Jandy Automation with Alexa, SmartThings, and Vera

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S

sshumate

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Sep 9, 2015
5
Austin, TX
A couple of years ago, I reverse-engineered Jandy's bus protocol for their controller (including AquaPure and ePump protocols) and developed my own device to control it using a custom web interface. I didn't really like the Jandy iAquaLink since it was cloud-based, hard to integrate into my setup, and the Android app is a bit clunky.

I recently added SmartThings and Alexa to my Vera-based home automation and I wanted my device to be easier to integrate so I developed a Philips Hue bridge emulator for it so that now Alexa, ST, and Vera all see it as a Hue bridge and all of the Jandy controls appear as simple switches. This makes integration on all three one button simple without having to worry about installing extra plugins or other integration components.

I do a fair amount of Android development in my professional life so I also created an Android application to provide even more control including a virtual OneTouch panel that looks and acts just like the real thing.


I just wanted to share in case anyone was interested.

Here are some Android screen shots:


app1.jpg app2.jpg app3.jpg app4.jpg
Here is what it looks like in SmartThings:
st1.jpg st2.jpg
 
I have a Qolsys / zwave based home automation system and would LOVE to be able to control the pool using Alexa ...
Im helping to Beta test the IQ Panel.
Im in IT but Im not a programmer.
Id love to give it a try
 
I use Autelis and the Vera Plugin discussed here.

What device did you develop to do this, BTW? I do recall some discussion about a USB adapter or something but this is much more than that as you need to get it first on your local network and then accessible via the internet.
 
Silver_2000 said:
I have a Qolsys / zwave based home automation system and would LOVE to be able to control the pool using Alexa ...
Im helping to Beta test the IQ Panel.
Im in IT but Im not a programmer.
Id love to give it a try
Click to expand...

What kind of Jandy system do you have? I have only tried it on my RS6 with a OneTouch, AquaPure, and an ePump variable speed though it should work on any of the RS-series systems.

- - - Updated - - -

Sammy2 said:
I use Autelis and the Vera Plugin discussed here.

What device did you develop to do this, BTW? I do recall some discussion about a USB adapter or something but this is much more than that as you need to get it first on your local network and then accessible via the internet.
Click to expand...

I looked at the Autelis products but I wanted something with WiFi and easy Alex/SmartThings/Vera integration. The Autelis device is $300 and has just a web interface. I built my device for < $20.

I saw the USB adapter but it requires a wired connection to a server and is far from plug and play for automation.

Here's a picture of my device if anyone is curious. It's about the size of a deck of cards.

device.jpg
 
I'm impressed. Did you buy a PCB and then program it or did you build it all from ground up? For me, I don't have a whole lot of experience building electronics unless you count the diode AM radio I built about 50 years ago.. I could buy all the parts but the time to put it together would be nothing compared to my steep learning curve to program it. I figured you extracted the serial signals off the Jandy RS435 and programed this device to emulate them

Yeah, I had to use a wireless bridge to get my Autelis working wirelessly but the android app page is pretty good. That said, I don't use that much because I can do more with it using the Vera Plugin. What you've done is way beyond me.

Edit by Jim R. TFP.. mod..
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I designed the PCB and had it made for cheap at OSH Park which is a company that batch processes a bunch of PCB orders together to amortize the setup costs. I think the board cost was about $6. I used an ESP8266 WiFi module which is a super cheap ($2-$3) device very popular with the DIY and maker crowds. The ESP8266 is connected to the Jandy bus via an RS485 transceiver and some surge suppression devices. There is also a small power supply on the PCB that converts the Jandy 12V bus power to 3.3V.

To reverse engineer the Jandy protocol, I used the Jandy RS Serial Adapter to generate commands and this device to snoop the bus and record the data. My pool installer included an RS Serial Adapter with the pool build but I decided it would be more fun to do it myself with WiFi. I found the basic frame format from someone who figured out the All Button protocol and went from there. So far, I just know the parts of the protocol for the equipment I have which is the RS6 panel, the OneTouch, an AquaPure SWG, and an ePump variable speed. I don't know if other equipment like the All Button changes the bus behavior much or if there are panel firmware differences. I'd be willing to post the parts of the protocol I've figured out if anyone is interested.
 
sshumate said:
I designed the PCB and had it made for cheap at OSH Park which is a company that batch processes a bunch of PCB orders together to amortize the setup costs. I think the board cost was about $6. I used an ESP8266 WiFi module which is a super cheap ($2-$3) device very popular with the DIY and maker crowds. The ESP8266 is connected to the Jandy bus via an RS485 transceiver and some surge suppression devices. There is also a small power supply on the PCB that converts the Jandy 12V bus power to 3.3V.

To reverse engineer the Jandy protocol, I used the Jandy RS Serial Adapter to generate commands and this device to snoop the bus and record the data. My pool installer included an RS Serial Adapter with the pool build but I decided it would be more fun to do it myself with WiFi. I found the basic frame format from someone who figured out the All Button protocol and went from there. So far, I just know the parts of the protocol for the equipment I have which is the RS6 panel, the OneTouch, an AquaPure SWG, and an ePump variable speed. I don't know if other equipment like the All Button changes the bus behavior much or if there are panel firmware differences. I'd be willing to post the parts of the protocol I've figured out if anyone is interested.
Click to expand...

