How to make rules with a dwell time

Mozilla IoT
#1

Hi,

I’m just starting off with the Webthings Gateway (version 0.10), so this may be a dumb question, but I want to check my understanding is correct.

Overall I want to get a set of rules so that a hallway light is triggered by a motion detector, and stays on for a period of a few minutes before shutting off again.

It appears that the rule system in Webthings is quite limited - very much a If This Then That without being able to build any intermediate stages. So the way I have found to build this is:-

  1. Rule 1 - Motion detector zigbee device triggers a pulse (addon) device with appropriate settings
  2. Rule 2 - The pulse device controls the lighting device

This has to be done in two stages…

If I wanted to make this so it ran at difference brightnesses (ie dimmer in the middle of the night), I would have to duplicate the whole thing with appropriate time of day restrictions? Actually I am not sure I can do arbitary time period restrictions.

Thanks

Nigel.

#2

Yes, you’ve got the right idea. To do the time of day restrictions, you may want to look at the DateTime add-on.

#3

The way I do this, and yes, more rules are required, but you don’t have to combine the dimming levels with the actualy on/off or motion detection functions. At 11:30pm I simply sent a brighness value and notifier and nothing else, and again at 6am without the notifier.

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Once the brightness levels are in place, the motion detector simply turns them on or off without regard to the brightness, which is already preset.