Managing multiple networks in ALRS

[ColinSchut]

We're currently implementing an ALRS and are making good progress with the primary network that is based on uncalibrated routes. However, many of our business processes require measures calibrated from kilometer posts, and so we will need a second LRM in the near future. 

As you can only register an event to one network, I'm wondering how different organizations manage events between multiple networks to keep them in sync? It's hard to say at this point, but I think it's likely the second LRM will be for reference and won't be edited itself in any way.

Any ideas are appreciated but we're a very small jurisdiction so the simpler the better. It looks to me that using Append Events to replace records might be a way to go.

[KyleGonterwitz]

Hi Colin,

there was some interesting discussion on the multiple LRM topic in the RHUG meeting yesterday.  Sounded like a few states would use multiple LRMs, and right now keeping them in sync is a manual effort. In the next RHUG meeting I think Esri will deomonstrate derived LRM networks in Pipeline location referencing.  I think switching units of measure from miles to kilometers is one potential use case, another is having multiple LRMs spanning across city, county, and/or state borders.  Once the LRMs are in sync I think the LRM to LRM conversion tool is one way to translate events between multiple LRMs, the LRS Rest Service might be another way.

[CliveReece]

Hello Colin,

Good question.  Have you considered using signed mileage (kilometer) posts as point events on the primary route network that you can use as a referent point for locating events?  That is an alternative approach which alleviates the work of creating and maintaining a second route network whose only difference from the primary network is calibration.  

-Clive (Esri LRS Consulting team)

P.S. We all know how permanent and accurate mileposts are (ha!) 😉

[ColinSchut]

I like this idea and think it could work for us and would also simplify working with some third party applications. I'm finding a lot of information on how to set it up but not a lot on how to actually work with it. Setting the RefMethod is easy enough, but are the RefLocations entered manually and is there a way to have it update which point it uses, if for instance the event is extended and it has a different nearest point? How is the refoffset actually calculated and updated?  Personally I haven't really worked with event editor yet and unfortunately can't test in it at this exact moment, perhaps it's more obvious there.

The lrm to lrm tool is interesting as well. Looks like you could just run it occasionally and overwrite the events in the second lrm. Avoiding a second network would be ideal though.

Thanks for the suggestions everyone.