Use the excluded attribute property

You exclude an attribute in situations where not all attributes in an element template apply. For example, suppose you have five attribute templates defined in an element template named Meter, which you use to create elements representing several different types of meter in use at your facility. In some kinds of meter (meterA), only three attributes from the Meter template are applicable, whereas in the remainder (meterB) all five attributes apply. In meters of type A, you should select the Excluded property for the two attributes that are inapplicable. For all practical purposes, those two attributes “seem” nonexistent to most PI AF client applications since searches retrieve the digital state value No Result.

Note: An excluded attribute cannot be used to return elements and event frames that are referenced by an excluded attribute value.

When the Excluded property is assigned in an attribute template, the property is indicated by beside the attribute name if the Show Excluded Attributes option is enabled. Attributes that are derived from that template appear on an element Attributes tab with in the Template column and Excluded in the Value column. You can toggle the display of such attributes with the Hide Excluded Attributes and Show Excluded Attributes command on the Attributes tab context menu. Note that when Show Excluded Attributes is enabled, users can change the Excluded property setting for an attribute from the setting it is assigned in an attribute template. See Create attribute templates for instructions on how to exclude an attribute.

Alternatively, you can clear the Show Excluded Attributes option in Tools > Options to hide excluded attributes everywhere in PI System Explorer. When attributes are hidden, the Excluded attributes are hidden message is displayed on the Attributes tab.