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Misterhouse - a Home Driven by Perl Scripts
An anonymous submitter copies from the website: "MisterHouse is an open source home automation program. It's fun, it's free, and it's entirely geeky. Written in Perl, it fires events based on time, web, socket, voice, and serial data. It currently runs on Windows 95/98/NT/2k/XP and on most Unix based platforms, including Linux and Mac OSX. It can talk, it can check your messages, control the lights, program your VCR, and what is best - it understands spoken commands. It can even track your car by interfacing to a TNC. And there are 600 users and 209 authors contributing to this project. Cool, eh?"
This may be of value for more information as the site is ./ds
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MisterHouse/message
I've dug deep into my extensive bookmarks library to find some links that might be appropriate to this story.
Scott Crevier's Home Interface
Home Automation.org
Perl AUtomation System (PAUS)
UK Rocketman
BottleRocket
Thank you.
I'm not Seth Finkelstein. I still speak the truth.
Probably a bad idea, but...
I was able to snag a copy of the Features page before the Slashdotting began (damn near got first post, too, but I actually wanted to *read* a bit before I posted). I've put a copy on my web server.
Oh, and I believe this is the Google Cache, but it's barely even responding. We couldn't have Slashdotted Google, could we?
How To Get Humans To Mars
Just to clarify: X10 is a standard. It's not inherently evil. It only seems that way because of the company that is also called X10 (the one that does the pop-ups, etc.).
Hardware List (taken from FAQ:
:)
(Google Cache)
6.8 What sort of hardware do you have in your house?
This is what is currently (04/2001) in Bruce's house (see mh/docs/mh.* 'List of supported hardware interfaces' for more info):
- Mh running on a dual 600 PIII Win 2K box great for quick mh debugging
- SB Live Value sound card (supports simultaneous sound sources)
- PCI ByteRunner 8 port serial card
- PCI phone modem for callerid logging and announcements
- Linux box for hosting misterhouse.net
- 5 other networked computers for mp3 client/servers, shoutcast server, games, writing, and work from home
- Radio Shack PA amp with a PA speaker in each room
- Wiring closet with 3 DIO weeder cards and 2 analog cards
- 16 relay card from jameco for PA speaker switch
- Home brew motor/relays for up/down control of 9 Window quilt curtains
- RF sensor in the mailbox across the steet
- WX200 weather station from Radio Shack
- Relays controling garage door and furnace heat and fan
- Digital input sensors on doors and garage door
- A few iButtons for testing
- X10 IR commander and CM17 for sending IR signals
- X10 CM11 with X10 consoles in each room for control
- X10 motion sensors, light, and appliance modules
- Matrix-orbital LCD keypad for local output and control
- WAP cell phone for remote queries and control
- A ham radio TNC for tracking 2 GPS APRS equipped cars
- NetGear router with mh monitored SYSLOG data for tracking internet traffic
- MSVoice VR via a Andrea Desktop Array microphone
http://sourceforge.net/projects/misterhouse
h ttp://www.misterhouse.net:81/
or
http://misterhouse.sourceforge.net/ I've been following this site for a while now. The components used are x10 .. no not the camera
http://www.smarthome.com/
You can get all the automated living stuff you want from sites like this. Lowes stores also cary a limited number of x10 lights and usually a thermostat or two.
For basic control, you can get X-10 powerline control stuff at x10.com, or worthdist.com, or even your local Radio Shack. The computer-to-powerline interfaces run $10-$50, the most common one is the CM11a. There are also computer-to-wireless interfaces like the MR26 that let you receive keypad presses. The wireless keypads can also control devices directly.
There are plug-in modules to control lamps and appliances, they generally run $5-$15 each. You can also buy wire-in switches and outlets that can be controlled by X-10 signals, cost is $10-$70 each. So you probably don't want to replace every switch in your house.
There's a lot of activity on the comp.home.automation group if you want to learn more.
Someone asked what it can run on, I'm using it on my RH Linux 7.3 box on an AMD 400MHz with 256M RAM and a 30G drive (30% used). I've got 12 serial port in use (caller ID, weather station, CM11a, HCS II, dallas one wire network, etc. ). I need to put some more work into it but in a couple of weeks I'll be moving one of my Audrey's into the living room so we have a touch screen interface to MH from there. MH may not be a simple DIY project but it is extremely powerful. I have it turning things on and off as needed (such as printers attached to print servers, uses X10 to turn on and off the printer). I've got more than X10 but we don't want this message to get too long. Linux Home Automation
http://mywebpages.comcast.net/ncherry/
http://linuxha.sourceforge.net/
http://hcs.sourceforge.net/
MisterHouse seems to use controllers using the X10 protocol, which is widely available in 220V. Here for example.
