Google Launches ‘Project Tango’ for Android 3D Mapping (Video)

In what could either be the most significant advance in mapping software since the application became popular on the web, or the greatest yet intrusion on individual privacy, Google has announced its developing a new, 3D, Android based mapping project which aims to digitize a mobile phone user’s surroundings wherever they go.

Called Project Tango, the just launched app is in alpha, prototype, smartphone testing phase and the search giant is throwing open the doors to the technology platform to developers eager to get in on the ground floor.

The scope of Project Tango is ambitious and far seeing, with the aim to create a 3D mapping app of the future which would virtually guarantee the user would be incapable of getting lost, no matter where they went.

But, Google doesn’t stop there.

According to the Project Tango splash page announcement, the company wonders, “What if you could capture the dimensions of your home simply by walking around with your phone before you went furniture shopping? What if directions to a new location didn’t stop at the street address? What if you never again found yourself lost in a new building? What if the visually-impaired could navigate unassisted in unfamiliar indoor places? What if you could search for a product and see where the exact shelf is located in a super-store?”

All noble and useful endeavors, to be sure, but privacy advocates have already started grumbling in the comments of the YouTube video published on Thursday to explain the new project’s goals.

Evvie Kappa writes, “Even if one’s private environment mapping starts off as one’s property, terms of use are very easy to change and one could very easily find oneself sharing this private information. Not sure I’m looking forward to this…”

She does make a good point, and it’s not like Google hasn’t changed the terms and conditions of how they share private data before, essentially giving users a take it or leave it option.

Project Tango is currently taking applications for about 200 different developers to explore a starter kit Android phone to see what other uses this 3D mapping software could be good for.

But the real test might just be how well Project Tango can help you find the fridge in the middle of the night.