Patrols let you record your team's work in the field, from the moment they head out to the moment they're back. This article walks you through starting a patrol in EarthRanger Web, keeping it up to date, and making corrections afterwards.

New to the updated patrols? See What's New in Patrols for an overview.

Before you start

Your site administrator needs to set up the Patrol Types your team can choose from, and the team members and equipment available for patrols. If you don't see the options you need, contact your site administrator or EarthRanger support.

Start a new Patrol

1. Open the Patrols tab and select the + button next to the Patrols title.
2. In the Add Patrol window, choose your Patrol Type. You can use the search bar to find it quickly.
3. Set the Start Time and Start Location. If you want the Patrol to start at the time you've set, tick Automatically start the leg at this time.
4. Add your Team, Team Lead, Team Members and any Assets your team is taking with them.
5. Fill in any fields your organization has added for this Patrol Type. Fields marked with an asterisk (*) are required.
6. Select Save.

Tips:

• Want a more descriptive name? Select the pencil icon next to the Patrol name to rename it.
• Picked the wrong Patrol Type? You can change it from the Patrol Type dropdown on the form.

Other ways to add a Patrol

You can also add a Patrol from:

• A Tracked Subject's properties, when you click on the subject
• The Quick Add button that appears when you click a point on a subject's track
• The Quick Add option when you drop a pin on the map
• The Quick Add marker that appears after you measure a distance with the ruler
• The Quick Add prompt when you right-click anywhere on the map

Keep track of your Patrol

Open any Patrol from the Patrols list to see its overview.

• Legs: The table at the top shows each stage of the Patrol, with its Patrol Type, start and end dates, and the team.
• Summary cards: Duration, Paused Time, Active Time, Distance and Events give you a quick look at how the Patrol is going.
• Activity: Everything that happens on the Patrol appears here in order, including when it started, events reported and notes added. Select Expand all to see the details.
• Notes, attachments and events: Use the buttons at the bottom of the Patrol to add a Note, an Attachment or an Event, then select Save.
• History: The History tab shows the changes made to the Patrol.

Update a Patrol as things change

If your team switches from vehicle to foot, or a new team lead takes over, add a new leg to keep everything in one Patrol.

1. Open the Patrol and select New Patrol Leg.
2. Check the start time, then update the team, team lead, assets or Patrol Type as needed. The team lead and Patrol Type from the previous leg are already filled in for you.
3. Select Save.

Operations room staff can also add a new leg for a team in the field, for example after a radio check-in.

Note: Patrols started in EarthRanger Mobile show a Mobile label. While they’re active, you can’t add a leg or edit them from EarthRanger Web. This protects the team’s data until their device has synced.

Pause, end or cancel a Patrol

You'll see the Patrol's status in the top right corner. Select it to see what you can do next. The options depend on where the Patrol is at:

• Active: Pause the Patrol if your team stops for a while, End it when your team has finished, or Cancel it if it didn't go ahead.
• Paused: Resume the Patrol when your team is back on the move, or End or Cancel it.
• Overdue: Start the Patrol, or Cancel it.

Fix a past Patrol

Spotted a mistake? Here's how to correct it:

1. Open the Patrol and select the > arrow next to the leg you want to check.
2. You'll see the leg's details, including its start and end time and location, team, team lead, team members, assets, and activity.
3. Select Edit, make your changes, then select Save.

You can also add legs to Patrols that were entered after the fact. If your team split up during a Patrol, you can add legs with overlapping times and assign each part of the team to its own leg. Any changes you make will show up in the Patrol’s History tab.

View Patrols on the map

• A start icon shows where a Patrol began, and an end icon shows where a completed Patrol finished.
• The part of the subject's track that belongs to the Patrol is shown as a bold line.
• If the start or end location isn't exactly on a GPS point, a dashed line connects it to the nearest track point in time.
• Use the Tracks View Settings in the top right corner of the map to switch between the subject's regular tracks and the Patrol view with the distance covered.

Searching and filtering Patrols

From the Patrols tab, you can search for Patrols, or select Filters to narrow the list by Patrol Type, status (including paused Patrols) or the user who tracked them. Use Dates to see Patrols from a specific period of time.