What Are Spatial Parameters?
Spatial parameters in Tableau allow you to dynamically interact with geospatial data within your visualizations. These parameters enable you to select spatial objects like points, polygons, multi-polygons, lines, or collections for calculations. Unlike traditional parameters, which work with values like text or numbers, spatial parameters offer the flexibility to work with geospatial data like coordinates and spatial shapes.
You can create spatial parameters in two ways:
1. From a data source: If your data contains spatial fields (like latitude and longitude), you can load these as spatial parameters.
2. Using Well-Known Text (WKT) : This method allows you to manually input spatial data in text format to create custom spatial parameters.
Spatial parameters can be used in the same way as other parameters in Tableau, including parameter controls, actions, and dynamic values.
Note: Spatial parameters can only be created from spatial data fields (such as latitude and longitude). Creating spatial parameters from text string fields, like a “Country” field, is not feasible as it might be assigned as a geographic role but remains a text field.
Top Benefits of Using Spatial Parameters
Spatial parameters have offered immense possibilities for Tableau experts to analyze and visualize geospatial data.
Key benefits are listed below:
1. Cross-Data Source Spatial Exploration
With spatial parameters, you can explore spatial relationships between data sources that don’t support joins. Unlike traditional data sources, which can be limited by join constraints, spatial parameters allow you to compare spatial regions from different datasets. This means you can dynamically analyze relationships across multiple data sources without the need for complex joins.
2. Skip Long Joins
Previously, working with large spatial datasets required time-consuming spatial joins. Now, spatial parameters enable you to bypass these long joins and conduct spatial analysis much faster. You can use parameters to compare regions across multiple data sources instantly, even with vast datasets.
3. Interactive and Dynamic Analysis
Spatial parameters allow users to visually interact with geospatial data in real time. Like other parameter types, you can use parameter controls to input points, lines, or polygons and adjust your analysis on the fly. This flexibility allows you to dynamically change spatial boundaries and relationships during your analysis.
4. Distance-Based Queries
With spatial parameters, you can perform distance-based queries without complex calculations. For example, you can control the size of a buffer and see what lies within that buffer directly from the worksheet. This makes it easy to conduct proximity analysis without the need for complicated formulas.
5. Create Custom Regions
Spatial parameters allow you to create custom regions by selecting points, lines, and polygons and combining them into a single parameter. For instance, you can create a sales region by combining multiple states into one spatial parameter. This enables you to tailor regions for specific analysis scenarios.
Spatial Calculations in Tableau 2024.3: What’s New
Tableau 2024.3 also introduces three new spatial calculations to help you evaluate spatial relationships:
• SYMDIFFERENCE: Identifies areas that are unique between two regions.
• INTERSECTION: Shows the overlap or intersection between two regions.
• DIFFERENCE: Displays areas present in one region but not in the other.
These new spatial calculations provide powerful tools to analyze and compare geospatial data.
Union Aggregation for Spatial Data
In previous versions of Tableau, the only aggregation available for spatial data was Collect, which groups spatial elements together. Union Aggregation has been introduced in Tableau 2024.3, allowing you to dissolve the boundaries between regions and providing even greater flexibility in working with spatial data.
Validating Spatial Calculations
Tableau 2024.2 introduced the Validate Calculation feature, which can help you detect and correct errors in your spatial data. This tool is handy when working with complex spatial datasets.
Tableau’s new Spatial Parameters and related features, such as spatial calculations and union aggregation, provide powerful capabilities for geospatial analysis. Whether comparing spatial regions, performing proximity-based queries, or creating custom areas, these features enable dynamic and flexible analysis beyond traditional methods.
How Beinex Can Assist You
Beinex, a premier Tableau partner, provides sustainable analytics solutions to organizations and helps to build superior data visual analytics capabilities internally through our bespoke training programs. Our team of Tableau-certified consultants are real-life Tableau business users passionate about Tableau and delivering a world-class experience. Connect with us for a free demo: https://www.beinex.com/free-tableau-software/
Back
