Data Model–Centered Four-Dimensional Information Management System for Road Maintenance

Abstract

Roads are networks that connect social infrastructure and accommodate the delivery of emergency services. Because of the importance of roads, they should be safe and kept in good condition. To perform effective road management, the use of spatial and temporal information is necessary. Maintenance management is an essential operation that should be carried out effectively for maintaining, repairing, and rehabilitating roads. It is necessary to accumulate information produced during the entire life cycle of a road in order to analyze problems and find solutions within a temporal sequence and to maintain roads strategically and effectively. In this paper, four-dimensional information is defined as the combination of three-dimensional spatial information and temporal information. Four-dimensional information is required for storing the historical information of road condition. This paper proposes a four-dimensional information management system to collect, accumulate, share, and utilize four-dimensional information. The system consists of a spatial data infrastructure, road data models, a model library, a common system interface, common functions, a road database, and a road application system. The road application system provides functions for simulation, progress management, and the representation of four-dimensional information. The system is demonstrated using actual data on road maintenance. It is verified that the system has the capability to be applied in practice.