UNIT III

DATA INPUT AND TOPOLOGY

Scanner - Raster Data Input – Raster Data File Formats –
Georeferencing – Vector Data Input – Digitizer – Datum Projection and
reprojection -Coordinate Transformation – Topology - Adjacency,
connectivity and containment – Topological Consistency – Non
topological file formats - Attribute Data linking – Linking External
Databases – GPS Data Integration
3.1 Data Input
Data input is the procedure of encoding data into a computer-
readable form and writing the data to the GIS data base.
There are two types of data to be entered into a GIS:
1. Spatial data
2. Associated non-spatial attribute data.
The spatial data represents the geographical location of the
features.
a) The non-spatial attribute data provide descriptive
information like the name of a street, salinity of the lake
or the type of tree stand. It must be logically attached to
the features they describe.
b) The data input and output functions are the means by
which a GIS communicates with the world outside.
c) The objective in defining GIS input and output
requirements is to identify the mix of equipment and
methods needed to meet the required level of
performance and quality. No one device or approach is
optimum for all situations.
d) Data entry is usually the major bottleneck in
implementing a GIS. The initial cost of building the
database is commonly 5 to 10 times to cost of the GIS
hardware and software.
e) The creation of an accurate and well-documented
database is critical to the operation of the GIS.
f) Accurate information can only be generated if the data
on which it is based were accurate to begin with.
g) Data quality information includes the date of collection,
the positional accuracy, completeness, and the method
 used to collect and encode the data.
There are five types of data entry systems commonly used in a
GIS :
h) keyboard entry
i) coordinate geometry
j) manual digitizing
k) scanning
l) input of existing digital files

Keyboard Entry
m)It involves manually entering the data at a computer terminal.
Attribute data are commonly input by keyboard whereas
spatial data are rarely input this way.

n) Keyboard entry may also be used during manual digitizing to

enter the attribute information. However this is usually more
efficiently handled as a separate operation.

o) Roads files versus the census file -- roads file will use codes
for the various road types while the census file uses exact
numbers for things like total population, age range, etc.
Coordinate Geometry (COGO)
p) This technique is also called as COGO method.

q) In this method survey measurements such as bearings and

lengths are taken as input and entered into GIS using
keyboard.

r) Coordinates of objects and features are calculated by the GIS.

s) This input technique produces highly accurate results and is

useful in preparing cadastral maps.

t) However, it takes lot of time, manpower and cost to produce

the maps compared with normal digitizing process.

u) Surveyors and engineers want the higher accuracy of COGO

for their applications. Planners and most others are happy
with the lower accuracy provided by manual digitizing.
Manual Digitizing
v) Digitizing is the process of interpreting and converting paper
map or image data to vector digital data.
 w) Digitizing is the process by which coordinates from a map,
image, or other sources of data are converted into a digital
format in a GIS.

x) This process becomes necessary when available data is

gathered in formats that cannot be immediately integrated
with other GIS data.

y) Digitization results in shape files, which are vector features.

z) Manual digitization is a tedious job and if operator is not

efficient it may lead to several digitizing errors. Hence, it has
to be done with most skill and caution.

aa) Manual digitizing is a tedious job. Operator fatigue

(eye strain, back soreness, etc.) can seriously degrade the
data quality.

bb) Managers must limit the number of hours an operator

works at one time.

cc) A commonly used quality check is to produce a

verification plot of the digitized data that is visually compared
with the map from which the data were originally digitized.
Scanning
dd) Scanning provides a faster means of data entry
compared to manual digitizing.

ee) The process of conversion of paper maps into digital

format usable by computer is known as scanning.

ff) It is used to convert an analog map into a scanned file, which

is again converted to vector format through tracing.

gg) Scanning automatically captures map features, text

and symbols as individual cells, or pixels and produces an
automated image.

hh) The scanned file shows map features as raster lines (a

series of connected pixels). And must be vectorized to
complete the process of digitizing.

