Metamodeling of Smart Environments: from design to implementation

A smart environment is a physical environment enriched with sensing, actuation, communication and computation capabilities aiming at acquiring and exploiting knowledge about the environment so as to adapt itself to its inhabitants’ preferences and requirements. In this domain, there is the need of tools supporting the design and analysis of applications. In this paper, the Smart Environment Metamodel (SEM) framework is proposed. The framework allows to model applications by exploiting concepts specific to the smart environment domain. SEM approaches the modeling from two different points of view, namely the functional and data perspectives. The application of the framework is supported by a set of general guidelines to drive the analysis, the design and the implementation of smart environments. The effectiveness of the framework is shown by applying it to the modeling of a real smart office scenario that has been developed, deployed and analyzed.     

GABRIEL: Gis Activity-Based tRavel sImuLator. Activity Scheduling in the Presence of Real-Time Information

A series of travel simulators have been developed in the past two decades under the Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) umbrella. They have addressed issues such as reactions to advisory radio and variable message signs, use of navigation systems, route diversion, and mode choice. The objective of this paper is to present the design and implementation of a different kind of travel simulator. GABRIEL (Gis Activity-Based tRavel sImuLator) has as a foundation the activity-based approach and makes use of geographic information systems (GIS) as a development environment. The simulation scenario consists of a commute trip where two activities take place. En-route to the first destination, congestion occurs and subjects are requested to take action based on a set of alternatives. The simulator provides re-routing, destination substitution, dynamic geographic information and real-time information to aid users in their decision-making process. As a result it helps subjects in developing their ability to adapt given a particular scenario and allow researchers in understanding trip making, activity rescheduling, and the decision-making process from a comprehensive perspective.

基于GIS的城市土地利用分析与建模框架研究

本文针对城市土地利用数据的时空特性,依托地理信息系统(GIS)丰富的空间分析工具以及对海量空间数据的高性能计算优势,围绕城市土地利用研究有关数据的处理、分析、建模等方面问题设计了一个基于GIS的城市土地利用分析与建模框架;框架主体结构中有关城市土地利用变化的驱动力机制建模方法选取逻辑回归模型,对地理数据的空间自相关性处理则根据Getis自相关系数构建滤波模型;具体应用则结合深圳市国土资源局的"城市土地利用虚拟政策实验室"项目,取得良好效果     

基于VR+GIS技术的场景开发平台设计与实现

数字化场景设计与开发得到各界重视。本文介绍基于虚拟现实与地理信息系统的小型场景开发平台的设计思想、开发技术、功能特点及系统实施与应用。Mini VR-GIS系统展示了良好的应用前景。     

Large-scale analytical water quality model coupled with GIS for simulation of point sourced pollutant discharges

Mathematical modeling is an important tool for water quality studies, and the integration of water quality models with geographic information systems (GIS) is very useful for information extraction and for results interpretation. In this context, this work presents the development of a water quality model coupled with GIS (MapWindow GIS) for representing impacts of point-sourced pollutants released with distinct durations under different flow scenarios, allowing a systemic view of the entire basin, and capable of being used with low data availability. The model is called SIAQUA-IPH and uses a pollutograph convolution scheme to represent multiple discharges and confluences in the basin, based on analytical solutions of the longitudinal advection-dispersion equation. Operational tests presented a full operational performance from all technical solutions adopted, and a representation of plumes considered satisfactory in comparison to observations. Additionally, a simple sensitivity analysis is presented, that gives useful insights about the model application.     

面向对象的GIS虚拟环境实现研究

地理信息系统（GIS）从外部来看,它表现为计算机软硬件系统;而其内涵是由计算机程序和地理数据组织而成的地理空间信息模型,是虚拟环境的一种实现形式。提出采用面向对象技术实现一个GIS系统,具体介绍了设计的虚拟地理信息系统数据模型,在该数据模型中引入地理元素对象和操作,用对象容器来实现对地理元素和操作的支持和管理。最后给出了一个利用面向对象开发工具JAVA实现GIS系统的实例。     

