To design a conceptual model, you:
Create the conceptual model entities.
See "Creating Conceptual Model Entities" for more information.
Configure the conceptual model entities.
See "Configuring Conceptual Model Entities" for more information.
Create the actions associated with the conceptual model entities.
See "Creating Actions" for more information.
Configure the actions associated with the conceptual model entities.
See "Configuring Actions" for more information.
Map source data elements in a conceptual model to target data elements in technical actions.
See "Creating Action Parameter Bindings" for more information.
Conceptual models include the following core entities: customer facing services, resource facing services, resources, products, and locations. Conceptual models also include domain, action code, fulfillment pattern, provider function, and functional area entities.
You create all conceptual model entities using the same procedure.
To create conceptual model entities:
From the Studio menu, select New, and then select Model, then select the type of entity that you want to create.
In the Project field, select the project in which to save this entity.
(For core entities only) To select an existing entity as the base type for the new entity, in the Extends field click Select and navigate to the existing entity.
The new entity becomes a subtype of the entity that you select here, and it inherits the base type attributes.
Note:
The Extends field appears only for customer facing services, locations, products, resources, and resource facing services.In the Name field, enter a name for the entity.
The name must be unique among entity types in the same namespace.
(Optional) Select a location for the entity.
You can enter a folder name in the Folder field or select a location if you want to create additional subfolders. To select a different location:
Click the Folder field Browse button.
Navigate to the directory in which to save the entity.
Click OK.
Click Finish.
The new entity appears in the Solution view.
If you created a new conceptual model core entity, Design Studio automatically creates any mandatory actions for that conceptual model entity and associates the actions to the entity.
Design Studio:
Defines the conceptual model entity as the subject of the action.
Defines the functional area of the action (the action type).
Adds the action codes based on those defined in the functional area.
Configures the action to inherit data elements from its subject if this configuration is defined in the functional area.
The new entity and the associated actions appear in the Solution view.
Your business requirements will dictate the order in which you configure your conceptual model entities. For example, you might define the technical solution first, where you define the resource facing services and downstream resources before you define the customer facing services and products.
Because a service must be available before you can offer it to customers, another approach is to model customer facing services first, then resource facing services, then resources, and then products.
To configure conceptual model entities:
In the Solution view, double-click a conceptual model entity to open the entity in a conceptual model editor.
For example, if you double-click a CFS entity, Design Studio opens the CFS entity in the Customer Facing Service editor.
On the Data Elements tab, define the simple and structured data elements required by the entity.
For example, a CFS might require data elements that represent the customer ID, the customer location, the asset integration ID, and so forth.
On the Components tab (in the CFS, RFS, and Resource editors) and on the Derivation tab (in the Product editor), associate the entity with conceptual model components.
You define relationships between conceptual model entities by adding components to conceptual model entities. See "Defining Conceptual Model Components" for more information.
On the Properties tab, specify the application entity to which the conceptual model entity will convert and associate a fulfillment pattern to the conceptual model entity.
Note:
Products are not converted into application entities.On the Other Relationships tab, associate conceptual model entities with any other entity, even if there is no implied relationship in the delivered service fulfillment definitions.
This tab enables you to extend the delivered conceptual model.
On the Categorization tab, tag data elements and specify which data elements are persisted to a Customer Facing Service, a Resource Facing Service, a Resource, or a Location entity.
Realizing Conceptual Model Entities into Application Entities
You define relationships between conceptual model entities by adding components to conceptual model entities. A component is a container that represents all of the viable configurations that can be defined for the relationship. For example, the Broadband_Internet_Access customer facing service can include the Access component. The Access component represents all of the resource facing services that can be used to deliver the Broadband_Internet_Access service.
See Design Studio Concepts for information about components and conceptual model entity relationships.
To define conceptual model components:
In the Solution view, double-click a conceptual model entity to open the entity in a conceptual model editor.
For example, if you double-click a CFS entity, Design Studio opens the CFS entity in the Customer Facing Service editor.
Click the Components tab.
In the Components area, click Add.
