Specs → Attributes (🧪 Beta)

Beta Feature

client.attributes is currently in beta. The existing client.inventory.get_specs() and client.inventory.add_specs() methods continue to work but are deprecated and will be removed in SDK 2.0. Adopting the new Attributes API now is entirely opt-in — you can migrate at your own pace.

What's changing

The legacy Specs system is being replaced by two new concepts:

Attributes — globally-defined, reusable property templates (e.g. "Viscosity @ 25°C") managed at the tenant level via client.attributes.
Reference Values — the actual measured or assigned values for a given attribute on a specific inventory item or lot, managed via client.attributes.add_values() and related methods.

Previously, specs were defined and assigned to inventory items in a single step using InventorySpec. The new API separates definition (what property is being tracked) from value (what that property measures for this specific item).

Timeline:

SDK version	What's available
1.x (current)	Both `client.inventory.get_specs()` / `add_specs()` (deprecated) and `client.attributes` (beta) are available
2.0 (planned)	`get_specs()`, `add_specs()`, `InventorySpec`, `InventorySpecValue`, `InventorySpecList` are removed

Migrating now means your code is ready for 2.0 without further changes.

What's new

Centralised attribute library — attributes are defined once at the tenant level and reused across any number of inventory items and lots. Specs were defined per-item with no sharing.
Typed validation — each attribute declares a datatype (number, string, enum) with optional range or operator constraints.
Lot-level values — reference values can be assigned to individual lots (LOT…), not just inventory items.
Scoped reads — get_values(scope=ALL) returns values for an inventory item and all its lots in one call.
Search — client.attributes.search() provides full-text and field-level search across the attribute catalogue.

Side-by-side comparison

	`client.inventory` (deprecated)	`client.attributes` (new)
Define a property	Inline in `InventorySpec`	`client.attributes.create(attribute=...)`
Assign a value to inventory	`add_specs(inventory_id=..., specs=[...])`	`add_values(parent_id=..., values=[...])`
Read values for multiple inventory items	`get_specs(ids=[...])`	`get_by_parent_ids(parent_ids=[...])`
Read values for inventory + lots	❌ not supported	`get_values(parent_id=..., scope=ALL)`
Read values for lots only	❌ not supported	`get_values(parent_id=..., scope=LOT)`
Remove a specific value	❌ not supported	`delete_values(parent_id=..., attribute_ids=[...])`
Remove all values	❌ not supported	`clear_values(parent_id=...)`
Search attributes	❌ not supported	`client.attributes.search(text=...)`
Shared attribute definitions	❌ not supported	✅ defined once, used everywhere
Return model	`InventorySpecList`	`AttributeValuesResponse`

Migrating

Step 1 — Create attribute definitions

In the old system, property definitions lived inside each InventorySpec. In the new system, you define attributes once and reuse them.

from albert.resources.attributes import Attribute, AttributeCategory, ValidationItem
from albert.resources.parameter_groups import DataType, Operator

# Create a reusable "Viscosity" attribute
viscosity_attr = client.attributes.create(
    attribute=Attribute(
        datacolumn_id="DAC123",           # the data column this property maps to
        category=AttributeCategory.PROPERTY,
        reference_name="Viscosity @ 25°C",
        validation=[
            ValidationItem(
                datatype=DataType.NUMBER,
                min=0.0,
                max=500.0,
                operator=Operator.BETWEEN,
            )
        ],
    )
)
print(viscosity_attr.id)  # e.g. "ATR469"

Step 2 — Assign values to inventory items

from albert.resources.attributes import AttributeValue

# Before (deprecated)
from albert.resources.inventory import InventorySpec, InventorySpecValue

client.inventory.add_specs(
    inventory_id="INVA123",
    specs=[
        InventorySpec(
            name="Viscosity",
            data_column_id="DAC123",
            value=InventorySpecValue(reference="45.2"),
        )
    ],
)

# After
client.attributes.add_values(
    parent_id="INVA123",
    values=[
        AttributeValue(attributeId=viscosity_attr.id, referenceValue=45.2),
    ],
)

add_values is upsert — if a value already exists for an attribute it is updated, not duplicated.

Step 3 — Read values back

# Before (deprecated)
spec_lists = client.inventory.get_specs(ids=["INVA123", "INVA456"])
for spec_list in spec_lists:
    for spec in spec_list.specs:
        print(spec.name, spec.value.reference)

# After — bulk read across multiple inventory items
responses = client.attributes.get_by_parent_ids(parent_ids=["INVA123", "INVA456"])
for response in responses:
    for attr_value in response.attributes:
        print(attr_value.attribute_definition.name, attr_value.reference_value)

# After — single item with lot-level scope
for response in client.attributes.get_values(
    parent_id="INVA123",
    scope=AttributeScope.ALL,
):
    print(response.parent_id)
    for attr_value in response.attributes:
        print(attr_value.attribute_definition.name, attr_value.reference_value)

Removing values

The old InventorySpec API had no way to remove values. The new API supports both targeted and full removal.

# Remove a specific attribute's value
client.attributes.delete_values(
    parent_id="INVA123",
    attribute_ids=["ATR469"],
)

# Remove all attribute values from an inventory item
client.attributes.clear_values(parent_id="INVA123")

# Remove all values from an inventory item and all its lots
client.attributes.clear_values(parent_id="INVA123", scope=AttributeScope.ALL)

Resource model changes

	`InventorySpec` (deprecated)	`AttributeValue` + `AttributeValuesResponse` (new)
Property identifier	`data_column_id: str` (inline)	`attribute_id: AttributeId` (references a shared `Attribute`)
Value	`InventorySpecValue.reference: str`	`reference_value: str \\| float \\| None`
Range	`InventorySpecValue.min`, `.max`	`AttributeValueRange.min`, `.max`, `.comparison_operator`
Property metadata	Embedded in `InventorySpec`	Separate `AttributeDefinition` (name, datacolumn, unit, validation, prmCount)
Lot-level support	❌	✅ — any `parent_id` including `LOT…` IDs

Deprecated symbols

The following are deprecated in 1.x and will be removed in 2.0:

Symbol	Replacement
`client.inventory.get_specs()`	`client.attributes.get_by_parent_ids()`
`client.inventory.add_specs()`	`client.attributes.add_values()`
`InventorySpec`	`Attribute` + `AttributeValue`
`InventorySpecValue`	`AttributeValueRange`
`InventorySpecList`	`AttributeValuesResponse`