A GIS-based borehole data management and 3D visualization system

The use of subsurface data for problem solving is limited in part by the freedom the user has in their choice of data structures. If a user is allowed to work with the data in a familiar way, they can spend more time performing analysis tasks and less time restructuring data, thus increasing productivity and reducing the risks associated with a series of data modification cycles. Borehole information system (BoreIS) is based upon this principle. Design was guided by interviews with geologists who were targeted as potential users of the software, and BoreIS was developed as an extension to ESRI's ArcScene three-dimensional (3D) GIS environment. BoreIS uses borehole or well data supplied by the user to develop a 3D GIS representation which can be queried, visualized, and analysed. By asking relevant questions about data stored in Excel spreadsheets, BoreIS can automate many high-level GIS functions so that an inexperienced GIS user can still use the system. By matching table elements to spatially and geologically significant terms through the interactive setup, users can work with the data more closely matched to the geological problem domain. This allows the novice user to use powerful GIS functions to discover spatial patterns in their data. BoreIS’ interactive manipulation of terms in complex queries, simple addition of contoured surfaces, and masking by lithology or formation helps geologists find spatial patterns in their data, beyond the limits of data tables and flat maps.