A New Look

into

Portable Electronic Devices

for

Field Data Collection

in the

National Agricultural Statistics Service

by

Michael W. Gerling

Data Quality Research Section 

Research and Development Division

National Agricultural Statistics Service

November 18, 2004

Table of Contents

1.0 Introduction ........................................................................... 1

2.0 Early Research ................................................................ 1

3.0 Why Look at Portable Devices Now? ................................ 1

4.0 Portable Electronic Devices Platforms ................................ 2

4.1 PED Factors to Consider ..................................................... 2

4.2 Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) ................................ 3

4.2.1 Which Companies/Agencies are using PDAs ..................... 4

4.2.2 Conclusion on PDAs ..................................................... 6

4.3 Tablet PCs ........................................................................... 8

4.3.1 Which Companies/Agencies are using Tablet PCs .......... 9

4.3.2 Conclusion on Tablet PCs ..................................................... 11

4.4 Laptops ........................................................................... 12

4.4.1 Which Companies/Agencies are using Laptops ........... 13

4.4.2 Conclusion on Laptops ..................................................... 15

4.5 Convertibles ........................................................................... 15

4.5.1 Which Companies/Agencies are using Convertibles ........... 16

4.5.2 Conclusion on Convertibles ........................................... 17

5.0 Ruggedized Potable Electronic Devices ................................ 17
6.0 What about the projected high costs

of the June Aerial Photos? ................................ 18

7.0 Which of NASS’ questionnaires could 

be used on a portable electronic device? ..................... 18

8.0 Conclusion ........................................................................... 19

9.0 Where to go from here? ..................................................... 20

10.0 Option1 - Full Scale Development and Implementation ......... 20

10.1 The Benefits ........................................................................... 20

10.2 The Drawbacks ................................................................ 21

11.0 Option 2 - Small Scale Research Projects ..................... 21

11.1 Data Collection Instrument ........................................... 21

11.2 Sampling Information ..................................................... 22

11.3 Transmission ................................................................ 22

11.4 Security of the PED ..................................................... 23

11.5 Testing ........................................................................... 24

11.6 Pilot to Production ................................................................ 24

11.7 The Benefits of Small Scale Research ................................ 24

11.8 The Drawbacks of Small Scale Research .............................. 24

12.0 Option 3 - Re-visit PEDs in a few years ................................ 25

13.0 Final Thoughts ................................................................ 25
Appendix A

A.1 The PED Vision ................................................................ 26

A.2 Benefits ........................................................................... 27

A.3 Vision to Reality ................................................................ 28

A.3.1 Obstacles ........................................................................... 28

A.4 Implementation ................................................................ 30

1

1.0 Introduction

The National Agricultural Statistics

Service (NASS) is constantly looking for

ways to improve its business practices to

gain efficiencies in data collection and

improve the quality of its data products.

Today, laptops are no longer the only

option in the portable electronic devices

(PEDs) market. Portable Digital

Assistants (PDAs), tablet PCs, Web pads,

slates, convertibles and smart phones are

all becoming more prevalent in society

and are being used by private companies

and government agencies for daily

business and/or data collection.

Concurrently, prices of these devices are

dropping, even as the devices are

becoming more powerful. 

This document focuses on the four

primary portable electronic device

platforms available for data collection:

PDAs, tablet PCs, convertibles, and

laptops. Finally, each platform is looked

at how it could be used within NASS’

organization, the cost of implementation,

and the positive/negative return on

investment of each platform.

2.0 Early Research

NASS has a history of research into the

use of portable electronic devices in data

collection. In the late 1980's and early

1990's, computer assisted personal

interview (CAPI) research projects took

place and proved that data could be

successfully collected using laptop

computers and transmitted to a central

location for further processing. However,

several barriers prevented adoption of this

technology for our operational program.

Among these were battery life, data

transmission speeds, cost of the laptops,

and a limited number of field enumerated

surveys.

3.0 Why Look at Portable Electronic

Devices Now?

Technological improvements over the

years have reduced many of the barriers

that occurred with CAPI. Data

transmission speed has improved

significantly. Battery life has also

improved to a degree. Lower cost

devices, such as personal digital

assistants (PDAs), are now widely

available and have potential for data

collection. The Agency’s business model

has expanded since NASS conducted

CAPI research. In addition to the

Objective Yield Survey Program, NASS

has several large field enumerated

projects: the Agricultural Resource

Management Survey (ARMS);

Conservation Effects Assessment

Program (CEAP); and the June Area

Survey that stand to increase the potential

benefit of PEDs. 

In the last couple of years, NASS has had

success in using portable electronic
2

devices for field data collection. In 2002,

the North Carolina State Statistical Office

successfully used PDAs to collect data

from State Fair attendees. In December,

2003, a pilot project was successfully

conducted by Research and Development

Division (RDD), Iowa State University and

the Iowa State Statistical Office which

demonstrated the use of tablet PCs to

draw-off tract and field boundaries on

June Area Survey digital maps. The

motivation behind this research was an

anticipated jump in the cost of printed

aerial photography. A limited amount of

data were also collected to simulate a

portion of the June Area questionnaire.

Finally, with the increasing use of caller id

by the general public to screen telephone

calls and implementation of the “Do NOT

Call List”, combined with the bad publicity

that telemarketing companies have been

receiving, enumeration by telephone may

become increasingly difficult to obtain

enough quality data to make accurate

estimates. This could mean that

enumeration may shift more to the field

where the completion rate is higher but at

the same time so are the costs.

Hence, the timing is ripe to re-visit the

use of portable electronic devices for data

collection.

4.0 Portable Electronic Devices

Platforms

Currently, there are four main PED

platforms: Personal Digital Assistants

(PDAs), Tablet PCs, Convertibles, and

Laptops. 

The PED platform that is selected must

meet some general criteria for NASS’

needs. All platforms examined have the

ability to collect data and later transmit

data through a modem. 

4.1 PED Factors to Consider

 Portability - Capability to be used

virtually anywhere. The ability to hold the

device and input data into it.

 Size - Too big and the enumerator will

not be able to hold and use the device

properly. Conversely, too small and the

enumerators may lose them.

 Weight - Too heavy and the enumerator will get tired of holding the device.

 Battery Life - With the proper training

on battery management, all devices have

enough battery life to last a working day.

 Processor - Need a large enough

processor to handle the elaborate

questionnaires that will be placed on the

devices and run any edit checks as well.

 Memory - Need enough memory to

bring up the various screens of a

questionnaire and process the data
3

quickly.

 Storage - Capacity to hold

questionnaires, samples and collected

data.

 Ruggedness - How long will these

devices hold up to the daily rigor of a field

enumerator? Enumerators work in cold

and hot climates, dirty, dusty, and rainy

weather. Ideally, NASS should investigate

ruggedized PEDs but with the cost of

ruggedized devices being 40% to 200%

higher than the standard PEDs, a positive

return on investment is nearly impossible.

Therefore, NASS should look at “lowcost” ruggedized cases and screen

protectors. 

 Screen size - Too small and the

enumerator will be scrolling both

horizontally and vertically. Too big and

the device itself becomes unwieldy.

 Input method of data - Varies with the

platform chosen (keyboard, mouse, pen,

stylus, etc.).

 Security - Two issues: security of the

device, itself, and security of the data

collected and transmitted.

 Transmission method - Ability to 

transmit data via a telephone modem.

 Warranty - How long are the products

warranted for and what is the expected

life expectancy?

