CHAPTER 6: ANALYSIS OF SPATIAL DATA

MOHD KHAIRUL BAZLI BIN MOHD AZIZ

@psmumpofficial 095492306 psm.ump.edu.my @psm_ump @psm_ump

SYNOPSIS

This course is designed to introduce the student to the basic principles and
techniques of GIS(Geographic Information Systems). GIS is a computer-
based tool that uses spatial (geographic) data to analyze and solve real-
world problems. The lab material will emphasises GIS data collection, entry,
storage, analysis, and output using appropriate software such as ArcGIS. The
students will be able to describe what geography and GIS are; will
understand the importance of scale, projection, and coordinate systems in
GIS; will understand vector and raster data structures and the appropriate
use of each of these data structures; will understand the basics of data
capture, storage, analysis, and output in a GIS; and will understand typical
uses of GIS in business, government, and resource management.
CONTENT

 6.1 Basic Cartographic Concepts

 6.2 Creating Maps in ArcMap
 6.3 Printing and Plotting Maps
 6.4 Geoprocessing
 6.5 ArcGIS Spatial Analysis
MAP AND DESIGN OBJECTIVES

 A map conveys geographic information, highlights important

geographic relationships, and presents analysis results. Because most
GIS users have to present their spatial data graphically to a wide
variety of readers, they have also become map designers, or
cartographers.
 Any GIS analysis ends with some results that need to be
communicated. You can help fulfill the purpose of your map by using
proper placement of map elements and choosing symbols and
cartographic elements that are tailored for the message you want to
communicate. How you design a map depends on your particular
objective: why you want to create a map in the first place.
 One obvious objective for creating a map is to show the results of
your analysis. Other map
 objectives may be to simply share information, guide people, or
highlight relationships.
 Your primary objective is usually not to create a beautiful map, but to
create a product that communicates effectively, efficiently, and clearly.
FACTORS CONTROLLING CARTOGRAPHIC DESIGN

Map objective
 You may be asked to design a map for a book or for a wall, folded or
flat, black and white or colored, square or rectangular, and so on. Each
of these would control how you are going to design the map.
Audience
 Is your map for a highly technical committee or the general public’s
use? Your design must be at the level of your map readers. This
controls how complex or easy your map design will be.
Reality and the need to generalize
 A detailed coastline is important for ecological studies. Your map
must be detailed if you are addressing ecologists because they make
deductions based on the way the coastline is shaped. A meandering
river is important for city planners. You cannot generalize these
complex shaped lines extensively (e.g., into a straight or large curved
line) when going into a smaller-scale map.
FACTORS CONTROLLING CARTOGRAPHIC DESIGN

Scale and technical limits

 Scale dictates how much detail you are able to place on the limited
piece of paper. At a scale of 1:1,000,000, a 10-meter road should
appear on the map using a line width of 0.01 mm. The smallest
practical drafting pen is 0.1 mm (similarly a typical inkjet technology
output device can render a line as thin as 0.1 mm). If you used the 0.1
mm pen, which is inevitable, then you have just exaggerated the road
width by ten times. Another example of a technical limitation is that
your monitor may have a color palette of 256 colors (i.e., addressed
by eight-bit pixel values) where each color can be chosen from a total
of 16.7 million colors (i.e., eight bits output for each of red, green, and
blue), however, you may have a very limited, low-end color plotter or
printer. So, regardless of how sophisticated your design on the screen
may be, you are controlled by what quality your printing and plotting
hardware can afford.
Mode of use
 Different map design treatment should be considered when you
design a map to be used in a well-lit place or in a static condition
compared to one that is designed for use while driving or at low-light
conditions.
COMMUNICATION IN MAPS

The cartographer or GIS or CAD specialist

 This person compiles the data from several sources. Perhaps they
have visited the place or site they are about to map. After recognizing
what data is necessary for the map, they select only those data that
are necessary to fulfill the map objective. The cartographer or GIS or
CAD specialist takes what is selected, classifies the data into fewer
categories, simplifies it, and finally selects the proper symbology for
displaying the information on the map.

