Using Sub-Forms to Capture Repeating Data

Sub-forms provide you with a method to capture repeating data within a form.

 

The best way to explain this is with an example.

Imagine that we had a paper based form such as the one below:

 

 

 

The table contains repeating data whereby you could capture from 1 to 5 records. You could build this in WorkMobile by duplicating the part name, qty, serial number and comments fields 5 times, however it’s much quicker and neater to implement this as a sub-form.

 

Building the Solution

To build the above solution, we first need to build the sub-form, i.e. the parts used table. This is effectively a form which will be used to capture the 'repeating' element of the main form.

 

 

 

 

In our example, we’ve called this form Parts Used and we’ve built it as a standard WorkMobile form. 
Next, we need to build the ‘parent form’ that will contain the sub-form that we’ve just built.

 

Building the Main 'Parent' Form

In this example, we can build a main form as per normal, however when we get to the 'repeating' section we need to use the sub-form tool. Drag a sub-form tool onto your canvas and then:

• Set the Sub Form property to Parts Used. This tells the tool which form to use as the sub form.
  

As you can see, this form uses the sub-form tool. If you look at the properties panel, you can see that the Sub form property has been set to Parts Used. This is the name of the form that we want to embed within this form.

• To insert a subform, select the subform field from within the Misc menu located on the left-hand side of the form designer.
• Next we need to configure the summary fields. These are the fields on the sub-form that you'll choose to be displayed on the mobile device in order to identify each individual record. A sensible choice may be:
  • Part Name
  • Qty Used
  • Serial Number

 

 

 

Using the sub-forms tool on mobile device

• Open the parent form from within the list of form entries and scroll down until you find the sub-form you require (in this instance Parts Used)
• Complete the fields within the sub form and select the tick icon within the bottom left-hand corner.
• If you want to add continuous rows of data, select the + within the bottom left hand corner and repeat the process as many times as required.

• Select the back button within the sub-form menu to return to the parent form where you can continue to complete it.

Sub Form in Sub Form

There is no limit to the level of nesting you can implement when using sub-forms. You can, for example:

 

• Organise your data into smaller, more manageable sections.

• Add repeatable sections to your Sub Forms.

• Simplify your form by breaking it down into logical groups of questions.

• Reduce the need for multiple forms and the complexity that comes with managing them.

 

These Forms can then be used in the WorkMobile2.0 app for both Form and Job uploads.