Factory Operator Capabilities & Limitations
Pre-Release Feature
Factory Operator Capabilities Matrix & User Examples
The table below outlines the full scope of what Factory Operator can do across the SDA Platform. Capabilities are grouped by product area to help users understand where conversational automation can be applied.
Category
Supported Capabilities
Examples of Supported Commands
CREATE
Devices: Creates devices with vendor-specific metadata, IDE requirements, and required configuration fields.
Gateways: Creates gateways with specified configuration parameters.
Resource Groups: Creates organizational groups for managing sets of assets.
“Create a new Siemens device named Mixer01 with required metadata.” “Create a gateway called WestLine-GW with these configuration values.” “Create a resource group named Packaging.”
UPDATE
Devices: Modifies configuration parameters, metadata, or IDE settings.
Gateways: Updates gateway configuration fields.
Resource Group Assignments: Moves devices between groups or assigns new group relationships.
“Update the IP address of device Pump02 to 10.10.5.12.” “Update the configuration for gateway North-GW.” “Move device Robot01 into the Assembly resource group.”
QUERY – Devices
Devices: Look up devices by name, vendor, group, or partial attributes.
“Show me the configuration for device BoilerPLC.” “Find devices in the Packaging group with vendor Siemens.”
QUERY – Gateways
Gateways: Retrieve gateway configurations and metadata.
“Retrieve details for gateway Main-Gateway.” “Show me all gateways with status active.”
QUERY – Jobs
Jobs: Query jobs filtered by device, job type, status, or time.
“Show jobs for device Press01 from the last 24 hours.” “Find failed jobs of type BACKUP.”
QUERY – Job Logs
Job Logs: Retrieve logs for individual jobs with chronological formatting and error highlighting.
“Show the logs for job 92341.” “Retrieve log output for the last job run on device Line2-PLC.”
QUERY – Resource Groups
Resource Groups: Query group metadata, contained assets, and subgroup assets.
“Show me the assets in the Packaging resource group.” “Retrieve all devices under the Assembly group, including subgroups.”
QUERY – Users
Users: Look up user information using name, email, or related attributes.
“Show me information for user jsmith.” “Find the user with email [email protected].”
QUERY – Audit Logs
Audit Logs: Retrieve platform activities with time-range filtering and interpretation of event types.
“Retrieve audit logs for user jsmith between 2025-10-01 and 2025-10-07.” “Show me all login events from today.”
Validation
Checks that required metadata fields are present for each vendor and IDE combination.
Validates user input against supported enum values and configuration rules.
Ensures audit-log queries referencing users first resolve names to user IDs.
“What information do you need to create a Rockwell device?” “Is this IP address valid for the gateway configuration?”
Lookup
Resolves friendly names into internal IDs using configuration tools.
“Resolve the device named Mixer01.” “Identify the ID for resource group ProcessAreaA.”
Filtering
Multi-attribute device, gateway, job, and user queries.
Time-based filters using ISO 8601 formats.
Paginated retrieval for large result sets.
Audit-log filters based on event type, user, time window, or resource.
“Find all devices from vendor Siemens created after 2024-01-01.” “Show next page of results for my job query.”
Asset Linking
Device-to-Gateway Linking: Connects devices to gateways.
Device-to-Resource-Group Linking: Assigns or moves devices between groups.
Batch Linking: Processes multiple links in one structured sequence.
“Link device BoilerPLC to gateway Main-Gateway.” “Assign these five devices to the Packaging group.”
Resource Group Management
Create new resource groups.
Retrieve group information and included assets.
Include subgroup assets by default.
Move assets between groups when requested.
"Create a Group named Cell 1 in a parent group of "Boston Factory" and put PLC 123 in it" "Show me all devices in Cell 1" "Move PLC 493 to Cell 1"
Job Management
Retrieve jobs filtered by device, type, status, or time range.
Access detailed execution logs.
Highlight errors and provide structured summaries.
Identify components in logs to assist in root-cause identification based on log content.
"Show me all PLC backups that failed over the last 24 hours" "For the failed jobs, identify the reason that the PLC devices failed"
Audit Log Tracking
Query activities by user, event type, or time range.
Resolve usernames to IDs for precise filtering.
Interpret platform event codes in human-readable terms.
Highlight potential security-related actions or anomalies.
"Find all actions performed by Michael Manager for the last week" "Identify all logins from the last 24 hours that were not from inside the factory"
Key Capabilities
Workflow Characteristics
Schema-Driven Operations
Performs schema introspection at the start of the conversation.
Identifies required fields, validation rules, and enum values.
Ensures operations align with platform constraints.
Metadata Handling
Identifies required metadata for each device or gateway type.
Prompts users only for required fields.
Validates metadata against known constraints before proceeding.
Batch Processing
Executes multiple create or update requests in a single workflow.
Provides per-resource success, link, and failure reports.
User Interaction Model
Factory Operator interacts with users according to strict rules:
Requests only missing required information.
Never requests optional fields unless the user asks.
Never exposes backend schemas or technical implementation details.
Provides clear lists of required fields when asked.
Uses neutral, factual, and direct language.
Output Formatting
Success Responses
Provides clickable Markdown links to created or updated resources.
Summarizes names, IDs, and key configurations.
For batch operations: lists each successful resource individually.
Query Responses
Responses include structured fields depending on resource type:
Devices & Gateways: ID, name, type, vendor, configuration details, IP/port.
Jobs: Status, timestamps, job type, associated device.
Job Logs: Ordered log entries with error highlighting.
Audit Logs: Timestamp, event type, user, affected resource.
Resource Groups: Group metadata and contained assets.
Error Handling
Returns precise validation errors.
Does not retry failed operations.
Requests clarification if the input is ambiguous.
Returns tool-derived errors directly.
Limitations
Factory Operator operates under strict constraints:
No Delete Operations: It does not delete any resource.
No “List All” Commands: All queries require filters.
No Assumptions: It never infers missing information.
No Backend Exposure: Never reveals schema, API structure, or implementation details.
No Emotional or Conversational Language: Responses remain strictly factual.
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