Multimedia Cartography

Abstract

Within the scope of the project NAVIO (Pedestrian Navigation for Combined Indoor-/Outdoor Environments), which is carried out at the Technical University of Vienna, communication methods for pedestrian navigation systems are investigated and tested in order to efficiently support guiding along unfamiliar environments. Before analyzing various multimedia presentation forms, tests are described that approach the subject the other way around by exploring how users actually gain knowledge about their surroundings and how they represent the obtained information to other people. For this purpose route descriptions and sketches of directions by students of the Technical University were collected and analyzed. Additionally a wayfinding test, where people should follow a certain route with the help of different map types, is currently carried out in the area of the university. It is expected that the results of this field test will give information about the most efficient map types for pedestrian navigation systems. In the meantime only preliminary results can be inspected and are represented in this contribution. Furthermore insights from an extensive literature review about multimedia presentation forms are collected and analyzed. Based on these findings theories about multimedia presentation forms, which could be found during an extensive literature review, have been collected and are represented in a subsequent chapter. Here the outcomes and theories of the empiric tests could be mostly verified, confirmed and expanded. Furthermore the topic "landmarks" was treated in more detail. In this chapter general considerations about wayfinding tasks in urban environments are discussed and diverse communication methods are investigated regarding their potential as route finding aids. Then it describes current efforts at the Technical University of Vienna to prove the effectiveness of certain levels of map abstraction for route communication in pedestrian navigation systems. Different levels of map abstraction are investigated regarding their potential in specific user situations. No detailed results can be presented yet, because the test phase is not finished, but ideas and concepts are introduced and provisional trend results and characteristics are described. The integration of active and passive landmarks into a navigation system was analysed and possibilities on how to realize their application are discussed. In a final section the major achievements are summarized and discussed. © 2007 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.