Heatmap

You can use heat maps to determine the regional densification of data values. This process is also known as clustering. The densities will display on the map in mountain-like form or as hot zones.

The Heatmap analysis is particularly suitable for evaluating available locations as well as positioning new ones. Using the potential as a reference, then areas with particularly high cumulated data values (such as hot zones or mountain peaks) result as ideal locations.

Variants

In the site-specific variant of the heat maps, the map is displayed similarly to the images from thermal imaging cameras: Data peaks appear as especially "hot zones". In the area-related variant of the heat maps, the data peaks appear like mountains.

More information

With the variant Heatmap, area-related - in contrast to the analysis Area coloration - each building block is evaluated not only with its own data, but also with the data of the building blocks in its environment. You can specify up to which distance the data of the building blocks in the environment should be considered and to which extent the data should be included with increasing distance. The areas of the blocks are colored based on the calculated evaluation according to color classes.

The option Heatmap, location based resolves even more detailed than the area based option of the heatmap. In this case, the entire map area is split into pixels and not only every building block, but every pixel is evaluated with the surrounding data. You can specify up to which distance the surrounding data should be taken into account and to what extent the data should be included in the calculation with increasing distance. The pixels' color is classified on the basis of the calculated values. This results in a much finer image resolution than the area based variant, as it does not result in color cracks at a building block boundary. The colour transitions are fluid, the border contours blur. Pay attention:

Because of the pixelation, the calculation of a location based heatmap is considerably more complex.
The resulting data value for a certain pixel is difficult to understand from the basic data. It is recommended to activate the Tooltip for analysis. Then EasyMap displays the cumulated data value for the mouse position when the mouse is moved over the map.
As for any analysis, the underlying data table is linked to the map for a location based heatmap. However, since each data row is also included in the evaluation of the perimeter, EasyMap marks a circular area in the map after clicking into the table and thus indicates the area included in the calculation of the value. Clicking on the map does not, however, mark rows in the table. This is not possible due to ambiguous assignments and performance reasons.

Creating a New Analysis

From the Data control window, you can Drag&Drop the data column for the Heatmap onto the map. After defining the method of analysis and assignment level, select the Analysis type, such as Area-based or Location-based, as well. For more on this, please see Variants and Selection of Data Basis.

Note: You can also insert your analysis via the menu bar Analyze. You get an analysis without predefined settings and value classes.

Set the Properties of the Heatmap

Properties refers to all settings for calculating and displaying the analysis. You can select or change certain columns of the previously defined table to control certain aspects of the display (e.g. the color). You can also access this settings dialog if you want to edit existing analyses.

If you have inserted the analysis via the main menu, the Heatmap is initially inserted after the Number of records (see Data column).

Selection of the data column

First select the column to be evaluated.

With a area-related analysis you can additionally determine aggregation of the data of the selected column. This specifies the rule how data are combined if several data are available for an area.
The Format option is only available for area-specific analyses. Normally, the formatting of the selected data column is also used for the analysis result; this is always the case for site-specific analyses. For certain aggregation procedures (for example, number of values), however, this formatting cannot be used meaningfully. You can define a new formatting here, which is used in legends for this analysis, for example.
Under Statistics you can display statistical information (e.g. number of data records, min., max.) for the selected column - click on the button in the field next to Statistics.

In the first section Color there are two display types available: Classified and Continuous. By default, a continuous color gradient of the heatmap is preselected, but you can edit it at any time. The properties are the same here, regardless of the type of analysis you have chosen - location-based or area-based.

How should the data be handled with increasing distance?

Before the analysis is displayed, a cumulated value is calculated for each area or pixel, which is then displayed as area shading.

This value results as sum of the base values of all areas in a certain circle (defined by the radius). Areas closer to this area are often more relevant than areas further away. Therefore, you can additionally specify whether the values of other areas should be weighted with the distance .

The following methods for taking into account the distance are offered: Complete, Linear descending or Square descending.

The following figure shows a comparison of the three options for a location based heatmap. A radius of 50 km was set; the selected value is the same for each location. With the complete option, the value for the coloring of the 50 km radius is completely included in the calculation. If two circles overlap, both values are completely included in the calculation. The option linear descending calculates the values of a location with increasing distance linearly descending as well as with the third option quadratic descending. As a result, the "hot zones" in the quadratically decreasing heat map are smaller or more sharply defined, since the values decrease faster with increasing distance to the location.

