Terminal chart production

Introduction to terminal chart production procedures

The processes in this workflow provide a general outline of the different tools used to create and maintain terminals charts. Included with the Aeronautical Solution sample data is also an XML Task Assistant Manager (TAM) document containing sample chart production procedures. The document is located at <Install Location>\ESRIAeronautical\Desktop10.0\Workflows\TAM. You can load this document into TAM and use the step-by-step instructions to work through specific chart production processes.

Terminal chart initialization

Setting up the geodatabase

The production database stores both master and cartographic aeronautical features, related tables, and relationship classes. Apply the appropriate AIS workspace XML schema located at <Install Location>\ESRIAeronautical\Desktop10.0\Schemas to a new, empty production geodatabase by importing it in ArcCatalog. You have two options for the schema:

• Aeronautical Information System (AIS)—Contains the feature classes, tables, and relationships for primary data storage
• AIS Charting—Adds additional information (tables/feature classes) on top of the AIS schema to support cartography

More information on the AIS_GX.xml and the AISCharting_GX.xml schemas can be found in the AIS environment.

Setting up the Aeronautical Information System

The product library is the geodatabase that stores MXDs (map documents), information tables and rules, calculated representation rules, calculated text strings, AOI (Area of Interest) polygons, and additional product information.

See Defining the aeronautical properties for detailed steps on setting the product library, production database, data model version, and other tool options.

If you have never connected to a geodatabase as a product library, an upgrade message displays prompting you to determine whether or not to upgrade the geodatabase to a product library geodatabase. If you click OK, this process will add the product library tables to the geodatabase.

Choose the geodatabase to which either the AIS or AIS Charting schema has been applied as the production database. If you have never connected to this database as a production database, an upgrade message displays prompting you to determine whether or not to upgrade the geodatabase to a production database. If you click OK, the process will add the production database tables to the geodatabase.

If the product library has not been created, a product class will not be set. If this is the case, you can refer to Setting up the product library in an ArcSDE environment.

Working with cartographic exceptions

Cartographic features are created and managed using the Carto Commander tool. In most cases, the extent of a particular map will determine whether or not cartographic features are created for that chart. By default, if a master feature lies within the extent of the AOI, a cartographic feature will be created specific to that chart. The Cartographic Exceptions tools allow you to better control the creation of cartographic features for a specific chart. At times (usually on terminal procedure charts), it is necessary to show a feature on a chart that is not geographically within the AOI extent, that is, showing features that are not to scale. Using the Include Features tool, you can specify that an individual master lying outside the AOI extent should have a cartographic feature created for a particular product. Conversely, you can specify that a master feature that lies within the AOI extent should not have a cartographic feature created using the Exclude Features tool. Otherwise, Carto Commander's default behavior will prevail and create cartographic copies for all master features within the AOI extent.

Note:

If you only want cartographic features created for those master features that you have included to be present on a chart (as is the case for most terminal procedure charts), the Geographic Extent setting in the product class properties must be set to False.

Setting up a chart

Create cartographic features after the MXD has been configured (legend, data frame[s], surround elements). This can be done using Feature Builder, Carto Commander, and core ArcMap functionality.

Update the definition queries to be appropriate for each chart. Each feature class has an IsVisible field populated with a 1 or 0 that can be used to determine the visibility of a feature on a particular chart. Definition queries will include the class, series, product, instance, and AOI. Once the cartographic feature layers in the Table Of Contents window have definition queries applied, you can choose to save the definition queries using the Feature Display Settings tool for future use. You may want to adjust the feature layers in the Table Of Contents window. Layers are drawn from top to bottom according to their location in the window.

Creating annotation

To ensure the proper creation of feature-linked annotation, it is suggested that you use the Create Feature-linked Annotation tool. To do so, annotation feature classes for the various features/feature layers you want annotate need to be present in the production database.

Annotation feature classes are not included as part of the AIS or AIS Charting models. For more information on creating annotation feature classes, see Creating Aeronautical feature-linked annotation feature classes.

