ArxSilex MapTools Converter
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| Author: | ArxSilex | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| License: | GPL-3.0-only (free of charge) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Platforms: | Windows and Linux | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Status: | Active | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Version: | 1.5.2 (2026-09-01) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Languages: | Czech, German, English, Spanish, French, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Dutch, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Swedish, Turkish, Ukrainian, and Simplified Chinese
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| Website: | https://www.arxsilex.de/app/maptools-converter/ | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Source code: | https://www.arxsilex.de/app/maptools-converter/downloads/1.5.2/source/ArxSilex-MapTools-Converter-1.5.2-src.zip | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Programming language: | Kotlin | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Portable desktop application for locally previewing, clipping and converting OpenStreetMap PBF, Mapsforge map/POI and elevation data. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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ArxSilex MapTools Converter is a portable open-source desktop application for preparing local map, POI and elevation files. It is a separate project from the proprietary Android application ArxSilex MapTools and is released under GPL-3.0-only. The licence applies to the converter, not to the Android application or to input and output geodata.
The converter works with files selected by the user and processes them locally. It does not download data from OpenStreetMap, edit the OpenStreetMap database, or upload changes or GPS traces.
Features
- Opens one or more local OpenStreetMap PBF files, Mapsforge maps, Mapsforge POI databases and elevation datasets.
- Accepts supported files directly or from a ZIP archive containing a mixture of map, POI and elevation formats.
- Shows compatible map objects and terrain in a local preview. Elevation-only input uses hypsometric colours and shaded relief, so an area can be selected without a separate map file.
- Provides local place and POI search without an online geocoding service.
- Allows multiple rectangular and circular extraction areas. Overlapping selections are processed as one union.
- Can create Mapsforge map v4/v5, one merged Mapsforge POI database v3/v4, a clipped OpenStreetMap PBF extract or separate elevation output.
- Can spatially clip and merge multiple Mapsforge POI databases, including inputs from adjacent countries or regions.
- Keeps map, searchable POI and elevation results as separate files so they can be updated independently.
- Checks generated map, POI and elevation files after export.
Input and output formats
| Format | Input | Output | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
OpenStreetMap PBF (.osm.pbf, .pbf)
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yes | yes | Referentially complete clipped PBF output is available when all selected map inputs are PBF files. |
Mapsforge map (.map)
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yes | yes | Output can use Mapsforge map format v4 or v5. |
Mapsforge POI (.poi)
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yes | yes | Any number of POI databases can be clipped and merged into one schema v3 or v4 output. |
SRTM HGT (.hgt)
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yes | yes | Individual HGT tiles and collections of tiles are supported. |
DEM GeoTIFF (.tif, .tiff)
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yes | yes | Geographic DEM rasters can be previewed, clipped and converted. |
ESRI ASCII Grid (.asc)
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yes | yes | Elevation output remains separate from the Mapsforge map. |
DTED (.dt0, .dt1, .dt2)
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yes | yes | DTED cells can be imported, clipped and exported. |
ZIP archive (.zip)
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yes | no | One archive may contain a supported mixture of map, POI and elevation files. Entries are selected before extraction. |
The converter is intended for this defined offline map, POI and terrain workflow rather than as a general-purpose GIS converter. Elevation data is not embedded in a Mapsforge .map file.
ZIP archive safety
Before extraction, archive entries are listed for selection. The importer rejects path traversal, absolute and non-portable paths, encrypted entries, nested ZIP recursion, excessive entry counts, declared or actual sizes, compression ratios and insufficient free disk space. Extracted entries remain in session-local storage and pass through the same format inspection as directly selected files.
Local processing and portability
The released packages contain the required Java runtime and conversion tools, so a separate Java or Gradle installation is not required. Windows x64 is distributed as a portable ZIP file and Linux x64 as a portable compressed archive. No ArxSilex account is required.
Input data, previews, conversion steps and exported files are processed on the local computer. Settings, cache, logs and temporary session data are stored next to the portable application. Large jobs use bounded memory and can use multiple CPU cores according to the available processors and memory; a low-memory path remains available for systems with 4 GiB of RAM.
The Windows package is not Authenticode-signed and can therefore trigger a Microsoft SmartScreen warning. SHA-256 checksums, CycloneDX SBOMs and OSV vulnerability scan reports are published with the current release.
Data and licensing
GPL-3.0-only covers the converter software and its corresponding source code. It does not relicense input or output geodata. Users remain responsible for checking the source date, licence, attribution, use and redistribution requirements of their data. For OpenStreetMap data, attribution to OpenStreetMap contributors and compliance with the Open Database License remain required.
Mapsforge, Osmosis, the bundled runtime and other included components retain their own licences. Details are included in the release notices and source archive.
Screenshots
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Selecting Mapsforge map, Mapsforge POI and eligible PBF output formats in an earlier release. -
Selecting multiple rectangular and circular extraction areas. Overlapping areas are processed only once. -
Selecting rectangular and circular areas on the local shaded-relief elevation preview. -
Selecting an output format for clipped and converted elevation data.
