2014-12-30, 04:01
Its been a while since i last posted on this forum (though i'm still using Kodi every day). Since writing the original post i've written numeous XBMC/KODI drivers for Control4. I think i'm upto my 6th rewrite. Anyway for those who are interested here's the feature set.
http://www.chowmain.co.nz/kodi-xbmc-lite
Kodi (XBMC) Lite Driver
This driver is developed for the Kodi Entertainment Center (formerly known as XBMC).
Kodi Entertainment Center is a software based media player that can be installed on Windows, MAC, Linux, Raspberry Pi and Android based platforms. Kodi offers a beautiful simple interface that enriches your playback experience. The Chowmain Kodi Lite driver enables us to integrate the Kodi Entertainment Center into the Control4 home automation system with seamless control and feedback.
For example you could have the system automatically turn the tv and receiver on when you send content from your smart phone (via airplay or UPnP) to the Kodi or if you have fallen asleep whilst watching a movie have it automatically turn the tv and receiver off when Kodi goes into screen saver mode.
The driver also imports the entirely Kodi movie library into Control4. 700 movies from our tests can be imported into Control4 with about 30 minutes including all meta data and cover art. It makes movie playback in high end cinemas easy with automatic masking via video aspect ratio detection by simply selecting the movie on your Control4 smart phone application.
This is the ultimate media player integration in Control4 with features that no other media player driver offers. Read the installation guide to get a better understanding of what the driver can do.
This driver will only work on Control4 OS 2.6 and above.
FEATURES
FAQ
Why is this driver called KODI Lite?
Initially we wanted to make the best KODI driver around however as we kept working on it our aspirations just kept getting higher and higher. As such the development efforts and timeframe has expanded exponentially. To get the driver to market quickly we decided to make two drivers. KODI Lite and KODI Full. Kodi Lite is still one of the best media player drivers on the market with exceptional features. Kodi Full however will be THE best media player driver on the market with full library navigation, live meta data, cover art and more. They will be both priced accordingly. Some people won't want all the features available in KODI Full so we've made KODI Lite which is priced to suit.
Can you give us some examples of how we could use this driver?
Now with Android support you can purchase Android Set Top Boxes for under $200 that will provide you with the full XBMC experience and Android experience. Play games, surf the web and use XBMC.
Create the perfect cinema experience by dimming the lights down when a movie starts, ramp it back up when the movie ends or if the user pauses or stops the movie. Also automatically set the cinema to different modes based upon the movie aspect ratio.
Setup logic to change your LED lightings colour dependant on the movie name. If you're watching something set in the ocean set it to blue. If you're watching something set in the jungle set it to green or if you're watching something set in the desert set it to orange.
It can be very disruptive while watching a movie to have navigator pop up and tell me that someone is at my front door or perhaps i have a new email or something. This driver provides the ability to send Kodi announcements. Like a Control4 Announcement this will pop up a custom message however in this case it will not interrupt the current Kodi activity. It will just pop up in the bottom right hand corner for a few seconds and then hide away.
This driver provides two way feedback on what media you're consuming and what the state of the media player is. It will tell you when the movie is playing, paused, stopped or if it is a movie, episode, song or unknown media type. This information is useful for customising your lighting and environment to suit your customer's requirements.
The driver has the ability to automatically turn rooms on and off. Using this functionality you can essentially turn on your tv and receiver upon airplay or UPnP photos, video or music playback. If you leave the room for too long or fall asleep at the tv the driver will automatically turn the room off (all av devices off) upon detection of screensaver activation.
Some projects have the option of clearing out the black bars in movies. This driver reports back the aspect ratio of the video it is currently playing as a variable. Using this information we can automate these projection modes and as such make the user experience nicer.
This driver has feedback on CPU usage, Memory usage and CPU temperature. This information is extremely important for maintaining the health of the hardware platform it is on. Using this information we can automate shutdowns so that no damage can occur on the device.
What hardware will this work on?
This will work on any hardware that KODI supports (Windows, OSX, Linux, Raspberry Pi, Android) running XBMC version 12 (Frodo) & 13 (Gotham) and KODI version 14 (Helix) though we discourage the use of Raspberry Pi due to the slow CPU on the unit.
Why do you only support OS 2.6 and above?
OS 2.6 offers a superior security encryption algorithm and a new and improved driver format. We have decided to only utilise this new format to ensure that the integrity of this driver is not compremised and that we can provide the best dealer/user experience available.
Do you offer showroom discounts?
We offer a 10% discount to dealers who want to use this driver in their showroom. Please contact our distributor Houselogix to arrange for this.
I want to try this driver out before buying it?
All Chowmain drivers for Control4 come with a 48 hour trial. This is activated once you add the driver to the project. No additional steps are necessary.
http://www.chowmain.co.nz/kodi-xbmc-lite
Kodi (XBMC) Lite Driver
This driver is developed for the Kodi Entertainment Center (formerly known as XBMC).
Kodi Entertainment Center is a software based media player that can be installed on Windows, MAC, Linux, Raspberry Pi and Android based platforms. Kodi offers a beautiful simple interface that enriches your playback experience. The Chowmain Kodi Lite driver enables us to integrate the Kodi Entertainment Center into the Control4 home automation system with seamless control and feedback.
