Fulcrum Blog

Fulcrum is a mobile data collection platform on iOS

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Fulcrum Web Portal Updates: Mapping of Field Collected Data

Last week we released some updates to Fulcrum’s web portal to make getting going with field data collection simpler, and created some more robust data browsing and QA functionality for managing data collection projects.

First, we’ve created a Records view, which gives you a map-based snapshot of data collected in your account, organized by form and location. You can select records on the map to get a quick overview of their attributes, and also edit individual record data to make small corrections or adjustments to data during the QA process. You can view photos taken from the field, all associated data, and make minor positional corrections if needed. Next on this front we’ll be adding a capability to “mass add” points into your account through the map view, so you can pinpoint from a browser the locations you want your field teams to go to collect data.                                                             

Map, check, and modify your data

There are also greatly improved map views in Fulcrum’s web app to support displaying thousands of records on the map at a time, using a fast tiling technique to draw the data. This will enable you to import massive datasets to bring into the field, and still be able to preview, QA, and modify the data through the map interface.

There are quite a few nice changes coming down the pipe in the next few weeks, and these are just a couple of the things we’ve done recently to make Fulcrum better and better for teams doing field data collection. Stay tuned for some other big changes in the coming weeks.

In other news, we’re inches away from releasing our Android app for Fulcrum… So if you’re interested in giving it a try as part of our beta testing group, give us a shout on Twitter or via email through our support team.

[fulcrumapp-blog]

Fulcrum Software Redefines Data Collection

In the years before integrated hardware and software mobile data collection systems, the soup-to-nuts process of collecting geospatial data was a daunting task. In today’s industry there are few geospatial business models that actually generate verified geospatial data from the ground up at an international scale. Spatial Networks has a successful past of conducting field work and collecting rich, valuable data at all scales, using technology we’ve built and improved upon year-over-year.

Traditionally, requirements for data are defined and schematics for collection are designed by committee, since the project design process usually has to happen in “fire and forget” fashion making it difficult to evolve the models and procedures once field work begins. To this day many data collection efforts utilize handheld GPS devices, clipboards, cameras, pen and paper, and sometimes more peripherals. Not only does this methodology slow the process of collecting individual records of data it introduces extra windows for user error, especially with teams of multiple data collection technicians.  The data storage itself might be contained in a relational database such as Microsoft’s Access or other object-relational databases only after the data is converted from its original format. This potentially leads to data vulnerability, meaning multiple pieces of sometimes-sensitive hardcopy data has to be exposed to users that otherwise shouldn’t have it, or don’t need it to do their field work.

The geospatial industry like many other tech-savvy related industries has recently been inundated with mobile capabilities, most of which fall into mobile GIS “total solutions”. However, “mobile data collection” should not be confused with “mobile GIS”. In December of 2011, we launched our Fulcrum mobile data collection app platform. It’s a unique take on providing just what the mobile data collector needs to do field collection – nothing more, nothing less. And of course, the software was designed with our years of international mobile field work in mind.

The use of Fulcrum allows accurate and efficient field data. Project requirements can be built by any project manager from a Fulcrum account using the Fulcrum app builder, letting you build survey forms quickly with a drag-and-drop interface. Plus, effective design of forms using conditional “decision tree” logic, requirement rules, and predefined selection lists lets you dictate exactly what you want from the field. The built apps are then deployed wirelessly anywhere in the world in a matter of minutes to any number of data collectors with smart devices. Collected data can be returned equally as fast increasing the projects turnaround time and deterring any risk of divulging data. Historically, the visualization step of data collection project was only possible once all the data was post-processed into a compatible GIS framework. Fulcrum data can be monitored remotely against a map almost instantaneously as the data collection process is underway from the Fulcrum’s web-platform, a live Google Earth feed, or a customized interface using our developer API.

