react-native-launch-navigator

A React Native module for launching today's most popular navigation/ride apps to navigate to a destination.

687474703a2f2f692e696d6775722e636f6d2f51695575324e512e676966

React-Native-Launch-Navigatorv

Platforms: Android and iOS.

Key features:

  • Single, clean API to abstract away the gory details of each 3rd party app's custom URI scheme
  • Detects which supported apps are installed/available on the user's device
  • API to detect which features are supported by which apps on which platforms
  • Growing list of supported apps

General concepts

App detection, selection and launching

  • The module will detect which supported navigation apps are available on the device.
  • The API allows you to programmatically:
    • check which apps are available on the current device
    • check which apps support which navigation options
    • launch a specific app for navigation

Geocoding and input format of start/destination locations

  • Some navigation apps require that destination/start locations be specified as coordinates, and others require an address.
  • By default, this module will appropriately geocode or reverse-geocode the locations you provide to ensure the app receives the location in the required format.
  • However, geocoding requires use of a remote service, so an internet connection is required.
  • If navigate() is passed a location type which the selected app doesn't support, the error callback will be invoked if:
    • geocoding is disabled by passing enableGeocoding: false in the options object
    • there is no internet connection to perform the remote geocode operation
    • geocoding fails (e.g. an address cannot be found for the given lat/long coords)

Supported navigation apps

The module currently supports launching the following navigation apps:

Android

iOS

Adding support for more apps

This module is a work in progress. I'd like it to support launching of as many popular navigation apps as possible.

If there's another navigation app which you think should be explicitly supported and it provides a mechanism to externally launch it,
open an issue containing a link or details of how the app should be invoked.

Don't just open an issue saying "Add support for Blah" without first finding out if/how it can be externally launched.
I don't have time to research launch mechanisms for every suggested app, so I will close such issues immediately.

Installation

npm install --save react-native-launch-navigator

For iOS only:

cd ios && pod install

Add iOS URL schemes

On iOS, for each installed navigation app you want your app to be able to launch, you must manually whitelist its custom URL scheme in your app's Info.plist.
Note: this is required since React Native v0.60 added autolinking and removed support for postlink hook scripts which made it possible to automate this step.

Add the URL schemes for the navigation apps you want to support to the LSApplicationQueriesSchemes key in your Info.plist:

App Scheme
City Mapper citymapper
Google Maps comgooglemaps
Garmin Navigon navigon
Transit App transit
Waze waze
Yandex Navigator yandexnavi
Uber uber
Tomtom tomtomhome
Sygic com.sygic.aura
HERE Maps here-route
Moovit moovit
Lyft lyft
MAPS.ME mapsme
Cabify cabify
Baidu Maps baidumap
99 Taxi taxis99
Gadode iosamap

The full list of URL schemes above can be found in the example project's Info.plist.

Usage

Import the module into your app:

import LaunchNavigator from 'react-native-launch-navigator';

Simple usage

On Android, don't forget to set your Google API key:

if(Platform.OS === "android") LaunchNavigator.setGoogleApiKey("your_api_key");

Uses default OS navigation app (Google Maps on Android / Apple Maps on iOS).

LaunchNavigator.navigate("London, UK")
    .then(() => console.log("Launched navigator"))
    .catch((err) => console.error("Error launching navigator: "+err));

LaunchNavigator.navigate("London, UK", {
    start: "Manchester, UK"
})
    .then(() => console.log("Launched navigator"))
    .catch((err) => console.error("Error launching navigator: "+err));

Coordinates can be specified as a string or array

LaunchNavigator.navigate([50.279306, -5.163158], {
    start: "50.342847, -4.749904"
})
    .then(() => console.log("Launched navigator"))
    .catch((err) => console.error("Error launching navigator: "+err));

Advanced usage

let app = null;

LaunchNavigator.isAppAvailable(LaunchNavigator.APP.WAZE).then((isWazeAvailable) => {
    if(isWazeAvailable){
        app = LaunchNavigator.APP.WAZE;
    }else{
        console.warn("Waze not available - falling back to default navigation app");
    }

    LaunchNavigator.navigate("London, UK", {
        app: app
    });
        .then(() => console.log("Launched navigator"))
        .catch((err) => console.error("Error launching navigator: "+err));
});

List all of the apps supported by the current platform

if(Platform.OS === "android"){
    platform = LaunchNavigator.PLATFORM.ANDROID;
}else if(Platform.OS == "ios"){
    platform = LaunchNavigator.PLATFORM.IOS;
}

LaunchNavigator.getAppsForPlatform(platform).forEach((app) => {
    console.log(LaunchNavigator.getAppDisplayName(app) + " is supported");
});

List apps available on the current device

let apps = LaunchNavigator.getAvailableApps();
for(let app in apps){
    console.log(LaunchNavigator.getAppDisplayName(app) + (apps[app] ? " is" : " isn't") +" available");
}

Supported parameters

Different apps support different input parameters on different platforms.
Any input parameters not supported by a specified app will be ignored.

