Docs
Automation
The Automation widget switches a pin at a time you set. The server runs the schedule, so it fires whether or not your phone is on.
Use it for: garden lights at sunset, a pump for ten minutes each morning, a heater before you wake up, an aquarium light cycle.
| Setting | What it does |
|---|---|
| Pin | the pin the schedule writes to |
| Start time, Stop time | when to send the on and off values |
| Start value, Stop value | the numbers sent at those times |
| Days | which days of the week it runs |
| Sunrise, sunset | offsets from the sun instead of a clock time |
Open these from the canvas: tap Edit, then long press the widget and choose Configure.
Example
On a virtual pin, the schedule calls your handler like any other widget.
#include <PlynxSimpleEsp32.h>
#define LIGHT_PIN 26
PLYNX_WRITE(V25)
{
digitalWrite(LIGHT_PIN, param.asInt() ? HIGH : LOW);
}
void setup()
{
Serial.begin(115200);
pinMode(LIGHT_PIN, OUTPUT);
// Auto setup: WiFi and the Plynx token are configured from the app.
//
// To provide them directly in the sketch instead, use:
// Plynx.begin(auth, ssid, pass);
Plynx.begin();
}
void loop()
{
Plynx.run();
}On a digital pin you write no code at all. The server sets the pin directly.
The schedule needs the board online at the moment it fires. A board that reconnects at 09:05 never sees the 09:00 event, so ask for the current state on connect:
PLYNX_CONNECTED()
{
Plynx.syncVirtual(V25);
}Setting the schedule
Configure has a switch for Start time and one for Stop time. Turn a switch on and a time wheel appears below it, with the value to send underneath.
Leave Stop off and the automation only turns things on. That suits a pump you stop from a Button, and a light that another rule turns off.
Each time can be a clock time, sunrise or sunset, with an offset in minutes. Sunset minus 15 lights the garden a quarter of an hour before dark, all year, without you touching it again.
Sunrise and sunset need a location, which comes from your phone. Grant location access when the app asks, or those options have nothing to compute from.
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Check |
|---|---|
| Nothing happens at the set time | the board was offline; add syncVirtual on connect |
| Fires an hour early or late | the project time zone in the settings |
| Sunset options greyed out | location permission was denied |
| Runs on the wrong days | the Days row in the widget settings |