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How to add the what3words Locator to ArcGIS Online and Field Maps
This tutorial will take you through the steps required to add the what3words ArcGIS Locator to ArcGIS Online followed by the steps to create a map for ArcGIS Field Maps.
Further information on the features of the Locator can be found here.
Setting up the locator in ArcGIS Online takes a few minutes. Once set up it will be available across the ArcGIS Online suite.
Follow this tutorial or watch this video to set up the what3words ArcGIS Locator within ArcGIS Online and add it as a Utility Service.
Getting started with Dazi, GIS Technical Account Manager at what3words:
To use what3words in ArcGIS Field Maps, please go to ArcGIS Online or ArcGIS Enterprise and click on the app icon on the navbar as shown in the image.
A list of ArcGIS apps will appear and you should see the ArcGIS Field Maps icon within the list. If it doesn’t appear you may need to check you have a licence available.
Click on this icon to go to the ArcGIS Field Maps Desktop application.
The requirements to use what3words in ArcGIS Field Maps are:
- Data must be available on ArcGIS Online or ArcGIS Enterprise;
- Data must include a basemap;
- Data used in a map enabled for editing must include at least one editable layer;
- (Optional) Layers must be enabled for offline use;
- what3words ArcGIS Locator must be shared among the organisation on ArcGIS Online.
Here is an example where a map has been successfully made available online and users should be able to display it on the ArcGIS Field Maps desktop application. It also appears on the mobile application.
Then click on the available Map.
On the ArcGIS Field Maps Desktop App to collect information in specific fields, users need to add these fields to a form.
To locate this form, go to Contents > Layers, then click on the layer. In the middle of the webpage, start configuring the form by adding or dragging the required fields for data collection. The fields are displayed on the right-hand side of the screen.
One of the fields specified in this example is the what3words address that users will need to paste in the address.
Then click the Save button in the top right corner.
A form should now appear.
The what3words address field on the form should be a String field. Additionally, users should make sure that the “Allow editing” checkbox is checked to be able to edit the field as necessary.
Open the Field Maps mobile application, log in using your ArcGIS Online login and open the map with the editable layers uploaded on it.
Currently, the what3words ArcGIS Locator features that are available on the ArcGIS Field Maps mobile application are:
- Convert to coordinates;
- AutoSuggest;
- Convert to 3 word address;
Convert to coordinates
Tap on the search icon on the right side of the navbar at the top of the mobile application.
Type a valid what3words address in the search bar.
Tap on the what3words address to drop a pin on the map to obtain the coordinates.
AutoSuggest
When typing a what3words address on the search bar right after the first character of the third word, e.g. filled.count.s, a list of suggested words appears below the search bar.
Convert to 3 word address
Alternatively, users can press and hold the map to get the 3 word address for a point on the map.
At this point, to collect this location, users can press the Collect Here tab, below the what3words address.
Currently, what3words address isn’t recorded automatically when users collect data with the Field Maps mobile app. The only location recorded is the coordinates.
To overcome this issue, users can add an extra field to the layer that would be uploaded to the ArcGIS Online Map and used for data collection.
This extra field must be a String field type and is used to paste the what3words address that appears on the Field Maps mobile app.
To copy the what3words address on the application, press on the address. A pop-up “Copy” will be displayed on top of the address, tab on it to copy the address.
Then select Collect Here, and the predefined form, that has been created previously on the Field Maps Desktop application, will be displayed below the point just collected.
As mentioned previously, users need to add an extra string field to their form to be able to paste the what3words address and then plot this layer on the ArcGIS Maps using the what3words address as a location.
Paste the what3words address previously copied and then press Submit in the top right corner of the navbar.
Note:
Currently, what3words ArcGIS Locator does not work offline on the Field Maps mobile app. A workaround would be to still use the application offline, after making the map and layers available offline, and then add the what3words address later when back online.
If after installing correctly the what3words locator across your ArcGIS platform, you cannot display 3 word addresses in the ArcGIS Field Maps mobile app, it could be that the what3words locator hasn’t been put at the top of your Geocoding services.
Currently, in the ArcGIS Field Maps mobile app if you have installed more than one locator you can display only the one that it is listed at the top of the Organisation > Utility services > Geocoding section.
As it is shown on this screenshot the ArcGIS World Geocoding Service is at the top, above the what3words locator, so I would only display the address returned by the ArcGIS World Geocoding Service.
To resolve this issue, please drag-and-drop the what3words locator at the top of the Geocoding service list to display 3 word addresses on the ArcGIS Field Maps mobile application.