 Manufacturers of the product - How

many manufacturers are there that

produce these devices? Is the market

dwindling for these devices? Will the

company that NASS purchases from be

around?

 Ability to be used both indoors and

outside as well as during the day or night.

Our current method of paper and pencil is

highly flexible and the PED needs to

provide the same or more flexibility.

4.2 Personal Digital Assistants

Personal digital assistants, commonly

called PDAs, allow people to keep track of

appointments, read downloaded e-mail,

and look up saved documents. 

In general, PDAs are about 4 - 5.5 inches

in length and about three inches wide and

0.5 to one inch in depth. The weight is

around 4 to 7 ounces. This makes the

devices lightweight and easy to handle.

Below are two pictures of typical PDAs.
4

There are three primary operating

systems to choose from, Palm, Pocket

PC and Linux, with the latter being the

least used. 

The devices themselves range anywhere

from $100 to $700 in price. 

Life span has been forecasted at three to

four years. 

The major manufacturers in the Pocket

PC realm are Hewlett Packard, Dell, and

Toshiba. For Palm, there is primarily

PalmOne. SONY, which produced the

popular Clie line, has decided to drop out

of the United States’ PDA market at least

until the end of the year. 

As far as the processor, Pocket PCs

advertise a 400 - 600 MHz processor.

However, this is deceiving since the

Pocket PCs operating system is very

resource heavy lessening the actual

speed obtained. However, the Palm

devices typically have a slower processor

but this is made up by having a very

efficient operating system. 

The RAM ranges from 32 MB to 128 MB.

The companies and agencies, that are

using these devices for data collection,

are programming their data collection

instruments in either Visual Basic or C++.

Although C++ has a steep learning curve,

C++ appears to be the choice of most

developers, since it more flexible. 

4.2.1. Which Companies/Agencies are

using PDAs

 United States Postal Service 

The United States Postal Service

purchased five hundred fifty Hewlett

Packard iPAQ 3850s for inspectors to

complete forms on. The company went

with this product since the unit was small

enough to fit in a pant/coat pocket and

could be used on a ladder or a confined

area. 

 Center for Survey Research - University

of Massachusetts

The Center for Survey Research used

both the Hewlett Packard’s Jornada and

the Palm Pilot III. They found that the

Jornada had a nice bright color screen and

some Microsoft compatible software.

However, they had to program their data

collection instrument from scratch since

they could not find any off-the-shelf

software that would suffice. Later, they

found out about a program called

"Pendragon". This is a Palm application

which builds a variety of data collection

forms. If they were going to conduct a PDA

data collection project again, they would

recommend the Palm over the Hewlett

Packard in order to use the Pendragon

software. 
5

Contact person is Lois Biener, Ph.D.

 Natural Resources Conservation

Service

The Natural Resources Conservation

Service, (NRCS), used Apple Newtons for

their field data collection. NRCS is in the

process of moving to Pocket PCs. 

Contact is Bob Dayton with Iowa State

University and he can be reached at (515)

294-7789.

 National Opinion Research Center

The National Opinion Research Center

conducted a study in 2000 and decided

on the Pocket PC platform since this line

of PDAs seemed to be more powerful and

had more accessories available. They

decided to go with HP’s iPAQ 3650.

Their testing revealed that the device was

best for short interviews and that to

accommodate lengthier questionnaires,

laptops or tablets would still be needed. 

Contact is Debashish Bagchi and he can

be reached at (312) 759-4280.

 Center for Plant Health and

Technologies - (USDA)

In the work place, Palm 505s are

prevalent and are being used as

organizers. Blackberrys are also being

used for those that want to access their

Lotus Notes’ e-mail realtime. For data

collection, they are using various iPAQ

models. Their field people actually

conducted a study similar to NASS’

Objective Yield Survey. In NASS’s

Objective Yield Survey, the field person is

interested in examining selected plants in

a crop field, whereas, the Center for Plant

Health and Technologies’ field person is

interested in a selected tree in a forest.

On the initial visit the field person locates

a particular tree based on sampling rules

and ties a ribbon around it for a visual

marker. The field person then records

his/her findings and the coordinates using

a GPS accessory called Pocket CoPilot.

The field person will then use an in-house

developed software called Iris to record

data. The next time the field person

needs to return to the same tree, he/she

uses Pocket CoPilot to get fairly close and

then looks for the tree with the ribbon

around it. 

Contact person is Corina McArthur and

she can be reached at (919)-513-5071.

 United States Air Force

The United States Air Force use Palm

515m PDAs to keep track of visitors

coming and leaving the Wright Air Force

Base. Guards stationed at the entrance

and exit gates record where the person

needs to go on the base and, using the

infrared feature of the device, beams the

information to a nearby printer that prints
6

out step-by-step directions to the area of

interest.

Another use of these devices is to record

the daily practice sessions of bomb and

drug sniffing dogs. This eliminates the

need to record the practices on paper and

then key all of the data in. The estimated

total cost, so far, is $100,000. This

includes the amount paid to a contractor

for writing the software and for 70 Palm

515m’s. The USAF decided on the Palm

units for their longer battery life. 

Information provided by the Government

Computer News - 12.15.03 Edition.

 United States Census Bureau 

Recently, the Census Bureau purchased

1,000 iPAQ 3950s at a cost of $750 each

to conduct a 2004 Census test. The price

included a case, car automobile charger,

and a telephone modem. 

The study should begin in the next couple

of months. Interviews are expected to be

5-10 minutes in length. The

questionnaire is simplistic with questions

using radio buttons, drop downs, and a

limited amount of numeric input. Skip

logic was also used, so that only the

questions of interest would appear. 

Contact is Sandy Dyer of the United

States Census Bureau and she can be

reached at (301) 763-7827.

 Research Triangle Institute (RTI)

RTI has used Hewlett Packard’s iPAQ

3950s and 4155s for data collection. In

general, RTI uses PDAs for short

interviews (5-8 minutes).

One study, presented at the 2004

FedCasic Conference, had enumerators

equipped with a laptop along with the

iPAQ 4155. The interviewer used the

iPAQ as a screening device to conduct the

initial interview at a person’s door step.

Next, depending on the respondent’s

answers, a more in-depth interview is

conducted inside with a laptop. RTI did

investigate using the tablet PC but their

field enumerators overwhelmingly

preferred the PDA and laptop combination.

Contact is Marty Meyer of Research

Triangle Institute.

4.2.2 Conclusion on PDAs 

PDAs are being used successfully by

companies and other government

agencies for field data collection. 

PDAs appear to be best suited for short

surveys, yes/no questions, multiple choice

questions, and some questions that

require numeric input. The length of the

interview tends to be less than ten

minutes.

The small size and light weight of the PDA
7

is a perfect fit for field enumeration,

especially when a enumerator has to

physically go into a farmer’s field and

record data. 

However, a PDA is not like having a

desktop computer with you. The storage,

memory, and processors on these

devices are minimal.

Also, a majority of NASS’ field

enumerated questionnaires contain tables

which, while not impossible to put on a

PDA, would require substantial vertical

and horizontal scrolling for the

enumerator due to the PDA’s small

screen size. Also, the enumerator’s

inability to see all of the columns may

increase his/her chances of some

columns being missed during the

interview.

A table, however, is simply a series of

individual questions and thus these

individual questions could be put onto a

PDA to emulate a paper questionnaire. 

