Adjusting location indicator in 3D maps

• US 10,019,850 B2
• Filed: 08/10/2016
• Issued: 07/10/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 05/31/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Lindberg, Adrian, Fahlberg, Per, Lindkvist, Elisabeth
• Primary Examiner(s): Zhai, Kyle
• Application Number:
  US15/233,826
• Publication Number:
  US 20160350982A1
• Time in Patent Office: 699 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/367 Details, e.g. road map scale, orientation, zooming, illumination, level of detail, scrolling of road map or positioning of current position marker
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04815 Interaction with a metaphor-based environment or interaction object displayed as three-dimensional, e.g. changing the user viewpoint with respect to the environment or object
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04845 for image manipulation, e.g. dragging, rotation, expansion or change of colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 17/05 Geographic models
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 19/20 Editing of 3D images, e.g. changing shapes or colours, aligning objects or positioning parts
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2219/2016 Rotation, translation, scaling
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2219/2021 Shape modification

Abstract

Some embodiments provide a mapping application that receives input to adjust an amount of tilt from which to view a 3D map for a viewing mode in which the 3D map is specified to be textured with camera captured images (CCIs) of the real world. The mapping application also adjusts a set of heights for a set of road path indicators in the 3D map based on the adjusted amount of tilt. Each road path indicator indicates a path of a road in the 3D map. The mapping application further displays the 3D map with the adjusted amount of tilt and the set of road path indicators at the adjusted set of heights in the 3D map.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

at an electronic device with one or more processors, a memory, and a touch screen display;

displaying a map user interface on the touch screen display, including concurrently displaying;

a map that includes one or more 3D map features; and

a graphical location indicator in the map, wherein the graphical location indicator is a point of interest (POI) indicator that corresponds to a respective location in the map and is displayed in a predefined relation to the one or more 3D map features;

while displaying the map user interface with the graphical location indicator displayed in the predefined relation to the one or more 3D features without being obscured, receiving a request to rotate the map;

in response to receiving the request to rotate the map;

rotate the map;

in accordance with a determination that, as a result of the rotation of the map, the respective location is obscured by a respective 3D map feature of the one or more 3D map features, wherein the respective 3D map feature is a building, vertically shifting the graphical location indicator relative to the one or more 3D features in the map while maintaining the position of the graphical location indicator with respect to a 2D location on a surface of the map, so that the graphical location indicator is visible in the map user interface; and

in accordance with a determination that, as a result of the rotation of the map, the respective location is not obscured by the one or more 3D map features, maintaining the graphical location indicator in the predefined relation to the one or more 3D features.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein vertically shifting the graphical location indicator relative to the one or more 3D features in the map includes extending the graphical location indicator above the respective 3D map feature in the 3D map.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the graphical location indicator is 3 dimensional.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the request to rotate the map is a touch input on the touch screen display in a first direction and the map is rotated in the first direction.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein vertically shifting the graphical location indicator relative to the one or more 3D features in the map includes shifting at least a portion of the graphical location indicator away from the respective location in the map.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the graphical location indicator is positioned at the respective location specified by a user.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the vertically shifting the graphical location indicator relative to the one or more 3D features in the map includes displaying the graphical location indicator above the respective 3D map feature.

8. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing one or more programs, the one or more programs comprising instructions, which when executed by an electronic device with a touch screen display, cause the device to:

display a map user interface on the touch screen display, including concurrently displaying;

a map that includes one or more 3D map features; and

a graphical location indicator in the map, wherein the graphical location indicator is a point of interest (POI) indicator that corresponds to a respective location in the map and is displayed in a predefined relation to the one or more 3D map features;

while displaying the map user interface with the graphical location indicator displayed in the predefined relation to the one or more 3D features, receive a request to rotate the map;

in response to receiving the request to rotate the map;

rotating the map;

in accordance with a determination that, as a result of the rotation of the map, the respective location is obscured by a respective 3D map feature of the one or more 3D map features, wherein the respective 3D map feature is a building, vertically shift the graphical location indicator relative to the one or more 3D features in the map while maintaining the position of the graphical location indicator with respect to a 2D location on a surface of the map, so that the graphical location indicator is visible in the map user interface; and

in accordance with a determination that, as a result of the rotation of the map, the respective location is not obscured by the one or more 3D map features, maintain the graphical location indicator in the predefined relation to the one or more 3D features.