Special effect

If you define the circle from which data are to be included in the calculation of the cumulated data values via kilometer in the map, the same environment is always taken into account for each pixel or for each brick regardless of the zoom. If, on the other hand, you define the circumference over centimeter on the leaf, the circumference to be taken into account changes depending on the zoom, because zooming changes the scale; as a result, the circumference to be taken into account becomes smaller and smaller as the zoom increases for given leaf centimeters. This often leads to a large cluster dissolving into many small sub-clusters as the zoom increases. In the heat map above, this would lead to the Rhine/Ruhr conurbation disintegrating into individual data peaks at the major cities of Cologne, Düsseldorf, Duisburg, Essen, Dortmund, etc.

How should colors and values be classified?

You can choose between a classified or continuous colored heatmap. The option Continuous offers you the convenience of a color gradient without specifying value classes.

Determine the details of the analysis

In Details you define other (non-data-dependent) properties of the analysis.

The following properties are available:

Visibility
General	Here you can control the visibility of objects and elements.
Scale range	Here you can set whether the selected object or plane should be visible at each scale. Or you can specify the scale or zoom level at which the object or layer is visible.
In reports	In Reports there is the possibility to change the environment only partially to zeigen. You can use this property to specify whether the layer is also visible outside the report area in this case.
Size adjustment	Specify here how the size of a symbol or diagram behaves when the map scale is changed. This can change e.g. after zoom within the map, after setting a clip map or within a report, because only a part of the map is displayed. More about Size adjustment at auto zoom.
Alternating visibility group	Set a group for mutual visibility here. If the element is to be made equally visible with other elements, you must use the same name for the visibility group.
Simultaneous visibility group	Set a group for simultaneous visibility here. If the element is to be made mutually visible with other elements, you must use the same name for the visibility group.
Style
Type of Shading	Perimeter only The map is colored only in the area of the perimeter defined in the color section. Entire map he entire map is colored. Areas outside the perimeter are colored in the color that represents the value 0 in the color scale or the color outside the analysis area.
Boundary	Select whether the map should be colored No Limit or up to the External Boundary of the area levels. The No Limit option colors the entire sheet. However, the type of shading plays an additional role.
Common
Comment	Enter here a comment for the display of the workbook in EasyMap Xplorer. The comment is also displayed in EasyMap as a tooltip in the control window Contents.

Create tooltips for analysis

When crossing the colored areas on the map, you can display context-sensitive information about them.

Note: You can find out how to implement tooltips here.

The commands of the context menu

By right-clicking on the analysis in the Content control window you may open its context menu. The context menu provides commands that may be performed on this analysis.

List of commands in the context menu

Transfer Selection to	Transfers the current selection geographically to another object. Details...
Visible	Shows whether the object is visible and allows switching the visibility.
Order	Here you can change the selected element in the character sequence. Another option is to drag and drop the selected element within the content view.
Input Data...	Displays the data settings for the selected analysis. You can use this command later to change the connection between the analysis and the data. Further information can be found here.
Show Results Table	Displays the results of the selected analysis in a table.
Ignore filter	Defines whether an Analysis filter should be considered or not. This setting only has an effect if Apply filter to analyses is activated in the table on which the analysis is based. In this case, Ignore filter can be used to exclude individual analyses from the filter application.
Clip Map	Here you can define a different clip map for the analysis.
Map XY	Here you will find various commands for the Map.
Copy	Copy the object (if necessary with all subobjects) to the clipboard to paste it elsewhere. The object can be inserted in other applications as a graphic, or inserted in EasyMap as a copy of this object using the Insert command.
Paste	Pastes the contents of the clipboard into this object as a child object.
Delete	Deletes the selected element. (See also: delete objects)
Rename	Changes the content view to an edit mode to give the object a new name. (This can also be achieved by clicking on an object that has already been marked.)
Properties...	Opens a properties dialog in which you can edit the Properties of the selected object. If several objects are selected, many properties can also be changed simultaneously for these objects.