Method for lexical identification of a geographical area

Description

[0001] METHOD OF VERBAL IDENTIFICATION OF A GEOGRAPHICAL AREA

[0002] AREA OF TECHNOLOGY

[0003] The present technical solution relates to the field of processing digital geographic map data, in particular to a method for verbal identification of a geographic area.

[0004] LEVEL OF TECHNOLOGY

[0005] Modern mapping services provide users with extensive opportunities for determining location, building routes, and also obtaining information about a specific geographic object, such as the name, address, and description containing additional information about the object.

[0006] However, there are cases where the above-mentioned capabilities are insufficient, for example, when it is necessary to specify or identify a geographic object that does not have an address (a building under construction, a building or element of a structure that initially does not have an address, an intersection of roads, paths, sidewalks), individual parts of a large geographic object that have one name or address (entrances or driveways of a building, a forest area / park, a section of a highway, individual sections of parks, forest areas, rivers, lakes, seas, reservoirs, as well as their coastal areas), as well as geographic objects that have the same addresses or names (duplicate streets in populated areas). Such cases lead to the fact that the user cannot specify more precisely the final meeting place, arrival, end of the route, his location to call emergency services (for example, in dangerous situations in parks, near reservoirs, on an extended road section).

[0007] The prior art includes information source WO 2014 / 170646, published on 23.10.2014, which discloses a method and device for identifying and reporting locations. The known invention is as follows: the Earth's surface is divided into identical square cells measuring 3 meters by 3 meters, and each such cell is assigned a combination of three commonly used colloquial words from one language.The disadvantages of the mentioned known solution are that: the identification phrase is formed from an arbitrary set of words, which is not tied to the names of the addressed geographic objects (for example, two adjacent cells related to one geographic object are identified by combinations of three words that are not interconnected with each other in any way), which leads to difficulties in memorization and further use; the constant small size of the cells of 3 by 3 meters is redundant and unnecessarily small for the area inside geographic objects, for which such high spatial accuracy is not required - fields, forests, rivers, oceans, highways.

[0008] The proposed solution differs from the solution known from the state of the art in that it includes the formation of a grid of square cells of different dimensions to eliminate excessive detail when identifying an area within a homogeneous large geographic object, as well as to increase detail when identifying smaller geographic objects, in particular, in an urban environment; and the use of the names of the addressed geographic object (name of the country, city, district, house address, name of a park, body of water, section of the road network) in the identification phrases of each cell.

[0009] ESSENCE OF THE INVENTION

[0010] The technical problem that the declared technical solution is aimed at solving is the need to assign a verbal name (address) to the following geographic objects:

[0011] 1) individual elements of structures, for example, the entrance to a building in an apartment or office building, a corner of a building, an exit from a metro station, a public transport stop, etc.

[0012] 2) any geographic object that does not have an address - a new private house or building that has not yet been assigned an address, small residential or non-residential buildings, etc.

[0013] 3) any geographical area, including a place in a park, a place in a forest, in a field, in the sea for meeting people, holding events, calling rescuers.

[0014] The technical result achieved by solving the above technical problem is an increase in the accuracy of addressing for smaller elements of geographic objects or geographic areas, as well as buildings that do not have an address, due to the formation of a grid of square cells of different sizes with a unique verbal identification of each cell and a link to the name of the geographic object.

[0015] According to one embodiment of the invention, a computer-implemented method for identifying a geographic area is proposed. According to the proposed method, by means of software executed on a server, the following is performed: creating a layer of a digital geographic map in the form of a grid of square cells of a basic size using a geocentric coordinate system; iteratively dividing each of the square cells containing at least a portion of a geographic object into four equal square cells based on the type of geographic object;and assigning to each solid square cell that makes up the grid of the digital geographic map layer after completion of the iterative division at least one word that is a geographic name of at least one geographic feature, at least a part of which is contained in the square cell, and one word from a set of frequently used colloquial words, wherein the at least one word that is a geographic name and one word from the set of frequently used colloquial words assigned to each solid square cell form a unique identification phrase with respect to all identification phrases assigned to the remaining solid square cells.

