Spatial Data Infrastructures, a New Paradigm Within the Domain of Geospatial Information
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CONEIXEMENT I SOCIETAT 05 NOTES SPATIAL DATA INFRASTRUCTURES, A NEW PARADIGM WITHIN THE DOMAIN OF GEOSPATIAL INFORMATION. THE EXAMPLE OF THE CATALAN SPATIAL DATA INFRA- STRUCTURE PROJECT (IDEC) Jordi Guimet* This report presents the Catalan Spatial Data Infrastructure project (IDEC, Infraestructura de Dades Espacials de Catalunya). IDEC is driven by the Catalan government and is an applicable example of inter-operativity between systems in distributed geographic information, which enables data from different sources and environments to be combined and for several web services to be made available concurrently for processing purposes. These technologies are applied in spatial data infrastructures that have created a new paradigm within the context of geospatial information. The IDEC project is being used to prepare the way for further developments within this new dimension of interconnected information. Table of contents 1. The IDEC project. 2. The characteristics of geospatial information. 3. Spatial data infrastructures (SDI): the distribution of geospatial information. 4. Web servers, the base elements of SDI: WRS, WMS, WFS, WCS, WMC, WSE, LBS, etc. 5. The next stage: a semantic web within the domain of spatial information. 6. The IDEC project as an example of SDI application and research in Catalonia. * Jordi Guimet has a PhD in industrial engineering and is the director of the IDEC project (Secretaria de Telecomunicacions i Societat de la Informació, and the Institut Cartogràfic de Catalunya). e-mail address: [email protected] 122 SPATIAL DATA INFRASTRUCTURES, A NEW PARADIGM WITHIN THE DOMAIN OF GEOSPATIAL INFORMATION. THE EXAMPLE OF THE CATALAN SPATIAL DATA INTRASTRUCTURE PROJECT (IDEC) 1. The IDEC project stimulate the sector and disseminate the use of geographic information. The Catalan Spatial Data Infrastructure project (IDEC) is an initiative by the Secretaria de Teleco- This kind of information, which is provided by differ- municacions i Societat de la Informació (STSI, ent public and private entities, is highly useful for en- Secretariat for Telecommunications and the In- terprises, the general public and all levels of govern- formation Society) of the Catalan Government’s ment although it has been difficult to find in the past Departament d’Universitats, Recerca i Societat due to its disperse nature. The IDEC project enables de la Informació (DURSI, Ministry of Universities, users to know what information exists, how to find it, Research and the Information Society) and falls who the owner is, how the information can be ac- within the framework of the Third Research Plan cessed and what its characteristics are, in addition for Catalonia 2001-2004 and the Catalan Strate- to being able to see it, combine information from dif- gic Plan for the Information Society (Catalunya ferent suppliers and, where appropriate, download it en xarxa). using nothing more than an Internet browser. The IDEC project is an important contribution to Access to non-administrative information can be the development of the information society in Ca- extremely important for decisions by enterprises. talonia in that it seeks to achieve social and eco- One example is financial and geographic statistical nomic gains through the use of geospatial informa- information, which can be determinant for busi- tion to develop existing and potential assets and to ness strategies and investment. make certain products and services based on geo- graphic and geo-referenced data available so that The IDEC project will also provide the universities this information can be better understood by citi- and research centres with an important potential zens and public administration. for developing studies and projects on land use, environment, habitat, etc. given that information The Institut Cartogràfic de Catalunya is responsible generated by others can easily be found, under- for developing the project, pursuant to the agree- stood and shared. This will turn be an aid for them ments between the Departament d’Universitats, in developing their activities. Recerca i Societat de la Informació (Secretaria de Telecomunicacions i Societat de la Informació) and Furthermore, it will give public administration an in- the Autonomous Government of Catalonia’s De- strument to construct corporate information sys- partament de Política Territorial i Obres Públiques. tems based on the connecting up of different dis- It is actively supported and driven by the Catalan tributed systems and it will be able to share data section of the Associación Española de Sistemas and services, thereby facilitating the development de Información Geografica (AESIG). Its function is of transversal projects and activities. to