Summary
Chooses the best location or locations from a set of input locations by assigning demand points to input facilities in a way that allocates the most demand to facilities and minimizes overall travel.
Input to this tool includes facilities, which provide goods or services, and demand points, which consume the goods and services. The objective is to find the facilities that supply the demand points most efficiently. The tool solves this problem by analyzing various ways the demand points can be assigned to the different facilities. The solution is the scenario that allocates the most demand to facilities and minimizes overall travel. The output includes the solution facilities, demand points associated with their assigned facilities, and lines connecting demand points to their facilities.
The location-allocation tool can be configured to solve specific problem types. Examples include the following:
A retail store wants to see which potential store locations would need to be developed to capture 10 percent of the retail market in the area.
A fire department wants to determine where it should locate fire stations to reach 90 percent of the community within a four-minute response time.
A police department wants to preposition personnel given past criminal activity at night.
After a storm, a disaster response agency wants to find the best locations to set up triage facilities, with limited patient capacities, to tend to the affected population.
Illustration
Usage
The tool chooses the best facilities based on travel time if the value for the Measurement Units parameter is time based. It's based on travel distance if the measurement units are distance based.
You need to specify at least one facility and one demand point to successfully execute the tool. You can load up to 1,000 facilities and 10,000 demand points.
You can add up to 250 point barriers. You can add any number of line or polygon barriers, but line barriers cannot intersect more than 500 street features, and polygon barriers cannot intersect more than 2,000 features.
You can use the road hierarchy when solving so results are generated quicker, but the solution may be less than optimal.
Regardless of whether the Use Hierarchy parameter is checked (True), hierarchy is always used when the straight-line distance between any pair of features representing demand points or facilities is greater than 50 miles (80.46 kilometers).
The straight-line distance between any pair of features representing demand points or facilities cannot be greater than 27 miles (43.45 kilometers) when Travel Mode is set to Walking, or when it is set to Custom and the Walking restriction is used.
If the distance between an input point and its nearest traversable street is more than 12.42 miles (20 kilometers), the point is excluded from the analysis.
Using this service consumes credits. For more information, see Service Credits Overview.
This tool is designed to run in ArcGIS Pro, ArcMap, ArcGlobe, and ArcScene, but not in ArcCatalog.
Syntax
arcpy.naagol.SolveLocationAllocation(Facilities, Demand_Points, Measurement_Units, {Analysis_Region}, {Problem_Type}, {Number_of_Facilities_to_Find}, {Default_Measurement_Cutoff}, {Default_Capacity}, {Target_Market_Share}, {Measurement_Transformation_Model}, {Measurement_Transformation_Factor}, {Travel_Direction}, {Time_of_Day}, {Time_Zone_for_Time_of_Day}, {UTurn_at_Junctions}, Point_Barriers, Line_Barriers, Polygon_Barriers, {Use_Hierarchy}, Restrictions, {Attribute_Parameter_Values}, {Allocation_Line_Shape}, {Travel_Mode}, {Impedance}, {Save_Output_Network_Analysis_Layer}, {Overrides}, {Time_Impedance}, {Distance_Impedance}, {Output_Format}, {Ignore_Invalid_Locations})| Parameter | Explanation | Data Type |
Facilities | Specify one or more facilities that the solver will choose from during the analysis. The solver identifies the best facilities to allocate demand in the most efficient way according to the problem type and criteria you specify. In a competitive analysis in which you try to find the best locations in the face of competition, the facilities of the competitors are specified here as well. When defining the facilities, you can set properties for each—such as its name or type—using the following attributes: Name The name of the facility. The name is included in the name of output allocation lines if the facility is part of the solution. FacilityType Specifies whether the facility is a candidate, required, or a competitor facility. The field value is specified as one of the following integers (use the numeric code, not the name in parentheses):
