GPS/GIS and Forest (product) Inventory Training

District Forest Office, Bhojpur

A Compiled Hand Notes

By
Ramashray Yadav

1
General outline and introductory lecture on GPS/GIS

GPS setting and Practice of GPS handling

Global Positioning System (GPS)
When GPS was first being put into service, the military was concerned about the
possibility of enemy forces using the globally-available GPS signals to guide their own
weapon systems. To avoid this, the main "coarse acquisition" signal (C/A) transmitted on
the L1 frequency (1575.42MHz) was deliberately degraded by offsetting its clock signal
by a random amount, equivalent to about 100 meters of distance. This technique, known
as "Selective Availability", or SA for short, seriously degraded the usefulness of the GPS
signal for non-military users. More accurate guidance was possible for users of dual
frequency GPS receivers that also received the L2 frequency (1227.6MHz), but the L2
transmission, intended for military use, was encrypted and was only available to
authorised users with the encryption keys.

This presented a problem for civilian users who relied upon ground-based radio
navigation systems such as LORAN, VOR and NDB systems costing millions of dollars
each year to maintain. The advent of a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) could
provide greatly improved accuracy and performance at a fraction of the cost. The
accuracy inherent in the S/A signal was however too poor to make this realistic. The
military received multiple requests from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA),
United States Coast Guard (USCG) and United States Department of Transportation
(DOT) to set S/A aside to enable civilian use of GNSS, but remained steadfast in its
objection on grounds of security.

Through the early to mid 1980s, a number of agencies developed a solution to the SA
"problem". Since the SA signal was changed slowly, the effect of its offset on positioning
was relatively fixed – that is, if the offset was "100 meters to the east", that offset would
be true over a relatively wide area. This suggested that broadcasting this offset to local
GPS receivers could eliminate the effects of SA, resulting in measurements closer to
GPS's theoretical performance, around 15 meters. Additionally, another major source of
errors in a GPS fix is due to transmission delays in the ionosphere, which could also be
measured and corrected for in the broadcast. This offered an improvement to about 5
meters accuracy, more than enough for most civilian needs.[1]

The US Coast Guard was one of the more aggressive proponents of the DGPS system,
experimenting with the system on an ever-wider basis through the late 1980s and early
1990s. These signals are broadcast on marine longwave frequencies, which could be
received on existing radiotelephones and fed into suitably equipped GPS receivers.
Almost all major GPS vendors offered units with DGPS inputs, not only for the USCG
signals, but also aviation units on either VHF or commercial AM radio bands.

They started sending out "production quality" DGPS signals on a limited basis in 1996,
and rapidly expanded the network to cover most US ports of call, as well as the Saint

2
Lawrence Seaway in partnership with the Canadian Coast Guard. Plans were put into
place to expand the system across the US, but this would not be easy. The quality of the
DGPS corrections generally fell with distance, and most large transmitters capable of
covering large areas tend to cluster near cities. This meant that lower-population areas,
notably in the midwest and Alaska, would have little coverage by ground-based GPS.

Instead, the FAA (and others) started studies for broadcasting the signals across the entire
hemisphere from communications satellites in geostationary orbit. This has led to the
Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) and similar systems, although these are
generally not referred to as DGPS, or alternately, "wide-area DGPS". WAAS offers
accuracy similar to the USCG's ground-based DGPS networks, and there has been some
argument that the latter will be turned off as WAAS becomes fully operational.

By the mid-1990s it was clear that the SA system was no longer useful in its intended
role. DGPS would render it ineffective over the US, precisely where it was considered
most needed. Additionally, experience during the Gulf War demonstrated that the
widespread use of civilian receivers by U.S. forces meant that SA was thought to harm
the U.S. more than if it were turned off.[citation needed] After many years of pressure, it took an
executive order by President Bill Clinton to get SA turned off permanently in 2000.[2]

Nevertheless, by this point DGPS had evolved into a system for providing more accuracy
than even a non-SA GPS signal could provide on its own. There are several other sources
of error that share the same characteristics as SA in that they are the same over large
areas and for "reasonable" amounts of time. These include the ionospheric effects
mentioned earlier, as well as errors in the satellite position ephemeris data and clock drift
on the satellites. Depending on the amount of data being sent in the DGPS correction
signal, correcting for these effects can reduce the error significantly, the best
implementations offering accuracies of under 10 cm.

In addition to continued deployments of the USCG and FAA sponsored systems, a

number of vendors have created commercial DGPS services, selling their signal (or
receivers for it) to users who require better accuracy than the nominal 15 meters GPS
offers. Almost all commercial GPS units, even hand-held units, now offer DGPS data
inputs, and many also support WAAS directly. To some degree, a form of DGPS is now a
natural part of most GPS operations.

Operation
A reference station calculates differential corrections for its own location and time. Users
may be up to 200 nautical miles (370 km) from the station, however, and some of the
compensated errors vary with space: specifically, satellite ephemeris errors and those
introduced by ionospheric and tropospheric distortions. For this reason, the accuracy of
DGPS decreases with distance from the reference station. The problem can be aggravated
if the user and the station lack "inter visibility"—when they are unable to see the same
satellites.

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Accuracy
The United States Federal Radionavigation Plan and the IALA Recommendation on the
Performance and Monitoring of DGNSS Services in the Band 283.5–325 kHz cite the
United States Department of Transportation's 1993 estimated error growth of 0.67 m per
100 km from the broadcast site [2] but measurements of accuracy across the Atlantic, in
Portugal suggest a degradation of just 0.22 m per 100 km. [3]

Variations
DGPS can refer to any type of Ground Based Augmentation System (GBAS). There are
many operational systems in use throughout the world, according to the US Coast Guard,
47 countries operate systems similar to the US NDGPS (Nationwide Differential Global
Positioning System).

A list can be found here 300KHz DGPS stations

European DGPS Network

The European DGPS network has been mainly developed by the Finnish and Swedish
maritime administrations in order to improve safety in the archipelago between the two
countries.

