Multi Forecasting Chart Widget

About the Multi Forecasting Chart Widget

The Multi Forecasting Chart widget helps you to compare the outcome from multiple product lines, segments, or plants simultaneously. To identify additional insights, you can also plot data measured using two different units (for example, production vs cost, inventory vs sales order, product mix vs market price). You can visualize the observed values and forecast values for multiple tags using your preferred Unit of Measurement (UoM). The following features are provided in the widget:

  • Ability to define a secondary y-axis and specify the UoM for the primary and the secondary axis. The ability to include a secondary y-axis helps you to compare data recorded using different measures of scales on the same widget.
  • Ability to define forecasts and specify the axis on which the data must be plotted. For each forecast configuration, the data from the tags are converted to the UoM selected for the representative axis (i.e., primary or secondary axis).
    Note: The data from the tags are converted only for charting purposes. The actual data is not affected.
  • Ability to generate charts with smoother lines. The data from the tags sometimes contain very few datapoints between the selected date range in the chart, resulting in the chart appearing with straight lines and sharp points. If you want to view smoother chart lines, you can use the data smoothing ability in the widget to generate charts with smoother lines.

Example: Using the Multi Forecasting Chart Widget

Suppose that your organization has distributors located in different countries. A distributor located in New Jersey will record sales in Dollars, whereas a distributor located in Bangalore will record sales in Rupees. An analyst who wants to present a forecast analysis to an audience in India can use the Multi Forecasting Chart widget to plot the overall sales data in Rupees so that the audience can relate to the data. The analyst can select the UoM for the primary axis as Rupees, and then configure the forecasts for the tags associated with sales data to use the primary axis. This ensures that sales data from all tags are converted to Rupees while plotting the data on the chart.

On the same widget, you can analyze the trend of profit margin against the sales by plotting the profit margin on the secondary y-axis. The secondary axis can be configured to plot margin in percentage, and then you can configure the forecasts for tags associated with profit margin to use the secondary axis.

Configure the Multi Forecasting Chart Widget to Plot Tags

Before You Begin

  • Ingest the input and output tags for which you want to plot data.
  • Ensure that the input tag (that is, historical tag) contains observable data and the output tag (that is, forecast tag) contains the forecast data.
  • Ensure that the Systems of Measure (SoM) and Units of Measure (UoM) are configured for the tenant. The possibility and accuracy of conversion is related to the tenant level configuration of SoM and UoM.

About This Task

Add the Multi Forecasting Chart widget to plot historical and forecast tag data. You can add a maximum of four forecast configurations per widget. You can add more widgets to the same card to plot additional sets of tags. When you add multiple Multi Forecasting Chart widgets to the same custom card, for better data visibility, we recommend that you add each widget in a different row in the custom card.

Procedure

  1. Access the card for the asset for which you want to add the widget.
  2. In the card, select , and then select Edit Card.
    In the card, the Add Widget button appears.
  3. Select Add Widget.
    The widget library appears, displaying a list of widgets.
  4. In the widget library, navigate to the Multi Forecasting Chart widget, and then select Add.
    The widget is added to the card.
  5. In the widget, select .
    The Configure Widget page appears, displaying the forecast chart and the options for configuring the widget.
  6. In the Widget Title box, enter a title for the widget.
    By default, the title for the widget is Forecast Widget. A unique title helps differentiate the purposes of the forecasts.
  7. In the DATE RANGE TO DISPLAY section, enter values in the following fields:
    OptionDescription
    PreviousThe value in this box indicates the period for which the historical data must be plotted. By default, the value in this box is 30 Days. You can modify this value. The following UoM options are available:
    • Days
    • Months
    • Years
    NextThe value in this box indicates the period for which the forecast data must be plotted. By default, the value in this box is 30 Days. You can modify this value. The following UoM options are available:
    • Days
    • Months
    • Years
  8. In the DATA SMOOTHING section, enter a value in the following field:
    OptionDescription
    NormalizationThis drop-down list box contains the following options:
    • Not Applicable: Select this option if you do not want to normalize the data to make the charts appear smooth. By default, this option is selected.
    • System Default: Select this option if you want the plotted charts to appear smoother.
  9. In the UNIT OF MEASURE Y-AXIS SELECTION section, enter values in the following fields:
    OptionDescription
    System Of Measure

    This box is enabled only if there is at least one forecast configuration in the widget.

    When you add the first forecast configuration to the widget, this box is enabled and the SoM associated with the UoM for the first forecast configuration is selected. The box is populated with the SoM values configured in the tenant. You can modify this value.

    Note: If you modify the SoM value, the UoM values associated with the SoM that you selected are populated in the Primary Y-axis and Secondary Y-axis boxes and a blank value is selected initially. You can then re-select the UoM for the primary and secondary y-axis. The charts in the widget are plotted based on the UoM that you selected.
    Primary Y-axisThis box is enabled only if there is at least one forecast configuration in the widget and the first forecast configuration created contains tags that have associated UoM.

    The UoM associated with the tags in the first forecast configuration is selected as the default value for this box. The drop-down list box is then populated with related UoMs. For example, if the tags in the first configuration are associated with the UoM kilogram, the Primary Y-axis box is populated with all units of measure related to the measurement type weight, such as grams or pounds.

    When you modify the value selected in this box, the charts in the widget are reloaded. The forecast charts for configurations defined to be plotted on the primary axis are plotted based on the UoM that you selected in the Primary Y-axis box.

    Secondary Y-axisThis box is enabled only if at least one forecast configuration exists in the widget for which the value in the Select axis box is Secondary.

