Hasta La Gadget!

It may not be quite as practical as the mobile version if you find yourself lost in the mall this holiday season, but those looking to plan their shopping route ahead of time can now finally take advantage of Google’s indoor maps in their desktop web browser. That new addition, just rolled out today, does come with a bit of a catch, though: the desktop version of indoor maps is only offering the main floor of buildings for the time being, with no word yet on when the ability to view additional levels will be added (something that can currently be done in the Android app). Of course, the availability of indoor maps is still quite a bit more limited than some of Google’s other map offerings, but it does now include over 10,000 floor plans in a number of different countries.

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Via: @GoogleMaps (Twitter)

Source: Google

Whenever I want to spend some time alone to mull things over, I trek off to this park I like, find a bench, and literally just stare off into space. There’s just something relaxing and comforting about an overlooking mountain view that puts my mind (and heart) at ease.

Unfortunately, not all of us have the time to take regular trips out of the city (or even to a city park) just to calm our minds. But thanks to design students Matt Batchelor, Amitra Kulkami, and Emma Laurin, your commutes are about to become more relaxing.

They came up with the Canopy concept, which uses a curved display to show an animation of the sky or surface landmarks as the train or subway you’re riding in passes them. Think of it like a sun roof of sorts, only the digital kind. Though the prototype appears to use some sort of projection system, the concept calls for large, flexible electrophoretic e-paper displays.

Mass transit operators can also choose to monetize on the added comfort by adding unobtrusive digital ads that interested commuters can check out by scanning the ad’s QR code.

It’s definitely a bright idea that will give people more things to look forward to for their long, dark underground commutes.

[via PSFK via Dvice]

Getting lost can be half the fun of any leisurely museum excursion, but if you’d prefer to navigate your indoor outing with a level of precision typically reserved for trips across town, you’ll want to bring Google Maps along on your next journey to the Smithsonian. Mountain View just added 20 US museums to its battery of 10,000 indoor schematics, including the de Young Museum in San Francisco, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Cincinnati Museum Center, the Indianapolis Museum of Art, the American Museum of Natural History, 17 Smithsonian museums and the National Zoo in DC. You can find the plans for any venue by searching or hitting the current location button once you’re on site, and Google plans to continue growing its collection, with SFMOMA, The Phillips Collection, the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art and the National WWII Museum in New Orleans set to join soon. Meanwhile, institutions interested in joining forces with Google can use the company’s Floor Plans tool to get the process started. Full details are at the source link below.

Filed under: GPS, Software

Google Maps adds floor plans and walking directions for 20 US museums originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 10 Jul 2012 16:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Interior navigation is only just coming into its own, but IndoorAtlas has developed a technology that could make it just as natural as breathing — or at least, firing up a smartphone’s mapping software. Developed by a team at Finland’s University of Oulu, the method relies on identifying the unique geomagnetic field of every location on Earth to get positioning through a mobile device. It’s not just accurate, to less than 6.6 feet, but can work without help from wireless signals and at depths that would scare off mere mortal technologies: IndoorAtlas has already conducted tests in a mine 4,593 feet deep. Geomagnetic location-finding is already available through an Android API, with hints of more platforms in the future. It will still need some tender loving care from app developers before we’re using our smartphones to navigate through the grocery store as well as IndoorAtlas does in a video after the break.

Continue reading IndoorAtlas uses disturbances in the (geomagnetic) force to map interiors, plot a path to aisle 3 (video)

Filed under: Cellphones, GPS

IndoorAtlas uses disturbances in the (geomagnetic) force to map interiors, plot a path to aisle 3 (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 09 Jul 2012 15:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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There’s no shortage of navigation outdoors, and even a little bit of help indoors, but there’s been precious little aid for the blind indoors — leaving them little choice but to move cautiously or get outside help. Fujitsu and Japan’s NICT have crafted a system that gives the sightless a greater level of autonomy inside through ultrawideband-based impulse radio. A grid of UWB radios positioned around a room gauge the distances between each other and transmit the data to a PC, which then talks to the traveler’s Android phone. The device then gives spoken directions based on a 12-o’clock system and far subtler distances than GPS can manage: the positioning is accurate to within a foot. While the indoors navigation is only just getting a demo this week, it’s already being refined to detect objects in the room as well as to help even the fully sighted. If Fujitsu and NICT have their way, buildings ranging from hospitals to malls will have their own turn-by-turn navigation. For some, the freedom of movement could be a life-changer.

Fujitsu, NICT create indoor navigation for the blind using ultrawideband, Android phones, kind hearts originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 03 Jul 2012 00:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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