The following table enumerates which apps support which parameters.

Platform App Dest Dest name Start Start name Transport mode Free
Android Google Maps (Map mode) X X X
Android Google Maps (Turn-by-turn mode) X X X
Android Waze X X
Android CityMapper X X X X X
Android Uber X X X X X
Android Yandex X X X
Android Sygic X X X
Android HERE Maps X X X X X
Android Moovit X X X X X
Android Lyft X X X
Android MAPS.ME X X X X
Android Geo: URI scheme X X N/A
Android Cabify X X X X X
Android Baidu Maps X X[1] X X[1] X X
Android 99 Taxi X X X X X
Android Gaode Maps X X X X X X
iOS Apple Maps - URI scheme X X X X
iOS Apple Maps - MapKit class X X X X X X
iOS Google Maps X X X X
iOS Waze X X
iOS Citymapper X X X X X
iOS Navigon X X
iOS Transit App X X X
iOS Yandex X X X
iOS Uber X X X X
iOS Tomtom X X
iOS Sygic X X X
iOS HERE Maps X X X X X
iOS Moovit X X X X X
iOS Lyft X X X
iOS MAPS.ME X X X X
iOS Cabify X X X X X
iOS Baidu Maps X X[1] X X[1] X X
iOS 99 Taxi X X X X X
iOS Gaode Maps X X X X X X

[1]: Only supported when Start or Dest is specified as lat/lon (e.g. "50,-4")

Table columns:

  • Dest - destination location specified as lat/lon (e.g. "50,-4") or address (e.g. "London")
  • Dest name - nickname for destination location (e.g. "Bob's house")
  • Start - start location specified as lat/lon (e.g. "50,-4") or address (e.g. "London")
  • Start name - nickname for start location (e.g. "Bob's house")
  • Transport mode - mode of transport to use for route planning (e.g. "walking")
  • Free - is the app free or does it cost money?

Transport modes

Apps that support specifying transport mode.

Platform App Driving Walking Bicycling Transit
Android Google Maps (Turn-by-turn mode) X X X X
Android Sygic X X
Android MAPS.ME X X X X
Android Baidu Maps X X X X
Android Gaode Maps X X X X
iOS Apple Maps X X
iOS Google Maps X X X X
iOS Sygic X X
iOS MAPS.ME X X X X
iOS Baidu Maps X X X X
iOS Gaode Maps X X X X

Module API

All of the module constants and functions should be referenced from the namespace used to import the module, for example:

import LaunchNavigator from 'react-native-launch-navigator';
let android = LaunchNavigator.PLATFORM.ANDROID;

Constants

PLATFORM

Supported platforms:

  • LaunchNavigator.PLATFORM.ANDROID
  • LaunchNavigator.PLATFORM.IOS

APP

Supported apps:

  • LaunchNavigator.APP.GEO (Android) - invokes a native chooser, allowing users to select an app which supports the geo: URI scheme for navigation
  • LaunchNavigator.APP.GOOGLE_MAPS (Android & iOS)
  • LaunchNavigator.APP.WAZE (Android & iOS)
  • LaunchNavigator.APP.CITYMAPPER (Android & iOS)
  • LaunchNavigator.APP.UBER (Android & iOS)
  • LaunchNavigator.APP.APPLE_MAPS (iOS)
  • LaunchNavigator.APP.NAVIGON (iOS)
  • LaunchNavigator.APP.TRANSIT_APP (iOS)
  • LaunchNavigator.APP.YANDEX (Android & iOS)
  • LaunchNavigator.APP.TOMTOM (iOS)
  • LaunchNavigator.APP.SYGIC (Android & iOS)
  • LaunchNavigator.APP.HERE_MAPS (Android & iOS)
  • LaunchNavigator.APP.MOOVIT (Android & iOS)
  • LaunchNavigator.APP.LYFT (Android & iOS)
  • LaunchNavigator.APP.MAPS_ME (Android & iOS)
  • LaunchNavigator.APP.CABIFY (Android & iOS)
  • LaunchNavigator.APP.BAIDU (Android & iOS)
  • LaunchNavigator.APP.TAXIS_99 (Android & iOS)
  • LaunchNavigator.APP.GAODE (Android & iOS)

