Mailbox sensor home assistant

A mailbox sensor! That's a great idea for a Home Assistant automation. Here's a step-by-step guide to help you set it up:

Hardware Requirements:

A mailbox sensor (e.g., a reed switch or a magnetic sensor)
A Raspberry Pi or another single-board computer (e.g., ESP32 or ESP8266)
A power source for the sensor and the Raspberry Pi
A Home Assistant installation on your Raspberry Pi

Software Requirements:

Home Assistant (version 2022.3 or later)
Python 3.9 or later

Setup the Mailbox Sensor:

Connect the sensor: Connect the mailbox sensor to the Raspberry Pi. If you're using a reed switch, connect it to a digital input pin on the Raspberry Pi. If you're using a magnetic sensor, connect it to an analog input pin.
Install the required libraries: Install the rpi.gpio library for the Raspberry Pi or the machine library for ESP32/ESP8266.
Write the sensor code: Write a Python script to read the sensor data and send it to Home Assistant. For example, you can use the following code:
```
import RPi.GPIO as GPIO
import time
```

Set up the GPIO pin for the sensor

GPIO.setmode(GPIO.BCM) GPIO.setup(17, GPIO.IN, pull_up_down=GPIO.PUD_UP)

while True:

Read the sensor data

sensor_data = GPIO.input(17)
print(sensor_data)

# Send the data to Home Assistant
import requests
url = "http://localhost:8123/api/sensors/mailbox"
headers = {"Content-Type": "application/json"}
data = {"state": sensor_data}
response = requests.post(url, headers=headers, json=data)

# Wait for 1 second before taking the next reading
time.sleep(1)

4. **Run the sensor code:** Run the Python script on your Raspberry Pi. You can do this by saving the script to a file (e.g., `mailbox_sensor.py`) and running it using `python mailbox_sensor.py`.

**Integrate the Mailbox Sensor with Home Assistant:**

1. **Create a new sensor in Home Assistant:** Go to the Home Assistant web interface and navigate to **Entities** > **Sensors**. Click the **+** button to create a new sensor.
2. **Configure the sensor:** Fill in the sensor details, such as the name, unit of measurement, and icon. Set the **Sensor Type** to **Custom**.
3. **Add the sensor code:** In the **Custom Sensor** section, add the following code:
```yaml
sensor:
  - platform: custom
    name: Mailbox
    state_topic: "mailbox/state"
    unit_of_measurement: "bool"
    icon: "mdi:mailbox"

Restart Home Assistant: Restart Home Assistant to apply the changes.

Automate the Mailbox Sensor:

Create a new automation: Go to the Home Assistant web interface and navigate to Entities > Automations. Click the + button to create a new automation.
Configure the automation: Fill in the automation details, such as the name and trigger. Set the Trigger to Sensor and select the Mailbox sensor.
Add an action: Add an action to the automation, such as sending a notification or turning on a light.
Save the automation: Save the automation and restart Home Assistant to apply the changes.

That's it! With these steps, you should now have a working mailbox sensor integrated with Home Assistant.

Mail Knowledge

Mailbox sensor home assistant

Set up the GPIO pin for the sensor

Read the sensor data