Feature suggestion: Improve slope profile visualization

Vincent shared this idea 7 months ago
Gathering feedback

As a user of Locus Map 4 with the Gold plan, I really appreciate the current implementation of the elevation profile when viewing a track, from the route planner or during navigation. It's an incredibly useful feature that gives a great overview of the terrain ahead.

However, when it comes to slope visualization, things are much less intuitive. Currently, there's a full-screen slope chart available, but it suffers from a few limitations: The Y-axis (slope) scale lacks precision, making it hard to interpret values. The chart is separated from the map view, so it's not possible to see the slope and the corresponding position on the track at the same time. Unlike the elevation profile, there is no interactive way to correlate slope data with the track (e.g., a slider or cursor that shows the position on the map).

As a result, it's quite difficult to anticipate where the steepest or most physically demanding segments of the track are located.

Suggestions to enhance the interactive elevation profile chart panel by adding slope data :

1/ When using the elevation chart, display detailed metrics for the currently selected point using the slider/cursor, below or above the chart. This could include:


- Slope (in degrees or percentage)
- Altitude
- Elapsed distance from the start
- Elapsed time if available

2/ Add Slope-Based color Coding to the chart line

Apply a color gradient to the elevation line of the chart to visualize the slope level accross the different sections of the track.

For example, a gradient from light red to dark red (or using different colors but I guess that a gradient is more compatible with colorblind people ?), based on absolute slope intervals such as: ≤10°, 10° - 20°, 20° - 30°, 30° - 40°, >40°

This would allow users to quickly spot the hardest segments of the trail at a glance, without needing to analyze the numeric chart values in detail.

Replies (3)

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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!

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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 ?


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

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