Combining Alexa routines with Loxone devices

Every device and reading you share with Alexa in MFM Voice can be used in routines in the Alexa app. A routine links a sentence you choose yourself to one or more actions. You create routines in the Alexa app under “Mehr” (More) and then “Routinen” (Routines).

The MFM Voice skill currently only works with an amazon.de account and Alexa set to German, so voice commands are shown in German with an English gloss in brackets.

What a routine is good for

Without a routine, Alexa expects particular phrasing. For energy values, Amazon sets the exact wording. With a routine, you decide on the sentence yourself. This makes two things possible:

• Freely worded questions. You ask the way you speak in everyday life.
• Several actions at once. One sentence triggers several steps, one after another.

First: share the devices

A routine can only use what Alexa knows about. In MFM Voice, tick the devices Alexa may control. Then say: “Alexa, suche nach neuen Geräten.” (Search for new devices.) The search takes up to 45 seconds.

How to create a routine

1. Open the Alexa app.
2. Tap “Mehr” and then “Routinen”.
3. Create a new routine and enter the sentence you want to say.
4. Add the actions by selecting the shared devices or readings.
5. Save the routine and say the sentence once to test it.

Freely worded questions about energy values

Meters, battery storage, the wallbox and the Energy Flow Monitor appear in Alexa as devices that you can only query. They are called “PV Anlage” (PV system), “Batteriespeicher” (battery storage), “Stromnetz” (power grid), “Wallbox” and “Haus” (house). Amazon sets the wording of the questions:

• “Alexa, wie ist der Ladestand vom Batteriespeicher?” (What is the charge level of the battery storage?)
• “Alexa, wie ist die Leistung der PV Anlage?” (What is the output of the PV system?)
• “Alexa, wie ist der Ertrag heute von der PV Anlage?” (What is today's yield from the PV system?)
• “Alexa, wie ist die Autarkie vom Haus?” (What is the self-sufficiency of the house?)

Hardly anyone talks like that at the kitchen table. A freely worded question such as “Alexa, wie voll ist die Batterie?” (How full is the battery?) only works once you have created a routine for it. In the routine, you set the question and select the charge level of the battery storage as the action.

Several actions in one routine

A routine can contain several actions. When you ask “Alexa, wie steht die Anlage?” (How is the system doing?), Alexa then announces the PV output, the charge level and the self-sufficiency one after another. You ask one question and hear three values.

The same applies to devices you can switch. Here, too, a routine can address several shared devices one after another.

Who sets up the routines

Ideally, your installer or a relative sets up the routines. After that, nobody needs the app any more. The people who live in the house only need to know the sentences. It helps to write the sentences down until they come naturally.

What to keep in mind

• A routine makes a command more convenient, but not more secure. A voice assistant does not check who is speaking.
• Only share for voice control what a guest in your house would be allowed to switch. It is better not to share gates and door openers.
• If you rename a device or add a new one, say again: “Alexa, suche nach neuen Geräten.” (Search for new devices.)
• Without internet, voice control does not work, and neither do routines. Wall switches, the Loxone app and automation keep working.

The features page shows what Alexa can do with each Loxone block.