Data collection projects of any scale are traditionally performed under the constraints of scope, time, and money. Increasing the scope typically means increased time and cost, a limited time constraint could result in increased costs and reduced scope. Whereas a limited budget could mean increased time and reduced scope. Fulcrum provides a technique and toolset to overcome the project constraints by increasing organization, data quality, and efficiency. Create a free account today and experience the difference in redefined mobile data collection.

[fulcrumapp-blog]

Fulcrum for iPad, and some new features.

Over the last few months, we’ve had a lot of inquiries about building an iPad version of Fulcrum, so that data collection teams can make efficient use of the larger form-factor displays for more involved mobile data collection projects, instead of being limited by the iPhone’s small size and interface.

We’ve just released a universal app for Fulcrum, including the iPhone and iPad version in one install. If you have the current version of Fulcrum on your iPad and update the app, you’ll see a full-screen, iPad-optimized interface for creating new surveyed records, updating your existing data, and browsing around on the map interface – along with all the other great features from the iPhone version. Between about 9pm and midnight last night, we’ve already seen over 40 users updated, in places all over the world!

Using Fulcrum on the iPad is amazing (especially on the iPad 3’s retina display). With it’s expanded screen real estate, it makes adding and editing records a breeze. The use of popover menus rather than changing screens makes the interface flow much better for doing high-powered data entry from your device.

As an added benefit, there are a couple of other neat features to mention. First of all, we’ve refactored the form editor to be cleaner and faster than before. Detailed and powerful forms with lots of built-in conditional logic are much faster, allowing you to build complex “decision trees” into your Fulcrum apps, without any slowdown or loss in performance. We’ve also optimized the map interface to improve performance when viewing large datasets on the mobile app.

Even more useful is the added ability to adjust the location of records manually, after they’ve been geotagged to your current location. Since Fulcrum automatically uses your current location when creating a new data point, it can be handy to edit and manually adjust the point slightly if, say, the actual location is inaccessible (over a fence or barrier), or the device’s GPS isn’t returning the exact corner you’re standing on, like when you’re in between tall buildings or under tree cover. Being able to adjust the pin location gives you total control over the quality and accuracy of your data from the field.

In the quick video example below, we’re downloading existing data from a Fulcrum account to the iPad, switching to a custom offline map made from local aerial photography, adding a new record, and adjusting it’s position manually by positioning the pin on the map. Incredibly useful for mapping centers of buildings, or other features inaccessible from the location in which you’re standing.

Give the new version a try, and check out our Pro plans if you’re an organization with a mobile team that needs a powerful app for doing surveying and mapping out in the field. After kicking the tires on it, drop by our support pages and let us know what you think! And as always, you can follow @fulcrumapp on Twitter for the latest news and updates.

[fulcrumapp-blog]

Fulcrum Integration with GeoCommons

We recently added the ability to export data collected with Fulcrum to GeoCommons. GeoCommons is the public community of GeoIQ users who are building an open repository of datasets and maps that can be shared on the web. The GeoIQ platform includes a large number of features that empowers users to easily access, visualize, and analyze data.

We believe Fulcrum is a powerful tool for collecting geospatial data and GeoIQ is a powerful tool for analyzing that data. Obviously, we believe our users will greatly benefit from this integration.

The GeoIQ platform provides very robust REST and JavaScript APIs. Only after a short period of time reading their extensive documentation we had a prototype pushing data to their platform in a few short hours. Fulcrum’s extensive range of data export types made the process very easy. All we had to do was export an Esri shapefile of the Fulcrum data to the GeoIQ dataset upload API.

Who would benefit from this integration? Simply, anyone that collects geospatial data and would like to benefit from the ease in data collection of fulcrum and the powerful analysis tools of GeoIQ.

This video demonstrates the ease of directly exporting a .csv file of collected data with Fulcrum into GeoCommons to further geospatial analysis.

If you would like to know more about GeoCommons, visit their site and create a free account.

Want to know more about mobile data collection with fulcrum? Create a free account and download the iPhone application from iTunes.

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There's an App For That!