Weight The relative weighting of the facility, which is used to rate the attractiveness, desirability, or bias of one facility compared to another. For example, a value of 2.0 may capture the preference of customers who prefer, at a ratio of 2 to 1, shopping in one facility over another facility. Factors that potentially affect facility weight include square footage, neighborhood, and age of the building. Weight values other than one are only honored by the maximize market share and target market share problem types; they are ignored in other problem types. Cutoff The impedance value at which to stop searching for demand points from a given facility. The demand point can't be allocated to a facility that is beyond the value indicated here. This attribute allows you to specify a different cutoff value for each demand point. For example, you may find that people in rural areas are willing to travel up to 10 miles to reach a facility, while urbanites are only willing to travel up to 2 miles. You can model this behavior by setting the Cutoff value for all demand points that are in rural areas to 10 and setting the Cutoff value of the demand points in urban areas to 2. Capacity The Capacity field is specific to the maximize capacitated coverage problem type; the other problem types ignore this field. Capacity specifies how much weighted demand the facility is capable of supplying. Excess demand won't be allocated to a facility even if that demand is within the facility's default measurement cutoff. Any value assigned to the Capacity field overrides the Default Capacity parameter (Default_Capacity in Python) for the given facility. CurbApproach Specifies the direction a vehicle may arrive at or depart from the facility. The field value is specified as one of the following integers (use the numeric code, not the name in parentheses):
The CurbApproach attribute is designed to work with both types of national driving standards: right-hand traffic (United States) and left-hand traffic (United Kingdom). First, consider a facility on the left side of a vehicle. It is always on the left side regardless of whether the vehicle travels on the left or right half of the road. What may change with national driving standards is your decision to approach a facility from one of two directions, that is, so it ends up on the right or left side of the vehicle. For example, if you want to arrive at a facility and not have a lane of traffic between the vehicle and the incident, choose 1 (Right side of vehicle) in the United States and 2 (Left side of vehicle) in the United Kingdom. Bearing The direction in which a point is moving. The units are degrees and are measured clockwise from true north. This field is used in conjunction with the BearingTol field. Bearing data is usually sent automatically from a mobile device equipped with a GPS receiver. Try to include bearing data if you are loading an input location that is moving, such as a pedestrian or a vehicle. Using this field tends to prevent adding locations to the wrong edges, which can occur when a vehicle is near an intersection or an overpass, for example. Bearing also helps the tool determine on which side of the street the point is. Learn more about bearing and bearing tolerance BearingTol The bearing tolerance value creates a range of acceptable bearing values when locating moving points on an edge using the Bearing field. If the value from the Bearing field is within the range of acceptable values that are generated from the bearing tolerance on an edge, the point can be added as a network location there; otherwise, the closest point on the next-nearest edge is evaluated. The units are in degrees, and the default value is 30. Values must be greater than 0 and less than 180. A value of 30 means that when Network Analyst attempts to add a network location on an edge, a range of acceptable bearing values is generated 15 degrees to either side of the edge (left and right) and in both digitized directions of the edge. Learn more about bearing and bearing tolerance NavLatency This field is only used in the solve process if Bearing and BearingTol also have values; however, entering a NavLatency value is optional, even when values are present in Bearing and BearingTol. NavLatency indicates how much time is expected to elapse from the moment GPS information is sent from a moving vehicle to a server and the moment the processed route is received by the vehicle's navigation device. The time units of NavLatency are the same as the units specified by the timeUnits property of the analysis object. | Feature Set |
Demand_Points | Specify one or more demand points. The solver identifies the best facilities based in large part on how they serve the demand points specified here. A demand point is typically a location that represents the people or things requiring the goods and services your facilities provide. A demand point may be a ZIP Code centroid weighted by the number of people residing within it or by the expected consumption generated by those people. Demand points can also represent business customers. If you supply businesses with a high turnover of inventory, they will be weighted more heavily than those with a low turnover rate. When specifying the demand points, you can set properties for each—such as its name or weight—using the following attributes: Name The name of the demand point. The name is included in the name of the output allocation line or lines if the demand point is part of the solution. GroupName The name of the group to which the demand point belongs. This field is ignored for the Maximize Capacitated Coverage, Target Market Share, and Maximize Market Share problem types. If demand points share a group name, the solver allocates all members of the group to the same facility. (If constraints, such as a cutoff distance, prevent any of the demand points in the group from reaching the same facility, none of the demand points are allocated.) Weight The relative weighting of the demand point. A value of 2.0 means the demand point is twice as important as one