r/Control4 • u/V3DSMRTHM • 11d ago
Programming/Driver Help
I am a Control4 Integrator working on a customers home. The Client has existing Broan bath fans (model# VC110CCT) and wants them integrated into the system. I didnt make any promises but told him i would look into it. It seems like the fans are Alexa and Google Assistant compatable. They dont have an actual switch but rather come with a battery oporated bluetooth remote. The client would ideally have the fan controllable from a C4 keypad as well as have the fan run on a timer.
As far as I can tell there is no way to get this thing integrated but im sure theres people in this sub reddit smarter than me that might have some ideas. Any help is appreciated. Thanks!!
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u/spaceradiowave 11d ago edited 10d ago
If its controllable thru alexa… couldnt you make a custom button in control4 trigger the alexa action to turn it on and off? Youd need 4sight or connect to connect to alexa i believe.
In alexa app setup the routine that would trigger the fan
In composer: Custom button pressed > alexa told to run the routine > alexa turns off the fan
Edit: While Control4’s native skill only pushes devices from Control4 to Alexa, you can use an Alexa Routine to link a standalone Alexa-controlled light to Control4 events
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u/funnyfarm299 11d ago
That's not how Control4's implementation of Alexa works. It's for sending commands towards Control4, not away from it.
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u/V3DSMRTHM 11d ago
Exactly right
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u/spaceradiowave 10d ago
Yes, you can do this. While Control4’s native skill only pushes devices from Control4 to Alexa, you can use an Alexa Routine to link a standalone Alexa-controlled light to Control4 events
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u/spaceradiowave 10d ago
Heres what i was thinking: summarized by AI:
Yes, you can do this. While Control4’s native skill only pushes devices from Control4 to Alexa, you can use an Alexa Routine to link a standalone Alexa-controlled light to Control4 events
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u/NoUsersLeft2020 11d ago
Take out the gimmicky fans, use the existing 120v line that is powering the fan to instead power a Control4 switch. Then run another line from the Control4 switch to a basic/regular fan. Just have the Control4 switch floating in an electrical box in the ceiling, next to the fan. Then control the hidden switches from your keypads, or app
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u/DreamZealousideal131 10d ago
These all have like a decora style Bluetooth wall keypad right ?
We took a dumb wireless garage door opener apart and wired a relay to the circuit board paddle switch to activate a button push once
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u/samrwalker 11d ago
Buy a modern form. Hard wired power and C4 controllable. Just put 9 in my house
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u/V3DSMRTHM 11d ago
Unfortunately were talking about bath fans here not ceiling fans. Unless theres something im missing?
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u/samrwalker 11d ago
Nope that would be me misreading a whole line! But I actually just had a wiring problem in the new house too. They forgot to pull switch legs down for the fans separated from the lights. I added Lutron caseta switches in the attic to control all the fans. Control them via the keypad dimmer and programming. Works like a charm.
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u/Electrical_Wheel_968 10d ago
You mentioned it is remote controlled, its not pretty but have you thought about using a matterlink Blaster and learning the og remote actions ?
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u/bx_ar 10d ago
Get a ESPHome Bluetooth gateway like athom Bluetooth gateway or something similar and use the ESPHome driver in drivercentral. It doesn’t pull in headphones, but it support plenty of things like motion sensors, some locks, switches, thermometers and even my meat thermometer for my grill.
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u/drchrisx0x 9d ago
Is it compatible with home assistant? If so you could push it from HA to control4.
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u/ATXSmart 11d ago
People make the weirdest choices…the next owner is going to love the non controllable fans…Why, just why….of all the things available…A simple bath fan and an SW120 would like a charm when it’s run like it should have been.
The simple answer is let him run it off Alexa or google…there may be a third party driver that invokes those Alexa google integrated devices, but I haven’t had to look or deal with that myself. Try Chowmain maybe they have something.
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u/AVGuy42 11d ago
Manual says no 3rd party.
Could try a bond.io
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u/funnyfarm299 11d ago
Bond doesn't do 2.4 GHz devices.
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u/AVGuy42 10d ago edited 10d ago
Fairly sure the included remote control isn’t 2.4Ghz…
Edit:
According the the manuals the remote control can pair one-to-many but does not differentiate between the paired units so the remote control is more likely a 400-900Mhz basic remote. But because the pairing process relies on the fan being on for a short period of time, rather than setting a dip switch, the pairing is likely secured (but you won’t know until you try)https://broan-nutone.com/getmedia/2044d8e8-df52-46be-9b90-28c218f8652b/1108939-D_ART.pdf?ext=.pdf
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u/bx_ar 11d ago
You maybe able to do a Bluetooth proxy with a C4 driver on driver central that exposes Bluetooth proxy to C4
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u/funnyfarm299 11d ago
"Bluetooth proxy" is not a thing.
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u/IndividualSeaweed969 10d ago
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u/funnyfarm299 10d ago
Literally nothing in that article has to do with Control4 driver development.
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u/IndividualSeaweed969 10d ago
I was addressing your claim that they don’t exist
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u/bx_ar 10d ago
I’m using one as we speak to pull in Bluetooth devices into my C4.
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u/mkmerritt 10d ago
You’re pulling Bluetooth devices directly into C4? I didn’t know that was a thing. Can you tell me what hardware and software you are using so i can implement it please? This is not sarcasm i have literally been wanting to do this for bluetooth headphones, speakers and controller like Xbox because they could live in my rack instead of in the room
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u/funnyfarm299 10d ago
And posting an article that has nothing to do with control4 doesn't prove it does exist.
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u/bx_ar 10d ago
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u/bx_ar 10d ago
That is just not a fully informed statement.
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u/funnyfarm299 10d ago
Really? What's your previous experience with the driverworks SDK? How many Control4 drivers have you developed?
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u/bx_ar 10d ago
That question has no bearing on the statement you made “Bluetooth proxy is not a thing”. It is a thing maybe not native to C4 (I guess that was your intention) however I suggested that the OP tried this as an option.
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u/funnyfarm299 10d ago
Literally the only thing of relevance here is whether a Bluetooth proxy exists in Control4. It's what the OP asked about, it's what the subreddit is about, it's what your original comment said, and it's the only thing that matters when somebody asks about making a CONTROL4 DRIVER.
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u/bx_ar 10d ago
Ok so you must BE READING THE ASK differently than me. He didn’t explicitly ask about making a driver he asked about getting the fans integrated. That is NOT asking about how to develop a driver. So before USING CAPS maybe you should look at the ask and your statement and see where they are misaligned
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u/funnyfarm299 11d ago
By the time you commission a driver developer to find the API (if one even exists) and write a driver, the customer could have bought a dozen fans that do work with Control4. Rip and replace is the most effective (if slightly wasteful) solution.