Investigation of the Compilation of Digital Maps
Abstract
The report is on an initial investigation of the preparation and utilization of maps in digital form. The program is an outgrowth of an investigation of digital techniques for radar landmass simulation, wherein it was found that information was lacking about the properties of natural terrain and cultural complexes, and thus about the maps themselves which must be used as input data for the simulation. The study reported herein is concerned with means of representation of maps in digital-computer-readable form, and with the means of reconstruction of the map for radar simulation or other purposes. Some techniques of information theory are applied with an ultimate goal of developing a measure for the information content of a map -- the minimum amount of data that is necessary to represent a portion of the real world under stated conditions of accuracy, error, or fidelity. The gradient vector method of encoding the data is derived on the basis of this knowledge, and experiments are reported that illustrate the degree of data compression that can be achieved by this method, as compared with the method of contour tracing that was reported in the preceding program.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Feb 03, 1964
- Accession Number
- AD0740139