Home Assistant Weather 🏠

Posted February 28, 2023 by ‐ 10 min read

Setting up Paperd.Ink to show weather and date information.

⚠️

Home Assistant is currently only supported on Paperd.Ink Classic.

This example was inspired from Sainz work →.

Setting up Home Assistant

Follow the instructions provided on our documentation page to configure and install Home Assistant here →

Install and Configure AccuWeather Integration

Create an account on the AccuWeather website →.
Login to your account and go to the MyApps tab to create a new app.
After creating the app, note down your API key from the app details.
In Home Assistant, go to Settings > Devices & Services and click on Add Integration.
Search and install the AccuWeather add-on, and input your API key. Ensure that the Lat and Lon values are correct for your location and name it as Home. Click Finish on the success pop-up.
You should now see an AccuWeather card. Click on Configure, enable the Weather Forecast button, and click Submit. Click Finish on the success pop-up.
The weather information should now be available on your Home Assistant dashboard.

Add Sun and Moon integration

In Home Assistant, go to Settings > Devices & Services.
Click on + Add integration button on the bottom right.
Search for Sun and Moon and add them.

Installing File Editor

In Home Assistant, go to Settings > Add-Ons and click on Add-On Store.
Search for and install the File Editor add-on.
Enable all the necessary options, such as Start on Boot, Watchdog, Auto Update, and Show in Sidebar.

Add new sensors for weather parsing

Click on the File Editor icon in the Home Assistant sidebar.
Click on the Folder icon located on the top left corner of the window.
Ensure that you are in the config/ directory and create a new file named sensor.yaml.
Copy and paste the following code into the newly created sensor.yaml file and save the file.

- platform: template
  sensors:
    weather_now:
      friendly_name: "Weather Now"
      value_template: >-
        {{ states.weather.home.state }};{{ states.weather.home.attributes.temperature | round(0) }}°C
    weather_fivedays:
      friendly_name: "Five day weather"
      value_template: >-
        {% set days = {'Mon':'Mon','Tue':'Tue','Wed':'Wed','Thu':'Thu','Fri':'Fri','Sat':'Sat','Sun':'Sun'} %}
        {% for state in states.weather.home.attributes.forecast[0:3] -%}
          {{ days[as_timestamp(state.datetime)| timestamp_custom("%a")] }};{{state.templow}}/{{ state.temperature }}°C;{{ state.condition }}#
        {%- endfor %}
    it_days:
      friendly_name: "Translated Days"
      value_template: >-
        {% set daysIt = ["Mon", "Tue","Wed","Thu","Fri","Suut","Sun"] %}
        {{ daysIt[now().weekday()] }}
    it_months:
      friendly_name: "Translated Months"
      value_template: >-
        {% set monthsIt = ["Jan", "Feb","Mar","Apr","May","Jun","Jul","Aug","Sep","Oct","Nov","Dec"] %}
        {{ monthsIt[now().month - 1] }}
    it_weather:
      friendly_name: "Weather + Translated Days"
      value_template: >-
        {{ states.sensor.it_days.state }};{{ states.sensor.weather_now.state }};{{ states.sensor.it_months.state }};

Open the configuration.yaml file and add the following line.

sensor: !include sensor.yaml

Add fonts

Download Material WebIcons → and OpenSans →, extract the OpenSans zip file.
Open File Editor from HA sidebar, navigate to config/esphome directory by clicking on the folder icon and create a new directory named fonts.
Upload the OpenSans-Bold.ttf and materialdesignicons-webfont.ttf files to the fonts directory.

