IBM DOC 4.0.1-fp2 is Now Available

IBM Decision Optimization Center is a platform to streamline the development and deployment of fully scalable, cloud-ready, decision support solutions. Today we announce that the 4.0.1-fp2 version is available.

Support for new Types and Constraints in Data Model

This new version introduces new types that can be used in the application model definition (JDL File). In addition to the already existing types, this version introduces the following new ones:

• LocalDate to represent a date without time zone
• LocalTime to represent a local time
• LocalDateTime to represent a date with time without time zone
• Duration to represent a duration (time between two dates)
• Binary to represent binary data
• Text to represent a text without length limitation

Besides these new types, we can also express the following constraints in the JDL:

• Required defines whether or not a field is nullable
• Unique defines whether or not a field or a list of fields are unique
• Min / Max defines lower and upper bounds for a numeric field
• Length defines a maximum length for a String field

Example:

@Description("Defines an Activity")
entity ProcessActivity {
  // DOM  [simple.primary.keys] : [id]
  id String required,

  @Description("Activity name in System")
  name String length(10),

  @Description("Activity cannot start earlier")
  earliestStartTime LocalTime,

  @Description("Activity cannot end after")
  latestEndTime LocalTime,

  @Description("Estimated duration")
  duration Duration required

  @Description("Resources needed to complete the Activity")
  resources Integer min(0) max(10)
}

New types integration in the Data Explorer

More details about JDL data-model definition here.

Data Checkers

Since DOC 4.0.1-fp1, users can work on a Scenario having data inconsistencies. This allows, for example, to import data in a DOC application and fix data issues directly from DOC before going further to the optimization process. Now with version 4.0.1-fp2, DOC provides data checkers out-of-the-box and automatically performs schema validation while scenarios data are being modified.

A new scenario data status is now displayed in the scenarios list and also in the data explorer.

Scenarios List

Data Explorer and Issues List

Issues highlighting

The built-in data checkers provide APIs that can be used from Web Client, REST, or tasks scripts.

More details about data checkers and status here.

Optimization Server 3.3.0

The latest version of the optimization server is now included, and DOC 4.0.1-fp2 provides new features such as support of on-demand Kubernetes workers or real-time KPI notifications with charts.

Real-time KPI notifications

More details about executing an optimization server task here.

UI Extensibility

With the 4.0.1-fp2, DOC now supports defining drop-downs and search bars through application controllers. Code samples are provided when creating a new DOC application.

// Customize the View / Dashboard toolbar for all of them
// - Add a Select dropdown
// - Add a searchbar
customizeViewDashboardToolbar(context: GeneContext, view: ViewDashboard): Observable<GeneToolbarElement[]> {
    return of([
        {
            type: 'select',
            label: 'Plant',
            labelField: 'plantName',
            placeholder: 'Select a value',
            values: [ { id: 'PAR', plantName: 'Paris'}, {id: 'LON', plantName: 'London'}],
            changeHandler: (selection) => alert('Selected value: '+selection.id)
        },
        {
            type: 'searchbar',
            placeholder: 'Activity Name',
            searchHandler: pattern => this.toastrService.info(`Search pattern '${pattern}'`)
        }
    ]);
}

DOC custom dashboard toolbar with dropdown selector and search bar

More details about application controllers here.

Performances, Bug fixes & Security

This version improves performances and memory usage with scenario collectors and data APIs (up to 10 times faster and up to 8 times lower memory usage when manipulating scenario data).

Besides improvements, more than 50 bugs have been fixed with the 4.0.1-fp2, and dependencies to open-source libraries have been updated to address identified security vulnerabilities.

What’s next?

Now that 4.0.1-fp2 is out, the DOC team is focusing on the next version that will be released this fall, with some nice features about scenarios comparisons and enhanced visualizations… stay tuned!

Read more about DOC, watch our demo video Introduction to IBM DOC, or book a demo with an expert!