Rules Engine Setup

Topics included in this article:

• Overview
  • Example Use Case
• Rules Engine Walkthrough
• Helpful Links
• Contact Support or Sales

Overview

Rules Engine is a feature that runs off "If-Then" statements with the ability to customize the locations and devices where the rule is triggered and when the rule is active. Below is a breakdown of each individual segment.

• "If" - triggers from camera events (e.g. human movement, license plate alert, etc.), door events (e.g. door open, door closed, etc.), environmental events (e.g. high temp, low temp, etc.), and other sensor events.
• "At/On" - locations or devices that need to be tied to the "If" triggers.
• "During" - the schedule for when the rule should be active.
• "Then" - the action that will occur when the trigger occurs for the specific device/location during the selected time frame.

Example Use Case

A good use case for the rules engine is to set up a rule that warns people who trespass onto the business premises when the place of business is closed. Below is a link to one of our LinkedIn posts showing how the rules engine works for this use case. 

• Rhombus Rules Engine Example

In the above example, a person walks up to the building, which triggers a voice recording to be played, and the person leaves the property. This was achieved by setting a rule to be triggered by human movement on the devices outside our facility after hours which then prompted a text-to-speech message to play on the nearby audio gateway device.

Rules Engine Walkthrough

In order to enable the Rules Engine in the Rhombus Console, you must have an A100 device with an Enterprise license registered to your account and/or have our Access Control installed. The "Then" section of the rules engine only allows you to use audio clips from the A100 or to trigger AUX relays with Rhombus Access Control.

1. Log in to the Rhombus Console, navigate to "Settings" and click "Rules Engine."

2. The "Rules Engine" page will display all previously created rules and provide the option to add new rules. Click "Add Rule" in the upper-left corner.

3. A rule template will display once "Add Rule" is clicked. Enter a name for the rule.

4. Click "Add Trigger" in the "If" section of the rule. Doing so will display a list of triggers for you to select from.

5. Once a trigger is selected, move to the next section, "At/On," and select the devices or locations to which you want the trigger applied.

6. After choosing your desired locations and devices, set a schedule in the "During" section.

7. Next, add an action in the "Then" section of the rule. Choose to either play an audio clip or trigger a relay on your door controller.

7a. Selecting "Play Audio," will prompt you to select the audio clip you want to play when the trigger is activated and the A100 you would like it played on from.

7b. Selecting "Trigger Relay," will prompt you to select the access control device you would like to change the state of from the "AUX Relay" drop-down.

Once the door is selected you can choose how long the relay should last as well as if the relay should change to "Active" or "Inactive."

8. Finally, click "Save" in the upper-right corner. Once saved, the new rule will appear in the main list on the "Rules Engine" page and be available to pause, edit, or delete.

Helpful Links

• Audio Gateway Walkthrough
• A100 Audio Gateway Setup
• Broadcast with A100
• Audio File Management
• Console Features & Licensing

Contact Support or Sales

Have more questions? Contact Rhombus Support at +1 (877) 746-6797 option 2 or support@rhombus.com.

Interested in learning more? Contact Rhombus Sales at +1 (877) 746-6797 option 1 or sales@rhombus.com.