IR Blaster Mobile Application for controlling IoT Enabled Home Entertainment Components

How many of us wanted to control everything around us by just waving our wand? All of us, we can safely bet and thanks to IoT and other latest cutting-edge technologies for making this happen in today’s Digital World. So, as a part of this project, we have developed an IR Blaster mobile application, for controlling IoT enabled Home ecosystem, for a Leading APAC based Consumer Electronics Company leveraging our IoT expertise and let’s see how.

An infrared blaster (IR blaster) is a device that relays commands from a remote control to one or more devices. Most remote controls use infrared to communicate with home entertainment components such as TVs, audio receivers, DVD players etc. and these days we have the android models coming with an in-built IR blaster, with which this home equipment can be controlled with the help of a mobile application.

Have you ever lost a remote control and wondered how to change channels on your smart TV? Or wanted to switch on the AC but felt too lazy to get up and fetch the remote? If you ever wished for a “universal remote”, this is something which we have successfully developed for our end client. The IR Blaster is a device that allows controlling multiple devices from a single location (or even remotely, from a workplace, if you want to). The users will need only a smartphone app to replace the bunch of remote controls, thus cutting down the electronics they need to keep track of. It allows them to control the devices through Internet, Wi-Fi, Infrared or Bluetooth, based on whatever is available.

That’s not where the fun stops. Coming home after being baked by the heat and waiting for the AC cooling to take full effect is now history. One can now program the AC to start cooling at a chosen time to step into the house and get welcomed by the cool air. It’s also possible to have one’s favorite music or TV show to greet them. IR Blaster helps take home automation to the next level. It allows users to automate their devices as much as they want to. Imagination is the only limit now.

To make “universal control” truly useful, IR Blaster supports six categories of devices - TVs, set-top boxes, air-conditioners, home theatre systems, projectors, and smart fans can be controlled with this. This is not all, though. To make it truly magical, it also supports a DIY (Do It Yourself) mode, wherein one can configure older, non-smart devices to be controlled by hooking them up to an IR device. This allows controlling all devices by using any remote control of your choice. So, if you have a favorite remote control, that’s all you really need with the IR Blaster around.

Of what use is a great thing if you cannot share it with others? This IR Blaster app allows sharing of the configuration for specific devices with others. To make sure no one can change the configurations, they are shared in read-only mode. All user-specific settings and configuration are tied to their mobile number and securely tokenized and stored in the cloud. Even if the user happens to lose their phone, only a new SIM is needed to get back into action. The best part is that the settings (including shared ones) stay active even in such a case.

From an enterprise standpoint, the biggest advantage of the IR Blaster solution that we developed is that it has created a framework for further IoT and automation functionalities. This allows developers to think of and actualize possibilities that were previously unheard of. It also allows converting older, remote-less devices into “smart”, remotely accessible ones. With this, the useful life of older devices can be extended, resulting in greater ROI for users and enterprises alike. If TRUe value is what you seek, welcome to the magical world of IoT and automation with IR Blaster, developed and delivered by the Digital-Next Company “Truminds”.