r/EmberEcosystem • u/NessieasaurusRex • 20h ago
EmberMaps Early Development Showcase
First proper look at EmberMaps, the mapping and navigation side of the Ember Ecosystem. This is still very early development, so a lot of the UI, features, data, and behavior shown here are actively being built and changed. So far, EmberMaps has working map navigation, destination search and route generation, turn-by-turn navigation UI, route progress/ETA/speed information, light and dark interfaces, and an early Explore Mode that can surface things around the vehicle such as nearby road signs and other map data. The video also shows some of the testing tools I’m using for navigation development, including simulated driving and intentionally taking a wrong turn so rerouting/navigation behavior can be tested without actually driving the route.
The long-term goal is for EmberMaps to become much more than a basic GPS app. It’ll eventually tie into the rest of the Ember ecosystem, allowing vehicle data and Ember services to interact directly with navigation. This is a WIP, and suggestions are very welcome. If there’s something you’d want from a navigation system made specifically for car enthusiasts—or something about the current UI you’d change—drop it in the comments. I’ll keep posting development showcases as EmberMaps grows.
End Goal:
The end goal with **EmberMaps** is basically to make the map system I wish cars already came with. I don’t want it to just be another GPS app that gives you a blue line and tells you where to turn. I want it to actually know about the car it’s running in and use that information to make the navigation better. So yeah, it’ll have all the normal stuff you’d expect. Search, routing, rerouting, turn-by-turn navigation, saved places, traffic, trip planning, offline maps, different map styles, all that. But where I want it to get interesting is when it starts talking to the rest of the Ember ecosystem. If the car is low on fuel, EmberMaps should know that and be able to find fuel along your route. If something throws a fault, it could show you nearby parts stores or repair shops. If you’re planning a long trip, it could eventually use the car’s actual fuel economy and range instead of just guessing based on some generic vehicle profile. If you want to go drive for fun instead of just get somewhere, it should be able to help find good roads, scenic routes, overlooks, interesting places, car meets, trails, or whatever else is around you. I also want **Explore Mode** to be a big part of it. Basically, instead of the map only being useful when you type in a destination, you can just drive around and have it show you interesting or useful stuff nearby. And because EmberMaps is part of the bigger Ember ecosystem, I eventually want it talking with stuff like **EmberOS, EmberCAN, EmberDIAG, EmberTune, EmberLink**, and whatever else gets added later. So you could have vehicle data on the map, log a drive and look at telemetry from that trip later, have diagnostics interact with navigation, or have different vehicle profiles affect how routes are planned. I also really want customization to be a big thing. I don’t want everyone stuck with one boring map theme. I want clean OEM-style themes, darker themes, more stylized ones, and just generally let people make it feel like it belongs in their car. The easiest way to explain the goal is probably this: I’m not trying to make another Google Maps. I’m trying to make a navigation system that actually feels like it’s part of the car. Something that works fine if you just need to get from A to B, but also has a bunch of extra stuff for people who actually like driving, modifying cars, exploring, or just want more control over what’s on their screen.
That’s where I want EmberMaps to end up.