Mini2440 as wall-mounted orbiter

[ronank]

I'm about to get some renovation work done on an old house, including electrical re-wiring. As part of this, I want to install a network and infrastructure for multi-room audio. I don't have the money to install a complete system at this point, but want to get wires in the wall while I can. I'll build the system as I can afford it, and install the speakers later.

Most of this seems reasonably straightforward, but one thing that seems to require forethought is in-wall orbiters. I'd like to be able to control the system from touch panels in the walls, and I'd like these to be programmable, so that the setup is flexible. (I've looked at off-the-shelf systems, but they seem to tie you in to using a particular vendor's hardware.)

From what I've found on the LinuxMCE site, the Mini2440 seems to be the way to go for this. My question is, if I run CAT6 and power to a Mini2440 mounted in a wall, can I boot a Linux image from a server on this, so that I can create my own GUI to manage what the music server is doing? This seems feasible, but I'd like to be sure before I get carried away!

Does what I am thinking of make sense? Are there better devices to use for this?

Thanks,

Rónán

[totallymaxed]

I'm about to get some renovation work done on an old house, including electrical re-wiring. As part of this, I want to install a network and infrastructure for multi-room audio. I don't have the money to install a complete system at this point, but want to get wires in the wall while I can. I'll build the system as I can afford it, and install the speakers later.

Most of this seems reasonably straightforward, but one thing that seems to require forethought is in-wall orbiters. I'd like to be able to control the system from touch panels in the walls, and I'd like these to be programmable, so that the setup is flexible. (I've looked at off-the-shelf systems, but they seem to tie you in to using a particular vendor's hardware.)

From what I've found on the LinuxMCE site, the Mini2440 seems to be the way to go for this. My question is, if I run CAT6 and power to a Mini2440 mounted in a wall, can I boot a Linux image from a server on this, so that I can create my own GUI to manage what the music server is doing? This seems feasible, but I'd like to be sure before I get carried away!

Does what I am thinking of make sense? Are there better devices to use for this?

Thanks,

Rónán

Hi Rónán,

See this thread for some preliminary info on Touch Orbiter http://forum.linuxmce.org/index.php?topic=10432.0 which may well be of interest to you.

The mini-2440 would be a good target machine to do a simple port of Touch Orbiter to - currently we have it running on cuwin-3500's.

All the best


Andrew

[ronank]

Andrew

Thanks. How much work is involved in porting the Touch Orbiter? I do know one end of a C compiler from the other, but it's been a long time since I did any significant coding.

Rónán

[totallymaxed]

Andrew

Thanks. How much work is involved in porting the Touch Orbiter? I do know one end of a C compiler from the other, but it's been a long time since I did any significant coding.

Rónán

Really not very much at all especially if the Device runs WinCE. But even if that is not the case you can use the CUWIN-3500 targeted code to base your specific implementation on. You could write the Touch Orbiter code in any programming language in fact as long as it can accept input from a touch screen, display png's or jpeg's and communicate via IP sockets with the Core over the LAN.

We'll have the reference design source code up on the Wiki & svn in the next few days by the way.

All the best


Andrew

[gonesurfing]

hi ronan
you could also look at the weborbiter 2.0 running on a generic webpad over wifi i have it running on an eken m003 and it works well plus the only wire you have to run is a 9vdc power supply
steve

[MarcoZan]

Hi gonesurfing
does eken m003 have any wall fixing system or table cradle or anything similar?
I think it's a very nice portable device to have in your hand, it would be really great if it could be somehow used as a wall mounted device or as Web DT.
Can you tell something more on this?
TIA
Marco

[totallymaxed]

hi ronan
you could also look at the weborbiter 2.0 running on a generic webpad over wifi i have it running on an eken m003 and it works well plus the only wire you have to run is a 9vdc power supply
steve

Thanks for letting us know you have Web Orbiter 2.0 running on the eken m003. The m003 looks a very nice low cost device indeed.

All the best


Andrew

[purps]

Can I just ask a general question guys (I'm not having a go, am genuinely curious); what is the point of having in-wall orbiters? I can understand it from the POV of having one in your hallway or porch acting as an alarm panel, but what else would you need/use them for? Just seems to me that a combination of mobile orbiters (acting as remote controls) and onscreen orbiters would be all that was required.

Thanks in advance for any feedback.

[tschak909]

Believe it or not, this was the rationale regarding Orbiter's design. It was the anti-Crestron, where in Crestron, there are wall panels everywhere, statically created, in LinuxMCE, the orbiters fit devices you can carry around.

The in-wall displays are good for security panels, etc...and I typically put the security panel as the main screen for such devices, or lighting scenarios for a panel in a room, but it's all preference.

-Thom

[ronank]

Andrew: Does the Touch Orbiter run on Linux or WinCE?

Marco: The Cuwin-3500 is out of my price range, but the Eken m003 is more affordable, thanks.

Purps: I can't speak generally, but my main rationale is that I'd prefer to run a wired rather than a wireless network. It also means that I don't have to have a device for every person using the system, or to remember to carry the Orbiter around the house with me.

