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Internet GIS for telecommunications
Anthony J. Quartararo III President & CEO Spatial Networks, Inc., USA ajq3@spatialnetworks.com
Introduction
With the availability of broadband communications, a new delivery model for spatial solutions has arrived. By packaging and integrating comprehensive location-based services, organizations can deliver the power of GIS over the Internet. These services benefit consumers with a lower cost and a highly focused application suite for a variety of industries and markets. This paper discusses spatial ASP solutions for the telecommunications industry. Infrastructure The spatial ASP model is a reality because of the growth and expansion of global telecommunications infrastructure over the past several years. Most regions of the world have seen a dramatic increase in the quantity and quality of the fiber cable and internet data center infrastructure. Communications In particular, the United States, Europe and Asia have seen the highest concentration of telecom projects, particularly with fiber infrastructure and optical switching technologies. In fact, in India and China alone, over the past several years, over 1.56 million route kilometers of fiber optic cable have been installed1 . This available broadband capacity provides a robust network through which a spatial ASP can deliver the complex and data-intensive applications that are common to GIS. Network performance and latency are comparable in many cases to traditional internal LAN client/server operations. As networking and optical technology continues to advance, the cost and performance of delivering spatial solutions through an spatial ASP model will continue to improve. In the wireless environment, advances continue in 3G technology, and there is now a 4G wireless test bed in Bangalore, India. These broadband wireless frequencies allow sufficient bandwidth so that delivering useful location-based services is becoming more of a reality. Internet GIS The development of new web-based technologies from leading GIS vendors as well as third-party thin-client computing platforms such as MetaFrameXP & NFuse from Citrix and Tarantella Enterprise 3: ASP Edition from Tarantella makes the spatial ASP a feasible solution. These new technologies, combined with availability of broadband telecommunications capacity, enables robust solutions to be delivered to a variety of industries. In fact, there are already many examples of successfully deployed spatial ASP solutions in the consumer market, most notably MapQuest.com, National Geographic’s MapMachine & Expedia.com. While these applications may not necessarily be a traditional, fully analytical GIS , they do provide valuable spatial information, and are delivered via the public internet. There are more complex examples of spatial ASP deployments, especially in the telecommunications industry. Several in the United States are using traditional GIS client/server and desktop applications under thin-client computing platforms to deploy various customized solutions to geographically dispersed offices and field engineers. This allows for a distributed workforce and a centrally controlled software maintenance operation. Each time the application is updated or customised, deployment is much faster, less costly and IT managers are able to ensure license compliance from a single location. Spatial data is maintained in a similar fashion, preventing conflicting and “unauthorised” versions from becoming unintentionally integrated with the master data set. Telecommunications Industry There are many facets of the telecommunications industry, ranging from 3G broadband wireless to Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) technology on existing copper wire networks. The specific area within the telecommunications industry is not critical to the application of the spatial ASP, for the content and delivery model is conceptually identical. Disaster Prevention One specific example of leveraging the spatial ASP in the telecommunications industry is that of disaster prevention. It is all too common with terrestrial networks to have a disruption of service due to an accidental cut in a cable somewhere along the network. In the United States, each State has a responsible organization that acts as a clearinghouse for information, with the intent to minimize these disruptions in service. These “Call Before You Dig” services operate on the simple principle that, prior to any construction activities, the Contractor must inform the clearinghouse and obtain “clearance” prior to digging in the area. The clearinghouse has access to each utility’s records for the particular area in question, and conducts a spatial analysis to determine whether it is safe to proceed with the construction. By leveraging the spatial ASP model for this particular segment of the telecommunications industry, the utilities can lower the overall cost for each “call” into the clearinghouse. Likewise, the clearinghouse can also leverage the spatial ASP model to reduce its costs of maintenance and operation and increase its response times to calls, as well as the accuracy of the response. In this model, it becomes unnecessary for each state to maintain individual clearinghouses, but leads the way to regional clearinghouse with a spatial ASP as a key component for delivering location-services. Mobile Wireless Access Another specific example for the spatial ASP model in the telecommunications industry is the issue of mobile field data access. Telecommunications engineers spend a considerable amount of time in the field performing a variety of activities. Much of that time involves traveling to and from the central office for maps and supplies for repairs. This is a costly and inefficient method of operation. By developing operating procedures that support the delivery of relevant geographic information to the user, in the field, on-demand in real-time, several considerable advantages are realized. A typical field engineer could save over 260 hours per year in transportation alone with a mobile wireless spatial ASP solution, by requiring fewer trips from field operations to field office and equipment yards. Similarly, by providing real-time, focused spatial ASP solutions to technicians in the field, routing times for emergency repairs and service calls can be significantly reduced. The technician will also have the most current, accurate information necessary to complete the service call on-site, without the need for return trips or involvement of non-field personnel. This not only increases customer satisfaction but also decreases the cost of each service call considerably. There are several applications that have been developed for both the Palm and Windows Pocket PC operating systems for PDA implementation. These applications continue to be refined and with the added functionality of GPS, a multitude of new solutions in a mobile environment will be developed. Internet GIS Strategy There are many issues to consider when evaluating a spatial ASP strategy. The primary issues are discussed below in more detail.
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