Weeds_GPS.pdf

Created by Geri Mason Updated by Sarlyn McCormick Page 1 of 19 June 15, 2020

NEBRASKA NOXIOUS WEED GPS USER GUIDE

Prerequisites:

✓ TerraSync installed on the GPS unit

A. Check with GIS Shop for the latest version you can install on your unit

✓ The most current version of GPS Pathfinder Office, for the version of TerraSync installed on GPS unit, installed on your PC with updates

✓ Windows Mobile Device Center (WMDC)

✓ Understand that this User Guide is meant to be used as a “guide” ……

Outline of work:

A. Visit with Forest GPS and GIS Coordinators, Forest and District Data Stewards B. Create Pathfinder Office project folder for the year C. Edit current data dictionary for your district D. Transfer DD to GPS units (and any other files you may want, such as background files) E. Field work, Daily Field Forms, and Backups F. Transfer collected files nightly G. Differentially correct .ssf files weekly at minimum H. Editing the .cor files for spatial and tabular data weekly at minimum I. Export edited .cor files to file geodatabase J. Copy GPS project folder to BOX for backup and archive K. Transfer exported file geodatabase to T drive district project folder

A. Visit with the Forest GPS & GIS Coordinator, and Forest & District Data Stewards

In talking with your Forest Coordinators and Data Stewards, you might find out valuable information that did not get passed down; such as changes to national databases, updates to software or firmware. Also, there might be changes you want or need to make, and getting assistance or advice from the Coordinators at the beginning will save you a lot of work in the end.

With any project in which spatial or database information is being collected, it is a good practice to visit with the Coordinators at the start.

B. Create project folder for the year

Currently, Kansas City Data Center is not setup to run Pathfinder Office (PFO), so all GPS work must be done on your C drive. Every year treatments and inventories are accomplished, so every year projects should be set up on the computer in which the work will be done. You have two options of where to store you project folder. Option A.) When setting up a project for the year in which several people may be collecting files, it is good to create a project under the C drive so that everyone can access the directory and all files created will be located in one spot. Example: PFO is profile specific, so when a project is created under John Doe (C:\Users\johndoe\Documents\GNSS Projects), then Jane Doe cannot access it – this is a team effort, so one location is needed (such as C:\WorkSpace). Option B.) If you are the only person will be working with GPS files on this computer, the project folder can be created in the location of the John Doe example above.

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1) Open PFO. Click Start – Scroll Down through Programs – Trimble – GPS Pathfinder Office

2) In the Select Project window, click the New button

3) At the Project Folders window type in a project name, using lowercase and no spaces.

a. If you want the project to be available to others when logging on to this computer, we need to create this project under the C drive. At Project Folder entry type C:\project name. See image below for example. Tab through the boxes. Click OK. Click OK

b. If you will be the only person working with the GPS files on this computer, you can let Pathfinder Office use its default location (C:\Users\<username>\Documents\GNSS Projects\ ). After typing in the Project Name click OK and the pathname will update automatically with your Project name.

4) Click OK. Click OK again.

C. Edit current data dictionary refer to Visit with the Forest GPS Coordinator and GIS Coordinator

There is a GPS data dictionary established for the treatment of invasive species on the NNF. A master copy of the data dictionary (DD) is located at:

T:\FS\NFS\Nebraska\Program\2XXXInvasiveSpecies\SO\DataDictionary

This is the DD you will edit and use to collect information regarding your spatial treatments;

however people come and go, changes in treatment methods or herbicides might occur, additional information is needed or deleted. This information needs to be captured and since this DD is setup for smooth transition into the geodatabase, you HAVE to talk to the Coordinators. The master geodatabase uses “code values” known as domains and if you add a value to the DD without a code, that information will not come across. The table below explains what the Coordinators have to do and what editing the local unit can do.

Coordinators Local Unit

Add attributes Rearrange values and attributes

Add values with code value Delete values

Delete attributes check with Coordinators

Set defaults

Add attributes for local info only

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To be able to edit the data dictionary, you first need to copy WeedTrtNNF.ddf to your GPS project folder on the C drive. After you are finished editing, please place a COPY of your edited DD back in your district folder on the T drive.

D. Transfer data dictionaries (DD) to GPS units

1) Connect your GPS unit to the computer via WMDC. To do this, insert the 2005 and 2008 GPS units into the support module (aka cradle), you should hear a definite “click or pop” when it locks into place. The Juno and newer Geo7X GPS units connect via a USB cord. Next thing you will hear is a little bleep sound and depending on the model of your GPS unit.