APP_NAMES

Display names for supported apps, referenced by LaunchNavigator.APP.

e.g. LaunchNavigator.APP_NAMES[LaunchNavigator.APP.GOOGLE_MAPS] == "Google Maps"
x

TRANSPORT_MODE

Transport modes for navigation:

  • LaunchNavigator.TRANSPORT_MODE.DRIVING
  • LaunchNavigator.TRANSPORT_MODE.WALKING
  • LaunchNavigator.TRANSPORT_MODE.BICYCLING
  • LaunchNavigator.TRANSPORT_MODE.TRANSIT

LAUNCH_MODE

Launch modes supported by Google Maps on Android (see Google Maps launch modes):

  • LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE.MAPS - Maps view
  • LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE.TURN_BY_TURN - Navigation view
  • LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE.GEO - Navigation view via geo: URI scheme

Launch modes supported by Apple Maps on iOS (see Apple Maps launch modes:

  • LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE.URI_SCHEME: use the URI scheme launch method. Default if not specified.
  • LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE.MAPKIT: use the MapKit class launch method.

API methods

Launches a navigation app with a specified destination.

LaunchNavigator.navigate(destination, options);

Parameters

  • destination (required): destination location to use for navigation.
    Either:
    • a {string} containing the address. e.g. "Buckingham Palace, London"
    • a {string} containing a latitude/longitude coordinate. e.g. "50.1. -4.0"
    • an {array} where the first element is the latitude and the second element is a longitude, as decimal numbers. e.g. [50.1, -4.0]
  • options - optional parameters:
    • {string} app - name of the navigation app to use for directions.
      • Specify using LaunchNavigator.APP constants. e.g. LaunchNavigator.APP.GOOGLE_MAPS.
      • If not specified, defaults to the platform default maps app (Google Maps for Android/Apple Maps for iOS).
      • Note: this module does not currently implement an out-of-the-box picker UI so it's up to the app developer to implement a UI with which the user can specify which available navigation app they want to use.
    • {string} destinationName - nickname to display in app for destination. e.g. "Bob's House".
    • start (optional): start location to use for navigation.
      If not specified, the current device location will be used.
      Either:
      • a {string} containing the address. e.g. "Buckingham Palace, London"
      • a {string} containing a latitude/longitude coordinate. e.g. "50.1. -4.0"
      • an {array} where the first element is the latitude and the second element is a longitude, as decimal numbers. e.g. [50.1, -4.0]
    • {string} startName - nickname to display in app for start. e.g. "My Place".
    • {string} transportMode - transportation mode for navigation.
      • Defaults to "driving" if not specified.
      • Specify using LaunchNavigator.TRANSPORT_MODE constants.
    • {string} launchMode - mode in which to open default navigation app for platform:
      - Android: mode in which to open Google Maps app
      - LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE.MAPS or LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE.TURN_BY_TURN
      - Defaults to LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE.MAPS if not specified.
      - iOS: method to use to open Apple Maps app
      - LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE.URI_SCHEME or LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE.MAPKIT
      - Defaults to LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE.URI_SCHEME if not specified.
    • {object} extras - a key/value map of extra app-specific parameters. For example, to tell Google Maps on Android to display Satellite view in "maps" launch mode: {"t": "k"}
    • {boolean} enableGeocoding - if true, and input location type(s) doesn't match those required by the app, use geocoding to obtain the address/coords as required. Defaults to true.

Returns

  • {Promise}
    • resolved when the navigation app is successfully launched.
    • rejected if an error is occurred. Rejected with args:
      • {string} - error message

isAppAvailable()

Determines if the given app is installed and available on the current device.

let app = LaunchNavigator.APP.WAZE;
LaunchNavigator.isAppAvailable(app)
    .then((isAvailable) => {
        console.log(LaunchNavigator.getAppDisplayName(app)+" is available: "+isAvailable);
    })
    .catch((error) => {
        console.error(error);
    });

Parameters

  • {string} appName - name of the app to check availability for. Define as a constant using LaunchNavigator.APP.

Returns

  • {Promise}
    • resolved with:
      • {boolean} - indicates the availability of the specified app.
    • rejected if an error is occurred. Rejected with args:
      • {string} - error message

getAvailableApps()

Returns a list indicating which apps are installed and available on the current device for the current platform.

