Terms of Service

1. Agreement to Terms

By accessing and using 3D Topo Generator (the "Service"), you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service ("Terms"). If you do not agree to these Terms, please do not use the Service.

3D Topo Generator is a Software as a Service (SaaS) platform that provides tools for generating 3D printable terrain models from digital elevation data.

2. Service Description

3D Topo Generator provides:

• Web-based tools for creating 3D terrain models
• Access to multiple Digital Elevation Model (DEM) data sources
• Dual processing capabilities: Local Browser generation and Cloud processing
• STL, segmented 3MF, printing-guide, screenshot, and portable project outputs where supported by the selected processing mode
• Semantic terrain, base, track, and pin objects for compatible multi-part and multi-material workflows
• Interactive mapping, GPX/KML/GeoJSON route import, custom pins, and configurable 3D preview styles

The Service is provided "as is" and may be modified, suspended, or discontinued at any time without notice.

3. User Rights and Restrictions

3.1 Permitted Use

Subject to these Terms, your registered account, and any applicable credit requirements, you may:

• Access and use the Service for personal or commercial purposes
• Generate and download 3D terrain models
• Use generated models for 3D printing, education, research, or commercial applications

3.2 Restrictions

You may not:

• Reverse engineer, decompile, or disassemble the Service
• Copy, modify, or create derivative works of the Service software
• Redistribute, sell, or sublicense access to the Service
• Use the Service to generate content that violates any laws or regulations
• Attempt to bypass usage limits or access controls
• Use automated tools to access the Service without authorization

4. Service Plans and Access

3D Topo Generator requires registration and offers two distinct processing workflows. It does not require a subscription: Browser previews are free, while printable Browser exports and Cloud jobs use prepaid credits.

4.1 Browser Mode (Free Creation and Preview; Credit-Unlocked Exports)

The Browser Mode utilizes your local device resources and includes:

• Model generation at no Service charge (subject to OpenTopography availability, request/rate limits, and the practical memory and processing limits of the user's device)
• Free interactive preview: model inspection, visualization styles, map-element overlays, PNG capture, and portable project JSON
• 13+ selectable DEM products including SRTM, NASADEM, Copernicus, ALOS World 3D, and GEBCO bathymetry datasets
• Resolution options: source resolution varies by DEM and location, with selected global land products offering approximately 30-metre sampling
• Bathymetry & Ice-Topo features for ocean floor and ice-covered terrain mapping
• User-selected coverage: the Service does not impose a fixed Browser area ceiling, but larger requests can take longer or fail because of browser, device, network, or upstream-provider limits
• Browser Export Pass: one prepaid-credit purchase per exact model configuration unlocks every applicable STL, 3MF, and printing-guide file for that configuration, including retries
• Persistent access: if a local export attempt fails after the pass is created, the entitlement remains available for regeneration and retry; an individual local file-generation failure does not create a second debit or an automatic refund
• Multi-material/multi-color support for advanced 3D printing after the export pass is unlocked

4.2 Cloud Mode (Pay-as-you-go)

Cloud Mode provides asynchronous server-side terrain processing and is designed to move beyond the practical CPU and memory limits of a local browser. It has no fixed application-defined geographic-area ceiling, although upstream DEM limits, timeouts, available credits, and infrastructure constraints still apply:

• Shared Credit System: Cloud jobs and Browser Export Passes use the same pre-paid, non-subscription balance (purchasable via PayPal).
• Job Costs: Preview the required credit amount based on model size prior to job submission.
• Automatic Cloud-job refunds: if a debited Cloud job enters the failed state, its job credits are returned to the shared balance through an idempotent server transaction.
• Asynchronous Processing: Submit tasks and track their progress through a dedicated jobs dashboard.
• Current output boundary: Cloud Mode currently produces one terrain-only STL per successful job. Tracks, pins, interactive preview, segmented 3MF, and printing guides are Browser Mode capabilities.

4.3 API Key Requirement

To use the Service, you must obtain a free API key from OpenTopography:

• Visit OpenTopography API Registration
• Create a free account and request an API key
• Enter your API key in the application settings

When you save an API key, the Service stores it in your browser's session storage and synchronizes it to your authenticated Firebase account profile. Browser Mode sends the key directly from your browser to OpenTopography when requesting elevation data. Cloud Mode allows the Firebase backend to read the profile copy and send it to OpenTopography on your behalf while processing a cloud job. The profile copy remains stored until you overwrite it, clear it through the application, or delete your account. It is not used for PayPal payment processing.

4.4 Credits, Payments, Export Passes, and Promotions

• Credits are prepaid Service units with no cash value, are not a bank balance, and are not transferable between accounts.
• Credit packs are one-time purchases processed by PayPal; the Service does not offer a recurring subscription.
• A Browser Export Pass is bound to the deterministic fingerprint of one exact manufacturing configuration. It unlocks all applicable files for that configuration and can be reused without another debit.
• If an individual Browser file operation fails after an Export Pass is created, the entitlement remains available for regeneration and retry; this does not generate an automatic per-file credit refund.
• Cloud-job debits are refunded automatically only when the server records that job as failed. Completed Cloud jobs and successfully created Browser Export Passes are not automatically refunded, without limiting any mandatory rights under applicable law.
• August 2026 Welcome Campaign: eligible new and existing authenticated accounts may receive 250 promotional shared credits once by signing in no later than 31 August 2026 at 23:59 Europe/Rome. Eligibility and the deadline are enforced by the server. Promotional credits successfully awarded before the cutoff remain in the shared wallet after the campaign ends, subject to continued Service and account availability.
• Creating multiple accounts to obtain duplicate promotional grants, manipulating requests, or attempting to bypass credit controls is prohibited and may result in suspension or reversal of improperly obtained credits.

