Auto Gear Rules

Auto Gear Rules Engine

Automate repetitive equipment additions to your projects with configurable automation rules.

Overview

The Auto Gear engine evaluates rules in an IF → THEN format whenever you generate gear for a project. Instead of manually adding batteries, media, matte boxes, or support every time you add a camera, define a rule once and it handles the rest.

Requirements

Functional Requirements

Non-Functional Requirements

Data Requirements

• Global rules: stored in IndexedDB, cloud-synced via syncEngine. A pre-2026 localStorage copy is migrated into IndexedDB on first load and then removed — localStorage is the legacy seed, not the store.
• Project rules: stored on the project object
• Schema: v4. v2 introduced compound triggers, add/remove actions and per-trigger match modes; v3 added evaluatePerPackage; v4 added the explicit item mode discriminator (static, perCamera, perProjectArray, perCatalogMatch, perAccessoryCableMatch, derivedFrom, perLookupTable). Migrations run automatically — v1→v2 and v3→v4 both ship.
• Required fields: a name, plus at least one device item — unless the rule is computed or dynamic, which supply their own items at evaluation time

Constraints & Limits

• Available to all tiers (Free and Pro) — Auto Gear has no paywall gate
• There is no cap on triggers per rule. This page listed a maximum of 10 until 2026-09-08; no such limit has ever been enforced anywhere in the app.
• Computed actions are read-only (factory-defined functions)

Offline Behavior

• Fully available offline — rule evaluation and gear generation are client-side
• Rule changes sync to cloud when connectivity is restored

Dependencies

• Requires: Device Library — auto-gear rules reference catalog items
• Requires: Projects — rules applied within project context

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Key Concepts

How Rules Work (v4 Schema)

Each rule follows a 3-step structure, mirrored by the wizard editor:

Step 1 — Triggers

Triggers define when a rule fires. A rule can hold as many triggers as you need, and each trigger after the first carries its own logic operator:

Evaluation is strictly left to right, with no operator precedence. A AND B OR C is read as (A AND B) OR C, never as A AND (B OR C). If a rule needs the other grouping, split it in two.

The app defines 97 trigger types across five categories. The tables below name every type in the four smaller categories and the most-used ones in Project Requirements, which is by far the largest.

Match modes. Each trigger declares which of the ten modes it accepts, so the picker only ever offers the ones that make sense for that trigger:

Step 2 — Logic (Action)

Choose what the rule does when triggers match:

• Add Gear — add devices to the gear list
• Remove Gear — strip devices from the generated list

Step 3 — Devices

Select the items to add or remove. Each item has:

• Name — device name (with search/autocomplete against the device catalog)
• Quantity — how many to add
• Category — organizational category (Cameras, Grip, Lighting, etc.)
• Notes — free-text notes

Items are reordered with the ▲ / ▼ buttons on each row. There is no drag-and-drop here — this page described one until 2026-09-08.

Computed (Smart) Actions

Some factory rules use computed actions — functions that query the device catalog at runtime to suggest gear. There are 33 of them; the table lists the general-purpose ones. Twelve more build individual video-village stations (Director 7″/15″, Gaffer 7″, DoP 7″/15″, Combo 15″, iOS, DIT Loop, Sound 5-7″, PIX-E5, PIX-E7) and nine mirror camera-package and project selections into the gear list (syncCameraPackage*, syncProject*).

Computed rules show a ⚡ Smart Action badge in the editor and skip the devices step.

suggestBatteries, suggestCameraSupport and suggestVideoDistributionMonitors are gone. This page listed all three until 2026-09-08. Battery counts moved to the dynamic-block rule Smart Power: Batteries (Dynamic); camera support became per-brand logic rules (factory-support-*); the third never existed.

Creating a Rule

1. Navigate to Settings → Workflow → Auto Gear (for global rules) or open a project's Auto Gear tab (for project-specific rules)
2. Click Create Rule
3. Step 1 (Triggers): Select trigger type, choose values, optionally add more triggers and set each one's logic operator
4. Step 2 (Logic): Choose Add or Remove
5. Step 3 (Devices): Search the device catalog, add items with quantities
6. Click Save

💡 Auto-naming: If you leave the rule name empty, it will be auto-generated from the trigger type and action (e.g., "Camera → Add").

