1 Status of INSPIRE and Outlooks for FP7 Anders Friis-Christensen Spatial Data Infrastructures Unit, EC DG Joint Research Center, Italy

2 EuroGeoSurveys – 11 September 2006 DG Joint Research Centre Mission: to provide customer-driven scientific and technical support for the conception, development, implementation and monitoring of European Union policies. The JRC functions as a reference centre of science and technology for the Union. EU Commission Parliament Council … DG AGRI DG INFSO … Close to the policy-making process, it serves the common interest of the Member States, while being independent of special interests, whether private or national. 7 institutes in 5 countries, 2300 people

3 EuroGeoSurveys – 11 September 2006 Outline INSPIRE –Aims and status –Drafting teams developments JRC GEO involvement JRC FP7 Research Issues

4 EuroGeoSurveys – 11 September 2006 INSPIRE A directive is a legal instrument agreed by the Council and the European Parliament from a proposal of the Commission. It binds the Member States on What is to be achieved, but leaves them the ability to define through national legislation How to get there The objective of INSPIRE is to lay down general rules for the establishment of an infrastructure for spatial information in Europe The purpose is to overcome existing problems regarding the availability, quality, organisation, accessibility and sharing of spatial information, and thus support better environmental policies and policies that affect the environment

5 EuroGeoSurveys – 11 September 2006 INSPIRE political process Proposal adopted by the Commission in 2004 based on input of experts from Member States, public consultation, and impact assessment Parliament strongly in favour in first reading (2005). Some amendments introduced broadly acceptable to EC Council agreed unanimously a common position in 2005 in favour of the principles, but introduced a number of limitations to data access, sharing and viewing Both Parliament in second reading (2006) and EC do not agree with these limitations Compromised solution between Council and Parliament being sought at the present time. Hopefully agreement will be reached by the end of the year

6 EuroGeoSurveys – 11 September 2006 Status of INSPIRE - Metadata DT (1) Scope Metadata DT: –To detail the INSPIRE requirements for metadata for data and services such that these can be implemented consistently across Europe Implementing Rules: –Is applicable to the functional dimensions discovery, evaluation and use –Is in conformance with European and international standards, current practices in stakeholder communities and relevant European initiatives Priority 2006: –Collect reference material and develop the first draft of requirements including core metadata elements Achievements 2006: –Draft Implementing Rules for discovery, use, and evaluation of metadata circulated for internal comments –As soon as Directive approved, consultation with SDICs and LMOs can commence

7 EuroGeoSurveys – 11 September 2006 Status of INSPIRE - Metadata DT (2) Use of ISO and ISO Ensures the needed linked between the expert and the non expert users Metadata are detailed enough for high level discovery of spatial resources by expert users Metadata elements needed to evaluate the fitness for use of the spatial resource Use metadata involves complementary standards such as ISO 19110, ISO 19111, ISO 19117

8 EuroGeoSurveys – 11 September 2006 Status of INSPIRE – Data Specification DT (1) Scope Data Specification DT: –Adopt implementing rules laying down the following: (a) Harmonised spatial data specifications; (b) Arrangements for the exchange of spatial data. Priority in 2006: –Creating the foundation for data specifications and developing a methodology Achievements 2006: –Scope and Definition of Annexes Requires further analysis of SDIC and LMO material –Generic Conceptual Model v.1.0 Deadline September

9 EuroGeoSurveys – 11 September 2006 Status of INSPIRE – Data Specification DT (2) 1 st version of a Generic Conceptual Model focuses on the schema level

10 EuroGeoSurveys – 11 September 2006 Status of INSPIRE – Network services DT (1) Scope Network Services DT: –To define functional and non-functional requirements to support the following functionalities for services: Upload, Download, Discovery, Transformation, Data view, Invoke Priority in 2006: –Definition of network services and reference model (within INSPIRE) based on review of reference material Achievements 2006: –Network service definition and reference model –Reference Material analysis

11 EuroGeoSurveys – 11 September 2006 Status of INSPIRE – Network services DT (1) MS portals provide (besides a specific client) MS Inspire Services Reference Model:

