Google seems to have a new focus on improving the image search experience. For example, just last month Google Similar Images, which uses the image recognition technology for filtering search results, graduated from Google Labs and became a default feature of Google Image search.

In an effort to continue down the better image search path, Google has now released a new Labs feature called Google Image Swirl. The new functionality is the result of computer vision research and clusters images into the groups that you can search by way of an experimental new user interface.

With Google Image Swirl, your image search results are joined together in 12 different groupings. Once you identify a particular group, your results will swirl into view, whereby every selection refocuses and swirls the search results in a circular fashion. The experience is evocative of Google's Wonder Wheel, and reminds us of Visual Thesaurus.

Image Swirl expands on technologies developed for Similar Images and Picasa Face Recognition to discern how images should be grouped jointly and build hierarchies out of these groups. Every thumbnail on the initial results page represents an algorithmically-determined representative group of images with similar appearance and meaning. These aren't just the most pertinent images - they are the most relevant groups of images.

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Way back in April, Google relaunched Google Labs, the place where the company tests its latest and experimental features. When it relaunched, it added a very interesting experimental feature to Google Image Search: Find Similar Images.

A recap if you don't remember similar images: it uses image recognition technology to help filter search results. If you find an action shot of soccer/football star Ronaldo and want to find more like it, for example, you can use Similar Images to filter your results and find similar images.

The features have been in Google Labs for over half a year, but that's no longer the case. Google said that Similar Images has now become a standard feature of Google Image search.

It was only a matter of time until Find Similar Images made its debut in Google Search. It's a very helpful and surprisingly accurate feature that really helps you filter images. We can expect to see a lot of users utilizing this feature very shortly.

Labels: Google, google features, google similar image, google updates, New feature in google