Open-source core • Optional paid modules • Phased delivery
This roadmap defines what ships as free & open source (MIT) and what is offered as optional paid modules for sustainability, while keeping the core platform fully usable without payment.
| Type | License | Distribution |
|---|---|---|
| Free / Open Source | MIT | Public GitHub, self-hostable, no payment required |
| Paid / Premium | Commercial | Optional add-ons (plugins, cloud services, support); core remains free |
Goal: Stable, self-hostable core that anyone can run for personal bill tracking.
| # | Item | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bill upload (PDF/image) + Python OCR extraction | ✅ Done | Amount, date, consumption units |
| 2 | Consumption dashboard (charts: kWh, gallons, AED) | ✅ Done | Blade + Chart.js |
| 3 | Anomaly alerts (bill exceeds normal range by X%) | ✅ Done | Notifications |
| 4 | Multi-provider support (DEWA, FEWA, ADDC, SEWA, Empower, Tabreed, Du, Etisalat) | ✅ Done | Parser per provider |
| 5 | Docker setup for self-hosting | ✅ Done | PHP + Python services |
| 6 | Encrypted bill storage & privacy docs | ✅ Done | EncryptBillData, docs |
| 7 | Docs: installation, config, UAE tariffs, privacy | ✅ Done | docs/UAE_Utility_Tariffs.md, docs/Privacy_Guidelines.md |
| 8 | Basic test suite (PHPUnit + PyTest) | ✅ Started | tests/Unit, phpunit.xml |
| 9 | Contributing guide + code of conduct | ✅ Done | CONTRIBUTING.md, CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md |
| # | Module | Description |
|---|---|---|
| P1.1 | Managed cloud hosting | Hosted instance so users don’t self-host (optional) |
| P1.2 | Priority support | Email/slack support for organizations |
Phase 1 exit criteria: Anyone can clone, build with Docker, upload bills, see dashboard and alerts, and read clear docs — no payment required.
Goal: Smarter insights (forecasting, benchmarking, leak hints, solar ROI) with a clear free/paid split.
| # | Item | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bill forecasting | ✅ Done | Weighted-avg forecast; AI /forecast + Laravel ForecastService; dashboard widget |
| 2 | Leak detection alert | ✅ Done | Heuristic water spike; AI /leak-check + LeakDetectionService; alert type leak |
| 3 | Solar ROI calculator (basic) | ✅ Done | Formula-based; SolarController + views; payback estimate |
| 4 | Improve OCR accuracy | ✅ Done | Provider-specific regex for amount, date, kWh, gallons in ocr_extractor.py |
| 5 | Export (CSV/PDF) | ✅ Done | ExportController: CSV download; PDF = print-friendly HTML |
| # | Module | Description |
|---|---|---|
| P2.1 | Community benchmarking | Anonymous comparison with similar properties (area, type); requires aggregated, privacy-safe backend service |
| P2.2 | Advanced solar ROI | Deeper modeling, panel configs, payback scenarios (premium calculator) |
| P2.3 | Weather-integrated forecasting | Uses licensed or premium weather API for better predictions |
| P2.4 | Premium support & custom integrations | One-off integrations (e.g. specific building or provider) |
Phase 2 exit criteria: Core forecasting, leak alerts, and basic solar ROI are in the open-source repo; advanced benchmarking and premium features are clearly marked as paid.
Goal: Multi-property and B2B use cases without locking the core.
| # | Item | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Multi-property (basic) | 🔲 Planned | Single user, multiple properties/meters in core app |
| 2 | REST API (read-only) | 🔲 Planned | Export/read own data for scripts and dashboards |
| 3 | Documentation for self-hosted scaling | 🔲 Planned | DB, queue, caching guidance |
| # | Module | Description |
|---|---|---|
| P3.1 | Landlord dashboard | Tenant billing, multiple units, access control |
| P3.2 | Property management API | Deeper integration with building management systems |
| P3.3 | White-label | Rebranding for utilities or property managers |
| P3.4 | SLA & dedicated support | Enterprise support and custom deployment help |
Phase 3 exit criteria: Core supports multi-property and read API; landlord/property-management and white-label are commercial offerings.
- Always free (open source): Bill upload, OCR, dashboard, anomaly alerts, multi-provider, Docker, encryption, basic forecasting, leak alerts, basic solar ROI, multi-property (basic), read API, and all docs in the repo.
- Paid (optional): Managed cloud, community benchmarking service, advanced solar ROI, weather-enhanced forecasting, landlord/property-management features, white-label, and premium/enterprise support.
| Phase | Focus | Target (example) |
|---|---|---|
| Phase 1 | Harden MVP, docs, tests, open-source release | Q1–Q2 |
| Phase 2 | Forecasting, leak detection, basic solar ROI (free); benchmarking & premium features (paid) | Q2–Q3 |
| Phase 3 | Multi-property (free), landlord/API/white-label (paid) | Q3–Q4 |
Adjust dates to your release cycle; the important part is keeping the phased and free/paid split consistent.
- README: Keep “Disclaimer” and “Privacy-first”; add one short section: “Free core, optional paid modules” with a link to this roadmap.
- LICENSE: MIT for the repository; paid modules can live in a separate repo or be clearly gated (e.g. “Premium” in docs/ or a separate product page).
- CONTRIBUTING.md: Encourage contributions to the free core; mention that paid modules fund maintenance and hosting.
If you want, next step can be a short “Free vs Paid” section for the main README and a CONTRIBUTING.md skeleton.