Genesys Casual

 View Only

Discussion Thread View
Expand all | Collapse all

Contest - Tell Us Your Home Project Story & Win a Super Prize

  Thread closed by the administrator, not accepting new replies.
  • 1.  Contest - Tell Us Your Home Project Story & Win a Super Prize

    GENESYS
    Posted 10-05-2023 13:09
    Edited by Nicole Milliken 11-06-2023 09:10
    No replies, thread closed.

    "I am by birth a Genesys, and my family is one of the most distinguished of that online community." 

    - an unauthorized collaboration between Mary Shelley & Matt Lawson

    When did you feel like a mad scientist?

    Modern technology never ceases to amaze us. What lies ahead? Who knows! But behind any great machine there is a human (or team of humans) that is making it work. Today, we want to know how you have taken the technology available in your daily life and made some strong enhancements to it.

    • Did you create a formula to grow a tomato the size of a pumpkin? 
    • If a burglar enters your house do you have a robo dog or blood-thirsty vacuum ready to attack?
    • Did you concoct an algorithm to pick the ultimate Fantasy Football line up? or
    • Do you have two cans connected by a string so you can talk to your friend across the street?

    From technologically insane to jerry rigged we want to hear about your greatest enhancement!

    In our October contest, we want to hear the story of your passion project? Don't spare any details!

    • What made you start this project?
    • How long did it take?
    • Any favorite (or least favorite) memories?
    • What were the results?
    • Did you have help along the way?
    • Does your project or bot have a name?
    • How did it turn out?

    What do the winners get? A deluxe prize from the prize wall.

    How to Enter? Reply below to this thread with your story! You can submit a video, power point, text, cartoon, whatever helps you tell your story and help us learn about the innovation you have going on in your daily life. 

    Main Rule: No sharing contact information: phone numbers, emails, addresses, etc.

    What kind of "Bot" qualifies? Naturally, anything robotic or electric is fair game, but we are also eager to hear about any automation processes, AI advancements, or reporting system that required you to dream big, stretch your knowledge, and get inventive, but ultimately made your life easier. 

    There is a separate category for any Bots you use/created that incorporate Genesys software.

    Ready, Igor?

    Matt


    #CommunityQuestions(Contest,Community,etc.)
    #Events
    #SuccessStories

    ------------------------------
    Matt Lawson
    Genesys - Employees
    Online Community Manager
    ------------------------------



  • 2.  RE: Contest - Tell Us Your Home Project Story & Win a Super Prize

    Top 25 Contributor
    Posted 10-10-2023 19:26
    No replies, thread closed.

    I have a couple.

    First one is easy, very recently purchased a robot window cleaner, pretty clever little bot, has made cleaning the second floor outside windows much easier, and safer. 

    Second one requires a little background.

    I was born in South Africa in an Afrikaans speaking family, we had this recipe book that we kids would use to make some yummy treats. Moved to NZ when I was still young, and to force learn English, no Afrikaans was allowed in the house, but since I was young I ended up loosing much of my first language. Recently one of my siblings found that old recipe book, all in Afrikaans and send some photos of it through to our family chat.

    Couple of buttons presses later, and Google Lens captured the text from the image, and then Google Translate converted it English into a document. Now I'm reliving my childhood through tasty treats. :)



    ------------------------------
    Anton Vroon
    ------------------------------



  • 3.  RE: Contest - Tell Us Your Home Project Story & Win a Super Prize

    Posted 10-10-2023 23:23
    No replies, thread closed.

    Hey that robot cleaner looks cool Anton.  What type of grip/pressure does it have?  Looks like you have to feed it power from somewhere or is that cable a charger?  Could be something useful in our place too.



    ------------------------------
    Vaun McCarthy
    ------------------------------



  • 4.  RE: Contest - Tell Us Your Home Project Story & Win a Super Prize

    Top 25 Contributor
    Posted 10-10-2023 23:27
    No replies, thread closed.

    its a NZ based company too, which is always nice for us. It is a bit pricy though.

    Website states 70 RPM with 5kg suction force. - https://robotmylife.co.nz/product/hobot-r3-robotic-window-cleaner/

    And yes that cable is the power, its unfortunately not battery powered, so long cable plus an anchoring cable goes out the window and attaches to it.



    ------------------------------
    Anton Vroon
    ------------------------------



  • 5.  RE: Contest - Tell Us Your Home Project Story & Win a Super Prize

    GENESYS
    Posted 10-11-2023 10:05
    No replies, thread closed.

