| Timer Block | |
|---|---|
| |
| Category: | Functional Block |
| Status: | Functional |
| Function: | |
| Automatically triggers actions after a predetermined delay. | |
| Fits small ship | |
| Mass: | 30.2 kg |
| Fits large ship and station | |
| Mass: | 259 kg |
| Data Controls: | [edit] [purge] (?) |
Automation: Timers can play, wait&play, and loop groups of block actions, similar to how playlists play songs.
The 
Timer Block is a block useful for automation of recurring actions, such as docking procedures or air lock cycles. Use the Block to remember a series of button pushes for you and replay them later. Timers are much easier to set up than a Programmable Block because the require no scripting knowledge.
Tip: To understand timers, think of actions as "songs" and Timer blocks as "playlists". You make playlists for special occasions and choose to start, stop, pause, or loop songs.
First you put your list of actions into the timer block. When started, it will wait a predetermined amount of time, then trigger the actions. The Delay time, looping behaviour, and actions can be set up using the grid's Control Panel Screen, or through the keypad on the front side of the large-grid Timer.
Construction[]
Timer blocks are cheap and can be built and used early on. They exist in small-grid (1x1x1) and large-grid (1x1x1) variants, and they can attach to other blocks on all six sides.
When the block is switched on, it requires 0.1W of power, which is dismissible, as it is almost nothing -- a small battery can power 500 000 Timers for an hour.
The block has a coloured side that blinks while it’s active. You can rotate and purposefully hide that side of the blocks, or place a whole bunch of them in plain sight (perhaps with a transparent LCD panel as label) for a techy “blinking-lights control room” look.
Possible Triggers[]
Timer blocks can be started by clicking a button in their Control Panel Screen or can be triggered by many other blocks:
- For manual control, use Tool Bar slots or a Button Panel as triggers.
- For autonomous automation, choose a Sensor, AI Recorder, Autopilot, or Event Controller as trigger.
- For bulk automation, use another Timer block as trigger.
- For loops, have the Timer restart itself.
Possible Actions[]
Triggered actions can be any block action you can do through the Tool Bar:
- extending or retracting pistons, turning rotors and hinges, opening or closing doors
- switching on or off lights / thrusters / power / beacon / handbrake / turrets...
- Changing behaviours/targets of Automaton blocks, changing conditions of an Event Controller
- (dis)arming a Warhead, (de)pressurizing a room's Air Vent, (de)activating grinder/welder/drill blocks, (un)locking connectors or landing gear
- highlighting a block on the HUD (escape pods, emergency exits, damaged block that needs welding...)
... and so on.
Available actions can also be selected from blocks on grids/subgrids that are connected through a connector, and the respective actions are then only executed when the grid is connected.
When NOT to use Timers[]
Timer blocks cannot perform any non-Control Panel Screen actions, this means:
- Timers cannot steer vehicles or ships — use Autopilot or an Automaton instead.
- Timers cannot use handheld tools — use block tools instead.
- Timers cannot aim handheld weapons — use Automatons or Custom Turret Controllers with block weapons instead.
- Timers cannot place blocks — use a projector instead.
- Timers are not precise by the millisecond — use Scripting instead.
- Timers cannot connect through the remote terminal -- use a Remote Timer mod instead.
Neither can Timers buy anything from a Store, nor trade, nor emote, nor push physical buttons, nor create new GPS locations, nor perform similar player actions.
Usage: Play a group of actions[]
First, decide on a trigger (e.g. build a button panel), and build your Timer block. Each Timer block executes a group of actions that belong together and should always happen together.
How many timer blocks will I need?[]
Answer: Lots. :-) One for each set of actions that happen together. If sets of actions are mutually exclusive, or if they only happen together some of the time, or if they must have pauses between them, or if one action must wait for another to complete, then you must build separate Timer blocks for them!
- Open the Control Panel Screen.
- Go to the Trigger (the Sensor, Event Controller, Button Panel, etc.) controls and click Set up Actions.
- Click the Timer block and select “Start” from the action menu.
- Press (ESCAPE key) to return to the Control Panel Screen.
- Go to the Timer block controls and click Set up Actions.
- Click block icons to select actions, and assign them to slots. You can assign each action only once per toolbar.
What if I want to add several of the same action?[]
I want to 3X "increase propulsion override", but it doesn't let me add it three times?
Answer: Remember that each Timer block can store 81 (nine times nine) actions! Press ctrl+1 to ctrl+9 to select another one of the nine toolbars. You can assign the same "increase propulsion override" action once to each of the nine toolbars. All toolbars will be triggered together. And if you create multiple groups containing the same block, you can even add actions for each group.
