Timer Mode

The Timer mode counts the number of built-in button clicks or external I/O triggers and sends a message at regular intervals reporting the number of clicks and triggers detected during that interval.

Configuration

To configure your button for Timer mode:

Follow the Configuration instructions for configuring Soracom LTE-M Button settings.
Select the Timer mode option:

You can configure the following options for Timer mode:
- Uplink frequency - The frequency to send Timer messages.
- Auto sync - For buttons with firmware version 3134 or later, automatically sync once a day.
- External I/O mode - Configure the external I/O accessory port:
  - Disabled
  - Edge Detection
  - Pulse Detection
  - Temperature Sensor
- Enable debounce - Enables debouncing for Edge Detection and Pulse Detection external I/O modes to reduce false triggers.

After configuring Soracom LTE-M Button settings, follow the instructions to sync your button.

Messages

When the Soracom LTE-M Button operation mode is configured as Timer, the button will send the following types of messages:

Timer message, reporting the number of built-in button clicks and external I/O triggers detected during the configured interval
Status message, reporting the current status and configuration of the button

Timer and Summary intervals

Timer messages are sent at regular intervals according to the configured Uplink frequency.

To provide additional granularity, each Timer message is subdivided into 5 summaries, with the duration of each summary equal to 1/5th the duration of the Uplink frequency:

For example:

If the Uplink frequency is 1 day (24 hours), each summary will be 4 hours and 48 minutes in duration
If the Uplink frequency is 1 hour, each summary will be 12 minutes in duration

Each summary is labeled with a number from 1–5.

Detected events

The Timer message will consist of the following summaries, reporting the detected events:

short_summary_# - The number of single short clicks detected from the built-in button during the summary interval
double_summary_# - The number of double short clicks detected from the built-in button during the summary interval
long_summary_# - The number of single long clicks detected from the built-in button during the summary interval
edge_summary_# - The number of connections and disconnections detected from an external button or switch connected via the 2-wire accessory during the summary interval, when the external I/O mode is configured as Edge Detection
temp_summary_# - The temperature measured from an attached temperature sensor at the end of the summary interval, when the external I/O mode is configured as Temperature Sensor

If the external I/O mode is configured as Pulse Detection, events triggered from an external button or switch will also be counted in the short_summary_#, double_summary_#, and long_summary_# sumamries.

Input	Action	External I/O mode
Input	Action	Disabled	Edge Detection	Pulse Detection	Temperature Sensor
Built-in button	Single short click	LED blinks one short green blink: ☀ Increments the short_summary_# counter
	Double short click	LED blinks two short green blinks: ☀☀ Increments the double_summary_# counter
	Single long click	LED blinks one long green blink: ☀─── Increments the long_summary_# counter
	Extra long click	LED blinks three short green blinks: ☀☀☀ Sends a Status message to report the current status and configuration
2-wire accessory	Connected		LED blinks one short green blink: ☀ Increments the edge_summary_# counter	Starts a timer and waits for the wire to disconnect
2-wire accessory	Disconnected		LED blinks one short green blink: ☀ Increments the edge_summary_# counter	Calculates the timer and performs the same action as the built-in button
Internal timer	Uplink frequency	Sends a Timer message			Reads the temperature sensor^1 Sends a Timer message*
Internal timer	Every 24 hours	If Auto sync is enabled, sends a Status message to report the current status and configuration

^{*1 - The temperature sensor is measured at the end of each summary interval.}

Input	Action	External I/O mode
Built-in button	Single short click	Increments the short_summary_# counter
Double short click	Increments the double_summary_# counter
Single long click	Increments the long_summary_# counter
Extra long click	LED blinks one short green blink: ☀ Sends a Status message to report the current status and configuration
2-wire accessory	Connected		Increments the edge_summary_# counter	Starts a timer and waits for the wire to disconnect
Disconnected	Increments the edge_summary_# counter	Calculates the timer and performs the same action as the built-in button
Internal timer	Uplink frequency	Sends a Timer message	Reads the temperature sensor^1 Sends a Timer message*

LED indicator

While the button is sending an Timer message or Status message, the LED will blink to indicate the progress:

LED blink pattern	Description	Progress
☀──☀──☀── (repeating)	Slow green blinking	The button is connecting to a network
☀☀☀☀ (repeating)	Fast green blinking	The button has connected and is sending the message
☀────────	Extra long green blink	The button successfully sent the message
☀────────	Extra long red blink	An error occurred

If the button has trouble sending a message, it will try one more time before giving up. For more information, refer to the Troubleshooting section.

Refer to the LED Reference for descriptions of additional indicators.

Canceling a message

If you want to cancel a Status message, simply click the built-in button once while the button is connecting to a network.

The Timer message cannot be canceled.