If construction was anything like programming, an incorrectly fitted lock would bring down the entire building...
Here is the link to the linux drivers for the x10 camera. X10 Camera under Linux Drivers I should let the Misterhouse team know.
imagine a beowulf cluster...
That would be a suburb with one master key going to all the locks and random neigbours crashing in your house all the time...
Sounds like a blast!
True ravers don't need drugs
MisterHouse has been around for a while now and mainly relies on X10 modules. It works fairly well but as one other poster noted it really does need a dedicated box with a bit of muscle or it's a bit slow and frustrating to use. I came across it while looking for X10 software for linux, which it runs on as well as OSX and most versions of Windows. There are many similar products out there for Windows, Mac and even a few simple ones for linux. The most popular/commercial product was a piece of software for the ActiveHome module that came as part of IBM's Home Director kit (I can't remember what the old version was now it comes with HomeVoice). In all my years of using X10 I'd still have to say XTension for the Mac was one of the coolest products out there as it let you create a floorplan pretty easily and it ran well on an old 75Mhz PPC. Lately I've just been using Heyu which is a simple command line interface for linux that supports macros. Anything I want to do I can set a cron job to do automagically or start an ssh session and do from work or wherever. Sure there's no voice control, but personally I always felt a little weird even using speech recognition on the Mac, it could never quite understand "Who's your daddy?" -peel
For maximum configurability without dedicating a whole PC, try an Allen-Bradley SLC 500 series PLC.
You just need to get higher quality modules, and do a little background work. I've got more than 40 devices with no problems, although I haven't gone the heating/cooling control route (yet).
"I don't understand why making a computer the primary control for everything in the house has such appeal. Especially things like lighting and heating."
Note that word you use there--"I". You are not me. You're requirements do not match everyone else's. You are unique. You are an individual. So am I. Consider consideration, thinking that maybe others may have other needs or wants.
To address what you said...for the novelty. To have everything in one location. To heavily reduce programming and system maintenance time (if you write good code and test it well). To remove themselves from single vendor solutions or changes in model. To reduce wiring costs and associated costs (labor) (and reduction in structure strength reduction that typically comes with it). To reduce rewiring by using existing wiring.
The argument is similar to the "one robust server" versus "many cheap, redundant, separate lesser servers" argument.
[switching lights, 'occupancy' sensors]
Not all houses are small. Not all houses are contiguous units. I, for example, have 1 computer that goes over a WiFi access point to control devices in a barn--RS-485 to ethernet and back translation devices on either end.
btw, not everyone wants to pay $60 per highest end consumer thermostat for a room by room zoned house, when a single epia and $5 dallas semiconductor sensors will do the job for less.
Occupancy sensors do not have the capacity to switch off when you want to turn off the front door light from the master bedroom, much less be able to be viewed and checked online.
btw, if you don't have the use for it, that's fine. Don't buy it or use the project.
[window shades]
You're kidding me, right? PICs have their place. For me, it wasn't worth the time and trouble, not to mention design, maintenance, production.
In the farmhouse I'm in, there is 1 room with 1 window. The average number of windows per room is 3. It's on a hill. I automate blind movements to save on heating and cooling costs. In fact, I use 2 blinds--one for light (semitransparent), one outside that is a thick sound absorbing material I rigged up. iow, I also automate blind movements based on SOUND as well as time and light because the area around me is no longer a farm but next to a busy pikeway (thank suburban creep and all the young jackasses that blast their bass).
The great thing with central computing is the extensibility--the front living room got a couple plasmas for a media room. The code required simply was to rig the IR receiver (RS-232 serial) to receive a code (from a Palm pilot) and all the shades drop. Took me 1 minute to think about it, and 2 minutes to drop the code in. Try that with your pic. The room has 4 windows and a door--with your picks, it would have taken you 5 minutes per outlet just to remove the PIC units for reprogramming. A few weeks waiting for the IR sensors. Blah blah blah.
Hence the term "Secondary controller"
I am not opposed to the idea that a computer be allowed to control basic energy/comfort systems aroudn the home. I can see great advantage in that.
Why buy a top of the line thermostat? A $10 (if that) bi-metallic strip + contact type is all you need. With the computer as a secondary controller, it makes sense. The thermostat would maintain the temperature in the room at a preset temp unless the computer tells it not to. (I believe these types of thermostats have both high and low temp contacts, after all...)
