Questions regarding Somfy

Hey everybody
Please excuse my question but I’m having trouble grasping the Somfy-integration.
I’ve been unsing HomeAssistant for well over a year with climate, light and more recently ZigBee via DresdenElectronic ConBee2+deCONZ components and am about ot get Somfy compatible rolling shutters. So first thought of course: Amazing, let’s integrate with trusty old HASS.
Now here’s the trouble, I have been unable at all to track down information on Hardware requirements. I have successfully enabled the Somfy integration via the somfy-component and the SomfyOpenAPI but nowhere does it say if and which and what kind of gateway I would need.
Is one required? What standard does Somfy use? What frequenzy are they working on? Is it WiFi 2,4gHz or more like ZigBee in the 800mHz region somewhere? Or is it its own thing? What is TaHoma? A Somfy compatible standard?
I’d highly appreciate if someone could clear some of my confusion up.
Before you ask: The folks installing the shutters didn’t know either.
Thanks in advance!
halest

Hi,

I might not be able to answer all of your questions, but here is what I know. Somfy uses two different RF protocols: RTS and io home control. I am not sure but it could be that you are able to control RTS devices with some DIY things. The other protocol you are forced to use somfy devices. There is now other way. You need at least a Conexoon gateway to integrate your shutters into HA. This gateway can handle both protocols, but you should check if an aditional USB stick is needed for RTS devices. The Conexoon gateway is the “easier” gateway with less abitlites. TaHome is the big brother of Conexoon. With this gatway you have more abilitites, like scenes, automations, etc.
First of all you should identify which protocol your shutters are using and then check which gateway you want to buy (the TaHoma is way more expensive then the Conexoon). I use a Conexoon to integrate my io home control blinds into HA and it works well for me.

1 Like

Hey Daniel,
first, thank you very much for your helpful answer! It’s starting to make sense now.
On the invoice it says “Somfy OXIMO io motor” and “Smoove 1 io pure switch” so it sounds to me like it’s the io home control.
Couldn’t I just use the Conexoon then and use HASS for the automations? They’ll basically consist of

  1. 30 minutes after sunrise -> Open fully to 0%
  2. 30 minutes after sunset -> Bedroom close 70%, rest of the house close 100%

With what cards/buttons/switches do they appear on your HASS lovelace?

Best regards and thanks again!
halest

You are weclome :slight_smile:

Indeed it is :wink:
Yes, you can use Conexoon. This easy automation can be also done with the “window” app then, but of course also with HA. I will post a picture in the evening :wink:

And here is the picture of my setup:

Hey Daniel,
thanks again very much.
If I see understand your screenshot correctly the shutters are closed and clicking on the according arrow will open them. I assume the sqare in the middle is a representation of the current state and clicking it one may be able to define a percentage?
If I chose the Tahoma, do you know if I’m forced to use the tahoma-component or can I still stick with the somfy-component?
FYI: With the newfound knowledge I went to the Somfy website and one does have to be careful indeed. They sell two Connexoon gateways, one with RTS and one with IO and without your input I may have bought the wrong one. They also sell you the new standard as the “next generation connectivity” and RTS as “first-gen”. Both of them 170€ on the official site against 299€ for the Tahoma.
I think as soon as I’m through with this I’ll update and extend the HASS documentation on the Somfy component. There’s a lot of helpful things missing and incorrect (like the callback URL for example). If you want I can update you?
Don’t worry, I won’t bother you with this much longer. I do appreciate it though!
Have a nice weekend,
halest

Hey,

sorry for my late reply, was a little bit busy the last days.
The square in the middle is a stop button. With this button you can stop the blinds at any time. If you klick on a blind a second screen opens:

Here you can use the slider on the bottom to set the blind to certain position. You can use this also in an automation.

I am not sure but I think you can use either the tahoma or the somfy component with the TaHoma gateway.

So I want to get Somfy motorized shades. I I use the official Somfy API, what hardware do I need? Do I need a conexoon or mylink, or tahoma? Or will the official Somfy API connect the shades to HA without any extras?

The dealer is pushing the ZRTSI (so I could put them on Smarthings and then connect that to HA), but they want to sell the thing at like $650, but I know its like $250 or lower.

Daniel,
Thank you for your answer. This was really helpful.
Have a nice weekend!

lawsuitup,
Please see Daniels original answer above. As soon as you find out if your shades use IO or RTC you can get the according connexoon gateway to use with the api account you got. For more advanced or multiprotocol use you need the Tahoma.

Hi all,

I’m also thinking about getting Somfy shades from 247 blinds. They have a Connexoon hub accessory that you can purchase also.

Do I need to purchase the accessory to get it into home-assistant? Can I not connect these via a conbee stick?

No you need either the Connexoon or Tahoma gateway. Somfy’s RF protocoll is called “io homecontrol” and is only supported from Somfy and Velux as far as I know.

This new device

Somfy micro-transmitter IZYMO IO

Little battery box that talks homecontrol IO as I understand it.

Just wondering if someone has tried the IZYMO transmitter connected to a Shelly 2.5 ? That’s the option I’m considering instead of purchasing a whole TaHoma unit to control a single motor.