ii) Vectorization is converting raster lines into vector lines in a

process known as tracing.
Inputting Existing Digital Files
 jj) There are many companies and organizations on the market
that provide or sell digital data files often in a format that can
be read directly into a GIS.
kk) These digital data sets are priced at a fraction of the cost of
digitizing existing maps.
ll) Over the next decade, the increased availability of data should
reduce the current high cost and lengthy production times
needed to develop digital geographic data bases.
3.2 Scanner - Raster Data Input
 The process of conversion of paper maps into digital format
usable by computer is known as scanning.
 It is used to convert an analog map into a scanned file, which
is again converted to vector format through tracing. Scanning
automatically captures map features, text and symbols as
individual cells, or pixels and produces an automated image.
 The scanned file shows map features as raster lines (a series
of connected pixels). And must be vectorized to complete the
process of digitizing.
 Vectorization is converting raster lines into vector lines in a
process known as tracing.
 A variety of scanning devices exist for the automatic capture
of spatial data. While several different technical approaches
exist in scanning technology, all have the advantage of being
able to capture spatial features from a map at a rapid rate of
speed.
 Scanners are generally expensive to acquire and operate. As
well, most scanning devices have limitations with respect to
the capture of selected features, e.g. text and symbol
recognition.
Operation of Scanner
a) The primary function of any scanner is to convert measured
quantities of light to electrical analogs. The light that is
measured may be light that has been transmitted through
the material, as would be the case when film transparencies
are scanned, or the light that is measured could be that
which is reflected from the surface of a map or photograph.
b) For GIS and other computer applications, the electrical
analogs are subsequently converted to a binary form
 suitable for computer processing. If the output of the
scanner is to be used as input to a GIS, care must be taken
to preserve the spatial integrity of the item being scanned.
c) Preservation of the spatial integrity is normally
accomplished by describing the scanned document as an
orthogonal array of grid cells (raster array). Each grid cell
represents an instantaneous field of view within which the
scanner makes a measurement. The manner in which the
grid cell is defined depends upon the particular scanner
being used.
d) The following four types of scanner are commonly used in
GIS and remote sensing.

a. Mechanical scanner
It is called drum scanner since a map or an image placed on
a drum is digitized mechanically with rotation of the drum and
shift of the sensor as shown in figure. It is accurate but slow.

b. Video Camera
Video camera with CRT (cathode ray tube) is often used to
digitize a small part of map of firm.
This is not very accurate but cheap.

c. CCD Camera
Area CCD camera (called digital still camera) instead of
video camera will be also convenient to acquire digital image
 data. It is more stable and accurate than video camera.

d. CCD Scanner
Flatbed type or roll feed type scanner with linear CCD (charge
coupled device) is now commonly used to digitize analog maps in
raster format, either in mono-tone or color mode. It is accurate
but expensive. (See Fig. 3.2.1 (d)).
Type Resolution Accuracy Cost

Mechanical Very high Very high High

scanner
( 25 - 100 μm)

Video camera Low Low Chea

p
(500 x 500
pixels)
CCD camera Medium cheap Medium Cheap (low
(500 x 500 pixels) resolution) High
High
( High resolution)
( 4000 x 4000
pixels)
CCD scanner Very High High High

Types of Scanners
 There are several different types of
scanners performing the same job
but handling the job differently using
different technologies and producing
results depending on their varying
capabilities.
 Hand-held scanners although portable, can only scan
images up to about four inches wide. They require a very
steady hand for moving the scan head over the document.
They are useful for scanning small logos or signatures and
are virtually of no use for scanning maps and photographs

Flatbed Scanner
  The most commonly used scanner is a flatbed scanner also
known as desktop scanner. It has a glass plate on which the
picture or the document is placed. The scanner head placed

beneath the glass plate moves across the picture and the
result is a good quality scanned image. For scanning large
maps or toposheets wide format flatbed scanners can be
used.
Drum Scanner
 Then there are the drum scanners which are mostly used by
the printing professionals. In this type of scanner, the image
or the document is placed on a glass cylinder that rotates at
very high speeds around a centrally located sensor
containing photo-multiplier tube instead of a CCD to scan.
Prior to the advances in the field of sheet fed scanners, the
drum scanners were extensively used for scanning maps and
other documents.
Methods of Scanning
 Scanning captures map features, text, and symbols as
individual cells, or pixels, and produce an automated image.
 Based on the document to be scanned there are different
scanning procedures followed.

