Sylvie Daniel

geoSmartCity: geomatics contribution to the smart city

Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) revolutionize the ways different urban actors communicate and interact. Geographic information technologies are of key importance too for the deployment and implementation of ICTs in the Smart City, because of the central role they may play as decision-making support tools. Indeed, they give quick access to different layers of information that may be combined and integrated to facilitate analysis of a situation and make the best decisions. However, such a central role is rarely acknowledged. In this paper, we will tackle the transversal involvement of geomatics in a Smart City. We propose also to define the extent of the concept of Smart Cities and some of the distinctive features that it should display to support its sustainability.

Progress and New Trends in 3D Geoinformation Sciences

The integration of the 3rd dimension in the production of spatial representation is largely recognized as a valuable approach to comprehend our reality, that is 3D. During the last decade developments in 3D Geoinformation (GI) system have made substantial progress. We are about to have a more complete spatial model and understanding of our planet in different scales. Hence, various communities and cities offer 3D landscape and 3D city models as valuable source and instrument for sustainable management of rural and urban resources. Also municipal utilities, real estate companies benefit from recent developments related to 3D applications. In order to present recent developments and to discuss future trends, academics and practitioners met at the 7th International Workshop on 3D Geoinformation. This book comprises a selection of evaluated, high quality papers that were presented at this workshop in May 2012. The topics focus explicitly on the last achievements (methods, algorithms, models, systems) with respect to 3D GeoInformation requirements. The book is aimed at decision makers and experts as well at students interested in the 3D component of geographical information science including GI engineers, computer scientists, photogrammetrists, land surveyors, urban planners, and mapping specialists.

The Application of Smartphone Technology to Economic and Environmental Analysis of Building Energy Conservation Strategies

This paper investigates the use of smartphone technology as a tool to implement building energy audit programmes to increase energy conservation measure (ECM) uptake and concomitant environmental and economic benefits. The smartphone audit analysed provides an energy audit platform with: (i) quasi-real time analysis, (ii) continuous user engagement, (iii) geospatial customization, (iv) additional ECMs, (v) ECM ranking and user education, and (vi) the ability to constantly evolve. A case study of 157,000 homes in Southeastern Ontario shows that 55 years is needed to complete energy audits for all dwellings in the region following a traditional energy audit model. However, the results of the smartphone-based audit programme accelerates this in both terms of audits completed and cumulative carbon dioxide savings over a sensitivity range of audit effectiveness. It is concluded that an advanced and expanded home energy auditing programme that uses smartphone technology could provide significant economic and environmental benefits.

Geomatics and Smart City: A transversal contribution to the Smart City development

Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) revolutionize the ways different urban actors communicate and interact. Geographic information technologies are of key importance too for the deployment and implementation of ICTs in the Smart City, because of the central role they may play as decision-making support tools. Indeed, they give quick access to different layers of information that may be combined and integrated to facilitate analysis of a situation and make the best decisions. However, such a central role is rarely acknowledged. In this paper, we propose to define the extent of the concept of Smart Cities and some of the distinctive features that it should display to support its sustainability. We will then propose an overview of the current and forthcoming developments in the geospatial domain to illustrate the opportunities that may arise for Smart City initiatives. The paper will also discuss the issues and challenges that need to be addressed when considering these emerging geomatics-driven solutions in the context of Smart City.

Advanced interferometric techniques for high resolution bathymetry

Current high-resolution side scan and multibeam sonars produce very large data sets. However, conventional interferometry-based bathymetry algorithms underestimate the potential information of such soundings, generally because they use small baselines to avoid phase ambiguity. Moreover, these algorithms limit the triangulation capabilities of multibeam echosounders to the detection of one sample per beam, i.e., the zero-phase instant. In this paper we argue that the correlation between signals plays a very important role in the exploration of a remotely observed scene. In the case of multibeam sonars, capabilities can be improved by using the interferometric signal as a continuous quantity. This allows consideration of many more useful soundings per beam and enriches understanding of the environment. To this end, continuous interferometry detection is compared here, from a statistical perspective, first with conventional interferometry-based algorithms and then with high-resolution methods, such as the Multiple Signal Classification (MUSIC) algorithm. We demonstrate that a well-designed interferometry algorithm based on a coherence error model and an optimal array configuration permits a reduction in the number of beam formings (and therefore the computational cost) and an improvement in target detection (such as ship mooring cables or masts). A possible interferometry processing algorithm based on the complex correlation between received signals is tested on both sidescan sonars and multibeam echosounders and shows promising results for detection of small in-water targets.

