MMM-KeyBindings - Remote and Keyboard Control for MagicMirror²

MMM-KeyBindings is a module for the MagicMirror².

It is a helper module that provides a method for controlling the MagicMirror² through a Bluetooth-connected Remote or through a keyboard by capturing button presses and keystrokes and either processing them or passing them on for use in other modules via notifications.

The primary features are:

1. Control from Amazon Fire Stick remote control or other bluetooth device. See: Why Fire Stick?
2. Customizable keyboard navigation and control.
   • Basic navigation keys are captured, but this can be changed in the config.
3. Key Presses are sent other modules for action via notification.
4. Assign keys to perform certain actions automatically (e.g. turn on/off the monitor when the HOME key is pressed, using MMM-Remote-Control).
5. Allows a module to "take focus", allowing other modules to ignore keypresses when a particular module has focus (e.g. in a pop-up menu).
6. Allows for multiple instances of the MagicMirror to be open on different screens and be independently controlled.

Using the module

To use this module, add the following configuration block to the modules array in the config/config.js file:

    {
      module: "MMM-KeyBindings",
      config: {
        // See below for configurable options
      }
    },

You can then configure other modules to handle the key presses and, if necessary, request focus so only that module will respond to the keys (e.g. for a menu). See Handling Keys in Other Modules

Installation

cd ~/MagicMirror/modules
git clone https://github.com/shbatm/MMM-KeyBindings

That's it! For standard keyboard usage, no npm install is required - the module has zero runtime dependencies.

Advanced Setup (evdev / Bluetooth Remote)

For advanced control using something like the Amazon Fire TV Remote, continue with the following steps:

1. Connect your device and make sure it's recognized (for example, using the Desktop bluetooth device menu). See instructions here
2. Find the "Name" of the device using one of the two methods below:
   1. From a terminal run cat /proc/bus/input/devices | grep "Name" to get the Name to use
   2. From a terminal run udevadm info -a -p $(udevadm info -q path -n /dev/input/event0) | grep ATTRS{name}, assuming this is the only device connected. You may have to change event0 to something else. Check ls /dev/input/ to see which ones are currently connected.
3. Edit the 99-btremote.rules file in this module's directory to use the name you found.
4. Run the setup script to install the udev rules:

   cd ~/MagicMirror/modules/MMM-KeyBindings
   ./setup-udev.sh

5. Add your user to the input group to allow reading input devices:

   sudo usermod -aG input $USER

   Then logout and login again (or reboot) for the change to take effect.
6. Configure eventPath in your module config (see Configuration options below).

Update

Just enter the module's directory and pull the update:

cd ~/MagicMirror/modules/MMM-KeyBindings
git pull

Configuration options

(samples below)

Option	Description
enableKeyboard	Whether or not to capture keys from a standard keyboard. Optional Default: false - keyboard is not enabled. Set to true to enable a standard keyboard. Make sure no other modules are using the keyboard (e.g. MMM-OnScreenMenu). Note: When using a Bluetooth remote with evdev, keep this set to false to avoid duplicate key events (the remote registers as both an evdev device and a keyboard).
enabledKeyStates	Array of Key States that the module should handle. Default: KEY_PRESSED & KEY_LONGPRESSED
handleKeys	Array of additional keys (strings) to handle in this module above the standard set. Use KeyboardEvent.key names such as ArrowLeft, Home, Enter, k.
disableKeys	Array of keys to ignore from the default set.
evdev	Configuration options for the evdev daemon. See below for details. Example: evdev: {     enabled: true,     eventPath: '/dev/input/btremote', }
.eventPath	Path to the event input file Default: /dev/input/btremote
keyMap	Map of the remote controls' key names (from evtest) to translate into standard keyboard event names. See Sample Key Map below.
actions	Actions this module will take on certain key presses. See "Actions" section below. Default: Ask MMM-Remote-Control to toggle the screen on and off when "Home" is long-pressed. actions: [{   key: "Home",   state: "KEY_LONGPRESSED",   instance: "SERVER",   mode: "DEFAULT",   notification: "REMOTE_ACTION",   payload: { action: "MONITORTOGGLE" } }]

Sample Configurations

Standard: Using FireStick Remote Locally and a Keyboard on Remote Browser

The config below uses the default special keys for the Fire Stick remote: Long-pressing 'Home' will toggle the screen on/off.