🛟 Leaving a part-built rule asks first: once you have edited anything, Escape, the header ×, the backdrop and Cancel all raise a "Discard changes?" confirm rather than throwing the draft away. "Keep editing" returns you to the step you were on with the work intact. A wizard you have not touched still closes straight away.

Dynamic Logic Blocks

Rules can include dynamic logic blocks — conditional IF/THEN statements within a rule's action step that resolve devices at runtime based on project context:

• Example: IF monitors < 7", add Small Monitor Preferred Battery; IF monitors ≥ 7", add Large Monitor Preferred Battery
• Visual builder: The Rule Editor wizard (Step 2 — Logic) provides a UI to create and edit dynamic conditions without writing code
• Smart Power Defaults: The Camera Package editor includes a dedicated section to define preferred batteries for small (< 7") and large (≥ 7") monitors, which dynamic rules reference at evaluation time
• Contextual labels: In multi-camera setups, dynamically resolved items include the camera package name (e.g., "V-Mount Battery (Cam A)") for clarity

Rule Scope: Global vs Project

• Projects inherit global rules by default
• Switching to project-specific rules overrides globals for that project
• You can revert a project back to global rules at any time

Example Rules

Presets

The Auto Gear system features a Preset System that lets you save, organize, and load collections of rules (e.g., specific setups for Documentary, Commercial, or Interview shoots).

• Save Current Rules: Save your current workspace rules as a reusable preset.
• Load Presets: Apply a saved preset to your current project. This will replace the existing rules with the ones defined in the preset.
• Manage Presets: Rename, duplicate, or delete your custom presets.
• Storage: Presets live in your browser's local storage, obfuscated at rest, and sync across your devices via the cloud when sync is enabled.

Use presets to instantly load complex automation rules tailored to your specific workflows instead of rebuilding them from scratch.

Factory Defaults

The platform ships 112 factory rules. The headline ones:

• ⚡ Smart Charger Suggestion — computed charger matching based on battery mount
• Smart Power: Batteries (Dynamic) — a dynamic-block rule, not a computed action: 4 batteries per camera, 3 per small monitor, 4 per large monitor, resolved against your Smart Power Defaults
• ⚡ Smart Power Cable Suggestion — computed cable matching based on device power inputs
• ⚡ Smart Monitor Cable Suggestion — computed SDI/HDMI video cables for camera ↔ monitor with strict port matching, plus the monitor's power cables and rigging
• ⚡ Smart FIZ Cable Suggestion — computed motor-to-controller data cables
• ⚡ Smart Power Plate Suggestion — computed battery plates for accessories
• Camera support — ~20 per-brand rules (factory-support-*) covering bridge plates, dovetails and heads for Sachtler, Ronford-Baby, O'Connor and the standard/short tripod sets
• Weather protection — CapIT sets, rain covers, shower caps, Magliner rain cover, Easyup
• ⚡ Sync rules — mirror the camera package (body, cage, FIZ, batteries, wireless, monitor, hotswap) and the project's filter, media and lens selections into the gear list

You can disable factory defaults at any time in Settings → Workflow → Auto Gear without affecting your custom rules.

Managing Rules

• Toggle on/off without deleting — useful for seasonal or client-specific setups
• Reorder with ▲ / ▼ — execution order matches display order. The buttons are hidden while a rule search filter is active, because the visible order is not the stored order then
• Run Now (▶ on the rule card) — run that single rule against the current project immediately
• Duplicate a rule as a starting point for a similar setup
• Import / Export rules as JSON for backup or sharing with colleagues
• Delete rules you no longer need — factory rules included
• Reset to Factory to restore original configurations

On a phone or tablet the header keeps only New Rule; Stock Rules, Export, Import and Presets move into the … More button beside it. On a desktop-width screen (1280px and up) all five stay on the row. Settings → Workflow → Auto Gear folds the same way — there Save as Preset, Presets, Reset Defaults, Export and Import are the ones behind … More.

