In Pladia Empower, Pathways make it easy for visitors to find their way through your museum. By creating a Navtrack that establishes all of the possible routes throughout your facility, you enable step-by-step directions that reflect your museum’s actual layout. Whether a visitor scans a nearby Object or searches for a Space or POI they’d like to visit next, Pathways helps them navigate confidently from point A to point B.
This article focuses on setting up Pathways in the Empower Console. If you're curious how visitors use them in the Empower PWA, learn more about the Pathways visitor experience.
Before You Begin
Before creating your Pathways, we recommend setting up the spatial foundation of your facility in the Console. This ensures that your Navtrack is aligned with the structure and content of your museum.
Make sure the following are in place:
Spaces – All public-facing rooms or areas visitors can enter should be added as Spaces and correctly drawn within each level. - This is one of the most critical steps as directions will be provided from Space to Space.
Maps – Upload a floorplan for each level, making sure maps are aligned across floors. This ensures that level transitions like stairs and elevators appear in the correct position on each map and support accurate Pathway creation.
Objects – Place any Objects you want visitors to receive directions to directly on the map within the appropriate Space.
With these foundational elements complete, you'll be ready to create a clear, connected Navtrack that supports seamless wayfinding across your institution.
Creating Your Pathways
To begin creating Pathways, follow the steps below:
1) Go to Wayfinding.
From the left-hand menu in the Console, open the Wayfinding section under your Venue.
2) Create a new Navtrack.
Click New Navtrack in the upper-right corner of the screen. This will open the Pathways tool on the right side of your screen.
3) Name your Navtrack.
Give your Navtrack a clear name that reflects the venue or layout it covers.
4) Choose your building and level.
If your venue includes multiple buildings or levels, use the Building Selector in the upper-left corner to choose the appropriate building, and then select the desired level below that.
5) Start Drawing Mode.
Click Start Drawing Path to enable Drawing Mode. Once active, each click on your map will place a new node, connected to the previous one.
Tip: If you find it tricky to turn Drawing Mode on and off or are making unintentional connections often, try holding down the ⌘ (Command) key on your keyboard while drawing. Release the key when you're done placing nodes to avoid unintentional connections.
6) Begin drawing your path.
Click on the point where you want your pathway to begin.
While you can start anywhere, we recommend beginning near a main entrance so you can ensure routes are complete from entry to destination.
7) Adjust node settings.
Once you place a node, additional settings will appear.
While accessibility settings like Wheelchair Accessible and Child Safe are not yet used in routing, we recommend enabling them where applicable to prepare for future enhancements.
8) Continue drawing your route.
Each subsequent click creates a new node connected to the last. Add nodes at each point where the direction changes, like turns or intersections.
Set path directionality using the Connections dropdown.
By default, paths can be walked in both directions.
To limit movement to one direction—such as along a one-way corridor—open the Connections dropdown, find the relevant node pair, and choose which direction is allowed.
The arrow between the node letters will show the walking direction.
Add intermediary nodes to support direction changes or branching paths.
For example, if you want to route from point A to both C and D, you’ll need a shared node B that branches to each destination.
Mark level transitions using the Level Transition dropdown.
If a node represents a staircase, elevator, or other connector between levels, this tells the system how visitors move between floors.
Then indicate which levels this connection applies to. This ensures accurate, multi-level directions.
Use the checkboxes to indicate which levels this transition applies to. Only levels within the building selected in the upper left will appear.
Place nodes at room entry and exit points to improve routing accuracy.
We recommend placing:A node just inside the room’s entrance
A node just outside the room’s exit
This helps the system provide clear directions into and out of each Space.
9) Work level-by-level to build your complete pathway network
Draw all possible visitor paths on each level—including main corridors, shortcuts, and alternative routes—to ensure accurate, flexible navigation.
Build each level independently.
Use level transition nodes (which appear on multiple levels) as anchor points to connect adjacent floors.
This ensures that routes connect smoothly between levels and cover your entire facility.
Next, connect your Navtrack to your app configuration:
Go to App Settings from the left-hand menu in the Console.
Select the app configuration you want to update.
In the Details tab, scroll down to the Maps section.
Click the + button to add your Navtrack.
Click Publish to save your changes.
Release the update in the Public Bundle.
Reminder: To appear in the PWA, any Object, Space, or POI visitors can get directions to or from must be marked Published and Released in a Public Bundle in the Console.
What Visitors See in the PWA
Once your Navtrack is live and published publicly, Empower uses it to give visitors clear, step-by-step directions based on their current location and what they want to see next. Whether they’re scanning an Object in front of them or planning ahead to visit the café or gift shop, the system will find the most optimal route from your defined Pathways to guide them through your venue.
Want to see how it works from the visitor's side? Explore how Pathways work in the Empower PWA.
Need Help?
If you have questions or want support setting up your Pathways, don’t hesitate to reach out to the Pladia Customer Success team. We’re here to help ensure your visitors have a smooth and intuitive experience navigating your institution.