Guides
Guides
  1. Introduction to Mapping Concepts User Guide

Features and attributes

HERE maps include features and attributes that go beyond road and lane topology. Places such as landmarks, objects such as road signs and barriers, and attributes such as road speed limits are part of many HERE products.

Places

Places consist mainly of points of interest (POI). The map classifies POIs based on their conceptual types -- including historical sites, museums, national parks, EV charging stations, landmarks, and businesses that pay a fee to be in the map. POIs can have assorted properties, such as:

  • Name
  • Latitude/longitude location
  • Postal code
  • Street address
  • Phone number
  • Web site

Visually distinctive landmarks may also have a custom 3D model, such as the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. Similarly, the facades of certain buildings can optionally use 3D geometry based on LiDAR data.

You can use Places as starting and ending points for navigation. This feature is very useful for making use of maps to navigate from a known location (such as your current location) to a POI that you select.

For additional information on POIs, including the use of forward and reverse geocoding, see Points-of-Interest.

Objects

Objects help HERE maps resemble specific locations in the world. Some of these objects can influence driving rules; others provide visual enrichment without affecting how vehicles drive. Objects include:

  • Barriers
  • Bridges
  • Buildings
  • Natural areas
  • Obstacles
  • Overhead structures
  • Pedestrian walks
  • Parking lots
  • Poles
  • Road surface markings
  • Signs
  • Toll structures
  • Traffic signals
  • Vehicle checkpoints

The Localization Model defines objects in maps, so those objects are appropriate for specific locations. For more information, see Localization Model.

Attributes

Attributes are properties that you can apply to roads, lanes, signs, and some other types of map objects. Examples of attributes include driving rules, surface types, and elevation. HERE maps support numerous attributes. One way to understand attributes is in terms of the Road Model and Lane Model, as explained below.

Attributes in the Road Centerline Model

For details on how road attributes relate to road topology, see Topology reference types for road attributes.

Here are some examples of road attributes:

  • Address Range
  • Intersection Category
  • Motorway Interchange
  • Overhead Obstruction
  • Overpass and Underpass
  • Overtaking Restriction
  • Pedestrian
  • Permitted Driving Maneuver Condition
  • Lane Count
  • Preferred Route Type
  • Private
  • Public Access
  • Railway Crossing
  • Ramp
  • Restricted Driving Maneuver Condition
  • Right of Way Regulation
  • Road Axes
    • Curvature
    • Heading
    • Link Accuracy
    • Elevation
    • Slope
  • Road Boundary
    • Road Boundary Geometry
    • Road Boundary Type
  • Road Centerline Geometry
  • Road Classification Type
  • Road-Level Postal Code
  • Road-Level Usage Fee Required
  • Road Relationships
  • Road Rules
    • Access Characteristics
    • Road Administrative Relationships
    • Direction of Travel
    • Road-Level Special Speed Limit
    • Road-Level Variable Speed Sign
    • Road Speed Limit
  • Road Separators
    • Infrastructure Separation
    • Median
    • Road Divider
  • Road Surface
  • Road Type
    • Built-Up Area Road
    • Controlled Access
    • Functional Class
    • Motorized Vehicles Only
    • Motorway
    • POI Access Road
    • Urban
  • Scenic Route
  • Street Name

Attributes in the Lane Model

For details on how lane attributes relate to lane topology, see Topology reference types for lane attributes.

Here are a few examples of lane attributes:

  • Lane Geometry
    • Lane Boundary Geometry
      • Lane Boundary Center Divider Indicator
      • Lane Boundary Marking Color
      • Lane Boundary Marking Lateral Offset
      • Lane Boundary Marking Material
      • Lane Boundary Marking Style
      • Lane Boundary Marking Width
    • Lane Drive Path
    • Lane Topology
    • Lane Width
    • Lane Stopping Locations
  • Lane Characteristics
    • Lane Access Characteristics
    • Lane Direction of Travel
    • Lane Height Restriction
    • Lane-Level Usage Fee Required
    • Lane-Level Variable Sign Value
    • Lane Speed limit
    • Lane Type
    • Lane within an Intersection
  • Lane Relationships
    • Lane Adjacency
    • Lane Boundary Traversal
    • Lane-Level Toll structure
    • Lane-Level Variable Speed Sign
    • Lane-Level Vehicle checkpoint
    • Lane Transition Status
  • Lane Groups

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