Collecting features on a Windows Mobile device

Using the ArcGIS application running on a Windows Mobile device, you can collect geometries, attributes, and attachments of features on the same page (the Collect Feature page) as shown in the following screen shot:

Tip:

The data used in this topic is based on the data model discussed in A sample data model for field data collection.

To collect a feature's geometry, you can use a Global Positioning System (GPS) location, GPS streaming, map sketching, or known coordinates. Using the ArcGIS application running on a Windows Mobile device, you have the flexibility to use these options interchangeably for feature collection and editing. When collecting attributes and attachments, you use the same page as when you collect geometry. The attribute list allows you to input values directly or choose values from a list. If your feature layer supports attachments, you can also take pictures on the fly and attach them to features or attach other existing files to features.

To start collecting data, use the Collect Features task as described in the following steps:

Steps:

1. Open the field application and the desired project. See Opening/Closing/Deleting projects for detailed instructions.

   The project opens and the Task List page appears.

2. Tap the Collect Features task.

   The Choose Feature Type page appears showing the collectable feature types. If there's only one feature type, the Choose Feature Type page will not appear.

Tip:

Optionally, you can filter the results to show a subset of the feature types. Tap Menu > Choose Layers, uncheck the layers you don't need, then tap OK. You can also group feature types by layers by tapping Menu > Group By Layer. The following screen shot shows the results of Group By Layer:

3. Tap the feature type you want to collect.

   The Collect Feature page appears. The shape (lines and polygons) or location (points) section is always at the top of the page, the attributes section is in the middle, and if the feature type has attachment support, the attachment section is always on the bottom. When you finish collecting the feature, you can save the feature by tapping the Save button at the bottom right.

Collecting geometry

The tools you can use to collect geometry include the following:

• GPS location—Capture the location from the GPS receiver at one shot.
• GPS streaming (for line and polygon features only)—Capture a series of locations from the GPS receiver in regular time/distance intervals.
• Map sketching—Draw a feature by tapping the map to create vertices.
• Entering known location—Enter coordinates.

Tip:

For GPS location, GPS streaming, and entering known location, you can apply an offset to the geometry. Using an offset is useful when the feature you want to collect can't be accessed easily (for example, in the middle of a street with a lot of traffic, or in the water).

To start collecting geometry, on the Collect Feature page, tap Shape (lines and polygons) or Location (points) to view the map.

Tip:

For point features, you can also tap the <Tap to use GPS Position> text to capture the current GPS location. No more interaction is needed as you stay on the same page and continue filling other attributes.

GPS location

To use GPS location to collect features, follow these steps:

Steps:

1. On the map view page, if you don't need to offset the location collected using GPS, tap the GPS location button and proceed to step 6.
2. If you need to offset the location to be collected, tap Menu > Set Reference Location > Using GPS Position.

   The current GPS location is captured and is indicated by a purple flag.

3. Tap the Offset Location button , then select From Reference or To Reference.

4. Enter the bearing and distance to offset from and to the captured location, then tap OK.

   The Offset Location page appears. The map view page appears again and the offset location is indicated by a red square.

5. Tap Done to accept the offset location.
6. Repeat steps 1-5 to collect additional locations if necessary.
7. Tap Attributes to edit other attributes or to save or cancel the edits, or read the following sections to collect more locations using other tools.
   Tip:

   If you're collecting a point feature and you tap Attributes to proceed with collecting attributes, you can still re-collect the geometry by tapping the refresh button at the Location section, or tap Shape (for lines and polygons) or Location (for point) again to edit the geometry.

GPS streaming

Changing the streaming settings

By default, when you collect features using GPS streaming, a location is captured every 5 seconds. To change the streaming settings, follow these steps:

Steps:

1. Navigate to the Task List page, then tap Menu > Settings.

   The Settings page appears.

2. Tap GPS Collection, then tap Streaming Settings.

   The GPS Streaming Settings page appears.

3. Select the streaming mode (time or distance) and interval, then tap OK.
4. Return to the map view of the Collect Feature task.

