How to Choose a Way to Control Routes

Wialon allows you to meet customer needs in various ways. For example, the system offers at least four route control options, each of which has its advantages and disadvantages. This article will help you to compare them to choose the option that best suits your customer’s needs.

Considered options

During our comparison, we will focus on the following four options for route control:

Routes module — despite its name, this module is suitable only for cases where there is a specific time for visiting check points and there is no need to track the path between them.
Combination of geofences, reports, and notifications (this option will be referred to as Geofences) is the most flexible option suitable for most situations but requires configuring several separate elements.
Logistics web application is a niche solution for organizing operations of courier services, which can also be used for other business tasks.
NimBus web application is a niche solution for public transport operations, which can also be used for other business tasks.

The terminology used in these options differs from each other:

	Routes	Geofences	Logistics	NimBus
Point to visit	check point	geofence	order	stop
Group of points within one trip	route	—	planned route or template	route
Time for visiting check points	schedule	time limitation	time of the estimated arrival	schedule
Movement of a unit through the group of check points	ride	—	active route	ride

It is important to take this difference into account when comparing the considered options.

Comparison by criteria

Now, let’s summarize the considered options in the table, which will indicate how well they meet different criteria, meaning, the customer’s requirements. We have tried to make these criteria as practical as possible, based on our experience of communicating with our partners.

№	Criteria	Routes	Geofences	Logistics	NimBus
	Basic
1	The same check points every day	yes	yes	yes	yes
2	New check points every day	no	partially	yes	no
3	Tracking the path between check points	no	yes	yes	yes
4	Optimizing the sequence of check points	yes	partially	yes	no
5	Optimizing the path between check points	no	partially	yes	yes
6	Automatic start of tracking the ride	yes	yes	no	yes
	Specific
7	Additional conditions for visiting check points	no	partially	yes	no
8	Schedule relative to departure	yes	no	partially	yes
9	Transport replacement during the ride execution	no	partially	yes	yes
10	Long route (more than 2 days)	yes	yes	yes	no
11	Moving check points	yes	yes	no	no
12	Sending routes to the driver	partially	partially	yes	no
	Displaying information
13	Online control	yes	yes	yes	yes
14	Reports for the previous period	yes	yes	yes	yes
15	Displaying in the monitoring interface	yes	yes	partially	no
16	Mobile application	no	yes	yes	partially

Now let’s consider each of the criteria separately.

1. The same check points every day

Route control feature	Criterion availability	Details
Routes	yes	Routes allow you to start rides with the same check points every day if the schedules Relative to day or Relative to activation are used.
Geofences	yes	Geofences are not deleted immediately after visiting them, so they can easily be used on other days.
Logistics	yes	Orders correspond to check points. They can be permanent, meaning they are not deleted immediately after visiting. You can also turn the route into a template to quickly repeat it on other days.
NimBus	yes	Public transport stops rarely change their location, so the application is initially designed to work with the same check points every day.

2. New check points every day

Route control feature	Criterion availability	Details
Routes	no	New checkpoints cannot be added to an already saved route. To add new check points, you need to create a brand-new route, reconfigure schedules, and create rides. It is pretty time-consuming.
Geofences	partially	Creating a new geofence, as well as adding it to reports and notifications, is not a problem. Setting up may take a relatively long time only if there is a need to control the time for visiting check points (via Time limitation in reports and notifications).
Logistics	yes	A new route with new orders can be created very quickly. Adding check points to an already created route is also available.
NimBus	no	Since the application is designed to control public transport, and the public transport stops change quite rarely, adding new check points will require changing several settings at once (creating a stop, adding it to the route, changing the schedule), which is time-consuming.

3. Tracking the path between check points

Route control feature	Criterion availability	Peculiarities
Routes	no	The module doesn’t track movement between check points. It is assumed that it’s the driver who should choose the route from one address to another in order to stay on schedule.
Geofences	yes	To track the path between check points, you can create a line geofence on the roads that the unit should follow. Notifications with the Geofence type can be used to control leaving or entering to the geofence line.
Logistics	yes	The application has a notification type called Deviation from a route. This notification triggers if the unit moves away from the route line exceeding the distance indicated in the notification. You can also display the planned and actual route of the unit on the map when completing the route.
NimBus	yes	The application has a notification type called Unit left the route path. It is triggered after receiving a message from the unit that is geographically remote from the route path by more than 50 meters.

