Google, Make a global map following Apple, Nokia's map creation know-how

ByCrimfants

Speaking of topics on maps available online, just the other dayMap of iPhone 5 is so bad that Tim Cook apologizedI remember that there are manufacturers that are challenging the map production project besides Google Maps, the giant online mapping service giant, and Apple. That is Nokia.

The Atlanitc, But it unravels the mystery of how Nokia is making a map.

The Forgotten Mapmaker: Nokia Has Better Maps Than Apple and Maybe Even Google - Alexis C. Madrigal - The Atlantic


Google dropped a lot of resources to build Google Maps and is still updating it. It is safe to say No.1 in the online map service that can be used all over the world. Data is provided from Zenrin and others. And, chasing Google is Apple that decided to install its own map application from iOS 6. This data uses Increment P and so on.

Nokia is the third power to follow these two biggest figures. Actually, Nokia also has thousands of map producers, and we are launching shooting vehicles similar to Google's street view cars. In 2007 it was a map information system companyNavteqFor about $ 8 billion (about 630 billion yen). Although Nokia is withdrawing from Japan as a mobile phone maker,Bing MapWe are offering data to you.

Google's street view car runs more than 5 million miles per year (about 8 million km). On the other hand, although Nokia's shooting vehicle has not run to that extent, it is a major distribution company that is running about 3.3 million miles (about 5.3 million km) per yearUPSYaFedExI am cooperating with you. According to Cliff Fox Vice President, the road traffic information sent every month is as much as 12 billion points, not only from UPS and FedEx tracks, but also from general people using car navigation systems I heard that they are receiving it.

Tony Cha is in charge of the shooting vehicle with that Nokia. Henry Tirri of CTO is called "a miracle of data collection" and has been driving a car from the city to the city for three years. Life is always hotel living, although it is a nice point that the company is giving out travel at expenses, he says he can not meet with friends and family at all.


Just when I was interviewed by The Atlantic, Mr. Cho who was shooting his hometown Fresno has been running 8 to 9 hours a day to complete the map in the city. For this "never ending drive", no longerSurrealismCho feeling that it is entering the domain of. "I drove through all the streets in this town, there are several such towns."

Shooting in the town is not suitable for rainy days, dry and warm days are the best. Therefore, it is easy to be influenced by the season, it is said that summer goes to north, winter goes to southern part.

Of course, the shooting is not running around the town properly, and the route that runs most efficiently by the algorithm is calculated. Even if you make a mistake, the next efficient route will soon be launched. When driving on that day ended straight ahead, I went back to the hotel straight and the next day I expressed to Mr. Cho as "going back to the goal point yesterday and repeating the restart" Mr. Cho said, "In a sense, it is almost a robot state."

This is the equipment on the roof of Volkswagen that Mr. Cha drives. Six cameras to shoot road signs,Bing Street ViewTwo panoramic cameras for GPS, two GPS antennas, three notebook PCs, a machine called LIDAR system that creates 3D images by emitting 64 lasers towards 360 degrees. It is worth $ 200,000 (about 16 million yen).


As for how the LIDAR system is useful, for example, when a shooting vehicle runs on such a road ......


Read the status of buildings around the road with laser ......


It is possible to grasp the width of the road and the distance to the stretched aisle.


Nokia's shooting vehicles can distinguish over 100 different road signs from 13 different countries. However, the process automation is still about 25%, and engineers think that they want to automate up to 50% in the future.

The road changes as if it were a creature, but Nokia calls this "The Living Map" and has a mechanism to respond promptly to change, and the world map He said that he is aiming to be "a copy of the world" as it is.