Machine access

With MakerOps controllers on your machines, the rules you set in the platform are enforced at the machine: a member scans, MakerOps checks, and the machine powers on. This page covers the platform side. The device has its own manual.

MakerOps controls who may power a machine and when. It does not replace guarding, e-stops, supervision or your space’s own safety rules (Access, not safety).

Add a controller

1. Turn on the Controllers module (Settings › Modules) if the setup wizard didn’t.
2. In the mobile app, set the controller up on your Wi-Fi: More › Controllers, then + at the top right. See Connecting to Wi-Fi.
3. Pair it with a machine: tap Scan, scan the NOT PAIRED YET QR on the controller, choose the Machine and Control mode, and tap Pair controller.

Facility › Controllers on the web lists every unit with whether it’s online, its firmware version and the machine it runs.

Session rules

Each controller’s settings open from the settings icon on its row in Facility › Controllers. In the app, staff can also manage controllers, turn open access on and off, and open a machine to a group from More › Controllers. They’re split into four tabs:

• Machine: which machine it runs and how it controls it.
• Sessions: how a session starts (straight away, after a GREEN press, or after an on-screen checklist), how long it lasts, when end-of-session warnings sound, whether it follows reservations, and “still there?” check-ins.
• Safety: a second-person requirement, the countdown before power comes on, and the switch-left-on check.
• Hardware: sensor inputs, screen settings, and the Admin menu lock PIN.

Changes go to the controller over the air. The settings show when a controller has confirmed them.

Set an admin PIN on every controller. It’s the only way to unlock the controller’s admin menu while it’s offline. See The admin menu.

Who can start a machine

A scan is approved only if all of these hold:

• Credentials. The member meets the machine’s Required credentials: every credential on it, or an alternative accepted in its place. Expired or revoked credentials don’t count, and credentials honored from a partner workspace do. See Require training for a machine.
• Service status. The machine is Operational or Available.
• Bookings. No one else has a reservation now, and there’s no group access window the member isn’t part of. Neither may start within the next 10 minutes.
• Contact details. If your space enforces contact requirements, the member’s are complete.
• The controller is online and not overheating, disabled or already in use.

Waivers count only through credentials. To require a waiver for a machine, make it an entry requirement, or link it to a credential the machine requires.

When a scan is refused, the member sees the reason in the app. Troubleshooting lists every message and its fix.

Booking rules

To reserve a machine for a class, club or credential holders at set times, use Facility › Booking Rules. While a window is active, only its audience can start the machine. The controller shows RESERVED FOR … under its QR.

When the internet is down

Members can still start machines they’re trained on, using passes the app saved in the last 24 hours. Offline sessions last a fixed 60 minutes and are reported once the controller reconnects. See When the internet is down.

Session history

Every session is recorded: who, which machine, when and how it ended. You’ll find it on the machine’s Sessions tab, and members see their own under My Stuff › My Machine History.

Firmware

Controller firmware updates come from the platform over the air. You never walk around flashing units.