Node Red Client for Polkadot 🚀

Note: Development has started already! this referenda covers previous published work, development for the next 12 months and maintenance. Bring home automation enthusiasts closer to Substrate voting yes!

Project Overview 🌟

Node Red is renowned as the most widely used open source, self-hosted alternative for no-code flows, akin to IFTTT (If This Then That). It empowers users to automate tasks visually and integrate various systems without deep programming knowledge. Node Red Client for Polkadot utilizes this platform to bridge everyday users with the advanced capabilities of the Substrate ecosystem.

Why Node Red? Node Red's visual programming interface simplifies creating automation flows. Its integration with Polkadot opens numerous possibilities for personal and professional use cases within the blockchain domain.

Use cases

A Node Red client opens up many potential use cases. Here are a few examples:

1. Create Dashboards: Use Node Red's built-in HTTP server to monitor addresses, blocks, or extrinsics
2. Telegram Bot for Event Notifications: Set up a bot to notify of specific on-chain events.
3. Monitor Governance: Visualize or notify governance events or integrate home assistants easily (like asking Alexa or Google about your balance)
4. Email Alerts for Runtime Changes: Automatically send alerts for runtime version or metadata changes.
5. Submit extrisincs: Stake your additional funds as soon as you receive a new inbound transfer or withdraw funds automatically whenever they are unbonded then get notified
6. Automated Transactions from JSON Changes: Execute transactions in response to JSON file changes.

Current usage

One example is Polkawatch app, team is using our plugin under the hood to observe substrate data, check details on this post

Examples

Here below a simple example on how the Polkadot Plugin for Node Red could allow a user to easily create a way to monitor this governance proposal and get notified of changes with minimal coding:

These are just examples of how Node Red Client for Polkadot can simplify and automate blockchain interactions.

What are we developing? 🔧

This request also covers previous development effort we put to create the plugin which is already in use in a few projects

• Technology Stack: NodeRed, JavaScript
• Documentation: Comprehensive documentation and usage page
• Prior Work: Node Red Contrib Polkadot
• Project Limitations: Supports Substrate chains only

Issues we want to address:

1. Documentation: Develop comprehensive, user-friendly documentation.
2. Feature Enhancements: Add new features like dynamic metadata loading and event monitoring.
3. Code Clarity: Improve code readability with detailed comments.
4. Community Engagement: Respond to issues and discussions, and assist contributors.

⚠️ All code will maintain its current MIT license.

Milestones 🛣️

We will work on different milestones, releasing new versions for each, all milestones are covered by this proposal. Details and time estimations follow.

Milestone 1 — Basic Functionality 🛠️

Estimated Duration: 3 months

1. Node Red Integration: Development of Node Red plugin that will provide visual "nodes" to connect to substrate based chains and perform basic interactions, initially plugin will support the following "nodes": configuration client (with sr25519 support only), raw chain storage query in the form of pallet.method(params...), chain info with decimals and runtime version, balance transfer and balance reading, raw trasaction in the form of pallet.method(params...)
2. Address issues: Manage pending issues on the GitHub repo.

Milestone 2 — Metadata and EVM Chain Support 🔗

Estimated Duration: 3 months

1. EVM Support: Add support for EVM and ed25519 chains like Moonbeam.
2. Metadata Loading: Implement automatic metadata loading with chain information.
3. Proxy Support: Add proxy functionality to transfer and transaction nodes.

Milestone 3 — Block Event Subscription Node 📡

Estimated Duration: 3 months

1. Block Event Node: Develop a node for subscribing to block events with filtering.

How is treasury spend calculated? 💸

Price (at $5.30 EMA7) is based on 24 months work (12 future, 12 past development) at the cost of a senior JS developer FTE discounted ~50% (so half the price based on market cost and average price of similar initiatives like JS API maintenance).

Community Benefits 🌍

The Node Red Client for Polkadot is more than just a technical integration; it's a bridge connecting diverse members of the Polkadot ecosystem. By simplifying interactions with the blockchain, this project stands to offer several key benefits to the community:

1. Inclusivity and Accessibility: Our client makes the Polkadot ecosystem more accessible to a broader audience, including those without technical backgrounds. This inclusivity aligns with Polkadot's vision of a diverse and widespread adoption of blockchain technology.

2. Empowering Creativity: By providing a no-code interface, Node Red Client for Polkadot empowers users to innovate and create custom solutions for their specific needs, whether for personal projects, educational purposes, or business applications.

3. Enhanced User Experience: The intuitive interface of Node Red coupled with the powerful capabilities of Polkadot ensures an enhanced user experience, making blockchain interactions more user-friendly and less daunting.

4. Community-Driven Development: We aim to actively engage with the community for feedback, suggestions, and ideas, ensuring that the development of the Node Red Client for Polkadot is aligned with the needs and desires of its users.

5. Educational Opportunities: The project will serve as an educational tool for those looking to learn more about blockchain technology in a practical, hands-on manner.

6. Supporting Ecosystem Growth: By lowering the barrier to entry for blockchain interactions, our project contributes to the growth and strength of the Polkadot ecosystem, attracting new users and retaining existing ones.

Through the Node Red Client for Polkadot, we are not just delivering a product; we are nurturing a more engaged, creative, and inclusive Polkadot community.

Development Status 📊

The library is functional but needs further documentation, metadata support, and regular updates.

Maintenance Responsibilities 🔧

We own the project and commit to its 12-month development and maintenance.

Team's Experience 👥

Zooper Corp has a rich history in blockchain, developing solutions from Android apps to cloud-based SaaS. Our experience uniquely positions us to deliver robust solutions for Polkadot.