Mobile apps have had profound impacts on the lives of users and consumers. Smartphone and tablet apps have become the social norm for accessing news, social network feeds, and essentially tethering individuals to their interests. Businesses today, driven by competition, pour enormous investments into the development of mobile apps to be operational on the frontier of the possible. It is expected that by 2014, more than 30 billion application downloads would occur and result to nearly $40 billion annual revenue. While communication and the dissemination of information throughout our society has grown exponentially with the spread of mobile apps, there still exist major hindrances to collaboration between local governments. In 2010,  Civic Commons was established to provide information sharing amongst governments and institutions creating an infrastructure for the open government. Civic Commons as stated, is a "lot like a community driven civic app-store". The "Market Place", provides a platform that "aligns cities around the technologies they buy and build by fostering an engaged community of government decision-makers, organizations, and vendors." It's a place for civic engagement tools (and the companies that build them) to connect with governments and municipal authorities.                 This past spring, Fulcrum, a mobile data collection application joined the Market Place to provide municipalities and organizations with a dynamic tool to quickly design, build, and deploy micro-apps for all field data collection needs anywhere in the world to any number of users in a matter of minutes. The opportunities for collecting and sharing information to resolve complex municipal problems with Fulcrum is endless and more importantly providing a cost effective solution to community progress.

[fulcrumapp-blog]

The Fulcrum developer API

We just wrapped up the first public release of our API, opening up the Fulcrum platform and mobile app to developers that want to integrate Fulcrum into their own platforms or databases. The API has existed from the beginning of Fulcrum’s development as a communication endpoint for the mobile app, and we’ve added some new functionality to allow complete writing and reading of data to and from your Fulcrum account via the API. We’ve also extended the documentation pages to cover the API endpoints, with examples and descriptions of how to use each. All that’s required to get started on hacking with the API is to login with your Fulcrum account and go to your user profile page. You’ll see a link at the bottom to the settingswhere you can generate an API key. Here’s a short example in Javascript showing how to pull down your list of forms (and form data models) from your account:   And here’s the response returned from the API in the example, a JSON representation of the forms in your account:   Alternately, you could populate Fulcrum forms from another system by sending POST requests containing your data models using Fulcrum’s form definitions. You can even define field conditions (for field visibility or requirement) to build in your own conditional logic. Here’s another example demonstrating a request for records in a particular form using cURL:   Passing the form ID in the request will yield a JSON response of the data within that form, including attached photos and thumbnails: Opening up the platform API to developers will allow for tighter integration of Fulcrum with other backend databases like ArcGIS Server, PostGIS, or others by simply writing some connector code to fetch data from your Fulcrum account. If you have any questions about using the API and want to learn more, or have an idea about how you might want to employ it in your own applications, get in touch with us on our support forum.

[fulcrumapp-blog]

Fulcrum: Organization for Disaster Response

Over the last decade, geo-information technology has proven to play a global critical role for collaborative efforts in disaster response. Public and private sectors alike budget for enormous investments in disaster management and response. Rapid collection and dissemination of accurate data is the core component of making informed decisions in reactionary scenarios. Fulcrum for disaster response data collection provides decision makers with a capability to deploy maximum man power to disaster areas equipped with any iPhone and soon with Android devices to collect data and capture photos. Data collection teams utilizing Fulcrum require little to no training, unlike complex mobile GIS systems. When lives are at stake, data collection efforts in post disaster scenarios need to be swift and efficient to collect exactly the data needed for decision makers. Multiple custom forms created within Fulcrum’s form builder are wirelessly deployed to any number of devices in just seconds. Emergency planners often have existing geo-referenced data of susceptible areas and or buildings that are of top priority for first responders. This data can be easily uploaded to Fulcrum web, assigned new data collection requirements and be downloaded to the Fulcrum app making it available for immediate field assessment.  No longer is there a need to manually connect data collection devices to a central location for transferring surveys, forms, and data.

Fulcrum organizations allow for collaborative collection and sharing.

