[Lindahl]

When a keypad button controls multiple lights (a scene?) - if ANY of those lights is on, is the scene considered on? Or do ALL of the controlled lights have to be on for a scene considered to be on? Or is a scene a separate entity that is more like a variable that is either on or off depending on whether or not a scene button has been pushed (or programmatically turned on/off)?

 

[Dean Roddey]

I'm not completely sure about the ISY, but in most systems it's more like the latter. Trying to keep up with whether all members of this set of lights is on and at a specific level would be way too much to bother with, and scenes are just basically sending out a set of states/levels when invoked, and that's it. In some cases the device remembers the last invocation state of the scene so that you could read it, but maybe not even that.

In some systems there's no such thing as the state of a scene. There's not a list of scenes each of which can be enabled or disabled, there's just a currently active scene which can be set to one of a list of defined scenes, i.e. they are all mutually exclusive.

Generally speaking, if I was designing a system and wanted to have some hope it would still work (without massive changes) should I replace the lighting system, I wouldn't depend in sensing the state of scenes.

* But, then again, I could be completely wrong.

 

[az1324]

When a keypad button controls multiple lights (a scene?) - if ANY of those lights is on, is the scene considered on? Or do ALL of the controlled lights have to be on for a scene considered to be on? Or is a scene a separate entity that is more like a variable that is either on or off depending on whether or not a scene button has been pushed (or programmatically turned on/off)?

It depends on how they are linked. Insteon has controllers and responders and one-way links between them. So there is no concept of invalidating a scene. Devices just do what they are programmed to do via links. If you have 2 buttons on separate keypads for the same scene there are 2 one way links between them. So button 1 turns button 2 on and off because button 2 is a responder to button 1 via a link. And the opposite is true via a different link. More complex behavior can be implemented in the home automation controller.

 

[Lindahl]

No ISY or other controller in the system. Just keypads and dimmers.

Lets say a dimmer is linked to a keypad button. The keypad button controls other lights that are off. The keypad button is set up as a toggle. Someone taps the dimmer turning it on. Someone taps the keypad button.

1) Does the dimmer turn off?
2) Does the dimmer turn off AND the other lights on the button scene turn on?
3) Do the other lights on the button scene turn on?

If the keypad button is set up as an 'on'.

1) Do the other lights on the keypad button turn on?
2) Does nothing happen?

If the keypad is set as an 'off'. And SOME of the other lights on the keypad button are on. And the dimmer is off.

1) Do the lights turn off?
2) Does nothing happen?

 

[az1324]

No ISY or other controller in the system. Just keypads and dimmers.

Lets say a dimmer is linked to a keypad button. The keypad button controls other lights that are off. The keypad button is set up as a toggle. Someone taps the dimmer turning it on. Someone taps the keypad button.

1) Does the dimmer turn off?
The keypad button sends an on or off command (depending on what state the button itself is in) not a "toggle your state" command.
2) Does the dimmer turn off AND the other lights on the button scene turn on?
All the responders respond to the on or off command the way they are programmed to via linking ie. go to on level or turn off.
3) Do the other lights on the button scene turn on?
See above

If the keypad button is set up as an 'on'.

1) Do the other lights on the keypad button turn on?
Yes
2) Does nothing happen?

If the keypad is set as an 'off'. And SOME of the other lights on the keypad button are on. And the dimmer is off.

1) Do the lights turn off?
Yes
2) Does nothing happen?

Answers above

 

[Lindahl]

For the 6-button keypads, if you set up the 'On' button to control multiple lights, can you set up one of the 'scene' buttons to control only the load that the keypad is connected to?

For example, I want to replace my foyer light switch with a 6-pad button. I want the top button to turn on most of the lights on the main floor. I want the bottom button to turn off all the lights in the house. I want a scene button to control only the foyer light.

It sounds like I can't do this? I'm not sure how to connect the scene button as a toggle to the foyer light.

 

[az1324]

For the 6-button keypads, if you set up the 'On' button to control multiple lights, can you set up one of the 'scene' buttons to control only the load that the keypad is connected to?

For example, I want to replace my foyer light switch with a 6-pad button. I want the top button to turn on most of the lights on the main floor. I want the bottom button to turn off all the lights in the house. I want a scene button to control only the foyer light.

It sounds like I can't do this? I'm not sure how to connect the scene button as a toggle to the foyer light.

Yes it is possible. But the on/off button LEDs will always show the status of the foyer light so you may want to consider using it in 8 button mode with the two large on/off buttons moved to the middle or bottom and only the top left representing the foyer light. You can get a lot more detailed help on the smarthome forum.