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Here's 3D models help cars position themselves without seeing the road
Here, a Google Maps competitor owned by a consortium of German automakers, does more than just help drivers navigate from A to B. It also provides car makers with accurate mapping data and additional detail about various roads. At CES today, the company announced "Lanes," a new 3D road model that's designed to improve driver assistance systems and make driving safer in unfamiliar areas.
Here's ride-hailing app focuses on shared rides
Most ride hailing apps are strictly focused on getting you from A to B. That's rather important, but they don't really acknowledge why you're going out -- you're heading to a party, a business meeting, a family get-together. Here Mobility thinks it can add that social element with its SoMo app. At its heart, it's a multi-service hailing app with group planning. You can create one-time or recurring events, invite people and help them find the best way to get around, whether it's a ridesharing car, a taxi or the bus.
Here is developing a car navigation system powered by Alexa
Here is building some kind of in-car navigation system powered by Amazon's Alexa assistant. The new "one-stop solution for automakers," called Here Navigation On-Demand, will be sold to manufacturers as (shudder) software-as-a-service. In layman's terms, that means it will sit on top of existing infotainment platforms and operating systems. Details are light at the moment, but Here says it will be a truly "voice-first car navigation experience that keeps users focused on the road." We also know that the software will leverage Alexa Auto, the development kit that Amazon released last August, to give drivers personalized advice. "Our work with Amazon will drive a truly differentiated and delightful user experience," Edzard Overbeek, CEO of Here Technologies said.
Here attacks Google Maps with new freemium website plan
When visiting the website for a local restaurant or other small business, you'll likely see Google Maps embedded to show the location. Developers of such sites were recently thrown for a loop, however, when Google announced new, more expensive pricing and demanded a credit card and Google Cloud account for all API access to Maps. To profit from this discord, Here has unveiled a new "freemium" plan that offers many more free "transactions" (page loads) than Google Maps, with no need to provide a credit card.
Here maps helps the Mercedes S560 tackle sharp corners
As the car approaches a sharp bend on a back road in Northern California, the $155,000 (starting at $99,900) Mercedes-Benz S560 slows down of its own accord. I guide it through the corner with a bit of help from lane keep assist. Then, as the vehicle exits to a straightaway it accelerates back to the adaptive cruise-control speed setting until it encounters another switchback.
A closer look at the Hyperloop One test pod
Here at CES, Virgin Hyperloop One is showing off a new partnership with mapping company Here, and we sat down with the company's Matt Jones to explore it further. He, alongside Dr. Anita Sengupta, talked us through the app in greater detail, but there was an additional surprise in store. The company has dragged its XP-1 test pod from the Nevada desert to the show in order to let the public gaze upon it for the first time.
Hyperloop One and Here made an app for imaginary Hyperloops
Virgin Hyperloop One has teamed up with mapping company Here to build an app that lets you pretend that Hyperloops are real. The app is designed to be your transportation portal in a future where vacuum tubes are connecting all of our major cities as one. Imagine a version of Citymapper that let you choose between cars, planes, trains or Hyperloops as you jump between, for instance, Las Vegas and LA.
Here wants to help ride-hailing services find new passengers
Ride-hailing services are big business, and Here wants a piece of the action. Today the company -- created by Nokia and sold to a consortium of German car manufacturers in 2015 -- has announced a new division called Here Mobility. Its purpose is to develop a platform or marketplace where businesses can request and sell ride-hailing services. A hotel, for instance, might want to offer one or two options through its website. In theory, it would connect to the Mobility Marketplace and select the services that best suit its needs and those of its customers. It's also possible that end consumers would be able to compare and choose the supplier themselves.
LG and Here help self-driving cars share their knowledge
Self-driving cars clearly stand to benefit from sharing data -- you want your car to know about traffic jams before you're stuck in gridlock. And LG knows it. The tech giant is partnering with Here on a next-gen communications hub for nearly or completely autonomous cars. Here's location info will help LG share a car's situational awareness with other vehicles, giving you customized driving info and (potentially) smarter decisions. If there's a road ahead with mercifully light traffic, for instance, your car might turn on to it to avoid delays.
Audi, BMW and Mercedes cars will share live traffic jam data
It's not too hard to find real-time traffic data, but it's usually specific to one car make. Wouldn't it be great if cars of all brands could regularly coordinate? They're not quite there yet, but they're getting closer. Here has unveiled a Real-Time Traffic service that has cars from Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz (all co-owners of Here) sharing their live sensor data to provide more accurate traffic alerts than you'd get from external probes alone. It's particularly helpful on 'arterial' roads, Here says. And more than 30 of the 60-plus countries covered by the service can also take advantage of safety warnings based on sensor data you expect from incidents, such as hard braking to avoid a crash.
Here's updated mapping vehicle paves way for self-driving cars
It may have been a while since we last we came across a Here 3D mapping vehicle, but that's not to say the company hasn't been using its cars lately. In fact, the Here True collection vehicle is now in its third revision, and I got to hop on one -- based on a Volkswagen Golf Variant 280 TSI Highline -- during Computex. The ride features much faster D-GPS tracking that no longer requires a half-hour calibration (to reach an accuracy of under one meter), along with a Velodyne LiDAR with an accuracy of better than 2cm (within a range of up to 70 meters) and four 16.2-megapixel MARS panoramic cameras. This set of gear is almost identical to what we've seen before, so the real highlight this time is the updated backend to support high-definition mapping.
