TTS-1nc(e) Nurse Call groups and rules
A VociaTTS-1nc(e) and TTS-2 can trigger audible paging events based on Nurse Call data received from a Rauland Responder 4 and 5 system. Various groups of Rules can be created to parse the Nurse Call data and trigger different audible events based on the nature of that data. This article describes the concepts associated with the groups and rules and how they should be configured to obtain this functionality.
Rule matching
The Nurse Call page in Vocia software is used to configure the values anticipated from the Nurse Call system. The TTS-1nc(e) or TTS-2 process and match data received across all rules in its configuration, regardless of which group they reside in. When the data received from the Nurse Call system matches a rule, the TTS-1nc(e) or TTS-2 triggers the associated page code or sequence. Multiple matched rules are all processed.
The Rules tab screenshot above shows the Nurse Call page with three groups inside the TTS-1nc(e) and TTS-2 Properties window. Group 1 has been expanded to show Rule 1 and its five associated fields. The data in these fields will constitute the variables expected from the Nurse Call which is used to match the rule.
Rule matching begins with the rules in the topmost group and works down to the bottom of the list. In the example above, the topmost Group is titled Group 1. As the top group, Group 1’s rules will be analyzed first. The most important rules (such as a Cardiac Arrest condition) should be placed in a group above those containing less important conditions or functions. Groups can be renamed and rearranged to be of higher or lower importance using the ‘Move Up’ and ‘Move Down’ order buttons on the control bar. If multiple rules are matched, they will be processed in order of group position, Nurse Call message arrival time, and then rule position within the group.
Rule fields
Rules contain five fields used to filter and match the data received from the Nurse Call system. These fields are used by both Vocia and the Nurse Call system. The fields are Pager number, Area, Room, Bed, and Priority. The content of these fields is completely customizable. This means rules will depend on how the Nurse Call programmer has defined the content being sent from the Nurse Call system. If no value is entered in a rule field on the Vocia side, then that field is assumed to match.
Example
| An example set of data sent from the Nurse Call system when a Cardiac Alarm is triggered in Room 501 from Bed 102 in the South East Wing. |
The data received from the example above will be analyzed and compared to any rules configured.
With this dataset, only four rules match the data sent from the Nurse Call system. However, Rule 3 and Rule 5 do not match.
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Rule 3 does not match due to the data contained in the Priority field.
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Rule 5 does not match due to the variable values in the Bed field. The rule is only looking for values 1 through 50, which does not incorporate the value of ‘102’ sent by the Nurse Call system.
Filters for rules
Filters can be defined using any combination of the "Starts With", "Contains", or "Ends With" columns to evaluate the Nurse Call data for expected values. Once a match is found within these variables the paging event will be triggered.
To configure a filter, select the required column and field. Then use the dropdown icon to show the Fixed Text, Range, and Inverse options. The Range parameter must consist of all numbers or all letters but cannot contain both. Filters can be created under each of the five fields, and each Filter Type can be configured to match against a single value or a range of values. Inverse creates a match to the opposite values entered in the Fixed Text or Range fields.
The Action dropdown is used to specify whether a sequence or page code event is triggered when the rule is matched. If "Sequence" is selected, the elements available in the Sequence Editor can be used to construct a custom paging event. If "Page Code" is selected, the selected page code will be used. Recorded page codes must already be created in the World's Page Code section for them to be available in the dropdown list. If a page code is not of the "Pre-Recorded" type it will not be available to the TTS-1nc(e) or TTS-2.
Configuring sequences and elements
The Sequence Editor is used to construct a paging event out of various elements. The sequence will trigger when the associated rule is successfully matched. A sequence can consist of up to 24 elements or a maximum length of 30 minutes, whichever limit is reached first. Multiple elements of the same type can be used within a single sequence. Six different elements are available to construct a paging event:
- Custom Text
- A string of Unicode text that will be converted into speech via the speech engine. A maximum of 250 characters is available per Custom Text element.
- Text From Field
- Data from within a field received from the Nurse Call system will be parsed and converted to speech via the speech engine. Using the example data above, if ‘Bed’ was selected in the Sequence Editor then ‘102’ would be converted to speech and announced audibly as 'One hundred and two'.
- Text Range
- Allows data from within a field, text, and/or a range to be associated with a text string. This text string will then be converted to speech via the speech engine and played as part of the announcement. For example, a rule with the ‘Area’ field configured with a text value of ‘A’ and a range of ‘1’ and ‘2’ will display the following matched fields – ‘A1’ and ‘A2’. These can then be associated with a text value of ‘Area 1’ for match ‘A1’ and ‘Area 2’ for match ‘A2’ which would allow for a more descriptive announcement.
- Audio File
- A pre-recorded .WAV audio file that has been imported using the Audio File Manager dialog.
- Audio From Field
- Specifies an audio file to be played whose filename is extracted from the data in the specified field. For example, the Area Field receives a value of ‘Area7’ from the Nurse Call system, the TTS-1nc(e) / TTS-2 engine will look for and play the audio file ‘Area7.WAV’. These audio files must be added via the Audio File Manager and made available to the system using the VTP Audio Files section within the World Properties.
- Audio File Range
- Allows data from within a field, text, and/or a range, to be associated with an audio file. When the dropdown is selected, a list of possible matches is generated based on the rule filter for that field. An audio file can then be associated with this filter and whenever the filter is matched, the audio file will be triggered. For example, a rule with a ‘Pager’ field configured with a text value of ‘A’ and a range of ‘1’ and ‘2’ will display the following matched fields - ‘A1’ and ‘A2’. These can then be associated with a pre-recorded .WAV file added by the Audio File Manager.
Configuring settings and zones
The Settings and Zones sections configure the message priority, the voice font used for text-to-speech elements, any announcement options such as specifying a preamble or auto-repeat function, and the desired Zone routing if the rule is matched.
The paging priority can be set to a non-emergency priority as defined in the Universe Properties. Details about the role of priority levels can be found in the Vocia software help system. The Voice field defines the Text-to-Speech Voice used when converting text elements. Note that the selected voice must first be licensed and added to the TTS-1nc(e) through the TTS-1(e) Voice Management dialog. The TTS-2 has all Voice Fonts pre-installed and available. Refer to the software help for more information.
Play Preamble will use the preamble as specified under the MS-1(e) Preambles for that associated priority level. Enabling Auto-Repeat allows the message to be repeated more than once. The Zone tab defines the zone routing for when the rule is matched.