Glossary
Contents
These are some of the common terms and concepts that we use in PC*Miler services.
ConfidenceLevel
Confidence Level indicates the quality of the geocoding result. Confidence is calculated using a formula that takes into account:
- How many matches were found and how near they are to each other.
- How closely the matches resemble the input.
Note: If you receive a result with a confidence level below Level 2, we strongly recommend that you verify the information you have submitted in your API request for accuracy.
Level 1: Very High
Level 1 includes exact as well as very close matches. In order to get a Level 1 result, all of the potential matches (if multiple) need to be within 0.1 miles of each other. The top match is returned first by geocoding APIs and can only have very small differences between it and the input query. For example, very small differences might include any one of the following:
- A few characters difference between the street address and the match
- An address number not in range on the street
- A Postal Code that doesn’t match
The following differences are considered so minor that any two of them might still qualify as a Very High match:
- A street type that doesn’t match between the query and the geocoding result (e.g. Blvd/Ave/St)
- A prefix or suffix doesn’t match (e.g. N,S,E,W)
- A difference in the side of street for the match
Examples of Very High Confidence Matches
| User Query | Geocoding Match | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Gullsjö Laberget 1 66491 | Gullsjö Laberget, 664 91 Grums, S, SE, Värmlands län | We don’t have house number information for this street, but we can be very confident we have the right street. |
| 266-8 MIDDLE ISLAND RD | 266 Middle Island Road, Medford, NY, Suffolk 11763 | The house number has a “-8,” which we weren’t able to verify in our data, but we are confident in the rest of the match. |
| 7340 LAZY CYN, 78252 | 7340 Lazy Trail, San Antonio, TX, Bexar 78250 | The city matches the input ZIP though the ZIP codes don’t match. The street type is different as well but we are still confident we found the right location. |
Level 2: Good
Good match: Trust is 85% or greater AND if address is outside the range listed in the database, the top match is within 500 address units of input address; OR for any other match level if there are multiple matches they are all within 0.5 air miles of each other. For example, “100 Main Street” is input and the best match in the database is “450-550 Main Street”.
Level 3: Uncertain
Uncertain match: Trust is 50% or greater.
Level 4: Failed
Failed match: Trust is below 50%.
Common Terms
Avoid
A user-designated road segment that is effectively treated as if it were closed unless no other road can be used for the route or if the total trip distance would be unacceptably inefficient. Avoids are created in ContentTools. Avoids and closures have the same impact on route calculations. The difference is: Avoids are grouped in Route Modifier sets, and closures are applied to all routes in applications that are associated with your ContentTools account.
ContentTools
A Trimble Maps web tool where users can create, manage and then share custom location and routing content with all of their solutions. Content includes Route Modifiers (Avoids, Favors, Closures) and Custom Places and Sites.
Favor
A user-designated road segment that should be used in routing unless it is not practical to do so. Favors are created in ContentTools.
Geocoding
The process of transforming a description of a location—such as an address, or a name of a place—to a location on the earth’s surface. Geocoding also describes the process of matching user input to a named location in the PC*Miler map database.
Geofence
A geographic area that will either generate an alert when a route enters it or will be avoided by the route.
Route
A way or course (the path) taken in getting from a starting point to a destination.
Route Type
The methodology used to generate a route in Trimble Maps applications. Route types include:
- Practical – A route that represents distances and routes a driver would normally take to minimize time and cost. It models the trade-off between taking the most direct path and staying on major, high quality highways. Practical is the default Route Type.
- Shortest – A route that represents distances and driving routes that a vehicle would take to minimize total distance traveled while still following a reasonable route. A Shortest route may have a longer drive time than a Practical route.
- Fastest – A route that uses day of the week or time of day information in conjunction with real-time or historical traffic data to calculate the quickest route to the trip’s destination. Actual mileage may be longer than a Practical route.
Route Modifiers
An umbrella term that includes Avoids, Favors and Closures. In ContentTools, each Avoid or Favor is stored in a Route Modifier set. A Closures set is available by default in ContentTools.
Stop
A point along a planned trip where the driver is expected to go to in order to complete a task. The origin is the first stop and the destination is the final stop on a route.
Site
A Site extends the location definition from just a name and address to also include a boundary polygon around its perimeter, entry and exit points (gates), and other valuable locational information. For example, a site can be a warehouse, shopping mall, distribution center, a yard, a business park, etc. In ContentTools, a Site must be created around a Place.
Trip
The route plus all of the related information generated by an application and used in planning, including distance, HOS/fuel breaks and costs. Trip can also describe the settings—stops, routing profiles and options—entered into the application to create the route.