Our patio doors have enclosed blinds built into them, and I'm kicking around ways that I might try to automate them. As they're enclosed, I obviously can't use any of the existing smart blind retrofit solutions. At least as they come out of the box. But I'm wondering if I might be able to modify them to work on my setup.
As you can see in the photo, the external control for the blinds is a horizontal slider near the top of the door. It go back and forth about 4-5" with the halfway point leaving the blinds as fully open as they get.
My thought is that I could mount a "standard" smart curtain rig (something like Aquara's Roller Shade Driver) horizontally just above that and connect the usual pull-chain/string to the slider switch itself. Maybe with some kind of 3D printed covering. The actual motor functionality wouldn't need to be changed; I'd basically only be modifying the mounting mechanisms.
My question is: is that in fact the best way to go about that? I feel like some kind of solid gear mechanism might work better in terms of reliability/sturdiness, but I'm not aware of any existing smart motor setups that wouldn't necessitate me effectively building it from scratch. I'd be curious to hear others' thoughts and ideas on how this might work, or how I might improve on the idea.
Thanks!
