This is the first of a four-part series of papers which proposes a general framework for error analysis in measurement-based geographical information systems (MBGIS). The purpose of the series is to investigate the fundamental issues involved in measurement error (ME) analysis in MBGIS, and to provide a unified and effective treatment of errors and their propagation in various interrelated GIS and spatial operations. Part 1 deals with the formulation of the basic ME model together with the law of error propagation. Part 2 investigates the classic point-in-polygon problem under ME. Continuing to Part 3 is the analysis of ME in intersections and polygon overlays. In Part 4, error analyses in length and area measurements are made. In this present part, a simple but general model for ME in MBGIS is introduced. An approximate law of error propagation is then formulated. A simple, unified, and effective treatment of error bands for a line segment is made under the name of “covariance-based error band”. A new concept, called “maximal allowable limit”, which guarantees invariance in topology or geometric-property of a polygon under ME is also advanced. To handle errors in indirect measurements, a geodetic model for MBGIS is proposed and its error propagation problem is studied on the basis of the basic ME model as well as the approximate law of error propagation. Simulation experiments all substantiate the effectiveness of the proposed theoretical construct.

Authors and Affiliations

1. Department of Geography and Resource Management, Center for Environmental Policy and Resource Management, and Joint Laboratory for Geoinformation Science, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

   Yee Leung

2. Department of Mathematics and Information Science, Chang’an University, Xi’an, P.R. China

   Jiang-Hong Ma

3. Department of Geography, University of California, Santa Barbara, California, USA

   Michael F. Goodchild

Corresponding author

Correspondence toYee Leung.

This project was supported by the earmarked grant CUHK 4362/00H of the Hong Kong Research grants Council.

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