In the UK and Ireland, the system was implemented as a maritime navigational to fill the
gap left by the demise of the Decca Navigator System in 2000. With a network of 12
transmitters sited around the coastline and three control stations, it was set up in 1998 by
the countries' respective General Lighthouse Authorities (GLA) - Trinity House covering
England, Wales and the Channel Islands, the Northern Lighthouse Board covering
Scotland and the Isle of Man and the Commissioners of Irish Lights covering the whole
of Ireland. Transmitting on the 300kHz band, the system underwent testing and two
additional transmitters were added before the system was declared operational in 2002.[4]
[5]

Trinity House - DGNSS Stations: UK and Ireland

Effective Solutions (Data Products) - European Differential Beacon Transmitters -

Details and map

United States NDGPS

The United States Department of Transportation, in conjunction with the Federal

Highway Administration, the Federal Railroad Administration and the National Geodetic
Survey appointed the Coast Guard as the maintaining agency for the U.S. Nationwide

4
DGPS network. The system is an expansion of the previous Maritime Differential GPS
(MDGPS) which the Coast Guard began in the late 1980s and completed in March 1999.
MDGPS only covered coastal waters, the Great Lakes, and the Mississippi River inland
waterways, while NDGPS expands this to include complete coverage of the continental
United States.[6] The centralized Command and Control unit is USCG Navigation Center,
based in Alexandria, VA. The USCG has carried over its NDGPS duties after the
transition from the Department of Transportation to the Department of Homeland
Security. There are 82 currently broadcasting NDGPS sites in the US network, with plans
for up to 128 total sites to be online within the next 15 years.

Canadian DGPS

The Canadian system is similar to the US system and is primarily for maritime usage
covering the Atlantic and Pacific coast as well as the Great Lakes and Saint Lawrence
Seaway.

Post processing
Post-processing is used in Differential GPS to obtain precise positions of unknown points
by relating them to known points such as survey markers.

The GPS measurements are usually stored in computer memory in the GPS receivers, and
are subsequently transferred to a computer running the GPS post-processing software.
The software computes baselines using simultaneous measurement data from two or
more GPS receivers.

The baselines represent a three-dimensional line drawn between the two points occupied
by each pair of GPS antennas. The post-processed measurements allow more precise
positioning, because most GPS errors affect each receiver nearly equally, and therefore
can be cancelled out in the calculations.

Differential GPS measurements can also be computed in real-time by some GPS

receivers if they receive a correction signal using a separate radio receiver, for example in
Real Time Kinematic (RTK) surveying or navigation.

The improvement of GPS positioning doesn't require simultaneous measurements of two

or more receivers in any case, but can also be done by special use of a single device. In
the 1990s when even handheld receivers were quite expensive, some methods of quasi-
differential GPS were developed, using the receiver by quick turns of positions or loops
of 3-10 survey points. At the TU Vienna the method was named qGPS and adequate post
processing software was developed.

5
Artist's conception of GPS Block II-F satellite in orbit

Civilian GPS receiver ("GPS navigation device") in a marine application.

Automotive navigation system in a taxicab.

GPS receivers are now integrated in many mobile phones.

The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a U.S. space-based global navigation satellite
system. It provides reliable positioning, navigation, and timing services to worldwide
users on a continuous basis in all weather, day and night, anywhere on or near the Earth.

GPS is made up of three parts: between 24 and 32 satellites in Medium Earth Orbit, four
control and monitoring stations on Earth, and the actual navigation devices users own.
GPS satellites broadcast signals from space that GPS receivers use to provide three-
dimensional location (latitude, longitude, and altitude) plus the time.

6
GPS has become a widely used aid to navigation worldwide, and a useful tool for map-
making, land surveying, commerce, scientific uses, tracking and surveillance, and
hobbies such as geocaching and waymarking. Also, the precise time reference is used in
many applications including the scientific study of earthquakes and as a time
synchronization source for cellular network protocols.

GPS has become a mainstay of transportation systems worldwide, providing navigation

for aviation, ground, and maritime operations. Disaster relief and emergency services
depend upon GPS for location and timing capabilities in their life-saving missions. The
accurate timing that GPS provides facilitates everyday activities such as banking, mobile
phone operations, and even the control of power grids. Farmers, surveyors, geologists and
countless others perform their work more efficiently, safely, economically, and
accurately using the free and open GPS signals.

A visual example of the GPS constellation in motion with the Earth rotating. Notice how
the number of satellites in view from a given point on the Earth's surface, in this example
at 45°N, changes with time.

The space segment (SS) comprises the orbiting GPS satellites, or Space Vehicles (SV) in
GPS parlance. The GPS design originally called for 24 SVs, eight each in three circular
orbital planes,[22] but this was modified to six planes with four satellites each.[23] The
orbital planes are centered on the Earth, not rotating with respect to the distant stars. [24]
The six planes have approximately 55° inclination (tilt relative to Earth's equator) and are
separated by 60° right ascension of the ascending node (angle along the equator from a
reference point to the orbit's intersection).[25] The orbits are arranged so that at least six
satellites are always within line of sight from almost everywhere on Earth's surface.[26]

Orbiting at an altitude of approximately 20,200 kilometers (about 12,550 miles or 10,900

nautical miles; orbital radius of approximately 26,600 km (about 16,500 mi or 14,400
NM)), each SV makes two complete orbits each sidereal day, repeating the same ground
track each day.[27] This was very helpful during development, since even with just four
satellites, correct alignment means all four are visible from one spot for a few hours each
day. For military operations, the ground track repeat can be used to ensure good coverage
in combat zones.

7
As of March 2008,[28] there are 31 actively broadcasting satellites in the GPS
constellation, and two older, retired from active service satellites kept in the constellation
as orbital spares. The additional satellites improve the precision of GPS receiver
calculations by providing redundant measurements. With the increased number of
satellites, the constellation was changed to a nonuniform arrangement. Such an
arrangement was shown to improve reliability and availability of the system, relative to a
uniform system, when multiple satellites fail.[29] About ten satellites are visible from any
point on the ground at any one time (see animation at right).

User segment

GPS receivers come in a variety of formats, from devices integrated into cars, phones,
and watches, to dedicated devices such as those shown here from manufacturers Trimble,
Garmin and Leica (left to right).

The user's GPS receiver is the user segment (US) of the GPS. In general, GPS receivers
are composed of an antenna, tuned to the frequencies transmitted by the satellites,
receiver-processors, and a highly-stable clock (often a crystal oscillator). They may also
include a display for providing location and speed information to the user. A receiver is
often described by its number of channels: this signifies how many satellites it can
monitor simultaneously. Originally limited to four or five, this has progressively
increased over the years so that, as of 2007, receivers typically have between 12 and 20
channels

How to work with GPS easily ?

 Concentrate to set GPS unit as metric system
 Concentrate to set the Position formate of GPS as UTM/UPS, datum as wgs
1984.

Geographic information system (GIS)

A geographic information system (GIS), or geographical information system
captures, stores, analyzes, manages, and presents data that is linked to location.
Technically, a GIS is a system which includes mapping software and its application to
remote sensing, land surveying, aerial photography, mathematics, photogrammetry,
geography, and tools that can be implemented with GIS software. Still, many refer to

8
"geographic information system" as GIS even though it doesn't cover all tools connected
to topology.

