Mobile mapping vehicles in town gathering photos, data of neighborhoods
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IDAHO FALLS — Clean up your yards and make the outside of your house look pretty. The navigation giant TomTom is making its way through local neighborhoods.
TomTom produces satellite navigation systems and workers are in east Idaho recording digital data. The information gathered is similar to that recorded by Google for it Street View feature.
The TomTom vehicles are referred to by the company as MoMa’s (Mobile mapping Vehicles) and were first spotted in Europe years ago.
The MoMA mapping the Idaho Falls area is fitted with Sick 3D laser scanners which, according to TomTom’s website, record hundreds of measurements every second to determine distances. The lasers are also used to build 3D maps of cities to help their users recognize landmarks making it easier to find their route.
Also attached to the vehicle are two GPS sensors and six cameras, called The Lady Bug, that combined record a high definition 360-degree image.
A large portion of the data collected is from street signs and road markings. This information can range from new speed limits, lane changes to new toll roads or updates to road restrictions.
For years TomTom has crowd sourced these map updates in program called TomTom’s MapShare. The function allows users to report road changes directly to TomTom. The company recieves over 250,000 reports every month.
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