Varun Singh

Integrated visualization of distributed spatial databases An open source Web-GIS approach

With the development of Internet GIS also known as Web-GIS, there has been an increase in the development of various information systems dealing with geospatial data. Open source softwares being cost effective, reliable and flexible is becoming a preferred technology by researchers and academicians. Presently the integration of geospatial data scattered around various organization which refers to a common geographical space is becoming a challenge. In this paper an architecture is defined and implemented using open source Web-GIS tools like GeoServer, PostGIS and OpenLayers for integrated visualization of geospatial data present in various spatial databases located in different geographic locations.

Web-Based Advanced Traveler Information System for Developing Countries

Advanced traveler information systems (ATISs) are continuously becoming key intelligent transportation system for disseminating valuable traveler information such as traffic, incident, and transit information. Developed countries such as the United States, Canada, Japan, U.K., Australia, and Germany have adopted ATIS expeditiously in comparison to developing countries that face considerable financial and framework constraints. Moreover, local traffic, roadway, signalization, demographic, topological, and social conditions in developing countries are quite different from those in developed countries. In this paper, a comprehensive framework comprising of system architecture, development methodology, and salient features of a developed ATIS for metropolitan cities in developing countries has been discussed. Development of proposed system is based on integration of two well-known information technologies, viz., geographic information systems and World Wide Web. Combination of these technologies can be used to develop an integrated ATIS that targets different types of travelers such as private vehicle owners, transit users, and casual outside visitors.

Formalization of Entities for Agent Based Simulation Using Situation Calculus: A Specific Case Study of Fire Emergency Response

The current research presents a predicate logic based framework for formalizing various entities participating in Agent based Simulations. In the proposed technique the properties and actions of basic entities of Agent based Simulation (ABS) are represented using the axioms of Situation Calculus theory. The proposed framework has been used for the formalization of Agent based Simulation of Fire Emergency Response, and subsequently checked using SWI PROLOG SHELL.

Analyzing and Modeling Spatial Factors for Pre-decided Route Selection Behavior: A Case Study of Fire Emergency Vehicles of Allahabad City

Developing countries like India seriously lack computing infrastructure for evaluating the performance of emergency response services. Most of the time it is assumed that drivers take the shortest distance route to reach the incident location. In this paper a model is proposed for the pre-decided route selection behavior of Fire Emergency Vehicle drivers. The characteristics of routes selected by Fire Emergency Vehicle drivers of Allahabad City are analyzed spatially to comprehend the influence of proximity area of road segments on pre-decided route selection. A model using shortest path algorithm and spatial factors, i.e., length, width, land use of the proximity, and population density of the area are developed and compared with Shortest Distance assumption.

GIS based processing of GPS trajectories for Link Speed Determination: Applied to Link Speed profiling of Fire Emergency Vehicles

The present work elaborates an approach to process GPS Trajectory data obtained from Low Cost GPS Logger (HOLUX M1000C) to determine average link speed of specific vehicle. The raw GPS trajectories are preprocessed to remove outliers and GIS analysis tools are used for associating GPS Trajectory data to the Road Network. A tool is developed using VBA and ARCObjects for determining average link speed based on minimum coverage percentage. The process is applied to determine the average link speed of Fire Emergency Vehicles of Allahabad Civil Lines Fire Station.

Agent-based geosimulation for assessment of urban emergency response plans

The operational efficiency of an urban emergency response plan (UERP) is proportional to the magnitude of a rigorous assessment process. The core objective of the assessment process is to identify possible deficiencies, in particular, micro-deficiencies existing within the emergency plans. Most of the existing approaches rely on multi-criteria and emergency state for assessments. However, identification of micro-deficiencies requires developing a comprehensive microscopic model of the entire emergency system and simulating an emergency plan under various scenarios. Here, an assessment framework is proposed based on agent-based modeling and geosimulation and considering the urban features for general and microscopic assessment of urban emergency response plans. To enrich our claim, this framework is applied to assess the futuristic emergency infrastructure plan of upgrading overhead water tanks (OWT) to be used for recharging fire emergency vehicles in case of fire incidents to improve fire suppression time by the Fire Department of Allahabad City, an urban city of India.

A GIS and Agent-Based Model to Simulate Fire Emergency Response

In this paper a computing model for Fire Emergency Response is discussed. The Fire Emergency Response (FER) is considered here as a complex heterogeneous system. The FER system is composed of Fire Incident, Fire Station, Fire Emergency Vehicle, and Road Network components. Agent-based Modeling (ABM) is used to model the properties and behavior of each of the components. To incorporate the spatial properties and spatial operations in relation to modeling the behavior of components Geographical Information System (GIS) is used. The simulation of the model will provide the results of dynamical behavior of components through interaction with other components. The FER system model is implemented in GAMA 1.5.1 a GIS and agent modeling platform for simulation.

Formalization and Development of Logic Based Emergency Response Systems Using Situation Calculus

The current research presents a possible way of incorporating intelligence into emergency response systems. The paper provides formalization and verification of emergency activities using Situation Calculus and Prolog. Here some basic macro actions are taken for formalization but well researched micro actions are preferred for more accurately imparting intelligence into the emergency response systems. The integration of GIS and logical system for emergency response is proposed and justified.