| GPS Exchange Format | |
|---|---|
| Filename extension | .gpx |
| Internet media type | application/gpx+xml and application/octet-stream |
| Initial release | 2002 |
| Latest release | |
| Extended from | XML |
| Open format? | yes |
| Website | www |
GPS Exchange Format (GPX) is anXML schema designed as a commonGPS data format for software applications. It can be used to describewaypoints,tracks, and routes. It is anopen format[2] and can be used without the need to pay license fees. Location data (and optionally elevation, time, and other information) is stored in tags and can be interchanged between GPS devices and software. Common software applications for the data include viewing tracks projected onto various map sources, annotating maps, andgeotagging photographs based on the time they were taken.
A GPX file's main components arewaypoints,routes, andtracks:
Note that the XML tags enclosing each waypoint of a route or track segment are called rtept and trkpt, respectively, while the tag for the basic waypoint element is wpt. Despite this difference in name, they all hold the same data type called wptType.
In addition to the above, GPX files can also contain additional data. The minimum properties for a GPX file are latitude and longitude for every single point. Some vendors, such asHumminbird andGarmin, use extensions to the GPX format for recording street address, phone number, business category, air temperature, depth of water, and other parameters.[4][5]
Latitude and longitude are expressed indecimal degrees, and elevation in meters, both using theWGS 84 datum.[6] Dates and times are expressed inCoordinated Universal Time (UTC) usingISO 8601 format.[1]
The document below is a sample GPX file which contains three waypoints which correspond to the locations of the German, Swiss, and Austrian parliaments.
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="no" ?><gpxxmlns="http://www.topografix.com/GPX/1/1"version="1.1"creator="Wikipedia"xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.topografix.com/GPX/1/1 http://www.topografix.com/GPX/1/1/gpx.xsd"><!-- Comments look like this --><metadata><name>Dataname</name><desc>ValidGPXexamplewithoutspecialcharacters</desc><author><name>Authorname</name></author></metadata><wptlat="52.518611"lon="13.376111"><ele>35.0</ele><time>2011-12-31T23:59:59Z</time><name>Reichstag(Berlin)</name><sym>City</sym></wpt><wptlat="48.208031"lon="16.358128"><ele>179</ele><time>2011-12-31T23:59:59Z</time><name>Parlament(Wien)</name><sym>City</sym></wpt><wptlat="46.9466"lon="7.44412"><time>2011-12-31T23:59:59Z</time><name>Bundeshaus(Bern)</name><sym>City</sym></wpt></gpx>