The Create Components Element dialog box appears.
In the Name field, enter a name for the component.
Name your components to emphasize the role that the component serves (rather than naming the component with the name of associated entity). For example, if you intend to associate the Broadband_Internet_Access Customer Facing Service with the Access_Node Resource, you might name the component ActivationTarget. This naming convention enables you to replace the conceptual model entity defined for the component with a different conceptual model entity without needing to rename the role of the component.
The component name must not be identical to any of the data elements defined for the same entity.
In the Component Type field, select an entity type.
The types of components that are available in this field are determined by all associated provider functions. Associated provider functions are those that define the conceptual model entity as an input type.
For example, consider that you are defining components for a Customer Facing Service entity, and that there exists in the workspace one provider function, named DesignAndAssign. And, consider that this provider function defines the Customer Facing Service entity as input and defines the Resource Facing Service entity and the Location entity as output.
In this example, there are two available options in the Component Type field, the RFS value (resource facing service) and the Location value.
If you need to add resources as components of a customer facing service (such as when modeling a Carrier Ethernet) you can edit the DesignAndAssign provider function definition to add the Resource entity as an output type.
In the Options field, define specific details about the components.
Do one of the following:
Click Add to define the component option using a new conceptual model entity.
Click Select to define the component option using an existing conceptual model entity.
Define the option cardinality.
The Minimum field indicates the minimum number of option instances, and the Maximum field indicates the maximum number of option instances.
Enter 0 in the Minimum field (or select Optional) to indicate that the option is optional. Select Unbounded to define the maximum number of occurrences with no explicit limit.
In the Relationship Type field, define how the entity is related to the component.
See Design Studio Concepts for information about the types of relationships you can define in between entities and components.
Click OK.
Conceptual Model Editor Components Tab
You create new functional ares if you are not using the data delivered in the Common Model Base Data project or if you want to create action types in addition to the Service and Technical types delivered with Design Studio.
To create new functional areas:
From the Studio menu, select New, then select Model, and then select Functional Area.
The Functional Area wizard appears.
Using the wizard, create a new Functional Area entity.
See "Creating Conceptual Model Entities" for more information.
From the Solution view, double-click the Functional Area entity.
The Functional Area entity opens in the Functional Area editor.
Click the Data Elements tab.
In the Data Elements area, define any default data elements for service actions associated with a functional area.
When you add new data elements to a Functional Area entity, these elements are automatically tagged with the Implicit Parameter tag, which cannot be removed. When a service action is created, the default data elements defined in the Functional Area editor appear on the Service Action editor Data Elements page as read-only.
Click the Action Support tab.
If the functional area supports actions, select the This Functional Area Supports Actions option.
In the Action Prefix field, enter a value to define the naming convention of the functional area actions.
In the Supported Entity Types area, click Add.
The Create Supported Entity Types Element dialog box appears.
In the Action Entity Type field, select the type of conceptual model entity that can be the subject of the actions supported in the functional area.
If the conceptual model entity requires an association with the type of action defined by the functional area, select Mandatory.
When this option is selected for an entity in the Supported Entity Types table, Design Studio automatically creates an action entity and associates the action entity with any new entities that you create.
If multiple actions can be associated with the conceptual model entity, select Allow Multiple Instances.
Conceptual model entities can have only one associated service action. Resource facing services and resources can be associated with multiple technical actions.
If the data elements defined on the conceptual model entity should be inherited by associated action families, select Extend Subject by Default.
Click OK.
The conceptual model entity appears in the Supported Entity Types table.
Define the action codes associated with the functional area.
The action codes appear in the Functional Area editor Action Codes area. After you define the action codes, you can select a code and open it in the Action Code editor.
Click the Data Map tab and define the applicability of each default data element to the action codes associated the functional area.
Click the Realization tab.
Specify how the Functional Area entity is realized into an application entity.
Click Save.
About Conceptual Model Actions
You create new action codes if you are not using the data delivered in the Common Model Base Data project or if you want to create action types in addition to the Service and Technical types delivered with Design Studio.