with a weight of 1.0. If demand points represent households, for example, weight can indicate the number of people in each household. Cutoff The impedance value at which to stop searching for demand points from a given facility. The demand point can't be allocated to a facility that is beyond the value indicated here. This attribute allows you to specify a cutoff value for each demand point. For example, you may find that people in rural areas are willing to travel up to 10 miles to reach a facility, while those in urban areas are only willing to travel up to 2 miles. You can model this behavior by setting the Cutoff value for all demand points that are in rural areas to 10 and setting the Cutoff value of the demand points in urban areas to 2. The units for this attribute value are specified by the Measurement Units parameter. A value for this attribute overrides the default set for the analysis using the Default Measurement Cutoff parameter. The default value is Null, which results in using the default value set by the Default Measurement Cutoff parameter for all the demand points. ImpedanceTransformation A value for this attribute overrides the default set for the analysis by the Measurement Transformation Model parameter. ImpedanceParameter A value for this attribute overrides the default set for the analysis by the Measurement Transformation Factor parameter. CurbApproach Specifies the direction a vehicle may arrive at or depart from the demand point. The field value is specified as one of the following integers (use the numeric code, not the name in parentheses):
The CurbApproach attribute is designed to work with both types of national driving standards: right-hand traffic (United States) and left-hand traffic (United Kingdom). First, consider a demand point on the left side of a vehicle. It is always on the left side regardless of whether the vehicle travels on the left or right half of the road. What may change with national driving standards is your decision to approach a demand point from one of two directions, that is, so it ends up on the right or left side of the vehicle. For example, if you want to arrive at a demand point and not have a lane of traffic between the vehicle and the demand point, choose 1 (Right side of vehicle) in the United States and 2 (Left side of vehicle) in the United Kingdom. Bearing The direction in which a point is moving. The units are degrees and are measured clockwise from true north. This field is used in conjunction with the BearingTol field. Bearing data is usually sent automatically from a mobile device equipped with a GPS receiver. Try to include bearing data if you are loading an input location that is moving, such as a pedestrian or a vehicle. Using this field tends to prevent adding locations to the wrong edges, which can occur when a vehicle is near an intersection or an overpass, for example. Bearing also helps the tool determine on which side of the street the point is. Learn more about bearing and bearing tolerance BearingTol The bearing tolerance value creates a range of acceptable bearing values when locating moving points on an edge using the Bearing field. If the value from the Bearing field is within the range of acceptable values that are generated from the bearing tolerance on an edge, the point can be added as a network location there; otherwise, the closest point on the next-nearest edge is evaluated. The units are in degrees, and the default value is 30. Values must be greater than 0 and less than 180. A value of 30 means that when Network Analyst attempts to add a network location on an edge, a range of acceptable bearing values is generated 15 degrees to either side of the edge (left and right) and in both digitized directions of the edge. Learn more about bearing and bearing tolerance NavLatency This field is only used in the solve process if Bearing and BearingTol also have values; however, entering a NavLatency value is optional, even when values are present in Bearing and BearingTol. NavLatency indicates how much time is expected to elapse from the moment GPS information is sent from a moving vehicle to a server and the moment the processed route is received by the vehicle's navigation device. The time units of NavLatency are the same as the units specified by the timeUnits property of the analysis object. | Feature Set |
Measurement_Units | Specify the units that will be used to measure the travel times or travel distances between demand points and facilities. The tool finds the best facilities based on those that can reach, or be reached by, the most amount of weighted demand with the least amount travel. The output allocation lines report travel distance or travel time in different units, including the units you specify for this parameter.
| String |
Analysis_Region (Optional) | The region in which the analysis will be performed. If a value is not specified for this parameter, the tool will automatically calculate the region name based on the location of the input points. Setting the name of the region is required only if the automatic detection of the region name is not accurate for your inputs. To specify a region, use one of the following values:
| String |
Problem_Type (Optional) | Specifies the objective of the location-allocation analysis. The default objective is to minimize impedance.
