Apple Acquires WiFiSLAM, An Indoor Navigation Company

Apple Acquires WiFiSLAM, An Indoor Navigation Company

A person familiar with the matter has revealed that Apple has purchased indoor navigation company WiFiSLAM. It has reportedly paid $20 million for the company based in Silicon Valley. An Apple spokesman did confirm that the company has made this purchase, and added that Apple does purchase smaller companies from time to time, but doesn’t necessarily reveal what it plans to do with them. No further comment was made, and WiFiSLAM hasn’t commented at all on the deal.

WiFiSLAM is a two year old indoor navigation company. It developed technology that allows apps to determine the user’s location in a building, based on Wi-Fi signals. The technology is used for indoor mapping purposes. Since last year we’ve been seeing Apple’s renewed interest in mapping. It set the wheels in motion when it booted Google Maps from iOS and introduced Apple Maps. Google already has an indoor mapping offering for certain select locations, including shopping centers, airports and sports venues. WiFiSLAM is yet another weapon in Apple’s arsenal, as the mapping wars, be it indoor or out door mapping, continue to heat up.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Samsung Galaxy S4 Launch Results In iPhone Trade-Ins Doubling, Budget iPhone Will Release In 2013 Without Retina Display [Rumor],

MIT’s real-time indoor mapping system uses Kinect, lasers to aid rescue workers

MIT's realtime indoor mapping system uses Kinect, lasers to aid rescue workers

We’ve seen the Kinect put to use to help you find your groceries, but the sensor’s image processing capabilities have some more safety-minded applications as well. The fine minds at MIT combined the Kinect with a laser range finder and a laptop to create a real-time mapping rig for firefighters and other rescue workers. The prototype, called SLAM (for Simultaneous Localization and Mapping) received funding from the US Air Force and the Office of Naval Research, and it stands out among other indoor mapping systems for its focus on human (rather than robot) use and its ability to produce maps without the aid of any outside information, thanks to an on-board processor.

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MIT’s real-time indoor mapping system uses Kinect, lasers to aid rescue workers originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Sep 2012 13:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nokia grows Destination Maps coverage to 4,605 venues in 38 countries, coming to Nokia Maps soon

Nokia grows Destination Maps coverage to 4,605 venues in 38 countries, coming to Nokia Maps soon

After covering more than 23 million miles of the world’s roadways, Nokia has focused on expanding its interior mapping footprint. Since its launch during CTIA 2011, the company’s Destination Maps service has grown to cover a total of 4,605 different venues in 38 countries, including airports, department stores, shopping malls and transit hubs. As you can see in the infographic above, the majority of those locations are in North America, with a total of 2,595 mapped on the continent, followed by 1,778 in EMEA, 225 in the Asia Pacific region and just seven in Latin America — that’s 235 million square feet in all. Nokia also promises much more to come in the future, with hints identifying amusement parks and stadiums as possible beneficiaries. The company also reiterated its recent partnership with Bing, adding that Nokia Maps will have access to Destination Maps in the not-so-distant future as well. You’ll find a few more details at the source link below, and while we don’t have precise predictions to share, you can rest easy knowing that Nokia’s indoor effort is far from complete.

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Nokia grows Destination Maps coverage to 4,605 venues in 38 countries, coming to Nokia Maps soon originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 Jul 2012 22:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink WMPoweruser  |  sourceNokia  | Email this | Comments