Navigator allows your mobile workers to access routes that have been shared with them. This allows you to plan, share, and update route information, and control the routes your mobile workers use. Sharing routes also allows you to increase the efficiency of your mobile workers, saving your organization time and money. Create route layers and share them with your mobile workers. The mobile workers access the routes in Navigator.
Creating and sharing routes allows you to optimize the routes your mobile workers use in Navigator with waypoints, barriers, and travel modes. Waypoints allow you to route through a specific path and do not appear in driving directions or the Navigator interface. Barriers allow you to adjust your routes for closed roads, construction, and other events. Travel modes allow you to specify conditions to impose on your route based on the limitations of your vehicles. You can select a default travel mode, or you can create one to optimize your routes for specific vehicles. Learn more about travel modes in ArcGIS Online, travel modes in ArcGIS Enterprise, or travel modes in ArcGIS Pro.
Choose how to create your route
Your experience with ArcGIS can help you choose the right product to create your shared route. If you are new to GIS or if you only need to use the network analysis services available in ArcGIS Online (not your own network service), use ArcGIS Online or ArcGIS Enterprise.
If you already use ArcGIS Pro or if you need to use a network dataset specific to your organization, use ArcGIS Pro. Using ArcGIS Pro requires an understanding of feature classes and geoprocessing tools.
Note:
If you are using ArcGIS Enterprise 10.6.1, the ArcGIS Server 10.6.1 Pre-Planned Routes Patch is necessary to create route layers for use in Navigator.
Once you choose the product to use, select the purpose of your route from the following:
- From one origin to multiple destinations
- To the nearest feature
- Between multiple origins and destinations
- To route a fleet of vehicles
From one origin to multiple destinations
Get a set of turn-by-turn driving or walking directions from one origin to one or more destinations. After you create your route, save it as a route layer and share the route layer with your organization for use in Navigator.
Do one of the following, depending on the ArcGIS product you are using:
- ArcGIS Online—Create a route layer using the Directions pane in Map Viewer.
- ArcGIS Enterprise—Create a route layer using the Directions pane in Map Viewer.
- ArcGIS Pro—Create routes with local network datasets or hosted network services.
To the nearest feature
Find the nearest features to your origin points (input features) and create route layers. For each input feature, the specified number of near features is ranked by distance from the input feature. For example, you can determine which fire station is closest to each school in a city based on driving time or distance, and generate route layers from the results. After you create your route layers, save and share the route layers with your organization for use in Navigator.
Caution:
Select Include route layers in ArcGIS Online and ArcGIS Enterprise before running the analysis, or you will not be able to save and share the routes for use in Navigator.
Do one of the following, depending on the ArcGIS product you are using:
- ArcGIS Online—Use the Find Closest tool in Map Viewer.
- ArcGIS Enterprise—Use the Find Closest tool in Map Viewer.
- ArcGIS Pro—Use the Closest Facility tool.
Between multiple origins and destinations
Measure the time or distance between origin-destination pairs and create route layers. For example, you can generate route layers for workers who travel from their homes to different work sites in a single operation. After you create your route layers, save and share the route layers with your organization for use in Navigator.
Caution:
Select Include route layers in ArcGIS Online and ArcGIS Enterprise before running the analysis, or you will not be able to save and share the routes for use in Navigator.
Do one of the following, depending on the ArcGIS product you are using:
- ArcGIS Online—Use the Calculate Travel Cost tool in Map Viewer.
- ArcGIS Enterprise—Use the Calculate Travel Cost tool in Map Viewer.
- ArcGIS Pro—Create a network analysis layer. To measure travel distances between many pairs of points (origin-destination pairs), you use a route analysis layer.
To route a fleet of vehicles
Determine how a fleet of vehicles can visit a set of stops in the least amount of time and create route layers from the results. After you create your route layers, save and share the route layers with your organization for use in Navigator.
Caution:
Select Include route layers in ArcGIS Online and ArcGIS Enterprise before running the analysis, or you will not be able to save and share the routes for use in Navigator.
Do one of the following, depending on the ArcGIS product you are using:
- ArcGIS Online—Use the Plan routes tool in Map Viewer.
- ArcGIS Enterprise—Use the Plan routes tool in Map Viewer.
- ArcGIS Pro—Use the Make Route Analysis Layer tool. By changing the network data source, you can use either a hosted network dataset from ArcGIS Online or a local network dataset you provide—this can be StreetMap Premium data if you have a StreetMap Premium license.
Share routes
You must share a route to make it available in Navigator. After a route layer has been created and saved, it must be shared with your mobile workers. Route layers can be shared with your entire organization or groups within your organization.
Learn more about sharing routes, depending on the ArcGIS product you are using:
- ArcGIS Online—Share items.
- ArcGIS Enterprise—Share items.
- ArcGIS Pro—Share route layers.
Tip:
It is recommended that you test your routes in Navigator before sharing them with your mobile workers.
Automate route creation
The creation and sharing of routes as described above can be automated using the Python scripting language. Many of the tools mentioned can be incorporated into Python scripts, enabling large, automated workflows. For example, you could create a Python script that accepts daily work orders as input and produces shared route layers as output. You can do this using ArcPy with the Network Analyst module and the Vehicle Routing Problem tool, or you can use ArcGIS API for Python.