| String |
Number_of_Facilities_to_Find (Optional) | The number of facilities to find. The default value is 1. The facilities with a FacilityType field value of 1 (Required) are always chosen first. Any excess facilities are chosen from candidate facilities with a FacilityType field value of 2. Any facilities that have a FacilityType value of 3 (Chosen) before solving are treated as candidate facilities at solve time. If the number of facilities to find is less than the number of required facilities, an error occurs. Number of Facilities to Find is disabled for the minimize facilities and target market share problem types since the solver determines the minimum number of facilities needed to meet the objectives. | Long |
Default_Measurement_Cutoff (Optional) | The maximum travel time or distance allowed between a demand point and the facility it is allocated to. If a demand point is outside the cutoff of a facility, it cannot be allocated to that facility. The default value is none, which means the cutoff limit doesn't apply. The units for this parameter are the same as those specified by the Measurement Units parameter. The travel time or distance cutoff is measured by the shortest path along roads. This parameter can be used to model the maximum distance that people are willing to travel to visit stores or the maximum time permitted for a fire department to reach anyone in the community. Note that Demand Points includes the Cutoff field, which, if set accordingly, overrides the Default Measurement Cutoff parameter. You may find that people in rural areas are willing to travel up to 10 miles to reach a facility while urbanites are only willing to travel up to two miles. Assuming Measurement Units is set to Miles, you can model this behavior by setting the default measurement cutoff to 10 and the Cutoff field value of the demand points in urban areas to 2. | Double |
Default_Capacity (Optional) | This parameter is specific to the maximize capacitated coverage problem type. It is the default capacity assigned to all facilities in the analysis. You can override the default capacity for a facility by specifying a value in the facility's Capacity field. The default value is 1. | Double |
Target_Market_Share (Optional) | This parameter is specific to the target market share problem type. It is the percentage of the total demand weight that you want the chosen and required facilities to capture. The solver identifies the minimum number of facilities needed to capture the target market share specified here. The default value is 10 percent. | Double |
Measurement_Transformation_Model (Optional) | This sets the equation for transforming the network cost between facilities and demand points. This parameter, along with Impedance Parameter, specifies how severely the network impedance between facilities and demand points influences the solver's choice of facilities. In the following list of transformation options, d refers to demand points and f refers to facilities. Impedance refers to the shortest travel distance or time between two locations. So impedancedf is the shortest-path (time or distance) between demand point d and facility f, and costdf is the transformed travel time or distance between the facility and demand point. Lambda (λ) denotes the impedance parameter. The Measurement Units parameter determines whether travel time or distance is analyzed.
The value set for this parameter can be overridden on a per-demand-point basis using the ImpedanceTransformation field in the input demand points. | String |
Measurement_Transformation_Factor (Optional) | Provides a parameter value to the equations specified in the Measurement Transformation Model parameter. The parameter value is ignored when the impedance transformation is of type linear. For power and exponential impedance transformations, the value should be nonzero. The default value is 1. The value set for this parameter can be overridden on a per-demand-point basis using the ImpedanceParameter field in the input demand points. | Double |
Travel_Direction (Optional) | Specifies whether travel times or distances will be measured from facilities to demand points or from demand points to facilities.
Travel times and distances may change based on direction of travel. If traveling from point A to point B, you may encounter less traffic or have a shorter path, due to one-way streets and turn restrictions, than if you were traveling in the opposite direction. For instance, traveling from point A to point B may take 10 minutes, but traveling the other direction may take 15 minutes. These differing measurements may affect whether demand points can be assigned to certain facilities because of cutoffs or, for problem types in which demand is apportioned, affect how much demand is captured. Fire departments commonly measure from facilities to demand points since they are concerned with the time it takes to travel from the fire station (facility) to the location of the emergency (demand point). Management at a retail store is more concerned with the time it takes shoppers (demand points) to reach the store (facility); therefore, store management commonly measure from demand points to facilities. Travel Direction also determines the meaning of any start time that is provided. See the Time of Day parameter for more information. | String |
Time_of_Day (Optional) | The time at which travel begins. This parameter is ignored unless Measurement Units is time based. The default is no time or date. When Time of Day isn't specified, the solver uses generic speeds—typically those from posted speed limits. Traffic constantly changes in reality, and as it changes, travel times between facilities and demand points fluctuate. Therefore, indicating different time and date values over several analyses may affect how demand is allocated to facilities and which facilities are chosen in the results. The time of day always indicates a start time. However, travel may start from facilities or demand points; it depends on what you choose for the Travel Direction parameter. The Time Zone for Time of Day parameter specifies whether this time and date refer to UTC or the time zone in which the facility or demand point is located. | Date |
Time_Zone_for_Time_of_Day (Optional) | Specifies the time zone of the Time of Day parameter. The default is geographically local.
Regardless of the Time Zone for Time of Day parameter value, the following rules are enforced by the tool if your facilities and demand points are in multiple time zones:
| String |
UTurn_at_Junctions (Optional) | Specifies the U-turn policy at junctions. Allowing U-turns implies the solver can turn around at a junction and double back on the same street. Given that junctions represent street intersections and dead ends, different vehicles may be able to turn around at some junctions but not at others—it depends on whether the junction represents an intersection or dead end. To accommodate this, the U-turn policy parameter is implicitly specified by the number of edges that connect to the junction, which is known as junction valency. The acceptable values for this parameter are listed below; each is followed by a description of its meaning in terms of junction valency.
This parameter is ignored unless Travel Mode is set to Custom. | String |
Point_Barriers |
Use this parameter to specify one or more points that will act as temporary restrictions or represent additional time or distance that may be required to travel on the underlying streets. For example, a point barrier can be used to represent a fallen tree along a street or a time delay spent at a railroad crossing. The tool imposes a limit of 250 points that can be added as barriers. When specifying point barriers, you can set properties for each, such as its name or barrier type, using the following attributes: Name The name of the barrier. BarrierType Specifies whether the point barrier restricts travel completely or adds time or distance when it is crossed. The value for this attribute is specified as one of the following integers (use the numeric code, not the name in parentheses):
Additional_Time The added travel time when the barrier is traversed. This field is applicable only for added-cost barriers and when the Measurement Units parameter value is time based. This field value must be greater than or equal to zero, and its units must be the same as those specified in the Measurement Units parameter. Additional_Distance The added distance when the barrier is traversed. This field is applicable only for added-cost barriers and when the Measurement Units parameter value is distance based. The field value must be greater than or equal to zero, and its units must be the same as those specified in the Measurement Units parameter. AdditionalCost The added cost when the barrier is traversed. This field is applicable only for added-cost barriers when the Measurement Units parameter value is neither time based nor distance based. FullEdge Specifies how the restriction point barriers are applied to the edge elements during the analysis. The field value is specified as one of the following integers (use the numeric code, not the name in parentheses):
CurbApproach Specifies the direction of traffic that is affected by the barrier. The field value is specified as one of the following integers (use the numeric code, not the name in parentheses):
Because junctions are points and don't have a side, barriers on junctions affect all vehicles regardless of the curb approach. The CurbApproach attribute works with both types of national driving standards: right-hand traffic (United States) and left-hand traffic (United Kingdom). First, consider a facility on the left side of a vehicle. It is always on the left side regardless of whether the vehicle travels on the left or right half of the road. What may change with national driving standards is your decision to approach a facility from one of two directions, that is, so it ends up on the right or left side of the vehicle. For example, to arrive at a facility and not have a lane of traffic between the vehicle and the facility, choose 1 (Right side of vehicle) in the United States and 2 (Left side of vehicle) in the United Kingdom. Bearing The direction in which a point is moving. The units are degrees and are measured clockwise from true north. This field is used in conjunction with the BearingTol field. Bearing data is usually sent automatically from a mobile device equipped with a GPS receiver. Try to include bearing data if you are loading an input location that is moving, such as a pedestrian or a vehicle. Using this field tends to prevent adding locations to the wrong edges, which can occur when a vehicle is near an intersection or an overpass, for example. Bearing also helps the tool determine on which side of the street the point is. Learn more about bearing and bearing tolerance BearingTol The bearing tolerance value creates a range of acceptable bearing values when locating moving points on an edge using the Bearing field. If the value from the Bearing field is within the range of acceptable values that are generated from the bearing tolerance on an edge, the point can be added as a network location there; otherwise, the closest point on the next-nearest edge is evaluated. The units are in degrees, and the default value is 30. Values must be greater than 0 and less than 180. A value of 30 means that when Network Analyst attempts to add a network location on an edge, a range of acceptable bearing values is generated 15 degrees to either side of the edge (left and right) and in both digitized directions of the edge. Learn more about bearing and bearing tolerance NavLatency This field is only used in the solve process if Bearing and BearingTol also have values; however, entering a NavLatency value is optional, even when values are present in Bearing and BearingTol. NavLatency indicates how much time is expected to elapse from the moment GPS information is sent from a moving vehicle to a server and the moment the processed route is received by the vehicle's navigation device. The time units of NavLatency are the same as the units specified by the timeUnits property of the analysis object. | Feature Set |
Line_Barriers |
Use this parameter to specify one or more lines that prohibit travel anywhere the lines intersect the streets. For example, a parade or protest that blocks traffic across several street segments can be modeled with a line barrier. A line barrier can also quickly fence off several roads from being traversed, thereby channeling possible routes away from undesirable parts of the street network. The tool imposes a limit on the number of streets you can restrict using the Line Barriers parameter. While there is no limit to the number of lines you can specify as line barriers, the combined number of streets intersected by all the lines cannot exceed 500. When specifying the line barriers, you can set name and barrier type properties for each using the following attributes: Name The name of the barrier. | Feature Set |
Polygon_Barriers |
Use this parameter to specify polygons that either completely restrict travel or proportionately scale the time or distance required to travel on the streets intersected by the polygons. The service imposes a limit on the number of streets you can restrict using the Polygon Barriers parameter. While there is no limit to the number of polygons you can specify as polygon barriers, the combined number of streets intersected by all the polygons cannot exceed 2,000. When specifying the polygon barriers, you can set properties for each, such as its name or barrier type, using the following attributes: Name The name of the barrier. BarrierType Specifies whether the barrier restricts travel completely or scales the cost (such as time or distance) for traveling through it. The field value is specified as one of the following integers (use the numeric code, not the name in parentheses):
ScaledTimeFactor This is the factor by which the travel time of the streets intersected by the barrier is multiplied. The field value must be greater than zero. This field is applicable only for scaled-cost barriers and only if the travel mode used for the analysis uses an impedance attribute that is time based. ScaledDistanceFactor This is the factor by which the distance of the streets intersected by the barrier is multiplied. The field value must be greater than zero. This field is applicable only for scaled-cost barriers and only if the travel mode used for the analysis uses an impedance attribute that is distance based. ScaledCostFactor This is the factor by which the cost of the streets intersected by the barrier is multiplied. The field value must be greater than zero. This field is applicable only for scaled-cost barriers and only if the travel mode used for the analysis uses an impedance attribute that is neither time based nor distance based. | Feature Set |
Use_Hierarchy (Optional) | Specifies whether hierarchy will be used when finding the shortest path between facilities and demand points.
The tool automatically reverts to using hierarchy if the straight-line distance between facilities and demand points is greater than 50 miles, even if you set this parameter to not use hierarchy. | Boolean |
Restrictions [Restrictions,...] | Specifies which restrictions will be honored by the tool when finding the best routes between facilities and demand points. A restriction represents a driving preference or requirement. In most cases, restrictions cause roads to be prohibited. For instance, using the Avoid Toll Roads restriction will result in a route that will include toll roads only when it is required to travel on toll roads to visit an incident or a facility. Height Restriction makes it possible to route around any clearances that are lower than the height of your vehicle. If you are carrying corrosive materials on your vehicle, using the Any Hazmat Prohibited restriction prevents hauling the materials along roads where it is marked illegal to do so. The tool supports the following restrictions:
| String |
Attribute_Parameter_Values (Optional) | Use this parameter to specify additional values required by an attribute or restriction, such as to specify whether the restriction prohibits, avoids, or prefers travel on restricted roads. If the restriction is meant to avoid or prefer roads, you can further specify the degree to which they are avoided or preferred using this parameter. For example, you can choose to never use toll roads, avoid them as much as possible, or prefer them. If you specify the Attribute Parameter Values parameter from a feature class, the field names on the feature class must match the fields as follows:
The Attribute Parameter Values parameter is dependent on the Restrictions parameter. The ParameterValue field is applicable only if the restriction name is specified as the value for the Restrictions parameter. In Attribute Parameter Values, each restriction (listed as AttributeName) has a ParameterName field value, Restriction Usage, that specifies whether the restriction prohibits, avoids, or prefers travel on the roads associated with the restriction as well as the degree to which the roads are avoided or preferred. The Restriction Usage ParameterName can be assigned any of the following string values or their equivalent numeric values listed in the parentheses:
In most cases, you can use the default value, PROHIBITED, as the Restriction Usage value if the restriction is dependent on a vehicle characteristic such as vehicle height. However, in some cases, the Restriction Usage value depends on your routing preferences. For example, the Avoid Toll Roads restriction has the default value of AVOID_MEDIUM for the Restriction Usage attribute. This means that when the restriction is used, the tool will try to route around toll roads when it can. AVOID_MEDIUM also indicates how important it is to avoid toll roads when finding the best route; it has a medium priority. Choosing AVOID_LOW puts lower importance on avoiding tolls; choosing AVOID_HIGH instead gives it a higher importance and thus makes it more acceptable for the service to generate longer routes to avoid tolls. Choosing PROHIBITED entirely disallows travel on toll roads, making it impossible for a route to travel on any portion of a toll road. Keep in mind that avoiding or prohibiting toll roads, and thus avoiding toll payments, is the objective for some. In contrast, others prefer to drive on toll roads, because avoiding traffic is more valuable to them than the money spent on tolls. In the latter case, choose PREFER_LOW, PREFER_MEDIUM, or PREFER_HIGH as the value for Restriction Usage. The higher the preference, the farther the tool will go out of its way to travel on the roads associated with the restriction. | Record Set |
Allocation_Line_Shape (Optional) | Specifies the type of line features that are output by the tool. The parameter accepts one of the following values:
No matter which value you choose for the Allocation Line Shape parameter, the shortest route is always determined by minimizing the travel time or the travel distance, never using the straight-line distance between demand points and facilities. That is, this parameter only changes the output line shapes; it doesn't change the measurement method. | String |
Travel_Mode (Optional) | The mode of transportation to model in the analysis. Travel modes are managed in ArcGIS Online and can be configured by the administrator of your organization to reflect your organization's workflows. You need to specify the name of a travel mode that is supported by your organization. To get a list of supported travel mode names, use the same GIS server connection you used to access this tool, and run the GetTravelModes tool in the Utilities toolbox. The GetTravelModes tool adds the Supported Travel Modes table to the application. Any value in the Travel Mode Name field from the Supported Travel Modes table can be specified as input. You can also specify the value from the Travel Mode Settings field as input. This reduces the tool execution time because the tool does not have to find the settings based on the travel mode name. The default value, Custom, allows you to configure your own travel mode using the custom travel mode parameters (UTurn at Junctions, Use Hierarchy, Restrictions, Attribute Parameter Values, and Impedance). The default values of the custom travel mode parameters model traveling by car. You can also choose Custom and set the custom travel mode parameters listed above to model a pedestrian with a fast walking speed or a truck with a given height, weight, and cargo of certain hazardous materials. You can try different settings to get the analysis results you want. Once you have identified the analysis settings, work with your organization's administrator and save these settings as part of a new or existing travel mode so that everyone in your organization can run the analysis with the same settings. | String |
Impedance (Optional) | Specifies the impedance, which is a value that represents the effort or cost of traveling along road segments or on other parts of the transportation network. Travel time is an impedance: a car may take 1 minute to travel a mile along an empty road. Travel times can vary by travel mode—a pedestrian may take more than 20 minutes to walk the same mile, so it is important to choose the right impedance for the travel mode you are modeling. Travel distance can also be an impedance; the length of a road in kilometers can be thought of as impedance. Travel distance in this sense is the same for all modes—a kilometer for a pedestrian is also a kilometer for a car. (What may change is the pathways on which the different modes are allowed to travel, which affects distance between points, and this is modeled by travel mode settings.)
If you choose a time-based impedance, such as TravelTime, TruckTravelTime, Minutes, TruckMinutes, or WalkTime, the Measurement Units parameter must be set to a time-based value. If you choose a distance-based impedance, such as Miles or Kilometers, Measurement Units must be distance based. | String |
Save_Output_Network_Analysis_Layer (Optional) | Specifies whether the analysis settings will be saved as a network analysis layer file. You cannot directly work with this file even when you open the file in an ArcGIS Desktop application such as ArcMap. It is meant to be sent to Esri Technical Support to diagnose the quality of results returned from the tool.
| Boolean |
Overrides (Optional) | Additional settings that can influence the behavior of the solver when finding solutions for the network analysis problems. The value for this parameter must be specified in JavaScript Object Notation (JSON). For example, a valid value is of the following form: {"overrideSetting1" : "value1", "overrideSetting2" : "value2"}. The override setting name is always enclosed in double quotation marks. The values can be a number, Boolean, or string. The default value for this parameter is no value, which indicates not to override any solver settings. Overrides are advanced settings that should be used only after careful analysis of the results obtained before and after applying the settings. For a list of supported override settings for each solver and their acceptable values, contact Esri Technical Support. | String |
Time_Impedance (Optional) | The time-based impedance is a value that represents the travel time along road segments or on other parts of the transportation network.
| String |
Distance_Impedance (Optional) | The distance-based impedance is a value that represents the travel distance along road segments or on other parts of the transportation network.
| String |
Output_Format (Optional) | Specifies the format in which the output features will be created.
When a file-based output format, such as JSON File or GeoJSON File, is specified, no outputs will be added to the display because the application, such as ArcMap or ArcGIS Pro, cannot draw the contents of the result file. Instead, the result file is downloaded to a temporary directory on your machine. In ArcGIS Pro, the location of the downloaded file can be determined by viewing the value for the Output Result File parameter in the entry corresponding to the tool execution in the geoprocessing history of your project. In ArcMap, the location of the file can be determined by accessing the Copy Location option in the shortcut menu on the Output Result File parameter in the entry corresponding to the tool execution in the Geoprocessing Results window. | String |
Ignore_Invalid_Locations (Optional) | Specifies whether invalid input locations will be ignored.
| Boolean |
Derived Output
| Name | Explanation | Data Type |
| Solve_Succeeded | Determines whether the service successfully identified the best facilities. | Boolean |
| Output_Allocation_Lines | This provides access to the lines that connect demand points to the facilities to which they are allocated. Such lines are referenced in the documentation as allocation lines. These allocation lines include data about the demand allocated from each demand point to the associated facility. | Feature Set |
| Output_Facilities | This provides access to the chosen, required, and competitor facilities, as well as any candidate facilities that were not chosen. | Feature Set |
| Output_Demand_Points | This provides access to the demand points that participated in the analysis: those that were and were not allocated to facilities. | Feature Set |
| Output_Network_Analysis_Layer | The network analysis layer, with properties configured in the tool parameters, that can be used for further analysis or debugging in the map. | File |
| Output_Result_File | A .zip file containing the results of the analysis with one or more files for each output. The format of the individual files is specified by the Output Format parameter. | File |
| Output_Network_Analysis_Layer_Package | A layer package that includes a network analysis layer with the data and settings used in the analysis. | File |
Code sample
SolveLocationAllocation example (stand-alone script)
The following Python script demonstrates how to use the SolveLocationAllocation tool in a script.
"""This example shows how to choose the best locations for stores that can service the maximum number of customers."""
import sys
import time
import arcpy
# Change the username and password applicable to your own ArcGIS Online account
username = "<your user name>"
password = "<your password>"
la_service = "https://logistics.arcgis.com/arcgis/services;World/LocationAllocation;{0};{1}".format(username, password)
# Add the geoprocessing service as a toolbox.
# Check https://pro.arcgis.com/en/pro-app/arcpy/functions/importtoolbox.htm for
# other ways in which you can specify credentials to connect to a geoprocessing service.
arcpy.ImportToolbox(la_service)
# Set the variables to call the tool
facilities = "C:/data/Inputs.gdb/Stores"
demand_points = "C:/data/Inputs.gdb/Customers"
output_lines = "C:/data/Results.gdb/AllocationLines"
output_facilities = "C:/data/Results.gdb/Facilities"
output_demand_points = "C:/data/Results.gdb/DemandPoints"
# Call the tool to find two best store locations that can reach a maxmimum number of customers
# with ten minutes of drive time
result = arcpy.SolveLocationAllocation_LocationAllocation(facilities, demand_points, "Minutes",
Problem_Type="Maximize Attendance",
Number_of_Facilities_to_Find=2,
Default_Measurement_Cutoff=10.0)
arcpy.AddMessage("Running the analysis with result ID: {}".format(result.resultID))
# Check the status of the result object every 1 second until it has a
# value of 4 (succeeded) or greater
while result.status < 4:
time.sleep(1)
# print any warning or error messages returned from the tool
result_severity = result.maxSeverity
if result_severity == 2:
arcpy.AddError("An error occured when running the tool")
arcpy.AddError(result.getMessages(2))
sys.exit(2)
elif result_severity == 1:
arcpy.AddWarning("Warnings were returned when running the tool")
arcpy.AddWarning(result.getMessages(1))
# Store the allocation lines that connect customers to allocated stores, the chosen stores,
# and the allocated customer locations to a geodatabase
result.getOutput(1).save(output_lines)
arcpy.analysis.Select(result.getOutput(2), output_facilities, "DemandCount > 0")
result.getOutput(3).save(output_demand_points)
Environments
This tool does not use any geoprocessing environments.