Up to this point, the discussion has focused on describing how GPS determines a location on the surface of the Earth. Now the discussion can shift to the process of describing what is at the location. The "what" is the object or objects which will be mapped. These objects are referred to as "Features", and are used to build a GIS. It is the power of GPS to precisely locate these Features which adds so much to the utility of the GIS system. On the other hand, without Feature data, a coordinate location is of little value.
There are three types of Feature which can be mapped: Points, Lines and Areas. A Point Feature is a single GPS coordinate position which is identified with a specific Object. A Line Feature is a collection of GPS positions which are identified with the same Object and linked together to form a line. An Area Feature is very similar to a Line Feature, except that the ends of the line are tied to each other to form a closed area.
As stated above, a Feature is the object which will be mapped by the GPS system. The ability to describe a Feature in terms of a multi-layered database is essential for successful integration with any GIS system. For example, it is possible to map the location of each house on a city block and simply label each coordinate position as a house. However, the addition of information such as color, size, cost, occupants, etc. will provide the ability to sort and classify the houses by these catagories.
These catagories of descriptions for a Feature are know as Attributes. Attributes can be thought of as questions which are asked about the Feature. Using the example above, the Attributes of the Feature "house" would be "color", "size", "cost" and "occupants".
Logically, each question asked by the Attributes must have an answer. The answers to the questions posed by the Attributes are called Values. In the example above, an appropriate Value (answer) for the Attribute (question) "color" may be "blue".
The following table illustrates the relationship between Features, Attributes and Values:
Feature Attribute Value House Color Blue Size 3 BDR Cost $118K Occupants 5
By collecting the same type of data for each house which is mapped, a database is created. Tying this database to position information is the core philosophy underlying any GIS system.
The field data entry process can be streamlined by the use of a Feature List. The Feature List is a database which contains a listing of the Features which will be mapped, as well as the associated Attributes for each Feature. In addition, the Feature List contains a selection of appropriate Values for each Attribute. The Feature List can be created on the CMT hand-held GPS data collector, or on a PC. Below is an example of a Feature List as it appears in PC-GPS:
When a Feature List is used in the field, the first step is to select the Feature to be mapped. Once a Feature is selected, the Attributes for that Feature are automatically listed. A Value for each Attribute can then be selected from the displayed list of predetermined Values.
The use of a Feature List streamlines the data entry process and also ensures consistent data entry among different users in the same organization.
The final step in incorporating GPS data with a GIS system is to export the GPS and Feature data into the GIS system. During this process, a GIS "layer" is created for each Feature in the GPS job. For example, the process of exporting a GPS job which contains data for House, Road and Lot Features would create a House layer, a Road layer and a Lot layer in the GIS system. These layers can then be incorporated with existing GIS data.
Once the GPS job has been exported, the full power of the GIS system can be used to classify and evaluate the data.
Go back to the previous chapter: GPS and Canopy
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