Google Inc.

Joshua Sam Schpok

Tilman Reinhardt

Michael Hongmai Lin

Brett Allen

Jamie Adams

Jeremiah Childs

A route from a current location of a portable device to a destination is determined, where the route includes a sequence of directed sections. Navigation instructions to guide a user of the portable device along the route to the destination are generated. To this end, candidate navigation landmarks perceptible within a 360-degree range of the current location of the portable device are identified, a navigation landmark disposed in a direction substantially opposite to the direction of the first one in the sequence of directed sections is selected from among the candidate navigation landmarks, and an initial instruction in the navigation instructions is generated and provided via a user interface of the portable device. The initial instruction references the selected navigation landmark.

Systems and method for using visual landmarks in initial navigation

An indication of a geographic area is received. Respective metrics of noteworthiness are obtained for multiple entities located in the geographic area. Using a machine-readable knowledge repository that describes semantic relations between the entities, several of the entities are selected in view of the corresponding metrics of noteworthiness, so that the selected entities share a set of attributes defining a commonality, and so that digital imagery is available for each of the selected entities. This commonality is not specified by the user. A geographic imagery tour that includes a representation of the respective digital imagery for the selected entities is generated.

Automatic generation of geographic imagery tours

Provided are methods, systems, and devices for generating annotations in images that can include receiving image data including images associated with locations. The images can include key images comprising one or more key annotations located at one or more key annotation locations in the one or more key images. At least one image and a pair of the key images that satisfies one or more annotation criteria can be selected based in part on one or more spatial relationships of the plurality of locations associated with the images. An annotation location for an annotation in the image can be determined based in part on the one or more key annotation locations of the one or more key annotations in the pair of the key images that satisfies the one or more annotation criteria. An annotation can be generated at the annotation location of the image.

Annotation generation for an image network

Systems and methods for using visual landmarks in initial navigation

To orient a user within a map display, a portable device displays a panoramic view representative of the user's real-world surroundings. The portable device also displays a map representation of an adjacent area above the panoramic view so that the area displayed in the map representation appears further away than the real-world surroundings depicted in the panoramic view. The portable device may also display an intersection which includes a commonly shared boundary between the panoramic view and the map representation so that the user can identify the relationship between the two displays.

Systems and methods for orienting a user in a map display

Methods, systems, and computer program products are provided for determining camera parameters and three dimensional locations of features from a plurality of images of a geographic area. These include, detecting features in the plurality of images where each of the images cover at least a portion of the geographic area, comparing the detected features between respective ones of the images to determine a plurality of matched features, selecting a subset of the plurality of matched features, and determining the camera parameters and the three dimensional positions of one or more of the detected features using the selected subset. The respective matched features are selected depending on a quantity of other matched features in proximity to the respective matched features.

Feature reduction based on local densities for bundle adjustment of images

Methods and systems for generating data objects for multi-resolution geometry in a three-dimensional model are provided. A region of high resolution geometry in the three-dimensional model having a level of detail that is higher than a level of detail associated with geometry data surrounding the region of high resolution geometry can be identified. A boundary of the region of high resolution geometry can be extended and high resolution geometry can be generated within the extended boundary. The high resolution geometry can be spatially partitioned into a plurality of geospatial data objects according to a hierarchical spatial partitioning scheme. The geospatial data objects can be selectively stored in a memory. For instance, geospatial data objects associated with the extended boundary can be identified and excluded from a hierarchical tree data structure storing geometry data associated with the three-dimensional model.

Method and system for generating and storing data objects for multi-resolution geometry in a three dimensional model

Systems and methods for merging three-dimensional models, such as a three-dimensional range sensor-based model and a three-dimensional camera-based model, are provided. According to aspects of the present disclosure, an enhanced volumetric merging technique can be used to merge the three-dimensional models. A plurality of voxels can be constructed for a three-dimensional space. A first distance field can be propagated based on the range sensor-based model in an extended margin between the range sensor-based model and a range sensor viewpoint. A second distance field can be propagated based on the camera-based model for voxels in the extended margin. A cumulative distance field can be determined based at least in part on the first field and the second distance field. The merged three-dimensional model can be constructed from the cumulative distance field using, for instance, a suitable meshing algorithm.

Merging three-dimensional models of varying resolution

Systems, methods and computer storage apparatuses for synthesizing terrain elevations under overpasses are described herein. An embodiment includes identifying one or more spans across an overpass in an overpasses model, where the overpasses model includes information for one or more overpasses and respective locations and widths of the spans. The embodiment associates one or more terrain elevation values with the one or more identified spans, where the terrain elevation values can be included in an elevation model corresponding to the overpasses model. The embodiment further includes interpolating terrain elevation values for one or more points across the identified spans and updating the elevation model with the interpolated terrain elevation values.

Methods and systems to synthesize terrain elevations under overpasses

Methods, systems, and computer program products are provided for determining camera parameters and three dimensional locations of features from a plurality of images of a geographic area. These include, detecting features in the plurality of images where each of the images cover at least a portion of the geographic area, comparing the detected features between respective ones of the images to determine a plurality of matched features, selecting a subset of the plurality of matched features and determining the camera parameters and the three dimensional positions of one or more of the detected features using the selected subset. The respective matched features are selected depending on a quantity of other matched features in proximity to the respective matched features.

Systems, methods, and computer storage mediums are provided for filling missing data in a spatially distributed, graphically represented data set. An example method includes dividing the data set into a first plurality of tiles along a first plurality of boundary lines. For each of the first plurality of tiles, a first set of fill data is generated to fill missing data in the data set. Then, for each of a determined number of dimensions of the tiles, the data set is divided into a new plurality of tiles along a new plurality of boundary lines offset from the last immediately determined plurality of boundary lines and a new set of fill data is generated to fill the missing data. A portion of the new set of fill data includes a portion of the last immediately generated set of fill data that fall along the boundary of the respective new tile.

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Milpitas, CA, United States of America

Joshua Sam Schpok