OpenStreetMap history explorer - ohsomeHeX published
Feb 18th, 2019 by Lukas Loos
The exploration of the history of OpenStreetMap data presents an important step to uncover semantic connections, regions of interest and their contiguity in time and space at varying scales. Therefore, the HeiGIT Big Spatial Data Analytics team presents a first beta version of the new OpenStreetMap History eXplorer (ohsomeHeX). It resembles the idea of the OSMatrix¹, but resolves its technological shortcomings and transforms it using current big data technologies for parallel processing in the cloud.
For that we use the ohsome OpenStreetMap History Data Analytics Platform to aggregate data of a first small set of selected features into a set of world spanning hexagonal grids² in a configurable temporal resolution. The first version uses monthly time bins. New features, more tags and further modules are currently being implemented and tested. So stay tuned!
You want to learn more about our open source ohsome framework (see here for the intro to the idea and general architecture) and it’s different layers (e.g. the OpenStreetMap History Database OSHDB) and APIs, e.g. the ohsome API? Then please take a look at the ohsome blog posts about different examples of usages of the framework (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6).
¹: The original OSMatrix was developed at the GIScience working group between 2011-2013. For more information see Roick, O.; Loos, L.; Zipf, A. (2012): A Technical Framework for Visualizing Spatio-temporal Quality Metrics of Volunteered Geographic Information. Geoinformatik 2012, Braunschweig, March 2012 and Roick, O.; Hagenauer, J.; Zipf, A. (2011): OSMatrix - Grid based analysis and visualization of OpenStreetMap. State of the Map EU. Wien, July 2011.
²: To generate the hexagonal grids we use DGGRID version 6.4. Thanks to Kevin Sahr and contributors.
Recent publications about the oshome framework:
- Auer, M.;M. Eckle; S. Fendrich; F. Kowatsch; S. Marx; M. Raifer; M. Schott; R. Troilo; A. Zipf (2018): Comprehensive OpenStreetMap History Data Analyses - for and with the OSM community. State of the Map Academic Track. Milan.
- Auer, M.; Eckle, M.; Fendrich, S.; Griesbaum, L.; Kowatsch, F.; Marx, S.; Raifer, M.; Schott, M.; Troilo, R.; Zipf, A. (2018): Towards Using the Potential of OpenStreetMap History for Disaster Activation Monitoring. ISCRAM 2018. Rochester. NY. US.