Predictika · Printer option orders

An AI sales agent's printer option order, checked before it goes out

An AI sales agent prepares an order for A3 color multifunction printers with their optional trays, cabinet, finishers and paper transports, and states how many option parts the order contains. Before it goes out, the agent sends it to Predictika, which checks it against a declarative model of the published compatibility guide and returns a verdict, every reason and the figures it computed.

Scope: Lexmark CX961, CX962 and CX963 A3 color multifunction printers and their options: trays, cabinet, finishers, paper transports, offset stacker and keyboard shelf. See everything this validator covers

This validator models option orders for the Lexmark CX961, CX962 and CX963 printers, using the compatibility rules in Lexmark's public Printer, Option, and Stand Compatibility Guide, not just the scenarios shown below.

  • Tray stack — the 2 x 550-sheet tray, 2000-sheet tandem tray and cabinet must each be installed with the optional 550-sheet tray, and the 1500-sheet tray needs the 550-sheet tray and either the 2 x 550-sheet tray or a tandem tray.
  • Finishers — a booklet finisher or a staple, hole punch finisher needs the printer on the 550-sheet tray and one of the 2 x 550-sheet tray, tandem tray or cabinet. The paper transport must come with one of those finishers, and the offset stacker and staple finisher cannot be installed with them.
  • Quantities and totals — one of each option per printer, a stated total of option parts compared with printers times options per printer, and combinations the guide does not show (more than one of the 2 x 550-sheet tray, tandem tray and cabinet, or two kinds of finisher) go to a person.

Any option order for these printers that touches these rules is in scope — not only the scenarios pictured here. Not covered: prices (none were used, so this validator produces no price build-up or line-item quote), other printer families, the Floor and Cabinet placement columns of the guide, dimensions and weights, supplies, and software or service options.

The AI sales agentBuilds the printer option order from the conversation and says it is ready.
Predictika validatorChecks every rule at once and returns the verdict, each finding, and the computed figures.

7 scenarios in 3 groups · each group runs from the agent’s first attempt to the outcome · click one to switch

What the agent proposes

The AI sales agent says

Illustrative agent statement. The validator receives the structured request below.

Proposing agent: AI sales agent (scripted)

Before sending, the agent must call Recorded run

Predictika validator


      

        
        
        
      

      
Waiting for the call.

      
    

  

  
  

    
Where rules-based CPQ gets it wrong
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Our assessment of what a typical rules-based CPQ (product rules, price rules and validation rules, as in Salesforce CPQ) does with the same cases. It is a judgment about effort and reliability, not a claim that nothing can be built.

    
What the validator caughtTypical rules-based CPQPredictika
A finisher without the right tray stackOnly with care
The finisher's need for a 550-sheet tray plus one of three bases is a rule per finisher, and each new finisher or tray adds rules to keep in step with the guide.		The tray stack and the finisher are in one request and compared on every call.
An offset stacker or staple finisher beside another finisherOnly with care
The exclusion applies to several option pairs, so it takes several rules, and a missed pair lets an impossible configuration through.		Every option is in the same request, so each exclusion is checked on every call.
A tray that must be installed with other traysOnly with workarounds
The 1500-sheet tray needs a 550-sheet tray and one of two others, so the dependency is a chain of conditions rather than a simple requirement.		The whole stack is evaluated together, whatever order the options arrive in.
A stated total of option parts that disagrees with the orderOnly with workarounds
The total the agent states is free text or a separate field, so it takes an extra rule that compares it with printers times options.		The stated total is part of the request and is compared on every call.
Every problem returned in one answerOnly with workarounds
Rules tend to fire as the order is saved or a step is completed, so a rep often fixes one error and meets the next.		All findings come back together, whatever order the choices arrived in.

  

  

    
What this validator catches: findings from its test cases
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Every rule is checked on every call, in any order the choices arrive; one problem never hides another. Blocking findings stop the quote; approval findings need a person to sign off; everything else is computed.

    
1A booklet finisher or staple, hole punch finisher needs the printer on top of an optional 550-sheet tray and one of the 2 x 550-sheet tray, 2,000-sheet tandem tray or cabinet; this order lacks one of them.
2The 2 x 550-sheet tray, 2,000-sheet tandem tray or cabinet must always be installed together with an optional 550-sheet tray; this order has none.
3The paper transport must always be installed together with a booklet finisher or a staple, hole punch finisher.
4The offset stacker and the staple finisher cannot be installed together with a booklet finisher or a staple, hole punch finisher.
5The 1,500-sheet tray must always be installed together with an optional 550-sheet tray and either the 2 x 550-sheet tray or a 2,000-sheet tandem tray; this order lacks one of them.
61 option line has a quantity above 1 per printer (the guide allows one of each) or below 0.
7The guide lists the 2 x 550-sheet tray, the 2,000-sheet tandem tray and the cabinet as alternatives and does not show more than one of them together; a person should confirm it with Lexmark.
8The order has both a booklet finisher and a staple, hole punch finisher; the guide does not show the two together, so a person should confirm it with Lexmark.
9The order states 4 option parts in total; the printers times the options per printer give 5.
10The order states 27 option parts in total; the printers times the options per printer give 25.
11The order has 0 printers; at least 1 is needed.
12The order states 50 option parts in total; the printers times the options per printer give 48.
13The order states 9 option parts in total; the printers times the options per printer give 3.

  

  

    
Scenarios and results
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The recorded result of the validator for each scenario on this page: the request the AI agent sent, the verdict, and every finding, in the order they appear above.