[0016] In a particular embodiment of the proposed method, a specific type of geographic object includes one of a country within administrative boundaries, a region of a country within administrative boundaries, a populated area within administrative boundaries, a district of a populated area within administrative boundaries or a building, a nature reserve, a forest park, a park, a section of a road network, a body of water or a “point of interest”.

[0017] In a particular embodiment, the proposed method further comprises adding to the identification phrase at least one more word, which is a geographical name of at least a second geographical object, at least a part of which is contained in the square cell, when duplication of the identification phrase occurs, caused by exhaustion of the set of frequently used colloquial words. In a particular embodiment, the proposed method further comprises adding to the identification phrase at least one more word, which is a colloquial word, when using in the identification phrase geographical names of all geographical objects, at least a part of each of which is contained in the square cell, when duplication of the identification phrase occurs, caused by exhaustion of the set of frequently used colloquial words.

[0018] In a particular embodiment of the proposed method, the number of iterations when dividing a square cell containing at least part of a geographic object is counted from the division of square cells of the base size and is determined by the type of geographic object.

[0019] In a particular embodiment of the proposed method, the geographic name contains at least one of: the name of a country, the name of a region, the name of a region, the name of a city, the name of a district in a city, the name of a street and house number, the name of a nature reserve, the name of a forest park, the name of a park, the name of a section of a road network, the name of a water body, or the name of a “point of interest”.

[0020] In a particular embodiment of the proposed method, the base size corresponds to 182, 160, 128, 96, 80, 64, 48 or 32 meters of the earth's surface.

[0021] In a particular embodiment, the proposed method additionally comprises receiving user input containing an indication of a square cell that must be further divided into four equal square cells, and / or an indication to add an additional word from a set of frequently used colloquial words or a word suggested by the user to the identification phrase to form a new unique identification phrase.

[0022] In a particular embodiment, the proposed method additionally comprises receiving user input containing an instruction to replace in the identification phrase a word that is a geographical name and / or a word from a set of frequently used colloquial words with another word from a set of frequently used colloquial words or a word suggested by the user, in order to form a new unique identification phrase. DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0023] The implementation of the invention will be described further in accordance with the attached drawing, which is presented to explain the essence of the invention and in no way limits the scope of the invention. The following drawing is attached to the application:

[0024] Fig. 1 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of constructing a grid of square cells of different sizes according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0025] DESCRIPTION OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE INVENTION

[0026] In the following detailed description of the embodiment of the invention, numerous implementation details are set forth in order to provide a clear understanding of the present invention. However, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art how the present invention may be used with or without these implementation details. In other instances, well-known methods, procedures, and components have not been described in detail in order not to unnecessarily obscure the features of the present invention.

[0027] In addition, it will be clear from the above description that the invention is not limited to the embodiment shown. Numerous possible modifications, changes, variations and substitutions, preserving the essence and form of the present invention, will be obvious to those skilled in the art.

[0028] The proposed computer-implemented method of verbal identification of a geographic area is applied to digital geographic maps.

[0029] A digital geographic map is a digital model of an area created by digitizing cartographic sources, such as a satellite image of an area, an aerial photograph, scanning paper maps, etc.After digitization, geographic objects from the image are distributed among the corresponding layers of the digital geographic map - for example, the road network is presented as a branched graph in one layer, flat objects such as countries within administrative boundaries, regions of the country within administrative boundaries, populated areas within administrative boundaries, districts of a populated area within administrative boundaries, buildings, structures, reserves, forest parks, parks, water bodies are presented as polygons in another layer, point objects such as "points of interest" (from English, point of interest (POI)), gas stations, public transport stops, subway entrances, entrances or building entrances are presented as dots in yet another layer. A digital geographic map can contain multiple layers, each of which can contain geographic objects of the same type or nature.Each object in the corresponding layer is described by an inherent data set containing the name of the object, parameters and characteristics of the object. In addition, when forming a digital map, its layers are linked to geographic coordinates, for example, using a system such as WGS-84, so that information from one layer is correlated with information from another layer of the digital geographic map and objects from one layer can be correctly combined with objects from other layers when processing and overlaying layers to display the digital geographic map in full. Such formation of a digital map allows extracting relevant information about geographic objects from each layer based on geographic coordinates. A pair of geographic coordinates (by latitude and longitude) of a given accuracy on a digital geographic map characterizes a point that in reality corresponds to a round area on the Earth's surface of a certain radius.For example, latitude and longitude coordinates defined to six decimal places correspond to a circular area on the earth's surface with a diameter of 3 meters. Thus, by specifying a pair of geographic coordinates of a given accuracy, it is possible to extract from each layer the corresponding information about the objects covered by the corresponding circular area. Similarly, by specifying the coordinates of the vertices of an arbitrary geometric figure that forms a polygonal geometric figure, it is possible to extract from each layer of a digital map the information about the geographic objects that fall completely or partially inside this geometric figure.

