I was wondering if it would be possible to add a feature where you can add "custom items" section to the VRM dashboard. Similar to how advanced tab works but something on the main page.
I know this is a broad statement but this is how I imagine it would be:
You can add four custom types to just a specific "Custom" section of the dashboard maybe at the bottom. The custom types you be able to add would be:
- switches
- slides/up-down (or maybe a dial/guage)
- textboxes
- date selectors (for schedule setting)
Which can be set as read-only (for view only data) or set to writable items by the user.
Each item would be mapped to the existing MQTT topics of choice by the user. This would allow customisation of the dashboard with somewhat minimal impact on server load (ie only need to store the custom settings on server side which could just be a json file or similar which feels minimal compared to the volume of solar data stored). There might need to be some controls in place to stop users using this method to create their own topics on VRM Mqtt/more load for victron to handle but other than that i cant imagine this added must load to Victron's infrastructure. Or even if it's set to only allow a few custom mqtt topics for custom integrations.
It would allow users to add niche/custom features to their dashboards without the need of setting up node red dashboards or other home automation systems like openhab or homeassistant. Would also allow devs to add their custom drivers/items to the dashboard without needing any effort from Victron.
I understand this is achievable using other systems (node red/openhab/homeassistant etc) but my choice then is either recreate all VRM functionality in the another system just to add this feature or I run two systems in parallel just to add the additional functionality (what I've got at the moment).
The example that comes to mind is say someone that want's to edit grid setpoint regularly, they could create a slider or textbox item and set as writeable. They would be able to quickly and easily set/edit the setting quickly. The MQTT infrastructure is already there so would just need js to MQTT client to setup.
This would also allow Victron to see if there's any features/settings that are commonly accessed by users. ie say everyone in the community ends up adding a specific custom setting then it might be something Victron would want to add outside of custom section.
