Z-Wave roller blinds with Dooya motor, Vera controller and Fibaro shutter module - Part 3

Welcome to part three of my roller blind installation, you can see part one here and part two here.

Today we mounted the roller blind, I still have some touching up to do on the wall and we plan to install a pelmet made of wood, across the top to hide the whole tube / roll. I'll probably paint this pelmet the same colour as the walls.

Here you can see some photos of the ends of the roller blind.

There is no channel in the tube, inside the tube is all smooth to the touch, so the fabric must be stuck on to the tube, rather than the fabric being inserted in to a channel or groove to secure it. 

I recommend you glue the white cap with the pin in to the tube, because when the blind was in operation the white cap wobbled its way out of the tube, as it wasn't a really tight fit. 

As we'd already fitted the blind up and didn't want to take it down again and disturb the fixing screws in the wall, we just used a plastic spacer we made and inserted it against the bracket and the white cap to stop the cap wobbling out of the tube, seems to work well now with no issues. 

Here you can see the motor end of the blind, the two screws are for the mechanical limits. You get a supplied green plastic tool to adjust these. I connected the motor to the mains power and to the wall switch without connecting the Fibaro shutter module first, so I could set the mechanical limits of the motor for upper top position and for lowest down position. 

Test fitting the bracket.

We didn't want to drill up in to the concrete lintel, so instead we mounted the brackets to the sides of the walls inside the window reveal. This meant we had to use plastic blocks behind the bracket to space it out a bit from the wall. 

We also moved the box for the module and cable connectors up, so it will be hidden behind the blind / pelmet. 

Temporary wiring without the Fibaro shutter module to test the motor and setup the mechanical limits on the motor. 

Now wired with the Fibaro shutter module. Hole in the wall where the box was previously located filled in.

Now with the module and cables / connectors pushed back in to the box and the cover screwed on. I used a 47mm deep box and it was only just big enough to fit everything inside of it. The wall still needs fixing with filler and paint. 

Roller blind fitted into the window reveal.

The blind can be operated with the wall switch. Before I fitted the Fibaro module you had to press and then hold the switch up or down whilst the blind went up or down. If you let go the motor stopped. 

After fitting the Fibaro module and running the calibration routine on the module, now you can just press down and release and the blind comes all the way down. Or you can press up and release and the blind goes all the way back to the top. Whilst the blind is moving if you press up or down again the blind will stop in that position. 

We went for a sun screen fabric in grey colour, you can also get full black out fabric from the supplier.

When dark outside the sun screen fabric looks like this. If you want full block you'll need to order the black out fabric. 

In the next part I will do a video of the blind in operation and go over some of the software Vera and Imperihome app.

Part 4 here.

Z-Wave roller blinds with Dooya motor, Vera controller and Fibaro shutter module - Part 2

In part one here I discussed purchasing a motorised roller blind kit for my kitchen patio window. I will be integrating the motor in to my Home Automation controller (Vera) by using a Z-Wave Fibaro roller shutter module.

As its an AC mains powered motor, I had to do some preparation work for the installation of the electric cables and for the wall switch.

Luckily I already had a nearby switch fuse spur, so I decided to take the feed from there.

I wanted to mount the manual wall switch on the wall and also needed to run power up to the top of the window reveal where the roller blind / motor will be.

I had to create a channel in the plaster and install a metal back box. I just took my time and used a stanley knife and a hammer and chisel, to try and keep the dust down, although it was still quite a messy job. I removed the plaster back down to the block work.

I measured out the location of the wall switch first and then drew on the wall where I was to cut and knock out the plaster.

I then proceeded to chase out the wall.

When it came to the back box for the wall switch, my original plan was to fit the Fibaro roller shutter module behind the wall switch, so I put in a deeper 35mm metal back box. 

However later I decided I might not have enough room behind the wall switch for all the cabling and connectors, 35mm was the max depth of back box I could fit in to the block work, so opted for an additional surface mount box in the window reveal instead to house the module and connectors. 

