Introduction

The ContentTools API has been deprecated and replaced by the Places API.

ContentTools is a web tool that provides you with the ability to create, manage and securely store custom places—from company and customer locations to rest and fuel stops for drivers. Custom places can be visualized on the map (including satellite views) and used for routing and route planning with CoPilot, PC*Miler and the Trimble Maps development platform.

The ContentTools API is a RESTful API that provides endpoints for managing these custom places from other applications. Many of the custom place features available in the ContentTools web tool have been replicated in this API.

Resource URL

https://content.trimblemaps.com/api/locations/v1/

What Can You Do With the ContentTools API?

With this API, you can quickly create new custom locations or upload existing location data to ContentTools and ensure that data always remains current. Location information entered in an in-house transportation management system (TMS), for example, can be synced up to ContentTools, and location information in ContentTools can be synced back down to the TMS.

Once a location’s information is created or synced, you can access the ContentTools web tool (user interface) to:

• Visualize that custom location on the map, including satellite map views.
• Add details about the site itself, including a perimeter around the location (called a Site in ContentTools) with exact entrances and exits.
• Edit or move existing locations or add new locations directly on the map.

Getting Started

To gain access to the ContentTools API, you must request access by contacting your Trimble Maps sales representative or our Sales team.

ContentTools Terminology

In ContentTools, a custom location (an address or a latitude/longitude point) is called a Place and its custom category is called a Place Set. A Place Set has a user-generated name that should identify the types of Places in the set, such as “Nebraska Fuel Stops” or “Tim’s Warehouses.” Every Place must be part of a Place Set.

ContentTools also allows you to create a custom Site around a Place. A Site extends a Place to include a boundary polygon around its perimeter.

ContentTools API Flow

To populate data into ContentTools via the API, you would:

1. Authenticate your account using your API key.
2. Create a Place Set, for which ContentTools returns a unique place set identifier (setId).
   Before you can create a Place, a Place Set must first be created where the place can be stored.
3. Use that setId to add Places to that Place Set. Each Place is also assigned a unique place identifier (placeId) by ContentTools.
4. Use that placeId to create a Site around that place. Each Site is assigned a unique identifier (siteId) by ContentTools.

You can then use those identifiers and the ContentTools API to:

• Add, delete or update Places in a Place Set.
• Retrieve information about Places or Places sets.
• Enhance the details about a Place. For example, you can add a phone number, a comment about the place, or a unique external place ID for that place—perhaps to match the ID in your accounting system or TMS.
• Add Site information to a Place to help generate accurate, safe and efficient deliveries, down to the last mile. (Site boundaries can be created via API calls, and additional site information can be entered using the ContentTools web tool.)