Ever Wondered How Google Maps Work? – Info Gadgets
Used to be that “looking something on a map” meant unfolding a huge piece of paper you kept in your glove box and driving past the turn off to your destination by the time you had figured out where to make the turn.
Fun times!
Fast forward a few years and now thanks to Google maps you can zoom in so far on nearly any street in the world, and whether you want a bodega in the big apple or just a regular apple in Manhattan, Kansas, you are not bound to have a problem.
But this unprecedented level of detail didn’t happen overnight.
Google managed to get a foothold in the online mapping scene back in the mid-2000’s when it acquired Where 2 Technologies who had the idea to people scroll around on a map without having to refresh; the novel concept that helped set Google maps apart early on.
But, Google needed more than just a pretty interface.
Fortunately, Google is first and foremost a DATA company, so they often start by working directly with National and local government offices to determine not only where every road is, but how lanes are spaced and allocated on freeways to give an accurate base experience.
Unfortunately, governments won’t or aren’t able to provide the completely accurate picture of how an area is laid out.
So this is where Google Street View comes in.
But isn’t Google Street View just a way for users to sight see?
The answer as it turns out is, no. Google also uses Street View internally in order to double check and tweak its existing mapping data.
As the Street View car takes photos of its surroundings, special AI can recognize any signs caught by the camera and send them to be analyzed by Google servers to determine not only lane placement and traffic restrictions but among other things even the proper addresses of local businesses.
All of this information is also to prevent maps from giving you bad directions by, say for example, sending you the wrong way down a one-way street.
That will be bad.
Adding another layer to Maps is Google’s access to a huge amount of satellite data, partly from its acquisition of satellite imaging service Keyhole in 2004, and partly from government sources.
They use top-down views of street markers to further improve accuracy, and they have even got to the point where they can use satellite imagery to extrapolate the shapes and footprints of buildings.
Not only to give you 3D views in Google Earth which are super cool but, also to enable you to see outlines of these buildings to see regular Maps view.
So,
By intelligently combining data from all of these sources Google Maps can construct quite an accurate picture of any given patch of land pretty well. But, even Google can’t completely automate that…….Yet
They also use Human employees in a project called “Atlas” to make necessary adjustments.
One of these team’s common tasks is to investigate user error reports and tweak roots on the map late that clearly don’t match up with a recent satellite image, or Street View capture.
And this kind of user reporting reflects how crowdsourcing is another major piston in Google Map’s engine. And I am not just talking about the pictures you see on business listing either.
Google relies partially on volunteers to map areas that may have limited data on. Something that is especially important in less developed countries where it is harder for Google to send vehicles or get accurate mapping data from the governments.
Of course, Google uses other tricks too to flesh out the experience.
Once upon a time, they licensed databases from the Yellow Pages to dramatically expand how many business maps will show. But, these days listings are pulled from other public sources and from business owners who are eager to take advantage of the visibility that Google Maps provide.
Owners of large facilities have even submitted floor plans and granted Google permission to do site surveys to help you find your way around. This is particularly useful for sports arenas, shopping malls, and air ports, and Google even works with a third party service that keeps track of gas prices by looking at credit card data and even direct data feeds from main gas chains.
Finally,
Whether you realize you signed up for it or not Google also uses ‘YOU’.
Location services and the GPS on your phone helps Google understand on top of where it is, how to get there, and how many square feet of patio space is available, what times of day your favorite watering hole gets crowded.
And they don’t show you but they probably know the demographic makeup of the clientele too.
WOW!
So the real answer to how does Google Maps work? Is that Google simply has a huge number of information gathering tentacles all over the planet, working around the clock.
Thank you for reading!
Article Prepared by Ollala Corp