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Electronic global map generating system

  • US 4,972,319 A
  • Filed: 09/25/1987
  • Issued: 11/20/1990
  • Est. Priority Date: 09/25/1987
  • Status: Expired due to Term
First Claim
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1. A computer implemented method for generating, displaying and presenting an electronic map from digital mapping data for a surface area having geographical and cultural features, said method comprising the steps of:

  • organizing the mapping data into a hierarchy of a plurality of successive magnitudes or levels for presentation of said mapping data with variable degrees of mapping resolution, each magnitude for presentation of said mapping data with a different degree of mapping resolution from a first or highest magnitude with lowest resolution to a last or lowest magnitude with highest resolution;

    structuring said mapping data at each magnitude into a plurality of windows, frames or files representing subdivisions or partitions of said surface area, said windows of a respective magnitude including mapping data which are appropriate to a degree of mapping resolution being afforded at said magnitude while excluding mapping data which are not appropriate to said degree of mapping resolution, and at least a portion of said windows of each magnitude being structured to receive substantially a same predetermined amount or quantity of mapping data for segmented presentation of the mapping data by window;

    organizing said mapping data into records of geographical or cultural features for presentation within said windows, and coding said features;

    managing said mapping data for each window by excluding or including coded features appropriate to the degree of mapping resolution and density being afforded by said window, such that a quantity of mapping data entered in each window is no greater than said predetermined amount;

    relating windows of a same magnitude by window position coordinates or names and structuring said windows with overlap or mapping data between adjacent or neighboring windows of a magnitude or achieve display continuity during generation, display and presentation of an electronic map;

    relating windows of different magnitude by vertical lineage through successive magnitudes, each window of a higher magnitude and lower resolution being an ancestor window being related to a plurality of descendant windows of lower magnitude and higher resolution in a next lower magnitude;

    accessing and displaying or presenting mapping data for different positions of a selected magnitude by scrolling between adjacent or neighboring windows of a same magnitude in predetermined north, south, each and west directions;

    and accessing and displaying or presenting mapping data for different selected magnitudes having different resolutions by zooming between windows of different magnitudes in a same vertical lineage.

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