    Post disaster areas, especially at the international scale, tend to be inconsistent if not entirely disconnected from communication networks. Forthcoming technological advances of portable WiFi hotspots such as Tethr are opening the doors to robust software, like Fulcrum, in a cutoff world.  Fulcrum also has the ability to collect data while completely offline in remote environments. Offline collected data with Fulcrum app is synced upon returning to the base of operations over WiFi or 3G network for immediate analysis and needs deployment.  Fulcrum resolves complex scalable needs for disaster response and aid organizations at comparatively low level investment allowing for optimum implementation when performance matters most.

Data Collection Team 1: Collecting and syncing records

Team One is collecting records for a flood assessment survey form created from the Fulcrum web platform.

Data Collection Team 2: Sharing and downloading records

Team Two is downloading the records created by Team One to review, modify, and add records to the same assessment survey form at another location.

Collected data from multiple teams is synced to Fulcrum web where an administrator can provide analysis, response, and implement decisions in near real time.

[fulcrumapp-blog]

Fulcrum for Tree Inventory

This simple form was created in less than 2 minutes and can be deployed instantaneously to several mobile devices for a collaborative data collection effort. Fulcrum's dual web and mobile platform is a necessary tool for maintaining and keeping inventory of nearly any asset imaginable.

A quick form created in less than 2 minutes

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Fulcrum Form Builder: Utilizing Conditional Logic

Fulcrum web platform provides the ability for a member to quickly design, build, and deploy a customized data collection form to your mobile device for nearly any project or need. Whether you're a field service technician with a need to collect and report information on foreclosed properties, a municipalities contractor inspecting utility infrastructure, or even a student performing population surveys around your campus for a project; Fulcrum is your solution. Although there is much that differs about each of Fulcrum's industry reach, all use cases share a common requirement. That is efficiency and accuracy of data collecting.

    The form builder is the focal point of each project that has been engineered to near perfection to include advanced conditional logic of visibility and requirement rules.  Implementing visibility rules when building out a form for a project essentially allows the data collector to view only fields that are necessary at the point of data collection on the mobile device. In short, selecting a choice in a specified field where visibility and requirement operators have been set can nullify or activate subsequent fields in the form that may or may not pertain to the remaining portion of the data collection process. The ability to conditionally fill out a form will prove to be beneficial in data collection projects where massive amounts of data are being collected by the hour saving time, reducing data entry errors, and improving the benefit vs. cost bottom line.

    The chart shows the implementation of conditional operations when selecting from the 'Water Source' drop down field in a project for surveying freshwater ponds. When 'Natural' is selected it prompts a new field on the device for the data collector to choose 'Natural Type' of 'Artesian' or 'Non-Artesian'. When 'Artesian' is selected, it prompts a choice list field, 'Natural Flow', for the user to pick from a list of flow rates. Selecting 'Non-Artesian' stores that value and moves to the next section. Check out the video showing the conditional operators implemented to the mobile device.

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Uploading & Importing Data to Fulcrum

The Fulcrum development team has been heads down cranking out new features nearly every week. Today's release on the Fulcrum web includes the data import wizard available for all members. Fulcrum users can now upload a comma separated value file (CSV) of their existing geo-referenced data to the web and import that data to a project. Upon import a new form is auto-generated using the column headings in your CSV file. In the import wizard, members can define the existing data types (text field, choice field), choose to hide data on the mobile device, and specify read-only fields. From the form builder, you can modify and add new fields to the recently generated form. Your data can then be downloaded to your Fulcrum account on the mobile device providing you the access to locate, assess, collect, and sync your data back to the web thus maintaining the veracity and integrity of your data.

This will be a great added capability, especially for Pro subscribers that have a Multi-User Organization to assign data collection projects and requirements to their invited team members. Field data collection involves several operating costs (man-hours, training, costly equipment, etc), so implementing the the full functionality of Fulcrum cuts operating costs and increases efficiency for providing a speedy turnaround for the data consumer.