    I've never seen a robot window cleaner! So fun! I could use one of those...I LOVEEEEE your story about the recipe book! That is amazing - just curious, what is one of your favorite treats that you found in that book. I love trying new foods from around the world, especially family recipe book gems. 



    ------------------------------
    Nicole Milliken
    Genesys - Employees
    ------------------------------



  • 6.  RE: Contest - Tell Us Your Home Project Story & Win a Super Prize

    Top 25 Contributor
    Posted 10-11-2023 16:28
    Edited by Anton Vroon 10-11-2023 17:05
    No replies, thread closed.

    I hope you have a sweet tooth, because this one is almost disgustingly sweet, but was a favourite for me as a kid, so have been making these for mine. This isn't anything fancy by any stretch, super easy to make, so its great for kids to get involved too.

    Recommend halving the ingredients and also butter works instead of margarine. When it comes to stirring in the oats you want to act quick as this needs to be done before the mixture cools too much.

    Afrikaans Recipe

    Translation:

    Take Out:

    baking sheet

    pot

    measuring cups measuring spoons

    wooden spoon

    vegetable board 2 teaspoons

    Ingredients:

    125 g margarine

    500 ml sugar

    125 ml cocoa 

    125 ml milk

    750 ml oatmeal

    250 ml of coconut (I use shredded, but desiccated is fine too) 

    5 ml vanilla essence..

    Instructions:

    1. Grease the baking tray with margarine. (or just use baking paper)
    2. Measure the margarine, sugar, cocoa and milk into the saucepan.
    3. Turn a stovetop to medium heat.  Place the saucepan on the plate and stir the mixture until it boils.
    4. Turn the plate on low heat and let it cook for exactly 5 minutes.  Take the saucepan off the plate and place it on the board.  Turn off the plate
    5. Stir in the oats, the coconut and vanilla essence until everything is well mixed.
    6. Scoop small lumps with the two teaspoons on the baking sheet while the mixture is still warm.
    7. Let it stand until it is well cooled and stiff..



    ------------------------------
    Anton Vroon
    ------------------------------



  • 7.  RE: Contest - Tell Us Your Home Project Story & Win a Super Prize

    GENESYS
    Posted 10-12-2023 13:09
    No replies, thread closed.

    Oh yummy! I definitely have a super sweet tooth! Thank you for sharing this-  I can't WAIT to try this! It sounds like the lump oatmeal cookies my mom used to make :)



    ------------------------------
    Nicole Milliken
    Genesys - Employees
    ------------------------------



  • 8.  RE: Contest - Tell Us Your Home Project Story & Win a Super Prize

    GENESYS
    Posted 10-13-2023 08:56
    No replies, thread closed.

    Love the pictures in your cookbook!



    ------------------------------
    Janice MacDonald
    Genesys - Employees
    ------------------------------



  • 9.  RE: Contest - Tell Us Your Home Project Story & Win a Super Prize

    Posted 10-12-2023 09:55
      |   view attached
    No replies, thread closed.

    Since the first round of covid I took up a new hobby of raising chickens. It has been fun but along the way it has taken some thought and lots of rigging to building parts that work best for my home. Sure, there's lots of products you can buy to make it easy, but what's the fun in that, lol. 

    My daughter and I talked my husband into getting 4 chicks and a prefab chicken coop from our local farmers hardware. If you know anything about chickens, this is where chicken math starts. The coop can hold up to 10 chickens... when one chicken doesn't make it you need 4 more to replace the one. Soon we had 12, which meant we needed more space. This is when I "borrowed" the dog kennel, cut a hole in it and connected it to the chicken coop for more space to play. Soon I decided it needed a roof, which is rigged out of things around the house so they can stay dry and out of the sun. 

    When remote work wasn't necessary for every day I needed to go back to the office more, I had to find a better way to feed the 12 chickens. By now 12 chickens has turned into 20+ because the chickens started hatching their eggs and I wanted to get different breeds to lay different colored eggs. I got some PVC elbows, trashcan, and a drill. By attaching the PVC elbows to the bottom of the trashcan the chickens can put their heads in to get food without making a mess! Now I can feed 30+ pounds of feed at a time without having to refill a small container daily. 

    With cold weather coming, I again need more room. I've attached a small shed to the other side of the kennel as a secondary chicken coop and cut a door in it for access. My husband thought I was crazy for cutting a door into a new shed. But is it crazy if it works? I repurposed boxes, leftover shelving, and other things from around the house to use as laying boxes and roosts to sleep on, I now have a bigger, better chicken coop and extra storage for winter. 

