Layers Overview
Layers are the building blocks of your map. Each layer represents a dataset displayed in the 3D viewer. You can add, style, reorder, and toggle layers independently — and because layers are per-scenario, each scenario can have its own visibility and style settings.
Opening the Layers panel
Click the Layers button in the viewer toolbar to open the Layers panel. The panel anchors to the left edge of the viewport. Drag its right edge to resize it.
Adding layers
The panel header contains four buttons for adding data. These buttons are only visible if you have permission to add layers to the project.
| Button | What it opens |
|---|---|
| Radio icon | Connect Stream dialog — connect a live CZML data stream |
| Mountain icon | Import Terrain dialog — load an elevation model |
| External Layer | Add External Layer dialog — connect WMS, WMTS, XYZ tile, ArcGIS, or Cesium Ion services |
| + Add Layer | Import Layer dialog — upload a local file |
Use + Add Layer for file-based datasets (GeoJSON, Shapefile, KML, IFC, point clouds, and more). Use External Layer to connect to live web map services without uploading any files.
Searching layers
A search box sits below the header. Type to filter layers by name in real time. Press Escape or click the X button to clear the search.
Drag-to-reorder is disabled while a search is active. Clear the search to restore full reordering.
Layer categories
Layers are grouped into collapsible categories. Each category shows a chevron to expand or collapse it, and a count badge showing how many layers it contains. You can drag layers to reorder them within a category.
| Category | Layer types included |
|---|---|
| Vector | GeoJSON, CSV (with coordinates or addresses), CZML, KML, ArcGIS Feature Layer |
| Imagery | WMS, WMTS, Raster (GeoTIFF), ArcGIS MapServer, XYZ tiles |
| 3D Model | GLTF/GLB models, IFC files |
| 3D Tileset | Cesium 3D Tiles, I3S Scene Layers, Google 3D Tiles (Photorealistic) |
| Point Cloud | LAZ/LAS point cloud files |
| Terrain | Elevation models |
Only one terrain layer can be active at a time. Activating a new terrain layer automatically deactivates the previous one. See Terrain Layers for full details.
Layer rows
Each layer appears as a row in its category. A layer row shows:
- Drag handle — drag up or down to reorder within the category
- Type icon — indicates the layer type at a glance
- Layer name — double-click to rename inline
- Loading spinner — appears while the layer data is loading
- Visibility toggle — click the eye icon to show or hide the layer
- Expand chevron — click to open the inline options panel for that layer
Layer options
Click the expand chevron on a layer row to open its options. The options available depend on the layer type.
Common options
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
| Rename | Edit the layer name |
| Opacity | Slider from 0% (invisible) to 100% (fully opaque) |
| Zoom to | Flies the camera to the layer's geographic extent |
| Download | Downloads the original file (available for locally-uploaded layers) |
| Analyze | Opens the Analytics dashboard for this layer |
| Delete | Removes the layer (requires delete permission) |
Style options by layer type
Style controls appear in the expanded panel and vary by layer type.
GeoJSON polygons and lines
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
| Fill colour | Interior colour and opacity (polygons only) |
| Stroke colour | Outline colour and opacity |
| Stroke width | Line thickness in pixels |
Point markers
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
| Colour | Manual colour, colour from a dataset field, or a gradient using a colour ramp |
| Icon | Choose a preset icon or derive it from a dataset field |
| Scale | Fixed size, size from a dataset field, or random variation |
| Pole height | Fixed height in metres, or driven by a dataset attribute |
| Label | Choose which field to display as a text label, and set font size |
Heatmap
See Heatmaps for full style option details.
3D Bar Chart
See 3D Bar Charts for full style option details.
3D Models (GLTF/GLB)
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
| Scale | Uniform scale multiplier |
| Colour tint | Apply a tint colour to the model surface |
Point Clouds (LAZ/LAS)
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
| Point size | Rendered size of each point in pixels |
| Colour mode | How points are coloured — by RGB, intensity, elevation, or classification |
IFC
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
| Colour per element class | Set colour and opacity individually for walls, slabs, roofs, columns, and other IFC element classes |
Temporal options
CZML layers that contain time-varying data expose additional options:
- Temporal field picker — choose which attribute drives time-based display
- Trail config — configure trailing paths for moving entities (length, colour, fade)
Filter options
Most vector layers include a Filter editor that lets you show only features matching attribute conditions. Filters are applied on the client and do not change the underlying data.
Additional panel controls
At the bottom of the Layers panel you will find two additional toggles:
- OSM 3D Buildings — shows or hides the global OpenStreetMap building footprints extruded to approximate heights
- OSM Roads — overlays OpenStreetMap road network data on the map
- Comments visibility — toggles the display of all comment pins on the map (eye icon)
Google 3D Tiles (Photorealistic)
Google Photorealistic 3D Tiles stream a global, photorealistic 3D model of the real world — including buildings, terrain, trees, and urban detail — directly from Google Maps. Adding this layer gives you a photorealistic base to overlay your planning data on.
