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NREL OpenPATH

Name: NREL OpenPATH
Rating: 3.7 (1 reviews)
Author: National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Category : Health & FitnessVersion: 1.9.1

Size：32.8 MBOS : Android 7.0+

Developer：National Renewable Energy Laboratory Update：Jan 07,2025

3.7

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Application Description

NREL OpenPATH: Track Your Travel, Measure Your Impact

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory's Open Platform for Agile Trip Heuristics (NREL OpenPATH, https://nrel.gov/openpath) lets you monitor your transportation methods (car, bus, bike, walking, etc.) and calculate their energy consumption and carbon footprint.

This app helps communities analyze their travel habits, explore more sustainable options, and assess the outcomes. These findings can guide effective transportation policies and urban planning, leading to greener, more accessible cities.

OpenPATH provides personalized feedback on your travel choices, while also offering aggregated, community-level data (mode share, trip frequency, carbon footprint) through a public dashboard.

OpenPATH uses a smartphone app, server, and automated data processing for continuous data collection and analysis. Its open design ensures transparent data handling and allows customization for specific projects or research.

Data collection starts only after you consent. Upon initial installation, no data is collected or transmitted. Joining a study or program requires consent. If you just want to track your personal carbon footprint, you can participate in NREL's open-access study; your data may serve as a control group for partner experiments.

The app essentially creates an automated travel diary using background location and accelerometer data. You may add descriptive labels as needed by program administrators or researchers.

To conserve battery life, GPS automatically shuts off when you're stationary. This significantly reduces battery drain; expect approximately 5% battery usage for up to three hours of daily travel.