence when nobody's home	here

Demonstration

Features:

Change the lightning when the TV is switched on or off
Simulate the sunrise when the alarm clock rings
Simulate the sunset when the person is going to bed
Simulate a presence when nobody is at home
Control the system with Apple Home application and Siri

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openhome

openhome

README.md

HOME AUTOMATION WITH OPEN HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE

Table of contents

Introduction

Context

Architecture

Automation

Parts list

Installation of the controller

Home Assistant

Mosquitto MQTT broker

Homebridge

Installation of the extra components for Home Assistant

Telegram

Forcast.io

Owntracks

Implementation of the actuators and sensors

Entrance

Schematic

Configuration for Home Assistant

Living room

Schematic

Configuration for Home Assistant

Bedroom

Schematic

Configuration for Home Assistant

Creation of the automation rules

Entrance

Living room

Bedroom

Presence simulation

Demonstration

Files

openhome

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Latest commit

History

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Folders and files

parent directory

README.md

HOME AUTOMATION WITH OPEN HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE

Table of contents

Introduction

Context

Architecture

Automation

Parts list

Installation of the controller

Home Assistant

Mosquitto MQTT broker

Homebridge

Installation of the extra components for Home Assistant

Telegram

Forcast.io

Owntracks

Implementation of the actuators and sensors

Entrance

Schematic

Configuration for Home Assistant

Living room

Schematic

Configuration for Home Assistant

Bedroom

Schematic

Configuration for Home Assistant

Creation of the automation rules

Entrance

Living room

Bedroom

Presence simulation

Demonstration