4. Optimizing the sequence of check points

Poute control feature	Criterion availability	Details
Routes	Yes	There is an option to optimize the order of checkpoints when creating a route. Also, in the monitoring interface, you will find the Routing tool. Among other things, this tool allows you to optimize the sequence of checkpoints and save the result as a route.
Geofences	Partially	In the monitoring interface, you will find the Routing tool. Among other things, this tool allows you to optimize the sequence of checkpoints and save the result as a geofence.
Logistics	Yes	When creating a route, the application automatically optimizes the order of checkpoints considering multiple criteria and also allows changing the order of checkpoints manually.
NimBus	No	The order of checkpoints in the application is to be fixed manually when creating a route.

5. Optimizing the path between check points

Route control feature	Criterion availability	Details
Routes	no	The module doesn’t track the path between check points. The path is only displayed during the optimization of the order of check points.
Geofences	partially	In the monitoring interface, you will find the Routing tool. Among other things, this tool allows you to optimize the path between the check points and save the result as a geofence.
Logistics	yes	When creating a route, the application automatically optimizes the path between the check points considering multiple criteria.
NimBus	yes	When creating a route, the path between check points is automatically optimized, after which it can be edited manually.

6. Automatic start of tracking the ride

Route control feature	Criterion availability	Details
Routes	yes	Automatic creation of rides is available when using a schedule with the Relative to day type or when using notifications with the Create a ride action type.
Geofences	yes	In this option, there is no concept of a ride, so tracking a ride doesn’t start at a specific time. You can start tracking the visits to the check points at any time after adding geofences to reports or notifications.
Logistics	no	The application assumes that the route is started manually by the operator. However, the operator can create routes that are meant to start in the future depending on the delivery interval in the properties of orders.
NimBus	yes	If schedules are created for the route and it is switched on, then a ride related to this route is created automatically. Two types of ride activation are available in the application:

According to schedule, meaning, the ride is created a certain number of minutes before the planned visit to the first stop; the number of minutes is specified in the settings.
When visiting a stop — this type of activation is only available for routes where the automatic assignment of units is enabled. |

7. Additional conditions for visiting check points

Route control feature	Criterion availability	Details
Routes	no	There are no additional conditions for visiting check points. Any message with coordinates in the check point area is considered as visiting a check point.
Geofences	partially	Using notification settings or interval filtration, you can hide visited geofences from the results. For example, you can use a filter by speed and sensor value for a notification with the Geofence type. However, this cannot be called total control of visits, as there is no additional confirmation of visits received from the driver’s side.
Logistics	yes	With the help of a mobile application, the courier can send confirmation of the order by leaving a comment, taking a photo, or attaching a client’s signature.
NimBus	no	There are no additional conditions for visiting a stop. Any message with coordinates in the stop area is considered as visiting a stop.

8. Schedule relative to departure

Route control feature	Criterion availability	Details
Routes	yes	The schedule can have the activation type called Relative to activation so that one schedule can be used multiple times a day.
Geofences	no	In this option, there is no concept of a schedule. It is substituted by Time limitation in reports and notifications, where only the beginning of the day is specified.
Logistics	partially	When creating a route, the time of the estimated arrival can vary depending on the current time. For example, if orders can be visited from 10:00 to 20:00, and it is currently 12:00, the time of the estimated arrival for the requests will be counted from 12:00. This can only be partly called a schedule relative to departure.
NimBus	yes	For such a case, there is a type of schedule called Relative in the application.

9. Transport replacement during the ride execution

Route control feature	Criterion availability	Details
Routes	no	It is impossible to replace a unit during the execution of a ride. For example, if the first unit breaks down, a new ride (or even route) will have to be created for another unit that is going to replace the first one.
Geofences	partially	In this option, there is no concept of a ride. However, technically, the operator can contact drivers and direct them to the unvisited geofences.
Logistics	yes	The application offers the possibility to change a unit for an active route.
NimBus	yes	It is possible to replace the unit that is in the process of executing the ride.

