Car manufacturer BMW has proved on numerous occasions its commitment for developing advanced in-car navigation solutions for its vehicles, but it seems that now they're quite keen on taking things to a whole new level. So, they've announced the development of the Pathfinder “microNavigation” system, which helps users even in those areas not covered by the GPS signal/maps.

The system was tested using the BMW 3 Series as a prototype and works in a very interesting and innovative manner: drivers are able to download information about their destination in advance on their home PC. If there is a microMap for the destination area, the driver is offered this automatically and they can select their destination within the microMap. This destination is automatically transferred with the map data to the vehicle and augments the navigation available there.

Researchers have also developed lane-specific positioning for the vehicle by networking camera information, GPS coordinates and map data. The driver is guided to the desired destination on a lane-specific route – for example a free parking space near the lift in the best position. Detailed maps in combination with precise car-park positioning provide support for drivers in finding their way around car parks and during the journey.

After parking the vehicle, the data can be transferred to the driver's mobile device. This handheld then provides continuous navigation and helps drivers to navigate on foot in complex and unknown destination areas.

"The realistic visualisation of a building like a complex multi-storey car park by means of a micro-Navigation card in the Central Information Display of the research prototype gives the user a clear navigation and information advantage that goes significantly beyond the conventional scope of a road navigation solution," explains Carsten Isert, Project Manager for microNavigation at BMW Group Research and Technology.

"microNavigation gives drivers tailor-made navigation during the journey and at the destination and thereby significantly increases confidence and convenience," added Robert Hein, Head of Navigation and Data Services of the Future at BMW Research and Technology.

Of course, we're still talking about an experimental technology for the time being, but given the company's habits of implementing these developments into their systems as fast as possible, it's very likely that we'll see them powering BMW vehicles in a very short amount of time.


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