IHC

IHC “Intelligent Home Control” is an electrical home automation system from the Danish company LK. Here I will show some of the projects I have made related to IHC.

First, a brief description of what is IHC

The main component of an IHC system is the controller, which is a small computer with inputs and outputs where in- or output modules can be connected. In addition, the newer versions of the controller are wireless so you can use various wireless switches, dimmers and relays. The wireless connection is an closed standard, not available to the public. The controller has a network connector for connecting the internet. It can be remotely controlled using a browser or using an App for Android and IOS. I’ve have developed an alternative app that you can find on droidapps.dk

Why choose IHC

I starting using the IHC system i 2006 because I was renovating an old house, and at that time there were not that many options. The wireless controller made it easier for me to use the existing installation. Since then, there have been more options and I’m not sure I would choose IHC today. Here are some of the issues:

• The controller administration programs require java and often cause problems because LK is slow to update Firmware in the controller, and sometimes it will not runs with the latest version of java.
• Problems with the controller firmware. There are problems with “scenes”(a term in the IHC that defines a predetermined setting), after a while, they slow down the controller so it may take 2 seconds to turn on a lamp. This problem has been there for a long time, and I think it was working at some point, but is still a problem in the current version. Email problems – however, works in current version
• The non-open protocols for IHC – some of them can be “hacked” – see some of my other posts.
• Internet access made for Internet Explorer and runs only HTTPS from the outside. The option to specify your own certificate is missing. In addition, only old SSL protocols are supported (and  soon not available in newer browsers)

Now it is not all negative – IHC works fine for me, but it’s only because I’ve found ways to circumvent the problems and make my own solutions on IHC. Another big plus is the design of the buttons, but today you can get zigbee in fuga design.

Read more about IHC on LK’s homepage

Note: since LK was bought by Schneider Electric, you can get IHC in other countries too under other names.

Posts related to IHC

(Note older posts will be in Danish)