Bond Bridge Control Driver

Version 1.18

Controls a BOND Bridge over its local HTTP API - no cloud account, no internet required. Supports up to 35 devices (ceiling fans, lights, fireplaces and blinds/shades) with two-way on-screen feedback, room-based sources for drag-and-drop wiring, per-number tags (Fan 1 On, Shade 2 Up), BOND Groups for reliable one-command multi-device control (all blinds down in a single action, no macro delays), a built-in browser / Web Object control page, design-time device and group discovery inside Integration Designer, an on-board debug console, and processor-tied licensing.

Quick start

1. Give the Bond Bridge a fixed IP (DHCP reservation) and copy its Local Token from the Bond app.

2. Add the driver to the processor. In Driver Properties enter the IP Address, Port (80) and Token.

3. Right-click the driver and choose Discover Bond Devices - names and types fill in automatically.

4. Add each device to its room as a Source (Fan / Light / Fireplace / Shade), or use the per-number tags.

5. Enter your licence key (a 120-minute trial runs without one).

What you need

- A BOND Bridge (or Bridge Pro) on the same LAN as the RTI processor.

- The Bridge's Local Token (from the Bond app - see below).

- Devices already added and named in the Bond app.

- Integration Designer 11 (for the in-app Discover feature and the room-source templates).

1. Connecting the Bridge

Open Driver Properties and fill in Bond Bridge Settings:

- IP Address: the LAN IP of the Bond Bridge. Give the Bridge a DHCP reservation in your router so the IP never changes.

- Port: usually 80 (leave as default unless you have changed it).

- Token: the Bridge's Local Token. In the Bond app: Settings > (your Bridge) > Advanced Settings > Local Token. Copy it exactly into this field. The token is what authorises the driver to talk to the Bridge locally - without it every request is refused.

- State Refresh Time: how often (seconds) the driver polls the Bridge for status. 30 is a good default. Lower it to 10-15 for snappier feedback on changes made outside RTI (Bond app, wall control), at the cost of a little more network traffic. Set to 0 to disable polling.

2. Discovering devices (recommended)

The driver matches each configured device to the Bond app by its exact name, so the names must match. Rather than type them by hand, read them straight from the Bridge:

- Enter the IP Address, Port and Token above first.

- Make sure the PC running Integration Designer is on the same network as the Bond Bridge.

- Right-click the driver in the workspace and choose Discover Bond Devices.

- The driver queries the Bridge and fills in the Number of Devices, plus each Device Name and Device Type automatically.

- Review the Type for each device and save.

Re-run Discover any time after adding or renaming devices in the Bond app. After discovery, close and reopen Driver Properties once so the friendly names refresh through the configuration.

3. Configuring devices manually

To enter devices by hand (or if Discover cannot reach the Bridge), open Device Settings:

- Number of Devices: how many devices you are controlling (1 to 35).

- Device N Name: must match the device name in the Bond app exactly (case and spaces included).

- Device N Type: Ceiling Fan, Light, Fireplace, Blinds/Shades or Generic.

The device NUMBER is the slot your buttons and macros wire to; the driver matches that slot to the physical device by NAME. Keep the numbering stable on an existing installation - re-ordering the slots will repoint existing buttons.

4. Adding devices to rooms (sources)

Each device can be added to a room as a Source of the matching type. In Add Workspace Item, expand the driver and choose the source type:

- Fan - ceiling fans (including fans with an integrated light).

- Light - standalone lights and dimmers.

- Fireplace - on/off fireplaces.

- Shade - blinds and shades.

Add the source to the room the device lives in, and give the source the SAME name as the device. Dropping the source onto a page (or dropping the standard tags onto buttons) shows a picker listing your configured device names - choose the device that source controls.

Standard tags by source (autoprogram on a template)

Add the source to a room, then apply the matching RTI template with the Page Wizard: fans, lights and fireplaces use the Lighting template (ceiling-fan controls live on its Curtains / Shades / Fans page); shades use the Shades template. The template's pre-tagged buttons then wire to that source automatically.

- Fan: Power On, Fan Off, Power, Fan Low, Fan Medium, Fan High, Speed Up, Speed Down, Direction, plus Light On / Light Off / Light for an integrated light.

- Light: Light On, Light Off, Light (toggle), Light Level (slider, 0-100).

- Fireplace: Power On, Power Off, Power.

- Shade: Shade Up, Shade Down, Shade Stop, plus Shade Preset (Favourite).

Fan Low / Medium / High map to that fan's actual speed range (a 3-speed fan uses 1 / 2 / 3, a 6-speed fan 1 / 4 / 6) and the matching feedback highlights the active button. For fine control use Speed Up / Speed Down. A device only responds to the actions its hardware supports - if a fan has no reversible motor, Direction does nothing; if it has no light, the Light tags do nothing.

5. Per-number tags (Fan 1 On, Shade 2 Up)

If you would rather not use sources and templates, every device also has plain numbered tags. On a button whose layer Source is set to the Bond driver, type the tag in the Tag field and it wires the command AND the feedback highlight to that device number - no picker, no source:

- Fan N: Fan N On, Fan N Off, Fan N Low, Fan N Medium, Fan N High, Fan N Speed Up, Fan N Speed Down, Fan N Direction, Fan N Light On, Fan N Light Off.

- Light N: Light N On, Light N Off, Light N Toggle, Light N Level (0-100).

- Fireplace N: Fireplace N On, Fireplace N Off, Fireplace N Toggle.

