I’ve now installed the corresponding integration in HomeAssistant and can see the Broadlink connected there with the corresponding MAC address/IP address.
I have an entity for the device, but NO entities for the already configured air conditioner?
I’ve just looked at the instructions again, and it says: It’s no longer necessary to set up platforms, except for custom IR/RF switches. Once the device is configured, all entities are created automatically.
Can anyone give me a hint as to what I’m doing wrong?
Looks like you have registered your RM4 Pro with the Broadlink Cloud.
It brings you a lot of problems when using the Broadlink Cloud in parallel with HA. Once the device is locked into the cloud you will not be able to correctly control it through HA nor through the Broadlink app. Thus you need to remove the RM4 Pro from the Broadlink Cloud to use it exclusively with HA.
First remove the RM4 Pro from the Broadlink app. When successfully done the device will start to blink fast.
Reset the RM4 Pro by inserting a needle/pin into the device’s reset hole. Make sure the RM4 Pro has completely reseted!
Release and delete the assigned IP-address for the RM4 Pro from your router’s configuration.
Redo adding the device to the Boadlink App but as soon as it has connected to your network quit the Broadlink app. Don’t let it connect to the Broadlink cloud! This will stop the device before it can bind itself to the Broadlink cloud services. This way it will work exclusively on your internal network (LAN).
Readd the internal IP-address the RM4 Pro has been assigned to as static within your router’s DHCP server.
After you have done the above remove and then re-add the RM4 Pro within HA’s Broadlink integration.
This is normal with the HA integration. The RMPro is an entity, but HA has no awareness of the devices it controls or of their actual state (no way it could as IR/RF control is one-way).
If you want to represent controlled devices and their assumed state you can try things like defining Broadlink switches (see the docs - right at the bottom) or setting up input_boolean helpers to represent them. For UI purposes, you can gather these together into a virtual device using an integration like Device Tools.
This is actually more or less what the Broadlink app does.
Thanks Tamsy for the detailed instructions.
Unfortunately, I can’t add a device to the app WITHOUT logging in to my account first. I’m afraid that means the device is already in the cloud BEFORE I can connect it to my Wi-Fi network ;-(
I’ve tried your tip several times, and as soon as I remove the device from the app, it goes back to the blinking state and has to be reconnected to the Wi-Fi network.
If I manage to complete this process correctly, how do I know if the RM4 Pro is CORRECTLY integrated into HomeAssistant WITHOUT Cloudservice?
Make sure you do a reset for AP Setup (notSmart Setup).
Before you begin: Switch off 5 GHz on your phone or move to a spot with no 5 GHz coverage.
Delete the Broadlink device from the app on your phone:
For iOS: Slide from right to left on a device item to delete it.
For Android: Long press the device icon and choose “Delete” to delete the device.
Reset for AP Setup:
When the device is in any condition, press and hold the reset button using a needle for 5 seconds until the LED flashes intermittently. Do not hold longer than 10 seconds otherwise it will go into Smart Setup mode.
To connect the RM4 Pro to your WiFi using the devices AP setup mode follow the below guide. Being logged-in into your Broadlink account is not a problem. In fact it is mandatory.
Open the Broadlink app on your phone.
Tab “Add A New Device”.
Choose “Universal Remote”.
Select “RM4 pro (default AP setup mode)”.
Tap “Next”.
Wait for ~3 seconds, the app will pop up a window to connect to the RM4 Pro in AP setup mode (look for “BroadLink_WiFi_Device”).
When your phone has connected to the RM4 Pro AP successfully tap “Setup Completed”.
Choose your home WiFi network and type your WiFi password into the app’s password field.
Now wait for the app to finish the setup of your RM4 Pro.
At this point stop the setup and close or kill the Broadlink app from the task manager on you phone.
Now you can connect the RM4 Pro to the Broadlink integration with HA without having registered it to the Broadlink cloud.
And as Jack has already pointed it out before: “The RMPro is an entity, but HA has no awareness of the devices it controls or of their actual state (no way it could as IR/RF control is one-way).”
As for controlling my AC units I am using litinoveweedle’s SmartIR which can be installed through HACS.
Hi @Tamsy
Thank you for your support so far, I think I’ve done it!
I’ve now trained the BroadLink RM4Pro as described, and it seems to be working without the cloud.
I’ve now downloaded and installed SmartIR in HACS.
I found out from the documentation that my Samsung air conditioner is supported and that I need the 1401.json file.
downloaded file: CLIMATE_CODES.md but
I’m stuck here because I can’t figure out exactly what further steps are necessary from the documentation.
Is there perhaps more detailed documentation for this?
Open/edit HA’s configuration.yaml and add similar to (use your specific device(s)/entities:
climate:
- platform: smartir
name: i.e. Living Room AC
unique_id: ac_living_room
# Model: Samsung AR**HSF/JFS**
device_code: 1401
controller_data:
controller_type: Broadlink
remote_entity: remote.broadlink_your_broadlink_RM4Pro_remote
temperature_sensor: sensor.your_temperature_sensor_here
humidity_sensor: sensor.your_humidity_sensor_here
power_sensor: binary_sensor.your_power_sensor_here
where temperature_sensor, humidity_sensor and power_sensor are optional but highly recommended to be able to fully control your AC unit using one of the Thermostat Cards available for HA.
After you have added the configuration similar to the above do a “Check Configuration” within HA and if no errors occur do a HA restart.
Now you should be able to use the RM4 Pro to control your Samsung AC through i.e. one of the Thermostat Cards as mentioned above.
I installed the dashboard extensions and really wanted to finish it. But then I got stumped by the many code examples!
I’ve since found an IR adapter from TUYA that works DIRECTLY with Zigbee2Mqtt without integration and HACS extensions.
I only need this IR extension to send 3-5 commands to my air conditioning system via an automation; the whole process of using the BroadLink was a bit too much for me!
The Tuya product also has two major advantages for me:
1.) It runs on batteries.
2.) It’s dumb and only transmits static codes from an automation, so it’s easily replaceable and can be purchased for under €15!
I’d like to thank you for your many tips and especially @Tamsy for your patience with my perhaps stupid beginner questions.
I’m sure the BroadLink solution works well too, but for me, the streamlined solution with the Tuya component is the better one!
It certainly does. But I share your opinion about the hassles to automate AC units using Broadlink IR Blasters. Since we have only Daikin AC units at home I am in the process of replacing all the Broadlinks with Faikin Boards. They work suprisingly good and are much more reliable. And they do 2-way for also reading the AC units actual state back into HA. 3 out of 12 units still to go…
Local-only = faster, more private, and reliable with HA.