New Orleans-based Home Automation Inc. (HAI) has a new firmware release (Version 3.9) of its Omni and Lumina products. New features include Rooms, which is accessed via PC and downloads to HAI OmniPro II, Omni IIe, Lumina Pro, and Lumina home control systems. This feature allows devices (lights, thermostats, access control card readers, audio zones, buttons, cameras, messages, etc.) on the system to be put into one or more rooms.  

Rooms help keep controlled devices organized by physical location in large homes. Users can then access rooms on HAI Snap-Link Mobile apps on iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch, Android, HAI OmniTouch 5.7e touchscreens, and third-party touchscreens using HAI OmniTouch Pro software. When a room is selected, only the devices assigned to that room are shown, eliminating the need to scroll through long lists of devices. To access devices in another room, simply choose the desired room from the list of rooms, or select “All,” which will give you access to all items in the system.

“We are enhancing our products. They can be grouped by [product] category; but, if you have a big system to handle, you often have to go through each product,” says Jay McLellan, president and CEO, HAI. With Rooms, a dealer or electronic home system contractor can call up the devices for the living room, for example.

For the dealer, this update means reduced installation times. The room configuration is stored in the controller, so it is automatically displayed by OmniTouch 5.7e, OmniTouch Pro, and Snap-Link Mobile apps.  Also, PC access now automatically discovers the Hi-Fi 2, HAI Dock, and Music Gateway devices, easing configuration.  Even zone and channel assignments for the Hi-Fi 2 and Music Gateway are stored.  The controller also stores IP information for Hi-Fi 2, IP cameras, HAI Dock, Music Gateway, and HAI Camera Server, automatically setting these devices up for Snap-Link Mobile apps and OmniTouch 5.7e/Pro. “Our iPhone app also supports iPad in a native way. The world is moving to IP,” says McLellan. The approach displays IP addresses, goes out and discovers addresses and that information is stored in the controller.