Our Custom Area feature is designed to help you closely monitor all marine activity and capture all the "action" on the territories you define. This article will provide guidance on everything related to Custom Areas, applicable for both utilization in Online solutions and APIs .
There is no limit as to what you can mark on the Live Map as your areas. You can create combined sea and land areas, monitor lakes, canals - anything you can think of. If you are looking to create more and get even more details about your specific areas, you may consider purchasing the Professional Plus or Enterprise Planswhich provide with 1,000 Custom Areas, and full access to the Custom Area Info Window.
You can view all your Custom Area(s) by going to the My Account section and select the My Custom Areas option.
In this article, you will learn about the following:
How to create your Custom Areas
To start creating your Custom Area, you need to click on the “CREATE CUSTOM AREA” button on the My Custom Areas page. Bear in mind that also applicable for our Online solutions , as well as API services:
The Live Map will be displayed, along with all the available tools you can use to design your Custom Area.
Below, you will find the available tools that you can utilize to create your Custom Areas:
Colour - you can select your preferred color to differentiate your Custom Area from each other.
Type - you can select the kind of Custom Area that you would like to design.
Live Map - you can move or zoom in/out the map as you prefer in order to create your Custom Area. To help you design a more structured Custom Area, you can also change the map type and display any Areas of Interest on the Live Map.
DRAW A CUSTOM AREA
You may draw the area you wish to create on the map, by clicking the respective button and using the various shape tools provided.
If you choose to create a Point or Circle Custom Area, you can also define the centre coordinate by entering them on the relevant fields that will appear after selecting the respective type of Custom Area.
Plus, for the Circle Custom Area, you can also define how big the area should be in metres.
If you choose to create a Line or a Polygon Custom Area, you can start by left-clicking on any preferred area on the map to add your starting point.
Adding another point will then automatically connect your starting and recurring points with a straight line.
For the Polygon Custom Area, you must connect the last point to your starting point in order to close the area.
Once you finish creating your Custom Area, you can now add the Name and Description of your Custom Area.
Then you can click on the “Save” button to save your Custom Area.
IMPORT A FILE
Apart from manually drawing and shaping the custom area you want to create on the mini Live Map, you can also import a KMZ/KML, GEOJSON, or WKT file to create your area. All you need to do is select IMPORT FILE and either browse your computer or directly drag your file to the respective field.
How to manage your Custom Areas
Once you have set up your Custom Areas, you can visit the My Custom Areas page to manage your Custom Area(s).
Once you visit the My Custom Areas page, you will see all your Custom Areas, their type, and description.
On the same page, you can also do the following:
Sort your Custom Areas by name or date created
Use the search bar to easily look for one of your Custom Areas
Edit your Custom Areas by clicking on the pencil icon (Please be aware that modifying the custom area utilized in an API solution will impact the service's performance. We kindly request that you refrain from making such edits)
Delete your Custom Areas by clicking on the trash bin icon
Create Custom Area related events notifications by clicking on the option below:
Display your Custom Area on the Live Map by clicking on the target icon
How to display your Custom Areas on the Live Map
Getting your Custom Areas displayed on the Live Map is just one click away at any time.
You can display your Custom Areas on the Live Map through the Layers toolbar, under Areas of Interest.
Note: The pen icon beside the My Custom Areas option also serves as an active quick link. Click on it to instantly get to the My Custom Areas option under the My Account section.
How to use the Custom Area Info Window
By clicking on your Custom Area on the Live Map will automatically display the Custom Area Info Window which provides information regarding the area.
Inside the Info Window, you will find:
Custom Area icon: this icon corresponds to the type of custom area (line, point, polygon, or circle).
Type: this indicates the area type which, in this case, is Custom Area.
Total Surface: Area surface in square km.
Vessels currently in the area: indicates the number of vessels in the area.
Area Details: This option directs you to the Custom Area Details page, which includes Area Preview, General Information, Vessels recently Entered/ Left/ Crossed Area, and Vessels Currently in Area. Additionally, through that page, you can create Notifications that can be linked to your Custom Area.
Note: Full access to Total Surface and Vessels currently in area information is available through the Custom Areas Service, which is included in the Professional Plus and Enterprise Plans.
How to share your Custom Areas
You can share your custom areas with other MarineTraffic users and give them viewing or editing rights to them.
To share your custom area all you need to do is click on the share button and then type the email of the user you want to share it with:
After you type the email address, you will need to select the permissions you want to give to that user, Viewing or Editing. by clicking one of the options
After you have selected the user and permission type, you can just click share. The user you have selected will then receive an email, notifying them of the permission and their access to your custom areas. The invited users require access to a custom area service to be able to view and edit multiple shared areas.
Note: The creation and sharing of multiple custom areas are features included in the Custom Areas Service , which is available with the Professional Plus and Enterprise Plan.