[APP][Pro] Motion Blinds

DISCOVER MOTION BLINDS
MOTION Blinds is a groundbreaking window covering automation solution that makes motorized blinds available to everyone. The blinds are super easy to install and can be operated from anywhere, in any way. Discover the endless options to find the solution that fits your requirements.

SMART WINDOW COVERINGS
Smart window coverings automatically adapt to your daily rhythm and to natural elements, such as temperature and daylight. Even when you are away from home. This makes your smart home safer, more comfortable and more energy efficient. Discover the endless possibilities of MOTION Blinds.

USAGE
To connect your MOTION devices to Homey, you must have a WIFI bridge in your local home network that can control up to 30 different blinds. The bridge is configured with the blinds you need by using the official MOTION Blinds app. Homey communicates with one or more of these bridges to control the devices connected to them. You can also link the blinds to a remote. Note that remotes are a useful addition to MOTION devices but cannot be added directly to the bridge or Homey. The remote controls the blind directly, and the blind reports what is happening back to the bridge and Homey.

In order for Homey to be allowed to send commands to the bridge it needs a key. The key can be configured in the Homey MOTION app settings. You will find instructions there on how to obtain the key.

EVE MOTIONBLINDS
The new Eve MotionBlinds product line is also supported by this app, provided you connect them using the WIFI bridge as there is currently no support for Matter in Homey.

AVAILABILITY
Motion products are developed by Coulisse and can be found in window coverings from various other manufacturers across the world. ROBBshop features a DIY kit to convert a normal rollerblind into a Motion powered smart blind. You can also find Motion controls in products from Zonnelux, BSL raambekleding, Smartblinds.nl, Omniablinds.com, Kwantum, Hornbach and others. You can find a store near you at https://motionblinds.com/stores/.

FAQ
Frequently asked questions

CODE
The app code can be found on GitHub.
This app is also available in the Community Store.
It was made in my spare time, sponsored by ROBBShop.
Coulisse generously donated TDBU blinds to develop and test support for these.
@TedTolboom kindly adopted it when I was no longer able to support it.
If you like the app, buy him a beer: Donate

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RELEASE NOTES

Version 1.2.3

  • Built and tested against node.js 16 update for Homey version 7.4.0 firmware and higher
  • Tested against the updated Motion Bridge firmware version A1.0.5_B0.1.5.

Version 1.2.2

  • Exception handling added for receiving malformed messages.

Version 1.2.1

  • Added logging on the device timeline for opening and (partially)closing blinds.

Version 1.2.0

  • Support for Kwantum window coverings (using bridge)
  • Support for Eve Motionblinds (using bridge).

Version 1.1.9

  • Enable battery power capability for devices that report AC power as well as battery level, as some devices misreport voltage mode.

Version 1.1.8

  • Prevent crash when heartbeat message has no data element

Version 1.1.7

  • Added an action card for tilt on Venetian blinds.

Version 1.1.6

  • Added tilt for double roller blinds.

Version 1.1.4

  • Added fix for pairing double roller blinds.

Version 1.1.2

  • Added Top Down Bottom Up blind support
  • Added flow trigger for blinds that are operated by an exteral command such as a remote or the official Motion Blinds mobile app.

Version 1.1.1 (RC)

  • Added experimental support for a trigger when a blind is operated by an external command.

Version 1.1.0 (RC)

  • Added experimental support for Top Down Bottom Up blinds.

Version 1.0.10

  • Fixed a (rare) crash while adding membership to Socket.

Version 1.0.9

  • Support for periodical state refresh (currently 4x a day)
  • Made driver more generic
  • Optional setting for bridge IP address.

Version 1.0.8

  • Fixed battery percentages.

Version 1.0.7

  • Added extra logging and error handling
  • Added debug option to only use multicast.

Version 1.0.6

  • Added flow conditions for fully open/close positions
  • Blocking alarm no longer activates zone activity
  • Hints for block/unblock flow cards.

Version 1.0.5

  • Bolder icon lines in style with new Homey design.

Version 1.0.4

  • Removed faulty formatting on flow cards and applied branding.

Version 1.0.3

  • Implemented debug setting that logs all messages
  • A blocked blind will now allow to go to the open position from the slider as well
  • Small textual changes.

Version 1.0.2

  • Added advanced device setting for window sensor that blocks the curtain from closing, including flow cards
  • Added advanced device setting for maximum traveltime
  • Added advanced device setting if a blind is part of a remote group to reduce system load and increase performance.

Version 1.0.1

  • Support for venetian blinds (tilt)
  • Support for curtains
  • Automatic selection of capabilities
  • Tile now shows open/closed status when possible
  • Added signal strength capability
  • Better synchronisation between up/down and slider
  • Fixed state changes to curtain slider when triggered from a flow.

Version 1.0.0

  • Initial release.

Know the problem that you can’t roll down a rollerblind when the window is open, because the window opens inward? Be sure to check the advanced device settings in the app. With this and some simple extra flows you can prevent the blinds from rolling down when a window contact sensor is armed. And the best thing is, it also works when the device is directly controlled through the app or Google Home! See post #4 for instructions.

To implement the feature from post #3 to block a blind from opening when the window is open, adjust the advanced settings of the blind:

Then make flows like this to copy the alarm state of your window to the blind:

In the web app it will look like this when the blind is blocked from operation: image

F.A.Q.

