GNR402: Introduction to Geographic Information

Systems: VECTOR ANALYSIS

Surya S. Durbha, PhD

Professor
CSRE, IITB

 Vector Analysis
▪ Identifies spatial relationship within a layer or
between the spatial layers.
▪ Can be carried out using both spatial and
attribute data.
▪ Vector analysis functions are limited
compared to raster analysis functions.

 Vector Systems
❑ Vector systems are database management-
oriented.
❑ The graphical display of the properties is directly
related to the database of attribute data.
❑ one of the most frequently used operations is
determination of distances between two points, or
move around the boundaries of a specific area and
the establishment of the perimeter
 Nonspatial Query

❑ Use the attribute data base to select

features that meet certain criteria.
❑ Select the villages in a Block that have at
least one primary school and a bank.
❑ Nonspatial query runs on a single layer.

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5
 

Operations Involving Two Layers

➢ Union
➢ Intersect
➢ Symmetrical Difference (XOR)
➢ Identity
➢ Clip
➢ Update
➢ Erase
➢ Split

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 Operations Involving Two Layers
(Contd..)

❑ Operations are formed between two

different layers to look at the relationships
between them.

❑ As long as these layers share a common

coordinate system, they can be related
together.

❑ They can be overlaid and combined to form

a new layer and new table gets generated
showing how these layers are related to
each other.



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http://cret.cnu.edu.cn/syjx/Content/giswb/vol2/cp4/4-7.gif 8
 Point in Polygon Overlay

❑ Input layer is a point layer.

❑ Polygon layer is the overlay layer.
❑ Output layer is a point layer with same input point
features of the input layer but each point is assigned
with attributes of the polygon within which it falls.

*1 *1B

*2
1 +2 A B = *2A

 Point in Polygon Overlay

❑ Which Mumbai house sales fall within which census
block groups
❑ We want to know about the neighborhood
surrounding lower-price homes…

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 Line in Polygon Overlay

❑ Input is a line layer.

❑ Overlay layer is a polygon layer.
❑ Output layer contains the same line features as
the input layer but each line feature is dissected
by the polygon boundaries of the overlay layer.
❑ Hence output layer contains more line segments
than the input layer and each line has attributes
of the polygon within which it falls.

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1
+ A B = 1A
1B

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logging roads (lines) and vegetation types (polygons) are
overlayed to create a new line layer.
 Line in Polygon Overlay
❑ Which roads are in the flood plain?
❑ Should you cut up the road segments or list line segments
with part (>50%) inside?

http://web.mit.edu/11.520/www/lectures/lecture7.html
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Union

❑ Operates on two layers.

❑ A new polygon layer is created by overlaying features
from two input polygon layers.
❑ Union makes a spatial join.
❑ It is equivalent to ‘or’ Boolean operator.
❑ The output layer contains
➢ the contained polygons.
➢ attributes of both the layers.
➢ Area extent combines the area extents of both input
layers
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Union Illustration
1 1 2

1 U2 1 2 =
2 3 4

SID Concatenated UID

1 Soil 1 & Slope 1

SID UID SID UID
1 Soil1 1 Slope 2 Soil 1 & Slope 2
1
2 Soil2 2 Slope
3 Soil 2 & Slope 1
2

4 Soil 2 & Slope 2

http://resources.esri.com/help/9.3/ArcGISEngine/java/Gp_ToolRef/
geoprocessing/gpc_ovr_flood2.gif
Intersect

❑ It is an overlay operation created by overlaying 2

layers.
❑ A new output layer is created.
❑ Layer 1 can be point or line or polygon layer.
❑ Layer 2 is a polygon layer.

Layer 1 Layer 2 Output Layer

Point Polygon Point

Line Polygon Line

Polygon Polygon Polygon

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Intersect Contd.

2
1

2B
1 2 B 1B
1A 2A
+ A =
4 3B 3A 4A
3

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▪It is equivalent to ‘and’ Boolean operator.
▪The output layer contains only those portions
of features that are in the area occupied by
both the input layers.

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Symmetrical Difference

❑ Operates on two layers.

❑ A new polygon layer is created by overlaying
features from two input polygon layers.
❑ It preserves features that fall within the area extent
that is common to only one of the inputs.
❑ This operator is opposite to intersect in terms of the
output’s area extent. The output is (A U B) - (A ∩ B).

1
1
1
2
+22 A B
=

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Features or portions of features in the input and update
features which do not overlap will be written to the
Output Feature Class

http://resources.esri.com/help/9.3/ArcGISEngine/java/Gp_ToolRef/
analysis_tools/symdiff_esri.gif
Identity
❑ It is an overlay operation created by overlaying 2
layers.
❑ A new output layer is created.
❑ Layer 1 can be point or line or polygon layer.
❑ Layer 2 is a polygon layer.
❑ [(Input layer ∩ Identity layer) U Input Layer].

