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Epcis Object Event in RCOM Gateway

The EpcisObject trigger type in RCOM Gateway enables fine-grained processing of individual EPCIS 2.0 events. Unlike EpcisMessage, which treats the EPCIS document as a batch, EpcisObject extracts and processes each event separately, making it ideal for granular, real-time tracking and decision logic in dynamic workflows.

What Is EpcisObject?

The EpcisObject trigger splits a standard EPCIS 2.0 JSON-LD document into individual events and generates a separate workflow trigger for each one. This supports asynchronous, event-specific routing and filtering.

Supported event types include:

  • EpcisObjectEvent
  • EpcisAggregationEvent
  • EpcisAssociationEvent
  • EpcisTransactionEvent
  • EpcisTransformationEvent

Each event is processed independently, enabling dynamic filtering, transformation, or logic execution based on its type and content.

Who Should Use the EpcisObject?

This trigger is ideal if you:

  • Work with Auto ID devices (e.g., RFID, barcode) generating EPCIS 2.0 events.
  • Need fine-grained, event-level automation in RCOM Gateway.
  • Require filtering, transformation, or business logic per event type.
  • Want to link each EPCIS event directly to its own workflow execution.

Input Format

The EpcisObject trigger consumes a complete EPCIS 2.0 JSON-LD document, structured as per GS1 standards. This document includes:

  • Header: Metadata like creation date, sender, etc.
  • EventList: One or more EPCIS events of various types.

Each event in the list is extracted and dispatched to the workflow engine individually.

info

For more info on EPSIS 2.0 and JSON/JSON-LD bindings, refer to the document.

EPCIS Standards

Example:

warning

RCOM Gateway expects EPCIS documents in GS1 EPCIS 2.0 JSON-LD format, including @context and type fields. Plain JSON is not accepted.

{
"@context": "https://ref.gs1.org/epcis",
"type": "EpcisDocument",
"epcisBody": {
"eventList": [
{
"type": "ObjectEvent",
"eventTime": "2025-07-01T10:00:00Z",
"action": "ADD",
"bizStep": "shipping",
"epcList": ["urn:epc:id:sgtin:0****41.*****6.2**7"]
},
{
"type": "TransactionEvent",
"eventTime": "2025-07-01T10:05:00Z",
"action": "OBSERVE",
"parentID": "urn:epc:id:sscc:*****1.123******90",
"bizTransactionList": [
{
"type": "po",
"id": "http://transaction.example.com/po/1**45"
}
]
}
]
}
}

Event Fields Available to Workflows

Each extracted event exposes common fields into the workflow trigger context:

PropertyType
Typestring
EventTimeDateTimeOffset
EventTimeZoneOffsetstring
Actionstring
BizStepstring
Dispositionstring
ReadpointIDstring
BizLocationIDstring`

Type-specific fields (depending on event type):

Event TypeField NameData Type
ObjectEventEpcisListList<string>
BizTransactionListList<Dictionary<string, string>>
AggregationEventParentIDstring
ChildEPCsList<string>
AssociationEventParentIDstring
ChildEPCsList<string>
AssociationTypestring
TransactionEventParentIDstring
EpcListList<string>
BizTransactionListList<Dictionary<string, string>>
TransformationEventInputEPCListList<string>
OutputEPCListList<string>
TransformationIDstring

All of these are automatically injected into the workflow context when the trigger is executed.

Filtering Support

The EpcisObject trigger supports event-level filtering based on the following standard fields:

  • Action
  • BizStep
  • Disposition
  • ReadpointID
  • BizLocationID

Depending on the event type, the following fields can also be used for filtering:

  • ParentID
  • AssociationType
  • TransformationID

This makes it possible to route or reject events dynamically based on their properties at ingestion time.

How It Works in RCOM Gateway

  1. You configure a REST API route or MQTT topic with Event Type = EpcisObject.

  2. Gateway splits the EPCIS 2.0 JSON-LD into individual events as available. Supported event types are:

    • EpcisObjectEvent
    • EpcisAggregationEvent
    • EpcisAssociationEvent
    • EpcisTransactionEvent
    • EpcisTransformationEvent
  3. Configure Event Processor with the Trigger type as one of the event types mentioned below. The data from the selected event will be shared with the workflow.

    • Epcis object event
    • Epcis aggregation event
    • Epcis association event
    • Epcis transaction event
    • Epcis transformation event
  4. Filter the event as needed. Refer to the filter section to know more about available filters.

  5. Choose a workflow to trigger.

  6. Now you can map the available EPCIS Event types to the available Workflow parameters.

Inside the workflow, you can:

  • Convert the file
  • Validate or log the document
  • Forward it to another system
  • Store it in a database
  • and more.

✅ Use Case Example

Scenario: A packaging line publishes EPCIS 2.0 events to RCOM Gateway whenever a carton is sealed or associated with a pallet.

  • Trigger Type: EpcisObject
  • Event Type: AggregationEvent
  • Filtering: Only process events where BizStep = packing and Disposition = active
  • Workflow: CartonToPalletTrackingWorkflow
  • Result: Each packing event triggers a check on pallet capacity and logs carton-pallet associations.

When to Use EpcisObject vs EpcisMessage

Use CaseRecommended Trigger
Batch upload with no filteringEpcisMessage
Real-time per-event workflowsEpcisObject
Need to inspect individual fieldsEpcisObject
Event grouping is importantEpcisMessage