Black and White Raster Scanning:

 Image scanned in B&W

 Image scanned in B&W Black and white or “binary” scanning

is the simplest method of converting any document and can
be performed on line drawings, reduced media, text or any
one colour document.

 This is the appropriate solution for archiving and storage

projects, in which the documents will be viewed and printed
but never changed.

 It is, therefore, an ideal solution as the first stage in a

 planned document conversion project.

Grey Scale and Colour Raster Scanning:

 Image scanned in greyscale.

 Image scanned in Gray colour scale and (especially) colour

images can be quite large.

 It must be made sure that the system is capable of handling

files whose size is often measured in tens of megabytes.

 Because virtually every pixel is populated with a value, an

attempt to compress the file results in little or no reduction
in file size.
Limitations in use of Scanners
 Hard copy maps are often unable to be removed to where a
scanning device is available, e.g. most companies or agencies
cannot afford their own scanning device and therefore must
send their maps to a private firm for scanning;
 Hard copy data may not be in a form that is viable for
effective scanning, e.g. maps are of poor quality, or are in
poor condition;
 Geographic features may be too few on a single map to make
it practical, cost-justifiable, to scan;
 Often on busy maps a scanner may be unable to distinguish
the features to be captured from the surrounding graphic
information, e.g. dense contours with labels;
 With raster scanning there it is difficult to read unique labels
(text) for a geographic feature effectively; and
 Scanning is much more expensive than manual digitizing,
considering all the cost/performance issues.

3.3 Raster Data File Formats

 Raster data represents the world as a surface divided into
regular grid of cells. Raster data models are useful for storing
data that varies continuously, as in an aerial photograph, a
satellite image or an elevation surface.

 There are two types of raster data: Continuous and discrete.

Raster stores the data in the type of digital image represented
by reducible and enlargeable grids and this grid of cells
 contains a value representing information, such as
temperature, discrete data represents features such as land-
use or soils data.

 Raster data provides a matrix of cells with values representing

a coordinate and sometimes linked to an attribute table and it
is much simpler for many layers combinations. Raster data is
very easy to modify or program due to simple data structure.

 Rasters are in part defined by their pixel depth. Pixel depth

defines the range of distinct values the raster can store. For
example, a 1-bit raster can only store 2 distinct values: 0 and 1.

 There is a wide range of raster file formats used in the GIS

world. Some of the most popular ones are listed below.

Tagged Image File Formats (TIFF)

 This format is associated with scanners. It saves the scanned
images and reads them. TIFF can use run length and other
image compression schemes. It is not limited to 256 colors
like a GIF.

GEO-TIFF
 As part of a header in a TIFF format it puts Lat/Long at the
edges of the pixels.

Graphic Interchange Format (GIF)

 Graphic Interchange Format. A file format for image files,
commonly used on the Internet. It is well-suited for images
with sharp edges and relatively few gradations of color.

Joint Photograph Experts Group (JPEG)

 JPEG is a common picture format. It uses a variable-
resolution compression system offering both partial and full
resolution recovery.

DEM
 Digital Elevation Models or DEM have two types of displays.
The first is 30-meter elevation data from 1:24,000 seven-
and-a-half-minute quadrangle map. The second is the
1:250,000 3 arc-second digital terrain data. DEMs are
produced by the National Mapping Division of USGS.
 Band Interleaved by Pixel (BIP), Band Interleaved by Line
(BIL)
 BIP and BIL are formats produced by remote sensing
systems. The primary difference among them is the
technique used to store brightness values captured
simultaneously in each of several colors or spectral bands.

RS Landsat
 Landsat satellite imagery and BIL information are used in
RS Landsat. In one format, using BIL, pixel values from each
band are pulled out and combined. Programs that use this
kind of information include IDRISI, GRASS, and MapFactory.
It is fairly easy to exchange information from within these
raster formats.

Portable Network Graphics (PNG)

 Provides a well-compressed, lossless compression for raster
files. It supports a large range of bit depths from
monochrome to 64-bit color. Its features include indexed
color images of up to 256 colors and effective 100 percent
lossless images of up to 16 bits per pixel.
Single file - extension *.png
JPEG File Interchange Format (JFIF)
A standard compression technique for storing full-color and
grayscale images. Support for JPEG compression is provided
through the JFIF file format.