  • Is this app usable on Homey Cloud with/without the bridge?
    This app is developed to work with the Motion bridge in the local lan. Because Homey cloud cannot access local lan this app is only useable on the Homey Pro platform. The manufacturer and Athom are looking into new versions that connect directly with RF and/or cloud. Personally I will not write those apps. I lack knowledge and experience with RF and because I am just a community enthousiast I’m not willing to pay verified developer fees. I probably also cannot live up to the expectations of one because I do this in my spare time, of which I have not that much to spare. :slight_smile: I am in contact with the manufacturer and will help them with the new apps if I can be of assistance. Also they can use my code if they want to.

  • The blinds do not report the right position. How can I fix this?
    In my experience, especially with Top Down Bottom Up blinds, the blinds do not report their position to the USB hub and Homey when the end position is set to tight. The motor will stop when it detects too much tension, or in the case of Top Down Bottom Up blinds if the top and bottom bar detect that they are touching in the same position. When that happens the blinds do not reach the intended destination exactly and the position report is not sent to the hub. Re-program the end positions so that they are not pulling too tight. This also protects the motor.

  • Does the app also support Eve Motonblinds
    Eve MotionBlinds can operate without a bridge using Bluetooth and Thread and can be directly linked to Homekit. Homey does not support Thread directly, but the Eve Motionblinds also have the 433 MHz bi-directional interface so they can be linked to the WIFI bridge in the same way as the other curtains. Doing so will allow you to operate the blinds through Homey. So then you’ll have the best of both worlds: blinds that support Matter and can also be linked to Homey.

  • The Homey Motion Blinds app is not working as it should
    If the Motion Blinds app is not working, you are sure you entered the right key in the settings page and something is still not right, then take the following steps: Turn on the debug flag in the app settings, restart the app, try to control a blind, wait at least a minute after that, send a diagnostics report from the gear icon on the top right and post the id that you receive in this topic. Also post any details about your problem with it. I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.

TODO

  • I went though my entire wishlist. Anything you miss? Let me know! No promises, but who knows.
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I installed 3 Motion blinds last Monday. They work correctly with the Motion app, and I can see them in the Homey app but I cannot seem to control them from the Homey app. Any suggestions?

Regards,
Daan

First of all, you should make sure you entered the Key in the settings page of the app (how to get it is found there as well). Did you enter that key? You should see the stars in the field when you open the settings. If not, maybe you forgot to press the save button.

If the key is properly set, and it still does not work: in the latest version of the app is a setting for the IP address of the brigde. That should not be required, but for some the IP autodiscovery does not work. If that is the case here, you should fill out this fields as well. That should fix it. If it does, make sure you assign a static IP Address to the bridge, so it will keep working long term.

If you already set it, you could try leaving it blank as well. maybe there was an error in the ip you entered.

If either of those do not work, turn on the debug flag in the settings, restart the app, try to control a blind, wait at least a minute after that, and then send a diagnostics report from the gear icon on the top right and post the id you get back in this topic.

Hi Edwin, many many thanks for the quick reply and the spot on solution. After entering the key and pressing the save settings button it works seamlessly!

Regards,
Daan

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Glad to be of help. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask.

I have troubles connecting the bridge to my WiFi. I use the setup in the app, the bridge gets connected to the WiFi. In my router I see a new device appearing. The bridge shows a blue light but still the app counts down to 0 and shows an error.

Tried it both in android and IOS no luck what so ever. Any suggestions?

Got the bridge online after 50 attempts. No clue what I did…

Working with the remote and bridge now but homey can’t find it. Ip is set correctly and also filled in the key.

I was just typing a response to the previous post, but that is now obsolete. I think I can help you further from here. Were you able to connect the blinds to the bridge, and are you able to control the blinds normally from the Motion Blinds app now? That is a prerequisite for my app to be able to see the blinds.

First I would ask you to clear the IP field in the Homey app, it should not be required if all is well. If that doesn’t work, go to the settings of the app, turn on the debug option and restart the app. Wait at least a minute before you try to pair again. If that does not work, create a diagnostics report from the gear menu in the top right and post the ID you get here.

Edwin, thanks for the reply. But outing my problems here seems to do magic.

And a restart of homey maybe :slightly_smiling_face:

In other words, it works in homey as well now.

Glad to hear. It does seem like the connection of the brighe to wifi may be weak. There’s a signal strength symbol in the Motion app to show you it the bridge has weak wifi. As long as it works I would leave it as is, but if you get in trouble again that is where I’d start. And feel free to reach out if you have any questions. Have fun with the app and the blinds!

PS. If you did turn on the debug option in the app, you should turn it off again. It will generate a lot of logging that isn’t of any use if all is well.

WiFi is very strong actually, the bridge is only 2m away from an accespoint.

All working for now :slight_smile:

Debugging is still off, just started to get things working before I saw your message about that

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BTW: As stated, things should work for most people without filling in the IP. But if you do fill in the IP, you should make sure the IP address if the bridge is set to fixed in your router. Otherwise it might change over time, breaking the connection.
If the IP is not filled, the app should be able to detect IP changes by itself.

I’ll give it a try to remove it in the app. But usually I give all my smarthome devices a fixed IP just to be sure.

Version 1.0.10 is now live, fixing a rare crash in the initialisation.

Hi Edwin

Question. Do you have any problems regarding the gateway connecting to wifi again after being unplugged?
Sometimes my gateway will enter setup mode after being unpowered. This way it forgets the wifi connection and connected blinds.
What are you thoughts about this?

Tip: Hornbach is also selling the Motion blinds products for a cheaper price.
https://www.hornbach.nl/shop/zoekresultaten/assortiment/motion

Unfortunately, Hornbach is not supporting this developer to create this app or any other app and is only focussing at creating a turn-over.
Robbshop on the other hand is actively supporting multiple apps for Homey, among others this one.

Or would you rather prefer a payed app store?

Just my 2 cents.

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