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1.2 General Introduction and Background
An overview of the work of this study can be found in the executive summary;
this section is intended to provide background information and explain some of
the terms used. The study was written with the intention of making it easy for
someone to access the part of the study relevant to them and then make use of any
techniques identified. For example, if your intention is to identify the percentage
of bog in your region of interest; read the sampling section on bog, followed by
the testing and then read how to apply the algorithm (chapter 2).
I think it might be helpful if I first explained my interest and motivation for this
work. For the past decade I have been involved in the photogrammetric capture of
the vector data used in this study and know that this type of surveying is difficult
and can be extremely tedious, but I believe it does present a template for
automatic capture of additional data from aerial imagery. A brief description of
the nature of this surveying can be found at the end of this section. I believe that it
should be possible with a robust key of spectral data for known polygons (parcel
of surface area enclosed by controlled boundaries such as walls/ fences/ roads etc.)
to automatically search the data for specific values. In other words someone with
little knowledge of mapping or software could select a region of interest and
search for a particular value from either a selection from the imagery or
coordinates imported form a portable GPS device. This could take the form of a
standalone application or through various freely available software packages. This
study focuses on the use of open source software but suggests areas where a
specialized tool could be developed. In general terms, a search of aerial imagery
requires specialized tools and knowledge to access the information contained in
the data (such as the spread of crop disease, level of impermeable surface area etc.)
and can be a time consuming process. This study is an attempt to automate that
kind of search using small area polygons; something which is unique in its
approach.
The study itself involves a mixture of computer science and mapping. As more
and more of the surface of the earth becomes digitally captured and analyzed,
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