This blog post contains information on our upcoming CompleteTheMap challenge and how to participate. The blog will be updated as new information becomes available. Take part by filling out this form.

Mapillary will be running our next CompleteTheMap through February and into March. This will give those in the northern hemisphere an opportunity to capture imagery as the days become longer and the weather improves. Those of us in the southern hemisphere will be collecting imagery as well, making the most of the tail-end of summer.

Tilcara, Argentina by sobaba

CompleteTheMap VI: A recap.

CompleteTheMap (CTM) is a challenge Mapillary runs a few times a year to encourage and reward the collection of new imagery. This is particularly important for updating maps in fast-changing locations where highway exits have been added, buildings erected, cycleways constructed, and so on.

In CTM VI we are foregoing the requirement to register a location of interest. In previous CTMs participants would register their location of interest and collect imagery in the areas surrounding it. All you need to do to participate in CTM VI is register your interest and capture images during the challenge dates.

This CTM has been simplified to improve the performance of the leaderboard and the ease of participation. Here are the steps you need to take to participate in CTM VI.

1. Sign up for CompleteTheMap VI. This will ensure your username is added to the leaderboard when the challenge begins.
2. Follow us on Twitter and/or check out the forum if you’re interested in announcements related to the challenge.
3. Capture images of roads and paths between February 14th and March 15th.
4. Check your progress on the CompleteTheMap VI leaderboard. Link to come.
5. Upload all your images before 23:59:59 UTC on March 15th.

When

Start date: February 14th, 2020 at 00:00:00 UTC. End date: March 15th, 2020 at 23:59:59 UTC.

Scoring

Scoring is another area of simplification comparative to previous challenges. The leaderboard will be ranked solely on the number of unique kms contributed. The km figures displayed on the leaderboard will be updated every 24 hours.

The km shown on the leaderboard will reflect unique kms captured since the start of the challenge. Some important points to note: - For this challenge a km is only unique when it has not been driven by someone else since February 14th 00:00:00 UTC. - If you drive a 1 km segment of road 5 times, only the first pass will count as unique. In other words, you will only gain 1 km for that segment. - Only 1 direction of the road will count towards unique km unless the road has two distinctive ways in OpenStreetMap. Highways or other roads with a median strip in the middle are examples of roads that can be captured in both directions. - Unique kms stats are updated every 24 hours so you might have to wait a little while before you see them reflected on the leaderboard.

Prizes

The top three finalists will be awarded prizes. The prizes will be announced on the 19th of March once we’ve had a chance to process all uploads and calculate the final scores. The top 3 spots will be ranked according to unique kilometres captured during the challenge. The prizes are as follows:

• Blackvue DR900M dashcam with a 128GB SD card.
• $100 USD camera/electronics store gift card. Store of your choice.
• $50 USD camera/electronics store gift card. Store of your choice.

Note: There are a number of countries that charge significant customs duties for shipping electronic items. For this reason we are unable to ship prizes to those countries. If you win a prize and are located in one of these countries, we will work with you to find an alternative prize or shipping arrangement.

Imagery quality

It is important that useful imagery is uploaded. If blurry, obstructed, or dark imagery is uploaded it is of little use to mappers. Take a look at our image capture recommendations for best practices.

Imagery that falls outside these guidelines will not be considered in the final leaderboard calculations.

Uploading

Images you collect must be taken during the challenge period and uploaded before the challenge ends. Here are a few of the ways you can capture and upload.

Mobile apps: Capturing with your smartphone is the easiest way to contribute and upload. Take a look at our getting started guides for Android and iOS.

Cameras: If you are capturing with a device such as an action cam, 360º cam, or Blackvue DR900s dashcam you can upload with our Desktop Uploader. To use the Desktop Uploader your device must write GPS information into each image.

Dashcam: If you are using a dashcam other than Blackvue, you can process and upload the videos using our command line tools. Your dashcam will need to save GPS metadata for this to work.

Happy mapping

Thanks for participating in the first CTM of 2020. Don’t forget to register here and let us know if you have any questions about the challenge.

/ Edoardo, Strategic Partnerships Manager