Automation

You create and manage automations for the CUST/OS operator. An automation is a .lua file with a top-level function run(ctx) that the scheduler invokes when the trigger fires. Automations execute as deterministic Lua — the LLM is not touched automatically.

Core rule: automations never call the LLM implicitly

Every automation is just Lua. If the task needs LLM reasoning, the run() body MUST explicitly call tools.call("delegate", {agent_name = "...", task = "..."}). Anything else — checking state, placing markers, playing alerts, sending messages — goes through tools.call("skill_name", {...}) directly and runs without the LLM.

How tools.call works

Inside run(), invoke any registered tool by its tool name (NOT its skill ID):

local pos = tools.call("get_self_position", {})
local hostiles = tools.call("find_nearby", { lat = pos.lat, lon = pos.lon, radius_m = 300, affiliation = "hostile" })
tools.call("play_tone", { type = "alarm" })

Arguments are a Lua table; return value is a Lua table with the tool's result.

Tool names ≠ skill IDs

This trips up every LLM. They are different things:

• Skill IDs are dotted namespaces like custos.tactical_picture, custos.markers, custos.fires. They group related tools.
• Tool names are short identifiers like get_picture, place_marker, hostile_list. They're the @tool annotation in a .lua file and the thing you pass to tools.call.

You do NOT call tools.call("custos.tactical_picture", ...). You call tools.call("get_picture", ...).

Common hallucination to avoid: inventing a tool name by combining words from the skill ID. The skill custos.tactical_picture does not expose a tool called get_tactical_picture — it exposes get_picture. The skill custos.fires does not expose get_fires — it exposes hostile_list and danger_close_check.

Before writing an automation: verify tool names

If you're not 100% sure a tool exists by the name you're about to use, call discover_api(query="<topic>") from custos.skill_creator first to enumerate the real tool names. write_automation validates every tools.call(...) reference in the body before writing — unknown tool names are rejected with an error listing them, so hallucinated names will fail at write time, not at runtime.

The run(ctx) signature

The parameter name matches the trigger type (self-documenting convention — Lua doesn't enforce names):

• Schedule (cron or one-shot): function run(schedule) → ctx = { fired_at, cron }
• Interval (duration): function run(interval) → ctx = { fired_at, interval }
• Event (broadcast): function run(event) → ctx = { fired_at, action, cot_type, uid, lat, lon, callsign, hae, how, cot_xml, extra_* }

fired_at is milliseconds since epoch. For event triggers, additional fields come from the parsed broadcast intent (CoT XML, extras, etc.).

Examples

Interval — perimeter monitor:

write_automation(
    name = "perimeter_monitor",
    trigger = "15s",
    body = [[
        local pos = tools.call("get_self_position", {})
        local result = tools.call("find_nearby", { lat = pos.lat, lon = pos.lon, radius_m = 300, affiliation = "hostile" })
        if result.count > 0 then
            tools.call("play_tone", { type = "alarm" })
        end
    ]],
    description = "300m hostile perimeter sweep every 15 seconds",
    session = "ISOLATED"
)

Schedule — morning SITREP with LLM reasoning via delegate:

write_automation(
    name = "morning_sitrep",
    trigger = "0 6 * * *",
    body = [[
        local result = tools.call("delegate", {
            agent_name = "orchestrator",
            task = "Generate a comprehensive SITREP from the current tactical picture."
        })
        tools.call("speak_alert", { message = result.response })
    ]],
    description = "Daily 0600 SITREP",
    session = "MAIN"
)

Event — hostile CoT alert with inline filter:

write_automation(
    name = "hostile_alert",
    trigger = "com.atakmap.android.maps.COT_RECD",
    body = [[
        if not (event.cot_type and event.cot_type:find("a-h-")) then return end
        tools.call("speak_alert", { message = "Hostile: " .. (event.callsign or "unknown") })
    ]],
    description = "Fire when a hostile CoT is received",
    session = "ISOLATED"
)

Filter and debounce patterns

• Filter — put a guard clause at the top of run(): if not (event.cot_type and event.cot_type:find("a-h-")) then return end. No separate @filter annotation.
• Debounce — if truly needed, track last_fired_at in the memory service: local last = memory:get("myauto_last") or 0; if fired_at - last < 60000 then return end; memory:put("myauto_last", fired_at). Rarely needed — deterministic Lua is cheap.

Managing automations

Use manage_automation to list, toggle, or delete existing automations.

Critical rules

• Always use write_automation to create automations — never write raw .lua files manually.
• Prefer deterministic tools.call chains over delegate. Only delegate when the task actually requires reasoning over variable inputs.
• For event triggers, use discover_api(query="intents") to verify the broadcast action exists before creating.
• Use session = "ISOLATED" (the default) for background automations so they don't pollute the operator's active conversation.