[0030] In addition, the source of cartographic data can be open source OSM (Open Street Map) cartographic data.

[0031] The dataset describing each geographic feature may contain a name if the feature is a country, region or locality, or the address of the feature if the feature is a building or structure. When the geographic feature is a section of a road network, it may be a street or part of a street in a locality, a part of a road or highway, a part of a railway, and then, in addition to the name of the section itself, the dataset may contain the name of the highway to which the section belongs, the name of the street, and additional information, such as a mark on the distance in kilometers from the start.When a geographic feature is a point feature, the dataset may contain the name and description of the landmark when it is a "point of interest", the name and route numbers when it is a public transport stop, the name and opening hours when it is a gas station, the name of the station and entrance number when it is a subway entrance, the address of the building and the entrance number or the name of the store when it is an entrance to a building, etc.

[0032] Despite the abundance of information contained on geographic objects in a digital geographic map, there are cases in which such information is insufficient for the purposes of use. For example, there are point objects without names or any designations, buildings or structures without addresses, large polygonal objects designated only by name for the entire territory of the area they cover without the possibility of accessing smaller sections of such a polygonal object except by specifying a pair of geographic coordinates, geographic objects with difficult to remember names or addresses, as well as geographic objects with the same names or addresses.

[0033] To eliminate the above-mentioned and related disadvantages and inconveniences, the authors of the present invention propose the formation of an additional layer of a digital geographic map, which is a grid of uniquely identifiable square cells of different sizes, linked by geographic coordinates.

[0034] The method according to the present invention begins with the creation of a digital geographic map layer in the form of a grid of square cells of a basic size using a geocentric coordinate system. The cells of the basic size cover the entire earth's surface. In a particular embodiment of the present invention, the cells of the basic size cover a part of the earth's surface, for example, a geographic area of ​​a continent, country, region, etc. At this stage, all cells are the same. The basic size of the side of each square cell corresponds to 160, 128, 182, 80, 64, 96 or 32 meters of the earth's surface, in the preferred embodiment - 80 meters. The binding of the created layer is carried out using a geocentric coordinate system, for example, the WGS-84 system. Each solid square cell forms a polygonal object, each vertex of which has a pair of geographic coordinates.

[0035] Next, using four pairs of geographic coordinates defining a square cell polygonal object, information is extracted from other layers of the digital geographic map about geographic objects on which such square polygonal object is fully or partially superimposed. In particular, using the POLYGON function from the open source http: / / postqis.net / workshops / postgis-intro / qeometries.html, the intersection (or superposition) of a square cell polygon with geographic objects in other layers is checked, for example, polygons of regions, populated areas, parks, reserves, etc. in the layer of polygonal geographic objects, sections of roads, streets, etc. in the layer of graph geographic objects, and gas stations, public transport stops, metro entrances, building entrances or entrances, landmarks, etc. in the layer of point objects. Information is extracted from other layers with respect to each square cell of the base size.

[0036] Based on the information extracted from other layers of the digital geographic map regarding geographic features that are fully or partially included in each square cell of the base size, a decision is made on whether or not to further divide the square cell of the base size into four equal square cells.

[0037] Then, similar to the above, information is extracted from other layers of the digital geographic map regarding geographic features that fall completely or partially within each square cell formed after dividing the square cells of the base size. This process (also called squaring) of dividing the square cells into four identical square cells is carried out iteratively until the side of each resulting square cell has a size corresponding to the type of geographic feature that falls completely or partially within such a square cell.

