Completely rewrote period-calculation.md after severe corruption (massive text
duplication throughout the file made it 2489 lines).
Changes:
- Fixed formatting: Removed all duplicate text and headers
- Reduced file size: 2594 lines down to 516 lines (clean, readable structure)
- Added section 5: "Statistical Outlier Filtering (NEW)" explaining:
- Linear regression-based spike detection (95% confidence intervals)
- Symmetry checking to preserve legitimate price shifts
- Enhanced zigzag detection with relative volatility
- Data integrity guarantees (original prices always used)
- New period attributes: period_interval_smoothed_count
- Added troubleshooting: "Price spikes breaking periods" section
- Added technical details: Algorithm constants and implementation notes
Impact: Users can now understand how outlier filtering prevents isolated
price spikes from breaking continuous periods. Documentation is readable
again with no duplicate content.
Major improvements to period calculation with smarter defaults and
simplified configuration:
**Adaptive Defaults:**
- ENABLE_MIN_PERIODS: true (was false) - Always try to find periods
- MIN_PERIODS target: 2 periods/day (ensures coverage)
- BEST_PRICE_MAX_LEVEL: "cheap" (was "any") - Prefer genuinely cheap
- PEAK_PRICE_MIN_LEVEL: "expensive" (was "any") - Prefer genuinely expensive
- GAP_TOLERANCE: 1 (was 0) - Allow 1-level deviations in sequences
- MIN_DISTANCE_FROM_AVG: 5% (was 2%) - Ensure significance
- PEAK_PRICE_MIN_PERIOD_LENGTH: 30min (was 60min) - More responsive
- PEAK_PRICE_FLEX: -20% (was -15%) - Better peak detection
**Volatility Filter Removal:**
- Removed CONF_BEST_PRICE_MIN_VOLATILITY from const.py
- Removed CONF_PEAK_PRICE_MIN_VOLATILITY from const.py
- Removed volatility filter UI controls from config_flow.py
- Removed filter_periods_by_volatility() calls from coordinator.py
- Updated all 5 translations (de, en, nb, nl, sv)
**Period Calculation Logic:**
- Level filter now integrated into _build_periods() (applied during
interval qualification, not as post-filter)
- Gap tolerance implemented via _check_level_with_gap_tolerance()
- Short periods (<1.5h) use strict filtering (no gap tolerance)
- Relaxation now passes level_filter + gap_count directly to
PeriodConfig
- show_periods check skipped when relaxation enabled (relaxation
tries "any" as fallback)
**Documentation:**
- Complete rewrite of docs/user/period-calculation.md:
* Visual examples with timelines
* Step-by-step explanation of 4-step process
* Configuration scenarios (5 common use cases)
* Troubleshooting section with specific fixes
* Advanced topics (per-day independence, early stop, etc.)
- Updated README.md: "volatility" → "distance from average"
Impact: Periods now reliably appear on most days with meaningful
quality filters. Users get warned about expensive periods and notified
about cheap opportunities without manual tuning. Relaxation ensures
coverage while keeping filters as strict as possible.
Breaking change: Volatility filter removed (was never a critical
feature, often confused users). Existing configs continue to work
(removed keys are simply ignored).
Completely rewrote period-calculation.md based on user feedback and
live development understanding.
Changes:
- Replaced outdated 3-phase relaxation description with correct 4×4
matrix approach (4 flex levels × 4 filter combinations)
- Added per-day independence explanation (each day relaxes independently)
- Documented replacement logic (larger periods replace smaller ones)
- Added extension logic (baseline periods get expanded, not replaced)
- Updated metadata format examples (price_diff_27.3%+level_any)
- Restructured for clarity: Quick Start → How It Works → Config →
Relaxation → Scenarios → Troubleshooting
- Added 4 real-world scenarios with automation examples (dishwasher,
heat pump, EV charging, peak avoidance)
- Added visual timeline examples
- Reduced technical complexity, focused on user understanding
- Added practical troubleshooting with specific solutions
Impact: Users can now understand how period calculation actually works,
with correct information matching the implemented 4×4 relaxation
strategy. Documentation evolved from cold code reading to live
development insights with user feedback.
Created professional documentation structure:
**User Documentation (docs/user/):**
- README.md: Documentation hub with quick start guide
- Placeholder files for future content migration:
* installation.md, configuration.md, sensors.md
* services.md, automation-examples.md, troubleshooting.md
**Developer Documentation (docs/development/):**
- README.md: Comprehensive contributor guide with AI section
- setup.md: DevContainer and environment setup
- architecture.md: Code structure overview
- testing.md: Testing guidelines
- coding-guidelines.md: Style guide and critical patterns
- release-management.md: Complete release workflow documentation
**AI Development Disclosure:**
- README.md: "🤖 Development Note" section before license
* Honest disclosure about extensive AI assistance
* Quality assurance measures mentioned
* Invitation for bug reports with positive tone
- docs/development/README.md: Detailed AI section
* What AI handles (patterns, generation, refactoring)
* Benefits (rapid development, consistency)
* Limitations (edge cases, complex patterns)
* Quality assurance process
- CONTRIBUTING.md: Brief AI note with practical tip
**Updated:**
- README.md: Simplified to landing page with documentation links
- CONTRIBUTING.md: Modernized with new docs structure
- copilot-instructions.md: Added documentation organization section
Impact: Clear separation of user vs. developer documentation following
open-source best practices. Transparent about AI-assisted development
approach without being defensive. Scalable structure for future growth.
