Modeling Error in Geographic Information Systems

Geographic information systems (GISs) are a highly influential tool in today's society, and are used in a growing number of applications, including planning, engineering, land management,and environmental study. As the field of GISs continues to expand, it is very important to observe and account for the error that is unavoidable in computerized maps. Currently, both statistical and non-statistical models are available to do so, although there is very little implementation of these methods.

In this dissertation, I have focused on improving the methods available for analyzing error in GIS vector data. In particular, I am incorporating Bayesian methodology into the currently popular G-band error model through the inclusion of a prior distribution on point locations. This has the advantage of working well with a small number of points, and being able to synthesize information from multiple sources. I have also calculated the boundary of the confidence region explicitly, which has not been done before, and this will aid in the eventual inclusion of these methods in GIS software. Finally, I have included a statistical point deletion algorithm, designed for use in situations where map precision has surpassed map accuracy. It is very similar to the Douglas-Peucker algorithm, and can be used in a general line simplification situation, but has the advantage that it works with the error information that is already known about a map rather than adding unknown error. These contributions will make it more realistic for GIS users to implement techniques for error analysis.