[0038] Below in Table 1 the sizes of square cells are given on the example of the basic size of 80 meters and the corresponding types of covered geographic objects of the digital geographic map. Table 1

[0039] It should be noted that the following values ​​can be used as the base size: 182, 160, 128, 96, 80, 64, 48 or 32 meters of the Earth's surface with a similar reduction in the size of the square cells by half during the iterative division. The choice of the preferred base size is determined by specific application options of the present invention, the needs of each individual case and / or hardware and technical capabilities. As can be understood from Table 1, the number of iterations during the division of a square cell containing at least part of a geographic object is counted from the division of the square cells of the base size and is determined by the type of the geographic object. Fig. 1 shows an exemplary final version of constructing a grid of square cells of different sizes according to one embodiment of the present invention for a separate section of a digital geographic map.

[0040] Once the construction of the square cell layer is completed,

[0041] 5 assigning to each square cell that does not contain nested smaller square cells two words to form a unique identifying phrase. The first word is the geographic name of a geographic feature that is wholly or partially contained within the square cell. The second word is the word

[0042] 10 from a set of frequently used colloquial words of one language. An example of such a unique identification phrase could be "Russia. country", "Moscow. Vladimir", "Odintsovo. book", etc.

[0043] In the context of the present invention, an identification phrase is unique when it differs from other identification phrases by at least one word included in its composition, or by the order of the words in the phrase. Thus, in the context of the present invention, identification phrases that consist of the same words, but differ in the order of the words within the identification phrases, are also unique with respect to

[0044] 20 to each other and to all other identifying phrases.

[0045] In a particular embodiment of the present invention, the following word order is fixed, in which the first word is the geographical name of the largest geographical object, the second is the geographical name of the smaller geographical object (if present in the square cell), and so on, ending with words from a set of frequently used colloquial words.

[0046] If a cell overlaps several geographic objects (e.g., a building, a district of a populated place, a populated place, a region of a country, and a country), then the first word in the identification phrase in one embodiment of the present invention is the geographic name of the largest of the geographic objects covered by the cell, e.g., the name of a country. In another embodiment of the present invention, the first word in the identification phrase is the name of a geographic object corresponding to the type of geographic object of the final division (in the example above, this would be the address of the building, i.e., the street name and the building number).

[0047] In a particular embodiment of the present invention, the selection of the geographic name used is made in the order of relevance - which geographic name most accurately characterizes the given geographic area. Such a geographic name does not necessarily have to be the name of the largest geographic object (for example, a country) - it can be, for example, the name of a park / city. Further, if this same geographic name is already used in the names of other areas - then either the geographic name of a larger polygon or a smaller one will be added, or another word from the set of frequently used colloquial words can be added. The order of relevance that most accurately characterizes the geographic area, in particular embodiments of the implementation can be based on third-party sources or reference books that determine the greatest recognition and use of the geographic name.Also, formulas in which the frequency of use is divided by the area of ​​the geographic area polygon can be used to determine the order of relevance, or information about the resident population can be used instead of the frequency of use.

[0048] In a particular embodiment of the present invention, the use of corrected geographical names is envisaged for brevity and recognition - since official names can often be rarely used in everyday life or be too long. For example, instead of "Pereslavl-Zalessky" - "Pereslavl".

[0049] In a particular embodiment of the present invention, the use of an additional word of a geographical name to improve the recognition of the address is also provided. As an example - few people know where the city "Bugulma" is located, for the recognition of the address it can be supplemented with the name of the republic "Tatarstan. Bugulma".

[0050] In case of exhaustion of the set of frequently used colloquial words for forming unique identification phrases together with one geographic name for square cells, which remains without identification, the identification phrase will be formed with the addition of the name of the second geographic object covered by the cell. For example, a square cell is superimposed on a district in a city, then the identification phrase of such a cell can take the form "name of the city." "name of the district." "frequently used colloquial word." Similarly, a third word can be added to the identification phrase, which is the name of the third geographic object covered by the cell.

[0051] In the event that the set of frequently used colloquial words for forming unique identification phrases together with one or more geographical names for square cells that remain unidentified is exhausted, and it is impossible to add an additional geographical name, the identification phrase will be formed by adding one more colloquial word from the set of frequently used colloquial words of one language.

[0052] In one embodiment, the maximum number of words in the identification phrase is 5 words.

