Google Releases New Street View Ready Certification For 20 Upcoming Cameras

It would now be easier for ordinary people to contribute 360-degree images to Google Maps. To make that possible are 20 upcoming cameras with Street View certification. The cameras are divided into four standards, namely: mobile, auto, VR, and workflow.

PC World reports that cameras from Giroptic, NCTech Ltd., 360Fly, and KenXen are Street View Mobile Ready. These are the 360-degree cameras that can publish Street View directly from a mobile app. It would not need a desktop workflow. Cameras from Sphericam, Z Cam, Insta360, and NCTech are Street View Auto Ready. The 360-degree cameras under this standard are tailored for vehicle-based collection with the topmost accuracy.

The third standard, Street View VR Ready, refers to 360-degree cameras or systems that collect geometry, plus it can generate sets of connected 360 photos. The cameras that support the standard are Matterport, NCTech, and InsideMaps. Finally, Samsung, GoPro, HumanEyes Tech, iGuide, GoThru, Garden Gnome, and the Panoskin/LCP360 cameras fall under the Street View Workflow Ready cameras. These are actually publishing tools, often bundled with cameras which can upload to Street View accounts.

CNET reports that Google started to work with camera manufacturers and app developers to come up with a new line of cameras, Charles Armstrong, project manager of Google Street View program, said. The tech giant formally announced the 20 certified cameras at the Street View Summit in Tokyo this week, Upload reports.

Street View is the 10-year-old popular navigation service of Google. It uses special cameras mounted on vehicles, bicycles, boats and other modes of transportation spread in more than 3,000 cities around the world. Google placed these cameras to capture panoramic views of streets and other locations. With the 20 new Street View-certified cameras, the public could contribute to add more images to Google Maps used by more than 1 billion people around the world.