Run Now — running one rule on demand

The ▶ button on a rule card runs only that rule, without generating from every other rule in the list. It always reports what happened: how many items it added, whether everything it adds was already in the gear list, or that it produced nothing.

If the rule's conditions do not match this project — or the rule is switched off — it cannot fire on its own, so the app asks first and then runs it anyway on confirmation. That is the intended way to pull in a rule's kit for a shoot that does not technically meet its triggers. Items land in the gear list exactly as a normal generation would place them, tagged with the rule that added them, so Undo Auto Gear still removes them.

When a rule is marked Context Changed, the same button turns into a rerun (↻): the project changed under a rule that already fired, and re-running brings its output back in line.

Validation & Warnings

Saving is blocked when:

• The rule has no name — and note this is rarely seen, because an empty name is auto-filled from the trigger and action on save
• There are no device items — unless the rule is computed or dynamic, which produce their own
• A dynamic rule has no logic blocks, or a block is missing its source, target or a multiplier > 0
• A device item has no name

You are warned, but not blocked, when:

• No trigger conditions are set — "this rule will never fire"
• A numeric trigger has no threshold value
• A trigger has no values selected

There is no duplicate-action check and no circular-dependency check. This page promised both until 2026-09-08. Validation runs against one rule at a time, so it cannot see what other rules add, and triggers read project context rather than other rules — a rule cannot trigger a rule.

Data Architecture (Developer Reference)

app/src/data/auto-gear/
├── autoGearSchema.js              # v4 schema: TRIGGER_TYPES, TRIGGER_CATEGORIES, MATCH_MODE_LABELS,
│                                  #   LOGIC_OPERATORS, ITEM_MODES, validation, v1→v2 / v3→v4 migration
├── autoGearSchemaMigration.js     # Migration helpers, split out to avoid an import cycle
├── autoGearEngine.js              # buildProjectContext(), evaluateRules()
├── autoGearEngineExtractors.js    # Context extractors for multi-camera package rule evaluation
├── autoGearTriggerMatcher.js      # matchesTrigger() / matchesRule() — the logic-operator walk
├── autoGearComputed.js            # COMPUTED_ACTIONS registry + runComputedAction()
├── autoGearComputedCables.js      # Monitor, FIZ and power cable suggestions
├── autoGearComputedPower.js       # Power plate suggestions
├── autoGearComputedMattebox.js    # Matte box and filter tray suggestions
├── autoGearComputedMedia.js       # Recording media suggestions
├── autoGearComputedMediaCount.js  # Media quantity from record time
├── autoGearComputedMonitors.js    # Focus monitor and sun hood suggestions
├── autoGearComputedSync.js        # Camera-package and project sync actions
├── autoGearComputedTransportation.js  # Vehicle mirroring
├── autoGearComputedVideoVillage.js    # The twelve video-village station actions
├── autoGearDefaults.js            # getFactoryRules() — composes the three submodules below
├── autoGearDefaultsCatalogHelpers.js  # Catalog extraction helpers + the r() rule builder
├── autoGearDefaultsContext.js     # Context, scenario and weather rules
├── autoGearDefaultsSupport.js     # Tripod, support, device and recording-media rules
├── autoGearDefaultsComputed.js    # Computed and sync rules
├── autoGearDefaultsLabels.js      # COMPUTED_ACTION_LABELS — the UI copy for each smart action
├── autoGearDynamicBlocks.js       # Dynamic logic block evaluation
├── autoGearDynamicBlockAuthoring.js   # v4 block authoring + validation
├── autoGearDeviceOptions.js       # Device name extraction for editor checkbox grids
├── autoGearCategoryMap.js         # Item → gear-list category mapping
├── autoGearCategoryOrder.js       # Category ordering, global and per-project
├── autoGearItemExpansion.js       # Expands an emitted item into its parts
├── autoGearNaming.js              # generateRuleName()
├── autoGearVocabulary.js          # Shared term lists used by matching
├── hardwareDefaults.js            # Smart Power Defaults resolution
├── globalRulesStore.js            # Global rules store (IndexedDB + cloud sync via syncEngine)
└── presetStore.js                 # Preset CRUD (obfuscated localStorage, cloud-synced)

