URBEX is a powerful GeoServer that allows consultation of ortho and oblique images. The URBEX platform holds about 1.6 million km² of ortho images with a resolution of 50cm/pixel (years of acquisition 1988 to 2013) as well as about 40,000 km ² of oblique images with a resolution of 15cm/pixel (years of acquisition 2005-2013), acquired over the years by CGR. The images served by the “GeoServer” can be accessed via a web browser or integrated into an existing software: Desktop GIS or Web-GIS, via plug-in or through dedicated java script API, respectively,. URBEX also delivers images in WMS (Web Map Service) according to the OGC standard(Open Geospatial Consortium).
Applications
Government & Public Administration
The wide availability of data on the URBEX platform and the possibility of accessing it without having to invest in hardware, make it very attractive for Public Administration and Local Government. The representation of heavily populated cities from different perspectives has become a crucial source of information for several activities in the public sector such as: Local Taxation : Stock and property management, management of Taxation of Land use; Illegal buildings; Intercommunication with Cadastre. Land-use planning: Urban Planning,, Urban Design, Impact assessment, Dispute management. The Italian Public Administrations can activate the service through the portal www.acquistinretepa.it
Utilities & Infrastructure
For any company managing networks, URBEX is quite useful for different applications and in different operating environments:
NETWORK PLANNING: prior knowledge of the area is a key element in the feasibility studies of new networks or network changes. The spatial information such as elevation, the distance from urban settlements, the presence of other networks enable important decisions to be taken in the preliminary stages of planning in the direction of reducing project costs while speeding up implementation (site hunting).
MAPPING UPDATE: the availability of high resolution up to date spatial data allow users to have additional information available to ensure constant updating of digital cartography and to validate new elements to be included in the cartography.
MAPPING VISUALIZATION : Network mapping associated with the images of the area support the intervention teams performing from-the-office virtual scouting by reducing the number of field trips or by cutting their duration. The pictures permit to check out the location, the status and the environment surrounding the target of the intervention.
WORKFORCE MANAGEMENT : the consultation of spatial data can be extended to the entire duration of the intervention, thus representing a further optimization of field reconnaissance: optimal route, turn by turn navigation, field guidance with the oblique images (5 views).
Emergency & Security
The availability of information from different perspectives is particularly relevant for the Operating Room (Local Police, Civil Defence, Fire Brigade) especially in the field of Emergency & Security, to support: knowledge of the places where intervention is required and the procedures to be followed; Premeasure; Coordination of the operations, Missions and Reconnaissance, Control of the areas around the target or sensitive locations;
Web & Mobility
The images of the area are now recognized as a valuable informative level in all the internet portals featuring a “maps” section that provide location-based businesses listing, calculation of the routes, promotions, travel guides, geo-localized displays of the results of web searches. This type of use is rapidly spreading on the smart phones. The quality of the information contained in URBEX also allows the dissemination of professional services such as cadastral perusal, maps superimposed to the images, production of vector mapping “on Demand”.
