Navigation Becomes Travel Scouting

Abstract

Car navigation systems, based on “augmented reality,” no longer direct the driver through traffic by simply using arrows, but represent the environment true to reality. The constitutional moment of this medium is the constant oscillation between environmental space and two-dimensional projection space. Using the words of Walter Benjamin, one could also speak of a transparent translation of the world that should not obscure the original. In contrast to the prior generation of navigation systems, the orientation points of the “augmented map” are also fully linked with databases of other available information suppliers. Temporal information, in addition to spatial information, is becoming increasingly important with features such as real time gridlock reports aided by highway sensors and guidance to the nearest event. Does the future lie in the fusion of travel guides and navigation systems? This paper argues that future developments in urban informatics resulting from the convergence of cartographic, media and communication technologies can be inferred based on the increasing phenomenon of mobile augmented reality applications.