    The chickens have been fun and a little detour from fast-paced daily life while providing lots of eggs! Although I think I've finally reached my max number of chickens, the "upgrades" are never-ending. 



    ------------------------------
    Stacey Sanchez
    PACU- Workforce Operations MGR
    ------------------------------



  • 10.  RE: Contest - Tell Us Your Home Project Story & Win a Super Prize

    GENESYS
    Posted 10-12-2023 13:10
    No replies, thread closed.

    Wow Stacey! You're a chicken coop connoisseur! I love that idea  you came up with to feed more chickens. I think that's the reason I don't have a coop because my husband knows it will just evolve into a huge pen! 



    ------------------------------
    Nicole Milliken
    Genesys - Employees
    ------------------------------



  • 11.  RE: Contest - Tell Us Your Home Project Story & Win a Super Prize

    Posted 10-29-2023 23:06
    Edited by Mark d'Auvergne 10-29-2023 23:09
    No replies, thread closed.

    My Home Automation projects.

    I have always been passionate about automation and have experimented with many little projects that have simplified my life.

    My home automation has been an ongoing beast using my engineering background and YouTube as my main source of inspiration.

    Results have been Excellent with only a few technical and human issues along the way.

    My automations include.

    Home lighting.

    Using individual smart switches with Wi-Fi capability (Sonoff switches) I have been able to automate how my lighting operates in the home.

    By adding an inexpensive (Zigbee switch) and Zigbee smart devices including motion sensors I am able to automate what happens when I enter or exit a room. I have also added scenes to my home so I can turn things on and off depending on needs.

    My best examples/use cases are.

    1.       The "turn off all" button in the bedroom (or from Google), proves particularly useful when the wife leaves everything on and i jump into bed.

    2.       The "Holiday mode" where lights and other devices flick on an off to make it look like someone is home.

    3.       Motion sensors in the bathroom which leaves the fan for a little longer when needed.

    I also have garden lights (Holman Wi-Fi RGB kit) which allows me to change the mood lighting of the garden, front and back. I have also created a scene which allows me to integrate that into my mood lighting in the home, nice when I'm hosting a sports event and want to display the team colours.

     

    Sound Systems

    Simple but effective is the placement of google home devices in each room which allows me to play any music in any room, at any time. This also allows me to broadcast messages or sound alarms or alerts to home members and guests in any or all rooms. I mainly use this to know what the Melbourne weather is doing in the next hour.

    TV Theatre

    The Sony Smart TV and smart devices connected to monitors are linked to google and the local network which provides access to Netflix, Stan, Amazon Prime, Youtube, Kayo, what ever else is the flavour of the day and is affordable.

    It also allows guests to broadcast to the tv or devices (If I let them)

    Security

    Security (Arlo) Cameras are accessible and integrated to the home. (Changing to Eufy soon)

    The Camera can detect people and animals around the house but more importantly lets me know when the delivery driver or some pesky door salesman has arrived at the front door, then i can choose if i want to answer the door. The dog also provides this alerting service but I can not turn the dog off.

    Automated curtains

    A nice an simple Curtain (TUYA) Wi-Fi device has allowed me to automate the curtains, opening and closing without the expensive cost of structural changes.

    The curtains are automatically opened and closed depending on season and day of week.

    Fingerprint Pin or Key door lock

    By far my favourite feature of the home automation is the door lock.

    I can simply walk out the door and no longer require keys and if I forget to lock the door it locks itself.

    I can choose who and when people are allowed to enter the door.

    Wi-Fi capable it allows me to securely open the door remotely and is linked to the Security Cameras.

    Air conditioner.

    Whilst I am in the process of upgrading the Air conditioners to smart devices as they fail, I have installed smart devices which control the old tech air conditioners (Sensibo Sky Wi-Fi Controllers).

    I am able to control the temperature automatically or manually. This is useful when I am away and don't need devices on or they can be used to ensure rooms are hot or cold when you get back from an outing or holiday.

    Watering system

    Linked to my front and back gardens the (Orbit B-Hyve) watering system allows me to water the garden on a schedule or manually from my phone when I want.

    It is also linked to my local weather app which can determine if my garden has or will see rain in the coming days. If so it can skip the schedule so water is not wasted.