Ill take one ... come up with a price ... ;)
 
sshumate said:
What kind of Jandy system do you have? I have only tried it on my RS6 with a OneTouch, AquaPure, and an ePump variable speed though it should work on any of the RS-series systems.

- - - Updated - - -



I looked at the Autelis products but I wanted something with WiFi and easy Alex/SmartThings/Vera integration. The Autelis device is $300 and has just a web interface. I built my device for < $20.

I saw the USB adapter but it requires a wired connection to a server and is far from plug and play for automation.

Here's a picture of my device if anyone is curious. It's about the size of a deck of cards.

View attachment 58222
Click to expand...

Looks like I have an RS8, and a second panel with an additional 6 more solenoids in it ..
and aquapure and 3 pentair pumps. All currently controlled by Iaqualink
 

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sshumate said:
A couple of years ago, I reverse-engineered Jandy's bus protocol for their controller (including AquaPure and ePump protocols) and developed my own device to control it using a custom web interface. I didn't really like the Jandy iAquaLink since it was cloud-based, hard to integrate into my setup, and the Android app is a bit clunky.

I recently added SmartThings and Alexa to my Vera-based home automation and I wanted my device to be easier to integrate so I developed a Philips Hue bridge emulator for it so that now Alexa, ST, and Vera all see it as a Hue bridge and all of the Jandy controls appear as simple switches. This makes integration on all three one button simple without having to worry about installing extra plugins or other integration components.

I do a fair amount of Android development in my professional life so I also created an Android application to provide even more control including a virtual OneTouch panel that looks and acts just like the real thing.


I just wanted to share in case anyone was interested.
Click to expand...

S,
I have a Vera Lite, and Autelis PDA version, I just added a 5.0 chip to the 52 pin PPD when I updated to a VSP (RPM and Watts are now displayed on PDA and phone interface). I know that none of the 'layers' or (html commands?) are available in the PDA version that you get in the regular RS system, but just wanted to see if this was a limit of the chip or the programming that would make this information available in the data stream? I have an used Digi Port Server and would love to be able to get information/control into Vera!
 
I'd like to purchase one, let me know the details.


sshumate said:
A couple of years ago, I reverse-engineered Jandy's bus protocol for their controller (including AquaPure and ePump protocols) and developed my own device to control it using a custom web interface. I didn't really like the Jandy iAquaLink since it was cloud-based, hard to integrate into my setup, and the Android app is a bit clunky.

I recently added SmartThings and Alexa to my Vera-based home automation and I wanted my device to be easier to integrate so I developed a Philips Hue bridge emulator for it so that now Alexa, ST, and Vera all see it as a Hue bridge and all of the Jandy controls appear as simple switches. This makes integration on all three one button simple without having to worry about installing extra plugins or other integration components.

I do a fair amount of Android development in my professional life so I also created an Android application to provide even more control including a virtual OneTouch panel that looks and acts just like the real thing.


I just wanted to share in case anyone was interested.

Here are some Android screen shots:


View attachment 58158 View attachment 58159 View attachment 58160 View attachment 58161
Here is what it looks like in SmartThings:
View attachment 58162 View attachment 58163
Click to expand...
 
Did anything come of this? I just came across this while trying to do some automation and this is just what I need. I am willing to print PCA, order parts, and assemble myself if details were provided. Or buy a solution. Please share your knowledge...

I have an RS6
 
Not the same solution as this, but I wrote some software that will do the above and a lot more. Just put it on a raspberry pi add a usb2rs485 adapter and you can control it from its web interface or any home automation system you want.
https://github.com/sfeakes/aqualinkd

$25 in parts is all you need.
Pi zero w $10
usb2rs485 $10
cf card $5

Then add time to set it all up, and configure your home automation, and your up to $500;)
 
sshumate said:
I designed the PCB and had it made for cheap at OSH Park which is a company that batch processes a bunch of PCB orders together to amortize the setup costs. I think the board cost was about $6. I used an ESP8266 WiFi module which is a super cheap ($2-$3) device very popular with the DIY and maker crowds. The ESP8266 is connected to the Jandy bus via an RS485 transceiver and some surge suppression devices. There is also a small power supply on the PCB that converts the Jandy 12V bus power to 3.3V.

To reverse engineer the Jandy protocol, I used the Jandy RS Serial Adapter to generate commands and this device to snoop the bus and record the data. My pool installer included an RS Serial Adapter with the pool build but I decided it would be more fun to do it myself with WiFi. I found the basic frame format from someone who figured out the All Button protocol and went from there. So far, I just know the parts of the protocol for the equipment I have which is the RS6 panel, the OneTouch, an AquaPure SWG, and an ePump variable speed. I don't know if other equipment like the All Button changes the bus behavior much or if there are panel firmware differences. I'd be willing to post the parts of the protocol I've figured out if anyone is interested.
Click to expand...


Looks like great work. Can you share with us more details ? I'm very interested to try that.
 
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