Intel invests in Nokia's old mapping division
Intel has announced that it's buying a 15 percent stake in Here, the mapping company that was spun out of Nokia, for an undisclosed fee. The chipmaker has also revealed that the pair will work together to build a new high-definition mapping platform for self-driving cars. Since the rest of Here is owned by the German car industry, it's not hard to see who might be interested in using that sort of technology.
Here and MobilEye team up on self-driving tech for automakers
There are so many companies working on autonomous car tech that we're now seeing the inevitable next phase: partnerships and consolidation. Case in point is a tie-up between MobilEye, the sensor maker that supplied sensors to Tesla before a messy split, and Here, the mapmaker Nokia recently sold to a German automaker consortium. The idea is to package Here's HD Live mapping software with MobilEye's hardware and sell it as a third-party automated platform to any interested car manufacturers.
Here Maps is expanding to China with the help of new investors
Here, the mapping company owned by German automakers Audi, BMW and Daimler, plans to bring its products and services to China. To make that happen, it has enlisted the help of three new Asian investors: Chinese internet giant Tencent, digital map provider NavInfo and Singaporean investment firm GIC. They're acquiring a 10 percent stake in Here together, and they're tweaking the company's products to make them ready for the Chinese market.
German cars will share real-time data to help you find parking
However smart your car might be, there's only so much it can tell you by itself. Wouldn't it be nice if cars regularly shared helpful driving info beyond what you offer in mobile apps? Here thinks so. It's launching services that will have cars automatically sharing real-time data to improve commutes for everyone. Vehicles (starting with those from Here owners Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz) will use their sensors and cameras to offer details on free parking spaces, traffic conditions, and road hazards. You'd know that a parking spot has opened up, or that heavy rain is forcing drivers ahead to slow down.
Here's maps will help you find available EV charging stations
If you drive an electric car, you know that it's not enough to find a charging station on the map -- you need to know that there's an available plug. Here and Hubject think they can help. They've forged a partnership that will see Here's maps (both in apps and in the car) get real-time info for EV charging stations using Hubject's platform in Europe. You'll know whether or not there's a space free, what connectors are available and other details that can mean the difference between powering up and driving by. The integration won't be finished until the summer, but it'll make those cross-continent trips less nerve-wracking when it's ready.
Nuheara's wireless earbuds can also enhance hearing
At what point does something officially become a trend? For truly wireless earbuds, I'm calling it now. Nuheara is the latest company to enter into the fray, with its IQbuds: a pair that blends ideas from Bragi's music and fitness-focused Dash, and Here's "active listening" experience. The product is currently on Indiegogo, but the category continues to be popular, with IQbuds already raising double its funding goal in 24 hours (Bragi raised millions, Here tripled its goal). I've tried both the Dash, and Here buds, both of which have positives and negatives. IQbuds -- on paper at least -- seems to take the best of both, and roll it all into one, or, er two earbuds.
SXSW showed me Here's Active Listening buds are a sound idea
"SXSW is all about the big ideas." I've been saying it all week long. It's true. Here in Austin is not the place to launch a phone, it's where you show an idea about how to get people to Mars, or how to feel g-force in mobile VR. This is where apps like Twitter and Foursquare breakthrough and gain mainstream popularity. It's where vaporous ideas can crystalize into something people understand. Here -- a pair of earbuds that modify the audio around you -- had me struggling to understand them. Until this weekend, that is.
Here Maps stops supporting Windows devices
We hope you weren't counting on Here Maps to provide directions on your Lumia. Here has announced that it's dropping much of its support for Windows Phone and Windows 10 Mobile. The company is pulling its apps from Windows 10's app store on March 29th, and a workaround that kept its apps running will stop working after June 30th. The Here apps for Windows Phone 8 and Windows 8 will continue to work, but you won't get more than "critical bug fixes" from now on.
ICYMI: Sony's sound necklace, smart music earbuds and more
#fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-515226{display:none;} .cke_show_borders #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-515226, #postcontentcontainer #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-515226{width:570px;display:block;} #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-929316{display:none;} .cke_show_borders #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-929316, #postcontentcontainer #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-929316{width:640px;display:block;} try{document.getElementById("fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-929316").style.display="none";}catch(e){} Today on In Case You Missed It: Austin played host to SXSW by starting the Interactive portion of the conference with musical tech you didn't know you wanted. We got a tour of Sony's R&D Lab for a look at its new Arc wearable speaker, Sony's interactive tabletop projector that the company is trying to get on the market asap. And we tried out the smart concert earbuds Here by Doppler Labs. There will be two more SXSW-dedicated ICYMI episodes this week, but we'll be back on Thursday from the studio. As always, please share any interesting science or tech videos, anytime! Just tweet us with the #ICYMI hashtag to @mskerryd.
