AI Route Optimization
Generate optimal daily visit routes for every field representative — automatically, in under 2 seconds — while satisfying all operational constraints simultaneously.
Overview
The Route Optimization module is the operational engine of FieldOrchestrator. It eliminates manual route planning by automatically generating optimal daily visit sequences for every field representative — derived from real road network data and governed by a comprehensive set of operational rules.
Routes are computed by the FieldOrchestrator Engine, a purpose-built optimization service that processes territory data, HCP priorities, scheduling constraints, and road network conditions simultaneously. The engine resolves all constraints in a single pass — no manual adjustments required.
Generated routes are published directly to the representative's mobile application after manager approval, creating a seamless handoff between planning and execution.
< 2 seconds
Average route computation time regardless of territory size or constraint complexity.
Route Generation Workflow
Each route is generated through a five-step workflow that moves from representative and date selection through to final approval and mobile delivery.
- 1In the Route Planner, select a field representative and the target date for the route.
- 2The system automatically identifies all eligible HCPs from the representative's assigned territory, filtering by visit frequency windows and monthly targets.
- 3Click "Generate Route" — the FieldOrchestrator Engine computes the optimal visit sequence, respecting all active constraints, and returns results in under 2 seconds.
- 4Review the generated route on the interactive map. The panel displays the ordered stop list, estimated travel times between each HCP, and the overall Plan Score.
- 5Click "Approve Route" to publish it to the representative's mobile application. The route is immediately available on their device at next sync.
If no eligible HCPs are found for the selected date — for example, all Tier A HCPs were visited recently — the planner will prompt you to adjust the date or temporarily relax the frequency window to ensure productive routes.
Route Constraints
The optimization engine enforces a comprehensive set of hard and soft constraints with every route computation. Hard constraints are never violated; soft constraints are optimized within their defined tolerances.
Time Windows
Configurable workday start/end and lunch break per territory. Routes are guaranteed to fit within the defined working hours.
HCP Priority Tiers
Tier A HCPs are prioritized over Tier B and C for slot allocation. The engine ensures the highest-value HCPs are served first when time permits.
Monthly Visit Targets
Maximum visits per HCP per month are enforced as hard constraints. Over-visiting is prevented automatically.
Visit Frequency Windows
Minimum days between successive visits enforced per tier: Tier A 14 days, Tier B 21 days, Tier C 30 days by default. Values are configurable per territory.
Parking Overhead
Estimated setup and parking time is included per HCP type — clinic, hospital, and pharmacy each carry a distinct overhead value.
Urban vs Rural Speeds
Separate travel speed models are applied for urban and rural road segments, yielding accurate ETAs across all geographic contexts.
Default Visit Frequency Windows by Tier
Frequency windows can be adjusted per territory by an SFE Administrator. Changes take effect on the next route generation cycle.
HCP Access Constraints
Beyond territory-level time windows, each HCP can carry individual access constraints that precisely encode their consultation availability. The route optimizer reads these constraints and schedules stops only within valid access windows — preventing wasted journeys and failed check-in attempts.
Day-of-Week Availability
Each HCP can have different time windows per weekday. A cardiologist available Monday 09:00–12:00 and Wednesday 14:00–17:00 only will never receive a stop outside those slots.
Appointment Requirements
HCPs flagged as requiring an appointment are excluded from routes where insufficient appointment lead time exists. The required lead hours (e.g. 24 h, 48 h) are configurable per HCP.
Gatekeeper Tracking
HCPs with a gatekeeper (secretary, reception desk) carry an additional average wait time that is factored into the route duration model, yielding more accurate ETAs.
Access Difficulty Score
Each HCP has a 0–100 access difficulty score, derived from historical check-in success rates and representative feedback. High-difficulty HCPs receive earlier time slots to ensure adequate buffer.
How to configure HCP access constraints
- 1Open the HCP record from the HCP Directory (HCPs → select record).
- 2Navigate to the Access Constraints tab within the HCP profile.
- 3Add one or more day-of-week rules with start time, end time, appointment requirement, and lead hours.
- 4Save. Changes take effect on the next route generation for this HCP's territory.
