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Flatten the 3D mesh

You can a gmp-flattener element to flatten specific areas of the map to remove 3D buildings, structures, and flora. While mesh flattening preserves the underlying geometry of the terrain (the hills and valleys), it removes the clutter of trees, buildings, and man-made objects. This creates a clean space for placing custom 3D models, markers, or data layers without visual interference from existing map features.

Here's an example of a map with a select area that has been flattened:

[フレーム]

<html>
 <head>
 <title>3D Mesh Flatten</title>
 <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="./style.css" />
 <script type="module" src="./index.js"></script>
 <script>
 // prettier-ignore
 (g=>{var h,a,k,p="The Google Maps JavaScript API",c="google",l="importLibrary",q="__ib__",m=document,b=window;b=b[c]||(b[c]={});var d=b.maps||(b.maps={}),r=new Set,e=new URLSearchParams,u=()=>h||(h=new Promise(async(f,n)=>{await (a=m.createElement("script"));e.set("libraries",[...r]+"");for(k in g)e.set(k.replace(/[A-Z]/g,t=>"_"+t[0].toLowerCase()),g[k]);e.set("callback",c+".maps."+q);a.src=`https://maps.${c}apis.com/maps/api/js?`+e;d[q]=f;a.onerror=()=>h=n(Error(p+" could not load."));a.nonce=m.querySelector("script[nonce]")?.nonce||"";m.head.append(a)}));d[l]?console.warn(p+" only loads once. Ignoring:",g):d[l]=(f,...n)=>r.add(f)&&u().then(()=>d[l](f,...n))})({
 key: "GOOGLE_MAPS_API_KEY"
 });
 </script>
 </head>
 <body>
 <gmp-map-3d
 center="40.70304023274898,-73.99453903360259,397.3687221767566"
 heading="-54.63577922139952"
 tilt="65.59195953953744"
 mode="SATELLITE">
 <gmp-flattener
 path="40.707680607935245,-74.00310353377735,500 40.70829665151717,-74.00193595590612,500 40.7073748659931,-74.00122787224885,500 40.706738652153156,-74.00232125268805,500 40.70738164589913,-74.0028721484274,500">
 </gmp-flattener>
 </gmp-map-3d>
 <button class="toggleButton" id="toggleButton" type="button">
 Disable Flattener
 </button>
 </body>
</html>index.html

See the complete example source code

TypeScript

asyncfunctioninit():Promise<void>{
awaitgoogle.maps.importLibrary('maps3d');
constmap=document.querySelector('gmp-map-3d')!;
constflattener=document.querySelector('gmp-flattener')!;
map.append(flattener);
consttoggleButton=document.getElementById(
'toggleButton'
)asHTMLButtonElement;
toggleButton.addEventListener('click',()=>{
if(flattener.isConnected){
flattener.remove();
toggleButton.textContent='Enable Flattener';
}else{
map.append(flattener);
toggleButton.textContent='Disable Flattener';
}
});
}
voidinit();index.ts

JavaScript

asyncfunctioninit(){
awaitgoogle.maps.importLibrary('maps3d');
constmap=document.querySelector('gmp-map-3d');
constflattener=document.querySelector('gmp-flattener');
map.append(flattener);
consttoggleButton=document.getElementById('toggleButton');
toggleButton.addEventListener('click',()=>{
if(flattener.isConnected){
flattener.remove();
toggleButton.textContent='Enable Flattener';
}else{
map.append(flattener);
toggleButton.textContent='Disable Flattener';
}
});
}
voidinit();index.js

CSS

html,
gmp-map-3d{
height:100%;
}
html,
body{
height:100%;
margin:0;
padding:0;
}
.toggleButton{
background:rgb(235,235,235);
color:black;
border:none;
padding:10px20px;
text-align:center;
text-decoration:none;
display:inline-block;
font-size:16px;
border-radius:4px;
cursor:pointer;
position:fixed;
bottom:10px;
left:50%;
transform:translateX(-50%);
z-index:1000;
}
.toggleButton:hover{
background-color:#007bff;
color:white;
}style.css

HTML

<html>
 <head>
 <title>3D Mesh Flatten</title>
 <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="./style.css" />
 <script type="module" src="./index.js"></script>
 <script>
 // prettier-ignore
 (g=>{var h,a,k,p="The Google Maps JavaScript API",c="google",l="importLibrary",q="__ib__",m=document,b=window;b=b[c]||(b[c]={});var d=b.maps||(b.maps={}),r=new Set,e=new URLSearchParams,u=()=>h||(h=new Promise(async(f,n)=>{await (a=m.createElement("script"));e.set("libraries",[...r]+"");for(k in g)e.set(k.replace(/[A-Z]/g,t=>"_"+t[0].toLowerCase()),g[k]);e.set("callback",c+".maps."+q);a.src=`https://maps.${c}apis.com/maps/api/js?`+e;d[q]=f;a.onerror=()=>h=n(Error(p+" could not load."));a.nonce=m.querySelector("script[nonce]")?.nonce||"";m.head.append(a)}));d[l]?console.warn(p+" only loads once. Ignoring:",g):d[l]=(f,...n)=>r.add(f)&&u().then(()=>d[l](f,...n))})({
 key: "GOOGLE_MAPS_API_KEY"
 });
 </script>
 </head>
 <body>
 <gmp-map-3d
 center="40.70304023274898,-73.99453903360259,397.3687221767566"
 heading="-54.63577922139952"
 tilt="65.59195953953744"
 mode="SATELLITE">
 <gmp-flattener
 path="40.707680607935245,-74.00310353377735,500 40.70829665151717,-74.00193595590612,500 40.7073748659931,-74.00122787224885,500 40.706738652153156,-74.00232125268805,500 40.70738164589913,-74.0028721484274,500">
 </gmp-flattener>
 </gmp-map-3d>
 <button class="toggleButton" id="toggleButton" type="button">
 Disable Flattener
 </button>
 </body>
</html>index.html

Flatten an area

The following example demonstrates passing a path of lat/lng coordinates to the flattener:

<gmp-map-3d
 center="40.70304023274898,-73.99453903360259,397.3687221767566"
 heading="-54.63577922139952"
 tilt="65.59195953953744"
 mode="SATELLITE">
 <gmp-flattener
 path="40.707680607935245,-74.00310353377735,500 40.70829665151717,-74.00193595590612,500 40.7073748659931,-74.00122787224885,500 40.706738652153156,-74.00232125268805,500 40.70738164589913,-74.0028721484274,500">
 </gmp-flattener>
</gmp-map-3d>index.html

Unflatten a specific area

To unflatten an area, remove the flattener from the document by calling flattener.remove().

Key benefits

Customization: Remove default map geometry to clear space for your own 3D models.
Clarity: Provide a clear, unobstructed view of polygons and polylines, such as detailed routes, directly onto the map surface.
Camera visibility: Prevent buildings or trees from interfering with the camera view, obstructing your focal point.