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#!/usr/bin/perl -w
use Device::SerialPort qw( :PARAM :STAT 0.07 );
use strict;
my $PortObj = new Device::SerialPort ("/dev/ttyS0");
$PortObj->pulse_rts_on();
sleep 5;
$PortObj->pulse_rts_off();Okay so I just did this as a POC before I reply to this thread
no circuitry required!
I already have normal push button inside the house to open and close the garage door (without the remote).
I opened the switch and connected the wires to "Request to Send (RTS)" and ground on my laptops serial port.
and then ran this little perl script (which can easily be converted to a CGI script) ...
Code:#!/usr/bin/perl -w use Device::SerialPort qw( :PARAM :STAT 0.07 ); use strict; my $PortObj = new Device::SerialPort ("/dev/ttyS0"); $PortObj->pulse_rts_on(); sleep 5; $PortObj->pulse_rts_off();
Run the scripts once to open the door and then again to close it.
So ja it is possible
The different signals of the LED are described below.
- LED flashes slowly when gate is opening.
- LED flashes quickly when gate is closing.
- LED on if gate is open.
- LED off if gate is closed.
- LED flashes once every 2 seconds to indicate that courtesy light is switched on permanently.
- LED flashes twice every 2 seconds when mains supply to gate system has failed
- LED flashes three times every 2 seconds to indicate a battery low condition
- LED flashes four times every 4 seconds to indicate repeated obstructions of the gate.Nice! Someone who has actually done it responds!
I was thinking the same thing as you, with respect to the switch in the house to open the gate. I would probably use an arduino or Launchpad to interface with the switch, since I don't have any serial ports on my hardware. A simple transistor would suffice to switch a load potentially higher than the micro can withstand (and I'd hate to fry a serial port on a motherboard). Of course, this is simply a momentary switch that we are replacing, and probably has minimal current passing through it anyway, but I'm careful that way
One thing I'd like to add, however, is monitoring of the gate status:
Code:The different signals of the LED are described below. - LED flashes slowly when gate is opening. - LED flashes quickly when gate is closing. - LED on if gate is open. - LED off if gate is closed. - LED flashes once every 2 seconds to indicate that courtesy light is switched on permanently. - LED flashes twice every 2 seconds when mains supply to gate system has failed - LED flashes three times every 2 seconds to indicate a battery low condition - LED flashes four times every 4 seconds to indicate repeated obstructions of the gate.
While I do have a camera pointed at the gate, and could watch it opening and closing, I'd obviously like to get a simpler signal that just indicates success or failure. Plus, being able to alert on power failure would be useful too, since there is a breaker near the gate which trips periodically.
Any ideas how to discriminate between the various flashes using a microcontroller? Also, any thoughts on connecting the intercom to a sound card, and letting it call you via VOIP/IM when someone rings?