This may increase the perceived length of

the interview significantly and would

require developing a question for each

item in the table.

In addition, the PDA’s small screen size is

not practical for displaying a June Aerial

digital map. The amount of scrolling and

zooming would be very laborious and has

the potential to increase recording errors.

Currently, private companies and agencies

use the devices for only short interviews

(under 10 minutes) which is well below the

length of an average ARMS Phase 3 -

Version 1 interview (94 minutes) or the

average length of a CEAP interview, (64

minutes). NASS currently does not track

the amount of time each field enumerator

takes to complete each field enumerated

survey. Hence, it is with speculation that

an average field interview is significantly

longer than 10 minutes.

Another drawback is that telephone

modems would have to be purchased to

enable these devices to send the collected

data back to the data collection center.

This accessory adds an additional $80 to

the cost of the device. One aspect to keep

in mind is that not all PDAs accept a

modem.

Also, suggested is a car charger for the

PDA just in case the battery gets low in the

field. 

By using the costs obtained by the Census

Bureau, the projected cost for NASS is

from $600 to $800 per device. This

includes the accessories noted above.

Note: A NASS pilot study on using PDAs

to collect Cotton Objective Yield data is

currently underway in the North Carolina

State Statistical Office. This pilot is

expected to shed some more light on

using PDAs for data collection, as well as
8

provide insight on the benefits and cost of

using PDAs.

4.3 Tablet PCs

Tablet PCs came into the spotlight in

2000. Microsoft has made alliances with

several of the small tablet manufacturers

that are able to market their products with

the Microsoft name as long as they follow

a set of general specifications provided by

Microsoft. Since this is a new industry

with many small manufacturers bidding

for customers and market share, it is still

too early to tell which manufacturers will

be around. The major tablet PC

manufacturers are Fujitsu, Toshiba,

Hewlett Packard and Motion.

Typically, a tablet PC is like a flat screen

monitor (without the stand) that contains

a computer within. 

Overall, tablet PCs generally weigh about

3.0 to 3.5 pounds. Tablet PCs typically

have a 1 GHz Intel Pentium or Centrino

Processor, a 30 - 40 Gigabyte hard drive,

and 256 - 512 Megabytes of memory.

Screen size varies from 10-12 inches.

Windows XP - Tablet Edition is the

operating system. Price ranges from

$1,500 to $2,000 per unit.

The primary method of using the tablet PC

is via a special pen. The tablets have

handwriting recognition software that

allows one to actually write in the answer,

which the computer will recognize as text

or numbers, etc. 

A second way to enter information is to

use a keyboard that appears as part of the

screen. This on-screen keyboard is

operated with the tablet’s pen. 

Finally, it is also possible to use an

external keyboard and mouse for data

entry and navigation.

Most tablet PCs are designed for viewing

either indoors or outdoors, but not both.

This presents a problem for enumerators,

since interviews can take place either

indoors or outside. However, in response
9

to customers’ demand for indoor/outdoor

screens, Fujitsu produced the first multiuse tablet PC. Motion followed with their

own model in the summer of 2004.

NASS has used both of these models and

found that neither device is easily

readable in direct sunlight.

4.3.1 Which Companies/Agencies are

using Tablet PCs

 Westat

Westat uses tablet PCs to conduct their

National Health and Nutrition Survey.

Originally, paper questionnaires were

used. However, the screening questions

and branching became so complex that a

computer became necessary to figure out

what questions were to be asked. 

Originally, Westat looked at PDAs,

however, the small screen size and the

limited amount of data that these devices

could hold did not make them feasible.

Hence, tablet PCs were examined and

were found to meet Westat’s needs.

Westat decided on Fujitsu’s model 1200.

The devices have lasted 6 years with an

overall failure rate of 3 to 5% per year.

The initial interview is conducted at the

door step and then, depending on the

respondent’s answers to the screening

questions, a more extensive interview is

conducted indoors using an external

keyboard with the tablet PC. 

Westat found that battery life was a

problem with batteries lasting only 2-3

hours. 

The survey instrument primarily consisted

of radio button type questions. The size of

the radio buttons were increased so their

field people could clearly see them. 

Westat did have some problems with data

transmission in that sometimes they would

receive duplicate data. 

Overall, they feel that the devices have

held up to the rigors of field data collection

(light rain, heat, and cold).

Westat also conducted a study where the

data collection environment was on the

beach. The study asked beach goers

questions pertaining to health and sun

exposure. 

Realizing that a significant amount of

interviews were going to be conducted in

direct sunlight, Westat designed their

electronic questionnaire to have black text

on a white background. They realized

through testing that using other colors

made visibility difficult. During

enumeration, field staff tried to conduct

their interview in the shade where

possible. However, some interviews were

able to be conducted in full sun.

Westat was also impressed that the

devices did survive the hostile
10

environment of heat, sand, and salt air.

Westat’s future plan is to replace their

current tablets with new ones and they

will probably decide on Fujitsu’ 4100

series. The total number of field

enumerators with tablets is 35. 

Contact person is David Hill of Westat

and he can be reached at (301) 251-

1500.

 URS Corporation

URS Corporation is contracted by the

Federal Emergency Management Agency

(FEMA) to conduct interviews on those

households across the United States that

file for disaster relief.

Example: If a hurricane does significant

damage to a county and the area is

declared a federal disaster area,

homeowners request an application for

disaster relief to help pay for repair costs.

URS Corporation’s role is to go out and

complete the application with the

homeowner within 72 hours of the initial

request.

Typically, URS Corporation has 20 to 25

full time field staff who fly across the

country to disaster areas. Depending on

the size of the disaster, up to 1500

reservists can be called upon for

assistance. If these reservists are

activated, then a short training session

would occur.

URS Corporation decided on Fujitsu’s

tablet PCs. Of the fifteen hundred used,

twelve hundred of the tablets are Fujitsu’s

model 3400 and the remaining three

hundred are Fujitsu’s model 3500. 

Loaded onto the tablet PCs is Microsoft’s

Streets & Trips software, which allows field

staff to get a rough approximation on the

location that is needed to be reached.

Interviews are conducted either inside or

outside. Their field staff use the built in

telephone modem to transmit the

completed applications to FEMA. 

There are two support staff (located in

Fairfax, VA) that are responsible for

receiving any broken Fujitsu’s and sending

a replacement to the field person

immediately. These two employees are

also responsible for making any repairs if

possible or sending the product back to

Fujitsu for warranty work.

At the present time, the contract with

FEMA will be expiring and URS

Corporation is looking to win the contract

again. If successful, they will upgrade

their current tablet PCs with Fujitsu’s

newer models. 

Contact person is Ed Hagarty of FEMA

and he can be reached at (703) 849-0289.
11

 United States Census Bureau

The United States Census Bureau has

researched and purchased several

models of tablet PCs and have put them

through various testing. However, at this

time no additional funding has been

approved for using tablet PCs in the field.

Contact person is Mike Haas and he can

be reached at (301) 763-7832.

 United States Department of Labor -

Bureau of Labor Statistics

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is

moving from using laptop computers to

tablet PCs for data collection. BLS

currently has 400 field personnel with

Fujitsu tablet PCs for data collection.

These field personnel typically conduct 6

to 8 one-hour interviews a day.