To add Google 3D Tiles:
- In the Layers panel, click External Layer.
- Select Google 3D Tiles as the layer type.
- Enter your Google Maps API key. The key must have the Maps Tiles API enabled. See your organisation's API keys settings if a key has been configured centrally.
- Click Add Layer.
The layer appears in the 3D Tileset category and supports visibility toggling and opacity adjustment like any other layer.
Google 3D Tiles requires a valid Google Maps API key with the Map Tiles API enabled. Usage is billed by Google. Contact your organisation administrator if you need access to the API key.
Google 3D Tiles are not splittable in Split View. Use them as a shared base layer while comparing planning overlays in the swipe tool.
CSV import with geocoding
Import a CSV or TSV file containing location data. AugmentCity automatically detects coordinate columns or address columns and converts the file to a point GeoJSON layer.
To import a CSV:
- In the Layers panel, click + Add Layer.
- Select your
.csvor.tsvfile.
AugmentCity reads the column headers and detects location data automatically:
| Detection method | How it works |
|---|---|
| Coordinate columns | Looks for columns named lat, latitude, lon, longitude, lng, x, y, and common Norwegian equivalents (breddegrad, lengdegrad, and so on). |
| Address column | Looks for a column named address, adresse, location, gate, or similar. Addresses are geocoded using Nominatim (OpenStreetMap). |
All other columns are preserved as feature properties available for styling, filtering, and analysis.
Geocoding from an address column requires a network connection and may take a moment for large files. Using coordinate columns gives faster, more reliable results.
Auto-visualization suggestion
After a CSV layer loads, AugmentCity checks whether the layer has numeric or categorical attributes that would benefit from colour styling. If it finds a suitable field, a toast notification appears at the bottom of the screen suggesting you colour the points by that field.
- Click Apply on the toast to colour the layer by the suggested field immediately.
- Click Dismiss to skip the suggestion and keep the default single-colour style.
You can always style the layer manually later by expanding it in the Layers panel and adjusting the Colour option under Point marker settings.
Tileset styling
3D Tilesets (Cesium 3D Tiles, I3S, and Google 3D Tiles) can be styled by attribute when the tileset contains metadata. AugmentCity introspects the available properties and lets you colour features by any numeric or categorical field.
To apply tileset styling:
- Expand a 3D Tileset layer in the Layers panel.
- If the tileset contains metadata, a Tileset Style section appears.
- Choose a Field from the dropdown — the list shows numeric and low-cardinality categorical properties found in the tileset.
- For numeric fields, choose a colour ramp (Viridis, Plasma, Magma, Blue–Red, or Green–Yellow–Red). The range is set automatically from the min/max values in the data.
- For categorical fields, each unique value is assigned a colour automatically. Click a colour swatch to change it.
- Click Refresh schema to re-introspect the tileset if properties were not detected on initial load.
- Click Reset to remove styling and return to the default tileset appearance.
Not all tileset sources expose metadata. If no properties are found, the Tileset Style section does not appear.
Reordering and saving
Drag a layer row by its handle to change its position within a category. The new order is saved automatically after a short delay. The rendering order on the map follows the layer list — layers higher in the list appear on top.
Drag-to-reorder only works within a category. You cannot move a layer from one category to another by dragging.
Performance with large datasets
GeoJSON layers with a large number of polygon or line features are automatically rendered using a high-performance batched mode. No action is required — the platform detects the feature count when the layer loads and chooses the appropriate renderer.
| Feature count | Renderer used |
|---|---|
| Up to 3,000 polygon + line features | Standard per-feature rendering |
| More than 3,000 polygon + line features | Batched high-performance rendering |
The batched renderer can deliver 10–100x faster load times for large datasets. All standard interactions continue to work: clicking a feature opens the properties popup, visibility toggles operate as normal, and styling options (fill colour, stroke colour, stroke width, opacity) are all supported.
Point features always use the standard renderer regardless of feature count.
On very large layers, changing the opacity slider may take a moment to apply. This is expected — the batched renderer must rebuild the layer when opacity changes.
Batched rendering produces visually equivalent results to standard rendering in most cases. You may notice subtle differences in how anti-aliasing or overlapping polygons appear, particularly at low zoom levels. These are cosmetic only and do not affect your data.
Layers are per-scenario
Each scenario maintains its own set of layer visibility states and style settings. Hiding a layer or changing its colour in one scenario does not affect any other scenario.
Use scenarios to prepare different map views for different audiences — for example, one scenario showing infrastructure layers and another focused on environmental data — without duplicating the underlying datasets.