Sending infrared commands over Ethernet with arduino -Extending ir remotes over ip to attic

Infrared extender over Ethernet with arduino

Here is a small project using arduino and ethernet shield to send infrared remote commands over the ethernet (IR over IP) to a remotely placed infrared equipment, for e.g on the attic or upstairs of the building. In addition there is a possibility to access it over wifi/smart phone to send custom commands.

This is an extension of my previous post on IR blasters with raspberry pi and many general points like increasing the power output with a transistor is applicable here as well. So basically this circuit picks up infrared signals from any remote controls and send these raw data to the remote end and the arduino over there will emit it to control the target device. To make it simple and universally applicable, i used raw infrared patters and is relayed. The library involved can decode different popular formats which can add extra feature. Furthermore in this design, the target transmitter can be accessed with a browser and by passing ir codes as a url parameter, any infrared device can be controlled from a simple web browser as well. So there is a lot of possibilities to play around.

To get it running, you need two arduinos and ethernet shields. The first one acts as a server which is placed near the device to be controlled. The output is taken from pin 3 of the arduino and is connected to the IR led ( or via a transistor as shown here)

The source code for the ir extender is available here. 

Load this sketch to the server arduino

/Sending ir codes over ethernet
//This sketch accept IR from an IR sensor connected to Pin 6 and sends over IP
// parts of the code for storing ir in to buffer is from  Ken Shirriff's ir recorder http://arcfn.com
//
//                       THIS ONE PICKS IR FROM A REMOTE
//
#include <IRremote.h>
#include <SPI.h>
#include <Ethernet.h>
 

int RECV_PIN = 6;
IRrecv irrecv(RECV_PIN);
decode_results results;
 
// Network settings 
byte mac[] = {  0xDE, 0xAD, 0xBE, 0xEF, 0xFE, 0xED }; //MAC
byte gateway[] = { 192,168,0,1 };// Gateway
byte ip[] = { 192,168,0,123 };  //ip if dhcp fails 
 
// IP of the Target arduino with ir emitter
IPAddress server(192,168,0,102);  
EthernetClient client;

unsigned int rawCodes[RAWBUF]; // The durations if raw
int codeLen; // The length of the code
//Get the infrared codes from remote

void storeCode(decode_results *results) {
  int count = results->rawlen;
  Serial.println("Received code");
  codeLen = results->rawlen - 1;
    for (int i = 1; i <= codeLen; i++) {
      if (i % 2) {
        // Mark
        rawCodes[i - 1] = results->rawbuf[i]*USECPERTICK - MARK_EXCESS;
        Serial.print(" m");
      } 
      else {
        // Space
        rawCodes[i - 1] = results->rawbuf[i]*USECPERTICK + MARK_EXCESS;
        Serial.print(" s");
      }
      Serial.print(rawCodes[i - 1], DEC);
    }
    Serial.println("");
}

 
void setup()
{
  // For debug
  Serial.begin(9600);
  // Start ethernet
  Ethernet.begin(mac, ip, gateway);
  Serial.println("Initialised");
}

//sending the raw IR code over the ether net

void sendIR()
{
   
    // Send over HTTP
    if (client.connect(server, 80))
    {
      client.print("GET /");
      for (int i = 0; i < codeLen; i++) {
      client.print(rawCodes[i]);
      }
      client.println(" HTTP/1.1");
      client.println("Host: 192.168.0.101");
      client.println();
      client.println();
      client.stop();
    } 
  
}
 

void loop()
{
  if (irrecv.decode(&results))
  {
    storeCode(&results);
    sendIR();
    irrecv.resume(); // Receive the next value
  }
}

Now make sure that you set the ip address as a value which mach your sub-net i.e first three groups. Now navigate with your browser to make sure that the transmit end is up and running.

To make the IR accepter, a second arduino is hooked with an ir receiver to pin 6 (refer to previous post for pin connection) and load the receiver sketch and point your remote to it. The signals will be send to the server and will be relayed over there to target ir device.

//Sending ir codes over ethernet
//This sketch accept IR from an IR sensor connected to Pin 6 and sends over IP
// parts of the code for storing ir in to buffer is from  Ken Shirriff's ir recorder http://arcfn.com
//
//                       THIS ONE PICKS IR FROM A REMOTE
//
#include <IRremote.h>
#include <SPI.h>
#include <Ethernet.h>
 

int RECV_PIN = 6;
IRrecv irrecv(RECV_PIN);
decode_results results;
 
// Network settings 
byte mac[] = {  0xDE, 0xAD, 0xBE, 0xEF, 0xFE, 0xED }; //MAC
byte gateway[] = { 192,168,0,1 };// Gateway
byte ip[] = { 192,168,0,123 };  //ip if dhcp fails 
 
// IP of the Target arduino with ir emitter
IPAddress server(192,168,0,102);  
EthernetClient client;

unsigned int rawCodes[RAWBUF]; // The durations if raw
int codeLen; // The length of the code
//Get the infrared codes from remote

void storeCode(decode_results *results) {
  int count = results->rawlen;
  Serial.println("Received code");
  codeLen = results->rawlen - 1;
    for (int i = 1; i <= codeLen; i++) {
      if (i % 2) {
        // Mark
        rawCodes[i - 1] = results->rawbuf[i]*USECPERTICK - MARK_EXCESS;
        Serial.print(" m");
      } 
      else {
        // Space
        rawCodes[i - 1] = results->rawbuf[i]*USECPERTICK + MARK_EXCESS;
        Serial.print(" s");
      }
      Serial.print(rawCodes[i - 1], DEC);
    }
    Serial.println("");
}

 
void setup()
{
  // For debug
  Serial.begin(9600);
  // Start ethernet
  Ethernet.begin(mac, ip, gateway);
  Serial.println("Initialised");
}

//sending the raw IR code over the ether net

void sendIR()
{
   
    // Send over HTTP
    if (client.connect(server, 80))
    {
      client.print("GET /");
      for (int i = 0; i < codeLen; i++) {
      client.print(rawCodes[i]);
      }
      client.println(" HTTP/1.1");
      client.println("Host: 192.168.0.101");
      client.println();
      client.println();
      client.stop();
    } 
  
}
 

void loop()
{
  if (irrecv.decode(&results))
  {
    storeCode(&results);
    sendIR();
    irrecv.resume(); // Receive the next value
  }
}