Route exports okay but no waypoint names

[bob423]

I formed a new route using OpenCPN and exported it successfully with GPX and also downloaded it into two programs: Garmin Mobile app on iPad and PolarView on the PC.

Problem: The route name is transferred successfully but not the individual waypoint names. They are replaced with 01, 02, 03, etc.

Clicking on waypoint properties in OpenCPN shows the waypoint names I entered for each waypoint and I have "Show name" checked. In comparing GPX files with ones created using PolarView (which does transfer waypoint names successfully) I noticed entries for the route and also separate entries for the waypoints. In OpenCPN, there are only entries for the route and no separate entries for the waypoints.

Question: Is there a way to transfer the individual waypoint names as well as the route name using OpenCRN?

I've attached three files
1 - OpenCPN showing waypoint names (showing waypoint names)
2 - PolarView after transfer of route (no waypoint names)
3 - PolarView for non OpenCPN routes (showing waypoint names)

I've also included a two page pdf file showing the two GPX files.

[fgd3]

It looks to me like your waypoint names are too long for your GPS. Make sure the waypoint names you assign in OpenCPN are compatible with the waypoint naming rules on your GPS. I had a similar problem transferring routes to my Garmin GPS72 until I limited waypoint names to six characters using only letters and numbers. Then the transfer worked fine.

Fabbian

[bob423]

I have other examples where the waypoint name is the same length and recognized by PolarView or the Garmin Mobile app as long as the GPX file did not come from OpenCPN. There is something that some programs do not like about the GPX file exported by OpenCPN. I'll test more but certainly PolarView and the Garmin Mobile app do not have waypoints names exported with the GPX files from OpenCPN.

When I export a GPX file to the Garmin Mobile app from a route formed in PolarView, the waypoint names are also exported.

Adding to the thought that there's something wrong with the export format is the differences between the GPX files from OpenCPN vs from PolarView. The PolarView GPX export files have two sets of entries (in the same GPX file), one for the route and another one for the waypoints. The OpenCPN file has only the set of entries for the routes. Look at the two GPX files attached in the original post.

[bdbcat]

Bob...

If you have the time and/or inclination, we could use some more testing.
You may want to try and edit (by hand) the GPX files from OpenCPN to see what it takes to get Garmin to recognise them. For instance, you may try to change the tag

<type>WPL</type>

to

<type>WPRL</type>

Or, shorten the waypoint names to 5 chars.

Anyway, slowly approach the format that is known to work, and discover the magic incantation required.

Thanks
Dave

[nohal]

Dave...
FWIW this is more a PolarView "bug" than ours (If bug at all)
1) PolarView itself exports a "pure" rtept with type="RPRL" and completely ignores it's name while importing it back (Or maybe uses it for some internal magic).
2) What is a route passing through a "shared waypoint" in OpenCPN is in PolarView exported to GPX as both wpt element and rtept with type="WRPL" during route export.
The name defined by PolarView in rtept for RPRL type points is some generated string as "RT4P0" for the first point in the fourth route in the list or the same as the name defined in the corresponding WPT for WRPL ones, but seems to be completely ignored when the GPX is loaded back.

To improve the interoperability we can certainly adjust our GPX format to be more like PolarView's in terms of using RPRL and WRPL as RTEPT type in our GPX (It is simple xsd:string in the GPX specification and we don't use it for anything internally right now so we don't care much as far as I can tell).
We can (maybe even should?) probably also include the WPT elements for shared waypoints pretty painlessly in the exported route GPX (And hope that some other app won't be upset).
What we should certainly not do is create WPT elements for route points not passing a previously existing waypoint just to make PolarView happy and show the names for points as can be done in OpenCPN as it breaks the logic - naming those should clearly be implemented on PolarView's side or left as an limitation to the interoperability (there will always be plenty of them anyway as the logic of any two applications is not 100% the same)...

Pavel

[bob423]

I will try the suggestions Tuesday. Keep in mind that the PolarView GPX file exports fine to the Garmin Mobile app but the OpenCPN file does not (relative to including waypoint names).

I will also test exporting both GPX files (PolarView and OpenCPN) to other charting programs, I have several.

[bob423]

More experimenting today. The problem I think is that OpenCPN just transfers the route and not the waypoints in a route. I used the OpenCPN route to transfer a GPX route to Navimatics Charts and Tides app on the iPad. The route transferred correctly. It's just that the waypoints were just circles without names.

When I deleted the route, the circles also disappeared, leaving no waypoints behind. When I delete a PolarView route downloaded to the Charts and Tides app, I have to delete both the route and the waypoints in separate actions.

In other words, OpenCPN does not create waypoints when a route is created. At least not waypoints recognized as such by any program I've found so far.

More tested later today.

[nohal]

Bob...
In OpenCPN, creating a point in a route does NOT create a waypoint (as in POI), by design, not to be changed. FWIW neither it does in PolarView as far as I can tell, but if I see correctly, unlike in OpenCPN, there is absolutely no way to name a point in a route without creating a waypoint (manually) there.
We can make PolarView happier by actually including the "shared waypoints" in our exported route GPX files, if they are used. PolarView will still not be able to import named route points from OpenCPN, unless they pass a preexisting waypoint, which IMO is PolarView's problem to fix, not ours.

Pavel

[bob423]

Well, it all comes down to the difference between points on a route and waypoints. I can create a route on PolarView without creating waypoints. What appears on the chart and when transferred via GPX to another program are "turning points", not waypoints with an independent identity. Delete the route and the "turning points" are also deleted.

Some programs such as OpenCPN will display the turning point names, most will not unless they are also waypoints. I got the waypoints names to display using PolarView by laboriously forming waypoints in the approximate positions of the route I wanted, edited the waypoint coordinates to the Lat/Long I wanted and then stitched them together into a route. With that I got a route and names displayed for the turning points (the waypoints were just sitting on top of the turning points).

I like the approach of just dropping a route on the map, editing the turning point positions to make them exactly match what you want and then exporting that GPX file, never mind worrying about names for the turning points except in OpenCPN where the turning point names are properly displayed.

In OpenCPN I can edit route turning points' Lat/Long but I can't do that in PolarView unless I make waypoints first and then stitch a route through them.

I'm going to switch over to using OpenCPN for creating GPX files. I trust they will work with all programs given the user base and activity on the forum. Thanks for all the advice.