Example Configuration ZWAVE Neo Coolcam PIR PD01Z

Finally I got my Neo Coolcam PIR successfully setup in Openhab 2.5.10-1
I have assigned all 4 channels and PIR parameter is enabled in the config for the device.
I am getting the luminance but no temperature and no battery. I assume the battery will just take some time for getting updated and the temperature isn´t available for this device - read some information already in other topics. That´s no problem.
But the real important thing for me - I can´t get a signal for the motion sensor. What do I miss here in order to catch the PIR motion in Openhab?
There is no signal for PIR in the log and no update in the sitemap.

Can somebody please help me with an example for the correct setup?

My sitemap for this device:

Switch item=Neo_Motion label="Neo Test Move"
Text item=Neo_Luminance label="Neo Test Luminance" icon="light"
Text item=Neo_Temperature label="Neo Test Temperature" icon="temperature"
Text item=Neo_Battery label="Neo Test Battery" icon="batterylevel"

My items definition:

Contact Neo_Motion {channel="zwave:device:c15572bd:node3:alarm_motion"}
Number Neo_Luminance {channel="zwave:device:c15572bd:node3:sensor_luminance"}
Number Neo_Temperature {channel="zwave:device:c15572bd:node3:sensor_temperature"}
Number Neo_Battery {channel="zwave:device:c15572bd:node3:sensor_battery-level"}

In Habmin I can see switch for the motion alarm so I also tried switch instead of contact but nothing in the log.

Do you have the group 1 (or is it called Lifeline? I can’t remember exactly) setting to Controller in Habmin? Without this the PIR messages don’t get sent to Openhab. I’m not at my laptop at the moment so I can’t take a screenshot but the group 1 parameter is near the bottom of the configuration parameters section I think. After setting it to Controller and clicking on save you need to wake up the Coolcam by pressing the button next to the battery four (five?) times in a row to wake it up. You’ll see it flash red a few times. Do that three or four times near your usb stick to force the configuration parameters to be pushed into the Coolcam.

It helps to turn on debugging for the ZWave binding too so you can watch the PIR messages arrive.

I have 3 Neo Coolcam PIR sensors. According to the xml produced, only one of them has the temperature sensor ( my battery hog). They are all the same model though. In my case I was only interested in motion ( & battery)

Ok i will try that. I already realized that the Lifeline is blank when I open the drop-down I can see that controller is the first entry and it is marked in blue. When I select and save it gets populated, but when I come back it is empty again. So it looks that it cannot be saved.
I will try now the trick with the wake-up for the device.
And what about the item definition is that correct? Should I select switch or contact?

Yes exactly I am generally interested in motion, and this is what I cannot get working.
What is your item definition? And can you see Lifeline assigned to the controller when entering configuration in habmin?

The binding now automatically detects and sets this except for very old Z-Wave (not Plus) devices…

It works!!! Thanks a lot.
Unbelievable, there really is an issue with the association groups.
As you said I was setting the blank entry for Lifeline to Controller and saved it. Followed by multiple pressing the button on the PIR sensor to get it multiple blinking. First time I did it still no reaction.
So I tried it a second time, and booom the log shows the battery level and the motion change as well.
In Habmin the PIR shows “Node initializing Set_Association” but this doesn´t hinder the PIR working as expected, and I assume this also will go away automatically. And maybe the association group Lifeline will reflect the chosen setting as selected to the controller because this is a bit confusing.

But why is this happening, maybe something wrong with the ZWAVE database for this device? I do have four of these PIRs and for all it is the same issue.
And I remember that I tested one of the PIRs more than a year ago (assume Openhab2.2) and I didn´t have this trouble at that time at all…

Perhaps something in the firmware not properly cleared on disassociate but cleared with factory reset.

OK, but I did reset all PIRs with long pressing the PIR button, same for the ZWAVE stick, don´t know how often I did it :slight_smile:
Doesn´t matter I do now get them running, so mayn hours spend …

One other thing I would like to ask, I noticed that for ZWave devices it seems not necessary to define them specifically in the items file. You can grab them immediately by this entry “zwave_device_c15572bd_node3_alarm_motion” created by Openhab. I defined it as Neo_Motion in the item file and now I can see two log entries for motion change, so I assume the item definition is just for getting an “easier” name for the device?

example:

2020-11-11 15:51:04.972 [vent.ItemStateChangedEvent] - Neo_Motion changed from ON to OFF
2020-11-11 15:51:04.979 [vent.ItemStateChangedEvent] - zwave_device_c15572bd_node3_alarm_motion changed from ON to OFF

The Paper UI can automatically create Items when in Simple Mode. that is not recommended & the Paper UI is no longer present in openHAB 3.

