[IMPROVEMENT] Android intents control from other android applications

[Kegetys]

Is your feature request related to a problem? Please describe.
I'd like to be able to trigger MG4Control actions like setting drive modes etc. from other android applications. Primarily KeyMapper and Tasker. KeyMapper for example allows binding custom actions to more of the car buttons than MG4Control itself like the home button and phone + speech recognition steering wheel buttons. Rather than replicating this functionality in MG4Control, if KeyMapper could call MG4Control functions directly the customization options would be expanded significantly.

Describe the solution you'd like
KeyMapper and Tasker can call android intents, so maybe MG4Control could offer a sort of API with android intents to access its feature set. Like 'get drive mode', 'set drive mode', 'turn on heated seat', etc.

Describe alternatives you've considered
Developing a custom Tasker plugin for example or similar, but since all the code is already in MG4Control I feel this would be a handy solution for more advanced customization options without having to implement every possible variation in MG4Control itself (Like more advanced scripts possible with Tasker).

Additional context
KeyMapper can be found here, it works great with the car: https://github.com/keymapperorg/KeyMapper

[SliDeeN]

Hello @Kegetys :)
I'm working with another developer on an automation app that needs to expose certain MG4Control information, specifically the list of profiles.
I'll see if I can make this gateway compatible with KeyMapper or Tasker.

[SliDeeN]

Well, after some analysis, it is indeed possible, however, this opens the door wide to any app that could potentially communicate with and force settings on MG4Control.
Since MG4Control has very extensive permissions, such a third-party app could cause serious damage because it could control the entire véhicule.
I could still add an option to "Allow third-party apps to communicate with MG4Control," but enabling it would pose significant risks.

[Kegetys]

Hello and thanks for consideration! I agree that its an advanced option and should be behind an explicit setting the user would need to enable. At that point I would argue that the user is well aware of what they are doing, given the steps necessary to actually enable all of this, install the other app and program the interactions between them.

It is actually already possible to partially do the same thing with a roundabout way since KeyMapper can create artificial touches on the screen (thats how I am currently turning on the heated seats with it😀sadly its not always reliable), so this would be a more elegant way to achieve it.

Perhaps a prudent safety feature would be that there would be no "API" to directly control the car safety systems like ADAS, that would have to be done over requesting to load a pre-created MG4Control profile with the safety speed limit option enforced (its it is on). Functionality like drive mode, regen and heated seats & steering wheel I feel would be safe to control directly.

[SliDeeN]

I have a test version of MG4Control that exposes several intents for testing, and everything is working correctly.
So far, I’ve only exposed “comfort” intents or options already available on the default launcher:

• Drive mode
• Regenerative braking
• Heated seats
• Heated steering wheel
• Profil Picker
• HVAC

Example configuration in KeyMapper:
Choose "Intent" -> Configure to "Boradcast receiver" -> Add an action like "com.mg4.control.action.PROFILE_PICKER" to open the profile picker or "com.mg4.control.action.SET --es key drive_mode --es value SPORT" to set the SPORT mode or "com.mg4.control.action.SET --es key hvac_temp --es value 21" to set the HVAC to 21°C.

There is also a security feature that disables this API by default. You must enable it manually, which requires two confirmations and a warning message.

[SliDeeN]

I'm going to need someone to test this and make sure everything is working properly.
Since you're a KeyMapper user, could you do that? :)

[Kegetys]

Sounds great and yes I will gladly test it. Can you share the test version somewhere?

[SliDeeN]

I'm currently finishing up the development of the beta versions via OTA updates.
It will be available for download directly from GitHub, and you'll need to enable OTA updates on the beta channel in the MG4Control settings.

I'll let you know when it's available for download.