Overedge Bridge user guide

1. Overview

Overedge Bridge runs on your Axis camera and links it to devices on the local network: relays, power sockets, covers, lights, sensors and energy meters. When the camera raises an event, such as motion or an analytics scenario, Bridge makes a device act. In the other direction, a device input or reading can raise a camera event that you use in the camera's Action Rules.

It works with Shelly devices, with products that have a simple web interface, and with Modbus TCP modules. Whatever the device is, it appears the same way: one card, and the same mappings and triggers.

Everything stays on your network. No cloud account and no internet connection are needed. The camera talks to the devices directly.

2. Getting started

1

Install and start the app

In the camera's web interface, open Apps, add the Overedge Bridge package for your camera, and start it.

2

Find your devices

Open Discovery and press Scan Network. Each device Bridge recognises appears with an Add button.

3

Check it responds

Open Devices and flip a switch on the new card. The relay should move. This confirms the camera can control the device before you automate anything.

4

Create a mapping

Open Mappings and press Add Mapping. Pick a camera event, the device and what it should do, then save.

5

Test it

Cause the camera event, for example by walking through the scene. The device should act, and the Log tab shows what happened.

3. Finding and adding devices

Scanning

Discovery checks every address in a subnet. The subnet is filled in from the camera's own address; change it if your devices are on another one. While it runs you see how many addresses have been checked and a map with one square per address.

Compatible devices — Recognised and ready to add.

Other hosts — Something answered but was not recognised. These are listed after the scan with an Add as… button, in case one is a device you can name.

No answer — Nothing at that address, or the camera cannot reach it.

Modbus devices usually cannot say what product they are. They appear as "Modbus device" with Add as…, and you choose the product. Untick Include Modbus (port 502) if your site does not allow that kind of probing.

Testing one address

Type an address into Test a single address. The camera contacts it and tells you what it found, or why it could not reach it. Use this when a device you expected is missing from a scan.

Adding by hand

On Devices, press Add Device, enter the address and choose the product. Detect automatically works for Shelly and for products that identify themselves. For anything else, pick the product from the list.

Devices that are not in the list

Custom HTTP device — For a device that reports its state as JSON and is switched by web requests. You give the status address, the on/off field and the two requests, using {n} for the switch number.

Custom Modbus device — For a Modbus TCP relay module. You give the port, unit ID, the first relay coil and, if it has them, the first input.

After adding a custom or Modbus device, switch each relay once from its card and check that the right one moves. A wrong address switches the wrong output.

4. Device cards

Each device has one card. It shows only the sections that device has.

Switches — A toggle for each relay or outlet, with live power where the device measures it.

Inputs — A dot for each input, filled when it is active.

Covers — Open, Stop and Close, plus a position slider once the cover is calibrated.

Lights — A toggle, a brightness slider and, for colour lights, a colour picker.

Sensors and energy meter — Current readings.

Details shows per-channel measurements and the device's address, firmware and network state. The ⋮ menu opens the device's own web page, renames it, sets its user name and password, or removes it.

If a device is password-protected, add it first, then enter the credentials under ⋮ → Authentication. Its full set of switches and inputs appears after the next refresh.

For Shelly devices, a button appears on the card when a firmware update is available. The device is left out of mappings while it updates.

5. Mappings: camera event to device

A mapping says: when this camera event happens, do this with that device.

Camera event — Events seen on this camera are marked with ●. The rest are common Axis events; trigger one on the camera and it will be marked too.

Device and control — The device, and whether to drive its switches, covers or lights. Tick one or more channels.

Behaviour — How the device reacts. See the next section.

Covers — Choose open, close, stop or a position, and optionally what happens afterwards (for example open while the event lasts, then close).

Lights — Optionally set brightness and colour to use when the light turns on.

Schedule — Limit the mapping to certain days and hours. Put the start after the end for an overnight window.

Conditions — Only act when a temperature, power or input condition on the device is also true.

Several mappings can use the same event, and one device can be used by many mappings.

6. Behaviours explained

The same behaviours apply to switches, covers and lights. "Active" means on for a switch or light, and the chosen action for a cover.

Follow — Active while the event lasts, back to rest when it ends. Good for a light that should be on only during motion.

Timed hold — Active for a set time. If the event happens again, the time starts over. Good for "stay on five minutes after the last movement".

Pulse — Active briefly on each event, then back. Good for door openers and anything that needs a momentary contact.

Latch — Active until someone presses Acknowledge on the mapping. Good for alarms that must be seen by a person.

Single action — One action with no automatic return: turn on, turn off, toggle, or send a cover to a position.

Shelly scene — Runs a scene stored on a Shelly device.

7. Camera triggers: device to camera event

A trigger raises a camera event when something happens on a device. The camera's own Action Rules then decide what to do: record, move to a PTZ preset, send a notification.

The Camera Triggers page is hidden until you switch it on under Settings → Advanced.

Input — An input closes or opens.

Cover — A cover has opened, has closed or starts moving. Tick the ones you want.

Light — A light turns on or off.

Sensor or energy reading — A temperature, humidity, analog or energy value goes above, below, equal to or away from a value you set.

