World wide navigation solved with WHAT3WORDS
I was recently informed of this new method of defining location by a user on another forum, who is the Asset Manager for an Adelaide Metro Council after he recently attended an emergency management forum.
The system is called what3words. So what is what3words, it is a geocoding system for the communication of locations with a resolution of three metres. What3words encodes geographic coordinates into three dictionary words; the encoding is permanently fixed. What3words differs from most other location encoding systems in that it displays three words rather than strings of numbers or letters.
What3words has a website, apps for iOS and Android, and an API that enables bidirectional conversion between what3words addresses and latitude/longitude coordinates. As the system relies on a fixed algorithm rather than a large database of every location on earth, it works on devices with limited storage and no Internet connection.
According to the company that developed the concept, its revenue comes from charging businesses for high-volume use of the API that converts between 3 words and coordinates; services for other users are free of charge
The following videos provide a better description of what3words than I can.
About us - what3words
Chris Sheldrick speaks what3words at Design Indaba
Australian emergency services now accept what3words to define a location and have developed an app, Emergency+ that displays a Triple Zero (000) caller’s current what3words address so they can easily give Australian emergency services their exact location and receive help quickly.
Information about and links to the app can be found at Australian emergency services use what3words to find incidents faster | what3words
I have just installed both the what3words app and the Emercency+ app and my phone and hope that I never need to use them in an emergency.
MichaelT
Michael T
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