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Adding support for Nvidia Shield TV


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Thanks for the update! Working great on both my Shields. I have the 2015 and 2017 non-pro model. FLIRC in particular is a boon for the new non-Pro since there's no IR receiver; hopefully with these updates you find FLIRC becomes just as popular with those as it is now for the FireTV devices. 

I have 7 FLIRCs now - 4 original from back in the day and 3 new ones from Amazon. Great update all around. 

I was working at NVIDIA and close to the team that was working on the shield. I had no idea they dropped the IR support until I started getting emails from people telling me they are actually encouraging folks my way. Whoever is doing that at NVIDIA has no idea that I was working there a couple months ago along side the shield team. Crazy.

I really appreciate the feedback. Unfortunately, it's a lot easier for someone emotionally driven to send me an upset email than it is for the happy users at home to write in. So it really fuels me in the pursuit of a better product/products. Thank you.

That's a lot of flircs. Any need for any more just write in and I'll get you a discount. Really goes for anyone here. Thanks guys.

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I've updated to latest Flirc and firmware. I added "NVIDIA Shield Game" to my Harmony 700 and mapped it to Flirc using Shield profile. But when I go and use it on my 2017 Shield, pressing the down arrow navigates all the way down, and up all the way up. Couldn't test anything else out because of that.

Am I doing something wrong? Thanks

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I've updated to latest Flirc and firmware. I added "NVIDIA Shield Game" to my Harmony 700 and mapped it to Flirc using Shield profile. But when I go and use it on my 2017 Shield, pressing the down arrow navigates all the way down, and up all the way up. Couldn't test anything else out because of that.

Am I doing something wrong? Thanks

Do you mean that keys feel sticky? Do they eventually un stick?

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Protip for new Shield FLIRC users using a Harmony: Don't run "automated setup" with the new Shield layout unless you want to exactly duplicate how the Shield remote works (and maybe you do).

I found this mapped several things in the background, like playback functions (stop, etc.) to the remote, which meant I had to erase them and do them over. It also resulted in double-presses for some keys. Again, this was only after I first ran the auto-setup, then went back and mapped keys for Kodi, etc. manually.

If you are doing the latter, wipe the FLIRC settings, then do a manual setup for all keys. Use the Shield layout for basic transport (navigation, ok, home, back) and then use the Kodi keymap - or just the full keyboard - for whatever else you want to do. If you are using a Harmony and have custom buttons set up for stuff like subtitles this way is easier anyway.

This will result in a setup that works perfectly with all non-Kodi Shield functions - including in apps like HBO Go, etc. - and also works great for Kodi-specific stuff. I prefer playback keys (discreet play and pause, stop, ff/rw, etc.) for Kodi since it supports them so well and they are a natural thing to use with a Harmony. 

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I was working at NVIDIA and close to the team that was working on the shield. I had no idea they dropped the IR support until I started getting emails from people telling me they are actually encouraging folks my way. Whoever is doing that at NVIDIA has no idea that I was working there a couple months ago along side the shield team. Crazy.

I really appreciate the feedback. Unfortunately, it's a lot easier for someone emotionally driven to send me an upset email than it is for the happy users at home to write in. So it really fuels me in the pursuit of a better product/products. Thank you.

That's a lot of flircs. Any need for any more just write in and I'll get you a discount. Really goes for anyone here. Thanks guys.

No problem! You gave me a discount once before, I just found the new ones on Amazon and they appeared to be your official channel (is that correct?) so it was just easier to get them from there. I currently have 4 in use, with one spare I carry in my laptop bag when I travel - it's great for hooking up my laptop to hotel TVs, I just carry a very small IR remote that I had laying around with me as well and I can watch Kodi from my hotel bed at night :)

For the Shield/FTV you should bundle these with a decent right-angle usb adapter (or maybe just link folks to them). I use VCZHS brand adapters off Amazon; they allow me to put the FLIRC in a position where the IR receiver just clears the top of the Shield in the back. Looks very clean, no extension cables to deal with, and works great. For Shield or FireTV it's as perfect an IR setup as could possibly be. 

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Yea, they ARE sticky. If I press another button, the new button will override previous command, but I can't get it to unstick completely, not even using the original remote. I had to restart.

Don't use the profile you are using. Add the Flirc - FireTV profile, then record over those keys. Not sure which profile you are using. I'm going to reach out to logitech shortly and get them to create a profile.

