Partial polygon pruning of hydrographic features in automated generalization
This paper demonstrates a working method to automatically detect and prune portions of waterbody polygons to support creation of a multi-scale hydrographic database. Water features are known to be sensitive to scale change; and thus multiple representations are required to maintain visual and geographic logic at smaller scales. Partial pruning of polygonal features—such as long and sinuous reservoir arms, stream channels that are too narrow at the target scale, and islands that begin to coalesce—entails concurrent management of the length and width of polygonal features as well as integrating pruned polygons with other generalized point and linear hydrographic features to maintain stream network connectivity. The implementation follows data representation standards developed by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) for the National Hydrography Dataset (NHD). Portions of polygonal rivers, streams, and canals are automatically characterized for width, length, and connectivity. This paper describes an algorithm for automatic detection and subsequent processing, and shows results for a sample of NHD subbasins in different landscape conditions in the United States.
Citation Information
Publication Year | 2017 |
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Title | Partial polygon pruning of hydrographic features in automated generalization |
DOI | 10.1111/tgis.12270 |
Authors | Alexander K. Stum, Barbara P. Buttenfield, Larry V. Stanislawski |
Publication Type | Article |
Publication Subtype | Journal Article |
Series Title | Transactions in GIS |
Index ID | 70192331 |
Record Source | USGS Publications Warehouse |
USGS Organization | Center for Geospatial Information Science (CEGIS) |