Here you can see the channel inside the window reveal heading up to the motors location. I drilled two holes through the corner of the wall deeper than 50mm to feed the electric cables through.

I fitted the electric cable and clipped it to the block work and then filled in the channel and installed the metal back box for the switch. 

I using a Scolmore Minigrid 3 position retractive wall switch and some Wago connectors for the wiring.

Below you can see the deeper 47mm surface mount box, I now plan to put the roller shutter module into with the wires and connectors. 

Also you can see the electric cables now, the mains feed has been fed up from under the floor, up the channel on the wall, through the metal back box and up to the surface mount box, to feed the power to the module and motor. The second cable only goes from the surface mount box to the metal back box for the wall switch connections. 

I'm not sure about the final position of the surface mount box, it may need to be moved higher up but I wanted to leave enough room to fit the roller blind. 

Final fine filler and sanding to make the walls good again.

And all finished and painted and looking good again.

The actual roller blind kit arrived yesterday. However no mounting brackets could not be found. I contacted the seller and he said the brackets are sent separately in another box, so I am still waiting for those to turn up.

I think I got lucky with FedEx as I didn't have to pay any import tax at the door and just signed for it. So unless they try and invoice me later for import tax, I've not paid any.

And here is the wiring diagram I will be working with.

Well that's it for part two. In part three I will have more photos of the roller blind kit and maybe photos of it installed and a video of it working.

Z-Wave roller blinds with Dooya motor, Vera controller and Fibaro shutter module - Part 1

I recently purchased a motorised roller blind kit for my patio window, after looking at various motors, I decided to purchase the Dooya DM35S tubular motor, S being Standard with no inbuilt RF Radio receiver or remote control, as I plan to use a Fibaro Roller Shutter Z-Wave module.

I have used Dooya DT52S curtain rail motors before see here. I contacted several suppliers on Aliexpress and got some prices in the end I purchased the kit from Scott at Friend Industry Holding Co., Ltd who I have used before.

Scott is extremely helpful with good communication and I could recommend him highly. If you discuss your requirements with Scott he will be able to sort everything out for you. I don't get any commission or anything, but if you do make a purchase be sure to mention you were referred by The Media Center Blog.

Motor details:

1. Motor: DM35S-10/17 is used, strong power and low noise

   a. Mechanic limit switch

   b. Dot-move & light-adjust functions

   c. AC230V and AC120V for choice

My window recess width was 233 CM and the drop was 203 CM. I just gave Scott these measurements and he works out how long the tube should be and for the mounting brackets to fit etc. I wanted the motor on the left hand side and for the blinds to be mounted inside the window recess.

I purchased a full kit including the fabric, which will save me trying to source fabric locally. This includes everything you need, the motor, 50mm diameter tube, any crowns and adaptors and the mounting brackets. You can see one of Scott's listings here on Aliexpress, which shows the fabrics available, my wife choose a dark grey colour. For our size of blind, prices ranged from £165.00 to £178.00, also expect to pay some import taxes at your end.

As the motor is a AC230V motor, I will have to do some work on the wall to mount a wall switch and run an electric cable from a nearby fused spur, up to the wall switch and also connect the cable from the motor. I will just use a Scolmore Minigrid (MD075WH) 3 position retractive switch, same switch I always use for Fibaro shutter modules or the Fibaro Dimmer 2 modules, see here. These Scolmore switches and plates can be purchased from most online electrical wholesalers.

The following pictures are from the listing online, in part two I will take some un-boxing photos of the product, when it arrives !

Dooya DM35S Motor, mounting brackets, 50mm diameter tube and the bottom tension bar.

The Fibaro Roller Shutter module is a module I have used before with my Vera Z-wave home automation controller for curtain rails and I've not had any issues with them. 

"The radio-controlled Roller Shutter 2 works with motorized roller blinds, venetian blinds, awnings and gates. The Roller Shutter 2 is powered by a single-phase AC and provides precise positioning of blinds, awnings or gates so they can be set to the position you choose. The module is also equipped with a power metering feature when used with a FIBARO Home Center."