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No problem! You gave me a discount once before, I just found the new ones on Amazon and they appeared to be your official channel (is that correct?) so it was just easier to get them from there. I currently have 4 in use, with one spare I carry in my laptop bag when I travel - it's great for hooking up my laptop to hotel TVs, I just carry a very small IR remote that I had laying around with me as well and I can watch Kodi from my hotel bed at night :)

For the Shield/FTV you should bundle these with a decent right-angle usb adapter (or maybe just link folks to them). I use VCZHS brand adapters off Amazon; they allow me to put the FLIRC in a position where the IR receiver just clears the top of the Shield in the back. Looks very clean, no extension cables to deal with, and works great. For Shield or FireTV it's as perfect an IR setup as could possibly be. 

Yeah, Amazon is an official channel too. You really shouldn't need the right angle adapter, have you tried it without? Mine is behind our tv that's against our wall, doesn't skip a beat.

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Hi,

I've bought a Shield TV and FLIRC about a week ago, and I've been following this thread since... 

I've had some mediaplayer devices before, but none like this! Also the FLIRC is great; I used to think it was just another IR receiver, but it's so much more!

I'm having some problems configuring the FLIRC to work with my Philips Pronto URC.

Do you mean that keys feel sticky? Do they eventually un stick?

I also have this problem. Sometimes I can get it to stop, but other times, I had to pull the FLIRC.

I must say, I'v been messing with the configuration and programming some different profiles combined (Shield/Kodi/Media).

Is there an easy way to 'wipe' the complete configuration (without erasing every button separately) to start over?  Never mind, I already found this one.

 

Was there any button that you were missing that you wanted to use from the controller?

 

After getting the basics working, I would sure like to add a discrete Power On/Off (it would be even better if it was possible to put the Shield to sleep from within Kodi)

Also, the double-tap (Pause/Play) Seems useful. When using the Pause play from the Kodi menu, the menu doesn't disappear automatically, while by using the double-tap, it does.

Earlier in this thread, there is a list of IR HEX codes for different commands, but from what I understood until now, it doesn't really matter which IR code I use to pair a command? 

Thanks for any help on these...

Edited by Tatanka
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2nd gen doesn't give much advantage right now (it basically has the same features as 1st gen), but its hardware is capable of much more things in the future. Thanks to much more config space on the chip, things like key sequencing (sending not only single key, but a sequence of keys) will be possible. Also 2ng gen contains IR transmitter hardware on board. It's not yet active but it's something I'm eagerly waiting for myself.

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Protip for new Shield FLIRC users using a Harmony: Don't run "automated setup" with the new Shield layout unless you want to exactly duplicate how the Shield remote works (and maybe you do).

I found this mapped several things in the background, like playback functions (stop, etc.) to the remote, which meant I had to erase them and do them over. It also resulted in double-presses for some keys. Again, this was only after I first ran the auto-setup, then went back and mapped keys for Kodi, etc. manually.

If you are doing the latter, wipe the FLIRC settings, then do a manual setup for all keys. Use the Shield layout for basic transport (navigation, ok, home, back) and then use the Kodi keymap - or just the full keyboard - for whatever else you want to do. If you are using a Harmony and have custom buttons set up for stuff like subtitles this way is easier anyway.

This will result in a setup that works perfectly with all non-Kodi Shield functions - including in apps like HBO Go, etc. - and also works great for Kodi-specific stuff. I prefer playback keys (discreet play and pause, stop, ff/rw, etc.) for Kodi since it supports them so well and they are a natural thing to use with a Harmony. 

I have been reading that post and others like it many times here and at other forums, but I must be really stupid cuz I still dont get it.

I have ordered a Shield and a new Flirc, still dont have any of them they are in shipping so I cannot play with them just yet.

I do have the old flirc and an RPI in the bedroom, also got my gf a flirc and RPI so I do get some part.. but what I did was just map a keyboard for use with openelec and that was really simple and have been working great. So what is so special and confusing about getting it running with the Shield? I'm not just gonna run Kodi on it, I'll use it for Netlix, HBO Nordic (if they can make an app) Viaplay, SVT Play and blah blah blah... so I want the remote to work in all apps just like the original remote + extra keys for Kodi and apps alike.

My hardware will be:
Shield 2017
New Flirc
Harmony 900

Please explain :)

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@fredfred I think there's really no problem with Shield itself. It's just an Android device after all. The problem is with different applications you want to run. Whether they respect a keyboard input or not. Or how complete is the keyboard input support. If a specific app lack support of keyboard events (or is incomplete) then there's no way to properly control it using Flirc.

