A review of information modelling systems in the built environment

The built environment can be described to constitute the surrounding and existing elements created by humans. The systems for modelling information related to the built environment are numerous. Their development are based on varying assumptions and tailored to the various domains in which they are deployed. The functions of these systems are sometimes similar or overlap and they tend to end up with similar acronyms thereby creating confusion to stakeholders in the built environment. As such, stakeholders also find it difficult to choose systems best suited for their needs among the numerous existing ones. A comprehensive record of systems in the built environment with clear definitions of their functions and areas of overlap is therefore necessary to straighten up such confusion and provide requisite understanding among stakeholders. A literature review of information modelling systems in the built environment is therefore proposed. The review examines systems in key sectors of the built environment such the Architectural, Engineering, Construction, Geography and Urban Planning. We conclude that stakeholders should give strong consideration to interoperability needs along the supply chain in which they work while deciding on the choice of information modelling systems to procure

Negotiation in Database Schema Integration

Databases are playing an increasingly important role in organizations. Timely, accurate access to information has become a critical component of gaining competitive advantage. Data availability is commonly perceived as a critical success factor for an organizationÕs long-term survival, and day-to-day operations can be crippled by failure of the database system to satisfy user requirements. However, a number of emerging issues complicate organizationsÕ ability to provide comprehensive and reliable access to disparate information resources. Further, data accessibility is often compromised due to the typically high cost associated with addressing these issues in practice. Examples of such issues which have emerged in the past decade include the proliferation and investment in autonomous databases within organizations, heterogeneity among data models and database management systems employed, the increasingly important role of distributed systems, and the increasing complexity and knowledge-intensive nature of integrating database schemas. All these factors contribute to the increasing importance of developing feasible options for providing interoperability among existing databases, and therefore, of pursuing research in the area of database schema integration. Indeed, this research focuses specifically on knowledge requirement problems involved in integrating the schema of existing databases in order to provide interoperability and transparent access to disparate information resources without the investment involved in complete systems redesig

Schema architecture and their relationships to transaction processing in distributed database systems

We discuss the different types of schema architectures which could be supported by distributed database systems, making a clear distinction between logical, physical, and federated distribution. We elaborate on the additional mapping information required in architecture based on logical distribution in order to support retrieval as well as update operations. We illustrate the problems in schema integration and data integration in multidatabase systems and discuss their impact on query processing. Finally, we discuss different issues relevant to the cooperation (or noncooperation) of local database systems in a heterogeneous multidatabase system and their relationship to the schema architecture and transaction processing

Context-Aware Information Retrieval for Enhanced Situation Awareness

In the coalition forces, users are increasingly challenged with the issues of information overload and correlation of information from heterogeneous sources. Users might need different pieces of information, ranging from information about a single building, to the resolution strategy of a global conflict. Sometimes, the time, location and past history of information access can also shape the information needs of users. Information systems need to help users pull together data from disparate sources according to their expressed needs (as represented by system queries), as well as less specific criteria. Information consumers have varying roles, tasks/missions, goals and agendas, knowledge and background, and personal preferences. These factors can be used to shape both the execution of user queries and the form in which retrieved information is packaged. However, full automation of this daunting information aggregation and customization task is not possible with existing approaches. In this paper we present an infrastructure for context-aware information retrieval to enhance situation awareness. The infrastructure provides each user with a customized, mission-oriented system that gives access to the right information from heterogeneous sources in the context of a particular task, plan and/or mission. The approach lays on five intertwined fundamental concepts, namely Workflow, Context, Ontology, Profile and Information Aggregation. The exploitation of this knowledge, using appropriate domain ontologies, will make it feasible to provide contextual assistance in various ways to the work performed according to a user’s taskrelevant information requirements. This paper formalizes these concepts and their interrelationships

Global integration of public sector information

This paper deals with technological methods for consolidating assets lists of available public sector information (PSI) for re-use. In this direction, the effort is to review the state of the art in delivering access to PSI throughout the world and to prioritize the necessary engagements for joining available PSI catalogues. We propose an architectural framework grounded on Semantic Web technologies to deliver a global platform for federated searching. A speculative survey of available PSI portals is presented, and the initial implementation, results, and analysis of the proposed architecture are covered in detail

Applying an ontology on data integration

The term “Federated Databases” refers to the data integration of distributed, autonomous and heterogeneous databases. However, a federation can also include information systems, not only databases. When integrating data, several issues must be addressed. Here, we focus on the problem of heterogeneity, more specifically on semantic heterogeneity – that is problems related to semantically equivalent concepts or semantically related/unrelated concepts. In order to address this problem, we apply the idea of ontologies as a tool for data integration. In this paper, we explain this concept and we briefly describe a method for constructing an ontology by using a hybrid ontology approach.Eje: Bases de datosRed de Universidades con Carreras en Informática (RedUNCI

Facilitating connectivity in composite information systems

"To appear in Data Base."Includes bibliographical references.Supported in part by the Dept. of Transportation's Transportation Systems Center. Supported in part by the U.S. Air Force. Supported in part by the Center for Management of Information at the University of Arizona. Supported in part by Citibank.Y. Richard Wang, Stuart E. Madnick