10. Long route (more than 2 days)

Route control feature	Criterion availability	Details
Routes	yes	There are no restrictions on the duration of the route for the Absolute schedule type. However, each such schedule can only be used once, and then it becomes useless. For the Relative to day and Relative to activation schedule types, a duration of up to 99 hours (which is slightly over 4 days) can be achieved.
Geofences	yes	In this option, there are no concepts of a ride or schedule. Therefore, nothing prevents a unit from moving between geofences for several days, weeks, and even longer.
Logistics	yes	It is possible to set a restriction on the maximum duration in the application, but as long as it is not enabled, the route can take any number of days.
NimBus	no	The route schedule can include only one running past midnight, as sometimes transport may execute the last ride after 00:00 (this is done using the Past midnight function).

11. Moving check points

Route control feature	Criterion availability	Details
Routes	yes	Moving units can be used as check points. This can be useful, for example, for organizing harvesting when a truck needs to approach moving harvesters collecting crops.
Geofences	yes	Units can be used as moving geofences in the Geofences and Trips Between Geofences tables.
Logistics	no	Orders in the application have a fixed location.
NimBus	no	Stops in the application have a fixed location.

12. Sending routes to the driver

Route control feature	Criterion availability	Details
Routes	partially	There is a possibility to send routes to a unit using commands. The tracker must support such a command, also, a navigator must be connected to the tracker. This means that this feature is not available for all the units.
Geofences	partially	There is a possibility to send geofences to a unit using commands, but they won’t be combined into a common route. The tracker must support this feature.
Logistics	yes	There is a mobile application created specifically for couriers where they can see their planned routes.
NimBus	no	NimBus doesn’t have such functionality.

13. Online control

Route control feature	Criterion availability	Details
Routes	yes	It is possible to track the route’s execution on the map in the monitoring interface, using notifications such as Route progress, and on the Timeline with rides. Unfortunately, working with the timeline is not very convenient, as the position of the unit is not displayed on it.
Geofences	yes	It is possible to track the route’s execution on the map in the monitoring interface or using notifications with the Geofence type.
Logistics	yes	Currently active routes and order statuses can be displayed as a table. The dispatcher will also find notifications useful. Real-time statistics are displayed on the Dashboard tab.
NimBus	yes	The Online tab is suitable for monitoring ride execution online. Notifications will also be useful for the dispatcher. Real-time statistics are displayed on the Dashboard tab.

14. Reports for the previous period

Route control feature	Criterion availability	Details
Routes	yes	You can use the Rides and Check Points tables for a unit and a group of units, and the Rides and Log tables for the route report.
Geofences	yes	The Geofences and Trips Between Geofences tables are the most convenient and available for a unit and a group of units.
Logistics	yes	There is a special Reports tab in the application.
NimBus	yes	There is a special Reports tab in the application.

15. Displaying in the monitoring interface

Route control feature	Criterion availability	Details
Routes	yes	The module is a part of the monitoring interface.
Geofences	yes	Geofences, reports, and notifications are the parts of the monitoring interface.
Logistics	partially	It is possible to create the Orders table based on the Logistics data, but it only displays part of the information available in the application.
NimBus	no	The units’ movement is displayed in the monitoring interface, but the application’s data (stops, routes, schedules, rides, etc.) is not displayed.

16. Mobile application

Route control feature	Criterion availability	Details
Routes	no	Routes are not displayed in the Wialon mobile application.
Geofences	yes	Geofences, notifications, and reports are displayed in the mobile application. Clients can track location using the Locator link, which can be added to a notification text using the %LOCATOR_LINK% tag. It is convenient to open this link in a browser on a smartphone.
Logistics	yes	A mobile application has been created specifically for couriers. Using it, the courier sees all the routes they must complete. The client can track the delivery of their order after receiving a notification with the %LOCATOR_LINK% tag. After sending the notification, the tag turns into the Locator link, which is convenient to open in a browser on a smartphone.
NimBus	partially	Passengers can track the movement of transport using the Locator link, which is convenient to open in a browser on a smartphone. However, this mobile application is not suitable for dispatchers or drivers.