Official Alexa Smart Home Skill for openHAB 2

I have tried this as well. Since I am mostly using the command line on my Raspberry to write code, I found out that if I write the MQTT code in the way I posted above, the code immediately following the MQTT line turns green which means it is kind of commented out. If I alter the order of the MQTT, then everything works fine. Here is the “new” code:

Switch sHallway_br "Hallway br" <dimmablelight> (gHallway, gLights) [ "Switchable" ] { mqtt="<[mosquitto:/sonoff_hallway/button/state:state:MAP(onoff.map)], >[mosquitto:/sonoff_hallway/gpio/12:command:ON:0], >[mosquitto:/sonoff_hallway/gpio/12:command:OFF:1]" }

Please observe the order of the “<” brackets. In previous post it was “>><”, now it is “<>>”.
Maybe the “<” bracket also serves as a kind of comment character like “//” or “//” ?

@andrey_kozhushkov

see here: Complete list of ALL supported english/german voice commands of "Official Alexa Smart Home Skill for OH2"?

1 Like

Yesterday I got an email from “Amazon Alexa Team” with this content:

“Introducing Entertainment Capabilities in Alexa Smart Home - New Device Controls for TVs, AV Receivers, and IR Hubs”

Will it soon be available for OH2 Alexa Skill, too? @digitaldan

Hi, I cannot get the temperatur of my livingroom out of alexa.
the items definition looks good for me
Number IstwertWohnzimmer "Wohnzimmertemperatur [%.1f °C]" <temperature> [ "CurrentTemperature" ] { knx="0/3/0" }
but i don’t get an answer for my question
"Alexa, wie ist die Wohnzimmertemperatur" (“Alexa, what is the livingroom temperature”).

Any other devices, except temperature devices work well.
Hope anybody can help me?

Looks like it is not yet supported in our country:

@sihui @staehler67 It is supported in german !!! You need a group item.[ “Thermostat” ] and ALL three childtags. [ " TargetTemperature" ] [ “CurrentTemperature” ] and [ “homekit:HeatingCoolingMode” ]

see this example:

Group gDownstairsThermostat "Downstairs Thermostat" (gFF) [ "Thermostat","Fahrenheit" ]
Number DownstairsThermostatCurrentTemp "Downstairs Thermostat Current Temperature" (gDownstairsThermostat) [ "CurrentTemperature" ]
Number DownstairsThermostatTargetTemperature "Downstairs Thermostat Target Temperature" (gDownstairsThermostat) [ "TargetTemperature" ]
String DownstairsThermostatHeatingCoolingMode "Downstairs Thermostat Heating/Cooling Mode" (gDownstairsThermostat) [ "homekit:HeatingCoolingMode" ]

Then you have to tell in german: “Alexa, wie ist die Temperatur von “Your Groupname”? e.g. from above example “Alexa, wie ist die Temperatur von “Downstairs Thermostat”?

See here: complete list of all supported english german voice commands of official alexa smart home skill for oh2

and here: alexa smart home skill - no devices found - solution

and here: official alexa smart home skill for openhab 2

or here: homekit/readme.html

P.S: [ “Thermostat”,“Fahrenheit” ] only is needed when you don’t want to use Celsius. In Germany [ “Thermostat” ] only is needed!

4 Likes

Thanks for your hint, I’m going to try.

Than, I’m not able to ask for the temperature of my weatherstation,
right? Regarding to @dan explanation, it should be possible to ask for
temperatures without grouping a thermostat, but this might not work for
german language?

@staehler67

Maybe you can create a group with 2 “dummy” items:

Group gWetterstation "Wetterstation" (gFF) [ "Thermostat" ]
Number WetterstationCurrentTemp "Wetterstation IstTemperatur [%.1f °C]" (gWetterstation) [ "CurrentTemperature" ] { knx="0/3/0" }
Number WetterstationTargetTemperature "Wetterstation Dummy SollTemperatur" (gWetterstation) [ "TargetTemperature" ]
String WetterstationHeatingCoolingMode "Wetterstation Dummy Heating/Cooling Mode" (gWetterstation) [ "homekit:HeatingCoolingMode" ] 

Then ask Alexa: “Alexa wie ist die Temperatur von “Wetterstation”?”

EDIT: You will see this “OH2 item group” as only one device in Alexa-APP: --> named “Wetterstation” ! You can link it also to an Alexa-APP group, e.g. “Wohnzimmer”. Then just ask: "Alexa wie ist die Temperatur von “Wohnzimmer”?

I’ve also looked the new payload version 3 of Alexa skills. Would be a great feature to control my entertainment devices (like switching channels).

Yet, the capabilities are only available in US and in my opinion the documentation could be better.