Underwater environment restitution through sonar images and swath bathymetry rendering

Accurately simulating sonar images and swath bathymetry profiles enables to render the reality of the underwater environment. This approach is strongly motivated by the operational constraints for data acquisition. Such a tool is especially attractive for tuning algorithms (i.e. detection and classification ones) according to sensors settings and sea-bottom nature and relief. Therefore, we developed such a simulator relying on acoustical ray tracing techniques tailored for considering specific underwater propagation properties (multi-path sound propagation, sound velocity profiles, adaptive ray oversampling to modelize acoustic lobe configuration). It aims at rendering data similar to what real sensors provide in a natural contest. In the proposed approach, the virtual environment gathers both static and dynamic behaviours, namely simulator inputs may be a priori known or updated all along time. Sea-ground truth is provided by either a real elevation map or fractal simulation allowing a fine macro-relief description (flat, rocky patch, rippled sea-bottom). In addition, micro-relief is modelled through sea-bed textures resulting from adequate spatial layouts of ground resolution cells. Sets of natural or manufactured bottom-laying items may be introduced using mesh descriptions (ship wreck, ...) or structured geometric primitives (anchors, pipelines...). Furthermore, the material of the previous inputs tunes their acoustic response. Taking into account carrier trajectory and attitude along time warrants multi-sensor realistic outputs. A great interest of our parallel and modular implementation is an easier incorporation in a more global rendering system. However, its interface proposes real time visualisation of the acquired environment through windows showing current sonar images, swath bathymetry, vehicle attitude and trajectory. Given this flexibility, a promising 3D sea-bottom and objects reconstruction method already benefit from this simulator virtual reality.

3D Modeling for Mobile Augmented Reality in Unprepared Environment

The emergence of powerful mobile smartphones, with embedded components (camera, GPS, accelerometers, digital compass), triggered a lot of interest in the mobile augmented reality (AR) community and new AR applications relying on these devices are beginning to reach the general public. In order to achieve a rich augmentation in terms of immersion and interactions, these mobile AR applications generally require a 3D model of the real environment to provide accurate positioning or to manage occlusions. However, the availability of these 3D models based on real spatial data is limited, restraining the capacity of these applications to be used anywhere, anytime. To overcome such limits, we developed a framework dedicated to the fast and easy production of 3D models. The proposed solution has been designed for the specific context of mobile augmented reality applications in unprepared environment and tested on iPhone.

Design and Implementation of Mobile Educational Games: Networks for Innovation

Research networks foster creativity and break down institutional barriers, but introduce geographic barriers to communication and collaboration. In designing mobile educational games, our distributed team took advantage of diverse talent pools and differing perspectives to drive forward a core vision of our design targets. Our strategies included intense design workshops, use of online meeting rooms, group paper and software prototyping, and dissemination of prototypes to other teams for refinement and repurposing. Our group showed strong activity at the university-centered nodes with periods of highly effective dissemination between these nodes and to outside groups; we used workshop invitations to gather new ideas and perspectives, to refine the core vision, to forge inter-project links, and to stay current on what was happening in other networks. Important aspects of our final deliverables came from looselyassociated network members who engaged via collaborative design exercises in workshops, emphasizing the need to bring the network together and the importance of outside influences as ideas evolve. Our final deliverable, a mobile educational game and a series of parallel technology demonstrations, reflect the mix of influences and the focus on iterated development that our network maintained.

Airborne multi-spectral images registration through genetic algorithm

The proposed paper deals with images registration through airborne images mosaicking, in the context of environmental monitoring. The matching problem consists, here, in determining the transfer parameters required to partially map one multi spectral image to the adjacent images of the flight lines. The purpose is to build a seamless representation of the regions flown over by the aircraft. However, given the unsteadiness of the airborne platform, a single affine transformation cannot cope with the acquisition distortions and cannot yield to a seamless mosaic. Thus, the principle of the developed approach relies on a field of transformations rather than on a single transformation. Genetic agents are introduced to carry out the local matching transformations. The approach, even if it involves a sequential programming, proved to be efficient from the computational time point of view.

Designing Enhanced Learning Environments in Physics: An Interdisciplinary Collaborative Approach Producing an Instrument for School Success

Parallel, an innovative teaching and learning tool, was designed by a multidisciplinary team gathering together university and college professors, post-graduate students, teachers, as well as young adults and college students. The creation of Parallel, made possible fruitful collaboration between students, teachers and researchers. The collaborative experience was part of an effort to understand how a serious game on a mobile platform using augmented reality could be exploited in a formal educational context to overcome the difficulties encountered by physic’s college students. Up to now, 60 % of these students have been failing the course as they are being taught the laws of electromagnetism. As Lave, points out, “too often, school lessons are fraught with difficulty and failure more many students” (Lave, Anthropol Educ Q 16:171–176, 1985, p. 174). We will discuss how we arrive at the conclusion that Parallel can act as a potential instrument for student’s mastery of their own relationships with society and allow them to reinvest their learning with youth and the elderly. Although the empirical study we are presenting pinpoints a specific aspect of physic’s learning, it opens new horizons for cross-generational and age-oriented digital game-based learning from childhood to older adulthood.