Leveraging map use context for advancing cartography in the 21st century

Abstract

Abstract. Mobile maps are an integral part of our daily routines, serving a variety of purposes in different environments. Designing maps for different use situations is essential for a user-centered and context-aware approach. Previous research has explored map use context and context-aware mobile maps from interdisciplinary perspectives. This paper aims to consolidate and unify existing research on context in cartography and related fields, identify current challenges, and propose ways to advance context-awareness for designing mobile maps. We present a map use context taxonomy that provides an overview of context elements, possible context-sensing methods, and corresponding application fields. We invite the cartographic community to expand on our proposed context taxonomy and explore the extensive field of context acquisition methods, applications, and related literature for advancing research on map use context.