The map user

 This person takes the map, reads the symbology, analyzes the
relationships, and interprets the information depicted whether
through conclusion or inference. They create a mental image of the
area that they may not have even seen before. Their conclusions or
inference are based solely on the symbology presented in the map. As
a cartographer or GIS or CAD specialist, this makes your symbology
selection and map design very critical issues in the communication
process between you and the map user.
COMMUNICATION IN MAPS

The communication channel

 Just think of it as in the example of giving directions on
the phone for someone who has never been to your area.
You will tell that person to go on this highway and use
that exit, then turn left on such a street, and finally the
house is the fifth one on the left. You have selected only
what you consider important in giving directions. You have
excluded all other details or landmarks. While listening to
you, and perhaps taking notes, the other person on the
phone is creating a mental image of your descriptive
words. They will never re-create the same exact mental
image as yours.
TYPES OF MAPS

Classifying maps
 Classifying maps is a difficult task, however, you can
generally divide them into two categories: General and
Thematic maps.
General maps
 General maps show locational or positional types of data.
They depict a variety of features and are used by many
disciplines. This is why they are considered "general".
Examples of such maps include atlas maps or topographic
maps produced by the United States Geological Survey.
TYPES OF MAPS

Thematic maps
 There are two types of thematic maps: qualitative and quantitative. Both
show the distribution of an attribute and both generally depict a single
attribute or relationship. It is not unusual, however, for more complicated
thematic maps to have several attributes or relationships.

1. Qualitative thematic maps

 These maps depict data such as different soil types and different
types of features with equal importance at a nominal scale. Some
qualitative maps change to a quantitative classification if you change
the scale from nominal to ordinal showing, for example, a relative
fertility index or a water retention index for different soil types.

2. Quantitative thematic maps

 Here you are deliberately showing differences in quantitative
characteristics. You are using an interval or ratio scale to show such
things as population density per square kilometers, or variation in
temperature or humidity.
ISSUES IN CARTOGRAPHIC DESIGN

Eyes have limitations

 Number of colors and shades: Research has shown that
the human eye is limited in its ability to decipher
differences in colors if they exceed twelve colors in one
view. Additionally, if you decide to use different shades of
the same color, you need to realize that the human eye
can decipher no more than seven or eight distinct shades.

Legibility
 Legibility is defined as the smallest symbol that can be
easily read at a certain distance. Many maps fail to relay
useful information because the text, point, or line symbols
are too small.
ISSUES IN CARTOGRAPHIC DESIGN

Visual contrast and hierarchy

 Map reading can be enhanced by increasing the visual
contrast among symbols or between the symbol and its
background.Variations in size or graytone value can also
result in creating a quantitative visual hierarchy. Visual
contrast and hierarchy can be used in map design to lead
the map reader to focus on the most important areas
first and proceed next to the lesser important areas.

Visual balance
 As you start displaying symbology on your map, the
different treatment of graphic characteristics may result in
symbols that vary in their visual weight. Strive to achieve a
visual balance that enhances the purpose of the map.
CREATING MAPS IN ARCMAP

Layout View
 You create your map in Layout View. Your layout may contain two or
more maps (e.g., a small- scale index map, and a larger-scale inset
map). Each map requires adding a data frame to your map document.
Data frames organize layers by similar properties
 A data frame is simply a frame on your map that displays layers. When
you create a map, it contains a default data frame listed in the Table of
Contents as “Layers.” You can immediately add layers to this data
frame and give it a more meaningful name. Once on a map, a data
frame acts like any other map element. You can change its size, move
it around, or delete it. Each data frame has a projection, map extent,
and scale.
 When a map has more than one data frame, one of them is the active
data frame. The active data frame is the one you are currently
working with (e.g., adding layers to it or panning and zooming, etc.).
The active data frame is highlighted on the map in Layout View or is
the displayed data frame in Data View. The name of the active data
frame is also shown in bold text in the Table of Contents.
CREATING MAPS IN ARCMAP

The map document

 In addition to the data frames, you can add other map
elements, such as the north arrow, scale bar, title, other
textual information, and so on. These map elements are
added to the virtual page.
 Later, as you finish your design you can save your map
document as an .mxd file. This file will store the
pathnames to all the data used in creating the map as well
as storing the properties of each layer.
LAYOUT
VIEW
SETTING UP THE PAGE

 When designing maps, page setup is an important consideration because you are
creating the canvas on which you will arrange all of the map elements in your
design. The page is your compositional space and it will affect most of your
design decisions. To decide on appropriate page setup parameters, ask yourself
questions like:
1. Will the map be viewed close up or at a distance?
2. What is the best page size and orientation for my map content?
3. What printer will I be using and what are my printer size limitations?
4. Will I distribute the map document?
 The answers to these questions will help you decide the size of features,
symbols, and labels and other text, as well as all the other map elements that
will be included in your composition.
 The size of your map is tied directly to its purpose. It is best to set up the page
size before you begin creating the map. Keep in mind that you are working on a
virtual page in Layout View. The virtual page represents the dimensions and
orientation of your workspace and, eventually, your final product. By defining the
size of the page first, you can visualize the composition as a whole. ArcMap will
let you resize the page and, if you choose, rescale the map elements accordingly.
When you right-click on the virtual page and click Page Setup, you see the Page
Setup dialog. In the Page Setup dialog, you specify the dimensions and
orientation of the map page as well as printer information.
IDENTIFYING MAP ELEMENTS

What other map elements are missing?

