USM Ultimate Sports Manager
DownloadSign up

Stream Deck control for USM Boarding The match, on fifteen keys.

A free module for Bitfocus Companion that puts USM Boarding on a Stream Deck. Start a playlist, fire a stinger, add a goal, run the match clock or take the wall to black, from keys that show what is on the boards right now.

Download the moduleHow to install it
A Stream Deck on a desk in a dark room, its fifteen keys lit blue
Photo: Sergiy Galyonkin, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped

Download.

A Stream Deck laid out with the USM Boarding buttonsFifteen keys in three rows. Play, next, previous, fade to black and a red panic key; goal buttons for both teams showing the score, the match clock running in green, the added-time board up in orange, and half time; screen sync on in green, a stinger, a stinger group, a playlist and a brightness step.▶︎Play⏭︎Next⏮︎PrevFTBPANICclear allGOALHome2GOALAway1❚❚RUNNING67:12+1 min+4HALFTIMESYNCon✦Kick-off✦✦group 1▶︎Match dayBRT+5%
One page of buttons from the module. The score, the clock and the added time are live: they change on the key when they change in USM.

USM Boarding for Companion

Version 2.10.0

Download the module
File
usm-boarding-companion-2.10.0.tgz, 63 KB
Released
Companion
4.0 or newer, on Windows, macOS or Linux
USM Boarding
Any current version. Scoreboard and show-jumping buttons need 1.1.773 or newer, stinger groups 1.1.814 or newer.
Price
Free, for anyone running USM Boarding
Check the file

SHA-256 of the download:

f5c3b9fc5f32e661b24f73b1a9336a94005b4698320af008525b893a8da2a2cc

Install it.

The first step is in USM Boarding, the rest in Companion.

  1. Check the API in USM

    In USM Boarding, open Settings, then Connectivity, then External Control, and check the API is running. It listens on port 12500 unless someone has changed it. If Companion runs on another PC, tick Allow LAN access and note the address the card shows.

  2. Import the package

    In Companion, open Modules, choose Import module package and pick the file you downloaded.

  3. Add the connection

    Under Connections, add USM Boarding. Enter the host, 127.0.0.1 when Companion is on the same PC or the LAN address from USM when it is not, and the port the card shows.

  4. Put the buttons on the deck

    The connection turns green once it reaches USM. The ready-made buttons are under Presets, in groups such as Transport, Playlists, Stingers and Scoreboard: drag the ones you want onto the keys.

What the buttons do.

  • Transport. Play and pause on one key that shows which it will do, next and previous slot, stop, fade to black, and the F-key cues of the project that is open.
  • Playlists. Start a playlist by name, or land on one slot of it. A browser page walks from screens to playlists to sequences and fills itself as you add them in USM, so a new playlist needs no work in Companion.
  • Stingers and live sources. Fire or stop a stinger, or a whole group across screens, and show or hide an NDI, browser or DeckLink source. The key lights while it is on the boards.
  • Match control. Goals for each side, the match clock, the halves, extra time and penalties, the added-time board and the starting eleven. The keys carry the score and the clock.
  • More than one screen. Turn screen sync on and off, and skip or pause one wall without touching the others.
  • Brightness. All screens or one, in steps of 5%. On a Stream Deck +, a dial can turn it up and down.
  • Show jumping. Arm and disarm the Hippodata and Equipe triggers. The key turns orange when a trigger is armed but not working.
  • Panic. One key takes the wall to black and clears every stinger, source and line-up on it.

Why Companion.

Bitfocus Companion is free software that turns a Stream Deck, an X-keys panel or a web page on a tablet into buttons for the equipment in a control room. With this module, the LED boards sit on the same buttons as the vision mixer and the lights, and the operator does not have to reach for the playout PC during a match.

The module talks to USM over its API and USM pushes every change back, so a key that says the clock is running shows what is on the boards, even if someone changed it in USM.

The same commands are in the API itself, for a system that is not Companion: the reference is on the playout PC at port 12500, under /docs. The Companion module in the manual.

Questions.

Is the Companion module for USM Boarding free?
Yes. Download it here and use it with any USM Boarding licence.
Is it the same module that comes with USM Boarding?
Yes, the same file. USM carries a copy under Settings, Connectivity, External Control, with a button to save it, for a playout PC without internet. This page has the current version for everyone else.
Why is the module not in Companion’s own list?
We publish it with the software it controls, so a new version of the module comes out with the version of USM Boarding it needs. Companion 4 installs it from the file in a few clicks.
Does it work with a Stream Deck +, XL or Mini?
Yes. Companion drives all of them, and the module’s buttons go on any of them. The brightness steps suit the dials on a Stream Deck +.
Can Companion run on a different PC from USM Boarding?
Yes. Tick Allow LAN access under Settings, Connectivity, External Control in USM, and enter the playout PC’s address in Companion. With it off, USM only answers on its own PC.
The connection stays on Connecting. What is wrong?
Check that the API is running in USM, that the host and port in Companion match the External Control card, and, with Companion on another PC, that Allow LAN access is ticked and the firewall lets the API port through, 12500 unless it was changed.
How do I update the module?
Download the new version from this page and import it the same way.

Not running USM Boarding yet?

The module sends the commands. The playlists, stingers and scoreboard it runs are built in USM Boarding.

See what the software does