Interviews are conducted in a residence

or at a place of business. Each field

personnel has been provided an extra

battery and a car charger. A Help Desk,

staffed with 9 people, was created to

handle the various hardware and software

issues. The questionnaires are

developed in Visual Basic and the tablet

PC is locked in the sense that no other

programs can be loaded onto the

machine by the field personnel. This

keeps every machine configured the

same and makes things easier for the

Help Desk personnel in troubleshooting

problems.

Overall, by using portable electronic

devices for data collection, BLS

statisticians are able to gain access to the

data quicker and the quality of the data is

better since simple edit checks are built

into the electronic questionnaires. Also,

BLS no longer has a problem of losing

questionnaires in the mail.

BLS found that using portable electronic

devices did not reduce the interview

length. However, savings in time were

realized since field personnel no longer

had to go to the post office to mail their

completed questionnaires back to the

office. Also, the time taken to organize all

of their paper questionnaires was

eliminated. 

Staffing costs were basically a wash, since

the data entry staff had to be replaced with

staff for a Help Desk. 

BLS is also seeing that as the field

personnel become more accustomed to

using the devices that the breakage rate

due to accidental drops have increased. 

Contact is Jane Martinez and she can be

reached at 202-691-5814.

4.3.2 Conclusion on Tablet PCs

Using a tablet PC is like having an average

desktop computer out in the field. As

shown by Westat, Bureau of Labor

Statistics, and URS Corporation, tablet
12

PCs can be successfully used for field

data collection.

The screen size (10 to 12 inches) allows

a typical page of a paper questionnaire to

be displayed with minimal horizontal and

vertical scrolling. 

The 30-40 gigabyte hard drive allows the

device to hold multiple questionnaires,

data sets, samples, and even training

materials. 

Most models have a built in telephone

modem. Hence, the only additional

accessories would be a back-up battery

and perhaps a ruggedized case to

provide the device extra protection from

the every day knocks of field

enumeration. This would add an

additional $200 to the overall cost of the

unit. 

In November 2003, NASS conducted a

field study with six Gateway tablet PCs.

The study showed that digital maps for

the June Area Survey could be placed on

the device and that the enumerators were

able to draw off the various tracts and

field boundaries. 

During the study, the Gateway tablet PCs’

screens were practically unrecognizable

in direct sunlight, thereby rendering the

devices useless. A Fujitsu tablet PC, that

was rated for indoor/outdoor use was

also tested. This unit was only marginally

better than the Gateways. Also, the

Fujitsu tablet PC required a screen

protector to be used which distorted the

screen’s images. Removing the screen

protector eliminated the distortion but

allowed the screen to be easily scratched

from users pressing too hard with the pen.

Gateway tablet PCs do not require screen

protectors and scratching from pressing

too hard with the pen did not occur.

Handwriting recognition, although vastly

improved from a few years ago, still needs

to be improved for NASS’ needs.

Overall, tablet PCs need to improve in the

areas of screen visibility and handwriting

recognition. Price is also a major

stumbling block for these devices. To

equip an enumerator with a tablet PC,

ruggedized case and an extra battery

costs from $1,900 to $2,300 per unit.

Field testing of the tablet PC may show

that an auto adapter/charger for the laptop

may be needed. This would add $90 to

the overall cost.

4.4 Laptops

Laptops were the original portable

electronic device and have been out on

the market the longest.

Devices range in size from less than an

inch to 2 inches thick, 11 to 14 inches in

width, and 9 to 11 inches in depth.
13

Laptops are by far the most powerful PED

on the market. A standard laptop has a

1.0 GHz to 3.0+ GHz processor, 256 MB

to 512 MB of memory, and a 30-60 GB

hard drive. The operating system is

typically Windows XP. Hence, laptops

are comparable to a standard desk top

computer. Prices of these devices range

from $700 to over $2,600. 

For field data collection, overall weight of

the unit can be an issue. Some of the

lower priced laptops weigh 8 to over 9

pounds. However, for $1,600 one can

purchase Dell’s Inspiron 300M which

weighs in at slightly less than 3 pounds. 

For $1,400, one can purchase Dell’s

Inspiron 600M which weighs in at 5

pounds.

This platform does provide the

functionality of a keyboard and touch pad.

Screens size ranges from 12 to 17

inches. A telephone modem is standard

equipment.

4.4.1 Which Companies/Agencies are

using Laptops

 United States Census Bureau

Laptops have been used for data

collection for over 15 years by the United

States Census Bureau. 

The Census Bureau is a high volume user

of laptops for data collection. Recently,

they purchased 10,000 Dell laptops for

their 7,000 field interviewers. The extra

laptops are for developers, office staff, and

replacements. Field interviewers are also

provided with several extra batteries and a

laptop case.

Most of the interviews are conducted at

residents or businesses and either indoors

or at the door step. Interviews last

anywhere from 5 minutes to over 3 hours.

Interviewers have also created their own

straps and harnesses to hold the laptop

while standing. Each field interviewer is

also supplied with a return kit which is

basically a box with special packaging

designed for the interviewer to return a

broken laptop and any peripherals to the

repair center. At the same time, a new

laptop with peripherals is sent to the

interviewer. This replacement process

occurs on those surveys that are under a

tight time constraint (10 days). 

The questionnaires are developed in

Blaise and CASES. 
14

The Census Bureau estimates the

laptops to last 3-4 years. They have also

learned that it is best to have the same

type and model in the field. This

simplified the Help Desk’s task in

troubleshooting any problems. 

Contact person is Rick Bitzer and he can

be reached at 301-763-2018.

 Westat

Westat utilizes approximately 4,500

laptops in the field, depending on the

number and size of projects occurring.

The laptops vary by manufacturer

(Toshiba, Dell and HP) and model. 

Interviews range from 20 minutes to an

hour. However, one study required

multiple appointments and the total

interview time was over 7 hours.

Interviews are conducted at households

and clinics. 

The built in telephone modem is used to

transmit data. 

Westat has an extensive Information

Technology infrastructure to support the

laptops with up to 20 personnel manning

the Help Desk. 

Blaise is used to develop the

questionnaires. 

Contact is Ben Gill and he can reached at

301-294-3954.

 RAND Corporation

RAND Corporation has upwards of 50

laptops in the field at a time. Interviews

will last anywhere from 45 minutes to 2

hours. Questionnaires are built using

CASES. Sometimes Audio Computer

Assisted Self Interview software (CASI) is

used for those questions that pertain to

sensitive data. Field personnel use the

built in telephone modem to transmit data

back to the office. Field personnel are

supplied with extra batteries for the laptop.

Field personnel also learned that a

laptops’ screen is unreadable in any type

of rain. RAND expects the laptops to last

about two years. After that time frame, the

laptops start to display keyboard problems,

hard disc failures, and motherboard

issues. 

Contact is Christopher Corey and he can

be reached at 310-393-0411 Ext. 7505.

 United States Department of Labor -

Bureau of Labor Statistics

The Bureau of Labor Statistics used

laptops for data collection but have since

switched to tablet PCs. Also, for those

programs where laptops are still being

used in the field, the data are first

collected on paper and then later entered

onto the laptop. 
15

Contact is Jane Martinez and she can be

reached at 202-691-7410.

 Research Triangle Institute

Research Triangle Institute uses laptops

for data collection for some of their

surveys. Interviews are conducted initially

at a person’s door step and, depending

on the person’s responses, a more indepth interview is conducted inside the

person’s residence. 

Contact is Rodney Baxter and he can be

reached at 919-485-5640.

