Hi,
I was wondering what the typical way to map a sun shade sail is in Aus/NZ? I ask as I know these are very common there.
I wouldn’t call it a roof. Perhaps man_made=canopy but this usage doesn’t seem very common in Aus/NZ especially considering their proliferation in real-life.
So am I missing something?
Thanks!
Great question, given there is some usage already I think man_made=canopy is ideal.
I’d add that you can also tag the feature it’s covering (e.g playground) with weather_protection=canopy. Key:weather_protection - OpenStreetMap Wiki
I think I’ve used amenity=shelter + shelter_type=sun_shelter for this sort of thing before. Perhaps man_made=canopy is a better fit though.
I’ve done a little bit of analysis on the current usage of this tag (as I’d like to document it on the Wiki before using).
Currently there are 1,272 uses of man_made=canopy.
Of these, 418 (32.9%) are also tagged with building=*:
| building=* | n | % |
|---|---|---|
| roof | 336 | 80.4 |
| carport | 46 | 11.0 |
| yes | 25 | 6.0 |
| shed | 4 | 1.0 |
| garage | 3 | 0.7 |
| balcony | 1 | 0.2 |
| hospital | 1 | 0.2 |
| hotel | 1 | 0.2 |
| school | 1 | 0.2 |
Additionally, 104 (8.2%) are also tagged with amenity=*:
| amenity=* | n | % |
|---|---|---|
| parking | 52 | 50.0 |
| fuel | 18 | 17.3 |
| shelter | 13 | 12.5 |
| dressing_room | 7 | 6.7 |
| place_of_worship | 7 | 6.7 |
| bicycle_parking | 4 | 3.8 |
| bar | 1 | 1.0 |
| trolley_bay | 1 | 1.0 |
| waste_disposal | 1 | 1.0 |
of those tagged with amenity=shelter, 10 are also tagged with shelter_type=*:
| shelter_type=* | n | % |
|---|---|---|
| picnic_shelter | 6 | 60 |
| public_transport | 2 | 20 |
| roof | 1 | 10 |
| weather_shelter | 1 | 10 |
Only 8 (0.6%) instances of man_made=canopy are also tagged with material=* and all of these are for the value glass.
Interestingly, only 1 instance man_made=canopy was also tagged with weather_protection and the value for this was pergola.
For me, a canopy is probably defined by being made of a fabric material hung/tied/attached to several supporting poles or walls.
I would generally not class it as a “building” or “roof” structure which feels much more permanent than a canopy. But I suppose a canopy could act as a shade structure for more than just pools/playgrounds, so maybe tagging alongside building=carport etc does make sense.
Interested to hear others’ thoughts.
See no mention similar to roof only of the obligatory layer=1. Many outdoor pools here have a ground bound capony in winter a cover. Never would i map these temporary fixtures.
Good point. Currently, 304 (23.9%) of man_made=canopy are tagged with layer=*:
| layer | n | % |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 295 | 97.0 |
| 2 | 8 | 2.6 |
| -1 | 1 | 0.3 |
So the downside to amenity=shelter + shelter_type=sun_shelter is that it implies a more rigid structure than what we have here? The wiki description makes it sound like a good fit, except for the mention of “roof” - I agree it’s a bit of a stretch to call these sails “roofs”.
Having said that, they do still feel to me like a kind of shelter (which made me think they should live somewhere under amenity=shelter). Perhaps I’m overthinking that though.
It’s there to keep the sun off, so I’d agree with you. 
If the shade sail is over a playground, shouldn’t it be leisure=playground, and if over a pool, leisure=pool? and then shelter_type=sun_shelter?
Came across this seeing a number of shade sails in and around Motueka marked as “building”
Yes.
& I’d map it as 2 areas, one for the pool, then another over it as the shelter.