Google Cast

With the Google Cast integration you bring devices with Google Cast into nomos: soundbars, speakers (e.g. Google Nest), TVs and Chromecast, as well as speaker groups from the Google Home app. They appear as music players in the nomos App, can be controlled in automations and scenes, and play speech announcements and sounds.

Setup

1. Switch the skill on:
   • Under Skills → Google Cast, click On.
   • The nomos system Controller then keeps looking for Cast devices on the network. During the initial setup, the automatic device discovery switches the skill on as soon as it finds a Cast device.
2. Add a device:
   • Click "Add Device". The list shows the devices found, with model and address; devices already added are greyed out.
   • Choose a device and give it a name and a room.
   • A soundbar gets the soundbar icon, a device with a screen the TV icon. You can pick another one in the device settings.
3. Groups: you create speaker groups in the Google Home app. They appear in the list like a device of their own and are added and controlled the same way.

INFO

Notes:

• Set the device up in the Google Home app first. It has to be on the same network as the nomos system Controller.
• If a device's IP address changes, nomos finds it again on its own.
• Many devices cannot be reached on the network while in standby. nomos then shows them as not reachable and connects again as soon as they are switched on.

In the nomos App

The device appears as a music player: what is playing (title, artist, album, cover), play/pause, volume and mute, and for tracks of known length also the position. For radio and other live streams the player shows the station name.

nomos only sees what plays over Google Cast. Music played directly on the device via AirPlay or Spotify Connect is invisible to nomos and cannot be controlled.

Actions in automations and scenes

The actions are named as for Sonos:

Action	Note
Play, Pause, Stop, Toggle	acts on what is currently playing over Cast
Next Song / Previous Song	if the running app allows it
Volume Level, Volume up, Volume down, Mute On, Mute Off
Fade Volume To	moves the volume step by step to the target within a few seconds
Sleep Timer (min)	stops playback when it runs out; 0 switches it off
Play Stream URL	an http or https address, e.g. of an internet radio
Play TuneIn Station	enter the station's name, e.g. "Radio Swiss Jazz"; the first station whose name contains all the words entered is played
Play Sound	one of the nomos sounds
Play Speech	as for Sonos

Available triggers: Is Playing, Is Paused, Is Stopped, Volume Level, Mute. Which app is running (e.g. "Spotify") is in the value App and can be used in conditions.

Not available, because Google Cast does not offer it: favorites, playlists, albums, queue, creating or dissolving groups, loudness, crossfade, line-in. Start Spotify playlists with the Spotify skill.

Speech announcements and sounds

For an announcement or a sound, nomos remembers the volume and what is playing, plays the announcement, and then always restores the volume.

• If a radio or stream was playing that nomos or anyone else started by its address, it continues afterwards.
• If another app was playing (Spotify, YouTube, a TV app), it stays silent after the announcement. Another app cannot be resumed from outside.
• A soundbar that is playing the TV sound usually mixes the announcement over it without switching.

Devices with a screen (TV, Chromecast, Nest Hub) break off the running programme for an announcement and show their home screen afterwards. That is why announcements and sounds are switched off for these devices when they are added. On the skill page you can change this per device with "Allow announcements and sounds". While it is off, an announcement on this device is left out.

Stream, TuneIn station, play/pause and volume work on all devices, TVs included.