In the strictest sense, the term describes any information system that integrates, stores,
edits, analyzes, shares, and displays geographic information. In a more generic sense,
GIS applications are tools that allow users to create interactive queries (user created
searches), analyze spatial information, edit data, maps, and present the results of all these
operations. Geographic information science is the science underlying the geographic
concepts, applications and systems, taught in degree and GIS Certificate programs at
many universities.

In simplest terms, GIS is the merging of cartography and database technology. Consumer
users would likely be familiar with applications for finding driving directions, like a GPS
program on their hand-held device. GPS (Global Positioning System) is the real time
location component that uses satellites to show your current position, "where am I now"
on your device.

Philosophy of GIS
• GIS has enormous impact on virtually every field that manages and analyses
spatial data
• GIS is an extension of analytical thinking. The system has no inherent answer,
these depend upon analyst. It is a tool like others e. g. statistics

• Investment in GIS

– Hardware

– Software

– Database development
– Important of all is analyst

…….Philosophy of GIS/Why GIS?

• 70% of the information includes some geographical facts in the decision making
process
• Ability to assimilate divergent sources of data both spatial and non spatial
(attribute data)

9
 • Visualization impact

• Sharing of information

Three Phases of GIS

Analytical capability in a spatial context

Data downloading and data excel sheet creation

Automatic identification and data capture

Automatic Identification and Data Capture (AIDC) refers to the methods of

automatically identifying objects, collecting data about them, and entering that data
directly into computer systems (i.e. without human involvement). Technologies typically
considered as part of AIDC include bar codes, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID),
biometrics, magnetic stripes, Optical Character Recognition (OCR), smart cards, and
voice recognition. AIDC is also commonly referred to as “Automatic Identification,”
“Auto-ID,” and "Automatic Data Capture."

AIDC is the process or means of obtaining external data, particularly through analysis of
images, sounds or videos. To capture data, a transducer is employed which converts the
actual image or a sound into a digital file. The file is then stored and at a later time it can
be analyzed by a computer, or compared with other files in a database to verify identity
or to provide authorization to enter a secured system. Capturing of data can be done in
various ways; the best method depends on application.

10
AIDC also refers to the methods of recognizing objects, getting information about them
and entering that data or feeding it directly into computer systems without any human
involvement. Automatic identification and data capture technologies include barcodes,
RFID, bokodes, OCR, magnetic stripes, smart cards and biometrics (like iris and facial
recognition system).

In biometric security systems, capture is the acquisition of or the process of acquiring and
identifying characteristics such as finger image, palm image, facial image, iris print or
voice print which involves audio data and the rest all involves video data.

Radio frequency identification (RFID) is relatively a new AIDC technology which was
first developed in 1980’s. The technology acts as a base in automated data collection,
identification and analysis systems worldwide. RFID has found its importance in a wide
range of markets including livestock identification and Automated Vehicle Identification
(AVI) systems because of its capability to track moving objects. These automated
wireless AIDC systems are effective in manufacturing environments where barcode
labels could not survive.

Capturing data from printed documents

One of the most useful application tasks of data capture is collecting information from
paper documents and saving it into databases (CMS, ECM and other systems). There are
several types of basic technologies used for data capture according to the data type:

OCR – for printed text recognition

ICR – for hand-printed text recognition
OMR – for marks recognition
OBR – for barcodes recognition
BCR – for business cards recognition

These basic technologies allow extracting information from paper documents for further
processing it in the enterprise information systems such as ERP, CRM and others.
The documents for data capture can be divided into 3 groups: structured, semi-
structured and unstructured.
Structured documents (questionnaires, tests, insurance forms, tax returns, ballots, etc.)
have completely the same structure and appearance. It is the easiest type for data capture,
because every data field is located at the same place for all documents.
Semi-structured documents (invoices, purchase orders, waybills, etc.) have the same
structure but their appearance depends on number of items and other parameters.
Capturing data from these documents is a complex, but solvable task.
Unstructured documents (letters, contracts, articles, etc.) could be flexible with
structure and appearance.

Developer Basic Data Capture Data Capture SDK

11
 Technologies Application

ABBYY FlexiCapture is an
intelligent data and ABBYY FlexiCapture
OCR (195
document capture software Engine is a data and
languages),
that delivers automated document capture SDK for
ICR (113
ABBYY processing of any type of any type of structured,
languages),
structured, semi- semi-structured and
OMR, OBR,
structured and unstructured documents
BCR
unstructured documents and forms
and forms

IRISCapture for Invoices –

OCR (120 invoice processing solution
languages),
ICR (Latin IRISCapture Pro for
I.R.I.S. Group based Forms is an intelligent -
languages), software suite that
OMR, OBR, automatically captures,
BCR sorts and identifies all
types of documents and
forms
CVISION's Trapeze is an
intelligent software that is CVISION's Trapeze's SDK
OCR (60 able to recognize and captures data from
languages), capture text from structured, semi-
CVISION
ICR (60 structured, semi- structured, and
Technologies
languages), structured, and unstructured documents
OMR, OBR unstructured documents including forms, invoices,
including forms, invoices, and EOBs
and EOBs
LEADTOOLS Forms
Recognition module is a
OCR (118
.NET SDK that harnesses
languages),
the power of LEAD's image
ICR (15
LEADTOOLS - processing technology to
languages),
intelligently identify form
OMR, OBR,
components and features
BCR
that can be used to
recognize structured forms
Nuance OCR (120 OmniPage Professional 17 OmniPage Capture SDK
Communications languages), makes structured forms for Windows with its

12
 advanced Logical Form
made easy from start to
Recognition (LFR)
ICR, OMR, finish. You can turn paper
automates form template
OBR, BCR forms into electronic forms
creation and structured
and then collect the data.
forms processing.
OCR for AnyDoc
automates data capture
from all business
 Data processing
OCR (4 documents,
and Map including
AnyDoc languages), structured, semi-
preparation
Software ICR, OMR, structured, and
OBR,
 Mapping, Area calculation unstructured documents
by incorporating AnyApp
 Map layout Technology for template-
free processing.

Major focus
 Use differents types of Software like Mapsource, Base_camp, GPS
utility or DNR Garmin to download 0r up load of data from GPS
to Computer file and Computer files to GPS.

Map types
General vs thematic cartography

Small section of an orienteering map.

13
Topographic map of Easter Island.

In understanding basic maps, the field of cartography can be divided into two general
categories: general cartography and thematic cartography. General cartography involves
those maps that are constructed for a general audience and thus contain a variety of
features. General maps exhibit many reference and location systems and often are
produced in a series. For example, the 1:24,000 scale topographic maps of the United
States Geological Survey (USGS) are a standard as compared to the 1:50,000 scale
Canadian maps. The government of the UK produces the classic 1:63,360 (1 inch to 1
mile) "Ordnance Survey" maps of the entire UK and with a range of correlated larger-
and smaller-scale maps of great detail.

