Monitor and limit the number of SMS text messages

Posted on
Sun Nov 20, 2011 9:51 am
nbabcock offline
Posts: 5
Joined: Nov 30, 2009

Monitor and limit the number of SMS text messages

First, I would like to thank the folks at Perceptive Automation for making such fine software. I have used Indigo for years, and recently started using Indigo Touch. Configuration is simple, logical and straightforward for the user, and all the software works consistently and repeatedly. What more could one want?

I use an Automation Direct PLC as a stand-alone security system. It is interfaced to Indigo with an EZIO8SA.

I want to send an SMS text message to my phone if there is a security breach. It is easy enough to have Indigo send an email to my Verizon account when it senses an input going high on the EZIO8SA {my_phone_number@vtext.com}.

However, I want to make sure that, for some reason, Indigo doesn't send out dozens, if not hundreds of text messages. For example, if the output on the EZIO8SA begins to oscillate at 3:00 in the morning, I would get a big bill from Verizon.

So, I would like to monitor and limit the number of SMS text messages that Indigo would initiate. I could set a variable after it sends out the first text message. I could use this variable as a condition to disallow additional text messages to be sent.

Any comments or suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Neal

Posted on
Sun Nov 20, 2011 11:35 am
matt (support) offline
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Joined: Jan 27, 2003
Location: Texas

Re: Monitor and limit the number of SMS text messages

Hi Neal,

I'm glad Indigo and Indigo Touch has been working well for you.

nbabcock wrote:
So, I would like to monitor and limit the number of SMS text messages that Indigo would initiate. I could set a variable after it sends out the first text message. I could use this variable as a condition to disallow additional text messages to be sent.

That is pretty much what I would do. I would create a variable called smsCount and have your action that sends the SMS also do the Modify Variable Value action with an increment of smsCount. Then just add a conditional to the Trigger that only does the action of smsCount is below some threshold. You'll also need some mechanism by which smsCount gets periodically zero'd -- maybe once an hour via a Schedule action.

Image

Posted on
Mon Nov 21, 2011 11:57 am
nbabcock offline
Posts: 5
Joined: Nov 30, 2009

Re: Monitor and limit the number of SMS text messages

Thanks for your response; that is the method I will use.

Neal

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