Priority

The various remote input control methods within ELM can all be used at the same time to provide flexibility except Art-Net/sACN/DMX. These will always take complete control when active


In the event of DMX control being lost, ELM will continue doing what it was last instructed to until a new command comes in from any of the other control methods or DMX signal returning.


To achieve a blackout, if your remote-control Art-Net/sACN/DMX feed becomes disconnected from ELM, create a playlist for each stage set to run indefinitely in the scheduler. – This can be achieved by setting the colour of any media slot to have RGB values Red ‘0’ Green ‘0’ Blue ‘0’.


A screengrab of this schedule is shown below:

A screenshot of a computer Description automatically generated

Set this to run infinitely and define a transition duration to determine how quickly ELM will fade the output to black when the remote control is lost.


Once a higher priority control method is re-established, the higher priority method will take over control.

If no schedule is set, the content will continue to play based on the last command received.

 

Art-Net

After opening your project file, you should navigate to the Settings tab at the top right of the screen and select Remote.

You will be on the DMX Remote option by default with the drop-down set to none. Simply change this to Art-Net, and the page will display all required Settings.

Here we can define our connectivity settings. Select the network adapter connected to the same network as the Art-Net source.

Next, we need to set our address settings.

                                                                                                                                           
It’s important that if you are also using Art-Net to send your Pixel data, you do not select a universe that ELM is outputting on, or you will create a loop causing ELM to control itself.


Here we have 16 Universes patched for our LED strip starting at universe 0, so we will have to set our universe to 16 as it is the next free universe after our strings; however, the remote is the only thing in universe 16, so we can start at channel 1. (Alternatively, you may want to control ELM with one protocol, and output to pixels using another to eliminate any chance of crosstalk).

The Fixture mode has two options, Basic and Extended. This changes the level of control over ELM and the number of channels used. The channel’s addresses and functionality are listed underneath the settings options.

 

If you are using a separate computer to send Art-Net to ELM, then they will need to have different IP addresses; ensure they are the same network and subnet, i.e. If the computer running ELM is 10.10.3.123, then your console should be something like 10.10.3.120


Once set, you’ll need to configure your Art-Net stream to ELM. You will have to set your universe the same as what we set in ELM to do this. Depending on how your controller handles Art-Net, this could be as simple as typing 16, or it could be using the subnet universe system where there are 16 universes in each subnet, so we would need to set Subnet 1 universe 0.


If this has been done correctly, ELM should show a green box next to universe activity.


Now you can change channels 1-15 to control ELM’s attributes as specified in the remote tab. Remember that you need to set channel 1 to 100% (255) to enable the remote, or ELM will ignore all other channels.

 

HTTP / OSC using a smartphone or tablet

ELM allows you to host custom webpages directly from the software, viewable within any web browser.

These web pages can send HTTP or OSC commands to ELM's web API to trigger schedules or control scenes. - The settings can be found within ELM under:

Settings>Remotes>HTTP

Alternatively, ELM can be triggered using raw OSC or HTTP commands in pre-built applications. Several 3rd party apps and building management systems support ELM's API or allow raw OSC strings to be sent to ELM to control its functionality.

Examples of such apps include:

  • Touch OSC by Hexler
  • Ctrl for iPad by ON LX
  • Lemur by Liine


GPIO Triggers

ELM remote inputs include DMX, Art-Net sACN, OSC, and HTTP.


There are devices available that will allow you to convert GPI Triggers to Art-Net. or HTTP to trigger states on your ELM stages.


You need to set the GPIO converter to send relevant Art-Net signals based on the ELM DMX chart (found in the Art-Net remote input tab within ELM).


Alternatively, the ENTTEC S-Play can receive input triggers from GPIO and then use it to control playlists, including static, Dynamic, and Effect cues. The output of the S-Play can be set to Art-Net, which, if on the same network as the ELM computer, will trigger ELM’s remote input.

 

Third-Party remote control

One of the ways that ELM can be controlled remotely is by using Art-Net, sACN, or physical DMX512.


If your 3rd party device or software outputs Art-Net or sACN, you can Broadcast Art-Net from the device/software over your network to control ELM running on your computer.


If your 3rd party software is on the same computer as ELM, then you can direct Art-Net or sACN over the loopback IP address 127.0.0.1


If your 3rd party device outputs physical DMX512 using a USB device only, then you will need one of the following:

  1. Art-Net to DMX converter (such as the ENTTEC ODE Mk2) will convert the DMX512 signal into either Art-Net or sACN. This will need to be on the same network as the ELM computer.
  2. ENTTEC DMX USB Pro, this USB DMX512 lighting interface will convert the DMX512 to a serial signal. The DMX USB Pro will connect directly to the ELM computer.

 

For example: If you have a Titan One Dongle allowing 1 Universe of Art-Net output OR use of the dongle for the production of physical DMX output, here you would have the following options:

  1. Output physical DMX from the dongle and use a DMX to Art-Net converter (ENTTEC DIN Etherate) or a USB DMX512 lighting interface (ENTTEC DMX USB Pro) to route the Physical DMX signal back into ELM.
  2. Broadcast Art-Net from the Titan One over your network to control ELM.

Note: If you are limited to only one output and want to control ELM and other DMX512 fixtures, you could broadcast Art-Net over your network to control ELM and then use an Art-Net to DMX converter (ENTTEC ODE Mk2) to control your DMX512 fixtures.


Remotely Manage ELM

If wanting to remotely manage your installation over the internet, your computer should have two wired NICs (Network Interface Controller).

  • One for internet & remote management.
  • One for DMX / API control (this keeps the lighting network traffic secure and predictable).
  • You should use a Windows operating system version designed for standalone deployment. Such as Windows IoT Enterprise. At the very least, one that allows updates to be scheduled (i.e. Win 10 Pro).
  • Make sure that only critical security updates are enabled and schedule them to run during non-active hours.
  • Create a user account that logs in as default on start-up and set ELM to run on computer start-up. (This will ensure your computer comes online following a power failure to your installation).
  • Disable or uninstall any unnecessary applications that are not necessary for your installation.

 

Disable the Windows Welcome screen in Windows 10: This blocks windows from starting applications until you acknowledge the updates or press 'OK'. After that, everything will boot as normal. The following guide will help you disable this: https://mywindowshub.com/how-to-disable-the-windows-welcome-screen-after-updates-in-windows-10/.