Paulus Schoutsen - Awaken your home: Python and the Internet of Things

People are acquiring more and more connected devices for their homes. With no standard in place for communication, vendors are shipping their own platforms. This results in devices unable to work together. This talk shows people how to take control of their houses, their data and their privacy using Python – no cloud attached. Enter the world of Home Assistant.

https://us.pycon.org/2016/schedule/presentation/1752/

Transcript

1. Awaken Your Home:
   Python and the
   Internet of Things
   Home Assistant
   Paulus Schoutsen
   PyCon 2016, Portland
   1
   

   View Slide

2. Home Assistant · 2
   

   View Slide

3. What’s the essence of a hub?
   ● Devices have a state
   ○ Light = on
   ■ Brightness: 60%
   ■ Color: red
   ○ Media player = playing
   ■ Volume: 80%
   ■ TV Show: Game of Thrones
   Home Assistant · 3
   Information
   (ie. light is on)
   Commands
   (ie. turn light on)
   Home Control
   Internet of Things ● There are events happening:
   ○ State of light has changed
   ○ Motion detected
   

   View Slide

4. What’s the core of home automation?
   Automation rules are:
   ● Triggered by an event.
   ● Optional conditions based
   on the current state of
   devices.
   ● Action can control a device
   or external service.
   Home Assistant · 4
   User
   Home
   Automation
   Commands
   Rules
   Information
   Commands
   Information
   Home Control
   

   View Slide

5. Responsive web app that
   runs great everywhere.
   Track the state of your
   house over time.
   5
   Home automation platform
   running on Python 3.
   Open-source, MIT license.
   Runs on tiny computers
   like $35 Raspberry Pi.
   Host it yourself so your
   data stays yours.
   Track people and
   things on a map.
   286 built-in components and platforms that add
   support for a wide range of devices and services.
   

   View Slide

6. ● Event driven system.
   Home Assistant · 6
   State
   Machine
   Event Bus
   State changed
   events
   Timer
   Time changed
   events
   Service
   Registry
   Call service
   events
   Service executed
   events
   Core Architecture
   ● State Machine has no
   notion of lights or
   switches. Just entities
   and their state.
   ● Service Registry to
   track available
   services.
   ● Timer to notify time
   changed.
   

   View Slide

7. Service
   Registry
   State
   Machine
   Event Bus
   State changed
   events
   Set state
   Light Bulb
   Light
   Component
   Poll state
   Automation
   Component
   Motion detected
   events
   Motion Detector
   Motion
   Detector
   Component
   Motion detected
   events
   Call service
   turn light on
   Turn on
   Interaction between Home Assistant core, components and the Internet of Things Home Assistant · 7
   Turn on
   Call service
   turn light on
   

   View Slide

8. Support for devices in Home Assistant
   ● An entity component per device type: light, switch, etc
   ● Each protocol/cloud/etc implemented as a platform
   ● Exports abstract base class (ABC) that connects to Home
   Assistant core.
   ○ Defines information to be exposed (is_on, rgb_color, brightness)
   ○ Defines methods to be called (turn_on, turn_off)
   Home Assistant · 8
   

   View Slide

9. Create file as:
   /custom_comp
   onents/sensor/exampl
   e.py
   In configuration.yaml file:
   sensor:
   platform: example
   Sensor platform
   For source code, see:
   https://gist.github.com/balloob/3e8ae00a2354f4e889c0
   

   View Slide

10. ● Based on existence file.
    ● Configurable File path
    Switch platform
    For source code, see:
    https://gist.github.com/balloob/3e8ae00a2354f4e889c0
    Create file as:
    /custom_componen
    ts/switch/example.py
    In configuration.yaml file:
    switch:
    platform: example
    file_path: /tmp/switch
    

    View Slide

11. Automation Component
    ● Keep two entities in
    opposite states.
    Home Assistant · 11
    For source code, see:
    https://gist.github.com/balloob/3e8ae00a2354f4e889c0
    Create file as:
    /custom_compone
    nts/xor_automation.py
    In configuration.yaml file:
    xor_automation:
    entity_1: switch.ac
    Entity_2: switch.air
    

    View Slide

12. Try the demo on your phone at
    home-assistant.io/demo
    On your computer with Python 3:
    pip3 install homeassistant
    hass --open-ui
    Visit our website for more information
    and tutorials: home-assistant.io
    Join our community:
    community.home-assistant.io
    gitter.im/home-assistant/home-assistant
    Home Assistant · 12
    Home Assistant
    

    View Slide

13. ● Device Types (light, etc)
    ● Presence Detection
    ● Entity Organization
    ● Automation
    ● History / Export Data
    ● Third-Party Service
    Integrations
    Find all 286 components and
    platforms on home-assistant.
    io/components
    There’s a component
    for that.
    Home Assistant · 13
    

    View Slide

14. ● Turn light on 1 hour
    before sunset if anyone
    is home.
    ● Using automation
    component.
    Example automation
    configuration
    Home Assistant · 14
    ● 1 or more triggers.
    ● 0 or more conditions.
    ○ Time
    ○ Event
    ○ State
    ○ Sun
    ○ Zone (GPS)
    ○ MQTT
    

    View Slide