Layer 1 Layer 2 Output Layer

Point Polygon Point

Line Polygon Line

Polygon Polygon Polygon

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Identity Contd.

1
+ =

The output layer contains

– all the features of layer 1.
– Those portions of layer 2 features that
overlap layer1 .
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The Input Features or portions thereof that overlap Identity

Features will get the attributes of those Identity Features

http://resources.esri.com/help/9.3/ArcGISEngine/java/Gp_ToolRef/analysis_tools/identity_esri.gif
 Overlay Operations And Topology

▪ All the three operations union, intersect

and identity create new layers and new
topology gets built.
▪ Attribute tables are updated. The
attribute table contains items from both
the input layers.
▪ Therefore all items from the input layers’
attribute tables are retained except for
the geometric measures (area and
perimeter in the case of polygon layers).
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 Overlay Operations And Topology

overlay a soils map

on a vegetation map
and create a new
set of polygons with
a new set of
attributes

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 Overlay Operations And Topology

after intersections have been found, six new arcs are

formed, three from arc 1 and three from arc 2:

1. (0,1) (0,3) (2,3) (2,2)

2. (2,2) (2,1) (1,1)
3. (1,1) (0,1)
4. (1,0) (3,0) (3,2) (2,2)
5. (2,2) (1,2) (1,1)
6. (1,1) (1,0)

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 Overlay Operations And Topology

Polygon overlay is numerically intensive and time consuming,

therefore it is the most complex operation of most vector-based
GIS programs

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Clip

❑ It operates on 2 layers input.

❑ Extracts a part of an input layer that
intersects with the clip layer.
❑ The features of the input layer are retained
in the output layer.

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Clip Contd.
▪The attribute table of the output layer
contains the same attributes as of the input
layer.
▪Input layer can be point, line or polygon layer.
▪Clip layer must be a polygon layer.
▪The output layer is of the same feature type
as the input layer.

Input layer Clip layer 33 Output layer

Erase

❑ It operates on 2 layers.
❑ Erase is similar to clip, except that the input layer
features that overlap with erase layer polygons are
erased in the output layer.
❑ Input layer can be point, line or polygon layer.
❑ Erase layer must be a polygon layer.
❑ The output layer is of the same feature type as the
input layer.
❑ When input and erase layers are polygon layers,
interchange of layers give different results.
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Erase Illustration

Input layer Erase layer Output layer

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Update

❑ It operates on 2 polygon layers.

❑ The features of the input layer are updated with the
features of update layer.
❑ When input and update layers are polygon layers,
interchange of layers give different results.

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Update Illustration

1 2
0 1 2 7 8 7
8
4 9 9
3
3 4

Input layer Update layer Output layer

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Split
❑ Split is operated on two layers. Split performs a
series of clip operations on the input layer and
creates multiple output layers.
❑ Each output layer contains only those portions of
input layer features which are overlapped by the
specified polygon of the split layer.
❑ Input layer can be points, line or polygons.
❑ Split layer must be a polygon layer.
❑ The split item is used to determine which polygon of
the split layer will be used to split the input layer.

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Split Illustration

Before Split

Split layer

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 Single Layer Operations

➢Eliminate
➢Dissolve
➢Buffer

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Eliminate

❑ It operates on a single layer.

❑ Merges selected polygons with neighboring polygons
that have the largest shared border between them, or
that have the largest area.
❑ Often used to remove sliver polygons created during
an overlay operation of 2 layers.
❑ During overlay operation of 2 layers, the layers have
a nearly perfect boundary match, but not exact
match which creates thousands of thin sliver
polygons.

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Eliminate Illustration

Before Elimination After Elimination

▪Eliminate command removes these very skinny

polygons (Slivers).
▪The sliver is reassigned to the polygon with which it
shares the longest boundary.

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Dissolve

Operation Output

❑ It operates on a single layer.

❑ Dissolve merges adjacent polygons or lines which
have the same User ID.
❑ In polygon layer, it removes the segment between
adjacent polygons containing same User IDs.
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▪In the case of segment layer, nodes between

segments are dissolved.
▪Dissolve helps to create a simple layer from a
complex layer.
▪Dissolve can be used to undo an Union operation.
▪Dissolve command can be used to generalize the
unioned layer.

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Buffer

❑ Buffer creates buffer polygons around specified

features in a layer.
❑ Buffer creates a new polygon layer.
❑ Input layer can be point or segment or polygon layer.
❑ In a segment or polygon layer, one can create inside
or outside or both side buffers.
❑ Using a single buffer distance, it creates buffer zones
of the same width around the selected features.
❑ Incremental buffers are created for a set of distances
around a selected feature.

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 Illustration

Point Buffer
Line Buffer

Internal External Buffer

Buffer
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‘Much of the life of the mind consists in applying concepts to things’
(Fodor 1998:24)