Thematic cartography involves maps of specific geographic themes, oriented toward

specific audiences. A couple of examples might be a dot map showing corn production in
Indiana or a shaded area map of Ohio counties, divided into numerical choropleth classes.
As the volume of geographic data has exploded over the last century, thematic
cartography has become increasingly useful and necessary to interpret spatial, cultural
and social data.

An orienteering map combines both general and thematic cartography, designed for a
very specific user community. The most prominent thematic element is shading, that
indicates degrees of difficulty of travel due to vegetation. The vegetation itself is not
identified, merely classified by the difficulty ("fight") that it presents.

Topographic vs topological

A topographic map is primarily concerned with the topographic description of a place,

including (especially in the 20th century) the use of contour lines showing elevation.
Terrain or relief can be shown in a variety of ways (see Cartographic relief depiction).

A topological map is a very general type of map, the kind you might sketch on a napkin.
It often disregards scale and detail in the interest of clarity of communicating specific
route or relational information. Beck's London Underground map is an iconic example.
Though the most widely used map of "The Tube," it preserves little of reality. It varies
scale constantly and abruptly, it straightens curved tracks, and it contorts directions
haphazardly. The only traits the map preserves are the order of the stations and crossings
along the tracks and whether a station or crossing is north or south of the River Thames.
Yet those are all a typical passenger wishes to know, so the map fulfills its purpose.[14]

14
Map design
See also: Map projection

Illustrated map.

Arthur H. Robinson, an American cartographer influential in thematic cartography, stated

that a map not properly designed "will be a cartographic failure." He also claimed, when
considering all aspects of cartography, that "map design is perhaps the most complex." [15]
Robinson codified the mapmaker's understanding that a map must be designed foremost
with consideration to the audience and its needs.

From the very beginning of mapmaking, maps "have been made for some particular
purpose or set of purposes".[16] The intent of the map should be illustrated in a manner in
which the percipient acknowledges its purpose in a timely fashion. The term percipient
refers to the person receiving information and was coined by Robinson.[17] The principle
of figure-ground refers to this notion of engaging the user by presenting a clear
presentation, leaving no confusion concerning the purpose of the map. This will enhance
the user’s experience and keep his attention. If the user is unable to identify what is being
demonstrated in a reasonable fashion, the map may be regarded as useless.

Making a meaningful map is the ultimate goal. Alan MacEachren explains that a well
designed map "is convincing because it implies authenticity" (1994, pp. 9). An interesting
map will no doubt engage a reader. Information richness or a map that is multivariate
shows relationships within the map. Showing several variables allows comparison, which
adds to the meaningfulness of the map. This also generates hypothesis and stimulates
ideas and perhaps further research. In order to convey the message of the map, the creator
must design it in a manner which will aid the reader in the overall understanding of its
purpose. The title of a map may provide the "needed link" necessary for communicating
that message, but the overall design of the map fosters the manner in which the reader
interprets it (Monmonier, 1993, pp. 93).

In the 21st century it is possible to find a map of virtually anything from the inner
workings of the human body to the virtual worlds of cyberspace. Therefore there are now
a huge variety of different styles and types of map - for example, one area which has
evolved a specific and recognisable variation are those used by public transport
organisations to guide passengers, namely urban rail and metro maps, many of which are
loosely based on 45 degree angles as originally perfected by Harry Beck and George
Dow.

15
Naming conventions

Most maps use text to label places and for such things as a map title, legend and other
information. Maps are often made in specific languages, though names of places often
differ between languages. So a map made in English may use the name Germany for that
country, while a German map would use Deutschland and a French map Allemagne. A
word that describes a place, using a non-native terminology or language is referred to as
an exonym.

In some cases the proper name is not clear. For example, the nation of Burma officially
changed its name to Myanmar, but many nations do not recognize the ruling junta and
continue to use Burma. Sometimes an official name change is resisted in other languages
and the older name may remain in common use. Examples include the use of Saigon for
Ho Chi Minh City, Bangkok for Krung Thep and Ivory Coast for Côte d'Ivoire.

Difficulties arise, when transliteration or transcription between writing systems is

required. National names tend to have well established names in other languages and
writing systems, such as Russia for Росси́я, but for many placenames a system of
transliteration or transcription is required. In transliteration, the symbols of one language
are represented by symbols in another. For example, the Cyrillic letter Р is traditionally
written as R in the Latin alphabet. Systems exist for transliteration of Arabic, but the
results may vary. For example, the Yemeni city of Mocha is written variously in English
as Mocha, Al Mukha, al-Mukhā, Mocca and Moka. Transliteration systems are based on
relating written symbols to one another, while transcription is the attempt to spell in one
language the phonetic sounds of another. Chinese writing is transformed into the Latin
alphabet through the Pinyin phonetic transcription systems. Other systems were used in
the past, such as Wade-Giles, resulting in the city being spelled Beijing on newer English
maps and Peking on older ones.

Further difficulties arise when countries, especially former colonies, do not have a strong
national geographic naming standard. In such cases, cartographers may have to choose
between various phonetic spellings of local names versus older imposed, sometimes
resented, colonial names. Some countries have multiple official languages, resulting in
multiple official placenames. For example, the capital of Belgium is both Brussels and
Bruxelles. In Canada, English and French are official languages and places have names in
both languages. British Columbia is also officially named la Colombie-Britannique.
English maps rarely show the French names outside of Quebec, which itself is spelled
Québec in French.[18]

The study of placenames is called toponymy, while that of the origin and historical usage
of placenames as words is etymology.

Map symbology

The quality of a map’s design affects its reader’s ability to extract information and to
learn from the map. Cartographic symbology has been developed in an effort to portray

16
the world accurately and effectively convey information to the map reader. A legend
explains the pictorial language of the map, known as its symbology. The title indicates
the region the map portrays; the map image portrays the region and so on. Although
every map element serves some purpose, convention only dictates inclusion of some
elements, while others are considered optional. A menu of map elements includes the
neatline (border), compass rose or north arrow, overview map, scale bar, projection and
information about the map sources, accuracy and publication.

When examining a landscape, scale can be intuited from trees, houses and cars. Not so
with a map. Even such a simple thing as a north arrow is crucial. It may seem obvious
that the top of a map should point north, but this might not be the case.

