Feature Description
The shortest path refers to calculating the optimal route from each target point to the nearest source based on generated distance raster dataset, such as determining the shortest path from suburban locations to the nearest shopping mall (source).
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Notes on source data, distance data and direction data: The input distance raster and direction raster must be matching datasets, meaning they should be generated simultaneously using the "Generate Distance Raster" function.
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About path types:
- Pixel Path: Generates a path for each raster cell, representing the distance from each target cell to the nearest source.
- Zonal Path: Creates one path per continuous zone (areas with equal raster values), showing the shortest path from each target zone to the nearest source.
- Single Path: Produces a single optimal path for all cells, representing the shortest route among all possible paths in the entire target area dataset.
Feature Entry
- Spatial Analysis Tab -> Raster Analysis group -> Distance Raster -> Compute Shortest Path. (iDesktop)
- Spatial Analysis Tab -> Raster Analysis group -> Distance Raster -> Compute Shortest Path (Dataset).
- Toolbox -> Raster Analysis -> Distance Raster -> Compute Shortest Path (Dataset).
Parameter Description
- Target Dataset: Specifies the dataset containing target locations, which can be point, line, polygon, or raster datasets.
- Distance Data: Select the datasource and dataset containing distance data generated by the "Generate Distance Raster" command.
- Direction Data: Choose the datasource and dataset containing direction data generated by the "Generate Distance Raster" command.
- Path Type: Three options available: Pixel Path, Single Path, and Zonal Path. Refer to the Feature Description section for details.
- Result Data: Select the output datasource and specify the result dataset name.
- Click the "Environment Settings" button to configure analysis environment parameters. Supported settings include geographic range, clip bounds, and default cell size for result datasets. For detailed operations, see the Setting Analysis Environment page.
Note: Environment parameters can be set as global, making them default for all raster analysis functions. If not configured here, the system will use parameters from the raster analysis environment settings.
For explanations of generated result datasets, including distance raster, direction raster, and allocation raster data, see Distance Raster Overview.
Related Topics