I opened a ticket a few days ago for it, https://github.com/openhab/openhab-alexa/issues/40 , we just need to figure out how we want to tag for it ( or something) . That is a bit stalled right now as our current tagging system is not adequate for this use case. I would very much like to add it as well.

1 Like

Hi Alex,
I found the time to try your hint. When I ask “Alexa, wie ist die Temperatur von Wetterstation?" Alexa answers always with it standard answer “Die Temperatur für ist 20.7 Grad, es ist leicht bewölkt …”. It’s the answer from the weather skill, but not from my openhab item. What is going wrong?
I see my Wetterstation Group in the Alexa-App, so the group/items should be configured fine …

@staehler67 “Wetterstation” maybe is too similar with “Wetter”. Or you better create with Alexa App a new group e.g. “Wohnzimmer” and link your device “Wetterstation” to that group. Then ask “Wie ist die Temperatur von Wohnzimmer?”

1 Like

Hi Alex,
my alexa doensn’t do like wanted :frowning: I’ve now tried a different name for my thermostat group and tried to link it with a alexa-group named Balkon.
Any question regarding to temperature results in the answer of the standard weather skill. I think alexa triggers to the word temperature and then activates the weather skill. I’m wondering, why it is obviously working in your installation - I assume you are also located in germany, right?
I asked exactly “Wie ist die Temperatur von Balkon?” …
I you have any further ideas? I’ld appreciate that.

But nevertheless, thanks for your help.

@staehler67 Mhhh, yes I’m located in Germany. And it’s running fine for all my thermostats.
Which number format brings your channel { knx=“0/3/0” } ? 21,1 or 21.1 ? My thermostats have number format = 21.1 and Alexa tells me “21ster 1 Grad”, that sounds like a date, and it seems to be a bug, but it don’t bother me.
Your channel { knx=“0/3/0” } is surely linked to only ONE item and taged with
[ “CurrentTemperature” ]?

 Number WetterstationCurrentTemp "Wetterstation IstTemperatur [%.1f °C]" (gWetterstation) [ "CurrentTemperature" ] { knx="0/3/0" }

Did you activate an EXTRA “Weather-Skill” or are you using the Alexa with the native standard weather information?

Yes, I also get a 21.1 temperature format, but I’m not as far as you to get this strange spelling :wink:
My item is tagged with [ “CurrentTemperature” ], as described by you. I don’t have a extra weather skill activated.
At the moment I have no further idea, how to solve this.

@staehler67 All other tagged items are running with Alexa, but the Temperature?

Correct, almost every item is meanwhile controlled by alexa, which works pretty fine. Just this thermostat group(s) won’t work :frowning:

@staehler67 Could you please post your complete itemgroup?

I tested it once again with only 1 thing-channel linked to an item: (similar like your case, because you don’t have a “real” thermostat:

Group GF_KitchenThermostat "Küche Thermostat" (gGF) [ "Thermostat" ]
String GF_Kitchen_maxMode    "M:" 				<climate>	 (gMAX, GF_Kitchen, GF_KitchenThermostat) [ "homekit:HeatingCoolingMode" ] 
Number GF_Kitchen_maxActual  "IST Temperatur  [%.1f °C]" <temperature>	(gMAX, GF_Kitchen, Temperature1, GF_KitchenThermostat) [ "CurrentTemperature" ]	{channel="max:thermostat:LKF0025489:MEQ1442698:actual_temp"}
Number GF_Kitchen_maxSetTemp "SOLL Temperatur K [%.1f °C]" <temperature>  (gMAX, GF_Kitchen, GF_KitchenThermostat) [ "TargetTemperature" ] 

…and it’s running fine!!
I also linked my itemgroup “Küche Thermostat” to an Alexa-Group “Heizung Küche”.

Now I can ask:

"Alexa, wie ist die Temperatur von ‘Heizung Küche’?“
or
"Alexa, wie ist die Temperatur von ‘Küche Thermostat’?”

answer (in both cases!!): “Die Temperatur von Küche Thermostat ist 19ter 5 Grad”

Requesting the current temperature is not supported yet in German according to the docs:

GetTemperatureReadingRequest *US and UK
GetTemperatureReadingResponse *US and UK
GetTargetTemperatureRequest *US and UK
GetTargetTemperatureResponse *US and UK

As soon as Amazon enables this, our skill should just work.

@digitaldan But I use it in german and it is running!! It is only spelled a little wrong. Alexa is telling: “Die Temperatur von Wandthermostat ist 21ster 1 Grad”. It better should be: “ist 21 Komma 1 Grad” or “21 Punkt 1 Grad”. But at the moment this don’t bother me.

see also this topic: Complete list of ALL supported english/german voice commands of "Official Alexa Smart Home Skill for OH2"?