For readings you also set two things that stop false alarms:

Must hold for — How long the condition has to stay true before the event fires. Default 30 seconds.

Clear margin — How far the reading must move back before the trigger resets. Default 5% of the value.

The editor shows the current reading and tells you whether the trigger would fire now.

Using the event on the camera

In the camera's web interface, open System → Events → Rules and create a rule with the Overedge Bridge event as its condition. The event names are Shelly_Input_Trigger, Shelly_Temp_Alert, Shelly_Power_Alert, Bridge_Cover_Trigger, Bridge_Light_Trigger, Bridge_Sensor_Alert and Bridge_Energy_Alert.

8. Overlays in the video

Overlays draw device information into the camera's picture, so it is visible in live view and in recordings. They are off until you switch them on at the top of the Overlays page.

Status strip — One line with devices online, total power and alarms. Choose its position and colour.

Sensor pins — Up to eight live readings, each placed at a point in the picture. Add a pin, choose the device and reading, then drag it in the preview.

Trigger flash — A banner along the top each time a mapping acts. It stays for the number of seconds you set.

Latch banner — A red bar along the bottom while a latched mapping waits to be acknowledged.

The preview is a still picture from the camera, refreshed every two seconds, with the overlay drawn on top. You can arrange everything before switching overlays on. Test flash plays the banner once.

Overlays appear on the camera's first video source. If the camera does not support drawn overlays, the page says so and the rest of the app works as normal.

9. Diagnostics

Diagnostics shows the health of the camera and of Bridge, updated every two seconds while the page is open.

Overview — Processor, memory, storage and network load, camera model and firmware, and how much memory and processor Bridge itself uses.

Video — A live preview, who is connected to the video stream, and the camera's stream settings.

Network — Addresses, gateway and DNS, open services and connected clients, and a connectivity test run from the camera.

Devices — For each device: response time, failed requests and when it last answered. A slow or unreliable device shows up here first.

Download report saves everything on the page as one file. Attach it when you contact support.

10. Settings reference

Poll interval — How often Bridge reads every device's status. Default 30 seconds. Shorter gives fresher readings and faster triggers, with more network traffic.

UI refresh — How often this web page reloads device data.

Event cooldown — Minimum time between two actions of the same mapping. Default 5 seconds. Does not apply to Follow.

Max retries — How many times a failed command is sent again.

Confirm before toggling — Ask for confirmation when a relay is switched by hand.

Webhook URL — Bridge posts a short JSON message to this address every time a mapping acts. Leave empty to switch it off.

Discovery defaults — The subnet and address range Discovery starts with.

Show device-to-camera triggers — Shows the Camera Triggers page.

Backup and restore — Saves or loads all devices, mappings and settings as one file.

Language — Chosen from the list at the top right. It follows your browser's language unless you pick another.

Device readings used by triggers and overlays are as fresh as the poll interval. If a trigger needs to react within a few seconds, lower the poll interval.

11. Licensing

A new installation runs as a 30-day trial with up to 2 devices. After that a licence is needed. Licences are tied to the camera's serial number, which is shown on the Licence page. Enter the key there and press Activate.

Before sending a camera back for replacement, deactivate the licence on it and ask for a new one for the replacement at contact@overedge.io.

12. Supported devices

Shelly

Gen1, Plus, Pro and Gen3 mains-powered devices: relays, plugs, input modules, cover controllers, dimmers and RGBW controllers, add-on sensors and energy meters. Bridge reads what a device has from the device itself, so new models in these families normally work without an update. Battery-powered Shelly devices are not supported.

Web-interface products

NETIO power sockets and PDUs, and the ControlByWeb relay family. Both are marked "not yet verified on hardware" in the product list until they have been checked on a real unit. Other products can be added with the Custom HTTP form.

Modbus TCP

Relay modules with relays on consecutive coils, through the bundled generic product or the Custom Modbus form.

Cameras

Axis cameras running AXIS OS 12. Overlays need a camera that supports drawn overlays.

13. Troubleshooting

Discovery does not find a device — Check the subnet being scanned matches the device's address. Then use Test a single address: it says whether the camera can reach the device at all. If it cannot, the cause is routing or a firewall between the two networks.

A device shows offline — Check it is powered and on the network, and open its own web page from the ⋮ menu. On Diagnostics → Devices, look at its failed requests and last answer.

A device shows only one switch, or the wrong ones — It is probably password-protected. Enter its credentials under ⋮ → Authentication.

The event happens but the device does not act — Look in the Log. Check the mapping's schedule and conditions, and the event cooldown in Settings.

A trigger on a reading fires late — It can only react as fast as the poll interval plus its "must hold for" time. Lower one or both.

Overlays do not appear in the video — Check the switch at the top of the Overlays page and the status text beside it. Overlays are drawn on the first video source only.

The page looks unchanged after an update — Reload with Ctrl+F5. The version at the top left, and its build time when you hover over it, show what is actually running.

Event names look different between cameras — That is normal. Camera models name the same event differently, and Bridge matches them for you.

14. Support and contact

For questions, problems or requests. Attaching the report from Diagnostics helps us answer faster.

contact@overedge.io overedge.io