Learn Interacting with APIs for Automation | System Interaction and Test Automation

APIs, or Application Programming Interfaces, are essential tools in automation, allowing you to interact with external systems and services. In automation engineering, APIs can be used to retrieve device statuses, send commands to hardware or cloud services, or collect real-time data from various endpoints. By leveraging APIs, you can automate complex workflows that involve multiple systems, making your automation solutions more dynamic and scalable.


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import requests

# Simulated API endpoint (in reality, this would be a real URL)
url = "https://api.example.com/device/status"

# Simulated API response (since we can't make real HTTP requests here)
class FakeResponse:
    def json(self):
        return {
            "device_id": "sensor_123",
            "status": "active",
            "temperature": 22.5,
            "last_checked": "2024-06-15T12:30:00Z"
        }

# Instead of requests.get(url), use the fake response for demonstration
response = FakeResponse()
data = response.json()

print("Device ID:", data["device_id"])
print("Status:", data["status"])
print("Temperature:", data["temperature"])
print("Last Checked:", data["last_checked"])

When working with APIs, data is often returned in the JSON format, which is a lightweight data-interchange format. Python makes it straightforward to parse JSON responses and extract the information you need for your automation workflow. After fetching data from an API, you can use the parsed fields to trigger alerts, log results, or make decisions in your automation scripts. Integrating API data into your automation allows you to respond to real-time events, orchestrate system actions, and keep your processes up to date with external changes.


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# Simulated API response data
api_response = {
    "device_id": "sensor_456",
    "status": "inactive",
    "battery_level": 15,
    "last_error": "Low battery"
}

# Extract specific fields for use in automation
device_id = api_response["device_id"]
status = api_response["status"]
battery_level = api_response["battery_level"]

# Use the extracted data to make an automation decision
if status == "inactive" and battery_level < 20:
    print(f"Alert: Device {device_id} is inactive. Battery level is low ({battery_level}%).")
else:
    print(f"Device {device_id} is operational.")

1. What is an API in the context of automation?

2. Why might an automation engineer use Python to interact with APIs?

3. Fill in the blank:

response = requests.get(url); data = response.___() parses JSON data.

A) text()
B) json()
C) read()
D) parse()

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              1234567891011121314151617181920212223
            
import requests

# Simulated API endpoint (in reality, this would be a real URL)
url = "https://api.example.com/device/status"

# Simulated API response (since we can't make real HTTP requests here)
class FakeResponse:
    def json(self):
        return {
            "device_id": "sensor_123",
            "status": "active",
            "temperature": 22.5,
            "last_checked": "2024-06-15T12:30:00Z"
        }

# Instead of requests.get(url), use the fake response for demonstration
response = FakeResponse()
data = response.json()

print("Device ID:", data["device_id"])
print("Status:", data["status"])
print("Temperature:", data["temperature"])
print("Last Checked:", data["last_checked"])


              123456789101112131415161718
            
# Simulated API response data
api_response = {
    "device_id": "sensor_456",
    "status": "inactive",
    "battery_level": 15,
    "last_error": "Low battery"
}

# Extract specific fields for use in automation
device_id = api_response["device_id"]
status = api_response["status"]
battery_level = api_response["battery_level"]

# Use the extracted data to make an automation decision
if status == "inactive" and battery_level < 20:
    print(f"Alert: Device {device_id} is inactive. Battery level is low ({battery_level}%).")
else:
    print(f"Device {device_id} is operational.")