- Data Model Introduction
- Overview
- Step 1: Benefits
- Step 2: Entities
- Step 3: Inheritance Model
- Step 4: Scenario
- Step 5: Next Steps
Data Model Introduction
Overview
This project will introduce the ThingWorx Foundation Data Model. Following the steps in this guide, you will consider data interactions based on user needs and requirements, as well as application modularity, reusability, and future updates. We will teach you how to think about a properly constructed foundation that will allow your application to be scalable, flexible, and more secure. NOTE: This guide's content aligns with ThingWorx 9.3. The estimated time to complete this guide is 30 minutes.
Step 1: Benefits
A Data Model creates a uniform representation of all items that interact with one another.
There are multiple benefits to such an approach, and the ability to break up items and reuse components is considered a best practice. ThingWorx has adopted this model at a high level to represent individual components of an IoT solution.
Feature | Benefit |
Flexibility | Once a model has been created, it is simple to update, modify, or remove components without needing to rework the system or retest existing components. |
Scalability | It’s easy to clone and modify devices that are either identical or similar when changing from a Proof of Concept or Pilot Program to a Scaled Business Model. |
Interoperability | Seamlessly plug into other applications. |
Collaboration | A Data Model allows pre-defined links between components, meaning that various parts can be defined when designing the model so that multiple people can work on those individual parts without compromising the interoperability of the components. |
Seamless platform | A Data Model allows for seamless integration with other systems. A properly-formed model will make it easier to create high-value IoT capabilities such as analytics, augmented/virtual reality, industrial connectivity, etc. |
Step 2: Entities
Entities
Building an IoT solution in Foundation begins with defining your Data Model, the collection of Entities that represent your connected devices, business processes, and your application.
Entities are the highest-level objects created and maintained in Foundation, as explained below.
Thing Shape
Thing Shapes provide a set of characteristics represented as Properties, Services, Events, and Subscriptions that are shared across a group of physical assets. A Thing Shape is best used for composition to describe relationships between objects in your model. They promote reuse of contained Properties and business logic that can be inherited by one or more Thing Templates. In Foundation, the model allows a Thing Template to implement one or more Thing Shapes, which is similar to a class definition in C++ that has multiple inheritance. When you make a change to the Thing Shape, the change is propagated to the Thing Templates and Things that implement that Thing Shape; so, maintaining the model is quick and easy.
Thing Template
Thing Templates provide base functionality with Properties, Services, Events, and Subscriptions that Thing instances use in their execution. Every Thing is created from a Thing Template. A Thing Template can extend another Thing Template. When you release a new version of a product, you simply add the additional characteristics of the version without having to redefine the entire model. This model configuration provides multiple levels of generalization of an asset.
A Thing Template can derive one or more additional characteristics by implementing Thing Shapes. When you make a change to the Thing Template, the change is propagated to the Things that implement that Thing Template; so again, maintaining the model is quick and easy.
A Thing Template can be used to classify the kind of a Thing or asset class or as a specific product model with unique capabilities. If you have two product models and their interaction with the solution is the same (same Properties, Services, and Events), you could model them as one Thing Template. Classifying Thing Templates is useful for aggregating Things into collections, which are useful in Mashups. You may want separate Thing Templates for indexing, searching, and future evolutions of the products
Thing
Things are representations of physical devices, assets, products, systems, people, or processes that have Properties and business logic. All Things are based on Thing Templates (inheritance) and can implement one or more Thing Shapes (composition). A Thing can have its own Properties, Services, Events, and Subscriptions and can inherit other Properties, Services, Events, and Subscriptions from its Thing Template and Thing Shape(s). How you model the interconnected Things, Thing Templates, and Thing Shapes is key to making your solution easy to develop and maintain in the future as the physical assets change. End users will interface with Things for information in applications and for reading/writing data.
Best Practice: Create a Thing Template to describe a Thing, then create an instance of that Thing Template as a Thing. This practice leverages inheritance in your model and reduces the amount of time you spend maintaining and updating your model.
Step 3: Inheritance Model
Defining Things, Thing Templates, and Thing Shapes in your Data Model allows your application to handle both simple and complex scenarios.
Entity | Function |
Thing Shapes | Assemble individual components. |
Thing Templates | Combine those components into fully functional objects. |
Thing | Unique representation of a set of identical components defined by the Thing Template. |
In this example, there is a Parent/Child model between two related Thing Templates.
NOTE: Things and Thing Templates may only inherit ONE Thing Template. Both Things and Thing Templates may inherit any number of Thing Shapes.
Thing Templates employ a linear-relationship, while Thing Shapes employ a modular-relationship. Any Thing or Thing Template may have any number of sub-components (i.e. Thing Shapes), but each Thing or Thing Template is just one description of one object as a whole.
How you decide to compartmentalize your Data Model into Thing Shapes and Thing Templates to create the actual Things that you’ll be using is a custom design that will be specific to each implementation.
Step 4: Scenario
The ThingWorx Data Model provides a way for you to describe your connected devices and match the complexity of a real-world scenario. Things, Thing Templates, and Thing Shapes are building blocks that define your data model.
You can define the components of Things, Thing Templates, and Thing Shapes, including Properties, Services, Events, and Subscriptions.
Component | Definition |
Properties | Each Property has a name, description, and a data type (Base Type). Depending on the base type, additional fields may be enabled. A simple scalar type, like a number or string, adds basic fields like default value. More complex base types have more options. Properties can be static (i.e. Model Number) or dynamic (i.e. Temperature). |
Services | A Service is a method/function defined by a block of code that performs logic specifying actions a Thing can take. There are several implementation methods, or handlers (for example: Script, SQLQuery, and SQL command), for services depending on the template you use. The specific implementation of a user-defined Service is done via a server-side script. The Service can then be invoked through a URL, a REST client capable application, or by another Service in ThingWorx. When you create a new service, you can define input properties and an output. You can define individual runtime permissions for each Service. |
Events | Events are triggers that define changes of state (example: device is on, temperature is above/below threshold) of an asset or system and often require an action to correct or respond to a change. Business logic and actions in a ThingWorx application are driven by Events. |
Subscriptions | Action associated with an Event, primary method to set up intelligence in ThingWorx model which enable you to optimize/automate. Subscriptions use Javascript code to define what you want your application to do when the Event occurs. |
NOTE: Anything inherited by a Thing Template or Thing will inherit the associated Components.
This diagram shows what a specific Inheritance Model might look like for a connected Tractor.
There is one master Template at the top. In this case, it’s a collection of similar types of tractors.
The parent Template inherits a few Shapes - an Engine and a Deck that have been used in previous designs. Importing them as Shapes allows us to reuse previous design work and expedite the development process. One of the child Templates incorporates another Shape, this time in the form of a GPS tracking device. Then, at the bottom, there are the specific tractors with individual serial numbers that will report their connected data back to an IoT Application.
Step 5: Next Steps
Congratulations! You've successfully completed the Data Model Introduction, and learned about:
- The function of a data model for your IoT application
- Data model components, including Thing, Thing, Shape and Thing Template
- How ThingWorx components correspond to connected devices
Please comment on this post so we can improve this guide in future ThingWorx version iterations.
This guide is part of 2 learning paths:
- The next guide in the Getting Started on the ThingWorx Platform learning path is Configure Permissions.
- The next guide in the Design and Implement Data Models to Enable Predictive Analytics learning path is Design Your Data Model.
