what3words

what3words is a geocoding system for the simple communication of a precise location. what3words encodes geographic co-ordinates into 3 dictionary words (for example, the Statue of Liberty is located at planet.inches.most). what3words is different from other alphanumeric location systems and GPS coordinates in that it displays words rather than strings of numbers or random letters or numbers. what3words has an API that enables bi-directional conversion of what3words address and latitude/longitude co-ordinates.

Uses

what3words is an alternative to postcodes,[1][2] has been suggested in a OCHA thought piece as a way to geo-tag social media disaster reports,[3] and is being integrated into mapping tools,[4] taxi companies,[5] and property companies [6] including Nestoria.

Design principles

what3words is a giant grid of the world made up of 57 trillion squares of 3 metres x 3 metres. Each square has been given a 3 word address composed of 3 words from the dictionary. what3words has named the 17 trillion squares on land with 3 words in 7 other languages in addition to English: French, Russian, Spanish, German, Portuguese, Swedish, Turkish.

Each what3words language is powered by a wordlist of 25,000 words (40,000 in English as in English it covers the sea as well as land). The wordlists go through multiple automated and human processes before being sorted by an algorithm that takes into account word length, distinctiveness, frequency, and ease of spelling and pronunciation. Homophones and variant spellings are treated to minimise any potential for confusion, and offensive words are removed. The end result is better words in places where each language is most likely to be used.

The what3words algorithm actively shuffles similar-sounding 3 word combinations around the world to enable both human and automated intelligent error-checking. The result being if you enter a 3 word combination slightly incorrectly and the result is still a valid w3w result, the location will be so far away from the user’s intended area that it will be immediately obvious to both a user and an intelligent error-checking system.

The what3words system works via algorithm as opposed to a database, meaning that the what3words core technology is contained with a file around 10MB in size. what3words originally sold "OneWord" addresses, which were stored in a database for a yearly fee,[7] but the feature has been canceled.[8]

Claimed advantages

The main claimed advantage of what3words is memorability of names for most everyday uses.[9][10][11]

History

what3words launched in July 2013, and received USD 500,000 of seed funding in November 2013,[12] and added a further USD 1,000,000 in March 2014.[13][14][15] Investors include Shutl's Guy Westlake.

The online API released in November 2013 and offline SDK in October 2014.[16] Steven Ramage the former Ordnance Survey International Managing Director joined in November 2014.[17]

External links

Founders

References

  1. ↑ Gary Cutlack. "W3W is a Three-Word Post Code Alternative". Gizmodo UK.
  2. ↑ Matthew Ponsford, for CNN (19 September 2014). "Goodbye home address, hello 'lazy.trouser.snake'?". CNN.
  3. ↑ "Establishing Social Media Hashtag Standards for Disaster Response". iRevolutions.
  4. ↑ GISuser. "Geospago and what3words partner to provide a mobile mapping solution with 3-word addressing throughout the globe".
  5. ↑ James Laird. "Bounce is a London Minicab App That Pinpoints Your Location to a 3x3m Square Spot". Lifehacker UK.
  6. ↑ "Nestoria Blog".
  7. ↑ Lomas, Natasha (8 Jul 2013). "Location-Pinpointing Startup what3words Sells 10,000+ OneWord Map-Pins In First Week". TechCrunch.
  8. ↑ "what3words on Twitter: "we did charge for that functionality but no longer offer it and access to the system is free."". 1 May 2015.
  9. ↑ "The best navigation idea I’ve seen since the Tube map". The Spectator.
  10. ↑ A comparison of immediate memory span for digits, letters, and words. by Crannell, C. W.; Parrish, J. M. The Journal of Psychology: Interdisciplinary and Applied, Vol 44, 1957, 319-327
  11. ↑ http://psycnet.apa.org/psycinfo/1959-09803-001
  12. ↑ "Startup what3words gets USD 500,000 in seed round". Venture Capital Post.
  13. ↑ "Location Pinpointing Startup what3words Adds $1M More To Its Seed To Flog More Map Labels". TechCrunch. AOL.
  14. ↑ "what3words closes $1m to expand ‘alternative to postcodes’ mapping service". Startups.co.uk: Starting a business advice and business ideas.
  15. ↑ "What3words adds $1M more to seed round". Venture Capital Post.
  16. ↑ "what3words offline SDK launch".
  17. ↑ "Addressing start-up what3words appoints former Ordnance Survey International MD".
  18. ↑ http://www.foundermagazine.co.uk/chris-sheldrke/[]