Advanced techniques for the management of geological mapping

Abstract

This research is deemed of importance in the solution of one of the main complex problems in geological map production, the transfer from the 1:25.000 geologic data base, that has a resolution corresponding to that at which data are gathered in the field, to the printing of 1:50.000 geological maps. The problems relate mainly to the greater detail of information contained in the database and the smaller printing scale. They can be classified into the design of a geological database scheme that allows the generalization process based on the rules relating the geological objects to one another, symbol overcrowding, and symbol overlapping. The challenge is to specify and implement a digital version of the decision rules used by geologists and cartographers to generate the final map. Often in practice these rules tend to be highly ambiguous, subjective, and inadequate in view of the modern need of automated generalization of geological information for land-use planning. The proposed system is based on the application of conventional and artificial intelligence computer techniques to the production of digital geological cartography, from the gathering of geologic data in the field to some printed product of wide usability. The objectives can be summarised as follows: 1 A support system for the iterative identification and characterization of geological objects based on an ad hoc geological and stratigraphic dictionary; 2 The identification and implementation of a hierarchical geological database schema for the automated reclassification or generalization of a geological database; 3 A hierarchical expert system for the automated revision and multiple representation of a geological database in view of new interpretation criteria of the geological information or for the production of maps on demand; 4 A system for avoiding symbol overcrowding or overlapping during the production of a geological map, which identifies the geological rules interacting between the geological objects represented in a map.