Configure Paperd.Ink

Go to ESPHome in the HA sidebar.
Click on Edit under the Paperd.Ink device.
Note your API encryption key, OTA password, and Wi-Fi AP password.
Please update the name, API encryption key, OTA password (remove the password line if there was no password), Wi-Fi AP password, timezone, latitude, and longitude as needed in the code below and replace it in the ESPHome code. You can also change the display update_interval, which is set to 1 hour (3600 secs) in the config below.
Click Save and Install.
Wait for the installation to complete (about a min), then check the Paperd.Ink display to confirm that it’s working properly.
It takes about 90 seconds to refresh with all the data.

esphome:
  name: *****
  on_boot:
    priority: -10
    then:
      - delay: 90s
      - component.update: epaperdisplay

esp32:
  board: esp32dev
  framework:
    type: arduino

# Enable logging
logger:

# Enable Home Assistant API
api:
  encryption:
    key: "*************************"

ota:
  password: "********************"

wifi:
  ssid: !secret wifi_ssid
  password: !secret wifi_password

  # Enable fallback hotspot (captive portal) in case wifi connection fails
  ap:
    ssid: "Paperdink Fallback Hotspot"
    password: "*********"

captive_portal:

time:
  - platform: homeassistant
    id: ha_time
    timezone: America/Chicago

sun:
  latitude: 20.1
  longitude: 22.5

# Paperdink display config
output:
  - platform: gpio
    pin:
      number: 12
    id: enable_epd

font:
  - file: 'fonts/OpenSans-Bold.ttf'
    id: roboto_med_17
    size: 17

  - file: 'fonts/OpenSans-Bold.ttf'
    id: roboto_reg_12
    size: 12

  - file: 'fonts/OpenSans-Bold.ttf'
    id: roboto_reg_15
    size: 15

  - file: 'fonts/OpenSans-Bold.ttf'
    id: roboto_reg_20
    size: 20
    glyphs:
      ['0', '1', '2', '3', '4', '5', '6', '7', '8', '9', 'A', 'B', 'C', 'D',
       'E', 'F', 'G', 'H', 'I', 'J', 'K', 'L', 'M', 'N', 'O', 'P', 'Q', 'R',
       'S', 'T', 'U', 'V', 'W', 'X', 'Y', 'Z', ' ', 'a', 'b', 'c', 'd', 'e',
       'f', 'g', 'h', 'i', 'j', 'k', 'l', 'm', 'n', 'o', 'p', 'q', 'r', 's',
       't', 'u', 'v', 'w', 'x', 'y', 'z', 'å', 'ä', 'ö', 'à', 'è', 'ì', 'ò', 
       'ù', ':', '/']

  - file: 'fonts/OpenSans-Bold.ttf'
    id: roboto_bold_40
    size: 40
    glyphs:
      ['&', '@', '!', ',', '.', '"', '%', '(', ')', '+', '-', '_', ':', '°', '0',
       '1', '2', '3', '4', '5', '6', '7', '8', '9', 'A', 'B', 'C', 'D', 'E',
       'F', 'G', 'H', 'I', 'J', 'K', 'L', 'M', 'N', 'O', 'P', 'Q', 'R', 'S',
       'T', 'U', 'V', 'W', 'X', 'Y', 'Z', ' ', 'a', 'b', 'c', 'd', 'e', 'f',
       'g', 'h', 'i', 'j', 'k', 'l', 'm', 'n', 'o', 'p', 'q', 'r', 's', 't',
       'u', 'v', 'w', 'x', 'y', 'z','å', 'ä', 'ö', '/','º','µ','³']

  - file: 'fonts/OpenSans-Bold.ttf'
    id: roboto_bold_80
    size: 80
    glyphs:
      ['&', '@', '!', ',', '.', '"', '%', '(', ')', '+', '-', '_', ':', '°', '0',
       '1', '2', '3', '4', '5', '6', '7', '8', '9', 'A', 'B', 'C', 'D', 'E',
       'F', 'G', 'H', 'I', 'J', 'K', 'L', 'M', 'N', 'O', 'P', 'Q', 'R', 'S',
       'T', 'U', 'V', 'W', 'X', 'Y', 'Z', ' ', 'a', 'b', 'c', 'd', 'e', 'f',
       'g', 'h', 'i', 'j', 'k', 'l', 'm', 'n', 'o', 'p', 'q', 'r', 's', 't',
       'u', 'v', 'w', 'x', 'y', 'z','å', 'ä', 'ö', '/','º','µ','³']