Hypermedia authoring tools based on OLE technology

This paper report on recent and on going work related to the design of a set of hypermedia authoring tools intended to produce courseware, to be used for self learning or distance learning and training environments in a cooperative way. These tools have roots in a standalone hypermedia editor developed to create courseware, to which were added other tools to enhance its usability, namely a hypermedia player to view courseware in self study mode, and a hypermedia browser to create, to navigate and to display graphically the hypermedia document structure. The underlying metaphors are the overhead projector, the transparency and the layer. This system was developed for the MS-Windows environment, supporting OLE technology. We discuss the impact that such technology might have on the look and feel of hypermedia learning material and we describe the implementation of a Hypermedia Editor, Browser and Player tools.Part of this work is carried out in the context of the Co-Learn European project, which is aiming to design and to implement a third generation cooperative learning environment.     

Haptic force control based on impedance/admittance control aided by visual feedback

This paper demonstrates a haptic device for interaction with a virtual environment. The force control is added by visual feedback that makes the system more responsive and accurate. There are two popular control methods widely used in haptic controller design. First, is impedance control when user motion input is measured, and then, the reaction force is fed back to the operator. The alternative method is admittance control, when forces exerted by user are measured and motion is fed back to the user. Both, impedance and admittance control are also basic ways for interacting with a virtual environment. In this paper, several experiments were performed to evaluate the suitability of force-impedance control for haptic interface development. The difference between conventional application of impedance control in robot motion control and its application in haptic interface development is investigated. Open loop impedance control methodology is implemented for static case and a general-purpose robot under open loop impedance control was developed as a haptic device, while a closed loop model based impedance control was used for haptic controller design in both static and dynamic case. The factors that could affect to the performance of a haptic interface are also investigated experimentally using parametric studies. Experimental results for 1 DOF rotational motion and 2 DOF planar translational motion systems are presented. The results show that the impedance control aided by visual feedback broaden the applicability of the haptic device and makes the system more responsive and accurate.

新一代短时天气预警报系统设计与实现*

利用现代化通信手段实时收集大容量数据,并结合地理信息系统,开发出一个完整的短时预警报服务平台,从系统需求、设计、实现三个方面进行了详细描述,着重介绍了通信系统设计、地理信息图层的实现,数据库设计。该系统设计在解决同类问题中具有普遍适用性,在实际应用中发挥了较大作用,取得了很好的效果。     

A Mediator for Approximate Consistency: Supporting “Good Enough” Materialized Views

This paper addresses the needs of application designers whowould like to tell an automated assistant the following: Here is aquery that defines a view I want to materialize within myapplication. I need this view to remain approximately consistent with the state of the data sources from which the view isderived, in accordance with declaratively specified stalenesspredicates. When the view becomes stale, follow the refresh strategyI specify (e.g., eager, lazy, hybrid). You must do this inheterogeneous environments containing both active and passive datasources. This paper describes an architecture that realizes this vision. Theapproach supports materialized, object-based views, called quasi-views,defined over shared databases. Quasi-views arerefreshed according to the consistency conditions and refreshstrategies specified declaratively by application designers. Theseconditions allow for the deviation of quasi-views from their databasecounterparts according to well-defined and monitored approximateconsistency predicates. A layer of software called a Mediator for Approximate Consistencyautomatically generates the databaseobjects necessary to enforce these consistency conditions, shieldingthe application developer from the implementation details ofconsistency maintenance. In addition, it does this for both activeand passive (e.g., legacy) data sources.This paper formalizes quasi-views, presents a declarative quasi-viewspecification language, and describes an architecture andimplementation of a Mediator for Approximate Consistency.     

高性能计算环境下地理计算服务流程并行处理方法

地理计算是地理信息科学中重要的高级计算模式,是新一代地理信息系统(Geographic Information System, GIS)中不可缺少的组成部分。地理计算过程涉及数据处理、空间分析、过程模拟等多个流程,过程繁复且耗时,计算复 杂且运算量大。高性能计算(High Performance Computing, HPC)是解决复杂地理计算问题的有效方法。针对高性能 计算环境中地理计算服务流程并行执行问题,提出一种简洁的地理计算服务流程建模方法和基于多线程的并发流程 处理策略,设计并实现了高性能计算环境下地理计算服务流程执行引擎原型系统,实现了并发条件下地理计算服务流 程的自动执行与负载均衡。通过在真实高性能计算环境中的实验,验证了所提出的方法能够有效解决地理计算服务 流程建模、执行优化问题,具有良好的性能、准确性及应用前景。     

