Best posts made by Tag

Hi!

Please sign me up for the beta testing of alpha2!

@jkandasa

Just tested and it works like a charm!!!
Really great examples, that are easy to implement.

Mycontroller was already great, now it is even better!!.

Thank you!!

Hi All,

I am working with Mycontroller for quite some time now on the RPI, works like a charm!!
however for on thing, and this was already mentioned in the release notes, you have to use Oracle java instead of the opensource java.

The issue is that if you are using the opensource java version the software responds slow, it becomes really annoying after some time..... So, today i decided to install the Oracle version of Java, and that made a HUGE difference!! Mycontroller is responding really fast and snappy now on the RPI!. below are the steps i found to install oracle java

Before you start, make sure you have a backup of the RPI flash card, or at least you Mycontroller database!! (and of course on a different disk.......).

I downloaded the 32bit version.... (Linux ARM 32 Hard Float ABI 77.77 MB jdk-8u101-linux-arm32-vfp-hflt.tar.gz)

http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/downloads/jdk8-downloads-2133151.html, click the download button of Java Platform (JDK) 8. Click to Accept License Agreement, download jdk-8-linux-arm-vfp-hflt.tar.gz for Linux ARM v6/v7 Hard Float ABI.

(If you are running your RPI headless you need to download the software and sftp it in binary mode into your RPI)

• goto the directory where you downloaded the software.
• sftp user@192.168.178.111 (192.168.178.111 is just an example, use the IP / hostname of the RPI)
• bin
• hash
• put jdk-8u101-linux-arm32-vfp-hflt.tar.gz
• press control-D to close the connection.

Once the software is uploaded:

1. Log-in Raspberry Pi, enter the command to extract jdk-8u101-linux-arm32-vfp-hflt.tar.gz to /opt directory.
   $ sudo tar zxvf jdk-8u101-linux-arm32-vfp-hflt.tar.gz -C /opt

2. Set default java and javac to the new installed jdk8.
   $ sudo update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/javac javac /opt/jdk1.8.0_101/bin/javac 1
   $ sudo update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/java java /opt/jdk1.8.0_101/bin/java 1

$ sudo update-alternatives --config javac
$ sudo update-alternatives --config java

3. After all, verify with the commands with -verion option.
   $ java -version
   $ javac -version

(Source: http://www.rpiblog.com/2014/03/installing-oracle-jdk-8-on-raspberry-pi.html)

Take my advice, you will not regret this, My controller is really great software and it runs even better now!!

Tag.

NOTE: If you plan to use RPI native serial port, you should enable serial port for user. By default it will be used for RPI console access. You may follow this tutorial to disable console output on RPI serial port.

:thumbs_up: Well done!!!

@jkandasa

Wow! great idea!
I think that what makes mycontroller really great at this moment:

• Clean GUI where all is easy to find
• The black/white theme
• Graphs that can be modified
• Easy to setup

For the future:

• More different gauge like stuff
• Ability to change the gui to have a black background
• InfluxDB
• Easier way to setup automated rules
• Android App (this would realy be an addition)
• Intergrate Serial2MQTT

I am using InfluxDB for approx 1 week now where mycontroller simply "dumps" the data. This is a really cool feature. (when you mention influx are you planning to use the complete "TICK" stack which influxDB is part off?)

The main platform for me is RaspberryPI/OrangePI zero, the reason is that these devices are not that power hungry, try to make this as "green" as possible, and mycontroller fits really nice in this setup

Mycontroller as it is right now is already a very good project which i use from one of the earliest versions. I looked at different controllers, but kept coming back to Mycontroller.

Keep up the good work, and if you need any help testing let me know!

@Stephan35

Here is how i got all working.

1. Start your favorite editor (nano or vi) and make a file called mycontroller in /etc/init.d

sudo vi /etc/init.d/mycontroller

2. copy the following text into the file (Make sure to get the path to mycontroller right!! in my case i used /home/user/mycontroller)

#! /bin/sh
# /etc/init.d/mycontroller

### BEGIN INIT INFO
# Provides:          mycontroller
# Required-Start:    $remote_fs $syslog
# Required-Stop:     $remote_fs $syslog
# Default-Start:     2 3 4 5
# Default-Stop:      0 1 6
# Short-Description: Start daemon at boot time
# Description:       Enable service provided by daemon.
### END INIT INFO

# The following part always gets executed.
# echo " Mycontroller rocks!!"

# The following part carries out specific functions depending on arguments.
case "$1" in
  start)
    echo "Starting Mycontroller"
        /home/user/mycontroller/bin/start.sh
    ;;
  stop)
    echo "Stopping Mycontroller"
        /home/user/mycontroller/bin/stop.sh
    ;;
  *)
    echo "Usage: /etc/init.d/mycontroller {start|stop}"
    exit 1
    ;;
esac

exit 0

3. Make the file executable:

sudo chmod 755 /etc/init.d/mycontroller

4. Now add the script to the initd environment:

sudo update-rc.d mycontroller defaults

5. Test the script with the commands below:

sudo /etc/init.d/mycontroller start

and after mycontroller has started successfully:

sudo /etc/init.d/mycontroller stop

If troubleshooting is required/ search for mycontroller in /var/log/syslog this is the file where all output massages will appear.