    Robovac/mop

    Hooked into the home Wi-Fi I have scheduled all my floors to be cleaned every second morning and I can ask google to clean the floor after the dog has been to the beach. This robot has a map and tracking so i can tell it where to go.

    Garage door

    I custom-built a device that controlled the garage door so I could use my phone and a NFC chip to automate it. Whilst it worked well I could not trust this device as the dog would run away if the door accidently opened. I chose to remove this function from my home automation stack.

    Letterbox

    Hooked a little sensor into my Zigbee switch so I receive an alert when mail has arrived.

    Fail Safe

    Now before everyone says I'm crazy and also asks what happens if the internet goes down, every device that I have selected for this home automation has been selected to have a manual override.

    This is particularly useful when I have house guests or dog sitters who just don't get it.



    ------------------------------
    Mark d'Auvergne
    Customer Driven Solutions Pty Ltd
    ------------------------------



  • 12.  RE: Contest - Tell Us Your Home Project Story & Win a Super Prize

    GENESYS
    Posted 10-30-2023 09:20
    Edited by Nicole Milliken 10-30-2023 09:21
    No replies, thread closed.

    Mark - this is such an impressive list. I want to go check out your house for a game, because it sounds like the mood lighting is on fire! LOVE ALL THIS! Such super-smart people in our communities. I realize that my house is so plain...haha!

    I really want that mopping mechanism to do all my house cleaning chores automatically.



    ------------------------------
    Nicole Milliken
    Genesys - Employees
    ------------------------------



  • 13.  RE: Contest - Tell Us Your Home Project Story & Win a Super Prize

    Posted 10-30-2023 06:40
    No replies, thread closed.

    Hi!

    This is my personal project:

    In my apartment I have an air conditioner/heat pump that cools or heats the whole house by ducts. It is a somewhat old device that is controlled by an infrared remote control, but can not be domotized. In addition, it is an oversized device for the size of the apartment, so it either cools too much or heats too much.


    What I have done is a programmed bot that I can control via Telegram commands  that turns on puts the air conditioner or heat pump until it reaches a temperature and turns it off. I have done this with my own development in java, which accesses the api of a smart thermostat that reads the temperature of the house. If the bot detects that the temperature is outside the comfort threshold it sends the air conditioner infrared commands to turn it on and set the temperature and power to reach the ideal temperature.

    For example:

    11:30>heat 25
    11:30>threshold 0.5

    11:30>bot: Current temperature: 22.3ºC. Switching on at 26ºC until temperature is reached

    11:35>bot: Current temperature: 25.05ºC. Switching off

    11:50>bot: Current temperature: 24.9ºC. Switching on at 26ºC until temperature is reached

    ..

    I have used a Telegram bot as it is the fastest way to do a home development. Ideally I would like to program a mobile app, but I don't have the time to do it. 



    ------------------------------
    Carlos López Martínez
    Qwi Tecnologias de la Informacion S.L.
    ------------------------------



  • 14.  RE: Contest - Tell Us Your Home Project Story & Win a Super Prize

    GENESYS
    Posted 10-30-2023 09:13
    No replies, thread closed.

    WOW Carlos! I didn't even know you could override Smart thermostats like that - incredible thinking! Can you come over to my house and fix my A/C? LOL



    ------------------------------
    Nicole Milliken
    Genesys - Employees
    ------------------------------



  • 15.  RE: Contest - Tell Us Your Home Project Story & Win a Super Prize

    Posted 10-31-2023 16:01
    No replies, thread closed.
    Thanks Nicole!
     
    It was quite a challenge to figure out how the different thermostat apis worked that were not documented and just to know the temperature of the house. It took some reverse engineering 
    The infrared broadcast was also tricky as each action requires a series of commands to be deciphered from a remote control and receiver
    The truth is that it was fun.
    There are ways devices do it all for you. But the best thing is to do it yourself


    ------------------------------
    Carlos López Martínez
    Qwi Tecnologias de la Informacion S.L.
    ------------------------------



  • 16.  RE: Contest - Tell Us Your Home Project Story & Win a Super Prize

    GENESYS
    Posted 11-03-2023 10:03
    No replies, thread closed.

    Love that philosophy, Carlos - "Best thing is to do it yourself" :) That's where real innovation comes from!



    ------------------------------
    Nicole Milliken
    Genesys - Employees
    ------------------------------



Need Help finding something?

Check out the Genesys Knowledge Network - your all-in-one access point for Genesys resources