Single file - extension *.jpg, *.jpeg, *.jpc, or *.jpe

World file - extension *.jgw
ArcCatalog only recognizes the .jpg file extension by default.
To add .jpeg or .jpe files to ArcMap without renaming them, add
those file extensions to ArcCatalog or drag those files from
Windows Explorer into your map.
3.4 Digitizer - Vector Data Input
 Digitizing is the process of interpreting and converting paper
map or image data to vector digital data.
 Digitizing is the process by which coordinates from a map,
image, or other sources of data are converted into a digital
 format in a GIS. This process becomes necessary when
available data is gathered in formats that cannot be
immediately integrated with other GIS data.
 Digitization results in shape files, which are vector features.
 Manual digitization is a tedious job and if operator is not
efficient it may lead to several digitizing errors. Hence, it has
to be done with most skill and caution.
 Manual digitizing is a tedious job. Operator fatigue (eye
strain, back soreness, etc.) can seriously degrade the data
quality. Managers must limit the number of hours an operator
works at one time. A commonly used quality check is to
produce a verification plot of the digitized data that is visually
compared with the map from which the data were originally
digitized.
 Tablet digitizers with a free cursor connected with a personal
computer are the most common device for digitizing spatial
features with the plain metric coordinates from analog maps.
The analog map is placed on the surface of the digitizing
tablet as shown in figure. The size of digitizer usually ranges

from A3 to A0 size

The digitizing operation is as follows

Step 1: A map is affixed to a digitizing table.
Step 2: Control points or tics at four corners of this map sheet
should be digitized by the digitizer and input to PC together with
the map coordinates of the four corners.
Step 3: Map contents are digitized according to the map layers
and map code system in either point mode or stream mode at
short time interval.
Step 4: Editing errors such as small gaps at line junctions,
overshoots, duplicates etc. should be made for a clean dataset
without errors.
Step 5: Conversion from digitizer coordinates to map
coordinates to store in a spatial database.
Major problems of map digitization are:
- The map will stretch or shrink day by day which makes the
newly digitized points slightly off from the previous points.
- The map itself has errors.
- Discrepancies across neighbouring map sheets will produce
disconnectivity. Manual digitizing has many advantages.
These include:
 Low capital cost, e.g. digitizing tables are cheap;
 Low cost of labour;
 Flexibility and adaptability to different data types and
sources;
 Easily taught in a short amount of time - an easily
mastered skill
 Generally the quality of data is high;
 Digitizing devices are very reliable and most often offer a
greater precision that the data warrants; and
 Ability to easily register and update existing data.
Heads-up digitization
This method uses scanned copy of the map or image and
digitization is done on the screen of the computer monitor. The
scanned map lays vertical which can be viewed without bending
the head down and therefore is called as heads up digitization.
Semi-automatic and automatic methods of digitizing requires
post processing but saves lot of time and resources compared to
manual method.

Heads-down digitization
Digitizers are used to capture data from hardcopy maps.
Heads down digitization is done on a digitizing table using a
magnetic pen known as Puck. The position of a cursor or puck is
detected when passed over a table inlaid with a fine mesh of
wires. The function of a digitizer is to input correctly the
coordinates of the points and the lines. Digitization can be done
in two modes.
Point mode: In this mode, digitization is started by placing a
point that marks the beginning of the feature to be digitized and
after that more points are added to trace the particular feature
(line or a polygon). The number of points to be added to trace the
feature and the space interval between two consecutive points
 are decided by the operator
Stream mode: In stream digitizing, the cursor is placed at the
beginning of the feature, a command is then sent to the computer
to place the points at either equal or unequal intervals as per the
position of the cursor moving over the image of the feature
3.5 Topology
 Topology expresses explicitly the spatial relationships between
connecting or adjacent vector features (points, polylines and
polygons) in a GIS, such as two lines meeting perfectly at a
point and directed line having an explicit left and right side.
 Topological or topology based data are useful for detecting and
correcting digitizing error in geographic data set and are
necessary for some GIS analyses.
 Topologic data structures help insure that information is not
unnecessarily repeated. The database stores one line only in
order to represent a boundary (as opposed to two lines, one for
each polygon). The database tells us that the line is the “left
side” of one polygon and the “right side” of the adjacent
polygon.
 Topology is the study of those properties of geometric objects
that remain invariant under certain transformations such as
bending or stretching.
 Topology is often explained through graph theory.
 Topology has least two main advantages.
i) The assurance of data quality
ii) Enhance GIS analysis
 Topological relationships are built from simple elements into
complex elements: points (simplest elements), arcs (sets of
connected points), areas (sets of connected arcs), and routes
(sets of sections, which are arcs or portions of arcs).
Components of Topology
Topology has three basic components :

