Part of my Home Automation System under development is an automated Curtain (Drapery) and Blind controller.

Such units are available to buy in the UK but they are either very expensive and/or not particularly good.

Swish used to manufacture a system called Autoglide, now discontinued, using a special track & motor unit, and there is a different system called Add-A-Motor designed to couple to a standard corded track.

However both systems have disadvantages that I am trying to avoid with my design.

The Swish Autoglide system is:

• No longer available!
• Expensive
• Motor unit connected directly to a special track - manual control in case of a power or mechanical failure is not possible. (I think?)
• Rough price - 3 metre track = £53 + motor unit (IR controlled) £112

The Add-A-Motor system is:

• Cheaper
• One review quoted it as sounding like "a small electric tin opener "
• Rough price - motor unit = £85 + standard corded track

Both systems are not really suited to HA systems due to the lack of position feedback (i.e. the controller has no way of knowing if the curtains are currently open or closed), and poor HA controller interfacing options.

There are also other systems available, some overcome the above limitations, at a price! A few are:

Makita Motorized Drape System

Drape-Boss Drapery Controller

Somfy Motorized Drape Controller

After looking at the commercial units, deciding which features I wanted and which are possible, I came up with the following list of requirements:

• Use standard corded curtain track, retaining manual control if desired.
• System must reliably know if curtains are fully open, closed or midway
• Connection for Home Automation system interface & local control
• Control system to co-ordinate I/O
• Single cable for power supply and data connection
• Commands to include opening/closing part-way, possibly variable speed
• An enclosure as small as possible that won't look out of place screwed to the wall.

Click the links or the Next Page button to see what I've come up with.