# Real-Time Signal vs. Noise | OPPI Journal

> How OPPI's immune system filters out normal variance and only alerts on critical anomalies.

Canonical URL: https://oppi.au/blog/signal-vs-noise
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[The Journal](https://oppi.au/blog)

Telemetry

## Real-Time Signal vs. Noise

OPPI Engineering 2026-02-05 7 min read

### The Alert Fatigue Problem

If a system sends a push notification to a manager's phone every time labour hits 35%, that manager will eventually mute the notifications. If an inventory system flags every single item that drops below par, regardless of whether that item is needed for the next three days, the chef will stop checking the dashboard.

This is alert fatigue. When a system treats every data point as equally urgent, the human operator learns to ignore all of them. Software that cries wolf is software that gets abandoned.

### Defining the Baseline

To solve this, a system must understand the difference between normal variance and a critical anomaly.

In hospitality, variance is the norm. A 40% labour cost at 10:30 AM on a Tuesday is perfectly normal; the kitchen is prepping for lunch, and revenue hasn't started flowing yet. A 40% labour cost at 7:30 PM on a Friday is a catastrophic failure.

Traditional software uses static thresholds (e.g., "Alert if Labour > 30%"). OPPI uses dynamic, contextual baselines.

### The Immune System

OPPI utilises an internal protocol we call the "Immune System." It continuously monitors the massive stream of telemetry data coming from the venue (POS, WFM, sensors), but it applies a sophisticated filtering matrix before it ever alerts a human.

The Immune System asks three questions before triggering an intervention:

1.  **Is this out of character for this specific venue's DNA?** (Contextual Variance)
2.  **Will this trend self-correct within the next hour?** (Temporal Projection)
3.  **Is there an actionable step the operator can take *right now* to fix it?** (Actionability)

### Surfacing True Anomalies

If a sudden spike in ticket times occurs during a Friday rush, OPPI looks at historical data. If this venue *always* experiences a 5-minute spike at 7:30 PM and always recovers by 7:45 PM without intervention, OPPI stays silent. It's noise.

However, if the ticket times spike on a Thursday, and the roster data shows the kitchen is down a man, and the reservations API shows three large parties are about to sit... OPPI flags a critical anomaly. It's signal.

By aggressively filtering out the noise, OPPI ensures that when it does tap a manager on the shoulder, the manager pays attention. Trust in the system is preserved, and interventions are highly targeted.

Written by

OPPI

Engineering

More Telemetry

[Mapping the DNA of a High-Performance Venue8 min read](https://oppi.au/blog/mapping-venue-dna)[The Physics of the Floor8 min read](https://oppi.au/blog/physics-of-the-floor)