This book is dedicated to advanced home automation, but that doesn’t mean it does not cover the basics of Raspberry Pi. You learn what’s inside of it, which other components are required to get started with it, and how you can access it from your laptop. At the end of the chapter 1, you learn which other sensors and modules are required to create an advanced home automation system.

In first few chapters, you will develop a basic understanding of the Raspberry Pi and how one can control it wirelessly from anywhere in the world. Then you’ll get to know about the local server for your home automation projects and control the Raspberry Pi GPIOs using smartphone and web apps. Every appliance will be able to talk to each other, as well, with the help of mesh networking, which you’ll learn to implement. The user interface is also an important aspect of handling all the appliances, so you’ll create your own user dashboard using OpenHAB. From there, you can monitor all the appliances and sensor data in one environment.

Next, implement your own custom voice assistant to control your appliances and perform basic tasks like playing music, checking weather, etc. You’ll also integrate a smart door bell into your system using image processing so that you can restrict an unknown person’s entry. Finally, we’ll combine all the knowledge that we have learned to make a fully versatile home automation project controlled using voice, gestures, and image processing. Throughout this whole project, Raspberry Pi will be your master server or node and other devices will be connected wirelessly using wi-fi/Bluetooth modules. Create a smart home with fully custom interfaces to do exactly what you need!

What You'll Learn:

Create a user interface using openHAB
Implement the MQTT protocol
Install Alexa and Google Home API to control appliances wirelessly

Who This Book Is For:
This book is for those who have beginner level knowledge of Raspberry Pi, Electronics, IoT and Python programming. The book would also interest hobbyists who are interested in learning a little more about working with Raspberry Pi. This book is for those who don’t necessarily have the time to read through many different books on Raspberry Pi, ESP modules, electronics and programming; someone who is looking for a broad yet condensed introduction to some of the fundamentals related to automation. This book is for students from Computer Science or related disciplines who want to expand their knowledge in the automation field; someone who wants to work with hardware design and software that more closely resembles what they might see in college or in the professional world. I’ll try to provide you with a quick but easy introduction for all the topics covered in this book.