TimeWindower

Categories

Workflows

Allows features in FME to be grouped based upon a period of time defined by the user.

Its primary use-case is to help users analyze unbounded data streams.

Output Ports

Features successfully assigned to a window are output through this port.

A feature is created and output through this port when the window assignment changes. This feature will be output before the Output features assigned to the same window.

Note: This transformer does not sort the features through time. If the features entering the transformer are not ordered then the same window changed feature could be output more than once.

Features that could not be assigned to a window are output through this port. This port is only available when the Data Has Timestamps parameter is Yes.

Parameters

Window Definition

The window duration in units specified by the Time Units parameter.

The units for the window duration.

  • Seconds (Default)
  • Minutes
  • Hours
  • Days

Defines when the first window initiates.

  • At Workspace Startup (Default)
  • With First Feature
  • At Timestamp

User specified timestamp for the first window. This parameter is enabled when At Timestamp is selected for the Time Window Starts parameter.

Timestamps

Determines how features entering the transformer are assigned to a window.

If set to No (Default), then the features are assigned to the window from the current processing time.

If set to Yes, then the Timestamp Attribute is used for window assignment.

The timestamp to be evaluated and used to assign the feature to a window. It must be a valid FME Date/Time. This parameter is enabled when the Data Has Timestamps parameter is Yes.

Result

The attribute that the window id will be assigned to. The type of id is specified by ID Type.

Specifies the window id type.

  • Window Start Time (Default): The start time of an assigned window in seconds since the start of the Unix epoch, 00:00:00 UTC on 1 January 1970. Window start time before this date are in negative seconds.
  • Window End Time: The end time of an assigned window in seconds since the start of the Unix epoch, 00:00:00 UTC on 1 January 1970. Window end time before this date are in negative seconds.
  • Window Number: An integer count for the assigned windows. The count starts at 0 and it is assigned to the first window. The number may also be negative, -1 is assigned to the window before the first window.

Editing Transformer Parameters

Using a set of menu options, transformer parameters can be assigned by referencing other elements in the workspace. More advanced functions, such as an advanced editor and an arithmetic editor, are also available in some transformers. To access a menu of these options, click beside the applicable parameter. For more information, see Transformer Parameter Menu Options.

Defining Values

There are several ways to define a value for use in a Transformer. The simplest is to simply type in a value or string, which can include functions of various types such as attribute references, math and string functions, and workspace parameters. There are a number of tools and shortcuts that can assist in constructing values, generally available from the drop-down context menu adjacent to the value field.

Using the Text Editor

The Text Editor provides a convenient way to construct text strings (including regular expressions) from various data sources, such as attributes, parameters, and constants, where the result is used directly inside a parameter.

Text Editor

Using the Arithmetic Editor

The Arithmetic Editor provides a convenient way to construct math expressions from various data sources, such as attributes, parameters, and feature functions, where the result is used directly inside a parameter.

Arithmetic Editor

Conditional Values

Set values depending on one or more test conditions that either pass or fail.

Parameter Condition Definition Dialog

Content

Expressions and strings can include a number of functions, characters, parameters, and more.

When setting values - whether entered directly in a parameter or constructed using one of the editors - strings and expressions containing String, Math, Date/Time or FME Feature Functions will have those functions evaluated. Therefore, the names of these functions (in the form @<function_name>) should not be used as literal string values.

String Functions

These functions manipulate and format strings.

Special Characters

 A set of control characters is available in the Text Editor.

Math Functions

Math functions are available in both editors.
Date/Time Functions Date and time functions are available in the Text Editor.

Math Operators

These operators are available in the Arithmetic Editor.

FME Feature Functions

These return primarily feature-specific values.

FME Parameters

FME and workspace-specific parameters may be used.
Creating and Modifying User Parameters Create your own editable parameters.

Dialog Options - Tables

Transformers with table-style parameters have additional tools for populating and manipulating values.

Row Reordering

Enabled once you have clicked on a row item. Choices include:

  • Add a row
  • Remove a row
  • Move current row up one
  • Move current row down one
  • Move current row to top
  • Move current row to bottom

Cut, Copy, and Paste

Enabled once you have clicked on a row item. Choices include:

  • Cut a row - delete and copy to clipboard
  • Copy a row to the clipboard
  • Paste a row from the clipboard

Cut, copy, and paste may be used within a transformer, or between transformers.

Filter

Start typing a string, and the matrix will only display rows matching those characters. Searches all columns. This only affects the display of attributes within the transformer - it does not alter which attributes are output.

Import

Import populates the table with a set of new attributes read from a dataset. Specific application varies between transformers.

Reset/Refresh

Generally resets the table to its initial state, and may provide additional options to remove invalid entries. Behavior varies between transformers.

Note: Not all tools are available in all transformers.

FME Community

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Search for samples and information about this transformer on the FME Community.