{
    module: 'MMM-KeyBindings',
    config: {
        enableKeyboard: true
    }
},

Basic: Use Keyboard Only with Default Keys (no remote)

{
    module: 'MMM-KeyBindings',
    config: {
        evdev: { enabled: false },
        enableKeyboard: true,
    }
},

Remote Control Key Map

The following is the default key map for the Amazon Fire Stick remote. It maps keys to "Standard" keyboard key names for convenience. The incoming or outgoing names can be changed to suit your needs by adding a new copy of the keymap to the config.

keyMap: {
    Home: "KEY_HOMEPAGE",
    Enter: "KEY_KPENTER",
    ArrowLeft: "KEY_LEFT",
    ArrowRight: "KEY_RIGHT",
    ArrowUp: "KEY_UP",
    ArrowDown: "KEY_DOWN",
    Menu: "KEY_MENU",
    MediaPlayPause: "KEY_PLAYPAUSE",
    MediaNextTrack: "KEY_FASTFORWARD",
    MediaPreviousTrack: "KEY_REWIND",
    Return: "KEY_BACK"
},

If you are not using a Fire Stick Remote: You may need to adjust the key assignments above to match your remote. See Remote Setup for how to run evtest and display the key names for your remote/device.

Note about changing key names: Example – map the remote's KEY_RIGHT to the keyboard key k:

1. Add the whole keyMap above to your config section.
2. Change ArrowRight: "KEY_RIGHT" to k: "KEY_RIGHT".
3. If you also want to press k on a keyboard, add it to handleKeys: ['k'] (the native handler listens for KeyboardEvent.key names).

Actions

This module by default just receives key presses and sends them on for other modules' to handle. You can customize the actions this module will take on certain keys by providing an array of action objects in the config.

Action Objects

Key	Description
key	The keyName to respond to when pressed.
state	The keyState to respond to when pressed. Optional: Either "KEY_PRESSED" or "KEY_LONGPRESSED", or it can be omitted to respond to both.
instance	The instance to respond to when pressed. Optional: Either "SERVER" to respond only on the main Mirror's screen or "LOCAL" to respond in any remote web browser windows, or it can be omitted to respond on both.
mode	The Current keyPressMode to respond to. Optional: If you use modules that take over the key mode (like MMM-OnScreenMenu), you may only want the action to happen when it's in "DEFAULT" mode.
notification	The notification to send when a matching key press is detected.
payload	The payload to send with the notification.

Examples

The following is an example Actions configuration to:

1. Toggle the monitor on/off when the Bluetooth remote's Home button is long-pressed (requires MMM-Remote-Control to handle command)
2. Change the slides in MMM-Carousel w/ Slide Navigation when the left or right buttons are pushed.
3. Exit whatever mode you're in, back to DEFAULT when Return is long pressed.

actions: [
  {
    key: "Home",
    state: "KEY_LONGPRESSED",
    instance: "SERVER",
    mode: "DEFAULT",
    notification: "REMOTE_ACTION",
    payload: { action: "MONITORTOGGLE" }
  },
  {
    key: "ArrowLeft",
    state: "KEY_LONGPRESSED",
    notification: "CAROUSEL_PREVIOUS"
  },
  {
    key: "ArrowRight",
    state: "KEY_LONGPRESSED",
    notification: "CAROUSEL_NEXT"
  },
  {
    key: "Return",
    state: "KEY_LONGPRESSED",
    changeMode: "DEFAULT"
  }
],

Handling Keys in Another Module

To handle key press events in your module, see this wiki page

Development Path

This module was created as a stepping stone to allow other modules to be tweaked to respond to keyboard presses--mainly for navigation purposes. Please add any requests via the Issues for this repo.

Using this module? View a list of all modules that support MMM-KeyBindings on the wiki here.

Known Issues

• KEY_LONGPRESSED currently only comes from evdev on the main screen (Bluetooth remote path). Keyboard events use KEY_PRESSED.

Contributing

If you find any problems, bugs or have questions, please open a GitHub issue in this repository.

Pull requests are of course also very welcome 🙂

Code of Conduct

Please note that this project is released with a Contributor Code of Conduct. By participating in this project you agree to abide by its terms.

Developer commands

• npm install - Install development dependencies.
• node --run lint - Run linting and formatter checks.
• node --run lint:fix - Fix linting and formatter issues.
• node --run test - Run linting and formatter checks + Run spelling check.
• node --run test:spelling - Run spelling check.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Changelog

All notable changes to this project will be documented in the CHANGELOG.md file.