Google Maps will be receiving an upgrade that includes street-level data and more detailed terrain, due to Google’s computer vision smarts.
The search giant is rolling out several improvements to its Maps app. These updates will help users get a better direction for the areas around them. The upgrade will bring about a depiction of highly granular detail to the urban areas to help pedestrians travel to cities with ease and safety.
Google Maps upgrade to provide street-level data, an important update for pedestrians
This street-level data will display the shape and width of the city streets to scale and also pinpoint the accurate location of sidewalks, crossings, and pedestrian islands. This will be extremely useful information for wheelchair users or pram-pushing parents.
These updates by Google are coming out at a very important time when traveling by foot is the only option for some people due to COVID-19. The detailed maps will be available for London, New York, and San Francisco for the following months, with a plan to extend them to more cities over time.
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This update has been rolled out after the introduction of Live View in April. The Live View feature uses augmented reality to provide information and directions based on users’ real-time location.
Google’s color mapping algorithmic technique for identifying different terrain types
Google has also implemented a color mapping algorithmic technique that will allow a user to distinguish between different types of terrain. The user can then identify beaches, ravines, and mountains from Google Maps. The color mapping algorithmic technique identifies arid, icy, and mountainous areas and color codes them. This color-coding is based on an HSV color model, beaches and deserts appear in tan, snowy and icy areas in white, and vegetation in shades of green based on the density.
New styling methods available for developers after September 15th
An update to Google Maps will be pushed out to all 220 countries from this week, where this app is available. Google Maps Platform developers will be able to use the new styling methods from September 15th. Any new map style created in the Cloud Console will be automatically generated in Google’s improved map format.
Also, any maps created by the developers before September 15thwill have the same old color scheme until Google launches the update across the complete Google Maps Platform in early 2021.