  - file: 'fonts/materialdesignicons-webfont.ttf'
    id: weather_font_80
    size: 80
    glyphs: [
      # Weather
      "\U000F0590", # mdi-weather-cloudy
      "\U000F0594", # mdi-weather-night
      "\U000F0591", # mdi-weather-fog
      "\U000F0592", # mdi-weather-hail
      "\U000F0593", # mdi-weather-lightning
      "\U000F067E", # mdi-weather-lightning-rainy
      "\U000F0595", # mdi-weather-partly-cloudy
      "\U000F0596", # mdi-weather-pouring
      "\U000F0597", # mdi-weather-rainy
      "\U000F0598", # mdi-weather-snowy
      "\U000F067F", # mdi-weather-snowy-rainy
      "\U000F0599", # mdi-weather-sunny
      "\U000F059B", # mdi-weather-sunset-down
      "\U000F059C", # mdi-weather-sunset-up
      "\U000F059D", # mdi-weather-windy
      "\U000F059E", # mdi-weather-windy-variant
      ]

  - file: 'fonts/materialdesignicons-webfont.ttf'
    id: weather_font_40
    size: 40
    glyphs: [
      # Sun
      "\U000F059A", # mdi-weather-sunset
      # Moon
      "\U000F0F64", # mdi-moon-new
      "\U000F0F67", # mdi-moon-waxing-crescent
      "\U000F0F61", # mdi-moon-first-quarter
      "\U000F0F68", # mdi-moon-waxing-gibbous
      "\U000F0F62", # mdi-moon-full
      "\U000F0F66", # mdi-moon-waning-gibbous
      "\U000F0F63", # mdi-moon-last-quarter
      "\U000F0F65", # mdi-moon-waning-crescent

      # Weather
      "\U000F0590", # mdi-weather-cloudy
      "\U000F0594", # mdi-weather-night
      "\U000F0591", # mdi-weather-fog
      "\U000F0592", # mdi-weather-hail
      "\U000F0593", # mdi-weather-lightning
      "\U000F067E", # mdi-weather-lightning-rainy
      "\U000F0595", # mdi-weather-partly-cloudy
      "\U000F0596", # mdi-weather-pouring
      "\U000F0597", # mdi-weather-rainy
      "\U000F0598", # mdi-weather-snowy
      "\U000F067F", # mdi-weather-snowy-rainy
      "\U000F0599", # mdi-weather-sunny
      "\U000F059B", # mdi-weather-sunset-down
      "\U000F059C", # mdi-weather-sunset-up
      "\U000F059D", # mdi-weather-windy
      "\U000F059E", # mdi-weather-windy-variant
      ]

  - file: 'fonts/materialdesignicons-webfont.ttf'
    id: weather_font_15
    size: 15
    glyphs: [
      # Wifi
      "\U000F092F", # mdi-wifi-strength-outline
      "\U000F091F", # mdi-wifi-strength-1
      "\U000F0922", # mdi-wifi-strength-2
      "\U000F0925", # mdi-wifi-strength-3
      "\U000F0928", # mdi-wifi-strength-4
      ]

  - file: 'fonts/materialdesignicons-webfont.ttf'
    id: weather_font_30
    size: 30
    glyphs: [
      # Sun
      "\U000F059A", # mdi-weather-sunset
      # Moon
      "\U000F0F64", # mdi-moon-new
      "\U000F0F67", # mdi-moon-waxing-crescent
      "\U000F0F61", # mdi-moon-first-quarter
      "\U000F0F68", # mdi-moon-waxing-gibbous
      "\U000F0F62", # mdi-moon-full
      "\U000F0F66", # mdi-moon-waning-gibbous
      "\U000F0F63", # mdi-moon-last-quarter
      "\U000F0F65", # mdi-moon-waning-crescent
      # Rooms
      "\U000F09A0", # mdi-shower
      "\U000F09A1", # mdi-shower-head
      "\U000F04B9", # mdi-sofa
      "\U000F0C99", # mdi-microwave
      "\U000F0FD1", # mdi-bed-king-outline
      "\U000F106E", # mdi-bed-single-outline
      "\U000F0322", # mdi-laptop
      "\U000F07F4", # mdi-television-classic
      ]