4.4.2 Conclusion on Laptops

NASS proved back in the late 1980's that

laptops could be used successfully for

field data collection. The primary reasons

for not pursuing this avenue any further

was poor battery life, slow data

transmission speed and cost. Laptops

during those years never dropped in

price. During the 1980’s, laptops became

more powerful but the manufacturers

would add more features to the lower end

models thereby keeping the price fairly

level. However, during the late 1990's,

the price of laptops decreased as more

powerful machines became available.

Laptops are the most powerful PED

platform in terms of processor, speed,

and storage capacity. The screen size is

also conducive to displaying an entire

page of a questionnaire with only minimal

scrolling. 

However, using the laptop’s touch pad to

draw off fields and tracts on a June Area

Survey’s digital map would need to be

researched to see how easily this could be

done in comparison to the tablet PC’s pen.

Also, the laptop’s dimensions does not

lend itself to conducting an interview

standing up. A majority of field interviews

involving laptops are conducted inside,

where the interviewer can place the laptop

down to easily key in the information. This

is not to say that interviews with a laptop

cannot been done standing up, but that

standing places a more physical strain on

an enumerator. 

Hence, to equip an enumerator with a

laptop and an additional battery costs

approximately $1,600. Field testing would

need to be done to see if an auto

adapter/charger and/or a case would be

needed. If so, an additional $200 per unit

would be added to the overall price. 

4.5 Convertibles

Convertibles are a cross between a laptop

and a tablet PC. The screen and

keyboard are connected together by a

hinge that allows the monitor part of the

tablet to flip around on top of the keyboard

and become a tablet.
16

Convertibles provide the combined

functionality of the tablet PC and the

laptop since they can be easily converted

to either platform.

Manufacturers typically build these

devices with a processor speed around

1.4 GHz, 40-60 gigabyte hard drive, and

256 to 512 MB of memory. The typical

weight is around 3.5 to 6 pounds. Screen

size is around 12 inches. Prices of these

devices are around $1,800 to over

$2,400.

Acer, Fujitsu, Toshiba, and Viewsonic are

the major manufacturers of these

devices, but there are also several

smaller manufacturers that produce them.

However, this platform is also relatively

new and the fall out of who is going to be

around is still unknown.

4.5.1 Which Companies/Agencies are

using Convertibles

Business people are using convertibles

since it provides them with a laptop that

can handle everyday work as well as a

tablet for taking notes in meetings.

 Visiting Nurse Association of Central

Jersey

Visiting Nurse Association of Central

Jersey (VNACJ) is a non-profit home

health agency providing comprehensive

health care services for people. Nurses

visit their patients’ residences and collect

information on their patients. The

interviews are conducted inside and last

less than an hour. The convertible was

originally selected since some staff

preferred to enter data via the keyboard

over the pen. However, through time,

most of the nurses are using the keyboard

for data entry and notes. VNACJ has

approximately 400 Acer Travel Mate

C100s in the field and their Help Desk

receives about five per day that need

some sort of repair. The main repairs are

replacing the clips on the side that allow

the screen to open up and rotate, and

replacing parts of the cases, keyboards

and motherboards. 
17

The information was obtained from

VNACJ’s Management Information

Systems Department, (732)-224-6975.

VNACJ was the only company that I could

find that is actually using convertibles for

data collection that is even remotely

comparable to NASS’ data collection.

4.5.2 Conclusion on Convertibles

Convertibles have the benefit of entering

data via a pen or the keyboard. The

keyboard and touch pad come in handy

when typing more than a few words.

However, with most convertibles weighing

over 5 pounds, testing would have to be

done to see if field enumerators could

physically handle the weight. The

Census Bureau’s Computer Assisted

Research Office, has done testing and

their research showed that laptops less

than 5 pounds are best for field

enumeration. Testing on convertibles

would need to be done to see if the same

weight limit applies.

The pivoting hinge on these devices

(although a great concept) continues to

be a weak structural point. Most of the

repair problems involve the hinge actually

breaking, making the device unusable.

To equip a field enumerator with a

convertible costs approximately $2,300 to

$2,500 (includes an extra battery). 

Additionally, field testing would need to be

done to see if an auto adapter/charger

and/or a case would be needed. If so, an

additional $200 per unit would be added to

the overall price. This makes convertibles

the most expensive PED on the market.

5.0 Ruggedized Portable Electronic 

Devices

Ruggedized versions are available for

each of the platforms researched.

Typically, ruggedized units are better

equipped to handle most knocks/drops as

well as to contend with the various

weather environments that field

enumerators face.

However, expect to pay an additional 40 to

200% or more. For example, a standard

tablet PC that could be used by NASS’

field enumerators starts at $1,899 (Fujitsu

ST 4000), whereas a comparable, but fully

ruggedized, tablet PC by Xplore (Model

iX104 All Terrain) starts at $3,952. On the

laptop side, a standard Dell laptop

(Inspiron 600m) can be purchased for

$1,049 compared to a ruggedized laptop

from Panasonic (Toughbook CF-29) which

costs $4,200 or the ruggedized version

from Rough Rider which costs over

$7,000.

Ruggedized versions are also heavier than

their standard counterparts. This extra

weight (excluding the PDA platform) will

make it more difficult for enumerators to
18

use the units while standing for any length

of time.

6.0 What about the projected high

costs of the June Aerial Photos?

Within the last couple of years, there was

a growing concern that the cost of aerial

photos for the June Area Survey would

skyrocket. Currently, the cost is $40,000

a year. ( Approximately 2,500 photos are

replaced each year at a cost of $16 per

photo.) The projected cost was going to

increase to $64 per photo which would

increase Area Frames’ cost to a

staggering $160,000.

This lead the Area Frame Section to

investigate other avenues. One possible

solution was to replace the aerial photos

with digital photos on a portable electronic

device. Hence, a pilot study was

conducted in November of 2003. The

pilot showed that digital maps for the

June Area Survey could be placed on a

tablet PC. The pilot also demonstrated

that enumerators could actually use the

device to draw off tracts and fields.

However, in December 2003, the Area

Frame Section continued investigating

more options to reduce costs and found

and implemented a cost effective

alternative to purchasing aerial photos.

The section purchased a high-end plotter

to print their own photos and have found

a source (Terra Server) to obtain the

maps already in digital format. Without

sacrificing quality, the cost has been

reduced to $10 per photo (this includes

ink, printer costs, paper costs, etc.).

Terra Server provides its digital maps for

free. Hence, the ability to use PEDs for

the June Area Survey has the potential to

save the Research and Development

Division’s Area Frame Section at most

$25,000 a year.

7.0 Which of NASS’ questionnaires

could be used on a portable

electronic device?

Theoretically, all of NASS’ surveys could

be conducted on a portable electronic

device. However, as discussed earlier, the

PDA’s small screen size makes the device

impractical to display any questionnaire

containing a table, which most

questionnaires that require personal

enumeration have. Thus, the tablet PC,

laptop and convertible are left as possible

devices capable of handling tables. 

Some of the surveys, that the majority of

data is collected through personal field

enumeration, are listed below.

 Agricultural Resource Study II & III

 Field Crop Chemical Use Survey

 Vegetable Chemical Use

 Post Harvest Chemical Use Survey

 June Area Survey

 Conservation Effects Assessment 
19

 Program

 Nursery and Floriculture Chemical Use

 Survey

 Objective Yield Program

Also, surveys similar to the Quarterly

Agricultural Surveys, where personal

enumeration is conducted for those

operations in the higher strata, potentially

could be conducted on a PED.