3D mapping of an interactive synthetic environment

Traditional geospatial information systems (GIS) use geographically referenced data to produce highly accurate digital maps. These two-dimensional maps include well-recognized symbols that represent features such as mountains, forests, buildings, and transportation networks. Although this flat view provides an excellent means of orienting the user to the general nature and location of the geographic features for a given area, it does not provide the full experiential value that comes from immersion within a 3D environment. The authors, working in conjunction with the University of New Orleans' Computer Science Department, developed a 3D-GIS to assist the US Marine Corps with mission preparation and rehearsal. It also provides on-site awareness during actual field operations in urban areas. Going beyond presenting stereoscopic views of an area or merely applying photo textures to highly simplified geometric shapes, they created an environment that replicates its real-world counterpart by including detailed 3D objects. The article details the design considerations they faced as well as the implementation and structural overview for the entire system     

GIS应用工程中的组织设计探讨

从GIS与组织管理之间关系、GIS与组织变革之间关系的讨论出发,倡议在GIS应用项目规划中进行专门的组织设计。组织设计是围绕组织管理、业务流程、组织变革、项目治理等方面所进行的设计工作。组织设计有两个目标：既满足GIS应用的基本需求,又要求组织有计划、有步骤地引进技术,主动改进组织的目标、战略、结构和流程。GIS组织设计的基本内容包括：组织结构设计、信息维护与共享设计、系统维护设计、人力资源规划、信息处理流程设计、政篆设计、项目实施组织设计等。     

GIS与工程模型耦合应用模式研究

现有GIS的空间分析功能还很有限，无法满足工程模型的实际需要，而且大多数应用的工程模型是在没有考虑GIS的基础上发展的，因此目前基于GIS的专业分析都是将GIS的功能模块与工程分析模块耦合集成来实现。为了实现GIS与工程模型的有机耦合，在分析现有耦合应用模式的基础上，提出了基于开放式GIS的耦合应用模式，利用组件模型实现两者的有机耦合，达到数据共享和高效无缝集成。     

Generating and updating multiplicatively weighted Voronoi diagrams for point,line and polygon features in GIS

A Voronoi diagram is an interdisciplinary concept that has been applied to many fields. In geographic information systems (GIS), existing capabilities for generating Voronoi diagrams normally focus on ordinary (not weighted) point (not linear or area) features. For better integration of Voronoi diagram models and GIS, a raster-based approach is developed, and implemented seamlessly as an ArcGIS extension using ArcObjects. In this paper, the methodology and implementation of the extension are described, and examples are provided for ordinary or weighted point, line, and polygon features. Advantages and limitations of the extensions are also discussed. The extension has the following features: (1) it works for point, line, and polygon vector features; (2) it can generate both ordinary and multiplicatively weighted Voronoi diagrams in vector format; (3) it can assign non-spatial attributes of input features to Voronoi cells through spatial joining; and (4) it can produce an ordinary or a weighted Euclidean distance raster dataset for spatial modeling applications. The results can be conveniently combined with other GIS datasets to support both vector-based spatial analysis and raster-based spatial modeling.     

An intelligent decision support system for supply,distribution, and marketing planning

The paper focuses on a new and successful application of an optimization-based decision support system (DSS) in the Petroleum Industry. It involves the design, development and implementation of a model and computer system to address the complex short-term planning and operational issues associated with the supply, distribution and marketing of refined petroleum products. This has evolved into an intelligent DSS that uses the tools of Knowledge Engineering and Expert Systems to build an effective, integrated DSS. Several unique modeling features, hitherto untried in any major modeling effort, have been successfully implemented in a Network Optimization framework. The use of a fourth generation modeling language called GENASYS has been instrumental in capturing the intricacies of the network model and facilitates creating new model structures for various parametric changes. Concepts from Knowledge Based Systems and Artificial Intelligence applied in setting up Exception Reports through the use of production rules are another major characteristic of this application. The impact of this decision support system on integrated short-term planning and decision making and in stimulating changes in the attitudes and environment of the users and management is extensive.This research was supported in part by the Center for Business Decision Analysis, the Hugh Roy Cullen Centennial Chair in Business Administration, and the Office of Naval Research under contract N00014-78C-0222. Reproduction in whole or in part is permitted for any purpose of the U.S. Government.     