Color, likewise, is equally important. How the cartographer displays the data in different
hues can greatly affect the understanding or feel of the map. Different intensities of hue
portray different objectives the cartographer is attempting to get across to the audience.
Today, personal computers can display up to 16 million distinct colors at a time, even
though the human eye can distinguish only a minimum number of these (Jeer, 1997). This
fact allows for a multitude of color options for even for the most demanding maps.
Moreover, computers can easily hatch patterns in colors to give even more options. This
is very beneficial, when symbolizing data in categories such as quintile and equal interval
classifications.

Quantitative symbols give a visual measure of the relative size/importance/number that a

symbol represents and to symbolize this data on a map, there are two major classes of
symbols used for portraying quantitative properties. Proportional symbols change their
visual weight according to a quantitative property. These are appropriate for extensive
statistics. Choropleth maps portray data collection areas, such as counties or census
tracts, with color. Using color this way, the darkness and intensity (or value) of the color
is evaluated by the eye as a measure of intensity or concentration (Harvard Graduate
School of Design, 2005).

Map generalization

A good map has to provide a compromise between portraying the items of interest (or
themes) in the right place for the map scale used, against the need to annotate that item
with text or a symbol, which takes up space on the map medium and very likely will
cause some other item of interest to be displaced. The cartographer is thus constantly
making judgements about what to include, what to leave out and what to show in a
slightly incorrect place - because of the demands of the annotation. This issue assumes
more importance as the scale of the map gets smaller (i.e the map shows a larger area),
because relatively, the annotation on the map takes up more space on the ground. A good
example from the late 1980s was the Ordnance Survey's first digital maps, where the
absolute positions of major roads shown at scales of 1:1250 and 1:2500 were sometimes
a scale distance of hundreds of metres away from ground truth, when shown on digital
maps at scales of 1:250000 and 1:625000, because of the overriding need to annotate the
features.

17
Relating information from different sources

Location may be annotated by x, y, and z coordinates of longitude, latitude, and

elevation, or by other geocode systems like ZIP Codes or by highway mile markers. Any
variable that can be located spatially can be fed into a GIS. Several computer databases
that can be directly entered into a GIS are being produced by government agencies and
non-government organizations[citation needed]. Different kinds of data in map form can be
entered into a GIS.

A GIS can also convert existing digital information, which may not yet be in map form,
into forms it can recognize and use. For example, digital satellite images generated
through remote sensing can be analyzed to produce a map-like layer of digital
information about vegetative covers. Another fairly recently developed resource for
naming GIS objects is the Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names (GTGN), which is a
structured vocabulary containing around 1,000,000 names and other information about
places.[9]

Likewise, census or hydrological tabular data can be converted to map-like form, serving
as layers of thematic information in a GIS.and map layout

Data representation

GIS data represents real world objects (roads, land use, elevation) with digital data. Real
world objects can be divided into two abstractions: discrete objects (a house) and
continuous fields (rain fall amount or elevation). There are two broad methods used to
store data in a GIS for both abstractions: Raster and Vector.

Raster

A raster data type is, in essence, any type of digital image represented in grids. Anyone
who is familiar with digital photography will recognize the pixel as the smallest
individual unit of an image. A combination of these pixels will create an image, distinct
from the commonly used scalable vector graphics which are the basis of the vector
model. While a digital image is concerned with the output as representation of reality, in
a photograph or art transferred to computer, the raster data type will reflect an abstraction
of reality. Aerial photos are one commonly used form of raster data, with only one
purpose, to display a detailed image on a map or for the purposes of digitization. Other
raster data sets will contain information regarding elevation, a DEM, or reflectance of a
particular wavelength of light, LANDSAT.

18
Digital elevation model, map (image), and vector data

Raster data type consists of rows and columns of cells, with each cell storing a single
value. Raster data can be images (raster images) with each pixel (or cell) containing a
color value. Additional values recorded for each cell may be a discrete value, such as
land use, a continuous value, such as temperature, or a null value if no data is available.
While a raster cell stores a single value, it can be extended by using raster bands to
represent RGB (red, green, blue) colors, colormaps (a mapping between a thematic code
and RGB value), or an extended attribute table with one row for each unique cell value.
The resolution of the raster data set is its cell width in ground units.

Raster data is stored in various formats; from a standard file-based structure of TIF,
JPEG, etc. to binary large object (BLOB) data stored directly in a relational database
management system (RDBMS) similar to other vector-based feature classes. Database
storage, when properly indexed, typically allows for quicker retrieval of the raster data
but can require storage of millions of significantly-sized records.

Vector

A simple vector map, using each of the vector elements: points for wells, lines for rivers,
and a polygon for the lake.

19
In a GIS, geographical features are often expressed as vectors, by considering those
features as geometrical shapes. Different geographical features are expressed by different
types of geometry:

 Points

Zero-dimensional points are used for geographical features that can best be
expressed by a single point reference; in other words, simple location. For
example, the locations of wells, peak elevations, features of interest or trailheads.
Points convey the least amount of information of these file types. Points can also
be used to represent areas when displayed at a small scale. For example, cities on
a map of the world would be represented by points rather than polygons. No
measurements are possible with point features.
 Lines or polylines

One-dimensional lines or polylines are used for linear features such as rivers,
roads, railroads, trails, and topographic lines. Again, as with point features, linear
features displayed at a small scale will be represented as linear features rather
than as a polygon. Line features can measure distance.
 Polygons

Two-dimensional polygons are used for geographical features that cover a

particular area of the earth's surface. Such features may include lakes, park
boundaries, buildings, city boundaries, or land uses. Polygons convey the most
amount of information of the file types. Polygon features can measure perimeter
and area.

Each of these geometries is linked to a row in a database that describes their attributes.
For example, a database that describes lakes may contain a lake's depth, water quality,
pollution level. This information can be used to make a map to describe a particular
attribute of the dataset. For example, lakes could be coloured depending on level of
pollution. Different geometries can also be compared. For example, the GIS could be
used to identify all wells (point geometry) that are within 1-mile (1.6 km) of a lake
(polygon geometry) that has a high level of pollution.

Vector features can be made to respect spatial integrity through the application of
topology rules such as 'polygons must not overlap'. Vector data can also be used to
represent continuously varying phenomena. Contour lines and triangulated irregular
networks (TIN) are used to represent elevation or other continuously changing values.
TINs record values at point locations, which are connected by lines to form an irregular
mesh of triangles. The face of the triangles represent the terrain surface.

Advantages and disadvantages

There are some important advantages and disadvantages to using a raster or vector data
model to represent reality:

20
- Raster datasets record a value for all points in the area covered which may require more
storage space than representing data in a vector format that can store data only where
needed.

- Raster data allows easy implementation of overlay operations, which are more difficult
with vector data.