Action codes enable you to map product action order lines on incoming orders to service action order lines required to provision the order. See "Working with Mapping Rules" for more information about mapping rules.
To create new action codes:
From the Studio menu, select New, then select Model, and then select Action Code.
The Action Code wizard appears.
Using the wizard, create a new Action Code entity.
See "Creating Conceptual Model Entities" for more information.
From the Solution view, double-click the Action Code entity.
The Action Code entity opens in the Action Code editor.
In the Functional Area field, click Select.
The Select Functional Area dialog box appears.
Select a functional area from the list and click OK.
Click Save.
The action code now appears in the Functional Area editor Action Codes area.
You can create your own actions manually, or you can configure Design Studio to create actions automatically when you create new conceptual model entities.
When creating actions, see the following topics:
To create new actions manually:
From the Solution view, select a conceptual model entity.
Right-click the entity and select Add Action.
The Add Actions dialog box appears.
Click New.
The Action wizard appears.
In the Project field, select the project in which to save the action family.
In the Action Type field, click Select, and then select an action type (a functional area) to which this action family belongs.
For example, select Technical if you are associating an entity with a technical action. When you select an action type, Design Studio automatically populates the Name and Location fields. Oracle recommends that you use these naming conventions. To use a different name or location, deselect the Use recommended name and location option.
(For technical actions) In the Application Role field, select the downstream fulfillment system where the technical actions will be sent.
Click Finish.
The new action appears in the Solution view.
For service actions, Design Studio associates with the action all action codes defined on the specified functional area. For technical actions, Design Studio associates the default set of action codes and specialized technical actions defined for the application role. If the related functional area specifies that data elements are inherited by the action family, Design Studio adds the data elements defined for the conceptual model entity subject to the action parameter set.
You can configure Design Studio to create actions automatically when you create new conceptual model entities. Actions that Design Studio creates automatically are considered mandatory.
To create actions automatically:
In the Solution view Category field, select Functional Areas.
Design Studio filters the Solution view to display Functional Area entities only.
Double-click a Functional Area entity to open the entity in the Functional Area editor.
Ensure that the This Functional Area Supports Actions option is selected.
In the Action Prefix field, enter the naming convention that Design Studio uses when creating new actions of this action type.
In the Supported Entity Types table, select the conceptual model entity for which Design Studio will automatically create actions when you create an entity of this type.
In the Supported Entity Type Details table, select Mandatory.
If you want the new action to inherit all of the data elements defined for the associated entity, select Extend Subject by Default.
Click Save.
When you create a new conceptual model entity, Design Studio will create a new action automatically, and associate the new action to the entity.
To configure actions:
From the Solution view, double-click an Action entity to open the entity in the Action editor.
On the Data Map tab, define the applicability of the data elements to the action.
You can specify whether a data element is required by an action by defining applicability to specific action codes (for service actions) or by defining applicability to specialized aliases defined for the action codes (for technical actions). For example, you can specify whether a data element value must be supplied to or returned by each action in an associated action family.
Click the Data Elements tab and configure the data elements required by the action.
The data elements that have applicability to the action appear on this tab. You cannot add or remove data elements from the Service Action editor Data Elements tab.
Click the Action Codes tab.
(Optional) Add or remove action codes.
Do one of the following:
For service actions, add or remove action codes. The action codes that initially appear are those defined by the action type (or functional area). For example, when modeling service actions, the action codes default from the Service functional area.
For technical actions, add or remove action codes and define a corresponding specialized action name that is specific to the application role. The action codes that initially appear are those defined by the action type (or functional area). For example, when modeling technical actions, the action codes default from the Technical functional area.
Note:
You can add only those action codes that are included in the associated functional area. The functional area is specified in the Action Type field.You can define multiple specialized technical actions against a single action code. Each specialized technical action can define a unique parameter selection on the Data Map tab.
Click the Properties tab.
If the action should inherit the data elements defined for the associated conceptual model entity (the subject of the action), select Extend Subject.
