[itwasntme]

Source: http://www.autoblog.com/2015/08/25/g...le-patrollers/

Potholes are incredibly annoying and can do serious damage to your vehicle's wheels and suspension. Unfortunately, unless you know an area well, there isn't a great way to predict their location until the divot is right in front of you. Plus, in many parts of the country, these annoyances can go unrepaired for months at a time, especially during the winter. Google is aiming to fix the problem with a patent on a surprisingly simple solution to create a roving fleet of pothole reporters.

The system combines a GPS-equipped infotainment system and a vertical movement sensor somewhere on the vehicle. When a driver hits a pothole, the navigation system notes the location and sends the info into the cloud. Based on the amount of vibration on a given street, Google's servers can create a continuously upgrading database of the average road quality and can divert drivers around particularly bad sections when deciding on a route.

While patenting an idea doesn't necessarily mean that it hits the road, this system seems massively beneficial to all drivers. Plus, the concept doesn't seem too hard to implement, either. Google's use for this tech appears obvious, too. Given the company's fleet of autonomous vehicles, being able to route passengers around rough streets could be an especially welcome feature. The tech could go part of the way towards keeping folks in driverless cars from getting motion sickness.

[GTO]

From a related thread:

Originally Posted by GTO

I can't think of anything better than the widely adopted Google Maps. Every smartphone today has a g-sensor. Thus, if 10 smartphones get a jolt at exactly the same spot, it's obvious there is a big pothole there. Similarly, it should be very easy to mark speed-breakers & bad roads automatically. Why depend on user input when it can be marked automatically?

[goandude]

Fantastic use of technology, I suppose it could be used to point out speed breakers too, which in Karnataka at least are a big pain.

[hybridpetrol]

Google comes up with innovations on all fronts, and with maps, it can be used to prepare the driver to use caution.
Currently, in cities, it gives warnings about the road work in progress, one-ways, diversions almost in all cases and it works well.
If implemented, it can be a great tool to warn about potholes, unmarked speed breakers, poorly built speed breakers where the car would be damanged even if you move > 2kmph etc.
I think this idea can be put to a good use on a highway or a well maintained 4 lane / 6 lane roads, where the average speed is high, and such road breakages are unexpected.
For areas like those of Bangalore City, Maps can consider suggesting the opposite (i.e. about the good roads, which parts of a worst road are not having potholes etc )

[itwasntme]

At least in Bangalore, Google traffic works OLRT. I use it regularly to check for the usual bottlenecks BEFORE I reach that section. Is of tremendous practical use on the evening commute home.

If they launched it with more features as a premium service, I would take it up without thinking twice.

[autobahnjpr]

Thought google maps is fantastic and has been a life savior many times, just like any other technology stuff, it is prone to errors.
Yesterday I used it to go to a particular address and it took me to some place 4 kms away from the actual place. I had to finally ask the paanwaala (the local and most reliable GPS ) for the route to the destination.
Earlier also sometimes it has lead to dead ends and closed roads. So though technology is welcome, one should keep some margin for error and not rely on it blindly.

[Rehaan]

Came across another app doing something similar:

Ex-Ola Marketing VP Creates An App That May Revolutionise Our Roads

...
According to The Better India, it switches on automatically when it senses the motion of a vehicle. The application then switches on all sensors, like cameras, GPS, compass and accelerometer, to sense how the road is on the commute. An algorithm with a set of sophisticated signals takes the data collected and removes noise and vibrations not related to the road, and another algorithm takes note of all the potholes, speed bumps and stretches of bad road — the app then comes with a score for the road which is then MApped. Road MApp grades at 7 levels how good or bad are the roads; green means the roads are better, and red signals that you have landed yourself in a pothole. This allows Road MApp to give the government feedback on what roads are a priority to fix.
...

Source

Some images from their facebook page:

[alpha1]

Originally Posted by Rehaan

Came across another app doing something similar:

Great stuff, but I am skeptical.

With all the live traffic data available over Google maps, Here maps, Windows maps etc, one would expect that the authorities may use the data to (re)design better roads, junctions, expedite maintenance works, plan flyovers, roundabouts, traffic lights etc.

But have we seen any change?