 Scale text (1:100,000)
 Other text (author name, disclaimers, projection information, date of
data, date of map, etc.)
 Logos
Are all these map elements really necessary?
 Some map elements can be ignored in a map if other map elements
or features can substitute for it. For example, a north arrow is
redundant if you have neatlines shown with coordinate labels such as
latitude and longitude; a north arrow and a scale bar are both
redundant if you are depicting the population of the United States in,
say, a book on United States demographic statistics; and a scale bar
can be redundant if neatlines are shown with the proper coordinate
system and units.
 Avoid placing any information that does not comply with the map’s
objectives. These are considered “visual noise” and distract from
effective map communication.
A GENERAL PROCEDURE

 Your various map elements are inserted into the layout in the same
manner.This includes:
1. Choosing the type of map element
2. Inserting the element around the center of the map by default
3. Dragging the map element to a better location for visual balance
4. Double-clicking the map element to modify its characteristics
 After choosing a certain map element, it will display with a blue
dotted outline and eight blue
 handles.
 These blue features would also appear if you selected (clicked on) any
map element. Using the Shift key while selecting another map element
will enable you to select more than one map element at a time. Once
selected, the map elements can be dragged anywhere on your map
for visual balance. The blue handles are useful for resizing the map
element. Be cautious when resizing a scale-related map element.
LEGEND PROPERTIES

The Legend tab

 Here, you can change the title of the legend to something
more meaningful or explicit (e.g. “Density per square
kilometer” instead of the redundant “Legend”). The Show
check box controls whether or not a legend title will appear
on not. The title can be placed either above the legend or
below it, or to the right or left of it. The title properties (e.g.,
color, font, size, etc.) can be changed using the Symbol button.
The legend symbols can be displayed using your choice of a
symbol type and outline. You may choose from some
predefined symbols like rectangular, elliptical, or diamond
shapes or create your own custom symbol. The default
spacings between the individual components of the legend
are set as optimum. However, you can manipulate these
spacings to your own preference.
LEGEND PROPERTIES

The Items tab

 Use the Items tab to specify which legend items you want to
appear. By default items from all map layers will appear.
 You can also specify how you want the legend to be
connected to the map (e.g., only display the legend items that
have data visible on the map, add a new item to the legend
when a new layer is added to the map, or reorder the legend
items when the map layers are reordered). These are all set
by default, but you can switch them off.
The Frame tab
 Use the Frame tab if you want to add a background shade
behind the legend.
The Size and Position tab
 Use the Size and Position tab to adjust the size of the legend,
and where it appears on the map.
NORTH ARROW AND SCALE

North arrows
 The North Arrow Selector offers a variety of north
arrows that you can select from for your map. After
selecting one, you can change its properties, such as its
orientation (angle), size, and color.
NORTH ARROW AND SCALE

Scale
 If you have two data frames on your map, you may be required to place two
scales. Scales can be of three types:
 A graphical scale bar is useful for maps that are going to be photographically
reduced in size at printing. Both the main map body and the scale bar are
simultaneously resized, so this guarantees the scale bar will be correct for the
resized map. A scale bar allows the use of scales that may not be multiples of
thousands (e.g., 1:3,475,923), which are a result of the automatic attempt of the
software to try to fit the map extent of the data inside the available space in the
Layout View.
 The Scale Bar Selector offers a variety of scale bars that you can select from for
your map. After selection, you can change its properties, such as its type, the size
of each interval, the number of intervals, whether or not you want an interval to
the left of the zero mark, the units, the color of the lines and labels, or the font
used for the labels.
 A fractional scale bar is what you normally use for maps that need to be
published at a certain specified scale in multiples of thousands (e.g., 1:250,000).
Once this scale is added to the map, it is not advised to resize the map, as this
fractional scale is merely text, and as you resize your map this textual string will
simply get larger or smaller in text size and not in true scale value.
 A verbal scale bar is, for example, one inch to a foot.
INCORPORATING A REFERENCE SYSTEM