provide the platform and most highly innovative technology to encourage contact between users As laid down in the agreement between the De- and suppliers of geographic information in order to partament d’Universitats, Recerca i Societat de 123 CONEIXEMENT I SOCIETAT 05 NOTES la Informació (DURSI) and the Autonomous Gov- of important new innovations within the context of ernment of Catalonia’s Departament de Política the information society. Territorial i Obres Públiques (DPTOP), the project received approximately 900,000 euros in funding from the Secretaria de Telecomunicacions i Soci- 2. The characteristics of geospatial etat de la Informació during the first two years information (2002-2003).1 This support, which is being con- tinued during 2004, covered investments in Geographic or geospatial information is informa- equipment, software and developments, meta- tion that refers to geography and objects with a ge- data generation, information preparation, human ographic position. This can be either geographic resources (four technical staff, who are all direct- information represented in maps, photos and ima- ly involved) and other activities. The Institut Car- ges as geo-referenced information and which can togràfic de Catalunya (ICC) also provides sup- be associated with a geographic position using a port in the form of technological infrastructure for co-ordinate or indirectly using other geographic systems, communications, etc. It is anticipated referencing systems, such as postal addresses that the current structure with personnel and and place names, which can be converted into ge- available equipment will be sufficient to assure ographic co-ordinates. the normal functioning of the project’s activities in the future. The characteristics that define geographic infor- mation from a data model perspective are locali- sation (co-ordinates), geometric shape (point, line, surface), the attributes of the object (textual The IDEC project was created with the idea information) and the relationships between the objects (topology). Differences are established of it becoming a formal and sustainable en- between these characteristics and any textual in- tity in the future, which will be made up of formation that are translated by computer into the different agents in the geographic infor- characteristic data models for this type of infor- mation and specific analytical and spatial man- mation sector. agement processes. Graphical imagery is used for geographic repre- sentation as this is more universal than text, with The IDEC project was created with the idea of it each feature being linked to a position designated becoming a formal and sustainable entity in the fu- by geographic co-ordinates on the graphical im- ture, the formula for which is still to be determined. age (a more universal representation than text); This entity will be made up of the different agents in the shape of an object in space, which can be the geographic information sector and will continue represented by a point, line or polygon, does not and extend the work of the project through the use any need translation nor interpretation. This 1 50% of the project is co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund within the framework of the INNOVC@T-SI innovative actions pro- gramme. 124 SPATIAL DATA INFRASTRUCTURES, A NEW PARADIGM WITHIN THE DOMAIN OF GEOSPATIAL INFORMATION. THE EXAMPLE OF THE CATALAN SPATIAL DATA INTRASTRUCTURE PROJECT (IDEC) means that geographic information can be used to combine and share information without the directly and also combined with different sources user being involved, can be applied more easily of information (several different layers of maps within this environment. where each layer holds data about a particular kind of feature) because they all use the common alphabet of the co-ordinates as reference. The 3. Spatial data infrastructures concept of inter-operativity, or the capacity of in- (SDI): the distribution of geospatial formation systems to understand each other and information The capability of information systems to interoper- Glossary ate gives rise over the Internet to what are called STSI Secretaria de Telecomunicacions i Societat spatial data infrastructures (SDI), which are the rel- de la Informació evant base collection of technologies, policies and GIS Geographic information systems institutional arrangements that facilitate the avail- IG Geographic information ability of and access to spatial data. This repre- OGC OpenGIS Consortium sents an enormous step in the domain of geospa- ISO International Organisation for Standardisa- tial information because it is now possible to link tion (service chaining) different applications regardless IDEC Catalan Spatial Data Infrastructure of proprietary software used at the source togeth- SDI Spatial data infrastructure