| name | current-esaf |
| description | Retrieve the ESAF active right now at the configured beamline from alshub-api. Strictly scoped to the present moment — never queries a different date. |
Current ESAF Skill
Use this skill when the user asks about the ESAF, proposal, or experiment
that is happening right now at this beamline. Typical phrasings:
- "what ESAF is active?"
- "what's the current experiment?"
- "who's running on the beamline?"
- "tag this logbook entry with the current proposal"
Configured beamline
Currently set to {{beamline}} (from Preferences → Tiled → Beamline).
If you see <not configured> above, the user must set the beamline pref
before this skill can be used — surface that clearly when asked.
The one tool
get_current_esaf(include_details: bool = False) — calls alshub-api and
returns the ESAF whose scheduled window contains the present instant.
-
include_details=False (default): lean payload from the public
endpoint — EsafFriendlyId, ProposalFriendlyId, Beamline,
ScheduledStart, ScheduledStop, Title. No auth needed.
-
include_details=True: full Event payload, including PI, ExpLead,
Participants (each with name/email/orcid/lbnl-id), Description,
Status, Version. Requires an alshub API key (from the
tiled_alshub_api_key preference, the ALSHUB_API_KEY env var, or
~/.bashrc). If the key isn't available, the tool returns an error
rather than silently degrading to the lean payload.
Three response states (matching AccessStamper's convention)
- ESAF dict → an experiment is scheduled and running now.
null → no ESAF scheduled at this instant. Not an error; surface plainly.- Tool error → alshub-api is unreachable, returned non-404 failure, or
required preferences are unset.
When to REFUSE
If the user asks about an ESAF at a different time — "what ESAF is on
June 16?", "what's scheduled next week?", "show me last Tuesday's
experiment" — this skill does not answer. Tell the user it's scoped
to "now" and suggest the ALS User Portal. Do NOT extend this skill, write
inline code, or invent a date parameter for the tool. The "now-only"
constraint is structural, not stylistic.
Beamline is set by preferences, not by argument
This skill always operates on whatever beamline is currently set in
Preferences → Tiled → Beamline. To use it at a different beamline,
change the preference (or restart Lightfall against a different config) —
the tool itself never accepts a beamline parameter.
