Microsoft are testing a new service this week allowing camera phone owners who are lost in the Seattle area to get a map and information about where they are.
Users simply take a picture of their location and send it to a central database which matches local landmarks and pinpoints the users location. The service is being displayed by Microsoft at a research event this week.
Microsoft has taken millions of pictures on Seattle’s streets capturing its landmarks from every angle. The images are stored in a database and indexed by their distinguishing features.
Xing Xie, a Microsoft researcher, commented:
When you are using a mobile phone, then inputting text can sometimes be difficult. So we decided to make the camera the input.
The application is still being tested and doesn’t seem particularly scalable but if it works then it will be very useful. Having been lost on numerous occasions the ability to take a photo of a nearby building and have a map sent straight back to me showing my location would be invaluable.
Via Reuters
