Get started with ControlByWeb Devices

Learn how to connect and control your ControlByWeb device with the Seam API.

Overview

Seam provides a universal API to connect and control many brands of smart devices. This guide provides a rapid introduction to connecting and controlling your ControlByWeb relay device using the Seam API. To learn more about other smart device brands supported by Seam such as Yale, Schlage, and August, head over to our integration page.

1 — Install Seam SDK

Seam provides client libraries for many languages, such as JavaScript, Python, Ruby, PHP, and others, as well as a Postman collection and OpenAPI spec.

JavaScript / TypeScript (npm, GitHub)
Python (pip, GitHub)
Ruby Gem (rubygem, GitHub)
PHP (packagist, GitHub)
C# (nuget, GitHub)

npm i seam

Once installed, sign-up for Seam to get your API key, and export it as an environment variable:

$ export SEAM_API_KEY=seam_test2ZTo_0mEYQW2TvNDCxG5Atpj85Ffw

This guide uses a Sandbox Workspace. Only virtual devices can be connected. If you need to connect a real ControlByWeb device, use a non-sandbox workspace and API key.

2 — Link ControlByWeb Account with Seam

To control your ControlByWeb relay device via the Seam API, you must first authorize your Seam workspace against your ControlByWeb Cloud account. To do so, Seam provides Connect Webviews: pre-built UX flows that walk you through authorizing your application to control your ControlByWeb device.

Request a Connect Webview

from seam import Seam

seam = Seam()

webview = seam.connect_webviews.create(accepted_providers=["controlbyweb"])

assert webview.login_successful is False

# Send the webview URL to your user
print(webview.url)

import { Seam } from 'seam'

const seam = new Seam()

const connectWebview = await seam.connectWebviews.create({
  accepted_providers: ['controlbyweb'],
})

console.log(connectWebview.login_successful) // false

// Send the webview URL to your user
console.log(connectWebview.url)

require "seam"

seam = Seam.new(api_key: "MY_API_KEY")

webview = seam.connect_webviews.create(
  accepted_providers: ["controlbyweb"]
)

puts webview.login_successful # false

# Send the webview URL to your user
puts webview.url

Authorize Your Workspace

Navigate to the URL returned by the Webview object. Since you are using a sandbox workspace, complete the login flow by entering the ControlByWeb sandbox test account credentials below:

username: jane
password: 1234

Confirm the Connect Webview was successful by querying its status:

updated_webview = seam.connect_webviews.get(connect_webview_id: webview.connect_webview_id)

assert updated_webview.login_successful # true

3 — Retrieve ControlByWeb devices

After a ControlByWeb account is linked with Seam, you can retrieve devices for this ControlByWeb account. The main device property currently exposed by the Seam API is whether the device is online and reachable.

````python all_locks = seam.locks.list()

some_lock = all_locks[0]

assert some_lock.properties["online"] is True assert some_lock.properties["locked"] is True

print(some_lock)

# Device(
#   device_id='4a570d13-9704-46e0-b69c-9fea80d6a7aa',
#   device_type='controlbyweb_device',
#   location=None,
#   properties={
#     'locked': True,
#     'online': True,
#     'manufacturer': 'controlbyweb',
#     'controlbyweb_metadata': {
#       'device_id': '9997',
#       'relay_name': 'firstRelay',
#       'device_name': 'Device 2'
#     },
#     'name': 'Device 2',
#     'image_url': 'https://connect.getseam.com/assets/images/devices/unknown-lock.png',
#     'image_alt_text': 'Placeholder Lock Image'
#   },
#   capabilities_supported=['lock'],
#   errors=[]
# )

const allLocks = await seam.locks.list()

const someLock = allLocks[0]

console.log(someLock.properties.online) // true
console.log(someLock.properties.locked) // true

console.log(someLock)
/*
{
  device_id: '4a570d13-9704-46e0-b69c-9fea80d6a7aa',
  device_type: 'controlbyweb_device',
  capabilities_supported: [ 'lock' ],
  properties: {
    locked: true,
    online: true,
    manufacturer: 'controlbyweb',
    controlbyweb_metadata: {
      device_id: '9997',
      relay_name: 'firstRelay',
      device_name: 'Device 2'
    },
    name: 'Device 2',
    image_url: 'https://connect.getseam.com/assets/images/devices/unknown-lock.png',
    image_alt_text: 'Placeholder Lock Image'
  },
  location: null,
  connected_account_id: '5e0f49ac-3cb5-4e81-8c74-aba262218611',
  workspace_id: '40a179ca-3553-4226-9483-21df4e12f5fe',
  created_at: '2023-04-25T14:34:50.508Z',
  errors: [],
  warnings: []
}
*/

some_lock = seam.locks.list.first

puts some_lock.properties.online # true
puts some_lock.properties.locked # true

puts some_lock.inspect # > #   warnings=[] #   errors=[] #   created_at=2023-04-25 14:34:50 UTC #   } #     "image_alt_text"=>"Placeholder Lock Image" #     "image_url"=>"https://connect.getseam.com/assets/images/devices/unknown-lock.png", #     "name"=>"Device 2", #     }, #       "device_name"=>"Device 2" #       "relay_name"=>"firstRelay", #       "device_id"=>"9997", #     "controlbyweb_metadata"=>{ #     "manufacturer"=>"controlbyweb", #     "online"=>true, #     "locked"=>true, #   properties={ #   device_type="controlbyweb_device" #   device_id="4a570d13-9704-46e0-b69c-9fea80d6a7aa" # <Seam::Device:0x00146639380

{% endtab %} {% endtabs %}

4 — Triggering a ControlByWeb relay

Next, you can perform the basic action of triggering a relay on the device. This action is mapped to an unlock API call in Seam.

Unlock a door

POST https://connect.getseam.com/locks/unlock_door

Request Body

Name

Type

Description

device_id

String

{% tabs %} {% tab title="Python" %}

# trigger the relay
seam.locks.unlock_door(some_lock)

{% endtab %}

{% tab title="Javascript" %}

// trigger the relay
await seam.locks.unlockDoor(someLock.device_id)

{% endtab %}

{% tab title="Ruby" %}


ruby
# trigger the relay
seam.locks.unlock_door(device_id: some_lock.device_id)

Next Steps

Now that you've completed this guide, you can try to connect a real ControlByWeb device. To do so, make sure to switch to a non-sandbox workspace and API key as real devices cannot be connected to sandbox workspaces.

In addition, if you'd like to explore other aspects of Seam, here is a list of helpful resources:

If you have any questions or want to report an issue, email us at [email protected].

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