That should do the trick, depending on your version of linux, (in mycase armbian) it might be that a different startup mechanism is used.

Tested all on an OrangPI Zero running armbian (Jesse) and RaspberryPI running Ubuntu Mate 15.10 both mycontroller applications are "up" after a reboot.

@jkandasa

Great!, found this: https://github.com/Pi4J/pi4j/issues/230
Seems support is being implemented for orange pi in PI4j... seems still experimental, maybe nice to test.

See this link

Hi!,

Not sure if this is the correct place to post a request, please point me to the right direction if not...

I really like the graphs and use them a lot to visualize data, to take this to the next level it would be nice to have a gauge like widget.... Is that possible?

I have tried to implement the gauge example from the demo site however it does not work for me, it seems to be running without any error but the gauge just stays "blank"

Another issue is that it is not possible to run the gauge "offline", you always need an internet connection..

Thanks for the help!!

Kind regards,
Tag

@wanvo

Good point
IMHO the "TICK" stack is very complex, and therefore maybe not so suitable for a larger audience, the beauty of mycontroller is that it is relatively easy to install and use.
InfluxDB can be setup automatically..

Another thing that needs to be taken into account is that the TICK stack is very resource hungry (ofcourse depending on the load from the sensor network), the OrangePIzero will have a hard time with just 512MB memory... even 1GB is small for the complete stack.

Just my 2 cents..

@Stephan35

What is your current runlevel? , check with the command

runlevel

Mycontroller is only started in runlevel 2-5 so if you enter runlevel 0,1 or 6 mycontroller is stopped. (make the changes in the top of the script..)

Another issue might be that the cript itself in incorrect.... make sure that the startup script starts with

#!/bin/sh

This is really important.

So the complete file should look like this:

#! /bin/sh
# /etc/init.d/mycontroller

### BEGIN INIT INFO
# Provides:          mycontroller
# Required-Start:    $remote_fs $syslog
# Required-Stop:     $remote_fs $syslog
# Default-Start:     2 3 4 5
# Default-Stop:      0 1 6
# Short-Description: Start daemon at boot time
# Description:       Enable service provided by daemon.
### END INIT INFO


# The following part always gets executed.
#echo "This part always gets executed"

# The following part carries out specific functions depending on arguments.
case "$1" in
  start)
    echo "Starting Mycontroller"
        /home/user/mycontroller/bin/start.sh
    ;;
  stop)
    echo "Stopping Mycontroller"
        /home/user/mycontroller/bin/stop.sh
    ;;
  *)
    echo "Usage: /etc/init.d/mycontroller {start|stop}"
    exit 1
    ;;
esac

exit 0

If you execute the following command,

grep -i mycontroller /var/log/syslog

what is the output?
(if no output, look into an older file like i.e syslog.1)

In my case the output is:

root@orangepizero:~# grep -i mycontroller /var/log/syslog.1
Feb 25 11:27:40 localhost mycontroller[474]: Starting Mycontroller
Feb 25 11:27:40 localhost mycontroller[474]: /usr/bin/java
Feb 25 11:27:43 localhost mycontroller[474]: java version: 1.8.0_121
Feb 25 11:27:43 localhost mycontroller[474]: Start issued for Mycontroller

Upgraded 2 days ago, works like a charm!!
still the best controller out there, and keeps getting better!!

@jkandasa

Well, now using a mixed environment!, a Mysensors 2.0 gateway and 1 Mysensors 2.0 node. Rest is still Mysensors 1.5 and will be moved to 2.0 over time.

Mycontroller still works like a charm and recognised the library version in the node information so it is possible to have a mixed environment.

Again many thanks for this link! https://forum.mysensors.org/topic/4276/converting-a-sketch-from-1-5-x-to-2-0-x
I used it to rewrite my sketch from 1.5 to 2.0.

Keep up the good work!!
Tag

Now you mention it it would be nice to have an "and" / "or "condition in the rules section...

@zachflem said in [HOW TO: Automatically turn off relay after defined time]

For my garden lights, i disable the rule if triggered once and re-enable it after 20 hours, so that is does not keeps switching the relay on over and over again...

Very extensive tutorial!! great work!! :thumbs_up:

Updated!!, restored database everything is back again!

Thanks!!

Thanks!!, got the gauges working now!!

Hi!,

Using Mycontroller for over 1 year now and i have to say this is a rock solid piece of software!!.

I was wondering if it is possible to display text on a dashboard based on a sensor value, i.e
If my light sensor detects light, it might say on the dashboard "Warning hallway light is on", or when a door is open, "Garage door open.." Or "Garage door closed.."

Another one would be If my heat storage is over 70 degrees, "Shower ready"

I have tried to figure this one out, but i have no clue where to start...

Hope someone can shine a light on this, thanks for thinking along and add features to mycontroller!