In part two here when my kits does arrive, I will take some un-boxing photos. 

Budget Z-wave Curtain tracks with Vera / Dooya / Fibaro – Part 5

Part one here, Part two here, Part three here, Part four here.

In Part five I will  cover the Vera setup and calibration of the Fibaro Blind Control module and remote control options.

Vera Setup

Once I had connected the Fibaro Blind Control insert module into the mains electric adding the device to the Z-wave network with Vera was very easy. I simply put my VeraLite in to battery mode and carried it next to where the Fibaro module had been installed. I then pressed the + button on the VeraLite and then triple clicked the B button on the Fibaro module, the two detected each other and the Fibaro module was added to Vera as a new device, as simple as that!

B Button on the module


I renamed the device and assigned it to my living room





If you click the Spanner icon on the device it the opens up like this

Control Tab



Settings Tab



Device Options Tab

In here I added two parameters.

Parameter 10 = 1
Parameter 14 = 0



Parameter Number 10: Roller Shutter Operating Mode



Parameter Number 14: Switch Type



The user manual for the Fibaro Blind Control module can be seen here.

Calibrating

“It may be necessary to calibrate the module, when it's not working properly. The Calibration is a process during which a Roller Shutter learns the position of the limit switches and a motor characteristic. The procedure consists of an automatic, full movement between the limit switches (up, down, and up again). There are different procedures of calibrating a Fibaro Roller Shutter.”

According to the user manual there are various ways to calibrate the blind control module, through Z-wave network, through switch keys, through the B button on the module.

I used this method:

Calibration through the Z-Wave network

1. Make sure the module is connected to the power supply.
2. Include the module into the Z-Wave network according to the inclusion procedure.
3. Set the parameter 29 value to 1.
4. Roller Shutter performs the calibration process, completing full cycle - up, down and up again.
5. The parameter 29 value will be automatically set to 0.
6. Using an interface test whether the positioning works correctly.

Until I had done the calibration routine the percentage slider in Vera was not working correctly. After calibration I was able to select say 50% and the curtain rail would move correctly to that position.

You may see a user configuration error in Vera whilst saving after entering the parameter 29, but don’t worry about that, as long as the curtain motor / rail moves and does the calibration routine. See here for more details.

Here you can see when the curtain motor is in operation its using 56 Watts.



100% = Open



0% = Closed



50%



Controlling the curtains from other devices

Logitech Harmony Remote Control

Using this method I previously described here, I have also programmed my Logitech Harmony universal remote control with two new buttons, Open Curtains and Close Curtains.
This functionality is integrated in to Kodi (XBMC) OpenElec, so when I am using my HTPC, I can now also use the remote control that is in my hand to control the curtains, now that is cool!



Android Tablet / Phone – Authomation HD app for Vera

Authomation HD is pretty much the best app for controlling your Vera Home Automation gateway and the Z-wave devices around your home.
Below are a couple of screen shots from our Samsung Galaxy Tablet showing the new curtain device.





If your an Apple fanboy or girl, I’d recommend the VeraMate app for iOS devices.

Aeotec Minimote Z-wave remote control

I have several Minimote’s around the house, and I programmed button 4 on the one in the living room to run a curtain open / close toggle scene in Vera. By using a toggle I could use only one button on the Minimote to either open or close the curtains.


Integration with Kodi Media Center (Formally XBMC)

Using the XBMCState  add-on which I previously wrote about here, I’ve created scenes in Vera so that if it is dark outside? And if the curtains are still open? When I start to play a movie (any video) in Kodi the curtains are automatically closed and my room lamps automatically dim down to 25%.



VIDEO:

Please leave your comments and feedback and don’t forget if you place an order with Friend Group for the motors / curtains rails, to mention to them you were referred by ‘'The Media Center Blog” big thanks!