- Vector data can be displayed as vector graphics used on traditional maps, whereas raster
data will appear as an image that may have a blocky appearance for object boundaries.
(depending on the resolution of the raster file)

- Vector data can be easier to register, scale, and re-project, which can simplify
combining vector layers from different sources.

- Vector data is more compatible with relational database environments, where they can
be part of a relational table as a normal column and processed using a multitude of
operators.

- Vector file sizes are usually smaller than raster data, which can be 10 to 100 times
larger than vector data (depending on resolution).

- Vector data is simpler to update and maintain, whereas a raster image will have to be
completely reproduced. (Example: a new road is added).

- Vector data allows much more analysis capability, especially for "networks" such as
roads, power, rail, telecommunications, etc. (Examples: Best route, largest port, airfields
connected to two-lane highways). Raster data will not have all the characteristics of the
features it displays.

Non-spatial data

Additional non-spatial data can also be stored along with the spatial data represented by
the coordinates of a vector geometry or the position of a raster cell. In vector data, the
additional data contains attributes of the feature. For example, a forest inventory polygon
may also have an identifier value and information about tree species. In raster data the
cell value can store attribute information, but it can also be used as an identifier that can
relate to records in another table.

Software is currently being developed to support spatial and non-spatial decision-making,

with the solutions to spatial problems being are integrated with solutions to non-spatial
problems. The end result with these Flexible Spatial Decision-Making Support Systems
(FSDSS)[10] is expected to be that non-experts will be able to use GIS, along with spatial
criteria, and simply integrate their non-spatial criteria to view solutions to multi-criteria
problems. This system is intended to assist decision-making.

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Projections, coordinate systems and registration

A property ownership map and a soils map might show data at different scales. Map
information in a GIS must be manipulated so that it registers, or fits, with information
gathered from other maps. Before the digital data can be analyzed, they may have to
undergo other manipulations—projection and coordinate conversions, for example—that
integrate them into a GIS.

The earth can be represented by various models, each of which may provide a different
set of coordinates (e.g., latitude, longitude, elevation) for any given point on the Earth's
surface. The simplest model is to assume the earth is a perfect sphere. As more
measurements of the earth have accumulated, the models of the earth have become more
sophisticated and more accurate. In fact, there are models that apply to different areas of
the earth to provide increased accuracy (e.g., North American Datum, 1927 - NAD27 -
works well in North America, but not in Europe). See datum (geodesy) for more
information.

Projection is a fundamental component of map making. A projection is a mathematical

means of transferring information from a model of the Earth, which represents a three-
dimensional curved surface, to a two-dimensional medium—paper or a computer screen.
Different projections are used for different types of maps because each projection
particularly suits specific uses. For example, a projection that accurately represents the
shapes of the continents will distort their relative sizes. See Map projection for more
information.

Since much of the information in a GIS comes from existing maps, a GIS uses the
processing power of the computer to transform digital information, gathered from sources
with different projections and/or different coordinate systems, to a common projection
and coordinate system. For images, this process is called rectification.

Today, even laypeople are aware of GPS used for locating in terms of latitude, longitude
and height. Many people are aware of Google Earth and even GIS. In this scenario,
however, majority of us misunderstands latitude and longitude. Authalic coordinates are
what generally conceived as latitude and longitude, in which the Earth is assumed as
spherical in shape. In day-to-day life, the coordinates we see on maps such as those from
GPS are geodetic latitude and longitude. It is also imperative to know the datum of the
map in use; and if the datum is changed, any selected location can have different geodetic
coordinates.

Spatial analysis with GIS

Given the vast range of spatial analysis techniques that have been developed over the past
half century, any summary or review can only cover the subject to a limited depth. This is
a rapidly changing field, and GIS packages are increasingly including analytical tools as
standard built-in facilities or as optional toolsets, add-ins or 'analysts'. In many instances
such facilities are provided by the original software suppliers (commercial vendors or

22
collaborative non commercial development teams), whilst in other cases facilities have
been developed and are provided by third parties. Furthermore, many products offer
software development kits (SDKs), programming languages and language support,
scripting facilities and/or special interfaces for developing one’s own analytical tools or
variants. The website Geospatial Analysis and associated book/ebook attempt to provide
a reasonably comprehensive guide to the subject.[11] The impact of these myriad paths to
perform spatial analysis create a new dimension to business intelligence termed "spatial
intelligence" which, when delivered via intranet, democratizes access to operational sorts
not usually privy to this type of information.

Popular GIS file formats

Raster formats

 ADRG - National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA)'s ARC Digitized Raster

Graphics
 BIL - Band Interleaved by Line (image format linked with satellite derived
imagery)
 CADRG - National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA)'s Compressed ARC
Digitised Raster Graphics (nominal compression of 55:1 over ADRG)
 CIB - National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA)'s Controlled Image Base
(type of Raster Product Format)
 Digital raster graphic (DRG) - digital scan of a paper USGS topographic map
 ECW - Enhanced Compressed Wavelet (from ERMapper). A compressed wavelet
format, often lossy.
 ESRI grid - proprietary binary and metadataless ASCII raster formats used by
ESRI
 GeoTIFF - TIFF variant enriched with GIS relevant metadata
 IMG - ERDAS IMAGINE image file format
 JPEG2000 - Open-source raster format. A compressed format, allows both lossy
and lossless compression.
 MrSID - Multi-Resolution Seamless Image Database (by Lizardtech). A
compressed wavelet format, often lossy.
 netCDF-CF - netCDF file format with CF medata conventions for earth science
data. Binary storage in open format with optional compression. Allows for direct
web-access of subsets/aggregations of maps through OPeNDAP protocol.

Vector formats

See Also Comparison of Vector Formats (GIS)

 Geography Markup Language (GML) - XML based open standard (by

OpenGIS) for GIS data exchange
 AutoCAD DXF - Contour elevation plots in AutoCAD DXF format
 Shapefile - ESRI's open, hybrid vector data format using SHP, SHX and DBF
files

23
  Simple Features - Open Geospatial Consortium specification for vector data
 MapInfo TAB format - MapInfo's vector data format using TAB, DAT, ID and
MAP files
 National Transfer Format (NTF) - National Transfer Format (mostly used by
the UK Ordnance Survey)
 TIGER - Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing
 Cartesian coordinate system (XYZ) - Simple point cloud
 Vector Product Format - National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA)'s
format of vectored data for large geographic databases.
 GeoMedia - Intergraph's Microsoft Access based format for spatial vector
storage.
 ISFC - Intergraph's MicroStation based CAD solution attaching vector elements
to a relational Microsoft Access database
 Personal Geodatabase - ESRI's closed, integrated vector data storage strategy
using Microsoft's Access MDB format
 File Geodatabase - ESRI's geodatabase format, stored as folders in a file system.
 Coverage - ESRI's closed, hybrid vector data storage strategy. Legacy ArcGIS
Workstation / ArcInfo format with reduced support in ArcGIS Desktop lineup
 Spatial Data File - Autodesk's high-performance geodatabase format, native to
MapGuide
 GeoJSON - a lightweight format based on JSON, used by many open source GIS
packages