Using GPS streaming

To use GPS streaming to collect features, follow these steps:

Steps:

1. On the map view page, if you don't need to offset the geometry collected by GPS, tap the GPS streaming button , and proceed to step 4.
2. If you need to offset the geometry, make sure streaming isn't running, then tap Menu > Stream With Offset.

   The GPS Streaming Offset page appears.

3. Select the lateral offset direction (with respect to the direction you're heading), the distance and the unit to offset, then tap OK.

   The map view page appears and streaming starts immediately.

4. While streaming is running, you can collect attributes simultaneously by tapping the Switch to attribute page button on the map.
5. On the map view page, tap Stop at the bottom left to finish streaming or to switch to other geometry collection methods. You can also edit the collected geometry by tapping Menu and Clear Last Location or Clear All Locations.

Map sketching

To collect features by sketching on a map, follow these steps:

Steps:

1. On the map view page, tap to sketch the geometry of the feature. You can also edit the collected geometry at any time by tapping Menu and Clear Last Location or Clear All Locations.
2. While you're sketching, you can tap Attributes on the bottom left to collect attributes.

Entering known location

To collect features by entering a known location, follow these steps:

Steps:

If you need to offset the geometry to collect, skip steps 1 and 2.
1. On the map view page, tap Menu > Enter Known Location.

   The Enter Known Location page appears. If you've started collecting the geometry of the feature, the coordinates displayed on the page are the last collected coordinates; otherwise, they are the center of the current map extent.

2. Select the coordinate format, enter the coordinates, then tap OK to accept. Proceed to step 6.

   The map view page appears and the location just collected is marked by a red square.

3. If you need to apply offset to a known location, on the map view page, tap Menu > Set Reference Location > Using Known Location.
4. Follow steps 1-2 above to input the reference location, tap the Offset Location button , then select From Reference or To Reference.

   The Offset Location page appears.

5. Enter the bearing and distance to offset from and to the captured location, then tap OK.

   The map view page appears, and the offset location is marked by a red square.

6. Repeat steps 1-5 to collect more locations if necessary.
7. Tap Done to accept the offset location.
8. You can switch to other collection methods, or tap Attributes to edit other attributes.

Collecting attributes

You can collect attributes of a feature before, during, or after collecting the feature's geometry. The Collect Feature page lists available attributes as shown in the screen shots at the beginning of this topic. Depending on how your project administrator configured the project, these attributes can appear as follows :

• With a red dot, which means the attribute is a required field that must be filled out before it can be saved (such as the What's the street name? field in the Collect Feature screen shot).
• With a pick list of values.
• Filled out (such as the Assessment Date and Assessor Identification fields in the Collect Feature screen shot).

To edit an attribute, tap the field title, fill out the value or pick a value from a list (if applicable), and tap OK to accept the value.

Tip:

You can switch to the geometry of the feature at any time by tapping the Shape or Location section.

Collecting attachments

If the feature type you're collecting has attachment support, the Attachment section at the bottom of the Collect Feature page will be visible (as shown in the Collect Feature screen shot). You can add an attachment by adding a stock file (image, video, or other type of files); or, if your device has a camera, you can take a picture on the fly (some devices also support video).

Note:

Multiple attachments can be added to a single feature.

To collect attachments, follow these steps:

Steps:

1. Scroll to the bottom of the Collect Feature page then tap Attachment.

   If the feature doesn't have any attachments, proceed to step 3. If there are attachments, the Attachments page appears showing the existing attachments.

2. Tap Add New at the bottom right of the page.
3. Choose one of the following three options:
   • Tap Take New Picture to take a picture using the device's camera and attach the picture to the feature.
     Note:

     Depending on the hardware of your device, the camera might takes a moment to finish taking a picture. Be sure to wait until you see the new image listed on the Attachments page.

   • Tap Add a File to browse for a stock file and attach it to the feature. The source file is copied to the mobile project folder. Note that you can add a file of any format as an attachment.
   • Tap Cancel to cancel the action.

   All collected attachments are listed on the Attachments page.

4. View or delete an attachment by tapping the attachment, then tapping View Only or Delete respectively. If you try to open an attachment which your device doesn't have an associated program installed, an error page appears and prompts you to copy the file path of the attachment, tap Yes to do so. You can then save the path and open the attachment from the path later when you install the associated program.