Dual aspects of a multi-resolution grid-based terrain data model with supplementary irregular data points

Digital terrain data models in high resolution are required in applications for visualization but also, e.g. for identification of various types of terrain features. These two aspects are in a way contradictory since the former application require a large number of data points to represent the high resolution, while the latter cannot deal with such a large number of data points without high demands for heavy computational powers. A solution to this problem is a structure that includes quantitative characteristics for visualization and a qualitative representation for feature analysis. A digital terrain data model characterized with these dual aspects has been designed and is presented in this work.