Violations Configuration

Ticket Categories

Ticket Categories in OPS-COM allow administrators to define and manage different types of violations (e.g., Municipal, Parking, Bicycle). This feature is essential for accurate incident reporting, enforcing specific rules, and tailoring violation processes, including whether tickets apply to vehicles or users, and their visibility on handheld devices.

Using this Feature

The Manage Ticket Categories screen allows for comprehensive configuration of how different violations are classified and processed.

1. Hover over System Configuration, then Violations, and click Manage Ticket Categories.

image.png

Adding Ticket Categories
  1. Click Add Ticket Category. 
  2. Enter the Ticket Category Name (e.g., Moving Violation).
  3. Toggle to Allow it to be Visible on Handhelds.
  4. For Violation Applies To: toggle if this will apply to tickets issued to vehicles and/or to Users. 
  5. If this is for Users, toggle if you wish to Enable Failed to Identify.
  6. Click Save Changes. The new ticket type will now be included in the list.
Editing Ticket Categories
  1. Locate the ticket type you wish to edit in the list and click the Edit button next to it. 
  2. Make your changes.
  3. Click Save Changes.
Archiving Ticket Categories

Ticket Types can be deleted, however, they are not actually removed from the system's database. Instead, they are archived to preserve the integrity of any historical data associated with that Ticket Type (e.g., past violations that used this type).

  1. Locate the ticket type you wish to delete.
  2. Click the Delete button and confirm.

Best Practices & Considerations

  • Clarity and Specificity: Create ticket types that are clear, specific, and easily understood by both enforcement officers and users (e.g., "No Permit," "Fire Lane," "Smoking Violation").
  • Handheld Visibility: Carefully manage the "Visible on Handhelds" setting. Only enable ticket types that your field officers actively enforce.
  • Leverage the ability to apply tickets to Vehicles, Users or both to accommodate a broader range of enforcement scenarios beyond traditional parking infractions.
  • Data Integrity (Archiving): Understand that "deleting" a ticket type archives it. This means historical reports will still accurately reflect past violations, even if the category is no longer actively used.
  • Training: Ensure enforcement staff are trained on the proper use and selection of ticket categories, especially for "Applies to: Users" violations, to ensure accurate data capture.

Ticket Offence Items

Ticket Offence Items define the specific violations (e.g., "Parked with No Proof of Payment," "Expired Meter") that can be issued within OPS-COM. This feature allows administrators to configure fine amounts, discounts, and specific behaviors for each offence, ensuring accurate and consistent enforcement across both web and handheld platforms.

Using this Feature

  1. Hover over System Configuration, then Violations, and click Manage Ticket Offence Items.
  2. The Manage Ticket Offence Items page opens. This page provides comprehensive tools to add, edit, and configure individual offence items.
Adding a New Offence Item
  1. In the top left box, select the Ticket Category (e.g., "Private Property") you wish to add an offence item to, or choose Unassigned Offence Items.
  2. Click Add New Offence Item. 
  3. Fill out the following fields:
    • Enter the Violation Type Description (e.g., "Parked With No Proof Of Payment").
    • Select the Ticket Category it belongs to (e.g., "Private Property").
    • Enter a Key. This optional field indicates specific tracking codes for violations (e.g., internal audit codes).
    • Enter a By-Law code This optional field is used by municipalities to link violations to specific by-laws when sending them to court for collections. It is a text field that accepts up to 20 alphanumeric characters.
    • Enable the Administrative Fee if required. (More about this below)
    • Fine Amount, Adjustable Fine Amount, and Discount Settings are covered below.
  4. Click Save New Offence Item when complete.
Setting the Fine Amount and Discount
  1. Click Save Ticket Offence Item to save this configuration. You will be returned to the list view with your new offence listed under its Ticket Category.
Is This Fine Amount Adjustable?

This can be useful for scenarios such as repeat offenders or multiple offences. Officers can, at their discretion, increase the ticket amount (e.g., for repeat violations) or reduce it (e.g., when issuing multiple violations for less than the combined full amount), in accordance with your organization's business rules.

Enable the Adjust Fine Amount checkbox in the ticket configuration screen:

Administration Fees

Admin Fees are useful for charges like Conviction Fees or Booting Fees.  Offence items designated as Administration Fees do not show on handheld units. They are only visible on the admin interface, ensuring field officers don't issue them directly.

You can designate an offence item as an Administration Fee by selecting the Administrative Fee checkbox.

