Modifying GE Smart Fan Controller Driver

bmorgenthaler · January 6, 2021, 7:29pm

I'm looking to modify the GE Smart Fan Control driver to expose the functions indicatorWhenOff and indicatorWhenOn so I can create an app or rule to turn the annoying bright LED completely off (the devices built in parameter 3 doesn't support the Never option - though it is listed for the device in Hubitat).

Is it possible to see the driver code or request that those two functions be implemented?

JasonJoel · January 6, 2021, 7:33pm

Nope

Yup. But as a non-standard command they likely won't add it.

Would be faster to just write a new driver if you really need that. (I think I have one for that device I wrote a few years ago... Somewhere.)

Or, you know, put a tiny piece of white electrical tape over the light and be done with it.

bmorgenthaler · January 6, 2021, 11:27pm

I've found a few drivers for the Plus version of the switch but mine is the older version and it didn't appear to function properly. If you had a version for this device I'd love to see it and see if I could modify it.

As for the white electrical tape, tried it. That freaking blue LED is BRIGHT, it still was showing through it. Adding too many layers doesn't meet the SAF either.

Just fustrating because it was something I could control with ST but I can't with Hubitat which for the most part has been superior to ST.

neonturbo · January 6, 2021, 11:30pm

Try the Basic Zwave parameter tool?

bmorgenthaler · January 6, 2021, 11:42pm

So the basic z-wave parameter tool has been suggested before in my other post about this. The problem isn't knowing the parameter or knowing how to set it, it is in the device itself. The device itself does NOT support a Never option for the LED, it only has the two options Off when On or Off when Off, which the default driver supports.

The issue is that the default driver doesn't expose functions to change this parameter though an app or Rule Machine. In ST someone wrote a very simple app that monitored selected switches and when they turned on it would set the parameter to Off when On and when the switch was subsequently turned off it would set the parameter to Off when Off. There would be a really really quickly blip sometimes between states but not long. This is what I want to get to, I want to "emulate" the never option for this LED.

JasonJoel · January 6, 2021, 11:43pm

Nope, I only have/make drivers for the plus versions. I haven't had a non-plus device in a very long time.

I would recommend going with the white electrical tape over the LED option.

neonturbo · January 6, 2021, 11:46pm

OK, that is a whole different issue. I am not sure a driver could fix that at all...

So port the app? ST apps are pretty easily ported for the most part.

neonturbo · January 7, 2021, 12:46am

The app, if it is the one below, saves when you import it into Hubitat app code section. And it installs the app itself. It appears to work, but I have no way to tell for sure if it is working correctly as I don't own one of these devices. But it at least gets to that step of looking like an app.

github.com

sticks18/SmartThings---SmartApps/blob/master/Zwave-indicator-manager.groovy

// Automatically generated. Make future change here.
definition(
    name: "Zwave Switch Indicator Light Manager",
    namespace: "sticks18",
    author: "Scott Gibson",
    description: "Changes the indicator light setting to always be off",
    category: "My Apps",
    iconUrl: "https://s3.amazonaws.com/smartapp-icons/Convenience/Cat-Convenience.png",
    iconX2Url: "https://s3.amazonaws.com/smartapp-icons/Convenience/Cat-Convenience%402x.png"
)

preferences {
	section("When these switches are toggled adjust the indicator...") { 
		input "mains", "capability.switch", 
			multiple: true, 
			title: "Switches to fix...", 
			required: false
	}
    
    section("When these switches are toggled adjust the indicator in reverse (useful for Linear brand)...") {

This file has been truncated. show original

neonturbo · January 7, 2021, 12:49am

And apparently you can completely turn it off by going ON ON OFF really fast?

thebearmay · January 7, 2021, 12:53am

Sounds like the Konami gaming code that used to be popular:

up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A, start

bmorgenthaler · January 7, 2021, 3:02am

So I have a version of the app that works in Hubitat but the code below does not work because the function isn’t present in the driver:
mains?.indicatorWhenOff()

As for the physical ON ON OFF, that just switches it between the On when Off or On when On states, it never goes to completely off.

bertabcd1234 · January 7, 2021, 3:40am

Hubitat firmware 2.2.5 is reported to have a way to automate device preferences/settings via a special, new built-in app (as you note, preferences are not currently accessible to apps; they can only run commands on the device, and this is not exposed as one by the driver). This is assuming you want to automate this setting and not just change it once forever; in that case, the above suggestions would be my recommendations. But it sounds like you want it to be automated, so waiting for this is all you can do without writing/finding a new driver.

neonturbo · January 7, 2021, 3:42am

So is there a ST driver that did work? What about porting it over?

bmorgenthaler · January 7, 2021, 8:09pm

I have been avoiding porting a driver over because I didn't want to go down the rabbit hole of is it my porting vs is it my driver code but I found one that needed minimal work to get ported. Unfortunately, the device now doesn't show up properly in Home Assistant (connected through MakerAPI) or Amazon Alexa. It just shows up as a dimmer switch. I'll have to keep digging to see what I need to change.

bmorgenthaler · January 7, 2021, 8:25pm

Aha adding "capability "FanControl"" to my definition allowed it to be detected as a Fan, however it doesn't properly support jumping to Low, Med, High speeds so more work needs to be done.

I have however gotten the annoyingly bright blue LED to stay off except for blinking when changing speeds.

bmorgenthaler · January 7, 2021, 8:27pm

Hopefully this will allow me to stay with the default driver and automate the changing of the LED.

bmorgenthaler · January 8, 2021, 3:03pm

So I have a Driver + RM machine combo working but it isn't paying attention to physical switch changes. I know this is related to polling because I can do a manual poll and it updates the state and RM executes turning off the LED. My question is how can I fix this because obviously the native driver handles physical changes just fine.

I looked at Z-Wave Poller but my switch doesn't appear in the lists to select.