Spatial Databases

This subject is not offered in 2014.

200 hours

Successful completion of the following subject is required to enrol

Please Note: The prequisites for this subject may be taken concurrently:

None

None

For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Student Support and Engagement Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Overview, Learning Outcomes, Assessment and Generic Skills sections of this entry.

It is University policy to take all reasonable steps to minimise the impact of disability upon academic study, and reasonable adjustments will be made to enhance a student's participation in the University's programs. Students who feel their disability may impact on meeting the requirements of this subject are encouraged to discuss this matter with a Faculty Student Adviser and Student Equity and Disability Support: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/disability

AIMS

Spatial databases are fundamental to any geographical information system. Efficient and effective representation and retrieval of spatial information is a non-trivial task. This subject will introduce concepts, methods and approaches that allow for this representation and retrieval. The course is organized into three main modules: fundamentals of databases; fundamentals of spatial databases; advanced topics in spatial databases.

This subject builds on a student’s knowledge of computer programming, spatial information and databases. Students who successfully complete this subject may find professional employment in designing, implementing, customising and maintaining databases for the increasingly wide range of spatial software applications.

INDICATIVE CONTENT

Fundamentals of spatial databases; spatial data modeling, including entity-relationship models; indexes and access methods, including B-trees, quadtrees, and R-trees; query languages and query processing.

INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES (ILO)

Having completed this unit the student is expected to:

1. Describe the need for spatial databases, and the differences between spatial and non-spatial database systems;
2. Describe the design and principles of spatial databases, including techniques for efficiently storing and retrieving spatial data;
3. Design queries for spatial database systems;
4. Use and customize specific spatial database systems.

• Three-hour exam held in the end of the semester examination period (60%). Associated with Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) 1, 2 and 3
• Four practical assignment reports of about 3 pages length (500 words) each, due evenly throughout the semester (40%). ILOs 1-4

Hurdle requirement: Students must achieve a mark of at least 50% in the written examination in order to pass this subject.

None

• Worboys and Duckham, 2004. GIS: A computing perspective, second edition, CRC Press, ISBN: 0415283752.
• Kothuri, Godfrind and Beinat, 2002. Pro Oracle Spatial, Morgan Kaufmann, ISBN: 1590593839.
• Rigaux, Scholl and Voisard, 2002. Spatial databases: With application to GIS, Morgan Kaufmann, ISBN: 1558605886.
• Shekhar and Chawla, 2002. Spatial databases: A tour, Prentice Hall, ISBN: 0130174807.
• Silberschatz, Korth and Sudarshan, Database System Concepts, McGraw Hill.

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

On successful completion of this subject students should be able to:

• Apply knowledge of science and engineering fundamentals;
• Undertake problem identification, formulation, and solution;
• Communicate effectively, with the engineering team and with the community at large;
• Manage information and documentation.

LEARNING AND TEACHING METHODS

There will be lectures associated with weekly lab exercises to be done in a computing lab. Students are expected to interact with real systems and interact with each other in the labs.

INDICATIVE KEY LEARNING RESOURCES

• Worboys and Duckham, 2004. GIS: A computing perspective, second edition, CRC Press, ISBN: 0415283752.
• Kothuri, Godfrind and Beinat, 2002. Pro Oracle Spatial, Morgan Kaufmann, ISBN: 1590593839.
• Rigaux, Scholl and Voisard, 2002. Spatial databases: With application to GIS, Morgan Kaufmann, ISBN: 1558605886.
• Shekhar and Chawla, 2002. Spatial databases: A tour, Prentice Hall, ISBN: 0130174807.
• Silberschatz, Korth and Sudarshan, Database System Concepts, McGraw Hill.

CAREERS / INDUSTRY LINKS

Next to Spatial Analysis, Spatial Databases are fundamental to Spatial Information Science and Geographic Information Systems. Students will acquire knowledge in SQL and some of the dominant database systems on the market, which will be essential for any future career they may aim to pursue.