Benchesfrom evolutive.co

January 2016, London GeoMobCarles Pina - carles@pina.catCarles Estevadeordal

Today...

What is benches

Why have we done benches?

Micromapping, OSM bench amenity

How is it done?

What's Benches

iOS app (evolutive.co, a friend who does apps)

Also available for Android!

Shows your location

And shows nearby benchesand toilets

and drinking water fountains

Users can add benches, fountains, toilets and POIs with their own description.

At the moment we don't automatically upload user POIs to OSM:We need to double check OSM licensing issues (users don't have OSM account)

We are afraid that users don't understand that this is publically available (and they might just test...)

We would like to collaborate more with OSM

Why?

Reason 1

London LOOP
(London Outer Orbital Path)

Reason 2: reduced mobility

Reason 3: happy people

Reduced mobility

I started testing routing algorithms

Walk from point A to B

Constraint: maximum distance without a bench

But I need to have more mapped benches, so I thought to start simpler and get ready for when I really need the routing algorithm

User feedback

This is a very simple app that will be very useful when we put some data in it. Obviously, it takes all of us to find the benches and put them on the map. I encourage you to down load the app and spend 5 minutes providing info for your neighborhood. Even if you don't think you'll use the app, this will be a great service to other users. My daughter has MS. She would be much more confident going for a walk if she had the information this app is intended to provide.

Micromapping

A few months before starting the benches I wondered:Why mappers map useless things like trees, lamps?

One day I thought: how can I find benches?Look at OSM! YES! They are there! Thanks!

Please do more micromapping (someone will use it... or yourself!)

Micromapping differentiates OSM from google Maps

Please add benches!

Tag:amenity=bench

It's a node

Optional tags:backrest=yes/no

direction=compass point (e.g. NW)

seats=number of seats

material=wood, steel, stone

operator=who maintains the bench

color=brown, black, etc. (commonly used)

Current setup

Every week a script downloads planet-latest.osm.pbf

We import the relevant nodes to our PostgreSQL (with GIS module)

We use Leaflet

Users can add benches, toilets, fountains and favourites. So far only for the same user (we don't upload them to OSM)

Tech stack

HTML + Javascript (with Leaflet) on the client side

iPhone app to show the HTML+Javascript and a few more bits and pieces (e.g. ads, premium, etc.)

Flask (Python microframework) to create an API (from Javascript we call the API)

A Python script to import the planet into PostgreSQL

PostgreSQL with GIS

Numbers

535K benches in OSM

4K benches in London

There are more non-mapped benches than mapped

Since April 2015 to January 2016 (iOS):about 10 in ads

about 5 premium users (thank you Micha)

Lot of fun!

I know OSM much better now, JOSM, PostgreSQL and GIS, Leaflet...

Thank you!

Thank you for listening

Thank you for your mapping

Any questions?

Download benches from the AppleStorehttps://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/benches/id962734704?mt=8

Carles Pinacarles@pina.cat

Image attributions

http://greenly.ro/greenly.ro//wp-content/uploads/2012/05/walking.jpg

http://vector-magz.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/sandwich-clipart-300x197.gif

My grandparents (reduced mobility)

An anonymous happy colleague

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