- Shade N: Shade N Up, Shade N Down, Shade N Stop, Shade N Preset.

(N is the device number, 1 to 35. Use the tags that match each device's type - e.g. Fan 1 On for a fan in slot 1, Light 5 Level for a light in slot 5.) To show the friendly name on a button, bind the button Text to that device's Name variable - never put the name in the tag.

Text tags (show name / state as button text)

Each device also exposes two text tags so a button can DISPLAY live information as its text (use the button's Text Tag, not the command/feedback tag):

- Name: Device N Name (also Fan N Name / Light N Name / etc.) - the friendly Bond name.

- State: Device N State (also Fan N State / Light N State / etc.) - the current status as words: Off / Low / Medium / High for fans, On / Off for fireplaces, On NN%% for lights, Open / Closed for shades.

Tag a button's Text with, say, Fan 1 State and it shows "Medium"; tag another with Fan 1 Name and it shows "Living Room Fan".

6. BOND Groups (reliable multi-device control)

A BOND Group actions several devices at once from a SINGLE command that the Bridge itself fans out to every member. This is the reliable way to do "all blinds down" or "all fans off": instead of a macro firing one command per device (which can drop commands and forces you to add delays), the driver sends one request and the Bridge sequences the rest. Use it for any all-at-once action across a set of like devices.

Set up a group

1. In the BOND app, create a Group and add the member devices (e.g. a group "All Blinds" containing every shade).

2. In Driver Properties open Group Settings and either right-click the driver and choose Discover Bond Groups (fills in the count and each name automatically), or set Number of Groups and each Group N Name by hand. The Group Name must match the BOND app group name exactly.

Wire a group

- As a source: add a Group source to a room and drop the standard tags on buttons - Shade Up / Shade Down / Shade Stop for a blind/shade group, or Power On / Power Off / Power for a fan/light group. One tag-drop wires the command and its feedback; a picker lets you choose which configured group the button controls.

- As per-number tags: on a button whose layer Source is the Bond driver, type Group N Up / Group N Down / Group N Stop / Group N Preset (shades) or Group N On / Group N Off / Group N Toggle (fans/lights), where N is the group number (1-10). No source or picker needed.

Shade groups expose Open / Close / Stop / Preset; fan and light groups expose On / Off / Toggle - use the tags that match the group's members. Group feedback is optimistic (it reflects the command you just sent); the individual member devices update through normal polling on the next State Refresh, so their own buttons catch up shortly after.

7. Web interface (browser / Web Object)

The driver hosts a control page on the processor - one tile per device (fan speed, brightness, on/off, shade open/stop/close) that scales to any size. Point a browser or an RTI Web Object at:

- All devices: http://[processor-IP]:9070/

- One device: http://[processor-IP]:9070/?device=1

In Web Interface settings you can change the port, host per-device pages on their own ports, or turn the web interface off. A settings cog on the page sets the colour theme. On a touch panel, drop a Web Object widget on a page and set its URL to one of the above.

8. Feedback variables

The driver polls the Bridge and exposes per-device system variables - Name, Power, Speed (and Speed 1-6 booleans), Light, Brightness, Direction, Open - plus the source-instance and per-number feedback used by the tags above, and a global Connected status. Bind these to button feedback and layer visibility. Bind a button's Text to the Device Name variable to show the friendly Bond name. Changes made outside RTI (the Bond app, a wall control, a remote) appear on the next poll - lower the State Refresh Time for faster update.

9. Debug console

For live diagnostics, telnet the processor's IP on the Debug Port (default 12526). Commands include: status, devices, groups, discover, poll, on N, off N, speed N S, light N, gopen N, gclose N, gstop N, gon N, goff N, mac, licence, rlog. Set the Debug Port to 0 to disable it. Raise Debug Level only while troubleshooting.

10. Remote logging (development)

Leave OFF for normal use. When asked during setup or diagnosis, tick Enable Remote Logging to stream this driver's log to Smart Home Programming's cloud for remote review.

11. Licensing

This driver is licensed per processor. Without a key it runs for 120 minutes in trial mode, then stops sending commands (status feedback keeps working). Paste the key supplied for this processor into Licence > Licence Key. The MAC the key is built from is shown in the licence status variables and via the debug console (type mac or licence). Make sure the Token and Licence Key go in their own separate fields - a common setup slip is pasting the Bond token into the Licence Key box.

12. Troubleshooting

- A device does not respond: its Device Name must match the Bond app EXACTLY (case, spaces, punctuation). Re-run Discover, or check the name in Device Settings. The debug console "devices" command lists which slots matched a Bond device.

- No feedback / state never changes: check the Token is correct and in its own field, that State Refresh Time is not 0, and that the processor can reach the Bridge IP. The "Connected" variable and the debug console "status" command show the link state.

- Discover does nothing: the IDesign PC must be on the same network as the Bridge, and the IP / Port / Token must be entered first. A wrong token returns an authorisation error.

- A source landed on the wrong page (e.g. a fan on a Climate page): delete and re-add the source after loading this driver version - IDesign only applies the corrected template to newly added sources.

- Commands work but the Bond app changes are not reflected: that is the poll interval - lower State Refresh Time, or confirm polling is running with the debug console "poll" command.

- Trial expired: the driver stops sending commands after 120 minutes without a key. Enter the licence key for this processor's MAC.

13. Support

Smart Home Programming and Automation

Web: smarthomeprogramming.com.au

Email: xgutterratx@gmail.com

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