[0053] Thus, upon completion of the method of verbal identification of a geographic area, a layer of a digital geographic map is formed in the form of a grid consisting of square cells of different sizes, each of which is assigned a unique identification phrase. As can be seen, according to the present invention, small geographic objects are covered by small-sized cells, and large ones - by a sufficient number of square cells to ensure the necessary detailing of geographic objects, and the uniqueness of the identification phrases ensures unambiguous reference to each cell and thereby identification of any geographic area.

[0054] In one additional embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to adjust the created layer of a digital geographic map, made in the form of a grid containing square cells of different sizes with a unique verbal identification of each cell and a link to the name of a geographic object, by receiving user input containing an indication of a square cell that must be further divided into four equal square cells, and / or an indication to add an additional word from a set of frequently used colloquial words or a word suggested by the user to the identification phrase to form a new unique identification phrase, and / or an indication to replace in the identification phrase a word that is a geographic name and / or a word from a set of frequently used colloquial words with another word from a set of frequently used colloquial words or a word suggested by the user,to form a new unique identification phrase. This feature allows users to personalize the use of the digital geographic map layer created according to the present invention to their needs. Thus, the user can designate a part of the building of interest, for example, the entrance to a store, indicate a meeting place in a park, on the beach, etc. In an additional embodiment, such a feature can be temporary, i.e. valid for a fixed period of time.

[0055] The set of frequently used colloquial words can represent the basic vocabulary of the Russian language, which includes a variety of words covering various areas of life and communication. This vocabulary consists of words that are widely used in everyday speech, as well as in texts of various types - from colloquial to scientific. It includes words denoting basic concepts, objects, actions, adjectives, pronouns, etc.

[0056] The proposed computer-implemented method of verbal identification of a geographic area is implemented on a server. In a particular embodiment of the present invention, when the user enters information, a user device is used.

[0057] A server in the context of the present invention is an electronic computing device for processing and storing data on which software is installed and operates and which is designed with the ability to exchange data with other electronic computing devices via a data transmission network.

[0058] A digital geographic map can be stored either on a server with executable software or on a separate storage server.

[0059] The server software can provide access to a digital geographic map containing a layer created according to the present invention to remote computing devices, such as other servers or user computing devices, via a data transmission network and a registration and access control system.

[0060] A user computing device is any known electronic computing device, including a user electronic device, a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a portable computer, a desktop computer, etc., designed with the ability to execute user applications, as well as communicate via a data transmission network with a server.

[0061] An application in the context of the present invention is software executed on a user computing device. The software is a set of instructions that are stored in the memory of the computing device and executed by the processor of the computing device. The results of the software operation are displayed to the user via a graphical interface on a display device contained in the user computing device. The graphical interface is a means of interaction with the user.

[0062] Access to a digital geographic map containing a layer created according to the present invention, through a registration and access control system operating on a server, can be carried out from a user computing device by means of a specialized application, or through a web browser.

[0063] The application may be implemented based on a microservice architecture, in which microservices are software modules that perform one or more related functions and interact with each other, as well as with other external applications and / or software, through an Application Programming Interface (API).

[0064] In addition, the application may be configured to receive user input containing an indication of a square cell that must be further divided into four equal square cells, and / or an indication to add an additional word from a set of frequently used colloquial words to the identification phrase to form a new unique identification phrase, and to send the received user input to a server with a digital geographic map containing a layer created according to the present invention.

[0065] A computing device that provides data processing necessary for implementing the claimed solution generally contains components such as: one or more processors, at least one memory, a data storage means, input / output interfaces, an input means, and network interaction means.

[0066] When executing machine-readable commands contained in the RAM, the processor of the device is configured to perform the basic computing operations necessary for the functioning of the device or the functionality of one or more of its components.

[0067] Memory is usually implemented as RAM, where the necessary program logic is loaded, providing the required functionality. When implementing the proposed solution, the memory volume required to implement the proposed solution is allocated.

[0068] The data storage facility can be implemented as an HDD, SSD disks, RAID array, network storage, flash memory, etc. The facility allows for long-term storage of various types of information, such as the above-mentioned files with user data sets, databases containing records of time intervals measured for each user, user identifiers, etc.

[0069] Interfaces are standard means for connecting and operating peripheral and other devices, such as USB, RS232, RJ45, COM, HDMI, PS / 2, Lightning, etc.