1. Connectivity (Arc - Node Topology) :

 Points along an arc that define its shape are called vertices.
 Endpoints of the arc are called nodes.
  Arcs join only at the nodes.
2. Area Definition / Containment (Polygon - Arc Topology)

:
 An enclosed polygon has a measurable area.
 Lists of arcs define boundaries and closed areas are
maintained.
 Polygons are represented as a series of (x, y) coordinates
that connect to define an area.

3. Contiguity (Adjacency) :
 Every arc has a direction
 A GIS maintains a list of Polygons on the left and right side
of each arc.
 The computer then uses this information to determine which
features are next to one another.

Generally, topology is employed to do the following :

 Manage coincident geometry (constrain how features share
geometry). For example, adjacent polygons, such as parcels,
have shared edges; street centerlines and the boundaries of
census blocks have coincident geometry; adjacent soil
polygons share edges; etc.
 Define and enforce data integrity rules (such as no gaps
should exist between parcel features, parcels should not
overlap, road centerlines should connect at their endpoints).
  Support topological relationship queries and navigation (for
example, to provide the ability to identify adjacent and
connected features, find the shared edges, and navigate
along a series of connected edges).
 Support sophisticated editing tools that enforce the
topological constraints of the data model (such as the ability
to edit a shared edge and update all the features that share
the common edge).
 Construct features from unstructured geometry (e.g., the
ability to construct polygons from lines sometimes referred
to as "spaghetti").
Topology in Different GIS Format

1. Coverage

 Coverage is a topology-based vector data format. Coverage

can be a point coverage, line coverage, or polygon coverage.
 The coverage model supports three basic topological
relationships.
Connectivity: Arc connects to each other at nodes.
Area definition: An Area is defined by a series of
connected arcs.
Contiguity: Arcs have directions and left and right
polygon.
2. Shapefile

 Shapefile is a standard non topological data format. Shape

file are a first attempt an object spatial features.

 They are very simple floating point geometry feature. A

Shapefile is a digital vector storage format for storing
geometric location and associated attribute information.
A shapefile is actually a set of several files
 .shp - shape format; the feature geometry itself
 .shx - shape index format; a positional index of the feature
geometry to allow seeking forwards and backwards quickly
 .dbf - attribute format; columnar attributes for each shape,
in dBase III format The geometry of a shapefile is stored in
two basic files .shp and .shx :
3. DXF (Drawing exchange format)
It maintains data in separate layers. But it does not support
topology. It is AutoCAD format.
 4. Geodatabase

A geodatabase is a relational database that store geographic

information.
 It is object-oriented model not a geo-relational.
 A relational database is a collection of tables logically
associated with each other by common key attribute field.
 A geodatabase can store geographic information because,
besides storing a number or a string in a attribute field;
tables in a geodatabase can also store geometric coordinates
to define the shape and locations of points, lines or polygon.
3.6 Topological Consistency Rules
 Geodatabase topology rules allow you to define relationships
between features in the same feature class or subtype or
between two feature classes or subtypes. The status of a
topology, including errors and exceptions, is saved to the
source geodatabase.
Points
Must be Coincident With
Points in one feature class or subtype must
be coincident with points in another
feature class or subtype. Use this rule
when points from one feature class or
subtype should be aligned with points
from another feature class or subtype. for
example, when service meters must be
coincident with service points in an
electric utility network.
Must Be Disjoint
Points cannot overlap within the same
feature class or subtype. Use this rule
when points within one feature class or
subtype should never occupy the same
space, for example, when fittings in a
water distribution network should not
overlap.
Must Be Covered by Boundary Of
Points in one feature class or subtype
must touch boundaries of polygons from
another feature class or subtype. Use this
rule when you want points to be on or inside
the boundaries of polygons, for example,
when utility service points are required to
be within the boundary of a parcel.
Must Be Properly Inside Polygons

