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name: data-interfaces description: "Validate, convert, load, and serialize sktime data containers and tiny datasets without relying on source checkout files." disable-model-invocation: true metadata: disco-role: operating license: BSD 3-Clause

Data Interfaces

Use this sub-skill when a task is about sktime data containers, scitypes, mtypes, validation/conversion, onboard or downloaded datasets, and time-series file formats.

Route here

• Decide whether data is Series, Panel, Hierarchical, or Table.
• Validate or convert pandas/numpy containers with check_is_mtype and convert_to.
• Load onboard datasets such as airline, ArrowHead, BasicMotions, or Tecator.
• Explain downloaded dataset surfaces and cache/network requirements.
• Read or write .ts, .tsf, ARFF, UCR TSV, and long-table time-series files.

Route away

Estimator fitting and scoring route to the owning workflow sub-skill after data is valid.

References and helper

• Data formats for scitypes, mtypes, validation, conversion, and panel/hierarchical layout rules.
• Dataset and file I/O for onboard loaders, downloaded datasets, and file serialization.
• Troubleshooting for validation messages, MultiIndex issues, loader/cache failures, and missing labels.
• Run scripts/check_data_format.py and scripts/tsfile_roundtrip.py for offline checks.