OK, but I did set it up this time with simple mode deactivated, manually assigned the channels in HABMin.
PaperUI will disappear? OK I hope there will be a smooooth migration.

But one thing I would like to ask you about the ZWave routing functionality and further Zwave devices. I also bought that time some wall switches because I read that these 230V devices will route the Zwave signals within the Zwave network.
So when I now include these plugs do I need to change something for the PIR association groups to get them talking to each other or is it automatically activated? I am asking because I can see there some possibilities with the association groups for the Neo PIR?

Many Z-Wave devices have additional association groups so you can have devices talking directly to each other apart from OH. I have personally not explored that option.

OK I see, so this could be used when e.g. not using OpenHab but directly using actions within the Zwave network, in other words I leave these other association groups on default means empty?

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OK, but I did reset all PIRs with long pressing the PIR button, same for the ZWAVE stick, don´t know how often I did it :slight_smile:
Doesn´t matter I do now get them running, so mayn hours spend …

You shouldn’t really need to reset the devices, just set the association group to be the controller. But sometimes these devices don’t play by the rules :slight_smile: I’m happy to hear you got it working.

I’ve also seen the behaviour you’ve experience where I set the association group in Habmin but it still shows a blank field when you go back in to display the thing again. I believe it’s an issue with Habmin, you can also set the assoication groups with the PaperUI.

To answer your question about item definitions, I created all my items for these devices with the PaperUI,

Some of the Coolcams I’ve got have temperature sensors, some don’t. The newer ones I’ve got have the temperature sensors, the older ones don’t.

You shouldn’t really need to reset the devices, just set the association group to be the controller. But sometimes these devices don’t play by the rules :slight_smile:

Chris, the developer has stated you do NOT need to set the association group any longer. I stated my personal experience with those cheap Chinese devices. If you experienced something different with them that is great.

To be on the save side I reseted again everything :slight_smile: I am used to it already.
And started to re-include these PIRs.
Some facts for people owning these devices and maybe also having trouble to get them working.

  1. There are some of these devices mainly the older ones not having the temperature sensor even when the channel get created automatically, just do not link the related channel, cause it doesn´t work.
  2. The PIR button for wakeup doesn´t work when pressed one time as described in the manual, means Yes the red LED gets activated but nothing happens, you always need to push the button 3 times until the LED flahes 5 times.
  3. After the device gets detected by OpenHab (Zwave search) you first link the channels in HabMin and save. When now pushing the button 3 times I always get the luminance sensor working but not motion and battery.
  4. It is necessary (at least for these stupid devices) to now assign “Controller” in association groups entry Lifeline. Save the setting and press immediately the PIR button 3 times and watch the log in Openhab.
    You need to repeat the PIR button pushes (always 3 times) until you get the messages in the log about motion and battery.
    For some of the devices it was necessary to repeat the Lifeline assignment to Controller a second time and push the button 3 times until the log is reflecting the motion and battery and of course the luminance channel as well.

This isn´t really logic and somehow let me loose trust in these devices but so far they are working now and when setting e.g. “Lux level changed report” to “10” in the configuration of the PIR in HabMin it is quickly reflecting the luminance change so I can use it for activating some light switches …

And again thanks a lot to you guys here, without you and that trick to assign the Controller to Lifeline and immediately push the PIR button 3 times I couldn´t use these devices at all.

I have never had to to that with the 3 Neo Coolcam PIR sensors I have had for over a year.

Hi Bruce,
As I wrote I tried one of the PIRs more than a year ago and I wasn´t having that trouble and the device were working immediately.
Now on 2.5 I do have that trouble…
Maybe you were setting up the devices some time ago and it was migrated without problems to the newer releases, I definately do have the same configuration, the same PIRs the same ZWave stick, OK one thing is changed before I used a PI3b and now it is a PI4b can that be the culprid, I don´t think so?