Overview
To use a route for navigation, it must be exported to the navigation system. Many devices and smartphone apps support the GPX file format, so all routes can be exported in this format. How a route in GPX format is processed on a navigation system varies from manufacturer to manufacturer. It’s usually not necessary to transfer a fully calculated route, as all routes are usually recalculated on the system. However, this often results in a completely different route than originally planned.
Tutorial
This tutorial explains the pitfalls of route export using the full Track of the Day application . The export functionality demonstrated there is largely also included in GS-Route.
AR export
To ensure a route is followed as originally planned, the sections between two waypoints should be short enough so that a recalculation on a different system results in a route that is as similar as possible. To avoid the hassle of setting all these route points yourself, the AR function is available when exporting routes . This abbreviation stands for Automatic Refinement . When refining routes, individual calculated points on a route are upgraded to a stop . The number of stops possible depends on the navigation system used.
- Garmin zumo XT / XT2: 32 via points & 100 shaping points
- BMW/Garmin Navigator 4/5/6: 32 via points & 100 shaping points
- BMW CRN & App: 49 stops
- TomTom Rider 500/550: 49 stops
Via & Shaping
What exactly needs to be done when upgrading route points depends on the navigation system used. In the Garmin world, there is a distinction between via points and shaping points . While via points must be approached or deliberately skipped, shaping points serve only to model the route.
If you deviate from the planned route due to a road closure or traffic jam, the remaining route is usually recalculated. All shaping points between the current location and the next via point are discarded, which is important and something you should understand if you are using a Garmin device. To ensure that the route is largely retained when recalculating after a deviation, it is a good idea to set via points at longer intervals. If auto-shaping is active, you place a pause at a shaping point . This automatically converts a shaping point into a via point. If you delete the pause, the route point becomes a shaping point again.
When exporting AR, the differences between systems from different manufacturers are automatically taken into account. All you have to do is select the appropriate export provider .
Ignore highways
When exporting AR, there’s the “ Ignore Highways“ parameter , which has nothing to do with the „Avoid Highways“ routing option . The idea behind ignoring highways is to avoid placing route points directly on highways, but rather just before and after them. Everything else is left to the respective navigation system, which is designed to calculate routes.
This option is there because you can’t turn around on motorways and you plan with different map material than you will later use for navigation. Depending on the map material used and the associated routing algorithm, it can happen that a navigation system interprets a point as a stop on the opposite lane of a motorway. Garmin devices in particular tend to calculate completely confusing routes in such situations just to somehow reach the incorrectly interpreted route point. It could also happen that an AR route point is set on a motorway bridge beneath which a country road runs. In this situation, Garmin devices would often suggest leaving the motorway, driving under the bridge and returning to the motorway at the next entrance. To prevent this from happening, there is an option: Ignore motorways .
Routes & Tracks
Because so much can go wrong when recalculating routes, TomTom has developed algorithms for navigating with tracks. The track is set as a fixed route and a route is dynamically overlaid. In practice, this process works very well, allowing you to follow the route largely as planned. Short deviations due to roadworks and traffic jams are handled effectively.
The new BMW Connected Ride Navigator (CRN for short) and the associated smartphone app are based on TomTom libraries. Therefore, the CRN and the BMW app are also excellent at navigating using tracks and avoiding traffic jams and road closures.
Routepoints vs. Waypoints
In addition to navigation with tracks or routes, some systems offer navigation with GPX waypoints. According to the GPX specification, these are actually intended for defining points of interest and are therefore used contrary to the specification. Systems that navigate with GPX waypoints therefore generally cannot display favorites or POIs included in the route export. If POIs are exported in addition to the route, they can be displayed as favorites on Garmin devices. Unfortunately, this does not work in the TomTom world or with the new BMW CRN.
Export POIs
If you want to export POIs from route planning to your navigation system, you often need a separate POI file format. Garmin has developed the GPI format for this purpose , while TomTom uses the OV2 format . If you want to export POIs to a TomTom device, you can use the free GPS Babel, which also works with Garmin devices. Because Garmin keeps the structure of the binary GPI format secret, GPS Babel cannot handle all the options that are actually possible with GPI. For example, if you want to export images of speed warnings, etc., to a Garmin device, you need the free tool Garmin POI Loader .
Because exporting POIs is so complex, and many users therefore choose not to create their own, GS-Route was developed without support for and exporting POIs. Anyone who wants to tackle this complex topic can upgrade to the full Track of the Day version for free .
USB & Cloud Drives
The method you use to export routes depends on your navigation system. If you’re navigating with devices like the Navigator VI, the zumo XT/XT2, or a TomTom Rider, you can easily export all the routes for a planned trip to your device before you begin your trip using a USB cable. This usually requires an additional memory card, which is unfortunately not included in the price. Using a memory card with Garmin devices has the advantage of allowing you to load routes and modify them on the device at any time. If you make a mistake and accidentally destroy the route, you can simply delete it and re-import it, which is very convenient.
To load a route onto your smartphone while on the go, you can export it to one or more cloud drives. GS-Route calls this InstantSharing, which means „instant sharing.“ For InstantSharing to work, you need to select the cloud drive you want to use in the application options.
Supported are:
- Microsoft OneDrive
- Apple iCloud Drive
- Google Drive
Export on the go
BMW CRN
To export a route from a cloud drive to a BMW CRN while on the go , launch the BMW Connected Ride app and import. Depending on what you exported, you can now choose whether you want to import a list of waypoints, a route, or a track. If you automatically split a route into multiple tracks, you can select them all. After the import, everything is automatically saved in the BMW cloud. If you now establish an internet connection on the CRN, all imported tracks or routes will be immediately visible there.
Garmin XT/XT2
In the Garmin world there is the Garmin Bridge application that allows export from a phone to a Garmin device via Bluetooth.
TomTom Rider
TomTom device users can also import all routes to plan.tomtom.com before starting their trip . This also allows them to import them to a TomTom Rider 500/550 while on the go. Their phone can be used as a Wi-Fi access point.