INFRAPATCH

INFRAPATCH is the click-to-patch command for the infrastructure of a show: power distros, power BOBs, DMX nodes and Veam BOBs. You click a source block, then click the blocks that connect to it, and the command writes the names and channel numbers into the block attributes for you. Use it to chain BOBs to a power distro output, to pair Veam BOBs with a DMX node, or to assign fixtures to a power BOB or Veam channel while it keeps an eye on the load.

Starting

• Type INFRAPATCH on the command line.
• Ribbon: tab SCAD Production, panel DMX / Power.
• POWERPATCH and POWERPATCHASSIGN are older names for the same command.

How it works

1. The command asks Select source block (distro, BOB, Veam BOB, or node):. Click the block you want to patch from.
2. What happens next depends on the attributes of that block. The command checks in this order:

Source block	Recognised by	What you do next
Power distro	filled-in attribute Distro ID	Click the BOBs that hang on each output
DMX node	filled-in attribute Node ID	Pair male and female Veam BOBs with the node ports
Veam BOB	filled-in attribute Veamname, or an XLR5 / LK connector	Click the fixtures that use each Veam channel
Power BOB	filled-in attribute Multiname (or a block name starting with Harting_), with a Harting connector	Click the fixtures that use each BOB channel

If none of these fits you get Could not determine source type. Expected Distro ID, Node ID, Multiname, or Veamname attributes.

Power distro

1. The command goes through the outputs one by one (attribute Outputs). The output takes its name from the distro’s Channel n attribute, or becomes P-n when that is still empty.
2. At Select BOB for P-1 chain [0 selected] [Undo/Skip] (Enter=next output): click the BOBs of that output in order. Only Harting power BOBs are accepted, and a BOB without a Harting output cannot feed another BOB.
3. Press Enter to finish the output and go to the next one. The BOBs get the output name (P-1, or P-1(1), P-1(2) when there are several in a chain), plus the attributes Assigned Distro and Assigned Channel. The distro’s Channel n attribute gets the name too.

DMX node

1. The command starts at the first free port of the node (first empty CHn attribute).
2. At Select male Veam BOB for node N1 ports 1-8 [Skip] (Enter=done): click the male Veam BOB.
3. If the BOB has more than one channel: Veam channels to assign [1-4] (Enter=all, e.g. 1-3 or 1,2,4):.
4. Click the matching female Veam BOB at Select matching female Veam BOB (Enter=cancel pair):.
5. Both BOBs get the same Veam name (an automatic name like V-1 when they have none yet). The node ports get name.channel, for example V-1.2.
6. When the channels do not fit on the node, the command asks Split remaining channels onto next node? [Yes/No]: and then lets you click the next node. When a node is full you are asked for the next node as well.

Veam BOB or power BOB

1. If the BOB has no name yet you are asked Veam name is not set. Enter Veam label (e.g. V-1): or BOB name is not set. Enter power label (e.g. P-1):.
2. For a Veam BOB: Also set fixture Universe/Address from Veam channel? [Yes/No] <No>:.
3. Click the fixtures for channel 1 at Select fixture for P-1 ch.1/4, 0/3500W, 0 new [Next/Undo/Multiple] (Enter=done):. The prompt shows the load of the channel against its limit.
4. Use Next to continue with the next channel. Press Enter when you are done.
5. Each assigned fixture is highlighted and reported as -> P-1 ch.1 ID 12 [350/3500W].

A power BOB writes the BOB name and channel into the fixture attributes Multi and Multichannel. A Veam BOB writes V-, VeamName and Veam.

Options

Option	Where	What it does
Next	fixture prompt	Go to the next channel of the BOB
Undo	fixture prompt	Take back the last fixture of the current channel (its old attribute values are restored), or undo a Next on an empty channel
Multiple	fixture prompt	Select several fixtures in one go for the current channel
Undo	distro prompt	Remove the last BOB from the chain
Skip	distro prompt	Skip this output; the BOBs you picked are not assigned
Skip	node prompt	Leave this node port empty
Yes / No	split over nodes	Yes (default, also with Enter) spreads the remaining channels onto the next node. No skips this pair
Yes / No	Veam BOB	Also set Universe and Address on the fixture. Yes sets the Universe to the Veam channel number and the Address to the next free address. Default No, because one universe can be spread over several Veam channels

Settings

The blocks need the right attributes. The command only fills in attributes that exist on the block.

Attribute	On	Used for
Outputs	distro, node	Number of outputs or ports
Channels	BOB	Number of channels
Wattage Limit	power BOB	Maximum load per channel in W. Default 3500 W
Wattage Alert	power BOB	Load above which you get a note
Power	fixture	Load of the fixture in W
Channels	fixture	DMX channels the fixture uses (counted against 512 per Veam channel)

If the number of outputs or channels is not an attribute, the command uses the number in the block name (6x).