WaveEngine Notifications

Users Who Are Viewing This Thread (Total: 0, Members: 0, Guests: 0)

KWolfe81

KWolfe81

Active member
Joined
Nov 26, 2021
Messages
123
Reaction score
26
Location
Issaquah, WA
When will just the WaveEngine ever send me a notification? Even with some pump failures last night (see other thread), I did not get any email or push notifications. I figured these would be pretty high priority. Are there settings that need to be set to hook up, say, an Output failure to a specific alarm? If so, I don't see in the app where to set this.

P.S. No, I don't have a Control or a Collective. My expectation is that this should work without one.
 
It could be that you have to have one of the controllers to get that function. I know the WaveEngine cannot be used as a WiFi master. So this may be something else it cannot do. I don't have a WaveEngine on my system but if I setup an output for Varios 4 I get the notification level setting.

46E89511-81ED-4452-A24D-1340CA6CE6CD.png
 
Danny said:
It could be that you have to have one of the controllers to get that function. I know the WaveEngine cannot be used as a WiFi master. So this may be something else it cannot do. I don't have a WaveEngine on my system but if I setup an output for Varios 4 I get the notification level setting.
Click to expand...

Grrr... I think you're right. I definitely do not have this option. And the list of features missing from a WaveEngine-only setup grows longer (where are my generic inputs?). None of the materials I read prior to purchasing really indicated the expectation that you'd have a Control/Collective as part of your setup.

I would really like to hear from CoralVue on this one. If I can't get notified remotely that something is wrong with my pumps, well, there goes a major reason I bought the WaveEngine in the first place. @Carlos ?
 
We created the WaveEngine to control flow pumps. For that reason, certain features do not apply to the WaveEngine itself, such as generic outputs. If you are using the WaveEngine by itself, 99% of the people will not need it. If you need a Generic Input/Output, having a Controller opens that option because you have a Collective with a device that can support it. The same goes for the Controllers. There is no way to add a Gyre flow pump to a controller. But, when you add a WaveEngine to the Collective, the option becomes available. Options become available as you add devices that support those functions. The Collective takes advantage of the individual device features... that's what makes the Collective great!

If you go into the WaveEngine instructions, we do not even mention Generic Inputs or Outputs. Here are the instructions for your convenience: HYDROS WaveEngine - Help Page - Learn How to Use Your WaveEngine

You have an excellent point on the notification of a non-working pump. This is something that we will be adding in the future. It is something that we internally want to see happen. I cannot tell you exactly when that will be, but I can assure you that it will happen. As with every product, we have a list of features, and each feature has to be assigned a priority. The list is constantly growing, and things are moving up or down. We do our best to prioritize, but sometimes we do not get it right. We are continually working to make this system better, and we are often releasing updates that add features that folks have requested. So it is not that we are not listening to you. It is just that it might take us a little longer to get to your feature request!
 
From the WaveEngine
Carlos said:
We created the WaveEngine to control flow pumps. For that reason, certain features do not apply to the WaveEngine itself, such as generic outputs. If you are using the WaveEngine by itself, 99% of the people will not need it. If you need a Generic Input/Output, having a Controller opens that option because you have a Collective with a device that can support it. The same goes for the Controllers. There is no way to add a Gyre flow pump to a controller. But, when you add a WaveEngine to the Collective, the option becomes available. Options become available as you add devices that support those functions. The Collective takes advantage of the individual device features... that's what makes the Collective great!

If you go into the WaveEngine instructions, we do not even mention Generic Inputs or Outputs. Here are the instructions for your convenience: HYDROS WaveEngine - Help Page - Learn How to Use Your WaveEngine

You have an excellent point on the notification of a non-working pump. This is something that we will be adding in the future. It is something that we internally want to see happen. I cannot tell you exactly when that will be, but I can assure you that it will happen. As with every product, we have a list of features, and each feature has to be assigned a priority. The list is constantly growing, and things are moving up or down. We do our best to prioritize, but sometimes we do not get it right. We are continually working to make this system better, and we are often releasing updates that add features that folks have requested. So it is not that we are not listening to you. It is just that it might take us a little longer to get to your feature request!
Click to expand...

I understand the challenge and really do sympathize. I've worked at startups (not that CV is?), I do consumer product development professionally and know the balancing act between price, features, and quality is super hard. And I do think you guys are doing a great job innovating and CV (and you @Carlos specifically) provide awesome support.

With regards to the WaveEngine specifically: I'd recommend you look at how it's advertised. Reviewing CoralVue HYDROS, there are several key bullets that caused me to buy the product which don't list any requirement on having a Hydros Controller:
  1. Direct Drive (works great!)
  2. Real-Time Monitoring (glad to hear it's on the list)
  3. Total Control
  4. Versatility at Its Best
I've outlined in this and my other posts limitations as to why I'm not in "Total Control". I still plan on using the unit long-term and will recommend it to other people, but there's no question that many of the features don't work the way I anticipated and that I've had to adapt to the product's features vs. the other way around.
 
Thank you. Since the WaveEngine was mainly designed for flow pumps, "Total Control" is relative. Now, as I mentioned above, if you were to create a collective and add the WavEengine with a Controller, then "Total Control" becomes a much broader term. This system works best as a "Collective." It is where you get the most out of the system, and you get to have access to all the bells and whistles. It is tough to create "versatility" with a single device, but putting a couple of different devices together makes it a lot better!
 
