This document will continue to evolve as existing sections change and new information is added. All updates appear in the following table:
| Date | Feature | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 23 JUL 2018 | Support of Contingent Workers | Updated document. Feature delivered in update 18C. |
| 23 JUL 2018 | Unified Core Manage and Mobility | Updated document. Moved feature from Mobility to Core Application. |
| 23 JUL 2018 | Reset Password | Updated document. Moved feature from Core Manage to Administration. |
| 23 JUL 2018 | Improved Coordinates Gathering | Removed feature from update 18C. |
| 23 JUL 2018 | Collaboration Notifications Using Android Devices | Removed feature from update 18C. |
| 06 JUL 2018 | Created initial document. |
This guide outlines the information you need to know about new or improved functionality in this update.
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Save the User Name on the Login Screen
With 18C, users will be able to save their user name on the Login screen when logging in from the same device and browser. This feature will save time and eliminate unnecessary steps while logging in.
Support Oracle IDCS as OAuth2 Identity Provider
The Support of Oracle IDCS as OAuth2 Identity Provider simplifies the configuration of Oracle Identity Cloud Service as the OAuth2 Token Service for Oracle Field Service Cloud REST APIs.
Support for Supplementary Characters
Starting with the release 18C, the special characters used in some of the Chinese, Japanese, and Korean language surnames and geographical names are supported. This also includes support for emoticons, pictographs, and certain symbols. These characters are supported across the application, including daily extract, search, parts catalog, and API functions.
Some companies allot a certain amount of travel time to resources to the first activity and back to their home or office from the last activity. With 18C you can configure different travel allowances by Resource Type. The options included are:
- Start of day travel:
- Travel time to the first activity is not included from the Working Time Start
- Travel time to the first activity is included from the Working Time Start
- Resource is allotted up to <insert number> minutes of travel time prior to the Working Time Start
- Final travel:
- Travel time from the last activity to the Resources End Location is not included from the Working Time End
- Travel time from the last activity to the Resources End Location is included from the Working Time End
- Resource is allotted up to <insert number> minutes of travel time after the Working Time End
Users can now reset their passwords without any assistance from their administrator or someone in the back-office. This feature is available when the administrator enables the reset password function on the Display Settings screen. The reset password feature is available only for users with the ‘Internal’ type of login policy, who have specified an email address in the user details. Users will be sent an email with a link that allows them to reset their passwords.
With 18C, the following REST APIs have been updated:
- GET Quota - operation is updated and provides information regarding quota limits per booking intervals, if the quota is set based on planned capacity.
- PATCH Quota - operation is updated and updates information regarding quota limits per booking intervals, if the quota is set based on planned capacity.
API Updates in Resource Management
The following enhancements have been made to the Core REST APIs:
- CREATE user operation - an optional field, ‘organizationalUnit’ is added as a user's field.
- GET user and GET users operations - the field, ‘organizationalUnit’ will be returned as a user's field.
- UPDATE user operation - the field, ‘organizationalUnit’ can be updated.
Activity and Travel Duration Statistics
Starting with 18C a new REST based Statistics API will be available. This API allows you to easily obtain learned statistics and upload override durations for Activity and Travel durations down to the individual resource.
Application Entities Support for Metadata API
The following set of operations implemented in the Metadata API provide the ability to export and import the configuration settings that are defined for the application entities:
- Create/Update application API: Creates an application with the configuration settings or updates the configuration settings of an existing application.
- Get Application: Returns information about a single application entity.
- GET Applications: Returns information about a collection of applications.
- Update applications API access: Updates the API configuration of an application based on the application ID specified while creating an application and the API label.
- Get applications API access: Allows you to access an application and read the access levels of a specific API.
- Get API access for applications: Allows you to access a collection of application APIs and returns a list of APIs that can be allowed or disallowed for an application.
NOTE: Certificate files and Client Secret values cannot be obtained or uploaded using the API and you must configure the certificate files and client secret values manually for each application.
The Bulk Update Activities REST API size has been increased to 5 MB.
The following Core API operations have been added to improve and simplify integrations:
- Get calendars for multiple resources and multiple dates
- Set work schedules for multiple resources and multiple dates
- Set work skills for multiple resources and multiple dates
- Set work zones for multiple resources and multiple dates
The following Core API operations have been improved:
- GET resource and get resources operations – a new parameter, 'expand' provides the ability to expand inner entities.
- GET route - a new optional parameter, ‘activityFields’ has been added that allows you to specify the activity fields or properties that should be returned for each activity in the response.
Core API Support for Service Requests
Integrated systems can now create service requests in Oracle Field Service Cloud using the new REST API operation ‘CREATE service request’. They can also retrieve information about the existing service requests using the new ‘GET service request’ REST API operation.
REST API for Resource Inventory Bulk Upload
A new operation ‘Bulk update resource inventories’ has been added to the REST APIs. The operation creates or updates the resource inventory in bulk for the specified resources with the inventory specified in the request.
This feature introduces a REST based API for subscribers to Oracle Field Service Cloud Smart Location Service. It will include the following operations:
- Update positions of resources operation: Used for updating coordinates of a resource.
- Get last known positions of resources operation: Used to obtain the last known position of a resource.
- Get resource position history operation: Used to retrieve the list of resources located within a certain area.
- Get resources in area operation: Used to retrieve information about a resource’s location within a certain area, specified by longitude, latitude, and radius parameters.