Tag

Done!!, works like a charm!!, 4 columns work best, if 5 columns are used, the gauges are too big...
need to play around with the gauge size for this

Sign me up! I will test!

---===[ UPDATE ]===---
Houston, we got lift off, all systems go

Now i check my logs and find lots of these:

2018-02-06 19:02:36,966 INFO [mc-th-pool-5] [org.mycontroller.standalone.provider.EngineAbstract:209] Retry count 1 of 3
2018-02-06 19:02:43,865 INFO [mc-th-pool-5] [org.mycontroller.standalone.provider.EngineAbstract:209] Retry count 1 of 3
2018-02-06 19:02:44,372 INFO [mc-th-pool-5] [org.mycontroller.standalone.provider.EngineAbstract:209] Retry count 2 of 3
2018-02-06 19:02:44,885 INFO [mc-th-pool-5] [org.mycontroller.standalone.provider.EngineAbstract:209] Retry count 3 of 3
2018-02-06 19:02:45,409 INFO [mc-th-pool-5] [org.mycontroller.standalone.provider.EngineAbstract:209] Retry count 1 of 3
2018-02-06 19:02:45,924 INFO [mc-th-pool-5] [org.mycontroller.standalone.provider.EngineAbstract:209] Retry count 2 of 3
2018-02-06 19:02:46,436 INFO [mc-th-pool-5] [org.mycontroller.standalone.provider.EngineAbstract:209] Retry count 3 of 3
2018-02-06 19:02:47,084 INFO [mc-th-pool-5] [org.mycontroller.standalone.provider.EngineAbstract:209] Retry count 1 of 3
2018-02-06 19:02:57,479 INFO [mc-th-pool-5] [org.mycontroller.standalone.provider.EngineAbstract:209] Retry count 1 of 3

How to figure out what is going on here?

• What is being re-tried?
• Why is it being re-tried?

Approx 2 years ago i discovered the Mysensors library and i really liked it from the start.
Below i will try to explain a little on how i use my controller and what my setup of the sensors network is.

The setup i am using is all NRF24L01 based, it includes a number of nodes, all with special purposes, from measuring, displaying data to controlling stuff.

First the most important part, the Mycontroller software. This is basically the heart of my IoT setup. Once i started with Mysensors, it became clear that you need a piece of software that gathers the data and makes nice graphs and such. I have looked at a number of controllers, but each time I ended up with Mysensors since it is very easy to implement, lightweight, looks awesome and works like a charm

So making the choice for Mycontroller was easy, and i have build a light weight server around it. I started with a normal PC, but that uses a lot of power and is basically overkill, so i switched to a RaspberryPI (Model B ) and this setup has run for over a year!, then i decided to start testing the OrangePI Zero, it is very cheap, has a quadcore CPU and 512Mb memory. Unfortunately the Mysensors gateway was not compiling on the OPI-0, but with a lot of help from the developers on the mysensors forum we were able to get it up and running. So what does my setup looks like, (today) since stuff will be added over time

My Setup:

The controller:

• OrangePI Zero (512Mb model)
• NRF24L01 direct attached to the GPIO header
• 16GB SD Card
• Running the Mycontroller software.

Sensor 1

• BMP085 barometric pressure sensor
• Using the temperature sensor from the BMP085 for the inside temperature
• Outside NTC for temperature

Sensor 2

• Rain Meter which measures the amount of water that fell from the sky

Sensor 3
Room temp sensor with a display that cycles through Time / Humidity / Temperature / Light level(Lux)

• DHT22
• 8 character 7 segment display
• LDR to measure the light level
• Gets the time from the server.
• Various leds to display receive/transmit/error of data

Sensor 4
Just a display node, this is an arduino which has a 16x4 display attached and it receives all kind of data from the network. This is very nice since you can get an overview of data without logging on to a system.

• Arduino nano
• 16x4 display
• NRF24L01 radio

Sensor 5
Water temperatures from the central heating system, it shows the temp of the water that goes into the system, the temperature of the water that is returned and the hot water usage for showers, dishes and so on.

• 3x DS18B20

Sensor 6
Power usage, this sensor is connected to the P1 port of the smart power meter. it is a digital port that shows the current power usage, and all kinds stuff you want to know.

• Arduino nano
• transistor
• bunch of resistors

Sensor 7
433Mhz Gateway that is used by Mycontroller to switch lights on and off based on the outside light level.

• Arduino nano
• 433Mhz transmitter

Sensor 8
Outside battery operated sensor that was setup to see howlong a sensor is able to survive on just 2 AAA batteries

• Arduino ProMini 3.3v with the powersaving mods (no voltage regulator / no led), in sleepmode it uses
  5 microamps, and away 4 milliamps. It sleeps for 5 minutes, wakes up, measures and sends data.
• LDR
• DHT22 (temperature and humidity)
• Buck converter to "push" the voltage to 3.3v
• Transistor to switch the sensors on on demand.

This is basically my setup!, still having fun measuring, but more fun also controlling!!

Update

• Also running mcagent now to monitor the server itself.