Editing, Deleting, and Archiving Offence Items

Best Practices & Considerations

Related Videos

Sort Violations for Quick Access

OPS-COM allows administrators to customize the display order of Ticket Offence Items (violations) for quicker access, especially useful for frequently used offences. By strategically adding spaces to the beginning of offence names, you can control their sorting order on both the admin interface and handheld devices, improving efficiency for enforcement officers and data entry personnel.

When managing a long list of violation offence items, it can be time-consuming to scroll and find specific offences. The challenge is to reorder this list for quick access, ensuring the most commonly used offences appear at the top.

The system sorts lists alphanumerically. We can take advantage of the fact that a space character () comes before all alphanumeric characters in the ASCII character table. By prefixing a violation name with one or more spaces, you can force it to appear higher in the sorted list.

Example of Sorting with Spaces:

Let's walk through a practical example of reordering a list of violations.

  1. Hover over System Configuration, then Violations, and click Manage Ticket Offence Items.
  2. In this example, we will select Private Property as the ticket category. This will display a list of violations categorized under "Private Property."
Reordering Violations - An Example

We want to reorder the list so that "Parked in No Parking Area" lists first, "Parked Blocking Fire Hydrant" lists second, and the rest of the violations list in alphabetical order after that.

  1. Modify "Parked in No Parking Area":

    • Click on Parked in No Parking Area to select it. The screen will refresh with the entry information for the violation.
    • Add a single space to the very beginning of the Violation Type Description field.
    • Click Save Violation Type.
    • Result: The list will now show " Parked in No Parking Area" (with the space) as the first item.

  2. Modify "Parked Blocking Fire Hydrant":

    • Next, select Parked Blocking Fire Hydrant.
    • Add a single space to the beginning of its Violation Type Description.
    • Save the violation type.
    • Result: The listing will change again. However, since both now have one space, " Parked Blocking Fire Hydrant" will appear before " Parked in No Parking Area" due to alphabetical sorting of the rest of the name.

  3. Adjusting Order with Multiple Spaces:

    • To ensure "Parked in No Parking Area" appears first and "Parked Blocking Fire Hydrant" second, we need to use a different number of spaces.
    • Select Parked in No Parking Area again.
    • Add a second space to the beginning of its Violation Type Description (so it has two spaces: Parked in No Parking Area).
    • Save the violation type.
    • Result: The list on the left now shows "  Parked in No Parking Area" in the first position, followed by " Parked Blocking Fire Hydrant" in the second position, and then the rest of the violations in alphabetical order.

Best Practices & Considerations

Handhelds Devices Settings (Handheld Commons)

The Handhelds Devices section in OPS-COM allows administrators to manage and configure handheld devices used for enforcement and data collection. This includes registering new devices, pushing messages, and updating device settings, ensuring seamless operation for field personnel and accurate data synchronization.

Using this Feature

  1. Click Tools, then Handhelds Devices. Alternatively, you can access this on the Violations menu as well.
  2. The Handhelds - Common Settings screen appears, where you can manage various aspects of your handheld fleet. From here, you can edit settings such as ticket due dates, customize ticket footers, view device information, and add or manage individual handheld units.
Adding a New Device

When adding a new handheld device, the process involves both the device itself and the OPS-COM system configuration.

  1. Install Software: Start by installing the OPS-COM for Android software on the handheld device.
  2. Obtain UUID: After the first login attempt on the device, you'll receive a notice indicating the device isn't registered. This message will display a UUID (Universally Unique Identifier) number. This is a 16-digit alphanumeric code typically found under your login screen on the device.
  3. Register Device in OPS-COM:
    • Once on the Handhelds - Common Settings page in the admin portal, click Add New Device.
    • A new screen will open. You must add the following information:
      • UUID: Enter the UUID obtained from the handheld device.
      • Server to Sync with: Always start by selecting the Production Server. This is a critical step for initial device registration, regardless of whether the device will eventually be used for testing on a Preview server (explained further in "Important Note - Additional Information").
      • Name: Enter a descriptive name to easily identify this device (e.g., "Patrol Unit 1," "Enforcement Officer John's Device").
      • Ensure the Enabled checkbox at the top of the entry form is selected.
    • Click Add Device once all information is in place.
Pushing Messages

You can send messages directly to your configured handheld units:

  1. On the Handhelds - Common Settings screen, click the Push Message button.
  2. Follow the prompts to compose and send your message to the selected devices.
Updating Device Data

To modify settings for an existing handheld device:

  1. On the Handhelds - Common Settings screen, click on the device name you wish to update. This will open a drop-down list of editable settings.
  2. Make your desired changes to the device's configuration.
  3. Once finished, ensure you click Process Updates to save and apply your changes to the device.

Best Practices & Considerations