app/src/features/projects/components/workspace/auto-gear/
├── AutoGearTab.jsx                # Thin render shell (rule list, toolbar, actions)
├── useAutoGearTab.js              # Tab state: editing, import/export, presets, confirm dialogs
├── useAutoGearRuleSearch.js       # Rule list search/filter
├── AutoGearRuleCard.jsx           # Rule card: trigger summary, action badge, items, ▲▼, Run Now
├── AutoGearRuleEditor.jsx         # Wizard modal (portal to body)
├── AutoGearRuleSearchInput.jsx    # Search box above the rule list
├── AutoGearHighlight.jsx          # "⚡ RuleName" badge shown on auto-added items in gear list
├── AutoGearPowerDefaults.jsx      # Smart Power Defaults editor
├── AutoGearDefaultCategory.jsx    # Default category picker
├── AutoGearCameraPackageCategories.jsx  # Per-package category assignment
├── ProjectAutoGearCategoryOrder.jsx     # Per-project category order override
├── FactoryRuleCatalog.jsx         # Stock rule browser
├── PresetManagerModal.jsx         # CRUD interface for user-created presets
├── PresetLoadDialog.jsx           # Dialog to select and apply a preset
├── autoGearLabelI18n.js           # Trigger/action label translation
├── components/
│   ├── AutoGearHeaderActions.jsx  # Title row: full button row ≥1280px, "… More" menu below
│   ├── AutoGearBanners.jsx        # Scope and context-changed banners
│   ├── AutoGearExclusions.jsx     # Excluded-item management
│   ├── AutoGearLastGeneration.jsx # Last generation summary
│   └── GenerationSummaryDialog.jsx
└── editor/
    ├── useAutoGearRuleEditor.js   # Wizard state machine (draft, step navigation, CRUD)
    ├── useAutoGearRuleEditorDismiss.js  # Dirty guard: one requestClose behind every exit (#588)
    ├── RuleEditorStepIndicator.jsx      # Step strip (Triggers → Logic → Devices)
    ├── RuleEditorTestResult.jsx         # "Test Rule" outcome banner
    ├── RuleEditorFooter.jsx             # Back/Cancel, Enabled, Test Rule, Next/Save
    ├── QuickAddRuleEditor.jsx     # Single-screen editor for simple rules
    ├── StepTrigger.jsx            # Step 1: compound trigger builder + logic operators
    ├── StepLogic.jsx              # Step 2: action selector + trigger summary
    ├── StepDevices.jsx            # Step 3: item search, selection, ▲▼ reorder
    ├── TriggerRow.jsx             # Single trigger condition row
    ├── CheckboxGrid.jsx           # Multi-select grid with search filter
    ├── LogicBlocksBuilder.jsx     # Dynamic logic block builder
    └── blocks/                    # v4 block editors (simple, advanced, source, target)

app/src/features/projects/hooks/features/
├── useAutoGear.js                 # Core hook: dual-scope (global + per-project), evaluate, generate
├── useAutoGear/useAutoGearRules.js  # Rule CRUD, scope switching, moveRule
└── useRuleManager.js              # Delete/duplicate confirmation flows

app/src/features/settings/
├── SettingsWorkflowTab.jsx        # The Workflow tab that hosts the Auto Gear section
└── SettingsAutoGear.jsx           # Global rules management in Settings

Tips & Best Practices

1. Start with factory defaults — they cover smart cable and charger matching out of the box
2. Use compound triggers — combine device + property triggers (e.g., "ARRI AND V-Mount") for precise rules
3. Mind the left-to-right order — there is no precedence, so put the trigger you want evaluated first, first
4. Keep rules focused — one trigger → one logical group of items
5. Test with Generate — use the "Generate Gear" button to preview what rules produce without committing
6. Export before resetting — rebuilding a complex rule set from scratch is tedious
7. Share rule sets — export JSON and share with colleagues using the same camera systems

Related Documentation

• User Guide — Auto Gear
• Device Library
• Provider System

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Last Updated: 2026-09-08 Version: 0.790.2