Automations¶

Automations are actions that are carried out when a combination of events happen, i.e when the events are accomplished the action is done. An example of what an automation could be a change of phase when reaching a certain altitude and speed, moving a servo when a button is clicked and many other possible combinations.

In this section all the possible events and action will be explained in detail, so the user can combine them to create the automations that best suit their needs.

The following figure shows the layout of the automations menu, with a column for the events and another for the actions linked to these events.

../../_images/automations.png — **Automations menu**¶

All the automations that have been created (red) are a combination of events (blue) and actions (green). All actions will be performed on event or an event combination triggering.

There are some parameters that can be configured in the events and actions menu and which are applicable independently of the type of event/action configured.

../../_images/automations_parameters.png — **Automations parameters**¶

Compliance time: It is a value related to the automations. It indicates how much time the event has to be accomplished in order to trigger the action.
Delay: It is the time between the triggering of the event and the beginning of the action.
Periodical: This menu is used to configure actions to take place periodically during the time that the events are active. The action can be configured to take place each certain:
- Distance: When using distance, the option Vector allows to measure that distance along a direction specified by that vector.
  
  Periodical distance menu¶
- Time
  
  Periodical time menu¶

The two Modes available for both time and distance are fixed delay and fixed period. In order to explain the difference between them, the following figure is presented as an aid to the user.

../../_images/fixed_period_delay.jpg — **Periodical modes**¶

Let’s consider that the system evaluates the automations each second (black line), and the automation that contains the periodical option is wanted to execute each 1.5 seconds (red line). In that case, the first action will be triggered at the second 1.5 but will be evaluated at second 2. The second time that the action is evaluated will depend on the mode, if it is selected:

Fixed delay, the evaluation of the action will be done 1.5 seconds after it was evaluated the first time, so that will be at second 3.5.
Fixed period, the action will be evaluated 1.5 seconds after the first triggering (not evaluation) so that would be at the second 3.

In the real praxis, the evaluation time for the automation is much lower than 1 second so the difference between the modes is much smaller.

New automation¶

Warning

It is important to know that there is a limit of 500 events, 120 actions and 100 automations.

To create a new automation press New Automation and a new window will be displayed. Users can select a previous one (if exists) or Create new.

../../_images/new_automation_1.png — **New automation**¶

To add an action to the automation, press “+” icon and a new window will be displayed. Users can select previous one (if exists) or Create new.

../../_images/new_automation_2.png — **New action**¶

When an automation is created, the following options are available:

../../_images/new_automation_3.png — **New automation options**¶

The user can rename the automation with the name of his choice.
Use existing button ( icon): Select an action or event from the available in the system. When modifying an action or event it will be modified in all automations where it is in use.
Clone button ( icon): Clone an existing action or event creating a new one with same parameters configured on the start point.

By right clicking on an automation it is possible to remove it, clone it or change it of group. When a group is created, the rest of automations that the user wants to add to the group can be done by drag and drop.

../../_images/new_automation_4.png — **Automations groups**¶

Warning

When a clone of an automation is created, the changes made in the event panel will be applied to the other one and vice versa, while the actions can be different in each automation.

Other options¶

In the figure below, the user can see 2 additional options:

../../_images/automations_list.png — **Automations options**¶

By clicking here, a phase transition table will appear:

Phase transition table¶

In this table, the transitions between each phase can be visualised.

In addition, by clicking on a cell, it is possible to see which automation (and the events) makes the transition between the two phases posible.

Phase transition table - automation¶
Delete unused events and actions: This option deletes those events or actions that has been created but are not in use in any automation.