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Generating Fuzzy Regions from Conflicting Spatial Information

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Methods for Handling Imperfect Spatial Information

Part of the book series: Studies in Fuzziness and Soft Computing ((STUDFUZZ,volume 256))

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Abstract

Applications such as geographic information retrieval need to deal with spatial information of a very diverse nature, typically involving a mixture of qualitative spatial relations and quantitative geographic constraints. Since existing approaches to spatial reasoning cannot easily be adapted to such a setting, we argue for a more direct approach, in which available information is viewed as constraints on possible representations of spatial regions, and we propose a specific implementation based on genetic algorithms. In the second part of this chapter, we turn our attention to the problem of inconsistencies. As no complete procedures for consistency checking are available, in general, instead of trying to repair the given knowledge base, we try to find representations of regions that satisfy available information to the best extent possible. To avoid arbitrary decisions, and to obtain solutions that emphasize, rather than ignore, the conflicting nature of different views, we advocate the use of fuzzy sets to represent regions. Finally, the results of a number of experiments are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the overall approach.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Applied Mathematics and Computer Science, Ghent University, Krijgslaan 281, 9000, Gent, Belgium

    Steven Schockaert

  2. School of Computer Science, Cardiff University, 5 The Parade, Roath, Cardiff, UK

    Philip D. Smart

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  1. Steven Schockaert
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  2. Philip D. Smart
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. IGM Université Paris Est, Champs-sur-Marne, France

    Robert Jeansoulin

  2. LSIS UMR CNRS, Marseille, France

    Odile Papini

  3. Université Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France

    Henri Prade

  4. Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium

    Steven Schockaert

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Schockaert, S., Smart, P.D. (2010). Generating Fuzzy Regions from Conflicting Spatial Information. In: Jeansoulin, R., Papini, O., Prade, H., Schockaert, S. (eds) Methods for Handling Imperfect Spatial Information. Studies in Fuzziness and Soft Computing, vol 256. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-14755-5_9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-14755-5_9

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-14754-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-14755-5

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