If your process requires a unique Submission ID at the start of the Submission instead of at the end when the Submission ID is generated, multiplying a date and time field is an easy workaround.
Random Number Generation
Creating a unique number generator takes only three fields and a few easy steps.
Configure the Fields
Using Smart Fields, the necessary fields can be added quite quickly.
- Select + Add Field in the center workspace, type "Hidden Date," and enter to add a Date field.
- The cursor will move to the next field where you can type "Hidden Time" and enter to add a Time field.
- For the last field, type "Calculation" and enter. We'll change the name of the field in a moment.
- Select the date field and then look at the Field Settings in the left panel, expand the Advanced menu, and click the blue toggle beside Mobile Visible to hide the field on mobile.
- Select the the time field, change the Style to HH:MM:SS, and leave the Default Value as "Current Time."
- Expand the Advanced menu and toggle Mobile Visible off.
- Select the calculation field. In the field settings panel, change the field name to something identifiable, like "Unique Number Generator" or "Submission Number."
- Under Calculation, expand the first Value drop down and select "Hidden Date," click the multiplication sign to change the operator, and expand the second Value drop down and select "Hidden Time."
How it Looks
Once you Save and Publish, the result on mobile will look like this:
How it Works
The number generated isn't truly random; it is always going to be a product of the date and time, converted into an integral numeric string. While it is technically possible for the number to duplicate between different users, they would have to generate the number within the same second and date to have an identical number.
Pair with Dispatch and Workflow
If this number needs to be received by the office admin before the job, one way to do this is to use Dispatch and Workflow. The dispatcher in the office can generate a submission, dispatch it to themselves, check their device to get the number, and workflow it to the person who will be completing the job. If you are using Bulk Dispatch, remember to make sure the time is different for every submission to truly generate a unique number for each submission.
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