Feature suggestion: Improve slope profile visualization

I agree that the slope charts leave a lot to be desired and it could be improved in a lot of ways. I really like your 2nd proposal to add a color gradient to the elevation map. Should be relatively easy to implement as well? However, to prevent erratic color changes, maybe some averaging (e.g. per 100m) would be good.

This is how Garmin shows a climb, incl. values for total ascent, average gradient and length. Soo useful!

Hi everyone,

The chart from the Garmin app is indeed very insightful !

I made a quick mock-up to illustrate how a similar concept could look in the Locus app. It’s just a draft meant to share some ideas and spark discussion :

Proposed improvements :

• Color-graded elevation line: The chart line could use a color gradient based on the average slope of each segment with darker colors for steeper parts. This would make it much easier to visually identify the toughest sections of a track.
• Precise slider control: Replace the current click-based cursor with a more precise slider for selecting specific points along the elevation profile.

Behavior when the chart is displayed :

• The slider starts at the far left.
• The “details” row above the chart shows average statistics for the whole track :
  Total distanceTotal estimated timeHighest point altitudeNo slope value yet(not shown in the mock-up) total positive and negative elevation gain/loss

Behavior when moving the slider:

• The map cursor moves accordingly, just like the current app behavior.
• The “details” row updates in real time to show :
  Distance to the selected pointEstimated time to reach that pointAltitude at that pointSlope at that point(not shown in the mock-up) cumulative positive/negative elevation up to that point

What do you think about this approach ?

It's very similar to that displayed by online Bicycle Router https://brouter.m11n.de/

I really like this suggestion ! The slope profile in Locus Map is already useful, but clearer gradient visualization (especially with better color differentiation) and the detailed information about the current position of the cursor would make it much easier to quickly spot the toughest sections of a route. It would definitely improve readability and planning. Hope this gets considered 👍

I found the Vincent proposal very useful.

Hi,
I noticed that in the latest version of Locus Map, the chart system has been revamped. It now displays the current metric value directly, and the slider feels much smoother and more responsive to use. Thanks a lot for these improvements, they really enhance the experience!

That said, I still think it would be extremely useful to display cumulative metrics up to the selected point on the chart, such as:

• distance from the start to the selected point
• cumulative positive/negative elevation gain up to that point
• elapsed time, etc

I believe this would make route analysis even more practical and intuitive during track review.

Hi guys,

the altitude chart area fill is now color-coded by slope magnitude: green (0–6%), yellow (6–12%), orange (12–20%), red (>20%). Will be part of the next release (or Beta version).

It is disabled by default with option to enable over popup. Check the screenshot.

Very nice; the % ranges & colors could be consistent with any user-specified slope coloring, although I can't find this setting anymore; maybe it was removed long ago? Years ago there were endless discussions about reasonable ranges for color mapping, a full custom set of (slope-min..slope-max ==> color); one set isn't going to satisfy every user.

the existing ranges map to mostly green, just a little yellow, for on-road cycle touring, hilly (for me) example below

for me, the BRouter-web https://brouter.m11n.de values are far more relevant:

Maybe as compromise, rather than lots of user settings, the color mapping depends on the track activity?

You can adjust that on Tracks style

Hi Menion,

Oh wow, thanks a lot for this great improvement on the chart panel, it's much appreciated and I'm looking forward using it ! Kudos to the team !!

I do like the suggestion from Andrew with distinct color mapping depending on the activity type. But if it's customizable in the track style panel, it's already great and can fit a wide range of needs 👍

Also, in addition of the current elevation, I think it could be great to display cumulative positive and negative elevation and distance up to the selected point on or near the chart👌

>>>You can adjust that on Tracks style

I don´t think you can adjust the colors for the Slope style (like 0-5% blue, 6-12% green etc...), only the min-max % to which it applies.

Hi, right.

There is no special settings to set colors for this slope coloring. Anyway thanks for bringing this up. Track in it's "Style screen" has an option to set min/max limits for the slope. Internal list of possible colors (color palette) is then spread into this min-max range (or min-max over all points if not defined). You may see where is hill on the map compared to the rest of the track, but not it's absolute slope.

So idea > remove this "Min-max option" for the track style at all and create a single absolute-value color range for this chart and also for coloring on the map > so they match each other.

And yes, I should adapt BRouter style here. It make sense and will be united > why not. Anything against this idea?

Hi Menion,
It sounds great to me 👍 I think that a single absolute-value range makes more sense than the relative min-max approach, and having the chart and map coloring match would be a real improvement too.

Ok. I do not like brouter pallete to much. Green colors are positive making me feel "ok, nice". Dark green > "ah ok, even better" 🥵

Range from "blue" (down) to "red" (up) should match better the "slope" value.

Let me know which one looks more usable from your point of view (can't confirm that most voted will win in the end 😉). Thanks

Why don't we use the same colors here as we do for the track (gradient)?

Blue to red (but there's also green in the middle (FLAT))

That way, you only have to remember one thing.

Beta version published so who is interested - give it a try.

Slope coloring of the track use identical pallete. From my point of view, it looks pretty good with black or white outline. May app should enable thin outline automatically for a colored (altitude, slope, ...) line style (if not enabled)?

Much better/ good compromise. Thanks. I wonder whether the slope color scheme color ranges could be displayed somewhere like chart > menu > settings > new icon '?' at left of the "Slope colors" checkbox - so all users know what the colors represent?

Beta looks good, thanks!

I did not try the AFA version, are you going to make all versions AFA in the future?

Creating a route, slope scheme looks ok, bit I am not sure about these rectangles with 0m 0 min indications...

Oh, looks like these rectangles are about alternative routes, but the alternative dotted line is no longer displayed in the beta.