Rónán

[wierdbeard65]

Can I just ask a general question guys (I'm not having a go, am genuinely curious); what is the point of having in-wall orbiters? I can understand it from the POV of having one in your hallway or porch acting as an alarm panel, but what else would you need/use them for? Just seems to me that a combination of mobile orbiters (acting as remote controls) and onscreen orbiters would be all that was required.

Thanks in advance for any feedback.

For my own part, one of the things I absolutely HATE about modern entertainment devices (TV's, STBs, DVD players etc) is that you cannot use them without the remote. No, I don't want to have to get up to change channel or to start / stop play, but I'd like the option to do so from the device's front panel!

Why?

Simple, I have kids. They argue. Part of their constant battle is to hide the remote from each other and as a result, once they are in bed, from me! (In the case of the 5-year old, he often hides it and forgets where it is!) Yes, I COULD beat them to within an inch of their lives to teach them a lesson, but I think that would be overkill!

My point? Well, I want mobile Orbiters, but I would also like some that are wall-mounted. Primary purpose would be lighting / security as already mentioned, but secondary would allow me to control the TV etc without going on an Orbiter hunt first  (Even the on-screen needs a gyro-mouse or similar unless you have a touch-screen, which leads to sticky fingermarks (remember the 5-year old!) on the main HT TV  )

[MarcoZan]

Andrew: Does the Touch Orbiter run on Linux or WinCE?

Marco: The Cuwin-3500 is out of my price range, but the Eken m003 is more affordable, thanks.

Purps: I can't speak generally, but my main rationale is that I'd prefer to run a wired rather than a wireless network. It also means that I don't have to have a device for every person using the system, or to remember to carry the Orbiter around the house with me.

Rónán

Hi Ronan
that's exactly my point. CUWIN is nice, but too out of reach, Mini2240 could be good enough but compared to Eken is far less convenient.
So eken sounds like the break-even I was looking for.
As you own one of those I'm just curious to know whether it has some cradle or similar, or if when you stop using it you just drop it over the table (and possibly out of wierdbeard65 kids sight ...  )

Thanks and regards
Marco

[totallymaxed]

Andrew: Does the Touch Orbiter run on Linux or WinCE?

Marco: The Cuwin-3500 is out of my price range, but the Eken m003 is more affordable, thanks.

Purps: I can't speak generally, but my main rationale is that I'd prefer to run a wired rather than a wireless network. It also means that I don't have to have a device for every person using the system, or to remember to carry the Orbiter around the house with me.

Rónán

The reference implementation of Touch Orbiter is for WinCE 5.0 on the CUWIN-3500. However our hope is that Forum members will look at our WinCE code and use it to write implementations for other OS's. The Touch Orbiter is really a very simple light weight little app... and you dont need to know anything about the 'guts' of LinuxMCE create a Touch Orbiter for another device.

The Eken M003 is a nice touch based Android unit. It already supports Web Orbiter 2.0 (see other threads here for info) so you could just go that route straight off. You could also create an implementation of Touch Orbiter for Android too....after all Touch Orbiter is the Web Orbiter running outside a Web Browser.

All the best


Andrew

[totallymaxed]

Andrew: Does the Touch Orbiter run on Linux or WinCE?

Marco: The Cuwin-3500 is out of my price range, but the Eken m003 is more affordable, thanks.

Purps: I can't speak generally, but my main rationale is that I'd prefer to run a wired rather than a wireless network. It also means that I don't have to have a device for every person using the system, or to remember to carry the Orbiter around the house with me.

Rónán

Hi Ronan
that's exactly my point. CUWIN is nice, but too out of reach, Mini2240 could be good enough but compared to Eken is far less convenient.
So eken sounds like the break-even I was looking for.
As you own one of those I'm just curious to know whether it has some cradle or similar, or if when you stop using it you just drop it over the table (and possibly out of wierdbeard65 kids sight ...  )

Thanks and regards
Marco

The point of the CUWIN-3500 implementation was to deliver working WinCE code on a device we had and more importantly to encourage others to use our code to develop other implementations in other languages and on other OS's. The Touch Orbiter is really incredibly simple and easy to code.

Andrew

[totallymaxed]

Can I just ask a general question guys (I'm not having a go, am genuinely curious); what is the point of having in-wall orbiters? I can understand it from the POV of having one in your hallway or porch acting as an alarm panel, but what else would you need/use them for? Just seems to me that a combination of mobile orbiters (acting as remote controls) and onscreen orbiters would be all that was required.

Thanks in advance for any feedback.

I tend to agree that in-wall Orbiters are less useful from a whol range of angles than portable touch based devices. However there are many who disagree and there are logical reasons for taking either position. Some people like the idea of having an in-wall Touch Orbiter in the hallway or upstairs landing area so that whatever happens they cannot get a situation where they can't find a remote or portable Touch Orbiter. I can see that logic too...

So its down to personal preference as ever... there is no one 'right way' ;-)

All the best

Andrew