Points in one feature class or subtype

must be inside polygons of another feature
class or subtype. Use this rule when you
want points to be completely within the
boundaries of polygons, for example, when
state capitals must be inside each state.
Must Be Covered by Endpoint Of

Points in one feature class or subtype

must be covered by the ends of lines in
another feature class or subtype. Use this
rule when you want to model points that are
coincident with the ends of lines, for
example, when street intersections must be
covered by the endpoints of street
centerlines.

Point Must be Covered by Line

Points in one feature class or subtype
must be covered by lines in another feature
class or subtype. Use this rule when you
want to model points that are coincident
with lines, for example, when monitoring
stations must fall along streams.

POLYLINE
Must be Larger than Cluster Tolerance
The cluster tolerance is the minimum
distance between the vertices that make
up a feature.
Vertices that fall within the cluster tolerance are determined to
be coincident. This rule is mandatory for a topology and applies
to all polyline feature classes.
Must Not Overlap
Lines must not overlap any part of
another line within a feature class or
subtype. Lines can touch, intersect, and
overlap themselves. Use this rule with
lines that should never occupy the same
space with other lines, for example, when
lot lines cannot overlap one another.

Must Not Intersect

Lines must not cross or overlap any
part of another line within the same
feature class or subtype. Use this rule
with lines whose segments should never
cross or occupy the same space with other
lines, for example, when lot lines cannot
intersect or overlap, but the endpoint of
one feature can touch the interior of
another feature.

Must Not Have Dangles

The end of a line must touch any part of
one other line or any part of itself within a
feature class or subtype. Use this rule
when you want lines in a feature class or
subtype to connect to one another, for
example, when a street network has line
segments that connect. In this example,
you can set exceptions to this rule for
road segments that end at terminate with
dead-ends.

POLYGON
Must be Larger than Cluster Tolerance
 The cluster tolerance is the minimum
distance between the vertices that make
up a feature. Vertices that fall within the
cluster tolerance are determined to be
coincident. This rule is mandatory for a
topology and applies to all polygon
feature classes.

Must Not Overlap

Requires that polygons must not overlap

within a feature class or subtype. Polygons
can be disconnected, touch at a point, or
touch along an edge. Use this rule to make
sure that no polygon feature overlaps
another polygon feature in the same feature
class or subtype, for example, when
administrative boundaries such as ZIP
Codes or voting districts, or mutually
exclusive area classifications such as land
form types cannot have any overlaps.

Must Not Have Gaps

Requires that polygons must not have a

void between them within a feature class or
subtype. Use this rule when all of your
polygons should form a continuous surface
with no voids or gaps, for example, when
soil polygons cannot include gaps or form
voids and must form a continuous fabric.

Must Not Overlap with

Polygons of the first feature class or

subtype must not overlap polygons of the
second feature class or subtype. Use this
rule when polygons from one feature class
or subtype should not overlap polygons of
another feature class or subtype, for
example, when lakes and land parcels from
two different feature classes must not
overlap.

Must be Covered by Feature Class of

The polygons in the first feature class or

subtype must be covered by the polygons of
the second feature class or subtype. Use this
rule when each polygon in one feature class
or subtype should be covered by all the
polygons of another feature class or
subtype, for example, when states are
covered by counties.

Must Cover Each other

All polygons in the first feature class and all polygons in the
second feature class must cover each
other. This means that feature class one
(1) must be covered by feature class two
(2), and feature class two (2) must be
covered by a feature class of feature
class one (1). Use this rule when you want the polygons from two
feature classes or subtypes to cover the same area, for example,
when vegetation and soils must cover each other.

Must be Covered by

Polygons in one feature class or

subtype must be covered by a single
polygon from another feature class or
subtype. Use this rule when you want one
set of polygons to be covered by some
part of another single polygon in another
feature class or subtype, for example,
when countries must be covered by
states.

