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OMT-G: An Object-Oriented Data Model for Geographic Applications

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Abstract

Semantic and object-oriented data models, such as ER, OMT, IFO, and others, have been extensively used for modeling geographic applications. Despite their semantic expressiveness, such models present limitations to adequately model those applications, since they do not provide appropriate primitives for representing spatial data. This paper presents OMT-G, an object oriented data model for geographic applications. OMT-G provides primitives for modeling the geometry and the topology of spatial data, supporting different topological structures, multiple views of objects, and spatial relationships. OMT-G also includes tools to specify transformation processes and presentation alternatives, that allow, among many other possibilities, modeling for multiple representations and multiple presentations. In this way, it overcomes the main limitations of the existing models, thus providing more adequate tools for modeling geographic applications. A comparison with other data models is also presented in order to stress the main advantages of OMT-G.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Empresa de Informática e Informação do Município de Belo Horizonte, PRODABEL, Av. Presidente Carlos Luz, 1275 31230-000, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil

    Karla A.V. Borges

  2. Departamento de Ciência da Computação, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Av. Presidente Antônio Carlos, 6627 31270-010, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil

    Karla A.V. Borges

  3. Empresa de Informática e Informação do Município de Belo Horizonte, PRODABEL -, Av. Presidente Carlos Luz, 1275 31230-000, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil

    Clodoveu A. Davis

  4. Departamento de Ciência da Computação, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Av. Presidente Antônio Carlos, 6627 31270-010, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil

    Alberto H.F. Laender

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  1. Karla A.V. Borges
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  2. Clodoveu A. Davis
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  3. Alberto H.F. Laender
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Borges, K.A., Davis, C.A. & Laender, A.H. OMT-G: An Object-Oriented Data Model for Geographic Applications. GeoInformatica 5, 221–260 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1011482030093

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