    The UoM associated with the tags in the first forecast configuration for which the secondary axis is used is selected as the default value for this box. The drop-down list box is then populated with related UoMs. For example, if the tags in the first configuration for the secondary axis are associated with the UoM kilogram, the Secondary Y-Axis box is populated with all units of measure related to the measurement type weight, such as grams or pounds.

    When you modify the value selected in this box, the charts in the widget are reloaded. The forecast charts for configurations defined to be plotted on the secondary axis are plotted based on the UoM that you selected in the Secondary Y-axis box.

  10. As needed, add the forecast configurations to the widget.
    Note: You can add a maximum of four forecast configurations to a widget.
    Each new forecast configuration that you add appears in the list of configurations for the widget.
  11. In the Configure Widget page, select Done.
    The card to which you added the widget appears, displaying forecast charts based on your configuration of the widget.
  12. In the card, select Save.
    Your configuration for the widget is saved.

Add a Forecast Configuration

Before You Begin

  • Ingest the input and output tags for which you want to plot data.
  • Ensure that the input tag (i.e., historical tag) contains observable data and the output tag (i.e., forecast tag) contains the forecast data.
  • Configure the Multi Forecasting Chart widget.

Procedure

  1. Access the Multi Forecasting Chart widget to which you want to add a forecast configuration.
  2. Next to the header FORECASTS, select .
    Important: You can add a maximum of four forecast configurations in a widget. If the widget contains four forecast configurations, the button does not appear. If needed, you can delete a forecast configuration, and then add the new configuration to the widget.
    In the FORECASTS section, a new section with options for configuring a forecast appears.
    Note: By default, the title for the new section appears in the following format: FORECAST <number>, where <number> indicates the number of forecasts after addition of the new forecast. To modify the title, you can select the title, and then, in the box that appears, enter a new title.
  3. As needed, in the section for configuring the forecast, enter values in the following fields:
    OptionDescription
    Forecast Configuration TitleYou can select the title of the forecast configuration, and then, in the box that appears, you can enter a title.
    Select AxisYou can select one of the following options:
    • Primary

      Select this option if you want to use the primary axis to represent the data for the forecast that you are configuring.

    • Secondary

      Select this option if you want to use the secondary axis to represent the data for the forecast that you are configuring.

    Historical TagYou can search for and select the tag that contains observed data for the asset. In the box, you can select Tag Search to search for tags associated with the selected asset. You can select Tag + Child Search to search for tags associated with the selected asset and the assets within the selected asset in the hierarchy.
    Note: You can associate a tag with only one forecast configuration.
    Forecast TagYou can search and select the tag that contains predictive data for the asset. In the box, you can select Tag Search to search for tags associated with the selected asset. You can select Tag + Child Search to search for tags associated with the selected asset and the assets within the selected asset in the hierarchy.
    Note: You can associate a tag with only one forecast configuration.
    TargetYou must enter a numeric value.
    ThresholdYou must enter a numeric value.
    The forecast configuration is added to the widget, and the chart for the configuration appears in the widget.
    Note: If the forecast that you are configuring is the first forecast configuration for the widget and the tags you selected are not associated with a Unit of Measure or a System of Measure, a message appears, stating that the selected tags are not associated with a UoM or SoM. The Primary Y-Axis and the Secondary Y-Axis boxes, which are used for selecting UoMs, remain disabled.
    Note: The chart appears on the widget only if both the forecast and historical tags are selected and the tags contain a minimum of one data point in the selected date range. If the tags that you selected do not exist in the database, then the charts do not appear. When you modify a configuration in the widget, the chart is reloaded to display the changes.
  4. In the Configure Widget page, select Done.
    The card containing the widget appears, displaying the charts for the forecast configurations.
  5. In the card, select Save.
    The forecast configuration is saved.

Results

  • In the chart, the x-axis represents the dates within the date range specified in the widget configuration.
  • On the chart, the historical data is plotted using a solid line and the forecast data is plotted using a dashed line.
  • The Target value appears as a horizontal, solid line and the Threshold value appears as a horizontal, dot-dashed line. The Target and Threshold values are plotted based on the UoM associated with y-axis in the forecast configuration.
  • If the widget contains multiple forecast configurations, the chart for each forecast configuration appears in a different color. The Target and Threshold lines for each forecast configuration appear in the color in which the chart for the configuration appears.
  • In the widget, the legend for the charts appear, displaying the legend keys for each forecast configuration, the Primary Axis UoM, and the Secondary Axis UoM. The legend keys are a set of a solid line pattern to represent the historical trend and a dashed line pattern to represent the forecast trend for each configuration. You can select the legend key to display or hide the trend for a configuration on the chart.
  • When you hover over a data point, a tooltip appears, displaying the timestamp and value for the data point.
  • Below the forecast charts, a pane appears, displaying the zoomed-in view of the charts for the configured time period. The pane contains a vertical bar on both the sides, which you can drag to view the chart only for the selected time period within the configured time period.

Delete a Forecast Configuration

Procedure

  1. Access the Multi Forecasting Chart widget that contains the forecast configuration that you want to delete.
  2. In the right pane, next to the forecast configuration that you want to delete, hover over the title of the forecast configuration.
    Next to the title for the configuration, the button appears.
  3. Select .
    The Delete Configuration dialog box appears, asking you to confirm that you want to delete the forecast.
  4. Select OK.
    The forecast configuration is deleted. The widget is refreshed to display the charts for the available configurations.