Introduction to layers

PI Integrator for Esri ArcGIS feature layers expose PI AF database elements and attributes as features with data fields.

A layer defines a set of search parameters that are used to select elements in the PI AF database. These PI AF elements will be represented as map features. A service can contain one or more layers.

Several steps are required to create a new layer. You will step through four screens, including:

• Basic information

  On the Basic information screen, you enter a name for the layer and a short description. You also specify whether to create a time-enabled feature layer or a layer that is enabled through Esri ArcGIS GeoEvent Server. For time-enabled feature layers, you also specify whether to use ArcGIS Online or Portal for ArcGIS. You can find more information about the different methods used to publish data here: Features and capabilities.

• Data source

  On the data source screen, you enter the name of your PI AF server and PI AF database, along with a few other fields. You can also preview the data that will be used.

• Fields

  On the Fields screen, you specify the fields from the database that will be displayed on a map. You also specify which field is the key field and which fields are used for latitude and longitude.

• Geometry

  On the Geometry screen, you specify the geometry type and spatial reference information to use.

Several options are available to configure the Table view of the Layers screen. To customize the display and configure options, see The Layers Table view.

Future Data with PI Integrator for Esri ArcGIS

Data Archive 2015 and later versions allow storage and retrieval of data with time stamps later than the current time. Expect the following behaviors when interacting with feature layers that include PI AF attributes that reference future PI points.

• Time-enabled feature layer

  Querying data with a time extent from future PI points works the same as from historical PI points. For both future and historical points, operational data returned to the client is interpolated to the end time of the specified time extent. If time animation is disabled on the feature layer or if a data query on the time-enabled layer is run without a time extent, current values are returned to the client. In this scenario, the future PI point data seen in the client is the last event archived for that PI point, regardless of the time stamp.

• Layers connecting through ArcGIS GeoEvent Server

  ArcGIS feature services receiving data from GeoEvent Server are similar to the time-enabled feature layer without a time extent in that current values are expected in the client. For future PI points, the data seen in the client is the last event archived for that PI point, regardless of the time stamp.