Design principles and technical foundations
TilelessMap is built around a tileless vector rendering pipeline designed for reliable offline use, predictable performance, and long-term resilience.
Instead of relying on pre-generated raster tiles or cloud-backed services, geographic data is stored locally and rendered directly on the device.
Map data is stored in local SQLite databases using compact binary geometry formats and spatial indexing. Each dataset contains:
The application is written in C and renders directly to the GPU using OpenGL ES. Only the current view is processed and drawn, resulting in short and predictable render times.
The core rendering engine and data pipeline are developed as open source. This ensures transparency, auditability, and long-term maintainability.
A technical white paper describes the motivation, background, and architectural design of TilelessMap in more detail.
The document is intended for readers with experience in geospatial systems, public infrastructure, or software engineering.
→ TilelessMap – A Tool for Reliable Maps in a Vulnerable World (PDF)