Design tools

ArcGIS GeoPlanner has tools that allow you to sketch, paint, import, modify, and delete design features such as points of interest, transportation routes, or land-use polygons. Using these tools, you can create plans and designs in multiple scenarios. These tools are collaborative, so you can work with multiple participants and gather input from different sources.

The Design tab has three associated toolbars that contain editing, drawing, and painting tools. You can undo and redo changes from any of the toolbar options that appear while the Design tab is active.

Design tools
Clicking the Design tab reveals the three buttons used to open the following three toolbars:

  • Select—Contains tools to select features on the map. You can open this toolbar by clicking Select Feature Select Feature when the Design tab is active.
  • Draw—Contains tools to draw design features on the map. You can open this toolbar by clicking Drawing Tools Drawing Tools when the Design tab is active. This also opens the Symbol Palette pane.
  • Paint—Contains tools to update existing features to a feature type specified in your symbol palette by clicking them or sketching a rectangle or polygon on the map. You can open this toolbar by clicking Paint Paint when the Design tab is active.

Select toolbar

The Select toolbar allows you to edit features on the map.

Select toolbar

After you select a feature, you can cut or copy it and paste it somewhere else on the map. You're also able to delete the selected feature or open its attributes to modify some of its values.

Calculate design layer fields

The Calculate tool on the Select toolbar allows you to calculate field values for your design layers, or modify the values.

  1. Click Calculate Calculate.

    The Calculate dialog box appears.

  2. Click the Feature Layer drop-down arrow and choose a design layer.
  3. Click the Select Field drop-down arrow and choose a field for which you want to calculate values.
  4. Optionally, check the Apply to all features in this layer check box to calculate the chosen field across all scenarios in your project.
  5. Assign a calculation value using one of the following methods:

    Use a numerical value

    Click the Value tab and type a numerical value in the text box.

    Use an expression

    Click the Expression tab and build a calculation expression with the expression builder.

    Note:

    Click Validate to ensure the expression is valid.

  6. Click Calculate.

    The value is calculated and assigned to the selected field in your input design layer.

Select multiple features

The Multi-select tool allows you to update a selected attribute for multiple features at once. You can cut, copy, paste, and delete multiple features using the Multi-select tool.

Note:

This tool works with design layers.

  1. Click Multi-select Multiselect.

    The Multi-select tool appears.

  2. Click the Layer drop-down arrow and choose a design layer.
  3. From the Selection Tool section, choose a selection method.
    • New set—Create a selection set.
    • Add—Add selections to a set.
    • Remove—Remove selections from a set.
    • Single Select—Select a single feature from the design layer.
    • Rectangle—Draw a rectangle around features that you want to select as a set.
    • Freehand Polygon—Draw a freehand polygon around features that you want to select as a set.
    • Polygon—Draw a rigid polygon around features that you want to select as a set.
    • Pan—Do not select features, but pan the map to locate features that you do want to select.
  4. Select features from your design layer.

    The number of selected features appears in the Multi-select tool.

  5. Click the drop-down arrow next to the number of selected features for more information about your selection, including the type of features.
  6. Optionally, remove a feature from the selection set by clicking Remove from selection Remove from selection.
  7. If your design layer is a polygon feature type, click Merge to combine two or more design features into a single feature.
  8. Optionally, click Calculate to calculate values in your selection.

Draw toolbar

The Draw toolbar in GeoPlanner has several drawing tools to help you sketch and design. This toolbar appears when you click Drawing Tools Drawing Tools from the Design tab.

Tip:

You can click Snapping to turn snapping on or off when this toolbar is active. Snapping allows you to snap your pointer to your map contents as you draw and is available with all of the tools on the Draw toolbar with the exception of freehand tools.

Drawing tools

You can sketch and design using the following tools:

  • Draw point—Draw a point at a click on the map.
  • Draw freehand polyline—Draw a freehand polyline following pointer movement on the map.
  • Draw polyline—Draw a polyline following clicks on the map.
  • Draw freehand polygon—Draw a freehand polygon following pointer movement on the map.
  • Draw auto-complete freehand polygon—Draw a polygon that appends to the boundary of an existing polygon by following pointer movement on the map.
  • Draw polygon—Draw a polygon following clicks on the map.
  • Draw autocomplete polygon—Draw a polygon that appends to the boundary of an existing polygon by following clicks on the map.
  • Draw shape—Draw a circle, ellipse, or rectangle.
  • Split—Divide a polygon or polyline by sketching a line through it.

Paint tools

Paint tools allow you to quickly propose an alternative to an existing scenario feature by clicking it or lassoing it. Use the paint tools when you have existing scenario features and want to rapidly envision changes to a plan or existing conditions.

Paint toolbar

The following paint tools are available:

  • Paint by click or rectangle—Paint a single feature by clicking it, or paint multiple features by dragging a rectangle around them.
  • Paint by lasso—Paint multiple features by sketching (or lassoing) a polygon around them.

Tip:

You can use a paint tool to paint on one feature or polygon when working with two overlapping features or shapes. Choose a portion that does not overlap with another feature or shape to ensure that only the required feature or shape is painted. Paint both overlapping features or shapes by selecting an overlapping portion.

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