Volkswagen AG of Germany's American unit is working on a prototype vehicle that will feature Google Inc.'s Google Earth satellite mapping software to give drivers a bird's eye view of the road ahead, according to Reuters. The two companies are working with the graphics chipmaker Nvidia Corp. to build an in-car navigation map system and a three-dimensional display so passengers can recognize where they are in relation to the surrounding topography. Volkswagen of America Inc., working through its Electronics Research Laboratory in Palo Alto, Calif., is working on other advancements for the navigation systems, including automatic personalized information updates. Google introduced Google Earth last June as a free satellite imagery-based mapping product based on technology from Keyhole, a company Google bought in October 2004. Google Earth has attracted controversy since then from governments ranging from South Korea to India for offering a potential national security risk as it enables anyone to zoom in on aerial images of landmarks such as airports.
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