For example you could have the system automatically turn the tv and receiver on when you send content from your smart phone (via airplay or UPnP) to the Kodi or if you have fallen asleep whilst watching a movie have it automatically turn the tv and receiver off when Kodi goes into screen saver mode.
The driver also imports the entirely Kodi movie library into Control4. 700 movies from our tests can be imported into Control4 with about 30 minutes including all meta data and cover art. It makes movie playback in high end cinemas easy with automatic masking via video aspect ratio detection by simply selecting the movie on your Control4 smart phone application.
This is the ultimate media player integration in Control4 with features that no other media player driver offers. Read the installation guide to get a better understanding of what the driver can do.
This driver will only work on Control4 OS 2.6 and above.
FEATURES
- IP based communications
- Transport controls
- Numerical buttons act as jump to percentage during video playback or SMS style quick navigation when in navigational modes.
- Support for PVR (Guide, Record, DVR, Channel Up, Channel Down buttons)
- Movie selection from Control4’s Navigator
- Import Movies from the Kodi library into Control4's library with meta data and cover art.
- Automatic import upon Kodi library update notification. Refresh Navigator automatically after import has finished.
- Automatic Room On (like the music bridge) on playback detection and automatic Room Off on screen saver activate.
- 2 way feedback via the JSON API for play, pause, stop, screen saver active/deactive, Detected File Type, Video Aspect Ratio, Video Resolution, Video/Music/TV/Radio currently playing, Memory usage, CPU usage, CPU Frequency, System Total Space, System Uptime, System Temperature, Client Platform, Client Version & Client Name
- Assignable buttons for non intuitive buttons
- Wake-on Lan functionality
- Power off options
- Ability to send custom messages to Kodi Entertainment Center via Kodi Notifications (similar to Control4 Announcements via Navigator).
- Audio End-Point assignment for line level volume up/down/mute functionality
- Video End-Point assignment
- Support for Android boxes (if XBMC app is closed it will launch upon ON command, also if XBMC exited by user you can navigate and control Android applications).
FAQ
Why is this driver called KODI Lite?
Initially we wanted to make the best KODI driver around however as we kept working on it our aspirations just kept getting higher and higher. As such the development efforts and timeframe has expanded exponentially. To get the driver to market quickly we decided to make two drivers. KODI Lite and KODI Full. Kodi Lite is still one of the best media player drivers on the market with exceptional features. Kodi Full however will be THE best media player driver on the market with full library navigation, live meta data, cover art and more. They will be both priced accordingly. Some people won't want all the features available in KODI Full so we've made KODI Lite which is priced to suit.
Can you give us some examples of how we could use this driver?
Now with Android support you can purchase Android Set Top Boxes for under $200 that will provide you with the full XBMC experience and Android experience. Play games, surf the web and use XBMC.
Create the perfect cinema experience by dimming the lights down when a movie starts, ramp it back up when the movie ends or if the user pauses or stops the movie. Also automatically set the cinema to different modes based upon the movie aspect ratio.
Setup logic to change your LED lightings colour dependant on the movie name. If you're watching something set in the ocean set it to blue. If you're watching something set in the jungle set it to green or if you're watching something set in the desert set it to orange.
It can be very disruptive while watching a movie to have navigator pop up and tell me that someone is at my front door or perhaps i have a new email or something. This driver provides the ability to send Kodi announcements. Like a Control4 Announcement this will pop up a custom message however in this case it will not interrupt the current Kodi activity. It will just pop up in the bottom right hand corner for a few seconds and then hide away.
This driver provides two way feedback on what media you're consuming and what the state of the media player is. It will tell you when the movie is playing, paused, stopped or if it is a movie, episode, song or unknown media type. This information is useful for customising your lighting and environment to suit your customer's requirements.
The driver has the ability to automatically turn rooms on and off. Using this functionality you can essentially turn on your tv and receiver upon airplay or UPnP photos, video or music playback. If you leave the room for too long or fall asleep at the tv the driver will automatically turn the room off (all av devices off) upon detection of screensaver activation.
Some projects have the option of clearing out the black bars in movies. This driver reports back the aspect ratio of the video it is currently playing as a variable. Using this information we can automate these projection modes and as such make the user experience nicer.
This driver has feedback on CPU usage, Memory usage and CPU temperature. This information is extremely important for maintaining the health of the hardware platform it is on. Using this information we can automate shutdowns so that no damage can occur on the device.
What hardware will this work on?
This will work on any hardware that KODI supports (Windows, OSX, Linux, Raspberry Pi, Android) running XBMC version 12 (Frodo) & 13 (Gotham) and KODI version 14 (Helix) though we discourage the use of Raspberry Pi due to the slow CPU on the unit.
Why do you only support OS 2.6 and above?
OS 2.6 offers a superior security encryption algorithm and a new and improved driver format. We have decided to only utilise this new format to ensure that the integrity of this driver is not compremised and that we can provide the best dealer/user experience available.
Do you offer showroom discounts?
We offer a 10% discount to dealers who want to use this driver in their showroom. Please contact our distributor Houselogix to arrange for this.
I want to try this driver out before buying it?
All Chowmain drivers for Control4 come with a 48 hour trial. This is activated once you add the driver to the project. No additional steps are necessary.