Grid formats (for elevation)

 USGS DEM - The USGS' Digital Elevation Model

 DTED - National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA)'s Digital Terrain
Elevation Data
 GTOPO30 - Large complete Earth elevation model at 30 arc seconds
 SDTS - The USGS' successor to DEM

Other formats

 Binary Terrain - The Virtual Terrain Project's Binary Terrain format

 Dual Independent Map Encoding (DIME) – A historic GIS file format,
developed in the 1960s
 Well-known text (WKT) – ASCII spatial projection description (ESRI uses a
*.prj extension)
 Well-known binary (WKB) - Binary spatial projection description
 World file - Georeferencing a raster image file (e.g. JPEG, BMP)

Map
A map is a visual representation of an area—a symbolic depiction highlighting
relationships between elements of that space such as objects, regions, and themes.

24
Many maps are static two-dimensional, geometrically accurate (or approximately
accurate) representations of three-dimensional space, while others are dynamic or
interactive, even three-dimensional. Although most commonly used to depict geography,
maps may represent any space, real or imagined, without regard to context or scale; e.g.
Brain mapping, DNA mapping, and extraterrestrial mapping.

Geographic maps

A celestial map from the 17th century, by the Dutch cartographer Frederik de Wit.

Cartography, or map-making is the study, and often practice of crafting representations of

the Earth upon a flat surface (see History of cartography), and one who makes maps is
called a cartographer.

Road maps are perhaps the most widely used maps today, and form a subset of
navigational maps, which also include aeronautical and nautical charts, railroad network
maps, and hiking and bicycling maps. In terms of quantity, the largest number of drawn
map sheets is probably made up by local surveys, carried out by municipalities, utilities,
tax assessors, emergency services providers, and other local agencies. Many national
surveying projects have been carried out by the military, such as the British Ordnance
Survey (now a civilian government agency internationally renowned for its
comprehensively detailed work).

In addition to location information maps may also be used to portray contour lines
(isolines) indicating constant values of elevation,topography, temperature, rainfall etc.

Orientation of maps

25
The Hereford Mappa Mundi, about 1300, Hereford Cathedral, England. A classic "T-O"
map with Jerusalem at centre, east toward the top, Europe the bottom left and Africa on
the right.

The orientation is the relationship between directions on a map and compass directions.
The word orient is derived from oriens, meaning east. In the Middle Ages many maps,
including the T and O maps, were drawn with east at the top. Today the most common,
but far from universal, cartographic convention is that North is at the top of a map.

Scale and accuracy

Many, but not all, maps are drawn to a scale, expressed as a ratio such as 1:10,000,
meaning that 1 of any unit of measurement on the map corresponds exactly, or
approximately, to 10,000 of that same unit on the ground. The scale statement may be
taken as exact when the region mapped is small enough for the curvature of the Earth to
be neglected, for example in a town planner's city map. Over larger regions where the
curvature cannot be ignored we must use map projections from the curved surface of the
Earth (sphere or ellipsoid) to the plane. The impossibility of flattening the sphere to the
plane implies that no map projection can have constant scale: on most projections the best
we can achieve is accurate scale on one or two lines (not necessarily straight) on the
projection. Thus for map projections we must introduce the concept of point scale, which
is a function of position, and strive to keep its variation within narrow bounds. Although
the scale statement is nominal it is usually accurate enough for all but the most precise of
measurements.

Large scale maps, say 1:10,000, cover relatively small regions in great detail and small
scale maps, say 1:10,000,000, cover large regions such as nations, continents and the
whole globe. The large/small terminology arose from the practice of writing scales as
numerical fractions: 1/10000 is larger than 1/10000000. There is no exact dividing line
between large and small but 1/100000 might well be considered as a medium scale.
Examples of large scale maps are the 1:25000 maps produced for hikers; on the other
hand maps intended for motorists at 1:250,000 or 1:1,000,000 are small scale.

26
It is important to recognize that even the most accurate maps sacrifice a certain amount of
accuracy in scale to deliver a greater visual usefulness to its user. For example the width
of roads and small streams are exaggerated when they are too narrow to be shown on the
map at true scale; that is, on a printed map they would be narrower than could be
perceived by the naked eye. The same applies to computer maps where the smallest unit
is the pixel. A narrow stream say must be shown to have the width of a pixel even if at
the map scale it would be a small fraction of the pixel width.

Cartogram: The EU distorted to show population distributions.

Sometimes the scale of a map is distorted deliberately. For example the map of Europe
shown here has been distorted to show population distributions. Clearly the basic scale is
approximately uniform for the rough shape of the continent is still visible. This is an
example of a cartogram.

Another example of distorted scale is the famous London Underground map. The basic
geographical structure is respected but the tube lines (and the River Thames) are
smoothed to clarify the relationships between stations. Near the centre of the map stations
are spaced out more than near the edges of map.

Further inaccuracies may be deliberate. For example cartographers may simply omit
military installations or remove features solely in order to enhance the clarity of the map.
For example, a road map may or may not show railroads, smaller waterways or other
prominent non-road objects, and even if it does, it may show them less clearly (e.g.
dashed or dotted lines/outlines) than the highways. Known as decluttering, the practice
makes the subject matter that the user is interested in easier to read, usually without
sacrificing overall accuracy. Software-based maps often allow the user to toggle
decluttering between ON, OFF and AUTO as needed. In AUTO the degree of
decluttering is adjusted as the user changes the scale being displayed.

World maps and projections

Main article: World map

27
Map of large underwater features. (1995, NOAA)

Maps of the world or large areas are often either 'political' or 'physical'. The most
important purpose of the political map is to show territorial borders; the purpose of the
physical is to show features of geography such as mountains, soil type or land use.
Geological maps show not only the physical surface, but characteristics of the underlying
rock, fault lines, and subsurface structures.

Maps that depict the surface of the Earth also use a projection, a way of translating the
three-dimensional real surface of the geoid to a two-dimensional picture. Perhaps the
best-known world-map projection is the Mercator projection, originally designed as a
form of nautical chart.

Airplane pilots use aeronautical charts based on a Lambert conformal conic projection, in
which a cone is laid over the section of the earth to be mapped. The cone intersects the
sphere (the earth) at one or two parallels which are chosen as standard lines. This allows
the pilots to plot a great-circle route approximation on a flat, two-dimensional chart.

