HomeMyGeotabMyGeotab Add-InsRoute Completion configuration with a Shapefile

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Route Completion configuration with a Shapefile

Support Document

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0 mins to read

Learn more about Route Completion configuration using a shapefule import. The shapefile import process converts every line in the shapefile into a polygon with rounded ends and a configured width (or default width of 10 meters) on either side of the line. These polygons are Zones in MyGeotab, and are grouped into Routes.

With Shapefile GIS Import

October 2023

Introduction

The Route Completion Report provides a breakdown of the level of service completion by vehicles over defined routes, such as those for snow plows, street sweepers, sanitation, etc. This report can be used for performance analysis and compliance with maintenance and service standards.

To utilize this report, customers are expected to use their own Geographic Information System (GIS) tool to generate a shapefile that contains a collection of line features representing streets, and attributes related to the Routes, Route groups, and Segments the shapefile represents.

✱ NOTE: The collection of Routes, Route groups, and Segments are imported to a service group in MyGeotab, and used by Route Completion. If configured, optional data, such as road width and pass count, may also be imported.

When a shapefile is imported, every line in the shapefile is converted into a polygon with rounded ends and a configured width or default width of 10 meters on either side of the line. In MyGeotab, the polygons become Zones, and the Zones are grouped by Routes. The Routes are organized into Route Groups based on the route and group entered in each line segment of the shapefile by the Customer.

✱ NOTE: Other custom attributes of the Customer’s geospatial sharefile are ignored during upload process.

Shapefile Requirements

Required Attributes

The following attributes are required to successfully import the shapefile for Route Completion:

Attribute Column Name	Data Description	Column Type and Size
Group	A text field naming the Routes Group.	Text (string) 30
Route	A text field uniquely naming the Route within a Routes Group.	Text (string) 30
Segment	A text field uniquely naming each Line Segment in a Route.	Text (string) 255

✱ NOTE: The attributes are not case-sensitive, and must align with the formatting outlined in the table.

The following attributes are optional — either the attribute column is omitted or unpopulated — when importing the shapefile for Route Completion:

Attribute Column Name

Data Description

Column Type and Size

RoadWidth

An integer in meters indicating the buffer to add to the centerline when generating the enclosing polygon. The value represents the full diameter or width of the road.

Minimum: 1

Maximum: 100

Default (when the column is omitted or unpopulated): 20

Integer length 3

PassCount

An integer defining how many passes an operating vehicle must pass through the route segment polygon to be considered completely serviced.

Minimum: 1

Maximum: 10

Default (when the column is omitted or unpopulated): 2

Integer length 2

✱ NOTE: Columns can be added to a shapefile in any sequence. Column attribute names are not case-sensitive.

Required Geometry

The following geometry guidelines are required to successfully import the shapefile for Route Completion:

Ideally, a segment is approximately 100 meters to 300 meters in length, and should start or end the intersections, but not overlap with intersections.
Road segments must have clear start or end vertices, and segments representing cul-de-sacs or crescents must not be closed line features.
Road segments should not intersect or overlap with one another. Intersecting or overlapping segments may cause the file upload to be unsuccessful or cause issues with inaccurate reports.

Required Coordinate Reference System

The following coordinate-related guidelines are required to successfully import the shapefile for Route Completion:

The shapefile CRS must be set to WGS 84 - EPSG: 4326. Any other CRS or a missing CRS will not be acceptable for file upload.
Coordinates must be within a range defined by latitudes between +90.0000 and -90.0000 and longitudes between -180.0000 and +180.0000 to be considered valid.

Creating configurations

To get started with Route Completion configuration in MyGeotab, you must create a Service Group and upload the shapefile to that group.

Create a Service Group

A Service Group is where the shapefile is uploaded for Route Completion Configuration, and where the routes, groups, and segments will reside. The shapefile upload process automatically associates the Service Group with a service rule, and assigns all service vehicles.

1	Navigate to Groups & Rules > Groups from the main MyGeotab menu.
2	On the Groups Tree page, select a parent group, then select the + icon to add a group.
3	On the Group Edit page, enter the required information.
4	Select Save.
5	Assign service vehicles (for example, all snow plows in the database) to the Service Group. You also have the option to assign vehicles to the Service Group after completing the configuration process.

✱ NOTE: If multiple Service Groups are required for different service tasks, the Service Groups are not required to be under the same branch. Vehicles can be added to the Service Group at any time.

Prepare the shapefile

Navigate to Administration > System… > System Settings

On the System Settings page, select the Route completion tab.

Under the Bulk Route Import section, select Instructions for uploading to review the requirements for the shapefile structure and content.

✱ NOTE: The shapefile must be placed in a ZIP folder, and must only contain the following files:

.shp (Shape format) : The feature geometry itself.. [content-type: x-gis/x-shapefile]
.dbf (Attribute format) : Columnar attributes for each shape, in dBase IV format.. [content-type: application/octet-stream OR text/plain]
.shx (Shape index) : A positional index of the feature geometry to allow seeking forwards and backwards quickly.. [content-type: x-gis/x-shapefile]

Uploading the shapefile

Upload the zipped shapefile to import the GIS data in MyGeotab.

