Alarms and Notifications

Alarms in Beacon Tower provide automated monitoring of your IoT assets. When telemetry data matches defined conditions, the system triggers alarms that alert users to important events or threshold breaches. Notifications can be based on alarms, sending emails, SMS, or push notifications with alarm information.

• Definitions
• Concept
• Use Cases
• Best Practices
• Workflows

Definitions

Term	Definition
Alarm Definition	A template that defines what conditions should trigger an alarm. Created and managed by administrators.
Alarm Instance	A specific occurrence when an alarm definition's conditions are met. Generated automatically by the system.
Notification	An alert sent to users via email, SMS, or push notification when an alarm triggers.
Notification Contact	A user or group designated to receive notifications for an organization.
Default Contacts	Users and groups automatically notified for all alarms in an organization.

Concept

Alarms

Alarm definitions are associated with asset models. This determines:

• Which telemetry values can be used in the alarm rule
• Which assets the alarm can monitor

An alarm can monitor:

• All assets of a model - the rule evaluates against every asset using that model
• Specific assets - the rule only evaluates against selected assets

It is preferred to have alarms that monitor all assets of a model, as this significantly reduces administration since an alarm only needs to be set up once.

Alarms are triggered based on rules. A rule contains a specific telemetry point, an operator, and a value. The rule is checked every time telemetry arrives in Beacon Tower. If the rule evaluates to true, the alarm is triggered.

The alarm will only trigger once until it is acknowledged and the telemetry value no longer exceeds the rule threshold. This also means an alarm cannot disappear until a telemetry value is received that is within the allowed threshold.

When possible, it is recommended to base alarms on existing device alarms. For example, if the device is aware of the alarm itself, it can send an alarm code (e.g., 1 or 0) and then the rule evaluates whether the value is 1 to trigger the alarm.

An alarm can have three states:

State	Definition
Active and Not Acknowledged	Represented as a red alarm icon. The last telemetry value exceeded the rule and no acknowledgement has been made.
Active and Acknowledged	The alarm is still active as above, but a user has acknowledged it. Shown with a red icon with a green checkmark.
Inactive and Not Acknowledged	Telemetry has been received that does not exceed the rule, but the alarm has not been acknowledged.

When an alarm is both inactive and acknowledged, it will disappear.

Notifications

When an alarm triggers, the system can send notifications to alert users. Notifications support multiple delivery channels:

• Email: Detailed alarm information sent to email addresses
• SMS: Short text messages for urgent alerts

A notification is only sent when an alarm is created, meaning no further notifications are sent until the previous alarm has disappeared. This prevents spamming due to fluctuating telemetry values.

Notification Recipients

When setting up a notification, you can specify specific recipients, but usually it is best to use default contacts. This means that notifications for an asset are sent to the users configured as default contacts for any organization that has access to that asset. This allows you to create one alarm and one notification for a specific issue, which will then automatically send notifications to the appropriate users depending on which asset triggers the alarm.

To receive a notification, the organization needs access to the asset triggering the alarm, the alarm definition itself, and the notification. This means that standard alarms and notifications need to be shared with new customers.

Notification Content

The content of notifications can be tailored for each notification. Variables can also be used to create a more customized message.

Variable	Description
{{AlarmName}}	The name of the alarm triggered
{{AssetName}}	The name of the asset triggering the alarm
{{AckUrl}}	The URL to acknowledge the alarm

For example, this can be used to create an SMS like: {{AlarmName}} triggered on Asset: {{AssetName}}. Click here to acknowledge: {{AckUrl}}

Use Cases

Connected Machine Use Case

For a product range of connected devices, the recommended approach is to set up relevant alarms, preferably based on the device sending alarm codes. Then notifications are created for the alarms that are actionable. Notifications that customers should receive are shared with the customer, while other notifications can go only to the parent company. One notification per alarm is usually set up.

Best Practices

• Use descriptive names: Make alarm names clearly indicate what they monitor (e.g., "High Temperature Alert" rather than "Alarm 1")
• Add descriptions: Include details about what the alarm means and what action to take
• Start broad, then narrow: Begin by monitoring all assets of a model, then create specific alarms for assets with unique requirements
• Review regularly: Periodically review alarm definitions to ensure they remain relevant and thresholds are appropriate
• Configure default contacts early: Set up organization default contacts so important alerts are not missed
• Match channel to urgency: Use SMS/push for critical alarms, email for lower severity
• Avoid notification fatigue: Don't over-notify; ensure each notification is actionable
• Keep contact information current: Regularly verify that email addresses and phone numbers are up to date
• Use device alarms if possible: If the device is aware of its alarms, send an alarm code rather than a more complex threshold

Workflows

Creating an Alarm Definition

1. Navigate to Administration > Alarms
2. Click the Add button (+ icon)
3. Enter a Name for the alarm
4. Optionally enter a Description
5. Set the Severity level (1-5)
6. Select the Model the alarm applies to
7. Choose whether to limit to specific assets:
   • Leave unchecked to monitor all assets of the model
   • Check and select specific assets to monitor only those
8. Build the Condition using the rule builder:
   • Select a telemetry variable
   • Choose an operator
   • Enter the threshold value
9. Click Save
10. Select the organization to associate the alarm with
11. Confirm the selection

The alarm definition is now active and will trigger when conditions are met.

Configuring Default Notification Contacts

1. Navigate to Administration > Organizations
2. Open the organization edit page
3. In the Notifications section, click Default Users
4. Select users who should receive notifications by default
5. Click OK
6. Click Default Groups to configure group contacts
7. Select groups to receive notifications
8. Click OK
9. Click Save to apply changes

All members of selected users and groups will receive notifications when alarms trigger for that organization.

Creating a Notification

1. Navigate to Administration > Notifications
2. Click the Add button (+ icon)
3. Enter a Name for the notification
4. Optionally enter a Description
5. Select the Alarm that triggers this notification
6. Choose the Notification Channel (Email, SMS, or Push)
7. Configure channel-specific settings:
   • Email: Subject line and message template
   • SMS: Message template (character limit applies)
   • Push: Title and message template
8. Select Recipients:
   • Choose specific users or groups
   • Or use organization default contacts
9. Click Save
10. Select the organization to associate the notification with
11. Confirm the selection

The notification is now active and will send alerts when the linked alarm triggers.