sensor:
  - platform: homeassistant
    entity_id: sensor.moon_phase
    id: moon_status
    internal: true
  - platform: wifi_signal
    name: "WiFi Signal Sensor"
    id: wifisignal
    update_interval: 100000s

text_sensor:
  - platform: homeassistant
    id: moon_icon
    entity_id: sensor.moon_phase
  - platform: sun
    type: sunrise
    id: sunrise_hour
  - platform: sun
    type: sunset
    id: sunset_hour
  - platform: homeassistant
    entity_id: sensor.it_weather
    id: weathertoday
  - platform: homeassistant
    entity_id: sensor.weather_fivedays
    id: fweather

spi:
  clk_pin: GPIO18
  mosi_pin: GPIO23
  miso_pin: GPIO19

display:
  - platform: waveshare_epaper
    cs_pin: GPIO22
    dc_pin: GPIO15
    busy_pin: GPIO34
    reset_pin: GPIO13
    model: 4.20in
    update_interval: 3600s
    id: epaperdisplay
    lambda: |-
      /* TURN ON EPD */
      id(enable_epd).turn_on();
      
      /* SENSOR VARIABLES */
      std::string moon_info = id(moon_icon).state;
      std::string weather_days = id(fweather).state;
      std::string weather_today = id(weathertoday).state;
      std::string sunrise = id(sunrise_hour).state;
      std::string sunset = id(sunset_hour).state;
      std::map<std::string, std::string> weather_icon_state {
          {"cloudy", "\U000F0590"},
          {"clear-day", "\U000F0599"},
          {"clear-night", "\U000F0594"},
          {"fog", "\U000F0591"},
          {"hail", "\U000F0592"},
          {"lightning", "\U000F0593"},
          {"lightning-rainy", "\U000F067E"},
          {"partlycloudy", "\U000F0595"},
          {"pouring", "\U000F0596"},
          {"rainy", "\U000F0597"},
          {"snowy", "\U000F0598"},
          {"snowy-rainy", "\U000F067F"},
          {"sunny", "\U000F0599"},
          {"sunset-down", "\U000F059B"},
          {"sunset-up", "\U000F059C"},
          {"windy", "\U000F059D"},
          {"windy-variant", "\U000F059E"}
      };
      std::map<std::string, std::string> moon_state_icon {
          {"new_moon", "\U000F0F64"},
          {"waxing_crescent", "\U000F0F67"},
          {"first_quarter", "\U000F0F61"},
          {"waxing_gibbous", "\U000F0F68"},
          {"full_moon", "\U000F0F62"},
          {"waning_gibbous", "\U000F0F66"},
          {"last_quarter", "\U000F0F63"},
          {"waning_crescent", "\U000F0F65"}
      };
      std::map<std::string, std::string> moon_state_label {
          {"new_moon", "New Moon"},
          {"waxing_crescent", "Waxing Crescent"},
          {"first_quarter", "First Quarter"},
          {"waxing_gibbous", "Waxing Gibbous"},
          {"full_moon", "Full Moon"},
          {"waning_gibbous", "Waning Gibbous"},
          {"last_quarter", "Last Quarter"},
          {"waning_crescent", "Waning Crescent"}
      };
      char delimm = ';';

      /* MAIN RECTANGLE */
      it.rectangle(5, 5, 390, 295);
      
      /* CALENDAR RECT */
      it.filled_rectangle(10, 10, 120, 30);
      it.rectangle(10, 40, 120, 90);
      it.filled_rectangle(10, 130, 120, 30);
      it.rectangle(10, 160, 120, 135);
      
