Apple asks for your help to improve Apple Maps' AR features

Apple asks for your help to improve Apple Maps’ AR features،

Augmented reality (AR) places computer-generated images over a view of the real world. For example, on Apple Maps, you can use AR to get walking directions placed over a live photo from a rear camera showing you the way to go. This feature is only available in select cities and is similar to Live View on Google Maps. Supported devices include iPhone SE 2 and SE 3, iPhone XR 2018, iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max and later models.

Apple is asking for your help to improve the accuracy of its AR features in Apple Maps

Since part of this feature requires your iPhone to determine your current location, Apple collects some data from your phone to improve the accuracy of AR location data on your handset. In a new accompanying document titled “Help improve augmented reality location accuracy in Maps,” Apple writes, “To help improve the speed and accuracy of augmented reality features in Maps, you can share data with Apple about your surroundings when you use These features. No photos are shared, and Apple only collects the data we need to improve these experiences.”

Make sure the toggle found in the red box is enabled if you want to improve the accuracy of AR features in Apple Maps.

When you lift your iPhone while using AR in Apple Maps to get immersive walking directions or to refine your current location, your handset scans your surroundings and detects “feature points” in buildings. These “feature points” use the physical appearance and shapes of buildings and other fixed objects to create data that a person cannot read. Instead, using on-device machine learning, this data is compared to Apple Maps reference data sent to your phone to enable AR features in Apple Maps.

When you lift your iPhone into the air to perform the scan, moving items like people and vehicles are filtered out, leaving stationary objects with feature spots. If these feature points move in a way that does not coincide with the movement of your camera, iPhone assumes that the data collected is not about a stationary object and ignores this information.

When you lift your iPhone and it collects “feature points” of fixed features, it compares that information to Apple Maps reference data to find your exact location on a map to help you get walking directions in AR and also refine your location. For this to work, the reference data in Apple Maps that your rear camera images are compared to needs to be updated consistently and that's where you come in.

As Apple explains, “When you agree to share the feature points detected by your iPhone's camera with Apple, you help update this reference data to improve the speed and accuracy of these augmented reality features.” Apple collects this data by encrypting it when you're on the move, and stores it encrypted when you stop. This data is not associated with you or your Apple ID. When your iPhone scans, it only shares feature points. No photos are sent to Apple.

Apple says that “only a highly sophisticated attacker with access to Apple's encoding system” would be a problem.

Now read this part carefully. Apple claims that “Only an extremely sophisticated attacker with access to Apple's coding system would be able to attempt to recreate an image from the characteristic points.” Because the Feature Point data you share is encrypted when it leaves your device and only Apple has access to ” “

Immersive AR walking directions on Apple Maps

If this does not resolve your concerns about the security of this process, you can ensure that you are not sharing data to improve the accuracy of Apple Maps AR location by going to Settings > Privacy and Security > Analyzes and improvements; be sure that Improve AR location accuracy the feature remains disabled.

On the other hand, even though the setting is off by default, if you believe that the data you provide to Apple is secure and not connected to you at all, you can improve the accuracy of immersive AR walking routes and refine location features by activating the toggle. As you wish.

As previously noted, if you enable the collection of physical characteristics of buildings and other fixed objects around you, your Apple ID is not associated with the data and no photos are used. The bottom line is that if you use AR walking or refine your location using AR on Apple Maps, you might be helping yourself by helping Apple.