FIG Commission 3 - Spatial Information Management

Term 2011-2014

Highlights Commission Chair
Commission 3 has during the term specifically worked with: Increasing awareness about successful and qualitative SIM approaches and achievements within the “e-Society” framework by demonstrating good practice, including availability, reliability, efficiency, and accessibility of spatial information for better decision making and processes; Prof. Yerach Doytsher
E-mail: doytsher[at]technion.ac.il 

 Support of spatial information and SIM-tools usage by surveyors and by all decision-making participants to serve the goals of good governance; Share good practice on managerial processes and infrastructure required for data handling, using of information and knowledge distribution; Share good practice and develop high-level methods and techniques for merging and managing updated spatial information at various levels according to market requirements; Establish and maintain data – and data-quality-standards – relevant to SIM, while cooperating with international spatial data standards committees; and, Encourage the use of spatial information within e-government and ecommerce. Based on these terms of reference and missions, Commission 3 Working Groups have focussed on the contribution of spatial information for sustainable development. Commission 3 also addressed the phenomenon of rapid urbanization and its impacts with emphasizing on the identification of spatial tools and general principles, norms and standards designed for good governance whilst using reliable and accessible spatial information.

Work Plan

Terms of reference

  • Management of spatial information about land and property (data, tools, methods, policies, processes, procedures, standards, regulations);
  • Spatial data infrastructure – collection technology, integration processing, maintenance, visualization, standardization, and dissemination (technical, organizational, personnel, administrative, research, financial, policy, and legal aspects);
  • Management and dissemination of knowledge and skills for SIM (educational, professional development and capacity building aspects);
  • Impacts on organizational structure, business models, Public-Private-Partnerships, professional practice and administration;
  • Management of spatial information supporting good governance (sustainable development, social and economic growth and poverty reduction, environment protection, democracy, freedom, participation in decision making, social security).

Mission Statement

The mission of Commission 3 is to:

  • Increase awareness about successful SIM approaches and achievements within the “e-Society” by showing good practice like availability, reliability, efficiency and accessibility of spatial information for better decision making and processes.
  • Support the use of spatial information and SIM-tools by surveyors and by all participants in decision-making to serve the goals of good governance.
  • Share good practice on managerial processes and infrastructure required for data handling, using information and distributing knowledge.
  • Share good practice and develop high-level methods and techniques for merging and managing updated spatial information at various levels according to market requirements.
  • Establish and maintain data - and data-quality-standards relevant to SIM, while cooperating with international spatial data standard committees.
  • Encourage the use of spatial information within e-government and e-commerce.
  • Cooperate and coordinate with the related United Nations Committees and other geospatial information societies and organizations active in the field based on request from the Council, they key focus will be in co-operation with ISPRS (Commission IV on Geodatabases and Digital Mapping), ICA (commission on Geospatial Data Standards), GSDI, EUROGI.
 

Work Plan

 
     
Key documents

Publications

Working Groups

Working Group 3.1 - SIM Infrastructure

POLICY ISSUES

SIM has the role of an integrator of components for a Spatial Information Infrastructure especially for urban areas within the information society. SIM is a facilitator for IT based services for planners, administration as well as for citizens. The topics of this activity are:

  • NSDI / GSDI: Spatial Data + Information Infrastructure
  • Modelling, geo-visualization
  • Legal aspects in SIM
  • SIM and LBS as tools:
    • Making geo-database suitable for mobile phones
    • Improve basic references (geo-referencing, transport-internet)
    • Role of surveyors in LBS
    • Share current experiences and technical visions of the future.
    • Gain knowledge from industry.
    • Inform future decisions and implementations.
    • Inform the big picture on drivers, trends and technologies.

CHAIR

Prof. Dr. Hartmut Mueller
GERMANY,
E-mail: hartmut.mueller[at]geoinform.fh-mainz.de

Working Group 3.2 - Technical Aspects of SIM

POLICY ISSUES

New tools, techniques and policies are required to baseline and integrate the social, economic and environmental factors associated with spatially managing urban areas in general and cities/megacities in particular. Inter alia, to monitor growth and change across the urban environment and to forecast areas of risk – all within shorter timeframes than previously accepted. Moreover, they must be flexible enough to meet traditional needs such as land development, tenure and value applications, but be designed to be interoperable and integrate within the city wide SDI as it evolves. There is a need to have access to spatial data from wide range of sources, to integrated spatial information from the SDI and thus leading to a more joined-up, proactive decision making allowing the prioritising of scarce resources to tackle the most sensitive and risk prone areas. Within the list of sub-titles includes:

  • Technical Aspects
    • Data collection, recording and updating, low-cost methods and tools for environmental monitoring,
    • Renewable and innovative technologies for data collection (photogrammetry, LiDAR, crowd sourcing, PDAs, cell-phones, etc.),
    • Visualization of information,
    • Standardization of information and metadata,
    • 2D, 3D, 4D spatial data recording and management to support the legal integration of informalities, the decision making, the risk-assessment and disaster management in areas with informal settlements,
    • Integration and update of spatial data-bases regarding ownership rights, value of real estate property, and state applied regulations and restrictions on the use rights, tools, and Land Information Systems

These technical aspects will be dealt in relation to legal, social, economic, educational, and policy implications

CHAIR
Prof. Dr. Ioannidis Charalabos GREECE,
E-mail: cioannid[at]survey.ntua.gr 


Working Group 3.3 - D Cadastre (Joint Working Group with Commission 7)

The increasing complexity of infrastructures and densely built-up areas requires a proper registration of the legal status (private and public), which only can be provided to a limited extent by the existing 2D-cadastral registrations. Despite all research and progress in practise, no country in the world has a true 3D-Cadastre, the functionality is always limited in some manner; e.g. only registering of volumetric parcels in the public registers, but not included in a 3D cadastral map, or limited to a specific type of object with ad hoc semi-3D solutions; e.g. for buildings or infrastructure. The main objective of the working group is to establish an operational framework for 3D-Cadastres. The operational aspect addresses the following issues:

  • A common understanding of the terms and issues involved. Concepts should be refined and agreed based on the ISO 19152 Land Administration Domain Model.
  • A description of issues that have to be considered (and to what level) before whatever form of 3D-cadastres can be implemented. These will provide 'best practices' for the legal, institutional and technical aspects.

Topics to be dealt within the activity of the working group are:

  • 3D-Cadastre: models, SDI and time
  • 3D-Cadastre and the usability

Options for realization of a 3D cadastre model will include:

  • Minimalistic 3D cadastre (no cables, pipelines etc.)
  • Topographic 3D cadastre
  • Polyhedral vs. Non-polyhedral Legal 3D cadastre
  • Topological Legal 3D cadastre

CHAIR

Prof. Dr. Peter van Oosterom
NETHERLANDS
E-mail: P.J.M.vanOosterom[at]tudelft.nl