Google Maps is one of the most widely used navigation apps in the world, with 60 million active users in India alone as of 2023, according to Miriam Daniel, vice president and head of Google Maps. The web mapping platform regularly introduces new features and improvements to existing ones, helping solo travelers navigate geographic regions with step-by-step directions. According to a recent patent filing, it may be planning to bring improved functionality to those traveling in groups as well, via a potential multi-car navigation feature.
Multi-car navigation on Google Maps
According to a patent filed by Google with the US Patent and Trademark Office (via @xleaks7 ) on June 25, the search giant is developing plans for a feature that allows users from different locations to navigate to a common destination within a set period of time.
Google Maps patent for multi-car navigation
Photo credit: US Patent and Trademark Office/Google
The patent, titled “Providing navigational instructions to one device with respect to another device,” refers to a navigation service that can determine multiple users traveling to a common destination from different starting points. It is said to have access to users’ calendar schedules and messages to determine the user’s travel intentions. If multiple users are detected, it claims to coordinate the trip by sending invitations to join multi-car navigation and giving directions to the same destination within similar time periods.
Alternatively, users can make explicit multi-car navigation requests when organizing a trip.
The navigation service can indicate the locations of all users traveling on a map, the routes shared by all parties, identify places where they can wait for each other and also suggest speed adjustments, according to the patent. Furthermore, it is also said to transmit information about traffic and road conditions to all vehicles, determining them by the road taken by the leading vehicle in the group. It can also send a notification if a vehicle in the group takes a detour and suggest stops along the way for the others to catch up.
This feature is proposed to work with smartphones that not only work as stand-alone devices, but also with devices connected to the vehicle’s infotainment system via USB or Bluetooth.