For example, in most production environments, ATSRoutes require annotation. A feature-linked ATSRoute_C_A annotation class should be created to store the associated ATSRoute_C annotation features. The annotation feature class could contain three or more labeling classes inside of it: Bearing1, Bearing2, and Ident. The information stored in the three labeling classes is derived from separate fields on the ATSRoute_C feature to be annotated. Not all feature-linked annotation classes will have multiple labeling classes. These labeling classes are manually added when the annotation feature class is created in ArcCatalog. You can also add labeling classes to existing annotation feature classes in ArcCatalog.

Note:

Any change to the schema of any geodatabase requires a schema lock so no other users are allowed to be connected while changes are being made.

Creating grids

Grids can be generated using the Grids and Graticules tools.

Creating surround elements

The Aeronautical Solution includes tools to create both dynamic and static surround elements. The Instrument Approach Profile View and the Holding Pattern Entry Diagram tools are custom surround element tools. The graphic table element functionality creates elements that are dynamically linked to the geodatabase; when the information in the geodatabase changes, the associated information displayed in a dynamically linked table and/or text changes.

Terminal chart maintenance

Processing data updates

Changes can be made to the data stored in the geodatabase through various means, for example, AIXM transactions and manual creation processes. The Change Reporter tool can be used to locate additions, modifications, and deletions to features in the database between specified dates. This tool requires that geodatabase archiving is enabled on the feature classes for which you want to review changes. If you are performing data quality control, you can see changes made since the last analysis, such as the last production cycle.

Ensure that you have the correct Reviewer table and start a Reviewer session in ArcMap. Import the Reviewer table for the chart you are working on and go through each record to look for any anomalies and/or overprinting. Make changes as necessary and update the Correction Status.

The Detect Layout Changes tool works in conjunction with the Change Reporter Reviewer table output. Through a process of logging GFIDs, the Detect Layout Changes tool records what table or feature has changed within an element and the chart for which these changes took place. This tool reports the changes to the database that impact the various elements on a chart.

To see how these tools are used in a data information management and chart production environment, see the sample production tutorials that are available with the Aeronautical Solution setup.

Updating feature symbology and annotation

Once data updates have been applied (either through loading an update message or through manual editing processes), the feature symbology and annotation on the chart require updating as well.

Run the Calculate Visual Specification tool to apply symbology rules to new and/or changed features. Doing this through the geoprocessing tool will also recalculate the text strings used to generate and/or update annotation.

If new features were added to layers that require annotation, run the Create Feature-Linked Annotation tool. If there are pieces of annotation that are rotated incorrectly, use the Annotation Rotation tool to batch rotate the annotation. Finally, run the Update Anno tool to adjust the annotation size based on the reference scale as needed.

To see how this tool is used in a data information management and chart production environments, see the sample production tutorials that are available with the Aeronautical Solution setup.

Making cartographic edits

Once feature symbology has been applied to the features on the chart, feature-linked annotation has been created, and cartographic features have been created, it is then suggested that some level of cartographic editing occur. Cartographic editing is the process of improving the cartographic appearance of a chart after changes have been applied to the database and/or other data edits have occurred that impact a chart's appearance.

Once cartographic edits have been made, run the Batch masking tool. Masks are not dynamic in nature, and it is necessary to regenerate them when features and annotation have moved. Doing so re-creates the mask based on the new location of the feature.

To see how this tool is used in a data information management and chart production environments, see the sample production tutorials that are available with the Aeronautical Solution setup.

Finalizing the terminal procedure chart

Quality Control (QC)

It is recommended that an independent, visual Quality Control (QC) is performed to ensure the integrity of the product.

Data Reviewer functionality can be used to track errors, corrections, and correction status. Make any necessary corrections from QC.

Exporting

Make sure masking is turned on for the appropriate layers. Turn on all necessary layers in the table of contents and continue to export the chart. If you have saved a setting in a view, you can use this setting to turn on all the necessary layers needed for exporting the chart.

To export your chart in one of the formats available in ArcMap, do the following:

Steps:

1. Start ArcMap.
2. On the main menu, click File > Export.
3. Select the format, quality, and content options available.

Upon the completion of this workflow, you should have created a terminal procedure chart using the AIS model in the Aeronautical Solution.