Saw Geo About the Project

1. See/Saw Geo home
2. Simple Explanation
3. About the Project
   1. Aims & Objectives
   2. Project Methology
   3. Implications
   4. Deliverables
   5. Stakeholders
   6. Project Team
4. Outputs & Activities
5. Links
6. Contacts

Introduction

Geographic data processing, data transmission, data handling, multi-system connectivity and digital information exchange over a service-oriented architecture (SOA) is now the subject of ISO standard (ISO19119). This recognises three workflow-based approaches for orchestrating geospatial web services:

• a transparent model where the user manually manages the workflow,
• a translucent model where a workflow management system controls the flow and the user is aware of the individual web services and
• an opaque model where the user invokes the initial service request but is then unaware of the individual web services that take part in the task.

These are referred to as transparent, translucent and opaque chaining respectively. The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) recognises the potential for workflow engines in geospatial data processing, as evidenced by Phase 4 of the OGC Web Services (OWS-4) series which includes calls to address workflow service development and investigate the patterns for building general purpose geo-processing services.

This is therefore an area of significant interest in the further development of geospatial web services: in the enhancement of data dissemination through the application of workflow engines, but also in the future work of OGC in addressing service-based processing of geographic information through a Web Processing Service (WPS). The SAW-GEO project has been developed and funded to address the potential of workflow engines in the orchestration of OGC services and to demonstrate the capability of such developed systems in real-world applications.

Stakeholders

supported by JISC

Newcastle University