June 3, 2006
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Technology Review (05/03/06) Greene, Kate
Researchers at Microsoft have developed software that provides a four-gigapixel panoramic image that could lead to more accurate and interactive online maps. The researchers demonstrated the application with a panoramic shot containing around 750 smaller images taken with an off-the-shelf digital camera. The program signifies Microsoft's increased interest in Windows Live Local, its online mapping platform currently in its beta stage. Live Local already provides what it refers to as Bird's Eye images of a few cities that offer an angled perspective of buildings, and the new software will enable viewers to look at wide vistas without having to reload another image into the browser. Microsoft is hoping that the more natural city views will distinguish it from Google and Yahoo! in the increasingly competitive online mapping environment. The angled view that provides images of storefronts and other building features is in sharp contrast to Google's street maps and top-down satellite images that are largely confined to the tops of buildings. The Microsoft team mounted a digital camera on a motorized platform atop the roof of a building, panning the scene as the camera takes a succession of images that are then processed and combined by stitching software. The software uses algorithms to search through the images for continuities such as sunlight reflected in windows or signature lines that it can use to stitch them together without creating the blurring effect that appears in current software. The software also compensates for changes in lighting by matching the brightness of an image with the picture taken immediately before, said Microsoft's Matt Uyttendale. "People love the detail of the [Bird's Eye] imagery," he said. "This should allow them to easily pan across the images."
For the complete article, see http://www.technologyreview.com/read_article.aspx?id=16772&ch=infotech
Posted by rab5 at 07:35 PM
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