3D geo-database research: Retrospective and future directions

3D geo-database research is a promising field to support challenging applications such as 3D urban planning, environmental monitoring, infrastructure management, and early warning or disaster management and response. In these fields, interdisciplinary research in GIScience and related fields is needed to support the modelling, analysis, management, and integration of large geo-referenced data sets, which describe human activities and geophysical phenomena. Geo-databases may serve as platforms to integrate 2D maps, 3D geo-scientific models, and other geo-referenced data. However, current geo-databases do not provide sufficient 3D data modelling and data handling techniques. New 3D geo-databases are needed to handle surface and volume models. This article first presents a 25-year retrospective of geo-database research. Data modelling, standards, and indexing of geo-data are discussed in detail. New directions for the development of 3D geo-databases to open new fields for interdisciplinary research are addressed. Two scenarios in the fields of early warning and emergency response demonstrate the combined management of human and geophysical phenomena. The article concludes with a critical outlook on open research problems. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.