Booking Based on Planned Capacity and Limited by Time Intervals
Starting with 18C, the following new features are available with availability-based quota and booking:
- Booking based on Planned capacity starting from Day 1 or after a configured number of days in the future (e.g. used Planned capacity starting 8 days from today)
- Ability to configure quota by configured booking interval by capacity category.
With this release, Quota/Capacity includes the ability to manage a Capacity Area based on a Planned number of resources. The new Planned Capacity Editor will be available on the Available Capacity screen.
Quota Screen Navigation Improvements
The following enhancements have been made to improve the navigation on the Quota/Capacity screens:
- Quota and Capacity configuration screen has been redesigned to provide clearer and more convenient capacity area configuration management
- Icons are shown on the screen for the Booking Status, Quota, Availability Capacity and Configuration screens
- The View History and Mass Populate actions are grouped under the Actions button
- The View button is removed from all the screens except for Quota by day, Quota by time slot, and Quota by capacity category screens
- Filtering by capacity category is only available on the Quota by Capacity Category screen
- The term ‘Capacity Bucket’ is replaced by the term ‘Capacity Area’ throughout the product
Use Temporary Assigned Resources in Quota and Capacity Calculations
Quota/Capacity management has been improved in 18C to support temporary resources. A temporary resource is someone that will work in another location [different location from where they normally work] for a predetermined amount of time. When enabled, quota/capacity will be updated based on the resources directly assigned work zones.
As part of the 18C release, the Collaboration Helpdesk functionality will be available for users of Oracle Field Service Cloud Mobility.
Unified Core Manage and Mobility
The 18C release introduces the Oracle Field Service Cloud Core Application. This application brings together what was previously known as Core Manage and Mobility with new and improved functionality.
Activity Management - Month View
With 18C, the Time View now includes the Month view that allows for expanded visibility into the future workload. This option is added to the existing Day, 2 Days, 3 Days, and 1 Week views. The 1 Week view has been renamed as Week.
Processing Activities of Non-Working Technicians
Starting with 18C, any pending activities on a resource's route with a non-working calendar are re-optimized to another resource or moved back to the bucket when a Bulk Routing re-optimization plan is used.
A new Contingent (or Infrequent) Workforce service is being introduced. This new offering provides businesses with additional configuration capabilities to support mixed usage models where there are in-house resources, dedicated contractors and/or Contingent Workers.
This release includes the new option, Resource is a contingent worker on the Add resource type and Edit resource type screens. This option lets you identify a resource as a contingent worker. A new read-only field, User classification is added to the Users screen. This field indicates whether the user is a contingent worker. The values are: “contingent worker” and “regular”.
Starting 18C, a new option ‘Schedule’ is available on the Calendar screen Mobility, making it possible to assign a schedule to a resource using the Calendar.
Improved Inventory in Resource and Customer Pools
Starting the release 18C, you can Add inventory in the resource and customer pools and delete inventory from any pool using Oracle Field Service Cloud Mobility.
Displaying Traffic Layer in Maps
18C adds the ability to view Traffic Layers on the Map. This is enabled when a user selects the ‘Traffic’ option in any of the following maps:
- Route map
- Team map
- Dispatch map
Starting with the 18C release the “Add Resource” screen in Oracle Field Service Cloud Core Application has a new option to create “Organization Unit”, “Bucket” and users with the role “Admin/Manager/Dispatcher”. All the resources of the Organization are displayed in the “Resources” section with flexible filters allowing resources to be allocated to a particular Org unit.
Real-Time Traffic Updates for Travel Time Estimation
With 18C, when a resource activates their route or when they complete an activity, the travel time for the next activity will be updated using real-time traffic and travel conditions.
Starting with this release you can define a resource's start, finish, and home zone center location for a specific date in the future. The new section Override Daily Locations is available on the Mobility Resources screen, where you can add, edit, and delete a location override.
Reports and Dashboards Usability Improvements
Oracle Field Service Cloud Core Application users will have a new dashboard experience with the 18C release. This includes:
- Improved navigation of Oracle Field Service Cloud reports and dashboard with intuitive and dynamic visuals
- Single page access to Oracle Field Service Cloud reports and dashboards and Oracle Business Intelligence Cloud reports
- Ability to create predefined dashboards by User Type
ICS as a Channel in Outbound Integration Page
The Oracle Integration Cloud Service (ICS) Channel configuration options are available under the Outbound Integration page. Previously the ICS/OIC channel was present as a separate menu item in the Configuration page, this has been replaced to Outbound integration Channel.
Integration with IoTCS Using OIC
With the release 18C, integration with IoTCS using OIC feature has been introduced to automate the process of dispatching a Technician to a job that needs the attention, for an IoT enabled device.
Oracle Field Service Cloud - Oracle Analytical Cloud Service (OAC) Integration
With this release Oracle Field Service Cloud adds the ability to integrate with Oracle Analytical Cloud Service (OAC). Data can be send directly from Oracle Field Service Cloud to OAC in batch or real-time based on the configuration including the ability to embed an OAC report or dashboard into a Oracle Field Service Cloud page.
Using Street Level Routing (SLR) Data in Routing
The release 18C adds the Street Level Routing (SLR) capabilities to routing. You can configure this feature per routing plan and when enabled, it obtains the Street Level travel data from the map provider (for example, Google Maps) and uses that data during optimization.
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