Field Data Collection for Planning and Policy

- Records editors and timestamps

- User roles: update only, create, delete, and sync.

- Geospatial design: domains, types, and subtypes

- Participatory mapping with just a browser.

- Collection of points, lines, and polygons.

How to Install

iOS Devices:

Go to the App Store and search for collector for arcgis. Download the application to your iphone or iOS tablet.

Android Devices:

Go to the Play Store and search for collector for arcgis. Download the application to your Android device.

Accessing your ArcGIS Online account in your device

1. On your mobile device, open the Collector for ArcGIS application and log in to www.arcgis.com, tap Continue.
2. Enter the username and password given to you for this exercise. Tap Sign In.

You will see a list of web maps that have been shared with you. Tap once on Field Data Collection Workshop Map to open it. Do not click Download. This web map contains two datasets:

Fishnet - Data Collection Grid - arrangement of equally sized squares that delineates the extent of a zone for individual data collection.
Campus Trees - collective dataset that will be surveyed across campus

Updating Attributes in a Collector Web Map: Fishnet Feature Services

The Fishnet feature service has been published in ArcGIS Online as a service that can only has its feature attributes updated. You will update it by selecting 1 cell that you will be solely responsible for data collection during this exercise.

- Tap on any cell of your choice and you will see a similar screen to the graphic on your right. The square selected will have a green frame around it and a window on the bottom part of the screen with the words This cell is available. This is the current attribute associated to that square.
- Tap where it says This cell is available. A new window appears in your device with the details for that cell.
- Tap on the Edit button on the bottom left corner (Android) or upper right corner (iOS). Depending on your device it will be a pencil (Andriod) or a square with an arrow (iOS).

Under Reserved By, tap the arrow on the right and type your first and last name. This way the grid will be registered under your name. Click Done when you finish entering your name.
- Under Status, tap the arrow on the right and select This cell is reserved by a student.
- Press Done (or check button at top) and Update.

This will reserve this square for your data collection.

Go back to the map and take a look at the square you just updated. It should have turned red. If you tap on the details box at the bottom of your screen, the new window should display your full name as recorded information.

It may happen than some squares may be edited at the same time and only the last edit will remain. Do not worry if this happens with your square. The idea is that you get to practice conditions similar to a real-wold scenario. Try again a different square and make sure to click update to send your edits to the cloud.

Creating new features in a Collector Web Map: Trees

The Trees dataset has been designed in a way that all collaborators can create, update, and delete new features. To create your first tree, zoom into your square that you have selected.

Click the + sign in the middle top (iOS) or bottom (Android) section of your screen. This will allow you to create a new feature. Since the only layer in our map that has that permission is the Tree layer, this is the only one available for editing in your screen.

Collector is a free app that allows you to collect or update your geospatial data with any iOS or Android device directly into your ArcGIS Online account. It allows you to log your current location, and put the data you capture to work so you can make more informed and timely decisions. It allows you to use maps anywhere to ground-truth your data, make observations, and respond to events. It makes collecting data with a group of people very easy.

Requirements

- Free trial or organizational account of ArcGIS Online

- Free download from App store (iOS) or Play Store (Android): Collector for ArcGIS.

Advantages

- Option for offline data collection

- Enables multiple editors simultaneously

If you are indoors, a new screen warning you of Poor Location Accuracy appears. Click Settings and move the required accuracy to 100m and click OK.

- Select whether the tree is Deciduous or Evergreen. Once selected, another screen will appear with other attributes.

- For Type, leave your initial selection (Deciduous or Evergreen) unless you made a mistake, in which case update it, click Done or press Enter.

- If you have an Android device, click the Clip+ at the bottom of your screen. Select Camera in the Add attachment from window.

Click Use Photo or the Checkmark at the bottom right of your screen. This will attach the photo to

the tree location and attributes. Click Done (for iphones).

- If you are using an Android tablet, a new window appears asking you to validate the location. Click Go to map. The program will take you back to the map where you can drag the location of the tree to the exact place you want it.

- If you are using an iphone, click the map icon at the top center on your screen. Then you can adjust the location of the point on the map.

When you are done, click Submit (on iphones) or Done (on Android, may also be a checkmark). This will send updates and post the attachments to the collective map.

Updates can take a little bit of time to post, depending on your wireless connection. Make sure your edits are saved after each data point collected. To ensure that your latest update gets posted, close Collector and open it again. Navigate to your map and look for your edit.

When you click on your added new tree, notice the pop-up window has the attachment, but the photo is not visible. You can change this later on the map view in ArcGIS.com, selecting Configure pop-up and making sure linked attributes are visible.

- For Species, type the name of the species you think it is (does not need to be accurate, make your best guess!). Click Done or press Enter.

