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September 28, 2010
LSI Awarded Patent for 3D Topology Builder
STERLING, VA - September 28, 2010 – LSI, a firm offering software products and services to businesses and government agencies for the creation, maintenance, assessment, and management of spatial data, is pleased to announce that it has been awarded US Patent number 7,805,463 for its Three Dimensional (3D) Topology Builder.
The patented technology is the outgrowth of a series of research contracts awarded to LSI by the Army Geospatial Center, part of the US Army Corps of Engineers. Under these Small Business Research and Innovation (SBIR) contracts, software engineers from LSI and its research partner 1Spatial developed an ISO 19107-compliant 3D topology model to underpin a 3D feature model held in an Oracle database, followed by the development of the 3D Topology Builder based on the standards-compliant model.
LSI’s 3D Topology Builder provides a key capability that will allow the industry to move beyond 3D data visualization to 3D data analysis. There has been an exponential growth in the production and use of 3D spatial data representing cityscapes over the past several years. Multiple companies have developed specialized data models, each using differing level of detail and accuracy and differing mechanisms for storing feature geometries. 3D visualization, today’s prevalent use of 3D data, has been used primarily for display purposes and to provide visual context for 2D data; the impact of minor errors for such applications is usually not significant. However, 3D spatial data analysis applications call for a significantly higher level of data quality.
The patented 3D Topology Builder achieves the following:
- Creates a 3D topology model automatically from a number of different data models of varying formats and quality.
- Maintains this topology as feature data is modified on-the-fly
- Enables the use of structured topological data for complex 3D applications that cannot be performed using pure feature data.
Mike Mathews, LSI’s program manager for the SBIR contracts, commented:
“Our work over the past several years in the area of 3D spatial data has given us an excellent understanding of the challenges facing the industry. The 3D Topology Builder represents a break-through capability that will allow decision makers to take full advantage of 3D data.”
For over 15 years, LSI has specialized in providing GIS technology and expertise directly related to the production of high quality geospatial data. LSI's innovative services include spatial data production, data re-use and re-purposing, maintenance, software development, consultancy, enterprise-wide data assessment and quality control.
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