Alexa Dealer Setup Guide

Introduction

This guide will walk you through how to configure Amazon Alexa voice control in your Control4 system with the Voice Scene driver to enable whole home scenes. Initial integration with Alexa allows voice control over all the lights, lighting scenes, and thermostats in the home. The Voice Scene driver allows you to tailor "voice scenes" to control almost everything in the home with just a voice command.

This guide assumes that an Alexa-enabled device is already setup and the Control4 Smart Home skill has already been linked to Alexa. More information on the initial setup of Alexa can be found in the Alexa Quick Start Guide and at ctrl4.co/alexa-setup.

Prerequisites

• An Amazon Alexa-enabled device such as an Amazon Echo, Dot, Tap, or FireTV with Voice Remote
• An Amazon account at www.amazon.com
• Control4 Smart Home Skill linked to the Amazon account through the Alexa app or alexa.amazon.com
• The Control4 system must be running OS 2.8.2 or greater

Adding the Voice Scene driver

The Voice Scene driver is available in the Online Driver Database. Search 'Voice Scene' in the Search tab.

Double-click the driver to add it into the project.

Diagram Description: The 'Online Driver Database' search interface shows tabs for 'Locations', 'Discovered', 'My Drivers', and 'Search'. The 'Search' tab is active, with 'Voice Scene' entered in the search bar. Results display 'Voice Scene' from 'Control4' with a date and type.

Tips on scene naming

Scene names that have house or room related words in the name are preferable. Make sure each device and scene name is unique to your system and all names are spelled correctly. Below are some examples:

Room scenes

• Kitchen
• Family Room
• Office
• Living Room
• Dining Room
• Master Bedroom
• Game Room
• Theater

Whole home scenes

• House
• Party Mode
• Vacation Mode
• Dining
• Cooking
• Movie Time
• Upstairs
• Downstairs
• Main Floor
• Outside
• Romantic Dinner
• Good Morning
• Goodnight
• Welcome
• Away
• Entertain

Scene names to avoid

• Avoid using numbers in device names like "Kitchen 1 Light."
• Avoid using on or off as part of the device or scene name.
• Avoid combining personal names and music in the same scene name, for example: "Joe's Pandora." Alexa will send that command to your Amazon device for audio playback rather than passing it to Control4.

Managing Scenes

Renaming Scenes

To rename a scene, choose the scene to be renamed in the Select Scene to Rename list and click Set.

Change the name in the New Name field and click Set.

Diagram Description: The 'Properties' tab displays fields for managing scenes. Under 'Add New Scene', there is a 'New Scene Name' input field and a 'Set' button. Below this, under 'Delete Scene', there is a 'Select Scene to Delete' dropdown and a 'Set' button. Further down, under 'Rename Scene', there are fields for 'Select Scene to Rename' and 'New Name', each with a 'Set' button. 'Debug Settings' include 'Debug Mode' and 'Debug Level' dropdowns.

Deleting scenes

To delete a scene, choose the scene to be deleted in the Select Scene to Delete list and click Set.

Diagram Description: The 'Properties' tab displays fields for managing scenes. Under 'Add New Scene', there is a 'New Scene Name' input field and a 'Set' button. Below this, under 'Delete Scene', there is a 'Select Scene to Delete' dropdown and a 'Set' button. Further down, under 'Rename Scene', there are fields for 'Select Scene to Rename' and 'New Name', each with a 'Set' button. 'Debug Settings' include 'Debug Mode' and 'Debug Level' dropdowns.

Programming voice scene actions

In the Programming tab, select the Voice Scene driver in the Device Events pane.

Choose the event to be triggered by the voice command. Each scene has an On and Off event.

"Alexa, turn on Cooking" will trigger the Turn On Cooking event.

"Alexa, turn off Cooking" will trigger the Turn Off Cooking event.

Add the actions to complete the whole home scene.

Diagram Description: The 'Programming' tab shows a 'Device Events' pane on the left. It lists devices, including '+ Voice Scene'. Under 'Voice Scene Events', there are listed events like 'Kitchen', 'Turn On Cooking', and 'Turn Off Cooking'. The right side shows the programming area where actions are added when an event is received, such as 'When "Turn On Cooking" is Received'.

For example:

• Favorite Pandora station is selected in the Kitchen
• The Kitchen lighting scene is activated which turn on the Kitchen Main Lights to 80% and the Kitchen Spotlight to 100%
• The Keypad LED for the Kitchen lighting scene illuminates green when the scene is activated.
• Thermostat is adjusted down two degrees while food is cooking.

Prohibited items in voice scene programming

At this time, device types which have security or safety considerations are prohibited from being added to voice scene programming. Examples of such devices include:

• Door locks
• Garage doors
• Security systems
• Security sensors
• Cooking appliances
• Cameras

Regulatory and Warranty Information

Regulatory/Safety information

To review regulatory information for your particular Control4 products, see the information located on the Control4 website at ctrl4.co/reg.

Warranty

Visit ctrl4.co/warranty for details.

More information

More information on Alexa integration with your Control4 Smart Home can be found on our website or from your Control4 Dealer. Open the URL below or scan the QR code.

CONTROL4 ALEXA WEBSITE: ctrl4.co/alexa

MORE ALEXA HELP: ctrl4.co/alexa-setup