This use case example of importing and uploading known fire hydrant locations shows the original data with few attributes (name, locations, etc) and then adding and editing fields. Fulcrum redefines mobile data collecting by knowing where to go, what to collect, and how to collect it.

Uploading Data to Fulcrum

View more presentations from patdwilson

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Fulcrum Pro for organizations and collaboration

We’re continuously advancing Fulcrum for mobile data collection with new features and capabilities continuously being added to the both the web and mobile platform. Two weeks ago, we launched the Individual subscription plan and today we are pleased to announce the release of the Fulcrum Pro subscription tier.

Fulcrum Pro gives the user access to unlimited projects, records, forms, users, and map uploads.  The Pro subscription also adds Esri shapefile and GeoJSON to the list of pre-existing data export formats (CSV and KML). With a Pro account, the account owner has the ability to invite others via email to join in on data collection projects, giving other users access to contribute and modify data with the Fulcrum mobile app. The organization’s members can then join in on collaborative collection efforts and share data between one another in the field, while administrators can view active fieldwork in real-time back in the office or from a mobile laptop from the web app, or using the live Google Earth View.

To upgrade your account and add get your team members added, log into Fulcrum, go to the Subscription Settings and convert to the Pro plan for just $20 per user per month.

Utilizing the available features and capabilities of Fulcrum as your mobile data collection platform provides you with a unique service incomparable to the rest.  The Fulcrum platform equips you with a unique means of collecting data online or offline, secured cloud data storage, and dynamic data export formats.

[fulcrumapp-blog]

View your data as it is collected and synced to your account in real time using Google Earth. Upgrade to a subscription account today to get this feature.

[fulcrumapp-blog]

Fulcrum for City Government Data Collection

Posted by Andie

Before getting hired at Spatial Networks, I worked as an unpaid intern for several months in local government doing various GIS related tasks. Now that I know about Fulcrum, I can say that it would be a wonderful tool for use in municipalities, especially for projects similar to those I worked on. It simplifies every aspect of data collection and costs less than most GPS equipment.

One of my assignments was collecting fire hydrant data using a handheld Trimble unit. The department I worked in does not have any sort of equipment for GPS collection. The Trimble I used was brought to City Hall from the utilities campus. Since my supervisor was not familiar with the equipment, a utilities worker was the one who instructed me on how to use it. The device is simple, but I had to build the data forms in the unit, which is not as user friendly as typing up the forms on a computer like with Fulcrum. Collecting the data in the field with the Trimble is not as simplified and logical as it is with Fulcrum. The Trimble unit I used had a designated laptop with specific software for exporting and preparing the data for import into ArcMap. Hooking up the equipment and running the program is more complicated and takes longer than Fulcrum’s export process does. With Fulcrum you don’t have to tow around a special laptop so that you can actually use the data you collected. You just need your phone and any computer. No wires, no expensive software to learn.

Fulcrum for historic buildings

Shortly before I left the internship, the department was preparing to do a survey of the historic buildings in the city. I had to do some of the preparation for the project. This required me to use ArcCatalog to build ‘forms’ (tables) for the survey, which is a frustrating process because one does not simply move columns, change titles, etc in the tables. From my understanding, the plan was to take a laptop into the field to fill out the tables, while separately collecting GPS points of each building. After this, the information would be merged together when back in the office. Fulcrum does all of that at the same time and with pictures, which would be very useful in a historical buildings survey. Plus you don’t have to mess around with table creation in ArcCatalog!

It is important to note that not everyone in the office has an iPhone. I would say a majority of the employees with smartphones had Androids. This is why a Fulcrum release on Android is important and on the horizon. With Fulcrum, every department can have the ability to collect data. When data is needed, city employees won’t always have to depend on a county GIS department, unpaid interns, or outsourcing data collection projects to private companies; they can easily collect it for themselves.

