Siri hack allows voice control of home thermostat
Whether you are an Applefanboyor not, you have to admit that the Siri voice control functionality built into the iPhone4Sis pretty amazing. Being able to speak to your handset in a natural tone and rhythm, then have it answer back is certainly a production booster. If you like us though, youhave dreamedof being able to use Siri to interact with much more than just your phone. Phrases like my car, or porch lights off are just the start of the things you would liketo beable to control when it comes to using this new technology for alternative purposes. Thinking like this has put technology on the cusp of true convergence when it comes to home automation. With some inventive hacks involving the Siri protocols, a major step forwardhas been takenin the form of being able to control a WiFienabled home thermostat.
Thiswas madepossible by mobile developers fromApplidiumworking to understand the process of how Siri communicates with Apple servers. By cracking Siri protocols, and making their tools public, it was then possible for other developers to make their own Siribased hacks. Eager to use the newfound knowledge of how Cupertino digitalassistantworks under the hood, an Apple enthusiast calledPlamonicreated a hack called Siri Proxy that, among other things (such as interact with Twitter!), can successfully communicate with a product calledRadio Thermostat. With someknowhowand a server running in their home, a user can get updates on the current inside temperature, adjust climate settings, and switch their HVAC system on or off with simple spoken statements.
The process on how this method works is notdifficultto understand. By redirecting Siri to a fake server (Siri thinks it an Apple server; it isn running on a home network, the commands spoken to an iPhone running Siriare routedthrough the proxy server to the WiFienabled thermostat thatis tiedinto the same network.
Before you go rushing off to try this using your own hardware,casque beats studio, you need to fully understand whatis requiredto make this work. This is a very rough, unofficial hack to the Siri system, not something you can go to the App Store and download. You shouldgo aheadknowing you do so at your own risk.
Most importantly, though, with Applidium tools and Siri Proxy in the wild, it now won be long until a whole range of Siri hacks become available unless Apple finds a way of closing the hole, that is.
Read more (and download the code), or watch the video of Siri Proxy in action below.
Tagged InThis concept of making everything networked, doesn appeal to me. I would rather see a system designed for self efficiency and incorporate that in my security system to give feedback of if i was home or not. Maybe if it was secure or use GPS in my phone to tell my heater if I was coming home so it can preheat my house. I see people making refinements of systems because they think it would be easier, or more efficient for a more green world. Lets take the TPMS (Tire pressure monitoring system) USA law example, a good law you would think. This system hooks into you cars computer to make sure your tire pressure is correct. That 120 bucks a year to reprogram my TPMS. Plus if its low, and I don have a garage so I pay 1 dollar to use the tire pumps at any Canadian gas station. Oh yeah I never payed for the TPMS reprogramming and the sensor doesn come off by law. So my main screen where i measure fuel efficiency has a TPMS warning on it lol.