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Newly Published Apple Mapping Patent Details Route Feedback System, Real-Time Accident Reporting
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If you limit the definition of updating to manually filling out and submitting a form, then I agree with you.
As others have pointed out, it is entirely conceivable that such updating need not actually divert the driver's attention from the road. This patent application was made before Siri, before "eyes-free." I could see something like this:
Driver: Siri - update Traffic
Siri: Why?
Driver: Accident
(Records average speed for next 5 min and uploads)
Process assumes current route/location prompting only for a reason. Minimal driver distraction. More elaborate routines could also be incorporated.
These "patents" should be denied on sight.
Companies like Apple file these ridiculous patents, the USPO staffers hoping to curry favors and future well-paid jobs approve them and even if indefensible in court, Apple can threaten smaller companies without the legal resources and smother competition.
Bad for consumers, bad for the economy, bad for innovation. Bad for everyone but large corporations and a few attorneys.
Companies like Apple file these ridiculous patents, the USPO staffers hoping to curry favors and future well-paid jobs approve them and even if indefensible in court, Apple can threaten smaller companies without the legal resources and smother competition.
Bad for consumers, bad for the economy, bad for innovation. Bad for everyone but large corporations and a few attorneys.
It's safe unless the driver is filing reports while driving. I suspect (hope) the reports I get are entered by passengers. In some ways it makes driving safer. Aside from real-time accident reports, I receive reports when there's an object in the road, a car stopped on the shoulder, and more.
Neither Google Maps nor Apple's Maps offer that sort of thing. I'd rather use one of those (my Waze app crashes too often and it's got the weakest search capability of the three in my experience), so I hope they add that functionality soon.
Yes. Again, I maintain that Apple is in a fairly unique position where they have a big enough userbase -- and a cloud based back end -- that something like this could happen automatically.
They'd see you driving along a highway, suddenly slowing down in the middle of it, and crawling for a while and/or getting off at the next available exit. That pattern is pretty easy to identify.
Now, one person does this, maybe they just had a freak incident, but a bunch of users experiencing the same slowdown in the same spot, that's either a traffic jam or an accident. Regularly happens every day around the same time? Traffic jam.
And how is such crowd sourcing patentable, and patentable by Apple in particular, which is rather late to the game?
It's a pre-emptive strike and nothing else.
Agreed. Although some aspects of the algorithms might be patentable -- such as an algorithm using (as per my hypothetical idea) large amounts of user location data to automatically judge highway traffic conditions.
Come to think of it, I should patent that myself...
These words should be printed on every electronic device ) People take too much for granted these days.
No, look at the mockup again, you can log "high speeds" and "smooth roads". Hardly expect people to stop, log them, and continue driving...they'll obviously log their existence while traveling at said high speeds. There are other items that would indicate good driving conditions such as "no gas stations", "no food", "scenic", etc. What is up with "frequent accidents"? Shouldn't that be calculated based on inputs?
Prolly got lawyers getting ready to due when someone gets in an accident due to "Apple's negligence."
A patent that should never be granted.
It is a concept and idea.
There are many ways to implement this.
Bogus crap like most software patents.
It is a concept and idea.
There are many ways to implement this.
Bogus crap like most software patents.
Depends on your definition of 'recently' which, pretty much, depends on how old you are.
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In my experience, by the time I know the cause is an accident, I'm coming out of the slow down and returning to normal speeds.
Except that was one cop making a foolish/misleading statement.
The issue raised by the police officer was that trucks and buses could potentially be directed down "Wild Dog Road". This road is not appropriate for vehicles of that size.
What he (and every person reporting this) failed to mention, was that these vehicles were not being incorrectly directed down that road due to error. In fact, the only time Google Maps routes vehicles onto that road is when the user selects a destination address which is on that road.
Effectively the cop is expecting that once Google Maps has been told to route someone to an address on that road, that it somehow magically determine the size of the vehicle it is being transported in and take that into account.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-57558777-93/police-google-maps-giving-dangerous-directions-too/
Also, Apple Maps was not "leading people to the wrong city". People were trying to get to a fairly large regional town and were in fact being directed to a remote national park 70kms away from the actual town. These incorrect directions resulted in a number of people actually being stranded for a significant amount of time in a potentially life threatening environment depending on weather.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-5...scourage-use-of-apple-maps-app-after-rescues/
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My guess would be because the ink is still drying on the contracts (Google has owned them for less than a month).
eagerly waiting for an accurate version of apple maps, was definitely the best maps i had ever used, great UI, fast, smooth, better 3d maps, etc.
Here's what's missing IMO...
So, I had plenty of opportunity this last week to see mapping mistakes in action while driving. So what am I NOT going to do while driving? Stop to report some bug. While maps is running, there should be a little icon that you can just poke at the point of error and either tell about it later, or just leave it and let the map people figure out what's wrong with it... I would have loved to mark about 8 different places it was wrong, but just no opportunity to do so while driving, and couldn't remember later.
So, I had plenty of opportunity this last week to see mapping mistakes in action while driving. So what am I NOT going to do while driving? Stop to report some bug. While maps is running, there should be a little icon that you can just poke at the point of error and either tell about it later, or just leave it and let the map people figure out what's wrong with it... I would have loved to mark about 8 different places it was wrong, but just no opportunity to do so while driving, and couldn't remember later.
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This is a ok... just to me, just doing this via "crowd sourcing" only, you can easily trick the system, and allot of mistakes being make.
For example, if no verification is done, and all automated based on how many users submit same info, how do you know you can't just get a bunch of people together and all submit the same wrong info (eg place doesn't exist) ?
If there is no certainty from Waze saying "oh ya.. ok we have confirmed your submission/correction (weather right or wrong) and verified the place does in fact is there. I'm not saying this is done all the time, but unless is a point in the system to verify, there it can be cheated yes (either theatrically or reality)..
Why apple is applying patent for each & everything recently
I haven't read the authorized biography of Steve Jobs, but I read here on MacRumors that according to it, once Creative sued Apple for infringing a patent with the menus on the original iPod, Jobs figured Apple had to file patent applications for everything.
Sadly? Tell that to the travelers in Greece who had to walk long distances with their luggage in the heat to get to the Athens airport when taxi drivers shut down the highway. Furthermore, I suspect you bemoan the relative shortage of protests in the U.S. as long as we're talking about protesters you agree with. The Westboro Baptist Church and the pro-life activists seem to be fairly active.
I am a realist, you on the other hand (for some unknown reason) loves to paint the rosiest of pictures for some corporation. Very strange.
I'm an optimist... but I don't have brand loyalty. And I'd much rather be an optimist since it's better for your health in the long run.
when was apple's patent application filed and when was Waze released to the public? also, there could still be a patent grant if the patent application has subject matter that is novel over Waze, not only including the end result, but the processes used to get to the end result.