LBS

How Mercedes-Benz R&D is using Google Glass

Mercedes-Benz Research & Development North America (MBRDNA) is working on a way to take advantage of the Google’s newest GPS-equipped device: Google Glass. According to MBRDNA President and CEO Johann Jungwirth, the company’s ultimate goal on the Google Glass project is a “seamless” door-to-door transition between pedestrian directions and in-car GPS. www.bizjournals.com

Castrol partners with TomTom

Castrol has partnered with TomTom to study the impact of “stop-start” driving patterns across the world. The study already shows that drivers can experience as many as 18,000 stop-starts every year. The pioneering study that Castrol is undertaking with TomTom will discover the number of stop-starts in different cities around the world, and TomTom will use its precise travel and traffi c information to analyse driving behaviour across the entire road network, all over the world. http://corporate.tomtom.com

Location, usage patterns to save iPhone battery life

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Offi ce has published an Apple patent application for an intuitive mobile device control system that automatically powers down certain components.

In its aptly named application, “Power management for electronic devices,” Apple describes a system that detects a mobile device owner’s usage patterns, estimates the required energy needed to run the phone between charges, and dynamically turns hardware off or closes running software to achieve maximum battery life. http://appleinsider.com

Pedestrian navigation solution in real-world setting by Movea

Movea has collaborated with the SNCF, France’s national railway company, as well as SK planet, a wholly owned subsidiary of SK telecom, South Korea’s largest mobile network operator, to test its indoor navigation solution in the real world. In two separate demos, users successfully navigated through two busy train stations that serve thousands of commuters on a daily basis. Movea relied solely on the Samsung Galaxy Nexus phone’s built-in sensors to effectively guide users from one location to another. www.movea.com.

Predict your location years into the future

A new piece of software claims to be able to predict your location years into the future – even if you don’t know where you’ll be. ‘Far Out’ is the result of statistical research that looks at GPS data, learns your typical movements and then extrapolates to decide on your likely future location. The result, according to the team behind it, systems that can make “highly accurate” predictions about where you’ll be years down the line. www.huffingtonpost.co.uk

Esri and MapmyIndia business alliance

Esri has announced a strategic alliance with MapmyIndia. MapmyIndia will migrate its data production environment to the ArcGIS platform, allowing it to leverage Esri’s high-end cartographic production tools and workfl ows to expand its range of products. The alliance will provide Indian application developers and end users with a highperformance, cost-effective platform for GIS and location-based services development. In addition Esri’s cloud-based ArcGIS Online will help democratize GIS data access throughout India with its low-cost subscription plans. www.mapmyindia.com

Ruckus buys YFind, navigates its way into indoor-positioning market

Wi-Fi services provider Ruckus Wireless acquired privately held indoor-positioning company YFind Technologies. Ruckus said it intends to use YFind’s locationbased services (LBS) and analytical capabilities in combination with Ruckus’ Smart Wi-Fi technology, “transforming Ruckus Smart Wi-Fi networks into location-intelligent infrastructures.”