Access constraints are enforced as hard constraints. A stop that falls entirely outside a configured availability window will not be included in the route for that date — it is deferred to the next eligible date and flagged in the planning summary.
Plan Score
Every generated route receives a composite Plan Score (0–100 plus bonus points). The score provides an at-a-glance quality signal that helps managers prioritise which routes to review before approval.
Component
Weight
Description
Compliance
Proportion of visit frequency constraints that are satisfied by the generated route.
Coverage
Share of high-priority HCPs (Tier A) included relative to those eligible on that date.
Frequency
Regularity of contact maintained across all tiers — penalises long gaps between successive visits.
KOL Bonus
Flat bonus applied when a Key Opinion Leader is included in the route.
A Plan Score of 80 or above is considered production-quality. Scores below 70 are flagged with an advisory on the route detail page, indicating which constraint category contributed most to the reduction.
Route Approval Workflow
Every route passes through a defined status lifecycle from generation to completion. The lifecycle provides full visibility into the state of each route and ensures that only manager-approved routes are executed in the field.
Route has been generated by the engine and is awaiting manager review and approval.
Manager has approved the route. It is now visible to the field representative on their mobile device.
The representative has started executing visits on this route. Real-time visit outcomes are being recorded.
All scheduled visits have a recorded outcome. The route is closed and archived for compliance reporting.
Route Calendar
The Route Calendar (accessible via Routes → Calendar) provides managers with a weekly and monthly overview of all generated routes, organised by date and representative. It is the primary command centre for monitoring field execution coverage.
Calendar Color Coding
DRAFT — Generated, awaiting review
APPROVED — Published to representative's mobile
ACTIVE — Representative is executing visits
COMPLETED — All visits recorded and closed
Clicking any calendar cell opens the Route Detail panel for that representative and date — showing the stop sequence, Plan Score, and individual visit outcomes for completed routes.
Re-optimization
Field conditions change. When an appointment is cancelled, an urgent add-on visit is required, or a representative is running behind schedule, managers can trigger a real-time re-optimization of an ACTIVE route without disrupting already-completed visits.
To re-optimize, open the Route Detail panel for an ACTIVE route and click "Re-optimize". The engine recalculates the optimal sequence for all remaining stops — preserving completed visits in their recorded state — and publishes the updated route to the representative's device within seconds.
Completed visits are never modified
Re-optimization only affects stops that have not yet been executed. All recorded visit outcomes, timestamps, and compliance data from completed stops remain unchanged in the audit trail.
Route Intelligence & Historical Replay
FieldOrchestrator continuously improves route quality through a weekly historical replay engine. The system replays the past 90 days of route plans against actual HCP access outcomes, calibrating the access success probability score for every HCP in every territory.
This access calibration feeds directly into future route generation: HCPs with a track record of successful access at specific time windows receive stronger scheduling preference for those slots, while HCPs with historically low access success at certain times are deprioritized or rescheduled to higher-probability windows.
Weekly
Replay cadence
Access calibration scores are recalculated every week using the latest visit outcomes.
90 days
Historical lookback
The replay engine analyses 90 days of route and access data for each calibration cycle.
Automatic
No configuration needed
Access constraint calibration runs automatically in the background — no manual intervention required.
Route Intelligence calibration integrates with HCP Access Constraints: when a consultation schedule is configured for an HCP, the replay engine validates that configured windows are consistent with historical access successes and flags mismatches for review.
Batch Route Generation
For weekly or monthly planning sessions, the Batch Generation feature allows managers to generate routes for all representatives in one or more territories over a defined date range in a single operation — significantly reducing planning time at the start of each cycle.
- 1Navigate to Routes → Generate All in the top navigation.
- 2Select the territory (or all territories) and define the date range for the batch generation.
- 3Review the generation summary — the system indicates the number of routes to be created and estimates completion time.
- 4Click "Generate" — routes are queued and processed in the background. A notification is sent when all routes are ready for review.
- 5Review and approve routes individually from the Route Calendar, or use the bulk approval action to approve all DRAFT routes in a single step.
Batch generation respects all the same constraints as individual route generation. Routes that cannot be generated — for example, when no eligible HCPs are available on a given date — are skipped and listed in the generation report with the reason.
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