Creating a new aspect¶
The user interface for "Create aspect" is as shown below:
① Aspect information
② Choose the aspect category
③ Tab with the following options:
- Add variable: Opens a new bar to add variable to aspect
- Import variables: Opens local browser to upload a file
- Download template: Downloads the template for variables in .csv
- Export variables: Downloads the variables data in .csv
- Delete all: Deletes all the created variables
④ Deletes variable from aspect
⑤ Displays the variable details
Edit aspect information and variable
- After creating an aspect, it is not possible to rename or edit the Type ID, Name and Category.
- After the variables are added within the aspect, it is possible to edit the Name and Unit. If the aspect is set to static, the default value of the variables can also be edited.
- You can edit or delete a variable only if there is no Asset Instance created from the Asset type that is associated with the Asset.
Procedure¶
To create a new aspect, proceed as follows:
- From the left navigation, click "Library" and then click "Aspect Types".
- Click "Create aspect" .
- Enter the required data for the new aspect.
- To add a variable, click on "Add variable" or "Import variables".
- To add a empty row to the table, click "Add variable".
- To use import function, click "Import variables" and select a file that meets the guidelines. After importing the file, all contained and validated variables are displayed in the table and can be saved.
- Click "Save".
Parameters of new aspect settings¶
The following table describes the parameters of the new aspect:
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
| Aspect ID | ID of the aspect in the format [Tenant prefix].[Aspect name]. |
| Name | Name of the aspect. |
| Description | Description of the aspect. |
| Choose category | Select one of the following options: - Dynamic: Dynamic aspects are used for time series data, e.g. power consumption. - Static: Static aspects data are used for static data, e.g. serial number of an asset. |
| Variable name | Name of the variable. The following variable names should not be used: - aspects - description - etag - externalId - extends - hierarchyModel - id - legalName - name - organizationType - tenantFlag - tenant - parentTypeId - properties - propertySets - sameAs - scope - sharerTenantID - url - variables Furthermore, the variable name must not start with a number, has to be alphanumeric and must not end with "_qa" or "_qc". The variable name has also to be unique within the aspect. |
| Data type | - BOOLEAN: Variable that stores one of two possible values: true (TRUE) or false (FALSE) - INT: Variable that stores an integer up to 32 bits. - LONG: Variable that stores an integer up to 64 bits. - DOUBLE: Variable that stores a decimal up to 64 bits. - STRING: Variable that stores a string up to 255 characters (usually text). - BIG_STRING: Variable that stores a string up to 100,000 characters. - TIMESTAMP: Variable that stores a time value. This variable needs to be entered in the following format: [YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS+hh:mm] With "Static", the data type BIG_STRING is not available. You can set default values that are validated according to the data type and length (for string values). |
| Unit | Unit of the variable. |
| Maximum length | Maximum length of the variable value. This field is applicable only for "STRING" and "BIG_STRING" data types. |
| Default value | Default values are only available for a static aspect. Default values can be predefined values from manufacturers, e.g. maximum rotation speed and are validated according to datatype and length. |
Variable data
The input fields of the variable details validate the content. If the entry is not valid, the edit box is highlighted in red and a message appears when clicking in the edit box.
Guidelines for importing variables¶
To use the import function for variables, the file that needs to be uploaded must comply with the following guidelines. The structure of file needs to be as follows and no headline is allowed:
- var_1;BOOLEAN;on;42
- var_2;INT;num;34
- var_3;LONG;lnum;
- var_4;DOUBLE;dnum;42
- var_5;STRING;script;64
- var_6;BIG_STRING;lscript;512
- var_7;TIMESTAMP;s;
- var_8;BOOLEAN;on;42
- var_9;INT;num;34
- var_10;LONG;lnum;
The file can contain a maximum of 100 variables with the specific configuration. An exemplary template file can be downloaded in the variables section.