OnStar is tapping technology from Microsoft to provide OnStar advisors with critical 3D details to more accurately guide first responders to hard-to-find or rural locations. 

OnStar will soon provide unparalleled location information to emergency responders by enhancing GPS location with 3D aerial imagery in Microsoft Virtual Earth  -  an application that visualises geographic and location-based information by combining Microsoft's 3D maps with location data - which, in this case, will come from the subscriber's OnStar system.

This technology will enhance OnStar's comprehensive suite of Emergency services, including Automatic Crash Response and Emergency button presses.

According to OnStar president Chet Huber, this new technology will enable advisors to give the dispatchers even more information about a subscriber's location should a vehicle go off the road.

And as Microsoft's David Graff points out, features like Virtual Earth's Bird's Eye view imagery will help advisors to locate subscribers quickly, even in adverse weather and conditions.

Since OnStar introduced Air Bag Notification in 1996, the Automatic Crash Response system has evolved to use built-in vehicle sensors that provide OnStar advisors with real-time data about the type and severity of the crash  -  regardless of air bag deployment.