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drawtonomy vs JOSM for Lanelet2

JOSM is the desktop OpenStreetMap editor, written in Java and used in OSM editing workflows globally. With the Autoware Lanelet2 plugin, it can author Lanelet2 maps.

What JOSM with the plugin covers:

  • A general-purpose OSM editor, extended for Lanelet2.
  • Full control over OSM tags, ways, and relations at any level of detail.
  • Bulk operations, filters, and search across many features.
  • Long history in the OSM community.
  • Offline-first local editing.
  • Plugin ecosystem and customisability.

Per Autoware’s documentation, JOSM-authored Lanelet2 maps may need manual modifications to be fully Autoware-compatible.

JOSM is a common option when you want desktop-grade Lanelet2 authoring with full OSM editing semantics.

drawtonomy’s Lanelet2 support is narrow. Per its exporter documentation:

  • Imports a Lanelet2 .osm file and renders lanelets as editable shapes.
  • Lets you reshape boundaries and do basic geometric tweaks.
  • Re-exports while preserving regulatory elements and other tags through a sidecar.
  • Does not allow creating or editing regulatory elements in the UI.

A few small things drawtonomy can add alongside JOSM:

  • Quick inspection of a Lanelet2 map in the browser without installing JOSM.
  • Light geometric tweaks on a small map (boundary reshape, smoothing).
  • Clean figures of a small piece of a Lanelet2 map for a paper or slide.
  • OpenSCENARIO 1.3 export for the same scene, if you want a playable companion in esmini.

For full Lanelet2 authoring — anything involving regulatory elements (traffic lights, right-of-way, speed limits, …), bulk edits, or city-scale work — JOSM remains the right tool. drawtonomy is for visualization and light edits only.

JOSM is rooted in the broader OpenStreetMap community, and its Autoware Lanelet2 plugin extends that lineage into autonomous-driving HD maps. drawtonomy reads and writes the same Lanelet2 OSM format, which means files can flow in both directions when the regulatory-element constraints are respected. Both tools — alongside Vector Map Builder and MapToolbox — share the same set of open standards, and contribute to the same Autoware HD-map community from different angles.