Some of these field enumerated

questionnaires, though, would require

additional programming and innovative

questionnaire designing in order to

display a table that spans two pages on a

paper questionnaire, display a respondent

booklet and provide enumerators the

ability to write comments. This would

require some enhancements to the

Question Repository System and using

some creative ways in displaying

questions.

8.0 Conclusion 

Each PED platform has its own unique

qualities and problems. In terms of the

overall cost to equip a field enumerator,

the PDA is the least expensive PED at

$800, followed by the laptop at $1,500,

the tablet PC at $2,100 and the

convertible at $2,400. 

Comparing the technical capabilities

(processor speed, storage, etc.) of each

platform, the laptop and convertible are

virtually tied, followed closely by the tablet

PC, with the PDA a very distant fourth.

Depending on the volume of work, the

PDA is the only platform that I have

serious doubts about.

Concerning size, weight, and the ability to

be used in the field, first place goes to the

PDA. One can use the device practically

anywhere and it is easy to hold. The tablet

PC is easier to hold while standing,

compared to the convertible or the laptop.

The capability to be used in direct sunlight

will be an issue for every platform except

the PDA, whose small screen size gives it

a significant advantage. 

Definitely the convertible is heavier but

does having a keyboard outweigh the

additional weight? My feeling is yes but

additional research would have to be done

to substantiate this theory. All platforms

except for the PDA can display an entire

page of any of NASS’ questionnaires

without substantial scrolling. Thus, using

the PDA for data collection, would require

a major overhaul of our questionnaires and

developing a separate question or groups

of questions for each cell of a table found

in most of NASS’ questionnaires. Hence,

the achilles heel of the PDA is its small

screen size. 

The ability to enter data via a pen is a

definite bonus for the tablet PC,

convertible and the PDA. For drawing out
20

tracts and fields on a digital map for the

June Area Survey, the tablet PC’s pen

worked very well. 

However, the tablet PC’s pen for data

entry can be a hindrance for anything

beyond simple typing of numbers and a

few letters. An on-screen keyboard or an

external keyboard could easily handle an

operation’s name and address change

while the pen would be very frustrating at

best. Also, for data transmission, simply

typing in an id and password or even a

NASS site to transmit the data is very

awkward with a pen alone. This is why I

give the convertible high marks for also

having a keyboard and touch pad as well

as the pen. 

Hence, my choice of a portable electronic

device to handle NASS’ field data

collection is a toss up between the

convertible and the tablet PC. These are

the two most versatile PEDs, and to be at

all cost effective the devices would have

to be used for multiple surveys.

9.0 Where to go from here?

Hopefully, this document has provided

you with a better understanding of the

capabilities of each PED platform.

The question on “Where NASS should go

at this point?” has three possible options.

Option 1: Full scale development and

implementation of a PED data collection

system.

Option 2: Conduct small scale research

projects that would work towards building

a pilot system.

Option 3: Re-visit PEDs in a few years.

For Options 1 and 2, the author

recommends NOT using PDAs for field

data collection since the PDA was found

not to be a viable platform due to its

limited capabilities and field applications.

Sections 10.0 - 12.0 describe each option

in more detail. 

10.0 Option 1 - Full Scale Development and Implementation

Develop a system that allows NASS to

conduct any survey in the field via a

selected PED. NASS would accomplish

this by leveraging the Question Repository

System and parts of the Electronic Data

Reporting System, and by constructing an

Internet site that would manage the

transmission of data, questionnaires, field

assignments, and even training. All State

Statistical Offices (SSOs) would be

operational with this new data collection

method within 4 years. Additional details

on the system are provided in Appendix

A.

10. 1 The Benefits
21

This option allows NASS to have a stateof-the-art PED data collection system.

There are several benefits to using PEDs

for data collection. The most notable

ones are provided below.

 Improved data quality. The ability to

use edit checks and historical data on the

PED will provide NASS with better data

and in the end a better product.

 Reduce data entry costs since now the

data are already in electronic format at

the time of collection.

 Mailing costs of questionnaires will be

reduced. No more mailing paper

questionnaires back into the office. Also,

field enumerators will be able to receive

their assignments and questionnaires

electronically.

 Data can be transmitted back to the

SSOs faster and in some cases the very

same day. This will provide the SSO staff

more time to review the data.

 All surveys could be conducted on the

device. 

 Time sheets can be completed on the

device. This would allow NASS to have a

more accurate account of enumerator

expenses.

10.2 The Drawbacks

 This is a very aggressive plan and

would require a significant amount of

resources in funding and staffing. At

$2,000+ per unit for each field enumerator

(approx. 3,000), the cost would is

estimated at 6 million dollars for hardware

alone on top of financing for building the

infrastructure. Staffing would be needed

to build the infrastructure and a support

staff of 5 - 10 FTEs would also be needed

once the system is fully operational.

 Return on investment is not likely due

to the enormous start-up costs.

 The PEDs, themselves, are still not

quite to the level that NASS’ field

enumerators need. As noted earlier, the

ability to see the screen outside for three

of the four platforms is questionable.

11.0 Option 2 - Small Scale Research

Projects

Conduct small scale / low cost research

projects that will work towards building the

needed pieces that will create a pilot

system and eventually a production

system. Sub-sections (11.1 - 11.6)

provide an outline for these small scale

research projects. 

11.1 Data Collection Instrument

The first step is to decide how a data

collection instrument for a PED would be

developed.
22

Possibilities include using Blaise,

leveraging the Question Repository

System, or using software like C++ or

Visual Basic. 

Recommend the QRS since eventually all

of the questionnaires will be residing

there. Blaise is an option but only 20 of

NASS surveys are in Blaise. Using

software like C++, is the least viable

option since NASS doesn’t have expertise

in this software. 

How would the data collection instrument

be transferred onto the PED?

Propose researching how questionnaires

could be transferred from the Question

Repository System to any portable

electronic device.

STG (contractor for NASS’ Electronic

Data Reporting System) provided a very

basic demonstration of this on a tablet

PC. The project would consist of

understanding, documenting and

improving upon what was done by STG.

To keep costs to a minimum, one staff

member of Research and Development

Division (RDD) would learn the various

software being used on the prototype

tablet PC and attempt to replicate the

process on another PED. Assistance

from Information Technology Division

(ITD), especially Field Services, would be

needed. This would help answer the

issue of how the questionnaire for the

PED would be created. 

In the future, investigate how to transfer

the questionnaire to a PED remotely.

Financing: $4,000 for training in Apache,

Sybase and Perl.

Resources: 1 - RDD Staff and assistance

from ITD (Field Services).

11.2 Sampling Information

Once the questionnaire is on the device,

the next step is to take the operator’s

sampling information and place it onto the

PED.

Resources: 1 - RDD Staff.

At this point, NASS would have the

capability of placing a questionnaire with a

sample on a PED and could actually start

collecting data.

11.3 Transmission

There are two types of data transmission

issues. The first is the secure

transmission of the data collection

instrument and sampling information onto

the device. The second is secure

transmission of collected data from the

device to a database.

Propose one RDD staff member to

research the best way to securely transmit
23

data quickly, accurately and securely to

and from the selected PED. 

This would be accomplished by

researching what other companies and

agencies are using for data transmission

and by visiting with various vendors of

data transmission software/hardware. 

Next, develop a list of requirements that is

needed for NASS’ data transmission

activities. 

