CreateFlowManually.md

Build the Node-RED Flow Manually

Read this in other languages: 한국어.

In order to build the Node-RED flow for the CASIS satellite tracker, you will use the flow editor to add and connect nodes, and put configuration information and code in the appropriate node.

NOTE: You can move the contents of a file to your Operating System clipboard with:

pbcopy < myfile on MacOS,

cat myfile |clip on Windows, or

cat myfile| xclip on Linux.

NOTE: You can find nodes in the filter nodes search box in the upper left of the flow editor.

NOTE: We'll add link nodes to allow them to fit on one screen, and to connect multiple nodes via branching. We'll add the nodes first, then connect them at the the end.

Create the Watson Assistant Chat API

• Grab the following nodes in order, and wire them up in a row. The following 3 groups represent 3 rows:

http in
function
assistant
function
link out

link in
function
credentials
http request
json
link out

link in
function
http response

The flow should look like this:

• Double-click the first node, http in and change the Method to POST and the URL to /botchat

• Double-click the next function node, change the name to Process chat input and cut-n-paste the processChatInput.js code.

• Double-click the Assistant node, and name it 'ISS Assistant'. Add the username and password, or the IAM apikey, and the Workspace ID that you saved earlier when you created the Watson Assistant service.

• Double-click the final function node in the first row, name it Generate Timestamp, and cut-n-paste the generateTimestamp.js code.

• Start the second row by double-clicking on the first function node in that row and name it ISS to reverse geocode function, and paste the ISStoReverseGeocode.js code.

• Double click the credentials node. Click +add under the Values box and add the locationIQ API key to the private box and change the to box to be msg.API_key.

• Double click the http request node and name it GET reverse geocode. In the URL box paste the getReverseGeocode URL string.

• The json node does not need configuration.

• Begin the third row by double-clicking the function node and naming it Assistant output to chat. Paste the assistantOutputToChat.js code.

• Finally, double-click the http response node and name it Bot response. Set the status code to 200.

• Detailed video

Create the Handle Assistant Intents

• We'll build the following:

• Grab the following Nodes and connect them:

link node
switch node

in parallel:
function node
satellite node
time array
time array
function
function

from each time array:
function
function

from both functions:
satellite

link node

• Open up the switch node, name it Assistant Intents, and add the property assistant.intents[0].intent (after msg.). We'll have a total of 6 intents, so use the +add button to add 5 more. Name them: what,where,where-historical,where-future, mode-2d, and mode-3d.

• Open the top function node, name it What is the ISS?, and paste the whatIsTheISS.js code.

• The satellite node should already have Sat. Type Space Stations and Satellite ISS(ZARYA).

• Open the top Satellite Time Array node and configure with +/- 10 mins, Samples 20, and Name Last 10 mins.

• Open the second Satellite Time Array node and configure with +/- 0 mins, Samples 20, and Name Next 10 mins.

• Open the next function node, name it Define Mode and paste the defineMode.js code.

• Open the bottom function node, name it Define Mode and paste the defineMode.js code. Change the code from 2d to 3d.

• The 2 functions coming after the Satellite Time array should both be named Define Text. Paste the defineText.js code in each and change the bottom one from Last to Next.

• The final Satellite node should be the same as the first, with Satellite ISS(ZARYA).

• Detailed video

Create the HTML Chat UI

• In your Node-RED flow editor, drag-and-drop nodes for HTTP input, template, and HTTP response and wire them together.

• Double-click the first node http in and change the Method to GET and the URL to /bot. Name it Chat home page.

• Add the chat-ui.html code to the template node and name it HTML.

• Name the http response node Chat http response.

• Detailed video

Create the World Map UI

• In the Node-RED flow editor, drag-and-drop 2 link nodes, an inject node, 4 function nodes, a worldmap node, an earth node, and a worldmap-tracks node.

• Wire them up:

• Double-click the inject node and tick the checkbox for Inject once after 0.1 seconds.

• Double-click the top function node (after the timestamp) and add the code for add map layer. Name it add map layer.

• Double-click the function node after the link node and add the code for ISS to Map. Name it ISS to map.

• Double-click the function node after ISS to map, and add the code for move and zoom. Name it move and zoom.

• Double-click the last function node, below tracks and above earth, name it ISS Path to Line and paste the code ISSPathToLine.js.

• The worldmap, tracks, and earth nodes do not need any configuring.

• Detailed video

Connect the Link nodes

The Link nodes are named for the nodes that are connected to, with either IN or OUT appended to indicate whether they go in to or out from that node. You connect the link nodes by double-clicking and choosing the node they connect to . For example, we connect Generate Timestamp OUT to Assistant Intents IN:

• Connect iss to reverse geocode IN to ISS Location OUT:

• Connect json OUT to Assistant output to Chat IN:

• Connect What is ISS OUT, ISS 2 OUT, Define Mode 2d OUT, and Define Mode 3d OUT to Assistant output to Chat IN:

• Connect ISS Location OUT to both ss to reverse geocode IN and ISS to Map IN:

• Connect ISS 2 OUT to ISS to Map IN and ISS Path to Line IN (It's already connected to Assistant output to Chat IN):

• Detailed video

Deploy the App

Click Deploy

View and use the App

Use the running app by going to <Node-RED_URL>/bot