- Enter the Diameter for your tree at chest height in cm.

- Select a Condition describing the overall health of the tree: Good or Poor. Click Done or press Enter.

-Enter any relevant Notes. For example, if the tree is in poor condition, describe what is wrong.

- Under Mapped by, type your name.

Click the photo (iOS) or the attachment (Android) icon (depending on the device) at the top/bottom of the screen to take a photo of your tree. A new window appears:

- If you have an iphone, press the camera icon at the top of your screen, click Add under attachments and select Take Photo or Video.

- Create a point feature classes:

- Fauna. Add two fields: type_fauna (text) and notes (text).

- Now we will restrict the data entry for these two fields by creating domains at the geodatabase level. Let's do this for the first field, type_fauna. In order to do this, open your ArcToolbox and navigate to Data Management Tools - Domains - Create Domain. (Step 1)

Creating your own Collector Web Map: Fauna

You will be creating your own features for data collection: Fauna at Clemson! In order to do this, you will go through the following steps.

Creating the datasets, fields, and domains in ArcGIS Desktop

Open ArcCatalog inside of ArcMap, and follow the steps below:

- Create a file geodatabase on the D: drive called: Mycollectedfeaturesby_YourInitials.gdb

- Feature Access: check Create, Delete, Query, Sync and Update. This will give full control to create and update features to your collaborators in this feature service.

- Item Description:

- Summary: Fauna at Clemson University collected by (your full name).

- Tags: fauna, Clemson

- Sharing: Everyone (public). This will allow you to publish your map in your website.

- Click Publish

Creating your Web Map for data collection on the field

Now that you have a new dataset that you want to collect published as a service in your ArcGIS Online account, you are going to

create a web map that calls it so you can access it from Collector on the field.

Go to Arcgis.com and sign in with your ArcGIS Online account. Go to My Content and select Create Map. A new window opens up.

Select Add, Search for layers.

- Find: type fauna

- In: select My Organization

Click Go. You will find any feature dataset that was published in our Clemson organization. Find yours by searching your initials and click Add. Repeat the same step by searching for fishnet.

Click Done Adding Layers.

Change the basemap to imagery (or imagery with labels), and the symbology for your two datasets (choose symbols that are easy to spot and change its size to at least 32 points). Zoom into the Clemson area. Save your Map following the guidelines from the image below.

- Capabilities: check Feature Access and uncheck Tiled Mapping

- Service name: change it to fauna_by_YourInitials (no spaces).

- Your last step in your data design is to assign the domains you have created to fields in your feature classes. To do this, go to: Data Management Tools - Domains - Assign Domain to Field. (Step 3)

Let's see how it works for the type_fauna field.

Input table: select Fauna
Field Name: type_fauna
Domain Name: type_fauna

Click OK. This will assign the domain with the four codes (squirrel, insect, bird, person) to your art feature class.

Congratulations. You just finished creating the template for data collection on your feature class.

Publishing your feature classes as services in ArcGIS Online

Now that you have created your templates for collection of feature class, you need to publish it to ArcGIS Online so Collector for ArcGIS can access it. This will allow you to share the data collection process with the collaborators on your map or even with the public if you're interested in participatory mapping.

In ArcMap, remove any other layer to have just Fauna as you only dataset in your data frame.

- Publish your feature class. Go to: File - Share As - Service.

- My Hosted Services (Clemson University)

- Input workspace: navigate to your geodatabase
- Domain name: type_fauna
- Domain Description: Type of fauna
- Field Type: text
- Domain Type: coded (as opposed to a range for numeric data)
- Split Policy: default
- Merge Policy: default

- Once you create the domain, you need to assign values to it. Go to Data Management Tools - Domains - Add Coded Value to Domain. (Step 2) This will be the drop-down menu options that collectors will select instead of having to type field attributes constantly. This is a great time-saving technique used very often for data collection.

For example, for type_fauna, there will be four options that the collector can choose from:

- squirrel

- insect

- bird

- person

You need to enter each one of these codes for the type_fauna attribute (or domain). Let's do this for the first coded value for type of fauna and you will repeat the rest.

- Input workspace: your file geodatabase
- Domain Name: select type_fauna
- Code Value: squirrel
- Code Description: squirrel

Click Save Map. Let's take a look at the settings for your map. Go to the About tab at the left and click More Details...

Go back to my content and change the settings for your editing capabilities on each layer:

- Fauna: click Show Item Details.

Under Layers, Click on the inversed arrow next to Fauna and Enable Attachments.

Select Edit and make sure you check the Track Edits box: Keep track of who created and last updated features. Click Save.

Congratulations. Your map is ready for use in Collector. Go to your device and make sure you can connect to your account and view your map to collect features.

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