Mobile App Development for City Navigation

NOVASOLUTIONS.TECHNOLOGY is engaged in the development, support and maintenance of iOS, Android, PWA mobile applications. We have extensive experience and expertise in publishing mobile applications in popular markets like Google Play, App Store, Amazon, AppGallery and others.
8+Years of work900+Completed projects100+In house employees19+Partners
Development and support of all types of mobile applications:
Information and entertainment mobile applications
News apps, games, reference guides, online catalogs, weather apps, fitness and health apps, travel apps, educational apps, social networks and messengers, quizzes, blogs and podcasts, forums, aggregators
E-commerce mobile applications
Online stores, B2B apps, marketplaces, online exchanges, cashback services, exchanges, dropshipping platforms, loyalty programs, food and goods delivery, payment systems.
Business process management mobile applications
CRM systems, ERP systems, project management, sales team tools, financial management, production management, logistics and delivery management, HR management, data monitoring systems
Electronic services mobile applications
Classified ads platforms, online schools, online cinemas, electronic service platforms, cashback platforms, video hosting, thematic portals, online booking and scheduling platforms, online trading platforms

These are just some of the types of mobile applications we work with, and each of them may have its own specific features and functionality, tailored to the specific needs and goals of the client.

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Mobile App Development for City Navigation
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from 2 weeks to 3 months
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Mobile App for City Navigation

A navigation app is one of the most technically saturated types of mobile products. GPS, map data, routing algorithms, TTS, and real-time traffic converge here. Building a navigation engine from scratch makes no sense — but correctly integrating ready-made SDKs and building user experience is a serious separate task.

Choosing a Cartographic Platform

First architectural decision — which SDK to use. This determines cost, capabilities, and limitations for years ahead.

Platform Routing Traffic Offline Custom Style Cost
Google Maps SDK + Navigation SDK Excellent Yes (real-time) No Limited High at volume
Mapbox Excellent Via Isochrone API Yes (OfflineManager) Full freedom Medium
HERE Maps Good Yes Yes Medium Medium
2GIS Good for CIS Limited Yes Limited Low for CIS
OpenStreetMap + OSRM Open Source No Depends on hosting Full Server costs

Google Navigation SDK gives best turn-by-turn experience out of box, but license forbids displaying competing services next to map. Mapbox — maximum flexibility, offline maps, custom styles via Mapbox Studio.

GPS and Real-Time Localization

CLLocationManager / FusedLocationProviderClient — basic GPS. For navigation important:

  • desiredAccuracy: kCLLocationAccuracyBestForNavigation (iOS) — maximum accuracy, high power consumption
  • distanceFilter: 5 meters — update on each significant movement
  • Background operation: location background mode + allowsBackgroundLocationUpdates = true

Map matching — snap GPS points to road network. Raw GPS jumps 10-30 meters, especially between buildings. Mapbox Map Matching API takes coordinates and returns track snapped to roads. Without this, car "drives through buildings" on map.

For pedestrian navigation, map matching matters less — pedestrian can go anywhere, strict road snapping interferes.

Movement Direction Detection

Compass heading (CLHeading / SensorManager.getDefaultSensor(TYPE_ROTATION_VECTOR)) — for pedestrian. Orientation of velocity vector — for car navigation: direction from last two GPS points, not compass (more accurate when moving). Below 5 km/h speed — switch back to compass.

Map rotation by movement direction: GMSCameraUpdate.setTarget(_:bearing:) (Google) or MapboxMap.setCamera(CameraOptions(bearing:)). Smooth rotation via animation with CATransaction / animated camera update.

Turn-by-Turn and Voice Prompts

Ready SDKs (Mapbox Navigation SDK, Google Navigation SDK) provide NavigationViewController / MapboxNavigationView — full navigation UI. Customization: colors, icons, hide/show elements via configuration objects.

For voice prompts: Mapbox Navigation SDK uses SpeechSynthesizer with replacement capability for Amazon Polly or custom TTS. Google Navigation SDK — built-in TTS without direct access. AVSpeechSynthesizer (iOS) / Android TextToSpeech if building prompts yourself.

Very important: interrupt playing audio (music, podcast) during prompt. AVAudioSession.sharedInstance().setCategory(.playback, options: .duckOthers) on iOS — reduces other audio volume, doesn't stop. AudioFocusRequest.AUDIOFOCUS_GAIN_TRANSIENT_MAY_DUCK on Android — equivalent.

Route Recalculation and Alternative Routes

Deviation from route → recalculate. Mapbox Navigation SDK does this automatically on deviation beyond RouteOptions.maximumAllowedDivergence (default 20 meters from route). Recalculation takes 0.5-2 seconds, navigation continues on old route during that.

Alternative routes on start: Google Directions API and Mapbox Directions API return up to 3 alternatives. Display on map as thin lines, tap to switch.

Traffic Consideration and ETA

Real-time arrival with traffic — via Directions API with departing_now. Update ETA every 30-60 seconds on road condition change. If expected arrival time increased significantly — auto-recalculate route or suggest to user.

Offline Navigation

Mapbox OfflineManager — download region tiles. Offline routing — OSRM or Valhalla deployed on server, cached routes. For full offline on device — GraphHopper Embedded (Java), Android integration via JNI or mobile graph file (~100-500 MB for country).

Phases: cartographic platform choice → GPS and map matching → navigation engine → voice prompts → offline → testing on real routes → release.

Timeline: 10 to 20 weeks. Cost calculated individually.