 Azimuthal or Gnomonic map projections are often used in planning air routes due
to their ability to represent great circles as straight lines.
 Richard Edes Harrison produced a striking series of maps during and after World
War II for Fortune magazine. These used "bird's eye" projections to emphasize
globally strategic "fronts" in the air age, pointing out proximities and barriers not
apparent on a conventional rectangular projection of the world.

Conventional signs

The various features shown on a map are represented by conventional signs or symbols.
For example, colors can be used to indicate a classification of roads. These signs are
usually explained in the margin of the map, or on a separately published characteristic
sheet.[1]

Labeling

To communicate spatial information effectively, features such as rivers, lakes, and cities
need to be labeled. Over centuries cartographers have developed the art of placing names
on even the densest of maps. Text placement or name placement can get mathematically

28
very complex as the number of labels and map density increases. Therefore, text
placement is time-consuming and labor-intensive, so cartographers and GIS users have
developed automatic label placement to ease this process.[2][3]

Non geographical spatial maps

Maps exist of the solar system, and other cosmological features such as star maps. In
addition maps of other bodies such as the Moon and other planets are technically not
geological maps.

Non spatial maps

Many diagrams such as Gantt charts display logical relationships between items, and do
not display spatial relationships at all.

Many maps are topological in nature, and the distances are completely unimportant, and
only the connectivity is significant.

Projection
A map projection is any method of representing the surface of a sphere or other shape
on a plane. Map projections are necessary for creating maps. All map projections distort
the surface in some fashion. Depending on the purpose of the map, some distortions are
acceptable and others are not; therefore different map projections exist in order to
preserve some properties of the sphere-like body at the expense of other properties. There
is no limit to the number of possible map projections.

Background

29
The Mercator projection shows courses of constant bearing as straight lines.

Projection as used here is not limited to perspective projections, such as those resulting
from casting a shadow on a screen. Rather, any mathematical function transforming
coordinates from the curved surface to the plane is a projection.

Carl Friedrich Gauss's Theorema Egregium proved that a sphere cannot be represented on
a plane without distortion. Since any method of representing a sphere's surface on a plane
is a map projection, all map projections distort. Every distinct map projection distorts in a
distinct way. The study of map projections is the characterization of these distortions.

A map of the earth is a representation of a curved surface on a plane. Therefore a map

projection must have been used to create the map, and, conversely, maps could not exist
without map projections. Maps can be more useful than globes in many situations: they
are more compact and easier to store; they readily accommodate an enormous range of
scales; they are viewed easily on computer displays; they can facilitate measuring
properties of the terrain being mapped; they can show larger portions of the Earth's
surface at once; and they are cheaper to produce and transport. These useful traits of
maps motivate the development of map projections.

Metric properties of maps

30
An Albers projection shows areas accurately, but distorts shapes.

Many properties can be measured on the Earth's surface independently of its geography.
Some of these properties are:

 Area
 Shape
 Direction
 Bearing
 Distance
 Scale

Map projections can be constructed to preserve one or more of these properties, though
not all of them simultaneously. Each projection preserves or compromises or
approximates basic metric properties in different ways. The purpose of the map
determines which projection should form the base for the map. Because many purposes
exist for maps, many projections have been created to suit those purposes.

Another major concern that drives the choice of a projection is the compatibility of data
sets. Data sets are geographic information. As such, their collection depends on the
chosen model of the Earth. Different models assign slightly different coordinates to the
same location, so it is important that the model be known and that the chosen projection
be compatible with that model. On small areas (large scale) data compatibility issues are
more important since metric distortions are minimal at this level. In very large areas
(small scale), on the other hand, distortion is a more important factor to consider.

Construction of a map projection

The creation of a map projection involves three steps:

1. Selection of a model for the shape of the Earth or planetary body (usually
choosing between a sphere or ellipsoid). Because the Earth's actual shape is
irregular, information is lost in this step.
2. Transformation of geographic coordinates (longitude and latitude) to plane
coordinates (eastings and northings or x,y)

31
 3. Reduction of the scale (it does not matter in what order the second and third steps
are performed)

Most map projections are not "projections" in any physical sense. Rather, they depend on
mathematical formulae that have no direct physical interpretation. However, in
understanding the concept of a map projection it can be helpful to think of a globe with a
light source placed at some definite point relative to it, projecting features of the globe
onto a surface. The following discussion of developable surfaces is based on that concept.

Orientation of the projection

This transverse Mercator projection is mathematically the same as a standard Mercator,

but oriented around a different axis.

Once a choice is made between projecting onto a cylinder, cone, or plane, the orientation
of the shape must be chosen. The orientation is how the shape is placed relative to the
globe. The orientation of the projection surface can be normal (such that the surface's
axis of symmetry coincides with the Earth's axis), transverse (at right angles to the
Earth's axis) or oblique (any angle in between). These surfaces may also be either tangent
or secant to the spherical or ellipsoidal globe. Tangent means the surface touches but
does not slice through the globe; secant means the surface does slice through the globe.
Insofar as preserving metric properties goes, it is never advantageous to move the
developable surface away from contact with the globe, so that possibility is not discussed
here.

Scale
A globe is the only way to represent the earth with constant scale throughout the entire
map in all directions. A map cannot achieve that property for any area, no matter how
small. It can, however, achieve constant scale along specific lines.

Some possible properties are:

32
  The scale depends on location, but not on direction. This is equivalent to
preservation of angles, the defining characteristic of a conformal map.
 Scale is constant along any parallel in the direction of the parallel. This applies for
any cylindrical or pseudocylindrical projection in normal aspect.
 Combination of the above: the scale depends on latitude only, not on longitude or
direction. This applies for the Mercator projection in normal aspect.
 Scale is constant along all straight lines radiating from two particular geographic
locations. This is the defining characteristic an equidistant projection, such as the
Azimuthal equidistant projection or the Equirectangular projection.

Data transfer or convert to kml/kmz file

Google map check and adjustment

 Change the arcGIS shape file by using arcTool box

 From layer to kml

 Grag the layer form contents to name of the box

 Give the name for file

 Set the scale as 1000 or 1

 Ok

We can use the kml file to verify the map point, lines by opening google earth

Sample plot designing using Arc GIS 10 and adjustment

ID and co-ordinate creation for Sample points

 We can use hathw,s tools as extension or fishnet from the arc GIS to create points
and grids

Blocking of forest and adjust of points and lines

 Select the map layer

 Go to editing mode

33
 Select the layer on editing box

 Use cut polygon tools for blocking the area

34