BTW a question to Shield users. What is the current Android version on the device? Does it allow installing software from other sources (e.g. from the apk file)? I'm thinking that there may be a way to write a background service application which would then map keyboard input to other input events depending on the application which is in focus.

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I'm not just gonna run Kodi on it, I'll use it for Netlix, HBO Nordic (if they can make an app) Viaplay, SVT Play and blah blah blah... so I want the remote to work in all apps just like the original remote + extra keys for Kodi and apps alike.

 

So do as per what you quoted:

Use the Shield layout for basic transport (navigation, ok, home, back) and then use the Kodi keymap - or just the full keyboard - for whatever else you want to do.

 

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BTW a question to Shield users. What is the current Android version on the device? Does it allow installing software from other sources (e.g. from the apk file)? I'm thinking that there may be a way to write a background service application which would then map keyboard input to other input events depending on the application which is in focus.

We are on Android TV v7.0.

Yes, you can sideload apks, if you allow it in the settings.

There are existing Keymapper that can be installed and used. I used to use  Multilanguage Keymap Redefiner to achieve extra controls before I had a Flirc.

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So do as per what you quoted:

 

 

Ehh and that is how?
Program my harmony with Shield device.
Add another whatever device that does not iterfear with other IR devices.
Start Flirc config and select the Shield profile and map those buttons, then switch to full keboard and program the rest?

Told you I dont get it.. but that is my best guess.

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Ehh and that is how?Program my harmony with Shield device.
Add another whatever device that does not iterfear with other IR devices.
Start Flirc config and select the Shield profile and map those buttons, then switch to full keboard and program the rest?

Told you I dont get it.. but that is my best guess.

The basics of how it all works, just in case:

Start with the Harmony config since this seems to be tripping you up. You only need to pick one device for your Shield profile, and (ironically enough) you don't want to pick "Shield TV" WITH the Harmony since that profile is for models that have IR (or WiFi/BT if you have the Harmony hub) and you don't want that since you are using a FLIRC. Just pick something that has a lot of buttons available (for flexibility) and won't interfere with any other devices you have. A lot of us here us the ViewTV AT-163 profile. Pick it and name it whatever you want, like "Shield TV" :)

Now your Harmony is programmed to send IR signals for all (or at least most) of it's buttons. *It doesn't matter what those signals are* as long as they are each unique and don't accidentally trigger other equipment (which is why the AT-163 is a good choice....unless of course you have one :) ). All that matters is that when you press a button, a unique IR command is blasted out. The FLIRC will do the rest. 

Now, the FLIRC. The FLIRC dongle takes those discreet IR signals and translates them to commands the Shield TV understands. When you program the FLIRC via its application and assign IR commands to buttons you want to make sure you use the Shield layout first, for the basics, because Jason updated the software with the correct commands the Shield needs. Specifically, the "ok" button now functions correctly cross-app. So choose that profile and manually (don't click "Go" and have it do it automatically, that will map some commands you want for Kodi later twice) click each button, then press the corresponding button on your Harmony remote to map it. Basically, the 4 directions, the "ok" button, the back button, and the home button. Pick the buttons on your Harmony you want to do those functions (should be obvious) and have at it.

Once you've done that, bring up the Kodi layout. Now you can program buttons for things like Play, Pause, ff/rw, etc. 

If you want even more control, skip the Kodi layout and use the full keyboard layout instead. Pull up (or print) this page for reference: http://kodi.wiki/view/Keyboard_controls . That's a complete list of keyboard shortcuts for Kodi. You can assign buttons to whatever keys on the keyboard you want. Don't forget that with most Harmony's you can also create custom buttons if you want to map advanced stuff, like for subtitles. Again, it doesn't matter what IR commands are assigned to the Harmony for each button, as long as it is discreet! The FLIRC is going to take whatever IR signal you sent it and translate that to the correct keyboard command. 

Doing this will give you:

Basic Shield remote functionality across all applications (except voice control, since there's no mic on the Harmony.)

Advanced keymap control for apps that support full keyboard commands - like Kodi.

Get it?

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Hi, I just received my FLIRC, I'm setting up with a harmony 600, what is the pulsation "home" of the NVIDIA SHIELD TV, or how could I do it?

thank you very much

Follow my instructions above. If you first configure FLIRC using the Shield preset "home" button functionality should work across apps. You can assign it to any button on your Harmony you want. 

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