Object-relational management of multiply represented geographic entities

Multiple representations occur when information about the same geographic entity is represented electronically more than once. This occurs frequently in practice, and it invariably results in the occurrence of inconsistencies among the different representations. We propose to resolve this situation by introducing a multiple representation management system (MRMS), the schema of which includes rules that specify how to identify representations of the same entity, rules that specify consistency requirements, and rules used to restore consistency when necessary. In this paper, we demonstrate by means of a prototype and a real-world case study that it is possible to implement a multiple representation schema language on top of an object-relational database management system. Specifically, it is demonstrated how it is possible to map the constructs of the language used for specifying the multiple representation schema to functionality available in Oracle. Though some limitations exist, Oracle has proven to be a suitable platform for implementing an MRMS.