What the difference between a Group and a Timer?[]
I can also group actions in the Control Panel Screen, how does that differ?
group names are not unique. This is relevant when you have multiple ships from the same blueprint (same ship name, same group names, same block names) that are docked in the same hangar: Group actions will trigger in all docked ships using the same group name. So for non-unique ships and PBW, use Timers to group their actions.
Usage: Pause and Play actions[]
All the actions run inside a timer don't wait for each other's completion. If you are automating a sequence of longer actions, you must enforce pauses in between. Examples: Playing two sound alerts one after the other without overlapping; or a docking sequence that waits for the hangar door to open; or an airlock cycle that waits for the room to depressurise.
- Split up the time-sensitive actions and put them into separate Timer blocks.
- Configure the Delay of the second timer to wait for the first timer to finish.
- Make the first timer start the second timer.
- Make the second timer start the third, and so on.
The Delay format is read as hours:minutes:seconds. The start-up delay of a timer block can be set to any value between 1 second (0:00:01) and 1 hour (1:00:00).
Note that Timers are not accurate with the timings of delays, so rather add a little extra time. When you control something very time sensitive (like the joints of a walker), don't trust Timer Blocks to coordinate punctually by the second, and they certainly cannot handle any timings of less than a second. A script in a Programmable Block is more suitable when you need precision.
Also Timers just literally wait the number of seconds you tell them, they don't confirm whether the previous action has truly completed or not -- e.g. if a door is blocked instead of closed, or a room cannot be pressurised because your tanks are empty, a Timer sequence may get messed up.
Usage: Loop actions[]
Do you manually perform actions that always repeat in the same way, for example, automated shuttle (un)docking sequences, restocking various ammo on patrolling drones, progressing or resetting the 3D Printer, walking sequences of Mecha legs? Are you building mini-games with continuously moving obstacles or traps, or similar?
Just like any other action, you can set up a Timer to start (or stop!) another Timer -- even itself. That causes a loop. For each set of actions that you want to repeat, set up one separate Timer and its Delay. Then you set up the last action of the last Timer to start the first Timer again, and the actions will loop.
Can I loop the loops?[]
You can also build complex loops: Use one conductor Timer solely to start and stop several other Timers, add a long Delay, and as its last action, make it re-start itself.
When ever the timings start feeling too complicated to keep track of, it's recommended to simply draw some boxes with arrows to get your head around the delays, order, and groupings.
Tip: Trigger the Stop action on all looping blocks when you want to end a loop.
Should I Reuse Triggers and Actions?[]
You are not restricted to 1 trigger per 1 set of actions!
One Trigger can start multiple Timers, even though there is only one trigger slot: Just build a “conductor” Timer that starts all the other Timers, and make the trigger start the conductor!
Similarly, one Timer can be started by several triggers. For example, in a timed airlock cycle, you can have a manual button panel that starts the Timer, and also an automatic sensor that starts the same Timer.
Troubleshooting[]
Auditory Troubleshooting: Beeps[]
A Timer Block has a setting to run either silently or to beep every time when triggered. Additionally, if you have set up a Delay, a non-silent Timer beeps for every second of the countdown. The sound is only audible in close proximity.
Which setting should you choose?
- A silent timer is less annoying when it loops often. Silence is also preferred when actions are supposed to happen without attracting the attention of players.
- Deactivating the Silent option can be useful, on the other hand, while setting it up or while troubleshooting, to get feedback. You can also use auditory feedback when you purposely want to alert other players to expect an automated action — reminds them to wait, for example, for an airlock sequence or a docking manoeuvre to complete.
Visual Troubleshooting: Colours[]
The Timer block changes colour while it's running to show you its stages:
- Green means the Timer is ready and powered.
- During the Delay countdown, it alternates between cyan and blue.
- Red means it's been switched off or has no power.
Manual Troubleshooting[]
In the control panel, you can trigger the block manually.
- Trigger Now -- Don't wait for the delay and play the actions.
- Start -- Count down the delay and then play the actions.
- Stop -- Stop the running actions.
This is the same start/stop action that can also be triggered remotely by another Timer block. Manual starting and stopping timers is useful during set-up and troubleshooting. If a block in a mechanical sequence gets damaged and stops moving, coordinated movements go out of sync; after the block has been repaired, all timers need to be stopped, reset, and restarted in the right order.
It can be helpful to set up a Timer that runs a reset sequence for a complex mechanism, so that you can quickly bring it back into a reliable start state for your loop.
Recipe[]
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| Timer Block | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Component | Large Ship/Station Required | Large Ship/Station Optional | Small Ship Required | Small Ship Optional |
 Computer | 5 | — | 1 | — |
 Construction Comp. | 30 | — | 3 | — |
 Interior Plate | 6 | — | 2 | — |
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