12 EuroGeoSurveys – 11 September 2006 JRC Involvements in GEO ADC WP 2006 Architecture tasks: –AR-06-02: Produce practical strategic and tactical guidance document on how to converge disparate systems to a higher degree of collaboration and interoperability under GEOSS including its roadmap and using existing efforts wherever possible –AR-06-03: Reach consensus on how the GEOSS architecture will link the components of GEOSS and allow for growth potential –AR-06-05: Initiate development of a publicly accessible clearinghouse, subject to GEOSS interoperability specifications, and including an inventory of existing data and metadata

13 EuroGeoSurveys – 11 September 2006 JRC Involvements in GEO ADC WP 2006 Data tasks: –DA-06-04: Facilitate the development, availability and harmonization of data, metadata, and products commonly required across diverse areas, including base maps, land cover data sets, and socio-economic data –DA-06-05: Develop a guidance document for basic geographic data (including format, precision, accuracy, etc.), taking into account relevant national, regional and global initiatives –DA-06-06: Advocate use of existing Spatial Data Infrastructure components where appropriate, including standard protocols and interoperable system interfaces –DA-06-07: Define a web portal system for access to all Earth observation data, based on existing portals and systems, designed to increase use, quality, and accessibility of existing information, tools, and networks

14 EuroGeoSurveys – 11 September 2006 JRC and FP7 Objectives Scientific and technical coordination of the implementation of the INSPIRE Directive Execute JRC’s part of INSPIRE action plan Link in-situ data acquisition and monitoring infrastructures to the SDI framework of INSPIRE Technical coordination with initiatives relevant for INSPIRE –GMES –GEOSS Create the JRC-SDI according to INSPIRE principles and subsequent Implementing Rules Support the creation of Environmental Data Centres, ensure their interoperability, and contribute to implementation of the SEIS –Soil, Forest

15 EuroGeoSurveys – 11 September 2006 Research Issues and Challenges Based on work from the DTs and IPs, we have identified some concrete research issues Modelling aspects: –Automated generation of metadata –Data update Object identifiers Life cycle rules –Multiple representation Consistency among data sets –Semantic interoperability Terminology, multilinguality, thesauri for discovery and retrieval, schema mapping… Service architectural aspects: –Schema/data transformations “on-the-fly” or “static” –Service architecture design –Processing geodata Service chaining –Sensor networks

16 EuroGeoSurveys – 11 September 2006 Concrete Example: Automated Metadata Generation (1) The problem of metadata: –It is difficult to collect and create Requires a lot of manual work –It is even more difficult to maintain The next generation metadata institute: The next generation metadata server:

17 EuroGeoSurveys – 11 September 2006 Concrete Example: Automated Metadata Generation (2) Possible solutions: –Closer linkage between data and metadata Models supporting tightly coupled data and metadata –Modeling of metadata generation rules –Modeling of consistency rules between data and metadata One thing we often forget: –Service metadata and the connection to “traditional” metadata Possible solutions: –Unified Information (data) and Service models –Linkage of services and information

18 EuroGeoSurveys – 11 September 2006 Concrete Example: Modelling Object Life Cycle Rules Building object Update One object new id?One object same id? Two objects same id + new id? To a logical level Issues: –Rules: When is it a new object and when is it an update? –Rules: Keeping track of id’s –Express at a conceptual level

19 EuroGeoSurveys – 11 September 2006 Schema Transformation Service Feature Access Service Feature Access Service DB representation (Portuguese data) DB representation (Spain data ) Transformation into common model European common model Data in common model Concrete Example: Service Architecture

20 EuroGeoSurveys – 11 September 2006 Aggregation Service Aggregation of data (Step 2) Spatial join - Aggregation function: Count (Counts number of fires within each NUTS unit) Number of fires Schema Transformation Service Feature Access Service Nuts data Data in common model

21 EuroGeoSurveys – 11 September 2006 Classification of data (Step 4) and rendering of data (Step 5) Aggregation Service Classification Service Classification system A classification system defines a function (or more) to be applied to data (can be predefined) Map Service Symbology A symbology defines rules for how to visualise data (e.g., 3 = red, 2 = orange, 1 = yellow) Rendered map with legend

22 Thank you for your attention!

23 EuroGeoSurveys – 11 September 2006