An occupancy sensor may not be able to turn your porch light on from your bedroom, but a photo cell will turn it on if it gets dark. The computer can override the sensor to either turn the light off at night or on during the day.
Both types of devices can be connected to a computer to make it aware of it's state, and thus monitorable from the internet (if you're that paranoid about it)
Same thing with the window shades. Default behavior with central control override if required. Since you've already gone through the trouble of motorizing them, it seems like an awfully small step to make a system that's just as flexable and much more reliable.
The barn is a perfect example. If something goes wrong with the wireless link, it's completely dead.
The point is to avoid single point-of-failure types of situations. Each part of the house can operate semi-independently while still having more complete control from a single point.
And regarding the "many cheap, redundant, separate lesser servers" comment... that seems to be Google's take on it, and they seem to be doing pretty well. On the flip side, even robust server setups are built with redundancy.
And you said it yourself, everyone has their own needs... but personally speaking I've never understood why people go out of their way to make a solution much more complicated than the problem really calls for.
=Smidge=
Mr House is running on my MP3 server/mail server/ internal DNS server/web server.
It handles around 5000 messages/day, streams MP3s and generally just runs.
It's a K5@233 with 48MB of RAM. It cost me $200 a long time ago. It will never die. It's sole purpose was to spit files to the net from a large disk for the other machines. The NeXT didn't cut it (IDE was cheaper :).
Why not the dual CPU 1u under it? Cause the K5 has ISA for the 16 port serial card ($100) and the LCD text console ($80) I have. (and it's quieter than a 1U).
And it's BORED.
I'm likely gonna move it to the soekris (133MHz 486 that's got two wireless and two ethernets) and get serial via the terminal server. (you DO have a terminal server, right? No? geek-wannabe.)
The code and configs kinda of want a big cleaning, like BigBrother did. Big Sister long wanted "redo" of BB4. Lots of script components, but it means that when an event happens (motion in garage), I can kick off a script of my own writing without huge API pain.
-=-= -=-=
X10:
not reliable, not ideal. I have a couple lamp modules from 1985 that are fine (replaced a triac in one with one that wasn't crap - that was $3 and 10 minutes of my life).
I don't use x10.com stuff generally (cept for the $4 firecracker).
X10 is a protocol. Developed in the late 70s. It runs over power.
False lights? It's either a neighbor or noise. I had the problem once and put a filter on at the entry of power and never had a bump since.
If you can't make X10 work ok for you, then you're not tall enough. Boot your machine into windows and take the blue pill, hop over to disney.com and note the challenging and cutting edge filmography going on there.
That said, I'd never let it (or any computer) control my heat, or doors without failsafe in place. (heat will alway be between 50 and 75, x10 or computer can control between those. Nobody dies. Basic industrial control rules.
Shoot at X10 as you will, but for the price, I can control 25 lights in my house without ripping into walls, etc. The nearest competition is Lutron's RF stuff ($200 per light switch - but it's reliable RF).
The fantasy? An outlet that spoke IPv6 over SLIP over RS-485 which could provide control and feedback with strong authentication. For $5/outlet. Let me know when that's available.
-=-= -=-=
So MisterHouse controls/watches the X10.
It talks to my weeder technology boxes, it talks to my 1-wire stuff, it spews out stuff for my 3com audrey.
It doesn't talk at me nor I to it.
At night, I hit a button, based on that it's got an idea where I am. It looks at the alarm and might note that a door is open and beep at me. it can't control the alarm, that's stupid. It can WATCH the sensors though. I hit the button, it gives me 10 minutes and shuts off all the lights that aren't in the bedroom.
Plans? catch the weather (nobody on the www uses a standard form, bastards, it's all pretty and unparseable). If it's gonna be warm, don't bother turning the heat up at 8AM unless it's really chilly inside. (thermometer that has a "vacation" mode that can be twiddled by a computer).
Main uses? I hit a "watching a movie" button and the lights set, the TV/DVD/VCR go on. Motion outside will turn up the lights (someone coming in late).
When did UPS come? Oh, someone rang at 3:30. It was raining then, yell at them for leaving a box out in the rain without a signature.
Dedicated box? My single 700MHz Misterhouse system is my Apache webserver, Samba fileserver, MP3 repository, Obsequium server, DNS server, NTP server, mySQL server, POP server, IMAP server, etc, etc, etc. Because of all the spare cycles the thing has, I am running Folding@Home on it!
You do not need anything dedicated, folks.
"Beware of he who would deny you access to information, for in his heart, he dreams himself your master."