How to create my own waypoint navigation for boat routes

[bluedude]

Hi,

I'm living in an area called the Venice of the North and we have lots of boat routes here. However, there is no app. to do navigation.

What would be the best approach to get a simple navigation solution? My idea would be:

1. Do radius search for the nearest next point;
2. Determine bearing and distance;
3. Show it on the map.

However, what if I turn around the boat? Nearest points based on radius will always give me all nearest points in a circle so also in front of me and behind me.

Any suggestions or ideas?

Cheers,

 

[Erel]

Not sure that I understand. Do you want to find the closest point or do you want to navigate to a specific point?

Are there any obstacles? Can you go straight to each point?

 

[bluedude]

Erel,

Need of course also to find the closest point and navigate to that point. No we cannot go straight to each point unfortunately.

So a user picks a route at a starting point and then needs to navigate along the route, point by point.

Cheers,

 

[Erel]

So you get a list of points and need to navigate to the next one until the end of the route?

 

[Informatix]

So you get a list of points and need to navigate to the next one until the end of the route?

My Steering Behaviors library can do that. It includes also a pathfinder to find the shortest path between two points.

 

[bluedude]

Steering behavior??

Hi Informatix,

I'm talking about real GPS navigation, not gaming navigation.

Can you explain what you mean?

Cheers,

 

[thedesolatesoul]

Do you have a map of the boat routes? What format are they in?
I think Informatix lib can help you, but you need to map your obstacles/routes into it somehow.

 

[Informatix]

Hi Informatix,

I'm talking about real GPS navigation, not gaming navigation.

Can you explain what you mean?

Cheers,

If you want to use the most efficient and recent algorithms for your navigation, you'll find them in the games litterature, not in the books about algorithms (usually already outdated when they are published).
I admit that my Steering Behaviors library does not use state-of-the-art algorithms (I don't use the JPS algorithm for pathfinding, for example) but it is built upon solid and efficient algorithms that are enough for something as simple as navigating alone on a static map (creating a real-time strategy game is far more complex as it implies incomplete trees for the pathfinding and frequent changes of path for many units).
Since my library allows to define your own movement costs and your own heuristic for the A* algorithm, you can adapt it to a lot of different situations and uses.

 

[CidTek]

What you are referring to is called waypoints in the navigation world and someone has to have previously plotted a course and then published it or made it available.

You have to take hull depths especially with keel boats into consideration before assuming a path is suitable for navigation.

A quick search on the web shows multiple waypoint registry sites and videos on the topic of marine waypoints and you may also find the best sources on UseNet lists instead of blogs as the serious sailors seem to still hang out on Usenet due its low data overhead. Look for lists (lists predated blogs) with words like Cruising in the title as those are the serious sailors instead of the rec daytime boaters.

 

[warwound]

The ultimate solution is to create your own routing service:
http://project-osrm.org

Not easy but not impossible.

Martin.

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Informatix]

The ultimate solution is to create your own routing service:
Open Source Routing Machine

Not easy but not impossible.

This project uses a technique described here. It's an approach usable for rivers and canals (because they are like roads), but on sea, it's a different matter. I will explain if that interests someone.

 

[CidTek]

Any routing has to take into consideration navigation hazards (both above and below the surface) and depth readings. Take a look at any nautical chart and observe channel bouys - you will see they direct you on a path in many cases that would not be obvious to the eye.

 

[bluedude]

Don't need stuff like depths

Hi,

This app. is for just one city for all rental companies and their users. All boats are adapted to the low depth conditions (1 m. max). I basically need route plotting and directions for the next/previous point in the route.

The place I talk about gets 1 mil. visitors a year and many of them have mobile devices.

I will take a look at all suggestions and see if this is doable on a low budget.

Thanks.

 

[CidTek]

So what do you have to work with?

Actual navigation waypoint paths for waterways?

Points of interest but no routing info?