GPS Navigation
From Openmoko
| Not implemented: This article or section documents one or more features that are not implemented and which may never be implemented. |
Contents |
Overview
This article defines the GPS Navigation Application, an application designed for the OpenMoko platform. This is a Native Finger-Based application.
Use Cases
Here are some possible use cases:
- I want to be able to quickly find my location on a map.
- I want to be able to measure my speed.
- I want to be able to find the stars in the sky for my current position (see Orrery).
- I want to be able to use GPS navigation information indoors.
- I want to be able to record the route I take.
- I want to be able to easily add my current location as a waypoint, perhaps with a voice clip.
- I want to be able to send my current location as a point of interest to another phone, using SMS.
- I want to be able to navigate between waypoints, with a large display showing course, cross-track error, distance to waypoint and compass heading.
- I want to be able to navigate while in an airplane, with airport data.
- I want to be able to see my Neo1973 friends on my GPS map, so i know where they are.
- I want to be able to correct the map when it's wrong.
- I want to be able to track my movements - For personal reasons or maybe used by company for their employees out on delivery? Record GPS position, then do a HTTP request to a script with all the positions, say every 5 mins? Data could then be overlayed onto google maps to display movements at different times.
Layout Components
(TBD)
Application Area
(TBD)
Footer Area
Status Bar
(TBD)
Constraints
(TBD)
Sessions
(TBD)
Architectural Details
(TBD)
Implementation Recommendations
- See the general article on GPS for another list of possible GPS navigation applications.
- The community project GPS Sight have developed the user friendly "basic" application (coordinates and path graphs, but no maps). Everybody is welcome to join.
- At tui.sf.net, there's pygps application; it can read GPS, display position/list of satelites and display arrow over calibrated raster map. There are scripts to import openstreetmap, and it works on neo (given that you install python first; angstrom makes that easy).
- Since there are no open source maps, we can only download maps from web and display as bitmap. Consider using Dash for this application commercially
- On the contrary, there are (albeit few) sources of open source (or even public domain) maps for GIS/GPS applications. Moreover, many (if not all) proprietary formats in use today can (or could) be reverse engineered or have already been reverse engineered -- therefore creating the need for an OpenMoko-native mapping/tracking plaform, in the form of an application (mapping data viewer), an API for uniform access to such data and a modular filter/driver layer for (1) interfacing with one of the many datasets (e.g. a MapInfo reader) for display purposes and (2) exporting trip data to one of the many formats in use today (e.g. .LOC format). --@Dexter 14:36, 20 April 2007 (CEST)
- Global Locate has a feature to download satellite data over http. We need to build this support into our handsets.
- Need to check http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/index.php/Main_Page
- Pyroute is a routing program written in Python by Ojw, and a mobile phone GUI for maps, GPS, and routing. It uses openstreetmap.org. See Installing Pyroute
- GeoClue provides all kinds of geography information to an application through a very abstract DBus interface in which a variety of backends (for now, yahoo maps & geocoding, gpsd, manual, hostip.info) can be used to provide this implementation.
- Roadnav is a pretty good in-dash software package for Linux. In the US it uses TIGER maps that are freely available and pretty good quality. Outside the US it uses OSM which is mentioned above. There's no embedded or pda version of it right now, but modifying it may be easier than starting a new project from scratch.
- Navit is an opensource navigation software. Navit supports well Grosser Reiseplaner maps. In 0.0.2 version support for OpenStreetMap and Garmin IMG maps was added, but they are still under development and any feedback is welcome. There is a Video of a new SDL-interface. In 0.0.3 we should see "Demo Vehicle" function showing choosen route as live presentation and new official skin for SDL gui. For feature request and bugs please visit Navit's Tracker. For help Navit's wiki or #navit irc channel at freenode.net .
- RoadMap Editor is a GPLed navigation software package for Linux, Windows Mobile and J2ME devices. It supports route calculation with A*, has voice driving instructions, 2D/3D views and has an interface targeting phones and PDAs. It also has an editing mode, where the user can "record" roads while driving/walking/cycling on them and assign attributes to unclassified roads. It supports US TIGER maps and also the format used for FreeMap Israel. RoadMap Editor is a fork from the Roadmap Main Branch with many new features.
