Automating chart finishing

With ArcGIS Maritime, several paper chart finishing processes can be automated using the Chart Automation tool. The tool performs the following actions:

• Adds all layers to the table of contents in ArcMap
• Creates grids and graticules and updates the data frame’s projection, scale, and size accordingly
• Generates cartographic limits
• Generates light sectors
• Bubble Up quality of position (QUAPOS) attributes
• Calculates symbology and labels
• Converts labels to annotation
• Generates a mask for annotation and sets the advanced drawing options for mask settings
• Masks coastline where features intersect bridges

Note:

This tool can be run immediately after the product has been created, checked out, and opened.

1. Start ArcMap.
2. Open the product map document.
3. If necessary enable the Maplex Label Engine.
4. Click System Toolboxes on the Catalog window.
5. Click Nautical Tools > Cartography > Chart Automation.

   The Chart Automation dialog box appears.

   

6. Check the boxes for the processes that you want to run.

   Tip:

   It is strongly recommended that you run all processes except Mask Annotation, since you may want to manually position annotation before creating the masks. The Mask Annotation process should be run after editing chart annotation.

7. Select an Area of Interest polygon that represents the extent of the chart.
8. Type a value in the Chart Scale text box, which represents the scale at which the chart will be plotted.
9. Click the Chart Database browse button and browse to the database on which you want to run the process.
10. Click the Map Document drop-down arrow and choose a type.
    • PATH_TO_MXD allows you to browse to a pre-defined map document.
    • CURRENT_MXD uses the current map document, and requires that the document be saved.

    If necessary, choose the Data Frame in the map document to store the results of the process.

11. If necessary, browse to a Primary Coordinate System, select the XY coordinate System tab and navigate to the desired coordinate system for your map display.

    Note:

    Default setting is World Mercator projection which automatically calculates the standard parallel.

12. To override the calculated standard parallel perform the following steps:
    1. Right-click the selected projection.
    2. Click Copy and Modify.

       The Projected Coordinate System Properties dialog box appears.

    3. In the Standard_Parallel_1 field, type a value in decimal degrees.
13. Click OK.

The processes run and layers are added to the map document.

14. Click OK to close the dialog box when the process is complete.