Bright Idea - Use Your Video Doorbell to Turn on the Lights

Using Routines in home assistants like Alexa and Google Home allows you to integrate Insteon devices with other third-party devices like video doorbells, outdoor cameras, and alarm systems. Today, we will look at how to use a Routine in Alexa to have a Ring camera or video doorbell trigger lights going on in your home when unexpected motion is detected.  For this one, we will use Alexa:

1. Add a new Routine in Alexa by hitting the + button on the Routines page
2. Name your New Routine.  For example, “Motion at Front Door”
3. Under WHEN, add an event
4. Select Smart Home
5. Select the video doorbell or camera you want involved in this routine
6. Under SELECT CAPABILITY, select Person to have the camera trigger the Routine when a person is detected
7. Confirm Person Detected and click Next
8. Change from Anytime to a time window such as 10pm to 6am. A pop up will confirm you want it active at night
9. Now, under ALEXA WILL, add an action
10. Select Smart Home
11. Select Lights or Scene to select what light(s) you would like to go on when motion is detected. HINT: Select a light that will be visible from where the motion is detected
12. Confirm that you want it to go On
13. From there, you can add additional actions. We suggest adding a Wait action of 15 seconds then adding another Scene or Light going on in a different room
14. Save the Routine

Now when your Ring camera detects a person at an unexpected time of night, lights will go to mimic an occupant coming to investigate – whether anyone is actually home or not. It is just another way to use Insteon for an added layer of security and peace of mind.