Finally, select the top three products that

meet NASS’ requirements and test

sending questionnaires and mock data

back and forth using one of RDD’s tablet

PCs and a computer acting as a

database.

Financing: $1,000 for purchasing data

transmission/encryption software to test.

Resources: 1 - RDD Staff, 1 - ITD Staff

with input from ITD’s (Computer Security

Section) and NASS’ Enterprise

Architecture Council.

At this juncture, NASS would have the

ability to place a questionnaire from the

QRS along with that survey’s sampling

information onto a portable electronic

device, collect data and finally transmit

the collected data back to a remote

database.

11.4 Security of the PED

What happens if the PED is stolen or lost?

Can anyone get to the data?

Research what are the best ways to

protect what is on the device so that nonNASS/NASDA employees can not access

the data or use the device.

Propose one RDD staff member to

research the best way to secure the data

that resides on the device and to prevent

non-NASS employees from using the

device.

This would be accomplished by

researching what other companies and

agencies are using for security of their

hardware and by visiting with various

computer security vendors.

Next, develop a list of requirements that is

needed to meet NASS’ security

requirements.

Finally, select the top two products that

meet NASS’ requirements and test using

one of RDD’s tablet PCs.

This may require assistance and

consultation from ITD (Field Services &

Computer Security) and NASS’ Enterprise

Architecture Council.

Financing: $500 for purchasing

software/hardware to test. This cost may

be bundled with the Transmission proposal

discussed in 11.3.
24

11.5 Testing

Test how this PED pilot system would

work in a State Statistical Office.

Propose working with a State Statistical

Office (SSO) that is willing to use the

selected PED for data collection. Choose

a survey to test and conduct live

enumeration with a handful of PEDs.

This will allow NASS to learn what still

needs to be fine tuned before expanding

the pilot system to a true production

environment. This would also provide

NASS with how the selected PED would

actually work in the field. 

Financing: $50,000+. Purchase 10 PEDs

and accessories for testing, software

licensing if needed, and hardware

(server), travel and training costs.

Resources: Staffing is as follows: 1 -

RDD, 1 - Survey Administration Branch

(SAB), 1 - ITD (Field Services), 1 -

Questionnaire Design Section, SSO staff

and NASDA enumerators.

11.6 Pilot to Production

Work towards transforming the pilot

system to a production system. 

As a starting point, I developed a plan

that shows how PEDs could actually

become operational within NASS’ current

business model. See Appendix A for

specific details. The cost of actually doing

this from scratch is not realistic but having

accomplished these earlier small scale

research projects, NASS has actually built

a prototype of the system.

Financing: Undetermined at this time.

Resources: Minimum staffing

requirements: 1 - RDD, 3 - ITD (one each

from Field Services, Systems Services,

and Computer Security), two from SAB

and two from Questionnaire Design

Section.

11.7 The Benefits of Small Scale

Research

 Allows NASS to use minimal amount of

financial and staffing resources. 

 Provides the flexibility to build/change

the system as NASS’ business model

changes. 

 Better chance of achieving a positive

return on investment since NASS can

gradually develop and implement the

system with minimal funding.

 Keeps NASS moving forward on using

the latest technologies to obtain the most

accurate data possible.

11.8 The Drawbacks of Small Scale

Research
25

 Staff and financial costs, although

small, still exist.

 Stretches out the time frame for fullscale implementation.

 Some research/findings may become

obsolete by the time NASS is in a position

to implement. 

12.0 Option 3 - Re-visit PEDs in a few

years

The other option is to re-visit PED data

collection altogether. With the cost of

PEDs ranging from $500 to over $2,000,

maybe it is best to post-pone PEDs for

another 3-4 years. During my research, I

was unable to find a single data collection

agency or company that could show a

positive return on investment. An

agency/company implemented PEDs

either because they were allocated

money to use PEDs or that the client

insisted that a particular PED was to be

used. 

The main reason for postponing further

PED research is that there is no

immediate cost to NASS in terms of

staffing or financing. A secondary reason

is that no company/agency has shown a

positive return on investment by using

PEDs for data collection.

The primary drawback for re-visiting

PEDs in a few years is that other

statistical agencies will advance in data

collection methods while NASS falls

behind. This in turn may cause the

general public to question why NASS is

not using the latest data collection

technologies like other agencies. A

secondary drawback is that the use of

PEDs for data collection will have to be reresearched, which will cost NASS in staff

resources and financing.

13.0 Final Thoughts

Within the last five years, portable

electronic devices have exploded with

various platforms and models. PDAs,

tablet PCs, laptops, and convertibles are

being used by private companies and

government agencies for daily business

operations and/or to collect field level data.

These companies/agencies, however,

have not been able to overcome the high

initial start up costs to show a positive

return on investment.

In the future, costs will continue to come

down which will make the use of PEDs in

the field more feasible. Hence, cautiously

approaching data collection using PEDs

will enable NASS to implement PEDs

when the time is right. 
26

Appendix A

A.1 The PED Vision

Envision a NASS operated Web Site for

Field Enumerators (WSFE) that an

enumerator can access through the

NASS Access Server via a telephone

modem, cable modem, wireless modem,

etc. and download his/her daily work

assignment (operators of interest,

questionnaires with edit logic,

interviewer’s manual, etc.) to a portable

electronic device.

The enumerator views the list of

operations to visit and at this time has two

options depending on the survey. 

Option 1 - Telephone Interview

Call the operator over the phone and

complete the questionnaire on a PED.

Option 2 - Field Interview

Call the operator and schedule an

appointment for a personal interview.

Next, the field enumerator will use his/her

PED and a pre-loaded transportation

software to determine the most efficient

path for that day’s work based on the

scheduled appointment times and driving

time. 

The field enumerator then follows the

predetermined route, via an attached

Global Positioning System (GPS)

accessory, to the operations of interest. 

The enumerator drives to the operator’s

location and goes through the typical

NASS introductions and opening

formalities to make the operator feel

comfortable on completing the

questionnaire. 

Next, the field enumerator uses the PED

to bring up the appropriate

questionnaire(s), and begins the interview.

The enumerator reads the questions and

records the operator’s responses into the

device. The addition of simple edit checks

would improve the quality of the data since

unusual acreage, yields, expenses, and

income can be noted or if invalid,

corrected.

The enumerator continues working

throughout the day with all of the

information being captured onto the

device. 

Regardless of the above option selected,

the field enumerator, at night, will connect

to the Web Site for Field Enumerators

(WSFE) via a modem (built into the PED)

and upload all of the data. The next

morning, the State Statistical Office (SSO)

will download the data via the same

process currently used by the Electronic

Data Reporting System.
27

The WSFE would also be accessible by

the SSO and the supervisory enumerator.

The statistician in the SSO would use the

Survey Management System (SMS) to

mark those operations of interest that

require field enumeration and upload this

information to the WSFE. The actual

questionnaires to be downloaded would

be obtained from the Electronic Data

Reporting (EDR) system. Next, the

supervisory enumerators would access

the WSFE and manage the field

enumerators’ assignments. This ensures

that the correct operations and

questionnaires are downloaded to the

proper enumerator’s portable electronic

device.

A.2 Benefits

 Provide field collected survey data

to the SSOs faster. No more waiting for

the questionnaires to come in the mail or

personal delivery and then have to wait

for the data entry personnel to key the

data. Field collected data has the

potential to be processed the very same

day. This would enable the survey

statistician to review the data sooner.