5. Intellectual Property Rights

5.1 Service Ownership

The Service, including all software, designs, graphics, and documentation, is owned by Carmelo Sammarco (Sicilian4Ever) and is protected by copyright and other intellectual property laws.

5.2 Generated Content

You retain all rights to the 3D models you generate using the Service. However, you acknowledge that:

• The underlying DEM data is provided by third-party sources and may be subject to their own terms and attribution requirements
• You are responsible for ensuring compliance with applicable data usage terms
• The Service merely processes publicly available elevation data

5.3 Third-Party Data

The Service accesses elevation data from various sources including SRTM, NASADEM, Copernicus, and others. Users must comply with the terms of use of these data providers.

6. Data and Privacy

The Service uses account, local-browser, geospatial, billing, and job data only as needed to provide and protect its functions. The current technical data flow is:

• Account: Firebase Authentication and Firestore store identifiers such as UID, email, display name, optional profile photo, login/profile timestamps, processing status, shared credit balance, Cloud jobs, and immutable billing/entitlement ledger records. Firebase Authentication uses its normal browser persistence unless the user signs out or clears site data.
• OpenTopography key: the key is held in browser session storage and in the authenticated Firebase profile as described in Section 4.3.
• Local workspace: bounding boxes, pins, processing preference, DEM cache, imported tracks, purchased-project archives, and locally dismissed entitlement references are stored in localStorage or IndexedDB. Clearing browser site data removes these local copies but does not erase server account records.
• Browser export verification: when the user explicitly unlocks downloads, the canonical configuration—including selected route and pin geometry—is sent transiently to the authenticated verification function so it can validate the fingerprint and price. Complete geometry is not stored in the ledger; only the fingerprint, verified bounds, price, element counts, model name, and compact configuration summary are retained.
• Cloud artifacts: successful Cloud terrain STL files are stored under an account/job-specific Firebase Storage path with a tokenized temporary link. The intended default artifact lifetime is one day and cleanup runs periodically; job and ledger metadata may remain after the file expires.
• Payments: PayPal processes checkout and payment information under its own privacy statement. The Service stores server-side order, capture, webhook, pack, credit, and status records needed for payment verification and idempotency; it does not receive or store the user's complete card credentials.
• Service providers: information is disclosed as necessary to Google Firebase/Google Cloud for authentication, database, functions, hosting and storage; PayPal for payments; OpenTopography for DEM requests; and map/tile providers for interactive maps. Those providers process data under their own terms and privacy notices. The Service does not sell personal information.

The current application does not implement a separate behavioural advertising or product-analytics SDK. Normal infrastructure, security, payment, and upstream-provider logs may nevertheless be produced by the relevant service providers.

Account deletion in the current client removes the Firebase Authentication account and main users/{uid} profile document after reauthentication. Firestore subcollections such as Cloud jobs and ledger records are not recursively erased because deleting a parent document does not automatically delete its subcollections. Payment records and provider-side records are not necessarily deleted by that client action and may be retained for entitlement integrity, fraud prevention, dispute handling, legal obligations, or technical limitations. Contact the Service operator using Section 11 for access, correction, or deletion requests relating to remaining Service-controlled records. Provider-controlled records are governed by the relevant provider's privacy process.

Users should review the privacy information of Firebase, PayPal, and OpenTopography.

7. Disclaimers and Limitations of Liability

7.1 No Warranty

THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED. WE DO NOT WARRANT THAT:

• The Service will be uninterrupted, secure, or error-free
• Generated models will be accurate or suitable for any particular purpose
• DEM data will be available or accurate for all locations
• The Service will meet your specific requirements

7.2 Limitation of Liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, WE SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOSS OF PROFITS, DATA, OR USE.

Our total liability for any claims arising from the Service shall not exceed the amount you paid for the Service in the 12 months preceding the claim.

8. Termination

We reserve the right to suspend or terminate your access to the Service at any time for:

• Violation of these Terms
• Fraudulent or illegal activity
• Payment fraud, chargeback abuse, or manipulation of credits and promotional grants
• Any other reason at our sole discretion

You may stop using the Service at any time. The application also provides an account-deletion action, subject to reauthentication and the retention boundaries described in Section 6.

9. Changes to Terms

We reserve the right to modify these Terms at any time. Changes will be effective immediately upon posting to the Service. Your continued use of the Service after changes constitutes acceptance of the modified Terms.

10. Governing Law and Jurisdiction

These Terms shall be governed by and construed in accordance with applicable laws. Any disputes arising from these Terms or the Service shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the appropriate courts.

11. Contact Information

For questions about these Terms or the Service, please contact: