WorkSpec v2.0 Task Model

Tasks define the dynamic process: who performs work, when it starts, how long it takes, and what it changes.

Tasks define the dynamic process: who performs work, when it starts, how long it takes, and what it changes.

Where tasks live (v2.0)

Tasks are defined under:

  • simulation.process.tasks[]

Task structure

{
    "id": "mix_dough",
    "emoji": "🥄",
    "actor_id": "head_baker",
    "start": "06:30",
    "duration": 20,
    "location": "prep_area",
    "depends_on": ["measure_ingredients"],
    "interactions": [],
    "description": "Mix all ingredients in industrial mixer",
    "priority": "high",
    "tags": ["preparation", "mixing"]
}

Fields

Field Required Type Meaning
id Yes string Task identifier
emoji No string Visual icon
actor_id Yes string Performer object id
start Yes time/date-time or {day,time} Start time
duration Yes integer or duration string How long the task takes
location No string Location id (where it occurs)
depends_on No array or {all,any} Dependency constraints
interactions No array Effects on objects
description No string Human-readable notes
priority No enum low | medium | high | critical
tags No string[] Labels for filtering

Task ID rules

Task IDs follow the same rules as object IDs:

  • Plain IDs (recommended): ^[a-z][a-z0-9_]{0,249}$
  • Optional namespacing is allowed for objects (not required for tasks).

Task IDs must be unique within simulation.process.tasks[].

actor_id (performers)

actor_id must reference an object that can perform tasks.

Built-in performer types:

  • actor
  • equipment
  • service

Custom types can perform tasks if their base type (via extends) is a performer type.

Start times

WorkSpec v2.0 supports:

1) Time-of-day strings (strict, zero-padded):

  • HH:MM (e.g., "09:30")
  • HH:MM:SS (e.g., "09:30:00")

2) ISO 8601 date-time strings:

  • "2026-02-03T09:30:00Z"

3) Multi-day start object:

{ "day": 2, "time": "09:30" }

Rules:

  • day is an integer >= 1
  • time uses the same formats as above
  • Time-of-day strings must be strictly zero-padded ("09:30", not "9:30")

Duration formats

Task durations can be expressed as:

1) Integer (uses simulation.config.time_unit):

{ "duration": 30 }

2) ISO 8601 duration:

{ "duration": "PT30M" }

3) Shorthand duration:

{ "duration": "30m" }
{ "duration": "1h" }
{ "duration": "1d" }
{ "duration": "10s" }
{ "duration": "1w" }
{ "duration": "1M" }

Notes:

  • Integer durations require simulation.config.time_unit to interpret units (if missing, a consumer may default to minutes).
  • Month/year durations (e.g., "1M", "P1M", "P1Y") are calendar-based and require an ISO 8601 start timestamp to compute an exact number of minutes. If your simulation uses time-of-day starts ("HH:MM") without calendar dates, prefer durations expressed in seconds/minutes/hours/days/weeks.

Dependencies

Simple form (implicit AND)

{ "depends_on": ["task_a", "task_b"] }

The task waits for all dependencies to complete.

Explicit operators

{
    "depends_on": {
        "all": ["prep_complete", "equipment_ready"],
        "any": ["manager_approval", "auto_approval"]
    }
}

Semantics:

  • Wait for (ALL of all) AND (ANY of any)

Validation expectations:

  • Dependency references must point to existing task IDs.
  • Circular dependencies should be detected and rejected.
  • Dependency timing must be respected (a task cannot start before the required dependency condition is met).

Multi-day simulations

WorkSpec v2.0 supports multi-day scheduling via:

{ "start": { "day": 2, "time": "09:30" } }

This is a day offset (1 = first day, 2 = second day, etc.), not a calendar date.