Flows

Orbit Flows is a visual workflow builder that lets you design complex communication automations without writing code. Connect triggers, conditions, channels, and AI agents into multi-step workflows using a drag-and-drop interface.

What Are Flows?

Flows are directed graphs of nodes that execute in sequence or parallel based on conditions. Each node performs an action — sending a message, calling an API, running an AI agent, or evaluating a condition.

Trigger → Condition → Send SMS → Wait → Check Response → Branch
                                                           ├── AI Agent
                                                           └── Human Handoff

Core Concepts

Concept	Description
Trigger	What starts the flow — incoming message, API call, schedule, or webhook
Node	A single step in the flow — send message, HTTP request, delay, condition
Edge	Connection between nodes defining execution order
Branch	Conditional logic that splits the flow based on data or responses
Variable	Dynamic data passed between nodes (e.g., user name, order ID)

Use Cases

Welcome series — onboard new users with a multi-step SMS + email sequence
Appointment reminders — send reminders 24h and 1h before, handle confirmations
Lead nurturing — qualify leads with AI, route hot leads to sales
Support escalation — try AI agent first, escalate to human if unresolved
Order updates — notify customers at each stage of fulfillment
Survey collection — send surveys post-interaction, analyze responses with AI

Create a Flow via API

curl -X POST https://api.orbit.devotel.io/api/v1/flows \
  -H "X-API-Key: dv_live_sk_..." \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "name": "Welcome Series",
    "trigger_type": "event",
    "definition": {
      "trigger": {
        "type": "event",
        "event": "contact.created"
      },
      "nodes": [
        {
          "id": "send_welcome",
          "type": "sendSms",
          "data": {
            "to": "{{phone}}",
            "body": "Welcome to Acme, {{name}}! Reply HELP for assistance."
          }
        },
        {
          "id": "wait_1d",
          "type": "delay",
          "data": { "amount": 24, "unit": "hours" }
        },
        {
          "id": "send_followup",
          "type": "sendEmail",
          "data": {
            "to": "{{email}}",
            "body": "Hi {{name}}, here is how to get the most out of Acme."
          }
        }
      ],
      "edges": [
        { "source": "send_welcome", "target": "wait_1d" },
        { "source": "wait_1d", "target": "send_followup" }
      ]
    }
  }'

The top-level body requires name, trigger_type (one of manual, webhook, schedule, event, workflow), and definition — an object holding the flow graph (nodes, edges, and any trigger detail). For trigger_type: "schedule" also supply cron_expr (5-field cron) and an optional cron_tz (IANA timezone, defaults to UTC).

Node shape

Each node has an id, a type, and a data object that carries the node’s settings — the runtime reads node settings from data, not from the node’s top level. Edges connect nodes with source and target (the node ids), and an optional sourceHandle ("yes"/"no" for a condition node, "error" for an error path). Messaging nodes are per-channel — the channel is part of the node type, so there is no separate channel field:

Node type	Action
`sendSms`, `sendWhatsapp`, `sendEmail`, `sendRcs`, `sendViber`, `sendLine`, `sendTelegram`, `sendInstagram`, `sendMessenger`, `sendPush`, `sendFax`	Send a message on that channel — `data.to` and `data.body`
`makeCall`	Place an outbound voice call — `data.to`, `data.callerId`
`delay`	Pause the flow — `data.amount` and `data.unit` (`seconds`, `minutes`, `hours`, `days`)
`condition`	Branch on a field — `data.field`, `data.operator`, `data.value`
`webhook`	Call an external API — `data.url`, `data.method`
`aiAgent`	Run an AI agent — `data.agent_id`

An unrecognized node type is skipped at runtime, so a node sends nothing unless its type matches one the executor implements.

Next Steps

Flow Builder — learn how to use the visual builder
Webhooks — trigger flows from external events
AI Agents — add AI agents as flow nodes

Getting Started

Channels

AI Agents

Flows

Numbers & Verify

Concepts

Billing

Webhooks

Compliance

Legal

Changelog

Flows Overview

Flows

What Are Flows?

Core Concepts

Use Cases

Create a Flow via API

Node shape

Next Steps

​Flows

​What Are Flows?

​Core Concepts

​Use Cases

​Create a Flow via API

​Node shape

​Next Steps

Flows

What Are Flows?

Core Concepts

Use Cases

Create a Flow via API

Node shape

Next Steps