| The capabilities described on this page are included in Appian's standard capability tier. Usage limits may apply. |
Note: Templates are only available on Appian 23.2 and earlier.
The UI Automation template details how to automate the Calculator application on a Windows machine. This template is based on the UI Automation module, which allows you to use techniques from the Microsoft UI Automation framework.
Microsoft UI Automation is an accessibility framework for Windows applications. It is typically applied to assistive technologies, such as screen readers, but it can be used in Appian RPA to detect the attributes of elements on a screen and then act on them.
When you use a template to create a robotic task, you are provided with a zip file containing your source code and a pre-built workflow in the robotic task configuration page. Before you use this template, ensure you complete the prerequisites needed to use the UI Automation module.
This page explains the contents of the workflow and the source code generated by the UI Automation template. For an overview of the components involved in UI Automation, see the UI Automation Module.
The UI Automation template's workflow contains eight actions: Open calculator application, Click 5, Click +, Click 8, Click =, Get attribute, Send screenshot, and Close application.
The actions in the workflow open the application and then perform calculations in the Calculator application. Click any action to see its configuration.
The source code contains a class named RobotCalculator that implements the IRobot interface and is annotated with @Robot. Every Appian RPA robotic task must have the IRobot interface and @Robot annotation to allow the Appian RPA API to identify the class as a robot.
