I want to display a message at a specified time (regardless of location or beacons).

[kohdoh-her0]

Hello,
Thanks to passkit-generator, even a beginner like me can manage Apple Wallet. I really appreciate it.

I apologize for the beginner-level question, but I don’t know how to do this, so I would appreciate your guidance.
(I don’t think this is directly related to passkit-generator, but I couldn’t find a suitable place to ask my question)

Could you please tell me how to display a message at a specified time for users who have stored an Apple Wallet pass, regardless of their location?

const pass = new PKPass(
      {},
      {
        wwdr: process.env.WWDR || "",
        signerCert: process.env.SIGNERCERT || "",
        signerKey: process.env.SIGNERKEY || "",
        signerKeyPassphrase: process.env.SIGNERKEYPASSPHRASE || ""
      },
      {
        formatVersion: 1,
        webServiceURL: "https://aaa.bbb.com/applewallet",
        passTypeIdentifier: "aaa.jp.vvv.bbb",
        teamIdentifier: process.env.TEAMIDENTIFIER,
        authenticationToken: authenticationToken || "",
        serialNumber: serialNumber || "",
        organizationName: "DDDDD",
        description: "CCCCCC",
        logoText: "FFFF card"
      }
    );

    pass.type = 'storeCard';

    pass.addBuffer("icon.png", iconData);
    pass.addBuffer("logo.png", logoData);
    pass.addBuffer("strip.png", stripData);
	
    pass.secondaryFields.push(
      {
        "key": "name",
        "label": "Name",
        "value": name || ""
      }
    );

    pass.auxiliaryFields.push(
      {
        "key": "id",
        "label": noTitle || "",
        "value": no || ""
      }
    );

    pass.setBarcodes({
      message: qrText || "",
      format: "PKBarcodeFormatQR"
    });
   

[alexandercerutti]

Hey @kohdoh-her0, thanks for using passkit-generator!

Relevancy, that's the term used for what you are asking, depends on one of the following things:

• Location (+ maxDistance attribute)
• Beacons (hardware specific)
• Date and time (relevantDate for iOS <=17, relevantDates for iOS 18 - the first one is now deprecated, the second one supports both the old one and new things)

In passkit-generator, if you want to set the relevancy time, you can use the methods setRelevantDate() and/or setRelevantDates() (check the documentation for them).

Please note that there is no certainty on when you device will choose to display the notification. It might be hours before as well as minutes before as well as some time after.

It also might depend on the pass type you decide to use.

For example, I had a boardingPass for a train I had to take 4 days ago.
Departure time at 20:45.

However, the relevantDate in it, is marked as

"relevantDate": "2025-02-05T19:45:00Z",

But the notification appeared me in the evening, several hours before, instead of 19:45.
Another time, it appeared me 2 hours before I had to take it (like, in the morning).

I suggest you do to some testing, because things might not be as you expect. About relevancy, there is not a good specific documentation out there.

You can find more details here: https://developer.apple.com/documentation/walletpasses/showing-a-pass-on-the-lock-screen

Let me know if I can help you any further.

[kohdoh-her0]

Thank you for your prompt advice.

Through various trials, I have discovered something.

I have set the pass type to “storeCard”:

pass.type = 'storeCard';

Because of this, messages are only displayed when triggered by a location, and the relevantDate setting does not seem to take effect.

This was also mentioned in Table 4-2 on this page:
https://developer.apple.com/library/archive/documentation/UserExperience/Conceptual/PassKit_PG/Creating.html#//apple_ref/doc/uid/TP40012195-CH4-SW1

Due to the design requirements of my pass, I would like to use storeCard, which is quite a dilemma for me.

I will try to think of a possible solution.

[alexandercerutti]

Yeah, I was remembering that it wasn't working with all the kinds of passes, but I didn't remember where I read it.

What is your exact use case?

[kohdoh-her0]

It is a membership card for a group of musicians.
I want to display a message to members who have installed the pass as a substitute for push notifications.

[alexandercerutti]

That's not enough information. I mean, group of musicians that have to play or to buy instruments?

[kohdoh-her0]

It is a professional musicians’ organization.
When the organization makes a payment to a musician, we want to send an individual message in advance, saying,
“We will make a payment, so please check the date, time, and amount on the website.”

[alexandercerutti]

Uh... I'm not sure then Wallet is the technology you need for, if I understood correctly your use case.

Let me recap:

• Organization hires professional independent musicians
• Musicians get paid by the organization
• You want to let them know that the payment is being emitted

I imagine that the payment happens online, through different ways. There is not a way to link them then.

Apple wallet acts like a link of digital world with real world, like "the user presents the pass" and something happens in the backend.

So, unless your use case involves some specific physical action musicians have to make in order to get paid (in the temporal moment of payment), I think Apple wallet is the wrong technology and therefore you should proceed with Push notifications.

Unless you want them to know the paid amount in the Apple Wallet card... then, you can follow a different way. Let me know if you want me to show it to you.

[kohdoh-her0]

Thank you for your detailed advice.
Your understanding is correct.

I now realize that my plan deviates from the intended use of Apple Wallet.
Since it seems relatively easy to send messages via Google Wallet (probably…), I was wondering if something similar could be done with Apple Wallet.

Currently, we send regular emails to musicians, but I was considering using passes as a faster communication method.
The membership card is not solely for sending messages, so not everything will go to waste.

[alexandercerutti]

Then maybe you can use the primary field to contain the amount paid (you should study a strategy to update it to reset it) and update the pass with the new amount.

The notification would come from the changeMessage field

[kohdoh-her0]

Thank you for sharing such a wonderful idea!

In Japan, where I live, we say “soo-bah-rah-shee” for “wonderful.”
Young people often say “eh-goo-ee!” instead.

This idea is the most practical.

pass.backFields.push(
      {
        "key": "info",
        "label": "information",
        "value": message || "",
        "changeMessage": "%@"
      }
    );

When the value of message changes, a notification is displayed.

This solved the issue.
I really appreciate it.

[alexandercerutti]

You are welcome 🚀

Thank you for sharing Japanese knowledge eheh 😁

[alexandercerutti]

Oh, and thank you very much for your contribution to the project on Open Collective ❤️

[kohdoh-her0]

I appreciate you for writing and maintaining such wonderful(eh-goo-ee!) code.