Weird problem with CM11 X10 plugin

[jeroen020]

I just migrated Girder to my new PC in the living room. It took a couple of hours, but now everything is working again - except receiving X10 input signals. I use the CM11 plugin by Graeme F. to both send an receive X10 signals; sending works fine (I can turn all my devices on and off with the appropriate Girder commands, use them in multigroups etc). However, receiving X10 signals shows strange behaviour.

Now, when I learn an CM11 event, no matter what button I press on my X10 wall-mount radio remote, I get the M_5_AllLightsOn signal. On my previous Girder PC, this would Be B_1_On, B_1_Off etc, in accordance with how I set up the radio remotes. The dim and bright buttons give slightly different inputs though, somthing like M_-1_AllLightsOn. (I'm not at home right now, so I'm not 100% sure of the exact syntax of the learned events, I'll check later).

I use Girder 3.2.9b, tested the CM11 plugin versions 1.20 and 1.50 and use a USB to serial adapter on COM4 for the CM11. I also use internet, serial and keyboard plugins in Girder. When I set the remotes and radio-to-X10 interface to code A (the same that my lights are on), I can switch A1, A2 etc. on and off like you'd expect, so the remote and radio-to-X10 interface function properly.

Any clues? Thanks!

[Mastiff]

This is a shot in the dark, but did you use an onboard COM port before? I have had strange differences between onboard ports and USB adapters. 8)

[jeroen020]

Hi Tor,

Your shot in the dark turned out to be a bright idea! I tested the CM11 adapter on my COM1 port (the only built-in serial port on my PC), restarted Girder and now I am indeed able to receive the proper X10 commands when using the radio remotes.

I guess the CM11 uses a more picky RS-232 protocol than my other serial controlled devices (Denon A1SE amp, 2900 DVD player and Toshiba MT7 projector) that run at 9600 bps. My USB-to-serial adapers won't do here.

Thanks!

[Mastiff]

Well, when you shoot in the dark with a shotgun you're liable to hit something sooner or later! :D

[mvanzutphen]

Hi,

I have exactly the same problem, but my computer doesn't have a "real" serial port at all, so I cannot use that solution.
However, I am sure that proper communication between the PC and the CM11A is possible using a USB-to-serial adapter, since Activehome and Homeseer have no problems detecting X10 events. I'm starting to think that the CM11/CM12 plugin could use an update (especially the communications part of it). Is the author still around, and could he please look into this?

Of course, I could use Homeseer and the Girder HS plugin as a workaround, but this is not a very elegant solution. There should be a better way (if fixing the Girder CM11/CM12 plugin is not an option). Of course, one could write a lua program to communicate with the CM11 directy (using the serial plugin). Has somebody already done something like this? I would be very interested to see the code.

Any help is welcome!

Martijn

[Mastiff]

It works with an USB to serial on Girder 4...

[mvanzutphen]

Unfortunately, it still doesn't work in Girder 4. Is this a known issue? I'm using a Sweex USB-to-Serial adapter, which uses the Prolific controller chip (PL-2303).

Since other programs (e.g. Homeseer and Activehome) don't have any problems with receiving X10-commands from my CM11A, I'm thinking about the following work-around:
I could use the Homeseer ActiveX CM11A OCX Control (see http://www.homeseer.com/downloads/index.htm), if only I could figure out how to use ocx objects in lua... Unfortunately, I'm not a programmer, although I know just enough about lua scripting to get my Girder and NetRemote set-up running (which uses some of Marcel's interesting stuff). I have read the LuaCom documentation, and I think I will manage to use the methods in the ocx. How to react to events is however not yet clear to me. Can somebody please give me some tips or examples?

Of course, the best solution would still be to solve the communication problem of the Girder CM1X plugin. I figure that more and more people wil use these Prolific adapters in the future (since the CM1X devices are still popular, and serial ports are becoming an extinct species).

Regards,
Martijn

[Promixis]

Unfortunately, it still doesn't work in Girder 4. Is this a known issue? I'm using a Sweex USB-to-Serial adapter, which uses the Prolific controller chip (PL-2303).

Since other programs (e.g. Homeseer and Activehome) don't have any problems with receiving X10-commands from my CM11A, I'm thinking about the following work-around:
I could use the Homeseer ActiveX CM11A OCX Control (see http://www.homeseer.com/downloads/index.htm), if only I could figure out how to use ocx objects in lua... Unfortunately, I'm not a programmer, although I know just enough about lua scripting to get my Girder and NetRemote set-up running (which uses some of Marcel's interesting stuff). I have read the LuaCom documentation, and I think I will manage to use the methods in the ocx. How to react to events is however not yet clear to me. Can somebody please give me some tips or examples?

Of course, the best solution would still be to solve the communication problem of the Girder CM1X plugin. I figure that more and more people wil use these Prolific adapters in the future (since the CM1X devices are still popular, and serial ports are becoming an extinct species).

Regards,
Martijn

please post a message in the G4 forum about your problem.

[mvanzutphen]

Ok, I will do that (although it's not an exlusive G4 problem).

Any help is of course also welcome here!

Martijn

[colhemm]

I to have exactly the same problem, and i also have no serial port on my new dell pc. so the only solution i can see is to update CM11/CM12 plugin. is this going to be a possibility
because i realy want to get girder 4 but there is no point if this is not going to be fixed

Please help

Col :cry:

[Promixis]

I to have exactly the same problem, and i also have no serial port on my new dell pc. so the only solution i can see is to update CM11/CM12 plugin. is this going to be a possibility
because i realy want to get girder 4 but there is no point if this is not going to be fixed

Please help

Col :cry:

hi,

please post g4 questions in the g4 forum.

try the beta with the cm11 plugin and if you are having problems let us know and we will do our best to fix them