Example Questions

Find equipment

• "Do I have any air compressors?"
• "Find the boiler burner fan."
• "What's under the Heating and Cooling category?"

Totals and costs

• "How much energy did the Mains use yesterday?"
• "What was the total cost for Machinery this month?"
• "What's my projected cost this month?"

Rankings

• "What are my top 5 devices by energy yesterday?"
• "Which categories used the most energy this month?"

Comparisons and changes

• "Which devices changed most in energy this week vs. last week?"
• "How does this month's cost compare to last month?"
• "Which categories rose most week over week?"

Trends, peaks and patterns

• "Show me this week's energy usage trend."
• "When did yesterday's peak happen?"
• "What does a typical day look like for the chiller?"

Circuits and current

• "Which circuits does the chiller have?"
• "When did phase 2 exceed 30 amps yesterday?"
• "Which circuits had the highest average current this week?"
• "How did the compressor's current this week compare to last week?"

Working hours

• "How much energy did we use outside business hours last week?"

How the Assistant Reads Time Periods

Dates are based on today

When you say this month, last week or yesterday, the Assistant uses today's date in your site's time zone - not the period shown on your chart.

• This month - from the 1st of this month until now.
• Last month - the whole previous calendar month.
• Last 7 days - the 7 days up to now.

Asking about your chart

On the web, the Assistant can also see the time period and devices selected in your TimeView chart. To use them, say so in your question - for example "on this chart" or "for the selected period". The Assistant tells you in its answer when it uses your chart selection.

Tip: Instead of "this month", ask "How much energy did the Mains use on this chart?" to get an answer for exactly what you're looking at.

Tips for Better Answers

• Name the device, category or group. "the chiller" or "the Production category" gets a sharper answer than "my equipment".
• Give a time period. "yesterday", "last week" or "in September".
• Ask one thing at a time. Then build on it with follow-ups.
• Ask for generation by name. Rankings and totals cover consumption by default. To see what your site produced, ask for generated energy.
• Set up a site schedule. Working-hours questions use your site's operating schedule. Without one, the Assistant asks you which hours to use.
• Start a new chat for a new topic. It keeps the conversation focused.

How the Assistant Handles Your Data

• Grounded in your data. Every number comes from a live lookup of your PowerRadar data.
• Missing data stays missing. Gaps in the data are reported as gaps, never as zero. A total may differ slightly from a chart that fills in gaps.
• Quiet periods. When a device has no readings for a while, the Assistant says there was no recorded activity in that interval. This can be normal - for example, equipment that was switched off — or a reporting gap. It won't call it a sensor or connection problem without evidence.
• Rankings show the top 10. Ask for more and you'll get up to 20 per answer.
• Your units and currency. Answers use your site's configured units, currency and local time.
• Very broad questions. If a question needs too many lookups, the Assistant gives a partial answer and tells you so. Narrow the question and ask again.

What It Can't Answer Yet

Not in the beta yet:

• Other measurements. Voltage, power factor, reactive power, frequency and carbon. The Assistant can tell you whether a device has them - view them in the TimeView chart.
• Meters. Water, gas and heat meters aren't supported yet.
• Other sites. Each conversation covers one site. It can't compare sites.
• Weather, events and alerts. It doesn't use outdoor temperature, events or alerts.
• How-to questions. For "How do I…" questions about PowerRadar, it points you to the Help Center.
• Root causes. It shows what changed and where, but won't diagnose why equipment behaved a certain way.
• Changes to your account. The Assistant is read-only.

Related Articles

• Panoramic AI: TimeView Assistant Overview
• Using the TimeView Assistant
• Data Layers: Schedule & Outside Temperature
• AI Usage and Monthly Allowance