Plural and singular attributes

Predefined attributes of types 'Plural attribute' and 'Singular attribute' play a limited role within the data structure of business objects, compared to 'typed attributes' (discussed in the next section), which enable flexible extensions of the data model.

However, there are a few cases where business objects use 'Plural attributes' (see Plural attributes), represented in Input forms as Repeatable element with a specific data structure.

Examples for plural attributes:

The header of shipments may include multiple 'Loading aid definitions' (indicating type and barcode per element).
Business objects may include a dedicated 'barcode attribute' on line item level, to specifiy one or more barcodes (with text properties 'Barcode' and 'Reference') per line item.
An address (object) can contain multiple 'communication infos' (indicating Communication type, context and value).

'Singular attributes' appear exclusively in the context of specific additional modules, to enable singular assignments of specific data types to a business object.

Typed attributes

Besides the few properties immediately linked to the business object itself (see Object property), the data structure of business objects largely depends on typed attributes, which must belong to one of the predefined 'Attribute types' listed below. Choices per attribute type are defined by Dynamic Enums, and can be extended as required. Custom attributes are identified by a unique internal 'name' and may be localized by Localization or Company specific localization. Technically, all typed attributes are globally applicable to any type of business object.

The definition of typed attributes in Dynamic Enums includes a specification, whether the individual attribute can be used only once ('singular [typed] attribute') or multiple times ('plural [typed] attribute', see Plural attributes) to assign values to the same business object. This is a global decision, valid for the use of the attribute in the context of any type of business object, which should be adhered to for the sake of data continuity, once data objects have been created.

Details per typed attribute type:

Attribute type	Usage (Content)	Dynamic enumeration
Text attributes	Strings (sequences of characters or numerics to save as text) with a maximum length of 1024.	Text types
Numerical attributes	Numerical values, generally handled as a combination of a number value and a unit of measurement in Lobster Data Platform / Orchestration.	Number types. One or more predefined unit categories (currency, quantity, length, volume, etc.) can be assigned to each element of the Dynamic Enumeration, to specify the subset of units to choose from for numeric inputs of that type.
Date attributes	Date values, generally handled as a date range in Lobster Data Platform / Orchestration, defined by start and end time values (milliseconds UTC) and an optional reference to a time zone.	Date types
Flag attributes	Boolean values (flags), with a value set of `true` and `false`, typically represented graphically (as a check box) in Lobster Data Platform / Orchestration.	Flag types
Reference attributes	Reference values (alphanumerical strings with a maximum length of 100 characters) to handle by an index in the database for better search performance and access.	Reference type
Free enumerations	Assignments based on a certain dynamic enumeration, with a data structure featuring a combination of the selected enumeration element (enumValue) and an optional text field (textValue). Example: Free enumeration 'vehicle type' (with elements 'truck', 'car') and a text field for entering a registration number, vehicle number or any other details.	Free enumeration type
Company and address attributes
Company attributes	Assignment of a Company value (registered in Lobster Data Platform / Orchestration) as a 'party' involved with a business object in a role characterized by a Company type (e.g. 'Consignor', 'Forwarder', 'Freight payer').	Company types
Company reference attributes	Indication of a reference value (alphanumerical string with a maximum length of 100 characters) to identify a certain 'party' involved with a business object in a role characterized by a Company type (e.g. 'Consignor', 'Forwarder', 'Freight payer').	Company types
Address attribute	Selection or entry of n address of a 'party' involved with a business object in a role characterized by a Company type (e.g. 'Consignor', 'Forwarder', 'Freight payer') The Form designer offers alternative functions and element types for handling addresses.	Company types

Plural attributes