    
1. Finisher and offset stacker: Six printers with an offset stacker beside a booklet finisher and a short total

    
The agent's request. Please order 6 Lexmark CX963 printers, each with booklet finisher (2/3 hole punch), offset stacker, optional 550-sheet tray and cabinet. The order states 20 option parts in total. It is ready to send.

    
Verdict: Blocked.

    
    
      
  • Offset stacker or staple finisher with another finisher. The offset stacker and the staple finisher cannot be installed together with a booklet finisher or a staple, hole punch finisher.
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  • Stated total parts does not match. The order states 20 option parts in total; the printers times the options per printer give 24.
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2. Finisher and offset stacker: The agent resubmits after fixing the errors

    
The agent's request. Please order 6 Lexmark CX963 printers, each with booklet finisher (2/3 hole punch), offset stacker, optional 550-sheet tray and cabinet. The order states 24 option parts in total. It is ready to send.

    
Verdict: Blocked.

    
    
      
  • Offset stacker or staple finisher with another finisher. The offset stacker and the staple finisher cannot be installed together with a booklet finisher or a staple, hole punch finisher.
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3. Finisher and offset stacker: The agent resubmits after fixing the errors

    
The agent's request. Please order 6 Lexmark CX963 printers, each with booklet finisher (2/3 hole punch), optional 550-sheet tray and cabinet. The order states 18 option parts in total. It is ready to send.

    
Verdict: Allowed.

    
    
      
  • Order summary. 6 printers with 3 options each, 18 option parts in total.
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4. Finisher stack: Eight printers with a hole punch finisher and paper transport but no trays

    
The agent's request. Please order 8 Lexmark CX962 printers, each with staple, hole punch finisher (2/4), paper transport and keyboard shelf. The order states 24 option parts in total. It is ready to send.

    
Verdict: Blocked.

    
    
      
  • Finisher without its tray stack. A booklet finisher or staple, hole punch finisher needs the printer on top of an optional 550-sheet tray and one of the 2 x 550-sheet tray, 2,000-sheet tandem tray or cabinet; this order lacks one of them.
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5. Finisher stack: The agent resubmits after fixing the errors

    
The agent's request. Please order 8 Lexmark CX962 printers, each with staple, hole punch finisher (2/4), paper transport, keyboard shelf, optional 550-sheet tray and 2 x 550-sheet tray. The order states 40 option parts in total. It is ready to send.

    
Verdict: Allowed.

    
    
      
  • Order summary. 8 printers with 5 options each, 40 option parts in total.
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6. Tray stack choices: Ten printers with both a 2 x 550-sheet tray and a tandem tray

    
The agent's request. Please order 10 Lexmark CX961 printers, each with keyboard shelf, optional 550-sheet tray, 1500-sheet tray, 2 x 550-sheet tray and 2000-sheet tandem tray (Letter). The order states 50 option parts in total. It is ready to send.

    
Verdict: Needs approval.

    
    
      
  • More than one base tray stack. The guide lists the 2 x 550-sheet tray, the 2,000-sheet tandem tray and the cabinet as alternatives and does not show more than one of them together; a person should confirm it with Lexmark.
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  • Order summary. 10 printers with 5 options each, 50 option parts in total.
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7. Tray stack choices: The agent resubmits after fixing the errors

    
The agent's request. Please order 10 Lexmark CX961 printers, each with keyboard shelf, optional 550-sheet tray, 1500-sheet tray and 2 x 550-sheet tray. The order states 40 option parts in total. It is ready to send.

    
Verdict: Allowed.

    
    
      
  • Order summary. 10 printers with 4 options each, 40 option parts in total.
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Narration transcript
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The text of the narrated walkthrough, step by step.

    
    
      
  1. Welcome to a demo of Predictika's Validator. An AI sales agent prepares an order for A3 color multifunction printers with their optional trays, cabinet, finishers and paper transports, and states how many option parts the order contains. Before it goes out, the agent sends it to Predictika, which checks it against a declarative model of the published compatibility guide and returns a verdict, every reason and the figures it computed.
    2. 
      
  2. I will start with the first request by the agent.
    3. 
      
  3. The agent says. Please order 6 Lexmark CX963 printers, each with booklet finisher (2/3 hole punch), offset stacker, optional 550-sheet tray and cabinet. The order states 20 option parts in total. The rest of the request is on screen.
    4. 
      
  4. Before it goes out, the agent calls the validator.
    5. 
      
  5. Blocked, with two findings, all in one answer. The offset stacker and the staple finisher cannot be installed together with a booklet finisher or a staple, hole punch finisher. The order states 20 option parts in total; the printers times the options per printer give 24.
    6. 
      
  6. The validator returned two blocking findings in one answer. A check that reads one field at a time would pass most of this; it shows only when the choices in the quote are checked against each other and against the stated total.
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  7. What this shows: for an offset stacker or staple finisher beside another finisher, a rules-based CPQ is error-prone for this.
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  8. Now the agent resubmits.
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  9. The corrected request. It changes the stated total option parts as to 24.
    10. 
      
  10. It calls the validator again.
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  11. Still blocked, with one finding, all in one answer. The offset stacker and the staple finisher cannot be installed together with a booklet finisher or a staple, hole punch finisher.
    12. 
      
  12. One finding cleared; still blocked on offset stacker or staple finisher with another finisher.
    13. 
      
  13. The agent resubmits once more.
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  14. The revised request. It changes the stated total option parts as to 18. It removes the offset stacker.
    15. 
      
  15. It calls the validator once more.
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  16. This time the validator clears it.
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  17. The earlier finding is cleared, and the validator's figure matches the quote.
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  18. Two problems caught in one call, fixed in two passes, and a clean quote. That is the value of Predictika's validator: catching mistakes before they reach the customer.
    19.