The speed limit indicators offered by Google Maps in the UK are getting an accuracy boost with a little help from the dashboard cams capturing footage up and down British roads.
Google is teaming up with third-party companies to harvest footage captured from the dashboards of delivery drivers at DPD and from users of Nextbase cameras who’ve opted-in to a road safety program.
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The captured footage is fed to AI and useful data is sorted. Google’s engineers will then be able to cross reference data against the speed limits currently shown to drivers within turn-by-turn navigation. In a recently updated support page spotted by Android Police Google explains:
“Google licenses imagery in the form of short, silent video clips from vehicle dash cams from trusted third-party companies. These companies use dash cams in their own everyday operations. For example, they may use them to collect imagery for accident investigations, or they may sell such devices to consumers. With contributor consent, these companies share imagery with trusted partners like Google to help update Google Maps, or as a first step in making road improvements.
“We request imagery only in areas where we have an indication that an update to our map is needed. For example, we can ask a partner for a short clip of a specific stretch of road that includes a speed limit sign. If the partner has recent imagery of this stretch of road, Google can use it to help update the speed limit that we show in Maps.”
The footage is only being shared from drivers who work for the Geopost shipping company and people who’ve chosen to opt-in as a member of Nextbase’s Road Safety Club. In all other circumstances you needn’t worry about your footage being passed on to Google for this errand.
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