LaunchNavigator.getAvailableApps()
    .then((apps) => {
        for(let app in apps){
            console.log(LaunchNavigator.getAppDisplayName(app)+" is "+(apps[app] ? "available" : "unavailable"));
        }
    })
    .catch((error) => {
        console.error(error);
    });

Returns

  • {Promise}
    • resolved with:
      • {object} - a key/value object where the key is the app name as a constant in LaunchNavigator.APP and the value is a boolean indicating whether the app is available.
    • rejected if an error is occurred. Rejected with args:
      • {string} - error message

getAppDisplayName()

Returns the display name of the specified app.

let name = LaunchNavigator.getAppDisplayName(LaunchNavigator.APP.WAZE);

Parameters

  • {string} app - specified as a constant in LaunchNavigator.APP. e.g. LaunchNavigator.APP.GOOGLE_MAPS.

Returns

  • {string} - app display name. e.g. "Google Maps".

getAppsForPlatform()

Returns list of supported apps on a given platform.

let apps = LaunchNavigator.getAppsForPlatform(platform);

Parameters

  • {string} platform - specified as a constant in LaunchNavigator.PLATFORM. e.g. LaunchNavigator.PLATFORM.IOS.

Returns

  • {array} - apps supported on specified platform as a list of LaunchNavigator.APP constants.

supportsTransportMode()

Indicates if an app on a given platform supports specification of transport mode.

let isSupported = LaunchNavigator.supportsTransportMode(app, platform, launchMode);

Parameters

  • {string} app - specified as a constant in LaunchNavigator.APP. e.g. LaunchNavigator.APP.GOOGLE_MAPS.
  • {string} platform - specified as a constant in LaunchNavigator.PLATFORM. e.g. LaunchNavigator.PLATFORM.IOS.
  • {string} launchMode - (optional) Only applies to Google Maps on Android. Specified as a constant in LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE. e.g. LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE.MAPS.

Returns

  • {boolean} - true if app/platform(/launch mode) combination supports specification of transport mode.

getTransportModes()

Returns the list of transport modes supported by an app on a given platform.

let transportModes = LaunchNavigator.getTransportModes(app, platform, launchMode);

Parameters

  • {string} app - specified as a constant in LaunchNavigator.APP. e.g. LaunchNavigator.APP.GOOGLE_MAPS.
  • {string} platform - specified as a constant in LaunchNavigator.PLATFORM. e.g. LaunchNavigator.PLATFORM.IOS.
  • {string} launchMode - (optional) Only applies to Google Maps on Android. Specified as a constant in LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE. e.g. LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE.MAPS.

Returns

  • {boolean} - {array} - list of transports modes as constants in LaunchNavigator.TRANSPORT_MODE.
    If app/platform(/launch mode) combination doesn't support specification of transport mode, the list will be empty;

supportsDestName()

Indicates if an app on a given platform supports specification of a custom nickname for destination location.

let isSupported = LaunchNavigator.supportsDestName(app, platform, launchMode);

Parameters

  • {string} app - specified as a constant in LaunchNavigator.APP. e.g. LaunchNavigator.APP.GOOGLE_MAPS.
  • {string} platform - specified as a constant in LaunchNavigator.PLATFORM. e.g. LaunchNavigator.PLATFORM.IOS.
  • {string} launchMode - (optional) Applies to Google Maps on Android and Apple Maps on iOS. Specified as a constant in LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE. e.g. LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE.MAPS.

Returns

  • {boolean} - true if app/platform(/launch mode) combination supports specification of a custom nickname for destination location.

supportsStart()

Indicates if an app on a given platform supports specification of start location.

let isSupported = LaunchNavigator.supportsStart(app, platform, launchMode);

Parameters

  • {string} app - specified as a constant in LaunchNavigator.APP. e.g. LaunchNavigator.APP.GOOGLE_MAPS.
  • {string} platform - specified as a constant in LaunchNavigator.PLATFORM. e.g. LaunchNavigator.PLATFORM.IOS.
  • {string} launchMode - (optional) Only applies to Google Maps on Android. Specified as a constant in LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE. e.g. LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE.MAPS.

Returns

  • {boolean} - true if app/platform(/launch mode) combination supports specification of start location.

supportsStartName()

Indicates if an app on a given platform supports specification of a custom nickname for start location.

let isSupported = LaunchNavigator.supportsStartName(app, platform, launchMode);

Parameters

  • {string} app - specified as a constant in LaunchNavigator.APP. e.g. LaunchNavigator.APP.GOOGLE_MAPS.
  • {string} platform - specified as a constant in LaunchNavigator.PLATFORM. e.g. LaunchNavigator.PLATFORM.IOS.
  • {string} launchMode - (optional) Only applies to Apple Maps on iOS. Specified as a constant in LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE. e.g. LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE.MAPKIT.