In the Target field, enter the resource or resource facing service that represents an instance of an entity in the network against which the action executes.
In the Key field, enter a value to enable the Order and Service Management order transformation manager to identify order line items of this type at run time.
In the Implementation System field, define the system where the application entity is used.
In the Realization Design Pattern field, select a design pattern to realize the action.
You can create your own design patterns if no patterns are available. See the Design Studio Developer's Guide for more information.
In the Implementation Method field, define how the action realizes.
Service actions realize in Design Studio for ASAP projects as service actions. Technical actions can realize in Design Studio for Inventory projects as rulesets or in Design Studio for Network Integrity projects as scan actions.
If you want to synchronize the action and the realized application entity automatically, select the Run Realization Design Pattern Automatically option.
(Optional) To extend an existing action, click Select in the Extends field.
When you extend one entity from another, the target entity inherits all of the data elements defined for the extended entity. This option is not available if you select the Extend Subject field.
Click Save.
Action parameter bindings enable you to bind attributes defined for conceptual model entities and components (the source data) to parameters defined for technical actions (the target data). See "About Action Parameter Bindings" for more information.
You create a single, reusable action parameter binding for a subject when the action parameter binding applies to the subject wherever the subject appears in the conceptual model. In this scenario, the subject entity and its child components contain all of or most of the data that is required by technical actions and the run-time application uses this binding in every context in which the subject appears.
You create service-specific action parameter bindings when you want the binding to apply only when the subject appears in a specific service. In this scenario, the subject contains little or no source data. Rather, the source data required by the action family is defined in various data elements throughout the service.
Note:
Action parameter bindings do not automatically facilitate the metadata that the Calculate Technical Actions provider function requires at run-time. Rather, Design Studio enables you to complete the modeling necessary to facilitate the CTA processes. To automate the creation of CTA metadata, you must develop a CTA metadata generator. This generator explores the conceptual model configuration and generates the necessary metadata.You can leverage the Design Studio Exchange Format and create your own CTA metadata generator, or you can use the example that is included in the Oracle Communications RSDOD Reference Solution, which is available on the Oracle Technology Network.
See the Design Studio Developer's Guide for more information about the Design Studio Exchange Format. See the Oracle Communications RSDOD Reference Solution Developers Guide for more information about generating CTA metadata.
To create a new action parameter binding:
In the Solution view, right-click the conceptual model entity (the subject) for which you want to create an action parameter binding.
From the context menu, select Add, then select Add Action Parameter Binding.
The Add Action Parameter Binding dialog box appears.
Click New.
The Action Parameter Binding wizard appears.
Accept the default values prepopulated in the Subject field.
In the Context field, do one of the following:
Accept the default to create a single, reusable action parameter binding for a subject when the action parameter binding applies to the subject wherever the subject appears in the conceptual model.
Click the drop down menu to select a context that is specific to a service, or enter a new context that is specific to a service.
By default, the context is defined using the relative path of the subject, and indicates that the action parameter binding set is to be used wherever the subject is used. You can change the context if the action parameter binding set is applicable for a more specific context.
You are not required to define the context at the root level of the service. For example, you can define the context at the resource level.
In the Action Family field, select the actions to include in the action family.
By default, all actions associated with the subject are included in the action parameter binding. Select Select Specific Actions to limit the action family to a subset of actions. For example, you might have technical actions to create, modify, and delete entries in the network address template. You can create a single action parameter binding for all of these technical actions, or you can limit the scope if you require alternate bindings for specific scenarios.
(Optional) In the Name field, edit the default name.
This field displays the Action Parameter Binding entity name, which is automatically populated with the name of the subject entity and an APB suffix. You can edit the default value if you want to support multiple action parameter bindings for a single subject; for example, if you are creating an APB for the Network Address Template Resource entity, you might want to create two bindings, one named NetworkAddressTemplate_CustomerEdge and the other named NetworkAddressTemplate_ProviderEdge.
Click Finish.
The Action Parameter Binding entity is created. Design Studio opens the entity in an editor.
Click Save.