2) Windows Mobile Device Center window will pop up on your computer. Verify that the GPS unit is connected in the lower left-hand corner. Do NOT set up device. Once the unit is connected this window can be minimized.

3) If not open already, open GPS Pathfinder Office (PFO). On the PFO menu bar click Utilities – Data Transfer and confirm that a connection has been established. If a connection has been established, you will have a green circle with a white check in the middle between the computer and pda icons. Make sure your Device is a GIS datalogger on Windows Mobile. See the following screen shot.

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4) Click Send tab. Click Add – Data Dictionary.

5) You should get the following screen. Browse to the location where you have saved the edited (if you chose to edit) DD, click on it to highlight and choose Open. You can add multiple data dictionaries at a time by holding Ctrl and selecting files.

6) The DD will be added to the “Files to Send” box. If you have other files to send, such as background image, other DD, or configuration files, do so by clicking the Add button and choosing the appropriate file type. After you have chosen all the files you wish to transfer, click Transfer All.

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7) If you still had previous data dictionaries on your device with the same name (i.e. last year’s data dictionaries) you will get a window saying “The file <file name.ddf> already exists. Do you want to overwrite it?”. Select Yes or Yes All.

8) You should receive a Transfer Completed window telling how many files were successfully transferred. Click Close. Click Close on the Data Transfer window.

E. Field work, Daily Field Forms, and Backups

Go forth and do good work!! At a minimum you should complete one field form for each day, filling out more may be necessary if running multiple pieces of equipment with differing calibrated spray rates or if spraying different chemicals or chemical mixes. Contact the GIS shop if you have questions about scenarios where multiple field forms may be required. Field forms can be found at:

T:\FS\NFS\Nebraska\Program\2XXXInvasiveSpecies\SO\Guides

Tip – Take paper maps with topo backgrounds with you for backup purposes in case something happens, and you cannot collect the data with the GPS unit.

F. Transferring collected files nightly

Every night (or every morning at minimum) the daily file (and I say “file” because you should have only one file per day with many features in it) should be transferred to the PC. Repeat steps 1 through 3 under “Transfer DD to GPS units”.

4) Ensure the Receive tab is selected.

5) Click Add – Data File. You should get the following screen. PFO knows which files have not been transferred and already highlighted for you. If there are additional files to transfer, hold down the control button on your keyboard while left clicking on those files. Click Open.

6) The data files will be added to the “Files to Receive” box. Click Transfer All.

7) You should receive a Transfer Completed window telling how many files were successfully transferred. Click Close. Click Close on the Data Transfer window.

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G. Differentially correcting .ssf files weekly at minimum

This should really be done daily, however because of time constraints in a work day, differential correction of your data files should be done weekly at minimum.

1) While in PFO, on the menu bar, click Utilities – Differential Correction to start the wizard.

PFO recognizes the .ssf files are open. If none are listed or you need to add additional .ssf files to be corrected (you can correct other .ssf files from other projects, depending on your settings the corrected files will be outputted to their corresponding

“project” folder), click the + button and select (browse to if necessary) the files to be corrected. Click Next.

2) Select Automatic Carrier and Code Processing. Click Next.

3) Click Change. You are now in the Correction Settings window. Change your settings to match the screen shot to the right.

When finished changing the settings, click OK.

Click Next.

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4) Click Select beside the Base Provider Search option. TIP: Periodically during the year you may want to click Update List to get the most current Base Providers. Preferably choose a provider as close as possible to you (these will be listed at the top) that has a 5 second logging rate. Click on the provider and Click OK. Note: Your screen might look different than the one below depending on your location.

Click the radio button Use reference position from base provider (this should match the provider you selected above). Uncheck Confirm base data and position before processing. Click Next.

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5) Click the radio button for Use the project folder. TIP: If you have subfolders within your project folder (for example folders for each month) you may want to choose “use the same folder as the input file” for the sake of organization. Click the radio button for Use original filename, overwriting any existing .cor file, this will allow your files to remain clean and not confusing in case you need to differentially correct again. Click Start.

6) You should see a result of 100% correction, if you get less, scroll up the dialog box and look at the errors. Depending on the percentage, you may want to recorrect at a different time or use a different provider. After reviewing your results, click Close

TIP: If you want to test different base stations to see if one provides a better “correction” than another, then choose the “Create a unique filename based on the input file”.

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H. Editing the .cor files for spatial and tabular data weekly at minimum

Now the real work begins. To start editing a file, you need to open it. In PFO, on the menu bar, click File – Open. In the Open window dialog, highlight the .cor file that you want to edit and click Open.