      /* DX RECT */ 
      it.rectangle(135, 10, 255, 265);
      
      /* Todays Date */
      uint16_t todays_date_base_x = 262;
      uint16_t todays_date_base_y = 80;
      // Day of the week
      it.strftime(todays_date_base_x, todays_date_base_y, id(roboto_bold_80), TextAlign::BASELINE_CENTER, "%a", id(ha_time).now());
      // Day of the month
      it.strftime(todays_date_base_x, todays_date_base_y + 50 , id(roboto_bold_40), TextAlign::BASELINE_CENTER, "%d %b", id(ha_time).now());

      /* WEATHER TODAY */ 
      std::size_t currentWeatherToday, previousWeatherToday = 0;
      currentWeatherToday = weather_today.find(delimm);
      ESP_LOGD("WEATHER TODAY", "%s", weather_today.c_str());
      /* Loop for the single room */
      for (int i=0; i<4; i++){
        if (i == 0) {
          // Print "Today"
          it.printf(70, 30, id(roboto_reg_20), COLOR_OFF, TextAlign::BASELINE_CENTER, "Today");
        } else if (i == 1) {
          // Weather Icon
          it.printf(70, 115, id(weather_font_80), TextAlign::BASELINE_CENTER, "%s", weather_icon_state[weather_today.substr(previousWeatherToday, currentWeatherToday - previousWeatherToday).c_str()].c_str());          
        } else if (i == 2){
          // Current Temp
          it.filled_circle(98, 63, 20, COLOR_OFF);
          it.circle(98, 63, 20);
          it.printf(98, 63, id(roboto_reg_15), TextAlign::CENTER, "%s", weather_today.substr(previousWeatherToday, currentWeatherToday - previousWeatherToday).c_str());
        } else if (i == 3){
          // Print "Next 3 days"
          it.printf(70, 150, id(roboto_reg_20), COLOR_OFF, TextAlign::BASELINE_CENTER, "Next 3 days");
        }
        previousWeatherToday = currentWeatherToday + 1;
        currentWeatherToday = weather_today.find(delimm, previousWeatherToday);
      }

      /* WEATHER FORECAST */ 
      ESP_LOGD("WEATHER", "%s", weather_days.c_str());
      std::size_t currentWeather, previousWeather = 0;
      char delimWeather = '#';
      currentWeather = weather_days.find(delimWeather);
      
      int wx = 17;    // start position x 
      int wy = 170;   // start position y 
      /* Loop for the single string day */ 
      for (int i=0; i<3; i++) { 
  
        std::string forecastInfo = weather_days.substr(previousWeather, currentWeather - previousWeather).c_str();
        std::size_t currentInfo, previousInfo = 0;
        currentInfo = forecastInfo.find(delimm);
      
        /* Inner loop to get single information for each day */
        for (int j=0; j<3; j++) { 
      
          if (j == 0) {
            // Day (Mon/Tue...) 
            it.printf(wx + 42, wy + 2, id(roboto_med_17), "%s", forecastInfo.substr(previousInfo, currentInfo - previousInfo).c_str());
          } else if (j == 1) {
            // Temperature 
            it.printf(wx + 42, wy + 20, id(roboto_reg_12), "%s", forecastInfo.substr(previousInfo, currentInfo - previousInfo).c_str());
          } else if (j == 2) {
            // Weather Icon             
            it.printf(wx, wy, id(weather_font_40), "%s", weather_icon_state[forecastInfo.substr(previousInfo, currentInfo - previousInfo).c_str()].c_str() );
          }
          previousInfo = currentInfo + 1;
          currentInfo = forecastInfo.find(delimm, previousInfo);
        }
        wy += 40; // move down 50 pixels and output next day 
        previousWeather = currentWeather + 1;
        currentWeather = weather_days.find(delimWeather, previousWeather);
      }