1	Navigate to Administration > System… > System Settings
2	On the System Settings page, select the Route completion tab.
3	Under the Bulk Route Import section, select a Service Group from the dropdown menu. The Service Group is associated with the imported GIS data, and data configuration. ! IMPORTANT: You must select a Service Group when importing a ZIP file; otherwise, the ZIP file cannot be used for Route Completion configuration.
4	Upload the ZIP file. Once uploaded, the application reads the shapefile content and automatically create the following require Route Completion Configuration structure for the specified serviced group in MyGeotab: Service rule Route groups Routes Segments Pass count for each segment (if configured) Road width for each segment (if configured)

Removing Configurations

If the content generated from the uploaded shapefile is no longer needed, associated with the wrong group or projection (for example, not WGS 84 EPSG: 4326), or incorrect shapefile import, you have the option to remove the content.

1	Navigate to Groups & Rules > Rules.
2	On the Rules page, scroll to the ADVANCED section.
3	Select the rule that was created during the file upload process.
4	On the Exception Rule Edit page, select the Remove button. Removing the rule will trigger the removal of all exceptions generated for the service rule. ✱ NOTE: The name of the created service rule is displayed as “Service_Group_Name Service Rule''. For example, the rule created for the service group “Mike's Snow Removal” is displayed as Mike's Snow Removal Service Group.
5	Navigate to Track > Zones… > Zones.
6	On the Zones page, use the Filter > Filter by zone type dropdown to select all the zones created during the file upload process. Click ‘Remove selected zones’. ✱ NOTE: The name of the created service rule is displayed as “Service_Group_Name Route Segment”. For example, the zone created for the service group “Mike's Snow Removal'' is displayed as Mike's Snow Removal Route Segment. ! IMPORTANT: Filtering by Zone Type is the only way to isolate the zones that need to be removed. Do not proceed to Step 7 without fully completing Steps 5 and 6.
7	Select the Types button.
8	On the Zone Types page, select the zone type that was used to filter in Step 6.
9	On the Zone Type Edit page, select Remove.
10	Navigate to Groups & Rules > Groups.
11	On the Groups Tree page, select the Route Group and Route structure created under the Service Group..
12	Select Remove.

Modifying Configuration without Removal

Editing a segment shape

1	Identify a segment that vehicles are continually missing via Route Completion or navigate to the Map > Trips History page by selecting Show hidden zones from the Map options dropdown menu.
2	Navigate to Map, select the zones.
3	On the map, right-click on the zone and select Change zone shape.
4	Adjust the points of zones.
5	Select Save.

Removing a segment

1	Navigate to Zones.
2	On the Zones page, select the zones of interest.
3	Select the Edit selected zones button. The page refreshes to display a panel to edit the zone.
4	On the panel, select Remove.

Glossary

Term	Definition
Service Rule	Monitors vehicle activity in the Route Segments (zones) associated with the parent Service Group. Only one Service Rule can be created per Service Group. A Service Group (with a RouteCompletion base type) is automatically created in MyGeotab, and linked to the specified Service Group when uploading the shapefile. This only applies if a Service Rule does not already exist for the specified Service Group. The Service Rule has the same name as the Service Group, and the InsideAnyArea condition directed at the Zone Type. ! IMPORTANT: A Service Rule cannot be created in the MyGeotab UI. However, MyGeotab users can search for a Service Rule in the list of Rules, and edit the rule to add conditions. For example, users may add conditions relating to inputs received through the IOX-WRKS aux, such as the Plow Down or Main Broom On to the Service Rule. To add conditions: Navigate to Rules & Groups > Rules page. Select the rule. On the Exception Rule Edit page, select the Conditions tab. Under the Conditions tab, select Engine data then select the Type (for example, for IOX-WRKS aux-related data, select Measurement or Data). For the Diagnostic field, enter the diagnostic name (for example, IOX-WRKS aux inputs are listed as Third-Party Aux #), and select the diagnostic from the dropdown menu. Select Add, then select Save. ✱ NOTE: When adding conditions to the Service Rule, ensure you do not alter or remove the “Inside Any Area [group name] Route Segment” condition.
Routes Group	Refers to a collection of Routes. A Route Group is automatically created under the specified Service Group through the shapefile upload process, and becomes the parent of these groups of Routes.
Route	Refers to a collection of Segments (or Geozones). Every Route name is unique within a parent Routes Group. Routes are automatically created in the MyGeotab group structure as sub-groups under the configured Routes Group. ✱ NOTE: Routes are the lowest level in the group hierarchy, under Service Group.
Segment	Represents the geospatial coordinates specified in the uploaded shapefile. Multiple Segments represent a Route on the map, and Segment names are unique within a Route. Segments are automatically created as zones (as a polygon shape) in MyGeotab. The zones created by the shapefile upload process are not visible on the default view of the Map page in MyGeotab, but are visible in the Route Completion view.
Pass Count	Indicates how many times a service vehicle must travel over a road Segment to be considered completely serviced. If the Pass Count is not provided, the count is set to a default of two passes.
Road Width	Represents the width of each Segment, and includes some buffer space along the side of the road. If the Road Width is not provided, the width of each segment is set to the default value of 20 meters. Ideally, road width is set to a higher value for larger roads to capture all vehicle trips and passes of the Segment. For example, arterial roads are set to a width of 30 meters, while local roads are set to a width of 20 meters.

Additional resources