Open source GIS based strategies for firms: a spatial analysis application to the inland terminal of Livorno

The paper explores the use of open source geographic information system (GIS) applied to firms. Most data available in a company have a spatial dimension and even decisions in marketing and management often have a spatial dimension. The paper is focus on illustrating the variegated opportunities for an open source GIS based strategy for firms. We argue that open source GIS are today as good as its proprietary competitors, and under certain circumstances, they are a superior alternative to their proprietary counterparts. A GIS based strategy for firms, as any other new application of geographical knowledge, it is a prospect of a new area for geography studies. This paper can be considered an initial essay on the role that geographers can play in spatial analysis applied to business strategy. The application is an example of applied geography supporting firm strategies and it has the purpose to identify spatial customer potentials for a specific infrastructure, the inland terminal of Guasticce (Italy).spatial analysis, open source, Geographic Information System (GIS), geography, inland port

Semantic Registration and Discovery System of Subsystems and Services within an Interoperable Coordination Platform in Smart Cities

Smart subsystems like traffic, Smart Homes, the Smart Grid, outdoor lighting, etc. are built in many urban areas, each with a set of services that are offered to citizens. These subsystems are managed by self-contained embedded systems. However, coordination and cooperation between them are scarce. An integration of these systems which truly represents a “system of systems” could introduce more benefits, such as allowing the development of new applications and collective optimization. The integration should allow maximum reusability of available services provided by entities (e.g., sensors or Wireless Sensor Networks). Thus, it is of major importance to facilitate the discovery and registration of available services and subsystems in an integrated way. Therefore, an ontology-based and automatic system for subsystem and service registration and discovery is presented. Using this proposed system, heterogeneous subsystems and services could be registered and discovered in a dynamic manner with additional semantic annotations. In this way, users are able to build customized applications across different subsystems by using available services. The proposed system has been fully implemented and a case study is presented to show the usefulness of the proposed method

State-of-the-Art Sensors Technology in Spain 2015: Volume 1

This book provides a comprehensive overview of state-of-the-art sensors technology in specific leading areas. Industrial researchers, engineers and professionals can find information on the most advanced technologies and developments, together with data processing. Further research covers specific devices and technologies that capture and distribute data to be processed by applying dedicated techniques or procedures, which is where sensors play the most important role. The book provides insights and solutions for different problems covering a broad spectrum of possibilities, thanks to a set of applications and solutions based on sensory technologies. Topics include: • Signal analysis for spectral power • 3D precise measurements • Electromagnetic propagation • Drugs detection • e-health environments based on social sensor networks • Robots in wireless environments, navigation, teleoperation, object grasping, demining • Wireless sensor networks • Industrial IoT • Insights in smart cities • Voice recognition • FPGA interfaces • Flight mill device for measurements on insects • Optical systems: UV, LEDs, lasers, fiber optics • Machine vision • Power dissipation • Liquid level in fuel tanks • Parabolic solar tracker • Force sensors • Control for a twin roto

GEOINTERPRET: AN ONTOLOGICAL ENGINEERING METHODOLOGY FOR AUTOMATED INTERPRETATION OF GEOSPATIAL QUERIES

Despite advances in GIS technology, solving geospatial problems using current GIS platforms involves complex tasks requiring specialized skills and knowledge that are attainable through formal training and experience in implementing GIS projects. These requisite skills and knowledge include: understanding domain-specific geospatial problems; understanding GIS representation of real-world objects, concepts, and activities; knowing how to identify, locate, retrieve, and integrate geospatial data sets into GIS projects; knowing specific geoprocessing capabilities available on specific GIS platforms; and skills in utilizing geoprocessing tools in GIS with appropriate data sets to solve problems effectively and efficiently. Users interested in solving application-domain problems often lack such skills and knowledge and resort to GIS experts (this is especially true for applications dealing with diverse geospatial data sets and complex problems). Therefore, there is a gap between users' knowledge about geoprocessing and GIS tools and the GIS knowledge and skills needed to solve geospatial problems. To fill this gap, a new approach that automates the tasks involved in geospatial problem solving is needed. Of these tasks, the most important is geospatial query (usually expressed in application-specific concepts and terminologies) interpretation and mapping to geoprocessing operations implementable by GIS. The goal of this research is to develop an ontological engineering methodology, called GeoInterpret, to automate the task of geospatial query interpretation and mapping. This methodology encompasses: a conceptualization of geospatial queries; a multiple-ontology approach for representing knowledge needed to solve geospatial queries; a set of techniques for mapping elements between different ontologies; and a set of algorithms for geospatial query interpretation, mapping, and geoprocessing workflow composition. A proof of concept was developed to demonstrate the working of GeoInterpret

Data interoperability across borders : a case study of the Abbotsford-Sumas aquifer (British Columbia-Washington State)

The ability to integrate data from multiple sources is central to geographic information science (GIS).  Although data integration is an active field of research in the GIS community, a number of challenges remain unresolved. Interoperability research addressing data integration challenges experienced by institutions in an international setting also remains sparse. Groundwater is an example of an environmental phenomenon which does not respect political borders, and its management requires data from multiple jurisdictions. The Abbotsford-Sumas aquifer, straddling the Canada US border, is used as a case study to explore integration challenges in an international setting. Development of groundwater management practices to ensure a sustained source of good quality groundwater is dependent, on an understanding of the conceptual model of the aquifer. Due to a lack of geophysical studies, geological information contained in the water well reports, is the chief source of depth-specific lithological information. The use of this information in constructing the conceptual model is constrained by poor data quality and a lack of an integrated and standardized lithological database. To achieve the research goals of exploring integration challenges in an international setting, lithological datasets from BC and Washington State are integrated. The resultant lithological database is used to test the usability of water well reports for constructing the conceptual model. Numerous interoperability challenges such as data availability, lack of metadata, data quality and formats, database structure, semantics, policies and cooperation are identified as inhibitors of data integration. Despite the numerous challenges the lithological database is useful in constructing a generalized conceptual model. This research is important as it presents challenges to data integration that should be considered as a starting point for environmental management projects