      /* SUNRISE SUNSET */
      uint16_t sunrise_sunset_base_x = 150;
      uint16_t sunrise_sunset_base_y = 180;
      ESP_LOGD("SUNRISE", "%s", sunrise.c_str());
      ESP_LOGD("SUNSET", "%s", sunset.c_str());
      it.printf(sunrise_sunset_base_x, sunrise_sunset_base_y, id(weather_font_40), TextAlign::BASELINE_LEFT, "%s", "\U000F059A");
      if(id(sunrise_hour).has_state() && id(sunset_hour).has_state()) {
        it.printf(sunrise_sunset_base_x + 45, sunrise_sunset_base_y - 10, id(roboto_reg_20), TextAlign::BASELINE_LEFT, "Sunrise: %s", sunrise.c_str());
        it.printf(sunrise_sunset_base_x + 45, sunrise_sunset_base_y + 10, id(roboto_reg_20), TextAlign::BASELINE_LEFT, "Sunset : %s", sunset.c_str());
      } else {
        it.printf(sunrise_sunset_base_x + 45, sunrise_sunset_base_y - 10, id(roboto_reg_20), TextAlign::BASELINE_LEFT, "%s", "n/a");
        it.printf(sunrise_sunset_base_x + 45, sunrise_sunset_base_y + 10, id(roboto_reg_20), TextAlign::BASELINE_LEFT, "%s", "n/a");
      }
      
      /* MOON */
      uint16_t moon_base_x = 150;
      uint16_t moon_base_y = 240;
      if(id(moon_status).has_state()) {
        ESP_LOGD("MOON", "%s", moon_info.c_str());
        // Icon 
        it.printf(moon_base_x, moon_base_y, id(weather_font_40), TextAlign::BASELINE_LEFT, "%s", moon_state_icon[moon_info.c_str()].c_str());

        // Label 
        it.printf(moon_base_x + 45, moon_base_y - 5, id(roboto_reg_20), TextAlign::BASELINE_LEFT, "%s", moon_state_label[moon_info.c_str()].c_str());
      };

      /* FOOTER */ 
      it.strftime(355, 295 , id(roboto_reg_15), TextAlign::BASELINE_RIGHT , "Updated at: %d/%m/%Y %H:%M", id(ha_time).now());

      /* WIFI SIGNAL */ 
      if(id(wifisignal).has_state()) {
        int wifi_x = 375;
        int wifi_y = 295;
        if (id(wifisignal).state >= -50) {
          // Excellent
          it.print(wifi_x, wifi_y, id(weather_font_15), TextAlign::BASELINE_CENTER, "\U000F0928");
          ESP_LOGI("WiFi", "Exellent");
        } else if (id(wifisignal).state  >= -60) {
          // Good
          it.print(wifi_x, wifi_y, id(weather_font_15), TextAlign::BASELINE_CENTER, "\U000F0925");
          ESP_LOGI("WiFi", "Good");
        } else if (id(wifisignal).state  >= -75) {
          // Fair
          it.print(wifi_x, wifi_y, id(weather_font_15), TextAlign::BASELINE_CENTER, "\U000F0922");
          ESP_LOGI("WiFi", "Fair");
        } else if (id(wifisignal).state  >= -100) {
          // Weak
          it.print(wifi_x, wifi_y, id(weather_font_15), TextAlign::BASELINE_CENTER, "\U000F091F");
          ESP_LOGI("WiFi", "Weak");
        } else {
          // Unlikely working signal
          it.print(wifi_x, wifi_y, id(weather_font_15), TextAlign::BASELINE_CENTER, "\U000F092F");
          ESP_LOGI("WiFi", "Unlikely");
        }
      }
      id(enable_epd).turn_off();

⚠️

We are currently experiencing a battery life of a day when using paperd.ink with Home Assistant, as the device maintains a constant WiFi connection. However, we are working on incorporating deep sleep functionality which will significantly extend the battery life.