Boundary Must be Covered by

Polygon boundaries in one feature class

or subtype must be covered by the lines of
another feature class or subtype. Use this
rule when polygon boundaries should be
coincident with another line feature class
or subtype, for example, when major road
lines form part of outlines for census
blocks.

Area Boundary Must be Covered by Boundary of

The boundaries of polygons in one

feature class or subtype must be covered
 by the boundaries of polygons in another
feature class or subtype. Use this rule when
the boundaries of polygons in one feature
class or subtype should align with the
boundaries of polygons in another feature
class or subtype, for example, when
subdivision boundaries are coincident with
parcel boundaries but do not cover all
parcels.
Contains Point

Each polygon of the first feature class or

subtype must contain within its boundaries
at least one point of the second feature
class or subtype. Use this rule to make sure
that all polygons have at least one point
within their boundaries. Overlapping
polygons can share a point in that
overlapping area, for example, when school
district boundaries must contain at least
one school.
3.7 Attribute Data Input and Management
 Attribute data describe the characteristics of the map
feature.
 Attribute data are stored in tables
 Each row of a table represents a map feature.
 Each column represents a characteristic.
 The object-oriented data model stores both data in a single
database, but can distinguish spatial data from attribute
data.
Linking Attribute Data and Spatial Data
 The geo-relational data model store spatial data and
attribute data in separate files.
 Each map feature has unique label ID.
 Linked by feature ID, the two sets of data files can be
queried, analyzed and displayed.
 Attribute data are stored in a table called feature attribute
table.
 A row is called a record.
 A column is called a field.
 Most GIS projects have many attributes.
 Data from both structures are linked together for use
through unique identification numbers, e.g. feature
labels and DBMS primary keys.
 This coupling of spatial features with an attribute record
is usually maintained by an internal number assigned by
the GIS software.
 A label is required so the user can load the appropriate
attribute record for a given geographic feature.
 Most often a single attribute record is automatically
created by the GIS software once a clean topological
structure is properly generated.
 This attribute record normally contains the internal
number for the feature, the user's label identifier, the
area of the feature, and the perimeter of the feature.
 Linear features have the length of the feature defined
instead of the area.To store all attributes in a single table
is not efficient both time and computer space and
difficult to use and update. Most GIS packages include
DBMS :
 INFO for Arc/Info
 MS Access for IDRISI, ArcView and ArcGIS
3.8 GPS or Global Positioning System
GPS or Global Positioning System is a satellite navigation
system that furnishes location and time information in all climate
conditions to the user. GPS is used for navigation in planes, ships,
cars and trucks also. The system gives critical abilities to military
and civilian users around the globe. GPS provides continuous real
time, 3-dimensional positioning, navigation and timing
worldwide.

The GPS system consists of three segments:

1) The space segment: the GPS satellites

2) The control system, operated by the U.S. military,

3) The user segment, which includes both military and civilian
users and their GPS equipment.

Space Segment:

The space segment is the number of satellites in the

constellation. It comprises of 29 satellites circling the earth
every 12 hours at 12,000 miles in altitude. The function of the
space segment is utilized to route/navigation signals and to store
and retransmit the route/navigation message sent by the control
segment. These transmissions are controlled by highly stable
atomic clocks on the satellites. The GPS Space Segment is
formed by a satellite constellation with enough satellites to
ensure that the users will have, at least, 4 simultaneous satellites
in view from any point at the Earth surface at any time.

Control Segment:

The control segment comprises of a master control station and

five monitor stations outfitted with atomic clocks that are spread
around the globe. The five monitor stations monitor the GPS
satellite signals and then send that qualified information to the
master control station where abnormalities are revised and sent
back to the GPS satellites through ground antennas. Control
segment also referred as monitor station.

User Segment:

The user segment comprises of the GPS receiver, which receives

the signals from the GPS satellites and determine how far away
it is from each satellite. Mainly this segment is used for the US
military, missile guidance systems, civilian applications for GPS
in almost every field. Most of the civilian uses this from survey to
transportation to natural resources and from there to agriculture
purpose and mapping too.

