Tips on building shapes in event views

You select the event frames to include in your event view on the Select Data page.

The Select Data page

The following table describes the different parts of this page and how you use it to create your event view shape.

When working with the event shape:

• You can add as many event frames as you like, but there can be only one event frame at each level in the event frame hierarchy, as shown below. For example, the event shape node can have only one child event frame. Drag the event frame from the Event Frames pane onto the Event Shape pane.

  Event shape: One event shape node with one child event frame

  

• Each event frame can have only one referenced element. Drag the referenced element from Event Frames pane into the event shape.

• Click on the event frame in the Event Frames pane to display its attributes in the Attributes pane. Drag any of its attributes into the event shape.

• In the Source Events pane, click the Event Frames tab, and then click the magnifying glass next to an element to switch to the Assets pane and see the element's location in the PI AF hierarchy.

  Locate an element in the PI AF hierarchy

  

• The Attributes pane displays the attributes for the selected element. Drag any of its attributes into the event shape.

• Event frames and elements can only be dropped onto the Event Shape tree using Auto drop and place if it makes logical sense. If you drag an element to an open area below the event shape, a tooltip is displayed with the text Auto drop and place. PI Integrator for Business Analytics takes the object's relationship to other objects in the PI AF hierarchy and attempts to match this relationship in the shape. Auto drop and place is only able to add the dragged object to the shape when the object is an immediate parent or child of an object that already appears in your shape.

  Auto drop and place objects

  

  Tip: If you are new to PI Integrator for Business Analytics, start by using Auto drop and place.

• As you drag an event frame, element, or attribute anywhere in the Event Shape tree, a tool tip guides you to drop the object as a parent, sibling, or child.

  Note: It will not prevent you from dropping an object in a location that does not match the PI AF hierarchy.

  Dragging and dropping objects in a shape tree

When and how to use linked assets

In most instances, you will create your shape in the Event Shape pane, adding your event frame, child event frame, and referenced elements along with their attributes as shown in the screen capture below.

In the event shape, you can only add elements below the element that is referenced by the topmost event frame. In the example above, you cannot add parent elements that are above the CIP_124_SKID element in the PI AF hierarchy. If you need attributes or elements from a parent or a referenced element, then click the Linked Assets link to open the Asset Shape pane. (See the screen capture below.)

Linked assets link

When you click the Linked Assets icon, it displays a second pane, the Asset Shape pane. The linked element, its attributes, and any elements and attributes that are descended from it are moved to the Asset Shape pane. In this example, the CIP_124_SKID element is copied to the Asset Shape pane along with the four attributes. The screen capture below illustrates this.

Asset shape added to the search shape

In the Asset Shape pane, you can add any elements and their attributes regardless of where they appear in the PI AF hierarchy. In this example, the L1 HuMAB, NorthStreetPllant, and Philadelphia elements are added to the asset shape.

Elements added to the asset shape

If you click the Linked Assets link in the asset shape, the Asset Shape pane disappears and the linked asset and any of its attributes are returned to the Event Shape pane.

Note: The only reason to separate an element into the Asset Shape pane is to include elements and attributes that occur above it in the PI AF hierarchy. Depending on the complexity of the shape, this can increase the time it takes to publish the view.