Carlos said:
Thank you. Since the WaveEngine was mainly designed for flow pumps, "Total Control" is relative. Now, as I mentioned above, if you were to create a collective and add the WavEengine with a Controller, then "Total Control" becomes a much broader term. This system works best as a "Collective." It is where you get the most out of the system, and you get to have access to all the bells and whistles. It is tough to create "versatility" with a single device, but putting a couple of different devices together makes it a lot better!
Click to expand...

I was thinking about this last night (after my pump errored out at 11:30 PM AGAIN, arg, wtf, is wrong with this pump... anyways)... I think part of my higher expectations comes from the 0-10v input port alone. Here, less could be more. If the WE simply didn't even have this port - or rather had a single analog "Input Mode" pin, not the default Hydros-Controller-like quad-port, my initial expectations would have been more moderate. Just a thought.
 
KWolfe81 said:
I was thinking about this last night (after my pump errored out at 11:30 PM AGAIN, arg, wtf, is wrong with this pump... anyways)... I think part of my higher expectations comes from the 0-10v input port alone. Here, less could be more. If the WE simply didn't even have this port - or rather had a single analog "Input Mode" pin, not the default Hydros-Controller-like quad-port, my initial expectations would have been more moderate. Just a thought.
Click to expand...
I agree. The reason why we added the 0-10V is for the versatility, but, at the same time, we need to draw a line as to what we can "officially" support based on a product that we designed to control flow pumps.

We have gotten requests from folks that want us to add lighting schedules to the WaveEngine. While this is possible, it is out of the scope of what the WaveEngine is supposed to do. Also, you can get the same functionality if you create a collective with a Control XS. For that reason, we are hesitant to add such functionality when all you have is a WaveEngine.

It is a fine line we have to thread when it comes to functionality, and we have come to rely on asking ourselves, "What was the product designed for?" to answer that question. This list keeps evolving as folks find very creative and innovative ways to use the WaveEngine within the original product scope. We are happy to add them to the list of features and implement them in future releases when that happens.

Anyway, I do get that 0-10V is super versatile, and there are many things that it can do.
 
@Carlos I noticed that following the latest Firmware/App update, the WE Output section now includes the ability to assign a notification level. In my testing (manually unplugging a powerhead), I couldn't get the notification to trigger. Still a work in progress? I'm assuming so as it wasn't in the Changelog.
 
Is it possible for you to provide us with a screenshot?
 
KWolfe81 said:
View attachment 1970 View attachment 1971 View attachment 1972
Click to expand...
Ah yes, that is an oversight and should not have been displayed as it is not ready yet. We missed it on the app. We are genuinely sorry about it.

We are working on the notifications for flow pumps, but it is not ready yet. Because flow pumps can change speeds and even wholly stop per schedule request, it is a little more challenging to measure voltage. If a pump stops as part of the schedule, it will show 0V, which is not an alarm state. That's why flow pump notifications are a little more complex than standard output.
 
Carlos said:
Ah yes, that is an oversight and should not have been displayed as it is not ready yet. We missed it on the app. We are genuinely sorry about it.

We are working on the notifications for flow pumps, but it is not ready yet. Because flow pumps can change speeds and even wholly stop per schedule request, it is a little more challenging to measure voltage. If a pump stops as part of the schedule, it will show 0V, which is not an alarm state. That's why flow pump notifications are a little more complex than standard output.
Click to expand...

Not a problem! I'm stoked it's being actively worked on, and yea, I was just thinking about that problem myself. Glad I'm not the one being paid to fix it ;-)
 
Bumping this thread. With the new firmware being released, I was really hoping to see this on the Change List and it does not appear to be so.
 
Yes, we are still working on it. Notifications on flow pumps that can change speed are more complex. This is because it is hard for the consumer to set a power range unless you monitor your pump's consumption at the highest and lowest speed. Also, what happens when the pump stops to change directions. We are working on this but do not think it is ready yet. We are genuinely sorry for the inconvenience and the delay. Honestly, there is also a long list of other requests, and like any other project, we need to prioritize. It does not mean that your request is less critical than others because it is not, but unfortunately, we cannot do everything simultaneously. Your request is on the list; hopefully, it will make the next cut!
 
Understood. FWIW, when my pump fails or goes offline (getting unplugged for instance), the app right now says "ERROR", so there's already some level of functioning error detection logic - it's just that there's no connection from there to the notification service. Perhaps the 'error detection' isn't robust enough for CoralVues goals, but I'll take what I can get. :)
 
KWolfe81 said:
Understood. FWIW, when my pump fails or goes offline (getting unplugged for instance), the app right now says "ERROR", so there's already some level of functioning error detection logic - it's just that there's no connection from there to the notification service. Perhaps the 'error detection' isn't robust enough for CoralVues goals, but I'll take what I can get. :)
Click to expand...
So here is the catch! Sometimes, if the pump is running at really low speeds, depending on the pump, it might show "Pump Error" for a split second or two, and then once the controller sends a signal for a higher speed, the pump can recover. Do you want a message for that, or would you rather have it send you a message only if the pumps remain in an error state for a more extended period? If so, how long?
 
Carlos said:
So here is the catch! Sometimes, if the pump is running at really low speeds, depending on the pump, it might show "Pump Error" for a split second or two, and then once the controller sends a signal for a higher speed, the pump can recover. Do you want a message for that, or would you rather have it send you a message only if the pumps remain in an error state for a more extended period? If so, how long?
Click to expand...

Yea, in that case, I'd disable notifications. For my case, I have my two return pumps set at constant levels 24/7. I'd prefer to get notified even in cases of those split-second errors. At this point, I'm going to revert back to the stock pump controllers and roll my own energy monitoring/fault detection solution.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top