I have had my sense for close to a year now and it has discovered many items. It has yet to discover my electric blankets and they are on every nite for quite a while. I am just wondering why? I don’t think their energy consumption is so low that they would not be picked up. Any theories?
Thanks! Jeff
A good point. They are typically 200W devices that I’d expect would cycle like many heaters controller by a thermostat. So I’d not expect Sense to identify one as an electric blanket, but as Heat X, as electrically it would be the same as, say, a 200W warming tray.
Do you have any unnamed Heat devices in your device list?
Worth looking through any of those.
Let us know what you find
I have had sense for approximately 8 months. It has found 23 devices in that time.Electric blankets are on every single night with my wife’s being on for several hours. I have checked and I have no unlabeled devices except for a light source sense found yesterday and I have not pinpointed yet. I don’t know why it has not discovered the electric blankets
If you go to Settings > My Home > Sense Monitor and scroll down to Device Detection, do you have anything listed there under Currently Learning and Up Next?
There might be something there that fits.
It is currently learning a motor and the AC and the possibly up next is the oven.
@js1, it may come down to the need for detection algorithm improvements around that type of heat. We do have some work scheduled in that regard, which may help. I wish I had a better answer for you.
After just a few days, the first two devices found were an unclassified “Heat 1” device and a “Microwave”.
The “Microwave” was indeed correct – it will be interesting to see what happens after using the “Convection” part of that Microwave/Convection Oven a few times . (I did add Manufacturer & Model)
The “Heat 1” device was an electric blanket (from the times it was on vs. off), and so I renamed it. So that was a quick “ID”.
I have several electric blankets. It does not find any of them even though they are on all night. What I have found, at least for the ones I have (king and queen each with two separate sides) is that the blanket cycles regularly, like every second or so on and off. I’ll get a pict and update later if I can.
Yes, the electric blanket cycles on / off relatively quickly. We only have one … I wonder, @DavidSense007, if you turn them all on at nearly the same time … or not.
I’d venture that they might be more clearly identified if one were turned on for a while, then, say 30 minutes later, another was turned on, etc.
I say that because the refrigerator and freezer were “identified” at nearly the same time (within an hour or so on the same day). Even though they probably have similar on/off “signatures”, the fact that they are on/off at different, but sometimes overlapping, intervals, probably helped the neural network to identify them as two different entities. I suspect the electric blankets have similar “signatures”; by having them “run” at different ‘starting’ times, that should help them to be identified as different “instances” of similar “heat” devices.
Good question, the answer is No, they are not turned on at the same time, generally several hours apart
One of the blankets goes on around 8pm and is on for a few hours. The other goes on around 10:30 pm and is on until around 2am so the are on at separate times. I just think it is very strange that they have not been discovered yet.
Oh. An FYI on the “Electric Blanket” found: It is actually a dual-control Queen-size blanket. One side is on at a low setting (1 of 10) for only a brief time to ‘pre-warm’ that side of the bed. The other side starts out at a higher setting (e.g. 4-8 of 10) for a brief while, then remains on all night at a low setting of 1-2 (of 10). The “pre-warm” “time-of-day-turned-on” is usually about the same for both sides (typically within 10s of seconds). From looking at the ‘power meter’ when it is on (low setting, one side only), it is a pretty distinctive, regular on-off cycling pattern … which undoubtably contributed to its early detection.
That is strange that the “distinctive” pattern of your EB, and blankets in general allowed for the detection of yours but obviously has yet to find mine. My blankets are routine items, on around the same time every nite, for quite a long time, without fail and after well over a year have yet to be discovered. I just think that is strange.
Pinging this old thread - does anyone know of an electric blanket that will come on automatically as it was set to prior to electricity being removed, when the electricity is restored. One of my best-ever SWMBO home automation features, starting in 1997, was to use my StarGate to switch the blanket on under if-then conditions (If outside temp is < xx, and inside temp is between yy and zz, and the time becomes 2100 hrs, and home is occupied, then turn x-10 wall wart switch ON). The old analog electric blankets would come on at the setting they were turned off at. Everything I’ve tried over the last few years is digital and WON’T come on if they were on, power is pulled at wall, and then power restored. Itud make a great christmas present if I could find a solution for that. ???
Hmmm, a digital electric blanket with a lithium battery; I think you’ve invented something new. Could also be wireless control instead, and perhaps a link to Sense ((-;).
So if you set the pad to medium heat, and use a ZWave or other smart switch to turn it on, it actually actuates into heat mode? that’ud be great!
Yup, have a zwave switch on it now. I’m replacing it with an hs110 to meter it in sense soon.
Outstanding. I noticed there are dual controls, so I don’t have to make too great of a personal sacrifice to make SWMBO happy
That is true, but you need to have two switches if you want them to come on at separate times. Otherwise plug them both into a power strip and then into a single smart switch.