- Roadmap Main Branch will be releasing a new version shortly (fall 2007) that matches many of the features listed for Roadmap Editor - we are discussing getting map-interoperability between the two and there is some momentum to merge the forks. At the very least, map interoperability would enable users to move between the two applications easily (and keep the same maps) --wisp 07:37, 13 September 2007 (CEST)
- Loadstone-GPS is a free satellite navigation software developed for Symbian Mobile/phones using the Series60 platform. Maybe it can be ported to OpenMoko.
- YAMA is a free map viewer application for PC and Windows Mobile. It is developed in interpreted language (Java and .NET) so it should be easy to be ported to OpenMoko. Currently it is being tested on Windows Mobile handheld devices with GPS. Has an own map format and a somewhat converter from Garmin maps. Maps from turistautak.hu(Free maps of Hungary) work with it already. I am developing it and planning to port to OpenMoko as soon as I obtain a phone. --Rizsi 13:00, 6 November 2007 (CEST)
- A simple add-on for flight GPS use would be functionable and fun while on long flights. Unsure if there are any programs for Linux (edit: It appears GPSDrive handles flight data), but aircraft navigation is simple straight line between two airports/way points. A simple vector based map with simple topography , both in shapefile format, and a database from the FAA with details on all 20,000 US airports wouldn't take up very much space for those who want it. The file from the FAA is bloated and has more data than needed and can be shrunk to 1MB.--Adamsteele 06:41, 22 September 2007 (CEST)
- qpegps qtopia (arm PDA) based map viewer with gps features
- QMapControl Qtopia based mapping widget. Displays maps and custom data, also other widgets can be bound to coordinates. GPS parser for the gllin output included.
- MapThis - Given the state of the maps available currently at openstreetmaps.org, some users are going find a way to obtain their maps from google or microsoft virtual earth. For Sony PSP users, there is a nice way to do this, using a GPL homebrew program named "MapThis". The latest version allegedly features address lookup (using tiger geodata, 2006se), GPS logging (position recording), a speed monitor, audio cues when approaching waypoints, "3-D" bird's eye mode, and the ability to download map tiles (even satellite photography) directly off the web (no need for a PC, although I haven't test this yet). It is not yet able to calculate routes between two locations. I don't know the legality of downloading maps from google, but the program is so polished, perhaps they can mimic aspects of this program's design, or offer the guy who wrote it a job? I really like this program (edit by swallowtail).
Interactions
(TBD)
Unresolved Issues
A question: Is anyone actively working on this? If not, I will begin doing so once my phone arrives. If someone is already working on this, do you have any tasks you would like to delegate? I'm an experienced software developer who's futzed a fair amount with GPS in the past. Kevinh 17:42, 6 July 2007 (CEST)
Their seems to be some interested people but not much done yet. See the [projects] page on all projects the include the work GPS. I am interested in working too. Tiantian 10 Aug. 2007
Maybe Openmoko could be a suitable platform for GPS-Drive. After we have done our next release, which will be hopefully within the next two month, I will check this out. Any help is appreciated then. --D.S.E 12:08, 13 August 2007 (CEST)
I'm interested in helping too, I'm looking at basing my work off navit, since it's GTK based, has an active development community and uses vector maps. Though I'm not convinced this is the only route to go. Wsvoorhees 17 Aug. 2007
I am interested in helping out - mainly scripting skills, not hardcore programming. I like the idea of tying into openstreetmap and I think roadmap_editor could be a reasonable framework for this - it just doesn't currently have a tie in to openstreetmap. It can also be used for navigation, as noted above - but if US Census maps are used, they don't contain layers or road/turn restrictions, and roadmap will tell you to drive like the Dukes of Hazard: "Turn left here!" (across the freeway and jump off the overpass onto the road below)
- (all roadmap variants support GTK2+, in addition to other platforms)
- if you want to contribute to roadmap/roadmap_editor, join us on the listserv
--wisp 07:56, 13 September 2007 (CEST)
Questions and Answers
(TBD) Further Question and Answers: See Hardware:AGPS
