How can I use MOBAC atlases in GIS Software (e.g., QGis, uDig)

Question

How can I use the output from MOBAC (Mobile Atlas Creator) as background layer in open source desktop GIS software (e.g., QGis or uDig, TileMill etc.)?

My goal: To put my question into context: I want to use my downloaded map tiles as background raster map. On top of this, I want to add GPX tracks to create a map with mountain bike routes.

My tiles: I have a set of tiles downloaded using MOBAC. The tiles are in PNG format, each having a size of 256x256px. The projection is GlobalMercator (as in Google Maps). The naming scheme is $(z)_$(x)_$(y).png. I only have z (zoom level) 14. I can access the tiles through a local web server using a URL such as http://localhost/~username/MyMaps/14_8622_5722.png

The problem: I can't find a way to feed output from MOBAC into GIS software.

Previous efforts:

• I have successfully created an OpenLayers web map as follows:

  var name = 'Test Layer';
  var url = "/~username/MyMaps/${z}_${x}_${y}.png";
  var options = {
    type: 'png',
    sphericalMercator: true, 
    isBaseLayer: false, 
    minZoomLevel: 14
  };
  var layer = new OpenLayers.Layer.XYZ(name, url, options);
  

• I have tried to directly add the image tiles as a layer in QGis. But the tiles are not georeferenced.

• I have exported the tiles to MbTiles format using Mobac. But - surprising to me - not even TileMill seems to be able to load the .mbtiles file as background layer.

• I have served the .mbtiles file using TileStream but could not access the TileStream server using QGis or uDig.
• I have tried adding the tiles as GeoServer store using the Image Mosaic plugin, but I could not get it to work.

...Can you provide hints and help as to which route to take? I.e., which MOBAC export format should I use so to be able to import the map data into GIS software?

Answer 1

If you can access your tiles via Openlayers, you can use the openlayers plugin to display them in Qgis. Just look for .qgis\python\plugins\openlayers\openlayers_plugin.py for the structure of adding the layers. Its not much apart from the original OL. Then you have to add a html file in the html subfolder. The call of the tiles is within that html file and has the format

"http://localhost/folder/${z}${x}${y}.png",

as you mentioned above.