Returns

  • {boolean} - true if app/platform(/launch mode) combination supports specification of a custom nickname for start location.

supportsLaunchMode()

Indicates if an app on a given platform supports specification of launch mode.

  • Currently only Google Maps on Android and Apple Maps on iOS supports this.

    let isSupported = LaunchNavigator.supportsLaunchMode(app, platform);

Parameters

  • {string} app - specified as a constant in LaunchNavigator.APP. e.g. LaunchNavigator.APP.GOOGLE_MAPS.
  • {string} platform - specified as a constant in LaunchNavigator.PLATFORM. e.g. LaunchNavigator.PLATFORM.ANDROID.

Returns

  • {boolean} - true if app/platform combination supports specification of launch mode.

enableDebug()

Enables debug log output from the module to the JS and native consoles. By default debug is disabled.

LaunchNavigator.enableDebug(true);

Parameters

  • {boolean} enabled - Whether to enable debug.

setGoogleApiKey()

Enables specification of the Google API key to use for accessing Google's Geocoding API.
If you fail to set this on Android before attempting to use this module to launch a navigation app which requires a lat/lon coordinates as input, the module will raise an error if the input location is an address because it requires geocoding to a lat/lon coordinate.
See Google API key for Android for more information.

Android only. Calling on iOS will have no effect.

LaunchNavigator.setGoogleApiKey("your_api_key");

Parameters

  • {boolean} enabled - Whether to enable debug.

Example project

The example project can be used to build and run a React Native app for Android & iOS:

https://github.com/dpa99c/react-native-launch-navigator-example

It demonstrates how this module can be used and validates its functionality.

Platform-specifics

Android

Google API key for Android

  • On Android, this module uses Google's Geocoding API to geocode input addresses to lat/lon coordinates in order to support navigation apps which only allow input locations to be specified as lat/lon coordinates.
  • Google now requires that an API key be specified in order to use the Geocoding API, so you'll need to obtain an API key and specify it via setGoogleApiKey().
  • For more information on how to obtain an API key, see the Google documentation.

geo: URI scheme

  • Running on Android, in addition to discovering which explicitly supported apps are installed, the module will also detect which installed apps support using the geo: URI scheme for use in navigation.
    These are returned in the list of available apps.

  • By specifying the app option as LaunchNavigator.APP.GEO, the module will invoke a native Android chooser, to allow the user to select an app which supports the geo: URI scheme for navigation.

Google Maps launch modes

Google Maps on Android can be launched using 3 launch modes by specifying the launchMode option as a LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE constant to navigate():

  • Maps mode (LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE.MAPS) - launches in Map view. Enables start location to be specified, but not transport mode or destination name. Default if not specified.
  • Turn-by-turn mode (LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE.TURN_BY_TURN) - launches in Navigation view. Enables transport mode to be specified, but not start location or destination name.
  • Geo mode (LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE.GEO) - invokes Navigation view via geo: URI scheme. Enables destination name to be specified, but not start location or transport mode.

iOS

"Removing" Apple Maps

  • Since iOS 10, it is possible to "remove" built-in Apple apps, including Maps, from the Home screen.
  • Not that removing is not the same as uninstalling - the app is still actually present on the device, just the icon is removed from the Home screen.
  • Therefore it's not possible detect if Apple Maps is unavailable - LaunchNavigator.availableApps() will always report it as present.
  • The best that can be done is to gracefully handle the error when attempting to open Apple Maps using LaunchNavigator.navigate()
  • For reference, see this SO question and the Apple documentation.

Apple Maps launch modes

Apple Maps app on iOS can be launched using 2 launch methods by specifying the launchMode option as a LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE constant to navigate():

  • LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE.URI_SCHEME: use the URI scheme launch method. Default if not specified.
  • LaunchNavigator.LAUNCH_MODE.MAPKIT: use the MapKit class launch method.

URI scheme launch method

  • Launches the app using the Apple Maps URI scheme
  • The default method used by the module.
  • Supports input location types of both coordinates and address string without requiring remote geocoding service (works offline)
  • Doesn't support specifying nicknames for start/destination locations.

MapKit class launch method

  • Launches the app using the MapKit class to launch Apple Maps
  • Only supports input location type of coordinates without requiring remote geocoding service (works offline)
  • An input location type of an address (formatted as a single string) requires use of remote geocoding service (requires internet connection)
    • MapKit class input requires an address which is formatted as an address dictionary, in which the address is split into known fields such as street, city and state.
  • Support specifying nicknames for start/destination locations.
  • Provides additional launch options which are not available via the URI scheme launch method.

GitHub

https://github.com/dpa99c/react-native-launch-navigator