An innovative framework to support multimodal interaction with Smart Environments

Interaction with future coming Smart Environments requires research on methods for the design of a new generation of human-environment interfaces. The paper outlines an original approach to the design of multimodal applications that, while valid for the integration on today’s devices, aims also to be sufficiently flexible so as to remain consistent in view of the transition to future Smart Environments, which will likely be structured in a more complex manner, requiring that interaction with services offered by the environment is made available through the integration of multimodal/unimodal interfaces provided through objects of everyday use. In line with the most recent research tendencies, the approach is centred not only on the user interface part of a system, but on the design of a comprehensive solution, including a dialogue model which is meant to provide a robust support layer on which multimodal interaction builds upon. Specific characteristics of the approach and of a sample application being developed to validate it are discussed in the paper, along with some implementation details.     

A Formal Approach to Agent Design: An Overview of Constraint-Based Agents

Formal models for agent design are important for both practical and theoretical reasons. The Constraint-Based Agent (CBA) design approach includes two formal models: Constraint Nets and Timed -automata. A constraint net models the agents and the environment symmetrically as, possibly hybrid, dynamical systems; a timed -automaton specifies the desired real-time dynamic behaviors of the situated agents. Given a constraint-based specification of the desired behavior, a constraint-based agent can be synthesized as a constraint solver. Using formal modeling and specification, it is also possible to verify complex agents as obeying real-time temporal constraint specifications. This overview paper presents a summary of the development and application of the CBA framework.     

Exploring the characteristics of an optimal design for inquiry-based geography education with Geographic Information Systems

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is a kind of computer software that allows people to work with digital maps in a fast and flexible way. In the past decade, more and more geography teachers have become interested in the possibilities of using GIS in secondary education. However, teaching with GIS is complex, and little is known about how to do so in an optimal way. Therefore, an Educational Design Research study (EDR) was conducted with the aim to explore the characteristics of an optimal design for GIS-supported geographic inquiry projects. In this EDR study, a project was developed via progressive cycles of designing, testing, and evaluating, together with teachers from different schools. This paper summarizes the outcomes of the EDR study, and presents some design principles for GIS-supported inquiry-based geography education. Teachers could use these design principles to design and conduct GIS-supported geographic inquiry projects, and in such a way raise their geography lessons to a higher level.This paper also shows that although GIS provides many opportunities for enhancing inquiry-based geography projects, it also holds many conditions for its use to be optimal. GIS-supported inquiry-based geography education requires more than providing appropriate software, tasks, and coaching to ensure that students do not get stuck. In order to effectively raise students’ geographic thinking to a higher level, the project should offer a considerable amount of guidance: it should include several preparatory and evaluative tasks based on a good domain-specific theory for use in educational settings. In addition, teachers should coach students in structuring, correcting, and expanding their geographic thinking via dialogical teaching.     

Emergency management using geographic information systems: application to the first Romanian traveling salesman problem instance

The strategic design of logistic networks, such as roads, railways or mobile phone networks, is essential for efficiently managing emergency situations. The geographic coordinate systems could be used to produce new traveling salesman problem (TSP) instances with geographic information systems (GIS) features. The current paper introduces a recurrent framework designed for building a sequence of instances in a systematic way. The framework intends to model real-life random adverse events manifested on large areas, as massive rainfalls or the arrival of a polar front, or targeted relief supply in early stages of the response. As a proof of concept for this framework, we use the first Romanian TSP instance with the main human settlements, in order to derive several sequences of instances. Nowadays state-of-the-art algorithms for TSP are used to solve these instances. A branch-and-cut algorithm delivers the integer exact solutions, using substantial computing resources. An implementation of the Lin–Kernighan heuristic is used to rapidly find very good near-optimal integer solutions to the same instances. The Lin–Kernighan heuristic shows stability on the tested instances. Further work could be done to better exploit GIS features in order to efficiently tackle operations on large areas and to test the solutions delivered by other algorithms on new instances, derived using the introduced framework.