Tip – You can only edit one .cor file at a time. If you try to open more than one .cor file at a time, then the files become read only in the map view. If you want to edit all your collected files at the same time, you first need to “Combine” them into one file. If this is something you want to know about, let Geri know and she will show you.

If after selecting

Open nothing seems to happen and you cannot see your data, chances are your map window is not open. On the menu bar, chose View – Map.

This next section is taken from Carl Beyerhelm – GIS, GPS, and Data Management on Coconino

National Forest “Class Notes – Design, Capture, Edit, and Integration of Resource- Grade Trimble GPS Data, Revised March 15, 2004.

Common GPS irregularities requiring edit.

Even though GPS data files have been differentially corrected, they still require editing to remove any remaining irregularities, and produce clean, “map-worthy” feature alignments. Just because these irregularities aren’t apparent at 1:24,000 scale, doesn’t mean they can be ignored!

The figure at left illustrates several common irregularities requiring edit.

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Ideally, it should be the responsibility of those who capture GPS features to edit them within several days. No one knows better than they how the feature was actually aligned.

Editing involves careful review of each individual feature’s alignment, and deletion of all unwanted GPS positions. The goal of editing should be to remove as many annoyances as possible, while remaining faithful to the feature’s actual alignment. GPS positions cannot be moved or added on-screen. Turning precision circles “on” will aid identification of vertices available for edit.

Basic Edit Tools

The most commonly used edit tools are described below.

Use the Zoom In tool to zoom in on an area of interest.

Use the Zoom Out tool to zoom out from an area of interest.

Use the Zoom To Extents tool to zoom to the data file’s full extent.

Use the Zoom To Previous tool to zoom to the Map window’s previous extent.

Use the Select tool to select a feature or position.

Use the Pan tool to move along the feature’s alignment in search of irregularities.

Use the Delete Block tool to select and delete a block of GPS positions. Click Edit – Undelete All Positions to restore all deletions (even those made prior to the file last being saved), not just the most recent deletion.

Use the Save tool to save edits at regular intervals, and when edits are complete.

A Typical Edit Session

An unclean end.

A typical edit session includes these steps:

• Open a differentially corrected GPS data file.

• Zoom in to each end of each feature, and edit to produce a clean end, that, if appropriate to extend, would form a clean intersection with an adjoining like feature.

• Pan along each feature’s alignment at a scale permitting careful, meaningful inspection, and edit out any irregularities and annoyances.

• Save edits at regular intervals, and when closing the session.

Other Edit Tools

Click the Position Properties button to activate the Position Properties window, below. Navigation buttons along the top of this window permit sequential movement from position to position along feature

Click the Feature Properties button to activate the Feature Properties window, below. Navigation buttons along the top of this window permit sequential movement

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Data about the selected position are displayed in the window and tabs.

Position Properties window.

from feature to feature. A Delete/Undelete button deletes and undeletes features.

When a feature is deleted, its constituent

GPS positions remain, but its status as a feature, and its attributes, are stripped away.

Data about the selected feature are displayed, and its attributes may be edited in the Attributes tab.

Feature Properties window.

I. Exporting edited .cor files to File Geodatabase

After you are done editing ALL .cor files, it is time to export them to a file geodatabase so that they can be imported into the invasive species geodatabase. TIP: It is important to export to a file geodatabase rather than a shapefile, exporting to a shapefile may yield results that will require you to do more work on the GIS side of things. This next section is edited from Carl Beyerhelm – GIS, GPS, and Data Management on Coconino National Forest “ClassNotes – Design, Capture, Edit and Integration of Resource-Grade Trimble GPS Data, Revised March 15, 2004. There are more settings to choose than shown, talk to Geri for further details if confused

In Pathfinder Office, click Utilities – Export… to start the export process.

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1. If they aren’t already listed, click Browse… to select .cor files for export to GIS.

2. If necessary, click Browse… to specify the preferred export output folder.

3. Click New… to create a new export setup that is customized to match the target GIS. You will only have to create this export setup (using the following steps 4-7 and preferences from pages 13-15) once and your setup will be saved for use again.

4. Enter the new setup name like

Weeds Geodatabase.

5. Select Sample ESRI File Geodatabase Setup to use as a template from the Copy of existing setup dropdown.

6. Click OK.

7. Establish the new setup’s properties (see following pages) by clicking Properties. Do this now, and return to Step 8 once all properties are set up.

8. Click OK when settings for Selected Files, Output Folder, and Export Setup properties are confirmed.

The Export Setup Properties dialog window has seven tabs. The following screen shots will address the settings you will need to address for Weeds data exports. Users may obtain specific guidance on settings by clicking each tab’s Help button.

