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Liftmaster Internet Gateway


cdepaola

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Anyone have one of these or tried playing with it? Apparently it's an Internet gateway to remotely control their opener. Would be nice to reverse engineer these ip commands if the protocol aren't open.

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  • 4 weeks later...

The relays will not work with the fancy liftmaster stuff. I can't recall the model number, I ran into one and read the manual vs the previous model and troubleshooting gave it away (I already knew from testing though). If you short the two wires that would normally goto the "action button" it simply reset the keypad. The factory rep drove over (because he didn't want to eat the 6 high dollar motors) to "show me" how an opener works... The keypad simply gets power from two wires and wireless communicates with operator. He admitted defeat and swapped client for motor that would work. So NO the new fancy Liftmaster stuff will not work with traditional relays... Hope this helps...

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  • 4 weeks later...
The relays will not work with the fancy liftmaster stuff. I can't recall the model number, I ran into one and read the manual vs the previous model and troubleshooting gave it away (I already knew from testing though). If you short the two wires that would normally goto the "action button" it simply reset the keypad. The factory rep drove over (because he didn't want to eat the 6 high dollar motors) to "show me" how an opener works... The keypad simply gets power from two wires and wireless communicates with operator. He admitted defeat and swapped client for motor that would work. So NO the new fancy Liftmaster stuff will not work with traditional relays... Hope this helps...

What if you short the "action button" itself instead of the two wires? Is it hard to open the keypad and get to the button?

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Garage door opener went kaput today. I had to decide on a cheap opener with C4 support vs the 8550. I'm in to gadgets so I took the 8550, would be very cool for a reverse engineered driver!

The 8550 is a great opener and almost doesn't need automation. I'd like to play with bypassing the wall button all together and see if it works then or if the button uses a special code or something. Can't imagine that it's using any security though.

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I thought I would add my two cents just incase someone has the same setup. I have 398LM OE controller with hard wired relays and a Lift Master 3595. Works great.

I first had them wired directly to the two post on the back of the 398LM. This worked fine but would always reset the controller when the relay fired. As in the clock would get reset, it actually forced the controller to reboot/reset. I am assuming there was to much draw. This got annoying so I soldered the relay contacts directly to one of the small switches that the top button bar triggers. This removes the relay from the OE circuit between the 398LM and the opener (3595).

I got the idea from: http://www.autocloser.com/downloads/Autocloser%20Modifications%20For%20A%20Smart%20Control%20Panel.pdf

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KyleS, I have not done this with other garage controllers. It should work since you are just closing the circuit like the button would.

HOWEVER, you technically don't have to do this at the wall mounted controllers or the opener (motor). Why not sacrifice a remote (or buy another one) for this purpose? If your like me your cars have home link buttons so I have four unused remotes. Connect your relays directly to the buttons on the remote and have your remotes located next to your Control4 gear and you don't have to run wires for that part of it.

The benefits would be:

-You would only have to run contact sensors and wires back to the controller

-If running wires for the contact sensors isn't an option and you need a wireless option you would only need the Card Access Wireless Contact Sensor and not have to buy the Card Access Wireless Contact Relay. <-- This stuff is a little rich for me.

-You only need one remote to operate up to three doors. If you have a three button remote.

-Who cares how fancy the wall mounted controllers get or the protocol used to communicate between the controller and motor. If you are simply closing the button circuit on the controller or the remote it keeps it clean and simple.

I would love to hear if someone has done this before or post your results after trying.

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^As you found in your link, it is not possible to connect a relay directly to the operator and still have a fully functioning 398. Relays on the wall near the 398 and using that board-level mod sounds a little gruesome.

I'm not saying your idea won't work (many ways to de-flesh a cat) but lets keep it clear that paralleling any type of relay in with the 398 at the operator will cause a malfunction.

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Good points. However it ran fine in parallel for two months with the exception of resetting the time on the 398 when the relay was activated. Any other functionality except the clock was not impacted in any way. The clock being reset was annoying but not the death of the system. I didn't suffer any reliability issues with the opener working. In fact my dealer has several installations of the 398 in parallel that have been working for a couple of years. However it isn't ideal so I went looking for a better solution.

As far as connecting directly to the button on the 398 I guess "gruesome" would be in the eye of the beholder but I respect your opinion on the solution. IMHO it is just basic soldering skills that anyone can do and based on actual experience a solution that works perfectly. For the most part there is no reason this will not work for any type of advanced garage controller. I don't have any relays near the wall. I have home runs from the back of my 398 (hidden) directly to my C4 Controller. Every things is nice, clean, and looks factory. However I wouldn't be apposed to running a wireless relay to the 398s if I had to but I was able to run direct wires. To each there on I suppose.

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It's yet another situation that cannot be fully quantified. My dealer has said he has had several (maybe three, maybe more) operator automation jobs that have gone sour due to something like this issue. I had problems and in the end, didn't need the 398. I keep it on the wall because not everyone likes HA. If I ever need to bug-out, this will go back into service.

It's nearly impossible to address not knowing individual' capabilities and pocketbook size. Almost anything can be accomplished, even automating toilets :)

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  • 4 weeks later...

Relay across wall panel wires won’t work on all systems, but relay soldered across button in opener remote or button in wall panel should work on any system as long as the relay has the correct ratings. That will probably work with CA relays, but can’t say for sure since I haven’t tried them. I’ve only tried the relay from my 'Relay & Contact Sensor' and it works in opener remote and wall panel.

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Done it at the supplied in-car remote. Tacky IMO but it works. I have a photo of this but as you can see- no photo attachment capability anymore. Go ahead and try a CA relay at the operator (with the wall unit attached) and see what happens. I say no workie but if you are successful then great.

Otherwise, just attach the CA relay directly to the operator and disconnect the wall unit. In-car remotes still work along with the CA relay. It's just the wall control that you might give-up.

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  • 6 months later...

Thanks to CVLBOY for the great idea. I used a wireless switch from liftmaster (855LM) and soldered wires on each side of the push button and was able to trigger the switch with the relay. I used a wireless switch because I had a Cat6 run in the ceiling of the garage and not close to the wall switch. I have a card access garage door sensor also and this is now completely integrated into my system. The switch cost 28 dollars and the battery, per liftmaster, will last several years. The whole point of integration is to have one system and not mutiple systems. I thought about the wireless gateway from litmaster also, but this is a much nicer solution.

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I went to an Alarm.com Training this week, and they are integrating with the Liftmaster Garage Doors. I tried as well to integrate but went no where with liftmaster motors and card access relays.

My understanding is with Alarm.com, there will be a Z-wave module to add to make it work. So if you have Vera for control4 maybe it will work. Time will tell.

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  • 1 year later...

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