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Semantics assist user in rapid modelling of terrain databases

Semantics assist user in rapid modelling of terrain databases

Tools currently in use for modelling large terrain databases do too little to assist the user in its workflow. This is due to the fact that the tool has no knowledge of the semantic (or meaning) of the objects the user is manipulating in the terrain database. An example: the user adds a series of trees to create a forest but finds that the tool has automatically placed some of the trees on top of houses that are already present in the terrain database. The tool had no idea what the meaning was of object ‘house’.

Solution

The solution can be found in the use of semantics or, including ‘the meaning of’ in each object. re-lion and the TU Delft are integrating semantics into re-lion Builder. All objects in Builder’s building block repository are tagged with a semantic. This way, Builder knows what kind of object it is and can assist the user while manipulating. The goal of semantics are threefold:

  • Preventing mistakes made by placing objects that are not supposed to be there.
  • Accelerating object placement by automatically adding objects based on land use.
  • The ability to export not only a visual terrain database but also semantics to the simulator.

Of course, semantics are not new: they are sometimes used to map attributes of vector data found in Shape files (SHP) onto objects. There are already a number of dictionaries available containing semantics. Examples are the SEDRIS Environmental Coding Standard (EDCS), the Feature Attribute and Coding Catalogue (FACC), etc. Where possible, existing dictionaries are re-used.