On the front end is a little-known Japanese startup — Dynamic Map Platform Co., or DMP. A company supported by government-backed funds. (1) It has committed billions of dollars to support next-generation industries, and shareholders include Toyota Motor Corp. Counting large domestic conglomerates such as
DMP is building high-definition three-dimensional maps that are more accurate than the standards we know: iPhones; Apps like Waze and in-car navigation systems that use GPS. Its data can also be used for precise drone flights.
Data collection is key. The likes of Mobileye, owned by Intel Corporation, rely on crowdsourced data from participating manufacturers’ cars (which they collect automatically and anonymously). The Japanese company’s strategy is high ownership and precision. The data is exact — distances and locations in centimeters. Other mapping systems that pass through the World Geodetic System are approximate and rely heavily on sensors. Google Maps can be very annoying when you get dropped in crowded areas or it sends you in different directions and doesn’t remember the U-turn.
In addition, Accessing data from others—such as car manufacturers—risks privacy and storage issues. or, Details are not available from third parties. Self-generated information is more secure.
Creating these maps is a huge and technical endeavor. Exact location is determined using the Global Navigation Satellite System, or GNSS. Then, Vehicles equipped with sensors and cameras collect and generate point-cloud data — or a group of points in each set of Cartesian coordinates (think X-axis and Y-axis). A mapping system brings it all together and integrates the information. roads buildings, road bends Everything, including signs written on lanes and curbs, is picked up before the drivers arrive.
It may seem like a lot of deep technology and unnecessary information, but mapping and data collection are increasingly at the heart of navigation and security technology. This year’s Consumer Electronics Show is the biggest tech event on the calendar; Software-centric vehicles and autonomous driving systems are all the rage. They are driving fast in auto technology and intelligent vehicles. These maps are created by drones, Integrated into the windshield and cockpit, it seamlessly transports passengers to their destinations. The fast-growing market for such cars in China is expected to grow to 960 billion yuan ($141 billion) by 2025. In the US, a team at the University of Texas’s Radionavigation Lab is generating signals from Elon Musk’s SpaceX’s Starlink satellite. GPS Russia Navigation technology free from the geopolitics of China and Europe.
High-definition and accurate maps allow people to visually immerse themselves in distant places. more and more Analysts and scientists are using satellite images and other geo-location data to see what’s happening thousands of miles away. Hedge funds are also used to track activity in factories and warehouses. In recent months, Open-source intelligence has helped track troop movements in Ukraine. Three-dimensional mapping systems such as DMP’s allow logistics companies to follow the social era. Navigate through warehouses using 3D building and street maps; It will allow movement through the warehouses. It is gradients, Accurate information about lanes and chargers will enable electric vehicles to operate more efficiently. Portraiture today is even stronger than it was decades ago.
Until now, DMP covers more than 30,000 kilometers (18,641 miles) of highways and roads in Japan; There is data for 640,000 km in the US and over 300,000 km in Europe. In 2018, it acquired Ushr Inc., which counted GM Ventures and EnerTech Capital as investors at the time. was purchased. The two companies contributed $100 million in high-definition coverage expansion in North America, JOIN with one of the Japanese government funds. Meanwhile, last year DMP and JOIN invested around $90 million to expand beyond North America and Japan. It is already registered with automakers and is expected to become a key tool for logistics and infrastructure providers. General Motors Co. Cadillac models CT6, The XT6 and Hummer, known for their semi-autonomous systems, are equipped with these maps.
As geopolitical tensions ease, mobility innovations rise, and more people travel, maps are essential. Importantly, Data accuracy—and its ownership—is increasingly important and will underpin further mapping developments.
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(1) Japan Overseas Infrastructure Investment Corporation for Transport and Urban Development, or JOIN, and Japan Innovation Network Corporation, or INCJ;
This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial team or Bloomberg LP and its owners.
Anjani Trivedi is a Bloomberg opinion columnist. She has worked with machinery across the Asia Pacific; automobile Covers policies and industries including the electric vehicle and battery sectors. Previously, she was a columnist for the Wall Street Journal’s Heard on the Street and a finance and markets reporter for the paper. Before that, she worked in investment banking in New York and London.
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