[0070] The choice of interfaces depends on the specific design of the device, which can be a personal computer, mainframe, server cluster, thin client, smartphone, laptop, etc.

[0071] A keyboard may be used as a means of data input in any embodiment of the system implementing the described method. The keyboard hardware may be any known one: it may be either a built-in keyboard used on a laptop or netbook, or a separate device connected to a desktop computer, server or other computer device. The connection may be either wired, in which the keyboard connecting cable is connected to a PS / 2 or USB port located on the desktop computer system unit, or wireless, in which the keyboard exchanges data via a wireless communication channel, for example, a radio channel, with a base station, which, in turn, is directly connected to the system unit, for example, to one of the USB ports.In addition to the keyboard, the following may also be used as input means: joystick, display (touch display), projector, touchpad, mouse, trackball, light pen, speakers, microphone, etc.

[0072] Network interaction means are selected from a device that provides network reception and transmission of data, for example, an Ethernet card, WLAN / Wi-Fi module, Bluetooth module, BLE module, NFC module, IrDa, RFID module, GSM modem, etc. The means ensure the organization of data exchange via a wired or wireless data transmission channel, for example, WAN, PAN, LAN, Intranet, Internet, WLAN, WMAN or GSM.

[0073] The components of the device are connected via a common data transmission bus.

[0074] The present application materials present a preferred disclosure of the implementation of the claimed technical solution, which should not be used as limiting other, particular embodiments of its implementation that do not go beyond the scope of the requested scope of legal protection and are obvious to specialists in the relevant field of technology.

Claims

CLAUSES OF THE INVENTION 1. A computer-implemented method for identifying a geographic area, comprising the steps of: - create a digital geographic map layer in the form of a grid of square cells of a basic size using a geocentric coordinate system; - iteratively dividing each of the square cells containing at least a portion of a geographic feature into four equal square cells based on the type of geographic feature; and - assign to each solid square cell that makes up the grid of the digital geographic map layer after completion of the iterative division, at least one word that is a geographic name of at least one geographic object, at least a part of which is contained in the square cell, and one word from a set of frequently used colloquial words, wherein at least one word that is a geographic name and one word from a set of frequently used colloquial words assigned to each solid square cell form a unique identification phrase in relation to all identification phrases assigned to the remaining solid square cells.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the specific type of geographic feature includes one of a country within administrative boundaries, a region of a country within administrative boundaries, a populated area within administrative boundaries, a district of a populated area within administrative boundaries or a building, a nature reserve, a forest park, a park, a section of a road network, a body of water, or a “point of interest.” 3. The method according to claim 1, in which at least one more word is additionally added to the identification phrase, which is the geographical name of at least a second geographical object, at least part of which is contained in the square cell, when duplication of the identification phrase occurs due to the exhaustion of the set of frequently used colloquial words.

4. The method according to paragraph 3, in which at least one more word, which is a colloquial word, is additionally added to the identification phrase, when using in the identification phrase the geographical names of all geographical objects, according to at least a part of each of which is contained in a square cell, when duplication of the identification phrase occurs due to the exhaustion of the set of frequently used colloquial words.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the number of iterations in dividing a square cell containing at least part of a geographic object is counted from the division of square cells of a base size and is determined by the type of geographic object.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the geographical name comprises at least one of: the name of a country, the name of a region, the name of a region, the name of a city, the name of a district in a city, the name of a street and house number, the name of a nature reserve, the name of a forest park, the name of a park, the name of a section of a road network, the name of a body of water, or the name of a “point of interest”.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the base dimension corresponds to 182, 160, 128, 96, 80, 64, 48 or 32 meters of the earth's surface.

8. The method according to claim 1, 3 or 4, which further comprises receiving user input containing an indication of a square cell that must be further divided into four equal square cells, and / or an indication to add to the identification phrase an additional word from a set of frequently used colloquial words or a word suggested by the user, to form a new unique identification phrase.

9. The method according to claim 1, 3 or 4, which further comprises receiving user input containing an instruction to replace in the identification phrase a word that is a geographical name and / or a word from a set of frequently used colloquial words with another word from a set of frequently used colloquial words or a word suggested by the user, in order to form a new unique identification phrase.

Images