 Principle: GPS works on the principle of trilateration

i.e. determining absolute or relative locations of points
based on the distances to at least three known positions.
 Determining the location of a receiver
 GPS receiver calculates its
distance from a satellite by
measuring how long a signal
from the satellite takes to reach
it. It is implied that the receiver
is located somewhere on the
surface of an imaginary sphere
centered at the satellite.
 The distance to the other satellite will also be
calculated by the receiver. Similarly, a sphere centred
at B (satellite 2) with a radius R 2 can be imagined on
whose surface lies the receiver. Since the receiver is
R1 distance from A (satellite1) and R2 distance from
B (satellite 2), it is clear that the receiver will be on
either of the points of intersection of the two spheres
(shown by red dots).
  The distance calculated from the third satellite will add
one more sphere to be imagined on whose surface lies
the receiver. This gives rise to only one valid intersection
i.e. the point where the three spheres intersect is the
position of the receiver in a two-dimensional space.

A GPS receiver determines its position by using the signals

that it receives from different satellites. Since the receiver must
solve for its position (X,Y,Z) and the clock error (d), four
satellite are required to solve receiver’s position using the
following four equations:

Where (X1, Y1, Z1) (X2, Y2, Z2) (X3, Y3, Z3 ) and (X4, Y4, Z4) are the
locations of the satellites and R1, R2, R3, R4 are the distances of
 satellites from the receiver position. Hence solving the four
equations for four unknown factors X, Y, Z and d, the location of
the receiver is calculated.

Sources of Error

Following are the possible sources of errors that may affect a

GPS reading :
 Ionosphere and troposphere delays: When a satellite
signal passes through the atmosphere it slows down. This
slowdown is taken care of by the built-in model of the GPS
system which calculates the average delay to correct this type
of error.
 Signal multipath Error: The error arises when the GPS
signal is reflected off objects such as tall buildings, mountains
or such other hinderances before it reaches the receiver. The
reflectance increases the distance that the signal had to travel
to reach the receiver and the receiver assumes that the
satellite is more distant than it actually is.
 Receiver clock errors: The built-in clock of a receiver may
not be as accurate as the atomic clocks onboard the GPS
satellites and this may lead to errors in calculating the time.
 Orbital errors: These are the inaccuracies of the satellite's
reported location. Though the satellites remain in a fixed orbit
but due to gravitational force a slight shift in the orbit could
occur.
 Satellite visibility : The more number of satellites a GPS
receiver can observe, the better the accuracy. Buildings,
terrain, or dense foliage can block signals which can cause
inaccurate estimation of the position or no position reading at
all.
 Satellite geometry : The satellite geometry refers to the
relative position of the satellites at any given time. Better GPS
signals are obtained when satellites are separated from each
than when they are in tight grouping.

Applications of GPS
GPS is an essential element of the global information
infrastructure. It is free, open and so dependable that it makes its
presence in everything from wrist watches to shipping
containers. One may find GPS in sectors such as farming,
construction, mining, surveying, and logistics.
The benefits arising from the use of GPS in various fields are
mentioned below :

Agriculture
 Allows accurate field navigation, and maximum ground
coverage in the shortest possible time.
 Enhancement of crop productivity by having precision soil
sampling, correct estimation of variation in chemical
applications and planting density.

Environment
 Environmental disasters such as fires and oil spills can be
tracked accurately.
 GPS tracking and mapping to facilitate monitoring and
preservation of endangered species.
Aviation
 Free, continuous and accurate positioning information of
flights on a global basis.
 Safe and fuel-efficient routes for airspace service providers.

Public Safety and Disaster Relief

 Helps in mapping the disaster affected regions.
 Can provide positional information about individuals with
mobile phones in case of emergency.

Surveying and Mapping

 Provides significant productivity gains over traditional
surveying by eliminating many of its inherent limitations
 Allows surveyors to work uninterrupted in periods of poor
weather conditions
Advantages of GPS:
 GPS satellite-based navigation system is an important tool
for military, civil and commercial users
 Vehicle tracking systems GPS-based navigation systems can
provide us with turn-by-turn directions
 Very high speed
 Disadvantages of GPS:
 GPS satellite signals are too weak when compared to phone
signals, so it doesn’t work as well indoors, underwater,
under trees, etc.
 The highest accuracy requires line-of-sight from the receiver
to the satellite, this is why GPS doesn’t work very well in an
urban environment.

3.9 ff