It looks like the large, globe-like cameras on top of Google Street View cars are about to change for good. The California-based tech giant has finally upgraded the design for the cameras that are used to capture Street View images. This marks the first significant upgrade for the technology in eight years, reported Wired. Following the update, the new camera rig will aid in capturing photos that are clearer, higher in resolution, and more vivid in color.
The rig, just like the old design, will attach to a vehicle's roof, but it will now feature a smaller ball on top with just seven cameras, and not 15, equipped with 20-megapixel sensors. The rig will now also host two cameras, which will take still HD photos and two "cans" on the front and back for laser radar.
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Google's machine learning and AI capabilities mean that when photos are captured by a Street View car, algorithms can detect and note relevant street names and numbers, automatically adding them to Google's database. The software can also identify business names and logos. Google is also working to develop the software, taking its capabilities further so that, in future, it can recognize different types of stores based their looks.
Currently, the Street View technology makes use of Google's machine learning and AI capabilities, which can detect and note relevant street names and numbers and automatically store them into the Google database by looking at the pictures taken by the Street View car.
Google Street View started taking photos since 2007. Its fleet of Street View vehicles includes cars, snow mobiles, trikes. It also has a trolley that captures photos indoors in places, such as museums. Google has even managed to fit the camera into a backpack to take images of places, which are not easily accessible using vehicles.