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On the Data tab choose the first radio button Features – Positions and Attributes and Export All Features, everything else is blank.

On the Output tab choose the option to Combine all input files and output to an Auto-generated subfolder. This setting will create a new subfolder for each export session so that old exports are not over written.

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On the Attributes tab select the radio button Code Values 1 + 2.

Additional attributes to select under the All Feature Types list for metadata reasons include: PDOP, Correction Status, Receiver Type, and Datafile Name.

There is nothing to change on the

Units tab, skip over it and go on to the next tab.

On the Position Filter tab choose the Minimum Geometry of 3D (4 or more measurements) from the dropdown. Verify that the rest of the options reflect what is shown in the screen shot on the left.

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The Coordinate System tab is critical, as it controls how GPS positions are transformed and projected from their native WGS84 latitude and longitude format to the coordinate system of the target GIS.

Recommended settings for

Nebraska National Forest users are illustrated at right.

Click Change to select the correct

System, Zone and Datum that matches the target GIS as well as the selected Export Coordinate System.

On the ESRI File Geodatabase tab, in the block below the words “Spatial Reference XML”, you will need to paste the text found in the MS Word document called SpatialRefXML located at:

T:\FS\NFS\Nebraska\Program\2XXXInvasiveSpecies\SO

• Open the word document

• Select all the text

• Copy

• Then paste in the empty space of the Export Setup

Properties window of the ESRI File

Geodatabase tab.

The picture to the right is what you screen should look like.

Click OK.

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You will now be back at the Export window.

Click Properties to make sure your settings “stuck” for the newly created Weeds

Geodatabase export setup. You may need to redo the steps.

If all export properties are good, return to Step 8 on page 12 to continue with the export of selected .cor files.

J. Transfer GPS project folder to BOX for backup and archive

Before working with your GIS files it is a good idea to copy the GPS data on your C drive to the BOX. Since

Pathfinder Office already has a file management setup and you created a project to contain every invasive species treatment – this process is no more than copy and paste. Open up File Explorer

App (you can type File Explorer in the

Search bar to the right of the Start button).

Find the “project folder” you created at the beginning likely within

Documents<GNSS Projects.

Left click once on the folder to select it, and then right click to bring up the shortcut menu and choose Copy.

Use BOX (Drive) in the File Explorer window (screen shot on next page) to browse to your district folder in the NNF

2900 Invasive Species folder in Box.

Here you will find a GIS folder and under that you will find a GPS folder. Paste your Weeds project folder here. If you are backing up this folder more than once;

i.e. each week, you will get a message asking if you want to overwrite files – YES.

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If you do not see the NNF 2900 Invasive Species folder in BOX Drive, contact the

Range Program Manager and request they add you to this folder as an Editor.

Don’t see BOX

Drive in your File Explorer window? You may need to download

it. Go to Start, scroll down to Microsoft Endpoint Manager < Software Center in the list of All Programs.

In Software Center use the Search bar to search for BOX apps, double click Box Drive and select Install.

Contact the GIS Shop if you need assistance with Box Drive.

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K. Transfer exported geodatabase to T drive district project folder

To work with our GIS data we need to get it over to the T drive, in Citrix. Use File

Explorer, select the folder(s) created in the export session(s), then right click on the highlighted folder(s) and choose Copy.

Next, scroll down in File Explorer to the T:\ drive and browse to your district ExportedFileFromPFO folder under the program of work and InvSppXXXX folder (in this scenario it would be:

T:\FS\NFS\Nebraska\Program\2XXXInvasiveSpecies\DISTRICT\InvSppXXXX\ExportedFilesFr omPFO) and right click, Paste.

Continue working with your weeds data by following the Weeds_GIS user guide.

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REFERENCES

Beyerhelm, Carl – GIS, GPS, and Data Management.. March 15, 2004. Class Notes –

Design, Capture, Edit, and Integration Of Resource-Grade Trimble GPS Data. Coconino

National Forest.

Beyerhelm, Carl – GIS, GPS, and Data Management.. April 23, 2009. Trimble Handouts

Coconino National Forest.

Roper, Mark D. – GIS Specialist. May 31, 2006. GPS to GIS Procedural Handbook &

Reference Guide. Version 7 San Juan National Forest http://fsweb.santafe.r3.fs.fed.us/gis/home_gps.html http://fsweb.sanjuan.r2.fs.fed.us/gis/GPS/index.shtml http://fsweb.santafe.r3.fs.fed.us/gis/home_gps.html http://fsweb.sanjuan.r2.fs.fed.us/gis/GPS/index.shtml