Google applies for 'snap a landmark, find your location' patent

We're taking a trip into the fantastical world of patents, so the usual disclaimer applies. There's no guarantee we'll ever see this in a product, or that a patent will even be granted. Got that? Good. You're lost in the city and GPS isn't exactly being helpful, so whaddya' do? Well, if this application from Google get's the go-ahead, the solution might be as simple as snapping a pic of the nearest landmark. Uploading the image to Mountain View's servers, it'll compare your image to its geographical database of images and work out the closest match before sending you back your location. If it ever emerges from the two dimensional world of line drawings, it might be a handy navigation tool, or as an even more elegant way of getting around with those rumored Google Glasses.