WristMap

WristMap comprises a pair of Android and Wear OS apps that bring simple mapping capabilities to your wrist when out of online coverage. Both are designed for low power consumption. The wearable app can be used standalone, though it is configured from the handheld. You can pair multiple wearables with the same handheld.

On both the wearable (watch) and the handheld (phone), the base map can be one of:

• A map archive file stored on the device (needs external storage read permission)

• An online map, one of:

  • Open Street Map (OSM)

  • CyclOSM a Cycle map based on OSM mapping

  • OpenTopo a topographic map based on OSM mapping

  • UK Ordnance Survey Open topographic mapping

  • IGN France Open imagery and topographic mapping

  • IGN Spain Open imagery and topographic mapping

  • USGS Open imagery and topographic mapping

  • German Open topographic mapping

  • Swiss Open topographic mapping

  • New Zealand Open topographic mapping

In addition, when the handheld app is running on a paired device, the wearable can use any archive stored on the handheld.

The Web Mercator (EPSG:3857) archive formats supported are:

• GEMF

• MBTILES

• SQLITE

• ZIP

These include most of the popular open formats as used by e.g. OsmDroid and Locus. They can be prepared using e.g. MOBAC.

The selection of online maps available can be set on the wearable or the handheld.

The handheld app can be used to load GeoJson or KML overlays (e.g. tracks, routes or waypoints) from a file or from the web. The loaded overlays can be copied to and displayed on the wearable.

Facilities are provided on the Apps to transfer base maps and overlays between the handheld and wearable. The free space on the wearable is shown together with the sizes of any files. Base maps can be pushed from the handheld to the wearable or pulled from the handheld by the wearable. Base maps and overlays stored on the wearable can be deleted using either the handheld or the wearable.

Current location can be obtained and dropped as a pin on the map. Tapping the pin will show its age and location. Pins show on both the handheld and wearable app. There is no automatic, battery draining, track recorder.

With cross-hairs turned on, a tap in the cross hairs will list the current location in a selectable format for sharing with others. The location format is selectable between:

• Decimal Latitude and Longitude

• British National Grid

• Military Grid Reference System (WGS84 UTM)

• what3words (needs internet connection)

The wearable map can be zoomed in with a double tap and zoomed out with a two finger tap. Alternatively it may be zoomed with on-screen buttons, the scroll wheel or a physical button pair (if available).

WristMap also provides several useful watch face complications - see the important notes about location permissions and services below.

A set of location providers:

All these fetch current location when tapped, and display it, with an age, if space permits. The location is displayed in full detail, when it is updated. The location complications can be set to auto-update every five minutes (in the handheld and wearable settings) .

Above Mean Sea Level altitude in meters or feet. These two complications apply the 1996 Earth Gravitational Model ellipsoid-geoid separation to the Location sensor's WGS84 ellipsoidal altitude. They do not require an online service to look up an altitude, rather the device's Location sensor is used. The altitude complications can be set to auto-update every five minutes (in the handheld and wearable settings) and will also update when tapped.

Sunrise and Sunset which of course depend on your location. The time shown is local time (with any DST offset applied) These update when tapped or every three hours. The tap text and long text display will show your time zone.

The Handheld Battery complication updates every 5 minutes. The 'Crow Flies' complications can be set to auto-update every five minutes (in the handheld and wearable settings) and will also update when tapped. The Home location setter sets the reference location for the ‘Crow Flies’ complications. It only updates on tap. Tapping the Handheld Battery complication will show the name of the paired handheld.