To analyze a route, first access the Route Analyzer. How to access it
Here in this article, we will teach you, with an example, how to analyze a route in practice. Let's go?
Analyzing a Route
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Identify the start of the route.
Every route is expected to start with a blue event, which we call a warehouse event. The surrounding region appears on the map in red, indicating the planned starting point of the route, which may be the Distribution Center (DC), warehouse, or another agreed starting point for the operation.
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Use the timeline to follow the route.
By moving the black bar along the timeline, you can speed up the route playback and follow its progress. From the moment the user logs in to Foxtrot Systems, it is already possible to follow all route events.
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Check the first suggested visit sequence.
From the first login, you can also see Foxtrot Systems' initial route suggestion on the map through the numbering inside each visit point. In this example, the first recommended point is Duas Maria.
The numbers inside each circle represent the visit sequence suggested by Foxtrot Systems. This recommended sequence is always shown directly on the map.
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Review the first movement after the route starts.
After the blue event, this specific route shows a displacement movement, represented by the light green event. At this stage, you can also identify the choices and points the driver or application user plans to visit.
In this example, the first point chosen by the application user matches the recommendation from Foxtrot Systems.
Remember: the first point visited does not need to match the Foxtrot Systems recommendation. If the user chooses a different first point, he will be forgiven, and there will be no impact on the Foxtrot Systems Sequence Adherence indicator. -
Analyze the first authorized stop.
In this example, the user reached point 1 and generated an authorized stop event, identified by the dark purple color. The user spent 18.0 minutes inside that visit point. To check the duration of the event, hover over it.
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Check when the visit status was clicked.
You can identify the visit status click when the color of the circle on the map changes from gray to green, red, or yellow. This color change indicates the status selected by the application user.
At this point in the route, the circle was gray:
Then it turned green, indicating the click made by the driver.
To find the exact time of the click, check the visits list next to the map. By clicking the desired customer in the visits list, the black bar in the route progress bar returns to the exact point where the user made the click. In this example, the user clicked the visit status at 08h22 in the morning.
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Confirm whether the visit was successful.
If the circle on the map turns green and the customer also appears in green in the visits list, the visit was successful. You can confirm this by moving the progress bar along the map.
Doing this helps you verify whether the user clicked as recommended, meaning within the customer radius and while parked. This supports machine learning for the exact service location, the time spent on the customer, and the customer's time window.
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Watch for changes in the suggested sequence.
After leaving point 1, the user does not follow the suggested sequence to point 2 and instead goes to point 6. After the user clicks, the sequence changes because the Foxtrot Systems algorithm recommends a new and better route based on parameters such as the user's current location, service time, and time window.
This point is then identified as the new point 2. During the route, these numbers may continue to change depending on whether the driver follows the suggested sequence.
Note: Some operations choose to have the suggested sequence change only after a click is made.
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Identify improper clicks and measure their impact.
When arriving at a customer, an authorized stop event is expected, shown in dark purple.
At point 18, however, you can see improper behavior. When zooming in, it becomes clear that the user clicked during a displacement movement. You can identify this on the map when the circle changes to red while the user is away from it. This affects the learned location of the visited point and also reduces the user's click score.
You can review these impacts on the Driver Performance page. There, you can choose the route you want to analyze and click on the user. A new screen will open showing which customers had Foxtrot Systems Sequence Adherence and how many meters away from the visit point the click was made.
Remember: this data is only available after the route has been finalized by the application user. -
Review unauthorized stops and reattempts.
After point 18, the route shows an unauthorized stop event, represented by a light purple color in the route progress bar, starting at around 12:26 pm.
By checking the time, you can better understand the reason for the unauthorized stop. For example, if it happens between 12:00 and 13:00, it may simply be the user's lunchtime. If you want more detail about the location, drag the Pegman onto the map to open Street View and see the area.
After this unauthorized stop, the user moved, made another unauthorized stop, and then returned to point 21. The circle is purple because there had been a failed attempt previously and the driver was authorized to make a reattempt.
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Check the end-of-route events.
You can identify the arrival time at the planned endpoint by observing the start time of the final blue event.
You can also identify when the route was completed by placing the black bar at the end of the route progress timeline.
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Interpret GPS-off, phone-off, and Data Gap events.
The bars below the route are also important during route analysis. Gray bars indicate GPS-off events, while black bars indicate phone-off events. If you are unsure which event you are seeing, hover over the bars to identify them.
Another event that may appear on some routes is the Data Gap event. It appears in red when GPS signal capture fails and can happen for several reasons.