Understanding Job Sites, Field Data, and Synchronization

Before preparing data for Trimble® Site Positioning Systems (SPS) within this software, it will be helpful to familiarize yourself with the concepts below. For additional information, see Understanding SPS, SCS, and GCS.

Projects

Work in Trimble Business Center is structured in projects, which are analogous to 'construction projects' in the real world, i.e. the work performed in fulfilling a construction contract. The data associated with a project is stored within a project file (*.vce).

Field Data

Field data encompasses the job site data, design data, and work orders that you prepare to use on the controllers at your job site, as well as the measured results sent from the field back to this software.

Job Sites and Job Site Data

A job site is an object in your project that contains site settings and site-specific data, such as a site calibration, the related control points, and a site map. A project's job site represents the physical location at which the improvements associated with a construction project will be made. In creating a site, you designate which portions of the digital model in your project need to be made available to field crews as field data in the site map, and therefore sent to the controllers that you expect to be employed on that site. The site map can be used by crews in the field to identify specific areas where construction work is to be done at the site, and other areas to be avoided.

Note: It is important to give each site a unique name. See the Project and job site naming section in Edit a Job Site's Name and Settings.

Each project can contain only one site. A site can reside in your project without being assigned to any controllers. If you choose to assign a site to one or more controllers, you must designate the path to the data synchronization area in advance. When you assign a site to one or more controllers, its settings and field data are automatically copied to appropriate locations within the folder structure of the data synchronization area (the folder structure located beneath the synchronizer root folder), in the forms in which they will be used on the designated controllers in the field.

Each instance of the site, as it resides on every controller's representation within the data synchronization area, is associated with the project file within which it is defined.

External Job Sites

External job sites are those that exist in the data synchronization area, but not in your current project. For example, they may have been created there using SCS900 and SCS Data Manager, prior to deployment of this software as the office component in your process. You can add an external site to your project to make its site data and related designs and design data available within the project. Then you can edit the site's settings or data.

When you add an external site to your project, its related designs are created as objects within the project and appear in the Project Explorer. If you add an external site that resides on multiple controllers to your project, all of the designs for the site on the various controllers appear in the Project Explorer.

Designs

A design is an object in your project that contains design data, such as a surface model, stakeout points, and a design map representing features of the design. In creating a design, you designate which portions of the data in your project need to be available to field crews in regard to the subject matter of that design, and therefore sent to designated controllers. Design data is used by crews at the job site to stakeout or check designed features, alignments, and surfaces or by machine operators in guiding earth moving operations.

After creating a site or adding an external site, one or more designs can be created in or added to the site. These designs reside in association with the single site that resides in the project. Designs can be assigned to any of the controllers to which the site has been previously assigned (that is to SCS site controllers, and/or to machines).

External Designs

External designs are those that exist in the data synchronization area, but not your current project. You can add external designs to make their design data part of your project. Then you can edit the design data.

Work Orders

A work order contains instructions for a field crew about the tasks they need to perform at a job site, as well as tolerances and other site controller settings associated with those tasks. Currently, work orders can only be assigned to SCS site controllers, not to GCS machines. A work order that requires design data in order to be carried out will contain a reference to the applicable design. Work orders are used to direct and track the progress of construction improvements at the site.

Multiple work orders can be created in association with a site. Even though they appear in the Project Explorer, work orders, unlike a site and designs, are not actually objects within your project. They simply reside in the data synchronization area and on the controller to which they are assigned. A work order can be created without being assigned to a particular construction crew's controller. It can later be assigned to one and only one controller. Each of those work orders appears in the Project Explorer beneath the Job site group.

Controllers

Controllers can include hand-held field devices (known as site controllers) that run Site Controller Software (SCS) and data cards assigned to equipment (known as machines) that run Grade Control Systems (GCS) software. SCS can also be operated on a tablet or notebook computer in the field.

Site controllers are commonly used by construction supervisors, foremen, etc., who may operate them from within a truck cab, as they drive the job site. Job site data, job site design data, and work orders are transferred back and forth between office computers and site controllers. After using a site controller to collect data in the field, the measurements are transferred from the site controller to an office computer.

Machines are used by heavy equipment operators to excavate, scrape, grade, and compact earth at a job site. Designs, containing surface models and guidance alignments are transferred between the office and machines on removable, compact flash data cards, or via the optional wireless two-way data option associated with the SiteVision Office software.

Data Synchronization Area (Synchronizer Root Folder)

Synchronization is the process of making files on a controller match the files in the data synchronization area (the folder structure located beneath the synchronizer root folder) used by Trimble Business Center, and SCS Data Manager. To be in a state of synchronization, a file with the same creation/modification date must appear on both the controller and in the data synchronization area. Files are synchronized so that office staff using this software and field crews using SCS and GCS are using the same (or most current) data.

The data synchronization area is a folder structure (installed by the Office Synchronizer program on the office computer's hard drive) that contains job site settings and data, design data, and work orders in a file structure that SCS and GCS can use. Office Synchronizer uses the data synchronization area to exchange files between the office software and the controller software so that they are synchronized.

Note: Synchronization with a controller is an activity that must be initiated by the user.

The default path for the data synchronization area depends on your operating system:

• In Windows^® XP or earlier: C:\Documents and Settings\<user name>\My Documents\Trimble Sync
• In Windows Vista^TM: C:\Trimble Synchronizer Data

You may, however, have placed your data synchronization area in a different location or named it differently. To see where it is currently located, select Options in the Quick Access Toolbar. In the Options dialog, click File Locations in the left pane.

Note: For simplicity, the synchronizer root folder's file structure is referred to as the 'data synchronization area' throughout this documentation.
Note: The data synchronization area is meant for data exchange only, as a temporary repository for data that is in transit between the office and the field. You should not directly modify its structure or contents, but manage all your construction project files in a separate location.

Conflicts and Conflict Resolution

A conflict is triggered by a difference between the job site data or design data in your project and data for the same site or design in the data synchronization area. In addition, a conflict can arise from a difference between data for the same site or design on multiple controllers, or the introduction of new data on a controller.

A conflict is indicated by an active Resolve button with an icon in the command pane. The icon is a reminder that you need to resolve the inconsistency by choosing which data to use in both your project and on all controllers on which that data resides. Depending on your choice, either your project data or the data in the data synchronization area is updated, thereby resynchronizing them.