Apple’s Mystery Vans Are Probably Just For 3D Mapping

[Maura]

Last week reports emerged that several camera-equipped minivans had been sent by Apple to drive around various locations in the U.S. The reason for the presence of the minivans was not at that time disclosed, and there still has been no official word on the matter from Apple.

With no official reason given for the minivans, various theories about their existence were put forward, with some even saying that they were something to do with Apple’s plans for a self-driving “iCar,” of all things!

However, AppleInsider writes that it believes that the actual purpose of the vans may be a little more ordinary, based on its very thorough research into the matter. In fact, according to AppleInsider, it looks as though the vans are ideally set up for nothing more than 3D mapping, with the size of the vans and the technology seen on top of the vans all pointing to the vehicles being for mapping purposes, possibly for something like Apple Street View in future iOS iterations.

Source: Apple s mysterious vans are almost certainly for 3D mapping not autonomous driving

 

[scifan57]

It would take Apple years to get the same level of coverage Google has for it's street view, if the vans are working on an Apple version of street view.