The world is demanding reliable, accurate, accessible and standardized data at its fingertips - whether it is for critical decision making or day-to-day management. The geospatial industry faces many challenges to make this need a reality. In the geospatial industry, interoperability means that components of a geospatial solution can integrate or exchange information, even when the components have been developed by different organizations. Although the word itself is used extensively, interoperability is a growing trend rather than an unconditional reality.
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The average person may never have heard the term ‘interoperability.’ But our lives would be drastically different if, for example, the electronics we use daily were not interoperable. What if a Sony CD player would work only with Sony CDs? What if all electrical appliances didn't fit into the same type of electrical outlet? Travelers to other countries are familiar with using an adapter to provide interoperability and power for their electrical appliances.
Partial interoperability is another common occurrence. Routinely, e-mail messages are sent in HTML format, but are viewed by the receiver in Rich Text format. Because some elements of the original message may be dropped when translated, the loss of fidelity is a common problem and typical of partial interoperability.
In the geospatial industry, interoperability means that components of a geospatial solution can integrate or exchange information, even when the components have been developed by different organizations or vendors. The geospatial and information technology industries do not enjoy the degree of interoperability that exists among other industries. Although the word itself is used extensively, interoperability is a growing trend rather than an unconditional reality in these two industries.
Starting the Ball Rolling
Open, standards-based, and open architecture are all words that play a role in defining interoperability for our industry. Notable organizations are striving to implement acceptance of standards in a worldwide environment so that interoperability can be a reality. Open GIS Consortium (OGC), Global Spatial Data Infrastructure (GSDI), Infrastructure for Spatial Information in Europe (INSPIRE), and regional and National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI) projects are a few of the organizations and initiatives that are leading the way in developing open standards as the industry paradigm. Open interoperability is recognized as the component vital to the success of such projects.
OGC has been a leader in the development and implementation of OpenGIS Specifications that enable interoperable geoprocessing services, data, and applications. Since its foundation in 1994, OGC’s vision has been to deliver open interface specifications so that better products and services will be available to consumers in less time, at less cost and with more flexibility. The Interoperability Program within OGC was created in 1999 to produce draft specifications in fast-paced testbed engineering efforts.
