The reliable way to get these symbols into TAK is the icon set (section 1) — a marker can then reference one of its icons from its CoT detail (section 2). The generator also emits an experimental CoT type string (section 3), which TAK clients do not render yet — a dedicated plugin is in development.
Two buttons in the gallery header produce a ready-to-import iconset.zip (PNG icons +
iconset.xml + a cot_mapping.csv side-car that keeps the CoT string for each icon):
Icons are grouped into UAS / UGS palettes and named by their CoT type string
(e.g. a-f-X-A-1a-o-c-p), so each icon stays traceable to the PDE 3-57 taxonomy (see section 3).
Import — ATAK: Settings → Display → Icon & Toolbar → Import icon set (or drop the zip in
atak/iconsets/); WinTAK: Settings → Icon Set Manager → Import.
After the set is imported, point a marker at one of its icons with a <usericon> element in
the CoT <detail>. The iconsetpath is
<iconset-uid>/<group>/<filename> — the uid is the uid attribute from the
set's iconset.xml (also shown in the Icon Set Manager), and the group and filename must match the
imported set exactly, spaces included. Keep the event type a standard affiliation type
(e.g. a-f-A = friendly air) so clients without the set still show a sensible fallback:
<event version="2.0" uid="pde-uas-0001" type="a-f-A"
time="2026-09-22T10:00:00Z" start="2026-09-22T10:00:00Z" stale="2026-09-22T10:05:00Z">
<point lat="40.2033" lon="-8.4103" hae="150.0" ce="9999999" le="9999999"/>
<detail>
<usericon iconsetpath="pde357uxs-curated-simp/UAS (PDE simplified)/a-f-X-A-1b-m-c-x.png"/>
<contact callsign="Recon-1"/>
<remarks>PDE 3-57 UAS · camera · class 1A-1B</remarks>
</detail>
</event>
An icon placed from the palette already carries this iconsetpath automatically — the
snippet is for when you generate markers yourself (a TAK server, script, or another app).
The string extends standard CoT event types (e.g. a combat-engineer unit is a-u-G-U-C-E) with an
experimental UxS branch marked by X:
a-<aff>-X-<A|G>-<class>-<platform>-<payload>-<control>
a — atom (physical object)<aff> — affiliation: f friend · h hostile · n neutral · u unknownX — experimental PDE 3-57 UxS extensionA air (UAS) / G ground (UGS)<class> — 1a 1b 1c 2 3<platform> <payload> <control> — one letter each (see legend below the string)Example: a-u-X-A-1a-o-c-p = unknown UAS, class 1A, orbiter, camera payload, piloted.
This experimental type is not yet rendered by ATAK / WinTAK; a dedicated rendering plugin is in development. Until then, use the icon set (sections 1–2).
Builds a ready-to-import iconset.zip covering the curated PDE 3-57 vocabulary — every
platform × payload in the reference list below, for all four affiliations. Each combination is produced for
both class ranges (≤1B → hollow payload, ≥1C → solid payload). Icons are named by their CoT type string
(e.g. a-f-X-A-1b-m-c-x), with class collapsed to 1b/1c.
ATAK draws every custom iconset icon at a fixed reference size, so neither style can be made physically larger than a built-in 2525 symbol from the iconset alone. A dedicated ATAK plugin (planned) will render these at full map size.
Choose how the saved symbols are rendered. In both, each icon is named by its CoT type string
(e.g. a-f-X-A-1a-o-c-p); the simplified set collapses class to 1b/1c.
Complete doctrinal symbols (class label + control glyph), 1024 px source. Caveat: ATAK shows custom icons at a small, fixed on-map size, so the extra detail is hard to read. A future ATAK plugin will render these at full size.
Map-optimized: heavier outlines, standard affiliation colours, control & class glyphs removed (class shown by hollow ≤ 1B / solid ≥ 1C payload), 512 px. Best for on-map legibility.