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Fulcrum 1.2 for iPhone

Our latest version of Fulcrum for iPhone has just gone live on the App Store, and it's bringing some great new functionality to the product. We've been making big strides to get Fulcrum to the place where it'll be a fantastic data collection platform for teams working on gathering customized data out in the field. The biggest new feature in 1.2 is the ability to download data from your Fulcrum account in the cloud to take with you into the field, for both adding to or updating and editing existing data. You can now go into one of your projects, select a bounding box on a map view, and download the data from that region down to your iPhone. Then you can make edits, add photos, or even add new records to that existing data and sync your changes back up to the cloud. This is just the beginning of what will be launched in the coming weeks to allow Pro account holders to have multiple users -- and record downloading will allow Pro users to share and sync data from the same projects. When your team members create data, you'll be able to pull and sync data simultaneously, over-the-air. We've also made some substantial improvements to the UI, making it simpler to navigate the different settings and more quickly add and edit records and sync your data. The map settings are also just one tap away now on their own tab, so with a couple taps you can switch to your custom base maps that you've uploaded to your Fulcrum account. Another convenient new option is the Nearby tab, allowing you to pull up a quick list of records and their proximity to your current location. When you're working with datasets with closely clustered data points, the Nearby view can give you a more accessible route to finding the record you're trying to update.

Download the latest version of Fulcrum from the App Store, and sign up for one of our new Individual user plans to get access to a couple of cool new features -- including the ability to see a live data feed in KML format and export your collected photos along with CSV or KML raw data. Keep up with the latest Fulcrum news by following us on Twitter. Pro accounts for teams are coming soon, along with our Android version (and developer API)!

[fulcrumapp-blog]

Confirmation Email

Upon signing up for a new Fulcrum account, a confirmation email will be sent to you from [email protected]. More often than not, email service providers filter automated emails as 'spam'. When in doubt, be sure to check your spam folder for that confirmation email. If you still can not locate it, feel free to email us a [email protected] and we would be more than happy to help you trouble shoot.

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Introduction to Fulcrum: Mobile Data Collection Redefined

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Fulcrum as a Platform

Posted on March 19, 2012 by Anthony Quartararo

We’re making rapid progress in all areas of developing on fulcrum and we are excited to see the level of interest from around the world.  We’ve got potential partners wanting to develop private-label apps powered  by fulcrum as well as a growing collection of DIY users taking the power of fulcrum in directions we had not imagined just a few months ago.  This is all very exciting.  On top of that, we’re rolling out the latest iPhone version later this month (the iOS Universal edition as well).  We’re a tad behind on Android but I’m confident it will be at parity with iOS by mid-year 2012.

One of the more powerful aspects to what we’ve done on the platform is to enable rapid prototyping of concepts and enable testing in the field, all within a matter of minutes.  Here’s an early preview of an app that grew out of my Ignite talk at WhereCampTB last month, which itself was inspired by Mitch Sipus when I visited Kabul last December.

I created a standardized form in just 2-3 minutes, then, if needed, clone and copy the form and annotate accordingly.  In this example, I went overboard initially (as I am somewhat prone to do) and had a very complex set of Choice Lists and Classification Sets, but as I started testing in the field and putting myself in the shoes of the average consumer, I quickly realized that this level of complexity was not only unnecessary but likely to slow down any real adoption when it hit the iTunes App store.  I could rev the app by simply cloning and renaming (why not save that for a later version?) and the modify (delete fields) to make a simpler version for initial launch.  I was able to do all this in a couple of hours of refinement without once bothering the engineering staff with the “customizations” that I was tinkering with.  Once I arrived at the final data model and had tested it in the field, I turned it over to the product group and within a couple of days, it was looking like a finished product.  Most of the iterations I have seen so far are variations on the UI but not the data model.

This capability is available to all users of fulcrum.  While we’re not ready yet to spawn a massive constellation of privately-labeled or branded apps powered by fulcrum, users can  certainly create an unlimited amount of Forms and Projects in their own accounts and the DIY ability is a native part of the evolving platform that fulcrum has become.  Giving people what they need in the field, nothing more, nothing less, to do their job and get instant results has never been easier or more powerful.  Check it out for yourself here.

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