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Suggestion: A more general implementation of devices

Posted: Saturday 10 September 2016 13:48
by raptorjr
I'm using MySensors to make my own sensors. As I see it today, the devices and types in Domoticz seems to be made for very specific user scenarios.

F.ex. when I made a sketch on my Arduino that presents water flow and volume, all I get is a device where total volume is accumulated and doesn't seem possible to reset. Certainly a perfect device for some specific user case, but not for everyone. Why don't make it more general so the user can select how it should react? Accumulate water volume yes/no?

Or another example, the Thermostat setpoint device. Very good if you need to use it as a thermostat for a room. But what if I need it as a thermostat for a freeze room? Where I would like to set it to -20? Why not make it possible for the user to set max/min temp?

I'm just a beginner, but so far Domoticz seems to be one of the better controllers with support for many things. I would just like to see a more general approach to the devices and give the user, if needed, more power to control how things should be used.

Re: Suggestion: A more general implementation of devices

Posted: Sunday 11 September 2016 19:36
by dbemowsk
I was going to start a new topic, but after reading this post from raptorjr I thought what I had to mention kind of fit this topic a bit.

I too am a MySensors user. 2 devices that I think any automation controller should have are thermostat and sprinkler control. There are a number of different thermostats and sprinkler controllers out there. As raptorjr mentions, making a more general device type for these and other sensors for when the specific ones don't apply might be a good way to go with Domoticz.

For sprinklers, you should be able to set the run time of your valves and schedule run times. This is something true of any sprinkler controller. As for the Thermostat, raptorjr makes a good point of having the flexibility of setting it for a normal HVAC system, or a thermostat for a freezer. There are many properties that are common to most HVAC systems. Having a general device for this too would make a lot of sense

The more generic you can make some of the devices, the more flexible the software will be.