Using image schemata to represent meaningful spatial configurations

Abstract

Spatial configurations have a meaning to humans. For example, if I am standing on a square in front of a building, and this building has a door, then this means to me that this door leads into the building. This type of meaning can be nicely captured by image schemata, patterns in our mind that help us making sense of what we perceive. Spatial configurations can be structured taxonomically and mereologically by means of image schemata in a way that is believed to be close to human cognition. This paper focuses on a specific application domain, train stations, but also tries to generalise to other levels of scale and other types of spaces, showing benefits and limits. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2005.