Dynamic 3D maps as visual interfaces for spatio-temporal data

Abstract

Dynamic 3D maps represent visual interfaces used to present and explore spatial and spatio-temporal data. They provide powerful design capabilities for map contents compared to current map toolkits and general-purpose 3D graphics systems. The underlying object model introduces abstract building blocks which are configured for individual animated, interactive 3D maps. These building blocks do not only include visual primitives but also structural and behavioral primitives: Structural primitives permit to arrange and hierarchically organize 3D map contents, and behavioral primitives define the dynamics and interactivity of 3D maps. The building blocks also support dynamic design of map contents to facilitate visualizing temporal data and phenomena. An embedded scripting language assists to configure 3D maps at run-time as well as to customize and extend 3D maps by the user. Possible applications include interactive, animated cartography, virtual geo-environments, and exploratory, visual interfaces for GIS.