What is the Presence Soft Sensor?
The Presence Soft Sensor is a free feature provided by Aqara which strengthens the overall smart home system’s ability to determine “presence” or “no presence”.
In a smart home system, one of the most fundamental needs is to detect human activity within a defined space, enabling intelligent scenarios such as security monitoring, lighting, energy saving, and temperature control.
Aqara developed the Presence Soft Sensor to link devices from all over the smart house together for determining a much stronger sense of presence detection.
Aqara has a wide range of Presence Soft Sensor related smart home products, such as:
- Cameras
- Smart locks
- Presence sensors
- Switches
- Door and window sensors
- Motion sensors
- Vibration sensors
However, these individual devices can only monitor specific points, and cannot provide full-space detection. By integrating multiple devices, performing local preprocessing, and combining them with AI-based computation, it becomes possible to determine whether a space is occupied or vacant.
Where is the Presence Soft Sensor located?
The Presence Soft Sensor is located in the accessories tab. Press the + sign at the top right of the app, and then select “Add Presence Soft Sensor” from the drop-down list.
Note: An Aqara Hub M3 is required to use this feature. Please ensure your Aqara Home App is version 6.1.1 or later and the Hub M3 firmware is 4.5.40 or higher. Support for additional Aqara hubs will be available in future firmware updates.
How to set up the Presence Soft Sensor?
- You need to have several presence related devices already added in your Aqara account. It is highly recommended to have smart locks or door/window sensors added for best results.
- Select the space you want to install the Presence Soft Sensor in (e.g. the spaces you have already made in the app for specific rooms).
- Choose if the room you are setting the Presence Soft Sensor up in have doors or doorless entrances/exits.
- Select the devices you want to add to the Presence Soft Sensor.
- Choose the delay duration for determining “No Presence Detected”.
- Select the Hub for the Presence Soft Sensor to be added to.
- Configure automations using the Presence Soft Sensor.
Give it a try and let us know!
The Presence Soft Sensor is a fantastic way to breathe new life into your existing devices. Drop a comment below to share your experience or ask any questions. We look forward to reading your feedback!
Great addition. Thx 
