Database-supported change analysis and quality evaluation of OpenStreetMap Data

A significant advantage of OpenStreetMap data is its up-to-dateness. However, for rural and city planning, it is also of importance to access historical data and to compare the changes between new and old versions of the same area. This paper first introduces into a differentiated classification of changes on OpenStreetMap data sets. Then a methodology for an automated database-supported analysis of changes is presented. Beyond the information already provided from the OpenStreetMap server, we present a more detailed analysis with derived information. Based on this approach it is possible to identify objects with attributive or geometric changes and to find out how they exactly differ from their previous versions. The analysis shows in which regions mappers were active during a certain time interval. Furthermore, a time based approach based on various parameters to determine the quality of the data is presented. It provides a guideline of data quality and works without any reference data. Therefore, an indication about the development of OpenStreetMap in terms of completeness and correctness of the data in different regions is given. Finally, a conclusion and an outlook on open research questions are presented

Are crowdsourced datasets suitable for specialized routing services? Case study of Openstreetmap for routing of people with limited mobility

Nowadays, Volunteered Geographic Information (VGI) has increasingly gained attractiveness to both amateur users and professionals. Using data generated from the crowd has become a hot topic for several application domains including transportation. However, there are concerns regarding the quality of such datasets. As one of the most famous crowdsourced mapping platforms, we analyze the fitness for use of OpenStreetMap (OSM) database for routing and navigation of people with limited mobility. We assess the completeness of OSM data regarding sidewalk information. Relevant attributes for sidewalk information such as sidewalk width, incline, surface texture, etc. are considered, and through both extrinsic and intrinsic quality analysis methods, we present the results of fitness for use of OSM data for routing services of disabled persons. Based on empirical results, it is concluded that OSM data of relatively large spatial extents inside all studied cities could be an acceptable region of interest to test and evaluate wheelchair routing and navigation services, as long as other data quality parameters such as positional accuracy and logical consistency are checked and proved to be acceptable. We present an extended version of OSMatrix web service and explore how it is employed to perform spatial and temporal analysis of sidewalk data completeness in OSM. The tool is beneficial for piloting activities, whereas the pilot site planners can query OpenStreetMap and visualize the degree of sidewalk data availability in a certain region of interest. This would allow identifying the areas that data are mostly missing and plan for data collection events. Furthermore, empirical results of data completeness for several OSM data indicators and their potential relation to sidewalk data completeness are presented and discussed. Finally, the article ends with an outlook for future research study in this area

Foreword: OpenStreetMap Studies and Volunteered Geographical Information

This edited volume presents a collection of lessons learned with, and research conducted on, OpenStreetMap, the goal being to promote the project’s integration. The respective chapters address a) state-of-the-art and cutting-edge approaches to data quality analysis in OpenStreetMap, b) investigations on understanding OpenStreetMap contributors and the nature of their contributions, c) identifying patterns of contributions and contributors, d) applications of OpenStreetMap in different domains, e) mining value-added knowledge and information from OpenStreetMap, f) limitations in the analysis OpenStreetMap data, and g) integrating OpenStreetMap with commercial and non-commercial datasets. The book offers an ideal opportunity to present and disseminate a number of cutting-edge developments and applications in the field of geography, spatial statistics, GIS, social science, and cartography

Exploratory analysis of OpenStreetMap for land use classification

In the last years, volunteers have been contributing massively to what we know nowadays as Volunteered Geographic Information. This huge amount of data might be hiding a vast geographical richness and therefore research needs to be conducted to explore their potential and use it in the solution of real world problems. In this study we conduct an exploratory analysis of data from the OpenStreetMap initiative. Using the Corine Land Cover database as reference and continental Portugal as the study area, we establish a possible correspondence between both classification nomenclatures, evaluate the quality of OpenStreetMap polygon features classification against Corine Land Cover classes from level 1 nomenclature, and analyze the spatial distribution of OpenStreetMap classes over continental Portugal. A global classification accuracy around 76% and interesting coverage areas’ values are remarkable and promising results that encourages us for future research on this topic

DATABASE-SUPPORTED CHANGE ANALYSIS AND QUALITY EVALUATION OF OPENSTREETMAP DATA

A significant advantage of OpenStreetMap data is its up-to-dateness. However, for rural and city planning, it is also of importance to access historical data and to compare the changes between new and old versions of the same area. This paper first introduces into a differentiated classification of changes on OpenStreetMap data sets. Then a methodology for an automated database-supported analysis of changes is presented. Beyond the information already provided from the OpenStreetMap server, we present a more detailed analysis with derived information. Based on this approach it is possible to identify objects with attributive or geometric changes and to find out how they exactly differ from their previous versions. The analysis shows in which regions mappers were active during a certain time interval. Furthermore, a time based approach based on various parameters to determine the quality of the data is presented. It provides a guideline of data quality and works without any reference data. Therefore, an indication about the development of OpenStreetMap in terms of completeness and correctness of the data in different regions is given. Finally, a conclusion and an outlook on open research questions are presented

Database-supported change analysis and quality evaluation of OpenStreetMap Data

Abstract. A significant advantage of OpenStreetMap data is its up-to-dateness. However, for rural and city planning, it is also of importance to access historical data and to compare the changes between new and old versions of the same area. This paper first introduces into a differentiated classification of changes on OpenStreetMap data sets. Then a methodology for an automated database-supported analysis of changes is presented. Beyond the information already provided from the OpenStreetMap server, we present a more detailed analysis with derived information. Based on this approach it is possible to identify objects with attributive or geometric changes and to find out how they exactly differ from their previous versions. The analysis shows in which regions mappers were active during a certain time interval. Furthermore, a time based approach based on various parameters to determine the quality of the data is presented. It provides a guideline of data quality and works without any reference data. Therefore, an indication about the development of OpenStreetMap in terms of completeness and correctness of the data in different regions is given. Finally, a conclusion and an outlook on open research questions are presented. Document type: Articl

Analyzing the Tagging Quality of the Spanish OpenStreetMap

In this paper, a framework for the assessment of the quality of OpenStreetMap is presented, comprising a batch of methods to analyze the quality of entity tagging. The approach uses Taginfo as a reference base and analyses quality measures such as completeness, compliance, consistence, granularity, richness and trust . The framework has been used to analyze the quality of OpenStreetMap in Spain, comparing the main cities of Spain. Also a comparison between Spain and some major European cities has been carried out. Additionally, a Web tool has been also developed in order to facilitate the same kind of analysis in any area of the world

a quality comparison between professional and crowdsourced data in emergency mapping for potential cooperation of the services

ABSTRACTA protocol for assessing the quality of digital geospatial data is applied to samples of volunteered geographic information (created by Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team) and professional mappers (Copernicus EMS-rapid mapping). The application on pre-event data shows that a large percentage of them is very similar in terms of quality and is, therefore, potentially interchangeable; post-event data reveal a more divergent behaviour. The results gathered from the comparative analysis and a look at the temporal trends of response of volunteers and professionals justify a framework of interaction of respective activities, which seems to be possible under strong relationship between professionals and volunteers, built upon common operational standards and guidelines