 Enable NASS to reduce its data entry

staff costs since the data will already be

in electronic form. 

 Improve the quality of the data since

simple edit checks would be incorporated

into the downloaded questionnaire. Large

discrepancies in an operation’s data from

one quarter to the next could be displayed

on the PED and the enumerator would

note the reason for the discrepancy or

correct the data if needed. This would

reduce the number of call backs to

operators that statisticians conduct when

the collected data appears to be invalid.

 Field enumerators’ work assignments

could be easily changed. Shuffling of

paper questionnaires between

enumerators is eliminated. This saves

enumerators and SSO staff time and in

some cases mailing costs.

 Eliminate mailing questionnaires or

physically transporting questionnaires to

enumerators.

 Eliminate the need for enumerators

mailing questionnaires back to the office or

using NASS personnel to physically go

and meet the enumerators to obtain the

completed questionnaires.

 Facilitate the data review process.

Since the collected data will be in

electronic format, a statistician can look up

a particular operation’s survey data

quicker and easier than weeding through

hundreds or thousands of paper

questionnaires.

 Reduce the amount of physical storage

space an office needs since everything is

kept electronically from the start.
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 Facilitate administrative management

of the data collection process.

Enumerators would be able to complete

their time sheets electronically. Also, by

incorporating simple edit checks,

accuracy of expenses would improve and

eliminate any discrepancies. This would

save both SSO staff and enumerators’

time. This improved accuracy of

expenses can then be used in deriving at

better cost estimates for future

reimbursable projects and thereby

reducing the possibility of cost over runs.

 Improve enumerator training. The

enumerator handbook, training material

and training modules could also be

downloaded to the device. The training

would go beyond just showing the user

how to operate the PED but also walk the

enumerator through the questionnaire

and the purpose of the survey. This

could eliminate the need for some of the

workshops for field enumerators. 

NASS could also have the capability to

see if enumerators actually reviewed the

training before starting enumeration. 

This would require additional staffing to

make the enumerator’s training material

and aids available. Overall, this should

help our enumerators become better

educated on what they are asking and

therefore should improve the quality of

data being collected.

A.3 Vision to Reality

Bringing this vision to light, would require

leveraging the Question Repository

System and the Electronic Data Reporting

System. 

Currently, the Question Repository System

(QRS) is operational and contains

approximately thirty surveys. This system

generates Web questionnaires allowing

operators to complete their questionnaires

on-line. 

Eventually, all of NASS’ questionnaires will

be in the QRS and “almost” all

questionnaires will have a Web option,

including the 2007 Census of Agriculture.

Having almost all surveys available for

EDR, is imperative in obtaining a positive

return on investment for PED data

collection. However, some questions

would have to be re-written to

accommodate the personal interview

mode. Currently, questions in the QRS

are written for the self administered mode.

This will allow SSOs to send any survey

work to the field even at the last minute. 

Also, when an operation is in multiple

samples, the enumerator can obtain data

for all of the questionnaires at once. 

A.3.1 Obstacles

Below are the major obstacles that would

need to be overcome.
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 Providing the capability for a

statistician to use the Survey

Management System (SMS) to mark

those operators that need to be field

enumerated. Also, the capability to

upload this information to the WSFE so

that it can later be downloaded to a PED

along with the appropriate questionnaires.

This would require modification of SMS.

 Developing the (WSFE) to handle the

transmission of questionnaires, collected

data, work assignments etc. between

SSO staff, enumerators and the

supervisory enumerators.

 Providing for the security of the data.

Web site security would be needed, but

the same security that is being used for

EDR could easily be leveraged.

Security of the PED, itself, will need to be

researched. In the event the device is

lost or stolen, no one should be able to

access the information on the device.

This would need to be researched to find

a product for the selected device.

The data that are being transmitted need

to have some form of encryption.

Currently, a pilot project using PDAs for

data collection by the NC SSO will help

us answer this question in more depth.

However, additional research is needed

to see what other software is available to

meet our data encryption requirements.

 Providing the capability to download the

questionnaires of interest, sample

information, historical data, and edit

checks to any PED. A very basic demo

was shown by STG on how one could take

a questionnaire from QRS and have it

loaded and running on a tablet PC. 

 Identifying Global Positioning System

(GPS) software and hardware that would

provide field enumerators with the most

efficient route for the day based on their

appointments. There are several route

planning products on the market but

research would have to be done to see

which one cost effectively meets NASS’

requirements. This hurdle should really be

viewed as an option and not as a

requirement.

Note: A NASS pilot study on using GPS

devices for ARMS Phase II is currently

underway in the Washington SSO. The

goal of the project is to see if using GPS

devices for recording the latitude and

longitude coordinates for the sampled field

is more efficient than the current method of

using paper county maps and DLG

mapping software.

 Choosing a PED device that handles

the vision and is cost effective. Based on

my findings I am recommending the

convertible or the tablet PC. Both units

would compliment the vision. 

 Increasing Technical Support Staff to
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handle any hardware problems or

computer viruses that will arise. 

 Budgeting training costs on how to use

the PED and the cost and time on

obtaining “buy in” of using PEDS to the

enumerators. 

In the January 30, 2004 - FO Info, it was

stated that the supervisory enumerators

who came to Washington DC for a

meeting with Field Operations noted that

they “were not receptive to the use of

laptop computers for data collection by

field enumerators. In the field, data is

collected in a variety of places (barns,

fields, etc.) Members thought laptops

would limit enumerators flexibility for

getting data.” 

This statement was based on only two

supervisory enumerators and their

knowledge of the capabilities of laptops or

other PEDs is unknown. However, we

must recognize that any change is not

always embraced by everyone right away.

Therefore, education on the use of the

selected PED is critical.

 Rewriting of some questions for field

enumeration. Currently, questions in the

QRS are written for the self administered

mode. This would require additional

staffing. 

 Budgeting for the costs of back-up

devices to replace any PED that fails in

the field, as well as, shipping costs

associated with providing a new one to the

field enumerator in a timely manner.

 Staffing - additional staffing would be

needed.

A.4 Implementation

Once the infrastructure is in place, tested

and fully operational, NASS could move

forward with the actual implementation of

the selected PED for data collection.

Suggest a five year phasing in process.

This will allow NASS to gradually introduce

the selected PED to the SSOs and allows

NASS to avoid taking the substantial

monetary plunge required of a full-scale

implementation.

 Phase 1 - Year 1

Implementation would begin in the North

Carolina and the Virginia SSOs. North

Carolina was selected since their

enumerators are already collecting data

using PDAs and are growing accustomed

to using computers in the field. Virginia

was selected due to their proximity to

Washington DC and the Research and

Development Division. Staffing for

technical support could be minimal until

full scale implementation is completed.

Additional 4 FTEs: ( 1- PED Survey

Manager, 1 - PED Assistant, 2 -

Information Technology Division Staff). 
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 Phase 2 - Year 2

Five SSOs that are willing to implement

this technology and that have field

enumerators with a high workload. Per

enumerator Additional 2 FTE - PED

Assistants.

 Phase 3 - Years 3-5

Implementation of PEDs in thirteen SSOs

during each year. Additional - 2 FTE -

PED Assistants.

 Year 6 - Equipment Replacement

Replace those devices used in Phase 1 &

2, if necessary.

 Year 7 - Equipment Replacement

Replace those devices distributed in the

first round of Phase 3, if necessary, etc.
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