HomeKit Clarification

🧰 Built-In Apps and Drivers HomeKit
1

All I need from HomeKit is to pass my Apple TV on/off info BACK to Hubitat.

This can't actually work, can it? I see this blurb in the docs.

" Note that this integration is one-way: Hubitat devices can be shared with HomeKit. This does not allow for direct integration of HomeKit-only devices into Hubitat."

Thanks!

2

What this means is that you cannot share a device on HomeKit from HomeKit to Hubitat (Apple does not provide a way to do this). It does not mean that commands from HomeKit won't go to Hubitat (that is part of what the integration does), so if you have a way to trigger a HomeKit automation based on the status of your Apple TV, you could create a virtual device in Hubitat and a HomeKit automation that would achieve your goal.

But whether this is possible or not, I don't know. A quick look at my Home app suggests "no," unless there's a way to trigger automations with Apple TV and not just control it with actions, which is all I'm seeing...

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3

100% - This is very easy to do as HomeKit does know when devices are on or off. You just need the following:

1/ a virtual switch shared to HomeKit from Hubitat
2/ a HomeKit automation that turns the switch on when the ATV turns on
3/ a HomeKit automation that turns the switch off when the ATV turns off

4

Can you share how you created these automations?

I'm not seeing a way to create an automation based on an Apple TV status, only control it as part of another kind of automation. Specifically, is not showing up in any "Events" list I can find when creating a new automation, neither "An accessory is controlled" (seems the most logical) or "A sensor detects something" (also looked just in case).

5

I don’t have an Apple TV, but id have thought it was the same as what I setup for my LG TV:

When an accessory is controlled:

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IMG_00062160×1620 230 KB

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IMG_00072160×1620 203 KB

IMG_0008
IMG_00082160×1620 156 KB

In my case I’m turning on a scene:

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IMG_00092160×1620 205 KB

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IMG_00102160×1620 198 KB

6

Mine isn't showing up there. Might be something different about actual TVs compared to an Apple TV?

7

Hmm, I just did some googling and you are correct, HomeKit can’t use the ATV power state for automations.

Rather frustrating. :cry:

8

I looked into this a few months ago and it seemed it wasn’t possible. There’s an advanced ATV plug-in available for Homebridge that’ll probably do it. I moved everything from Homebridge to the built in integration but kept Homebridge running as well.

9

I have my Apple TV device on a Zooz smart power plug that is linked directly to Hubitat. I use that to tell me when it is off, idle, or being actively watched. The power differences are small but repeatable. This is a more direct approach than fussing with a custom Homebridge integration of a native Apple device.

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10

Good call...I never thought of that and that would probably be the easiest route for @ts1234. In my setup I leave the ATV on permanently, I don't even bother with the sleep setup. The 'Watch Apple TV' activity has a switch that's available using the Logitech Harmony integration if I want it.

11

Yup - I used to do the same, but the full and honest story for my setup is that I recently upgraded my main TV to a Fire Omni smart TV so I moved the Zooz switch from the Apple TV to the Amazon Omni TV directly. Even though I no longer use my Apple TV, the concept of monitoring the power switch for TV watching status still applies.

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12

Thanks everybody. I might try the zooz solution …thank you.

I do like having everything controlled by one system… And wasn’t really thrilled about adding apple into the mess.

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13

Thanks for the response :blush: