Calculate Line Caps

Summary

Modifies the cap type (ending style) for representation stroke symbols and stores it as a representation override.

Illustration

Square or butt caps are applied to dead-end streets, showing options where the cased-line streets connect to a green single-line street.

Usage

• Representation stroke symbols that are relatively wide and drawn with multiple layers to display a cased road effect are often joined at their endpoints with round line caps to prevent symbol gaps appearing at sharp angles between features. However, a round end cap is generally not a desirable cartographic appearance for a dead-end street (dangling line features that are not connected at their endpoint to another feature.) The line cap style is generally overridden to a butt or square style in these situations. This tool detects dangles and overrides the representation cap type of the stroke symbol.

Syntax

arcpy.cartography.CalculateLineCaps(in_features, {cap_type}, {dangle_option})

Parameter	Explanation	Data Type
in_features	The input feature layer containing line representations.	Layer
cap_type (Optional)	Specifies how the ends of representation stroke symbols are drawn. The default cap type of representation strokes is round; the symbol is terminated with a semicircle of radius equal to stroke width centered at the line endpoint. BUTT —The stroke symbol ends exactly where the line geometry ends. This is the default. SQUARE —The stroke symbol ends with closed, square caps that extend past the endpoint of the line by half of the symbol width.	String
dangle_option (Optional)	Specifies how line caps are calculated for adjoining line features that share an endpoint but are drawn with different symbology. CASED_LINE_DANGLE —The cap style is modified for dangling lines (those not connected at their endpoints to another line) and also for the lines where a cased-line symbol is joined at the endpoint of a single-stroke layer line symbol. This is the default. TRUE_DANGLE —The cap style is modified only for endpoints that are not connected to another feature.	String

Derived Output

Name	Explanation	Data Type
out_representations	The updated input line feature layer.	Layer

Code sample

CalculateLineCaps example 1 (Python window)

The following Python window script demonstrates how to use the CalculateLineCaps function in immediate mode.

import arcpy
arcpy.env.workspace = "C:\data"
arcpy.CalculateLineCaps_cartography("roads.lyr", "BUTT", "CASED_LINE_DANGLE")

CalculateLineCaps example 2 (stand-alone script)

This stand-alone script shows an example of using the CalculateLineCaps function.

# Name: CalculateLineCaps_standalone_script.py
# Description: calculates a value for the line cap property of a representation stroke layer
# Author: ESRI
 
# Import system modules
import arcpy
from arcpy import env

# Set environment settings
env.workspace = "C:/data"

# Set local variables
in_features = "roads.lyr"
cap_type = "BUTT"
dangle_option = "CASED_LINE_DANGLE"

# Execute Calculate Line Caps
arcpy.CalculateLineCaps_cartography(in_features, cap_type, dangle_option)

Environments

This tool does not use any geoprocessing environments.

Licensing information

• Basic: No
• Standard: Yes
• Advanced: Yes