9. The computer readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein vertically shifting the graphical location indicator relative to the one or more 3D features in the map includes extending the graphical location indicator above the respective 3D map feature in the 3D map.

10. The computer readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the graphical location indicator is 3 dimensional.

11. The computer readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the request to rotate the map is a touch input on the touch screen display in a first direction and the map is rotated in the first direction.

12. The computer readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the vertically shifting the graphical location indicator relative to the one or more 3D features in the map includes displaying the graphical location indicator above the respective 3D map feature.

13. An electronic device, comprising:

a touch screen display;

one or more processors;

memory; and

one or more programs, wherein the one or more programs are stored in the memory and configured to be executed by the one or more processors, the one or more programs including instructions for;

displaying a map user interface on the touch screen display, including concurrently displaying;

a map that includes one or more 3D map features; and

a graphical location indicator in the map, wherein the graphical location indicator is a point of interest (POI) indicator that corresponds to a respective location in the map and is displayed in a predefined relation to the one or more 3D map features;

while displaying the map user interface with the graphical location indicator displayed in the predefined relation to the one or more 3D features without being obscured, receiving a request to rotate the map;

in response to receiving the request to rotate the map;

rotating the map;

in accordance with a determination that, as a result of the rotation of the map, the respective location is obscured by a respective 3D map feature of the one or more 3D map features, wherein the respective 3D map feature is a building, vertically shifting the graphical location indicator relative to the one or more 3D features in the map while maintaining the position of the graphical location indicator with respect to a 2D location on a surface of the map, so that the graphical location indicator is visible in the map user interface; and

in accordance with a determination that, as a result of the rotation of the map, the respective location is not obscured by the one or more 3D map features, maintaining the graphical location indicator in the predefined relation to the one or more 3D features.

14. The device of claim 13, wherein vertically shifting the graphical location indicator relative to the one or more 3D features in the map includes extending the graphical location indicator above the respective 3D map feature in the 3D map.

15. The device of claim 13, wherein the graphical location indicator is 3 dimensional.

16. The device of claim 13, wherein the request to rotate the map is a touch input on the touch screen display in a first direction and the map is rotated in the first direction.

17. The electronic device of claim 13, wherein the vertically shifting the graphical location indicator relative to the one or more 3D features in the map includes displaying the graphical location indicator above the respective 3D map feature.

18. A method for providing a three-dimensional (3D) view of a map, the method comprising:

at an electronic device with one or more processors, a memory, and a display;

rendering on the display the 3D view of a map comprising at least one 3D element and a graphical location indicator on the map, wherein the graphical location indicator is a point of interest (POI) indicator;

determining whether the graphical location indicator is occluded from view by the at least one 3D element after the at least one 3D element is rotated, wherein the at least one 3D element is a building;

upon determining that the graphical location indicator is occluded from view by the at least one 3D element as a result of the rotation of the map, vertically shifting the graphical location indicator relative to the at least one 3D element in the map while maintaining the position of the graphical location indicator with respect to a 2D location on a surface of the map, so that the graphical location indicator is visible despite being otherwise occluded from view by the at least one 3D element; and

re-rendering the 3D view of the map comprising the at least one 3D element and the modified graphical location indicator.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein vertically shifting the graphical location indicator includes extending the graphical location indicator above the at least one 3D element.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the display is a touch screen display, and the at least one 3D element is rotated in response to a touch input on the touch screen display.