I am looking for a plugin to control my Sony Projector (VPL-VW295ES) that will allow me to get status feedback so I know if the projector is on/off. I am already controlling the projector via Global Cache and it works fine but obviously this doesn’t provide feedback. I don’t need full functionality, just power status. Anyone know if the Sony BD Player plugin would work?
This is frustratingly uncommon from projector manufactures. In my experience - many projectors shut down the NIC when they go to sleep. You may have luck if your model has an RS232 port and you can find some relevant documentation.
An easier solution in many cases is to check if your projector has a Trigger IN (also uncommon) whereby you can utilize an easily-controlled device (like your A/V receiver) to trigger the projector on or off like a slave. A final solution would be to use a projector & receiver with HDMI CEC enabled. In theory this will also synchronize the power between the devices - but unfortunately CEC implementation was done irresponsibly and doesn’t always work as it should.
I did find this protocol manual. Not sure if it would apply to my projector or not. I am also not technically capable of implementing something like this. Been out of development for too long. There is an RS232 port on my projector and the manual does say it is used for remote control.
Just to be clear, are you currently controlling the projector using IR via the Global Cache?
The Sony BD Player plugin I wrote won’t work for this case, as far as I can tell. I did a quick search and found the following:
- https://www.sony.com/electronics/support/televisions-projectors-projectors/vpl-vw295es/manuals (manuals for your projector)
- https://www.sony.com/electronics/support/res/manuals/4743/40609c6c770e26e2abc14f0ebcaa345e/47434800M.pdf (operating instructions manual from the above link)
It looks like, based on the picture on page 41 of the operating manual, it supports the PJ protocol, which is defined in the document you linked. That protocol appears to let you request power status (see page 20, in the appendix). So, in theory, a plugin could be written, and I don’t think it would be terribly complex because the protocol looks pretty simple…
However, on typing this up, I noticed something else in the operating manual at page 39, says “These network functions are available when the unit is turned on.” So I’m not sure it’s possible to get an affirmative power state from the projector if it is off, but you might be able to use a response timeout as a negative indication in that case.
I could probably put together a skeleton plugin, although obviously I can’t test it. One thing it would be good to nail down is whether the projector actually supports the PJ protocol, since I’m just going off of a picture in a section of a manual that has very minimal documentation.
Here’s another protocol document I found that talks about the PJ protocol. It’s a little bit newer than that 1st one you shared.
I have a projector that uses the PJ protocol. I wrote a python script for it a while back, let me see if I can find it.
Great find Bill! I haven’t found a specific protocol manual listing my projector model, but I can’t imagine they have changed much. If you all have a good example of taking something like the NodeJS library and creating a HR plugin, I will give it a shot.
My advice would be to test in a terminal program first before doing any coding. I just kind of skimmed over the docs & it looks like you need to send hex data. RealTerm might be the best program to use for testing hex commands.
https://realterm.sourceforge.io/
I know this is an old thread… just stumbled into it. Not sure if the standard IP Control works with this model but there are two options - PJ (ADCP) and PJ (PJ Talk). Look for it in the Google Play/Apple App stores.
They also have higher end controls for business devices that will work across to many consumer models.
Maybe someone could get this integrated into The Home Remote ecosystem?