Hi everyone,
First of all, special thanks and greetings to @scooter_seh for his idea and the solution.
As I cannot develop code, ChatGPT was helping me with Android Studio and the stuff around.
I would like to share a small personal project that I have been working on: OH Drive, an experimental Android Auto application for openHAB.
The idea was simple: I wanted to access selected openHAB devices and information directly from my car’s Android Auto display, using a clean interface with large buttons and minimal interaction.
After several development and testing sessions, OH Drive has reached version 1.6. I have tested it using the Android Auto Desktop Head Unit (DHU) and in my Mercedes with a Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra.
I thought other openHAB enthusiasts might enjoy experimenting with it as well.
What is OH Drive?
OH Drive is a standalone Android Auto application that connects to an existing openHAB installation through the REST API.
Its main feature is a dynamically generated Android Auto interface based on a dedicated openHAB Sitemap.
You decide which Items appear in your car by editing the Sitemap on your openHAB server.
There is no need to rebuild the APK whenever you add, remove, or rename an Item.
Current features in version 1.6
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Dynamic loading of selected openHAB Sitemap entries
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Android Auto grid layout with large buttons and icons
The icon are here listet with their names:
Icons | openHAB -
Display of sensor values, temperatures, weather information and other Item states
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Switch controls with visual command feedback
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Special impulse handling for relay-based controls
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Roller shutter submenu with Up, Stop and Down
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Automatic roller shutter position updates approximately every two seconds while the submenu is open
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Live monitoring of configured relay events
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Visual command feedback: orange hourglass, green checkmark and red error symbol
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Automatic German/English interface language selection based on the Android system language
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Custom Sitemap labels are preserved exactly as configured by the user
The application uses openHAB’s existing REST API and does not require an additional openHAB binding.
How is OH Drive different from OH Auto?
OH Drive is not intended to replace OH Auto or compete with its development.
My focus was specifically on a Sitemap-driven approach.
Instead of maintaining a separate, fixed selection of devices inside the Android application, OH Drive reads a dedicated Sitemap and builds its Android Auto interface dynamically.
For example, adding a temperature Item or another supported switch only requires changing the Sitemap on the openHAB server.
Other particular design choices include:
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A dedicated roller shutter control screen
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A simple dashboard with dynamically loaded icons
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Live relay feedback and command status indicators
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German and English interface localization
I have not performed a comprehensive feature-by-feature comparison with the latest OH Auto release. I would be interested to hear from users who have experience with both approaches.
Example Sitemap
Create a file called ohdrive.sitemap in your openHAB Sitemap directory.
Here is a simplified example using fictional Item names:
sitemap ohdrive label="OH Drive"
{
Text item=Outdoor_Temperature
label="Outside temperature [%.1f °C]"
icon="temperature"
Text item=Weather_Condition
label="Weather [%s]"
icon="sun"
Switch item=Hall_Power
label="Hall power"
icon="poweroutlet"
Slider item=Bedroom_Roller
label="Bedroom roller shutter"
icon="rollershutter"
}
Replace these Item names with your own existing openHAB Items.
The Sitemap controls the displayed Item selection and labels. OH Drive currently supports a selected subset of Sitemap widgets, not the complete openHAB Sitemap specification.
Important: Special impulse relay handling in this version uses predefined Item names in the application. It is not a generic, automatically configurable safety system for arbitrary garage doors or other actuators. Do not assume that simply adding a relay to the Sitemap enables the same safeguards.
Installation
OH Drive is currently distributed as an experimental APK, not through the Google Play Store.
For my setup, installation requires AA Enabler to make the application available in Android Auto.
General procedure:
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Download the OH Drive APK.
-
Install it using the AA Enabler procedure.
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Configure the connection to your openHAB server.
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Create the dedicated
ohdrive.sitemap. -
Start Android Auto and open OH Drive.
AA Enabler is a third-party tool, is not included with OH Drive, and may be restricted or blocked by Android or Google Play Protect. Compatibility is not guaranteed and depends on the Android and Android Auto versions.
Please use a trusted source for any installation tools and understand the risks of sideloading applications.
Language support
OH Drive 1.6 includes English and German interface resources.
The application automatically uses the appropriate language based on the Android system settings.
However, labels coming from the openHAB Sitemap are deliberately not translated. Each user can define those labels in their preferred language.
Testing and limitations
This is an early experimental version developed and tested primarily for my personal environment.
It has been tested with:
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openHAB 5.2.1
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Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
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Android 16
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Android Auto Desktop Head Unit
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Mercedes Android Auto display
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An active, working VPN Tunnel, that the you mobile have direct access to your OH Server
Other Android devices, head units, openHAB versions and network configurations have not been comprehensively tested.
A network connection to the openHAB server is required. Remote access, if used, must be configured and secured by the user.
The roller shutter position display reflects the state reported by openHAB. Depending on the openHAB Item configuration, optimistic state updates may temporarily display the requested end position rather than the actual physical position.
Important disclaimer – experimental software, use entirely at your own risk
OH Drive is an unofficial personal hobby project, provided for fun, experimentation and educational purposes only.
It is not an official openHAB application and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the openHAB project, Google, Android Auto or any vehicle manufacturer.
The application and APK are provided AS IS, without any warranty or guarantee of functionality, reliability, availability, compatibility, safety or fitness for a particular purpose.
I accept no responsibility or liability, to the extent permitted by applicable law, for damage, loss, malfunction, unintended device activation, incorrect status information or other consequences arising from installation or use.
Do not rely on OH Drive for safety-critical functions.
Controlling physical equipment such as garage doors, gates, shutters or other actuators can be dangerous. Software feedback does not guarantee the actual physical state of a device.
Users are solely responsible for evaluating their own configuration, implementing appropriate independent safety measures and complying with applicable laws and road-safety requirements.
Never operate the application in a way that distracts you while driving.
If you decide to try OH Drive, please understand that it is experimental software and use it entirely at your own risk.
Downloads and examples
I am attaching the following files to this post:
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ohdrive.sitemap– example Sitemap -
Screenshots showing the main dashboard and roller shutter controls
I would be happy to hear whether the application works in other Android Auto environments and what improvements might be useful.
This started as a fun personal experiment. Perhaps it will also be interesting for other openHAB users.
Have fun experimenting!
Tell me if you have interesst, you will get the apk it via PM