 Graticules and grids are useful for locating features or places

on a map. They both offer a reference structure. Graticules
and grids are properties of the entire data frame. You can add
a graticule or a grid by right-clicking on the data frame and
clicking Properties. On the Data Frame Properties window,
click the Grids tab. Then, click on the New Grid button,
which will display the Grids and Graticules Wizard.
 Several reference systems can be selected from the wizard.
Once a reference system is selected, its properties can be
changed. This includes changing the color of the lines and
labels, the font and orientation of the labels.
 You can place several different reference systems on the
same map. Simply click on the New Grid button and select
the reference system and its properties. This way your map
can be used by many different disciplines, each using its
preferred type of reference system.
INSERTING TEXTUAL INFORMATION

What textual information should a map have?

 A map may be incomplete if it is missing the following information:
 A map title.
 The name of the author or authors.
 Projection information.
 Date of the map and date of the data.
 Sources of the data used and method of collection.
 Disclosures on whether or not you have displaced some of the spatial
features for the sake of clarity.
 Acknowledgement statement if necessary.
 The above textual information should not necessarily appear in the
same level of importance (e.g., the map title should definitely appear
in larger text size as compared to the projection information).
INSERTING TEXTUAL INFORMATION

Available tools
 In the ArcMap™ application, you can add text either from
the Drawing toolbar or from the Insert pulldown menu.
LAYOUT VIEW TOOLS

 When you move from Data View to Layout View another toolbar
named “Layout” appears. The Layout toolbar has its own Zoom-In and
Zoom-Out buttons, as well as a display of percent reduction or
enlargement window (shown above with 100%).
 Do not confuse the Layout toolbar's Zoom-In and Zoom-Out
buttons with the ones on the Tools toolbar. The buttons on the
Layout toolbar enable zooming in and out in order to view how the
map elements will look at different percent reductions and
enlargements. The monitor's screen cannot show the full size of the
map (e.g., a 36 in. x 24 in. map size) so these buttons allow you to
look at a real-size map (i.e., 100% enlargement) by using these
buttons. This way you have more control over your map design
because you know exactly how your symbology, and so on, look at
real size.
 Notice as you zoom in or zoom out at different percentages using
the Layout toolbar, that the actual scale of the view (as inherited from
the Data View, or as set earlier in Layout View) remains the same
(shown above with 1:10,000).
GRIDS AND RULERS

 How big are your map elements relative to the page size of
the map? As you compose your map you can zoom in and
out to view various elements, but this capability can prove
deceptive, especially when translated to printed material. It is
important to keep in mind that when working on a large
format virtual page, text and other elements like north
arrows and scale bars, can appear legible but when printed,
they are inappropriately oversized. The opposite is true for
smaller format maps in that elements become
incomprehensible once the map is printed. Use the rulers as
a reality check.
 When text and other map elements are aligned, the look and
legibility of the map design are enhanced. You can use guides,
which are vertical and horizontal straight lines, to provide a
consistent arrangement of elements. In Layout View, you can
add guides to the rulers, slide them into position, turn them
on or off, and remove them whenever you want.
GRIDS AND RULERS

 There may be times when you want a certain map element, a

data frame for example, to be positioned at a specific point
on the map page. A grid is a grid of reference points in the
layout that you can use to position map elements. You can
control the spacing of the grid reference points and you can
turn the grid on or off.
 Manually positioning map elements on the virtual page can be
an inexact and tedious process. Snapping map elements to a
ruler, guide, or grid reference point can ensure precise
positioning and improve your productivity. In ArcMap, you can
choose to which of these visual indicators elements will snap
and set the snapping tolerance. You can even choose the
order in which map elements will snap to rulers, guides, and
grids. When snapping options are defined and engaged, map
elements will automatically move to the nearest guide or grid
point.
CREATING AND USING MAP TEMPLATES

 A map template is a map document (.mxd) from which new

documents can be created. Templates may contain basemap
layers or be a variety of commonly used page layouts. Map
templates make it easy to reuse or standardize a layout on a
series of maps. Using a template can save you time, since you
don't have to manually reproduce the common parts of the
maps. Like maps and layers, templates can be shared within an
organization to increase productivity and standardize the
maps that the organization produces.
 Any map document (.mxd) can be used as a map template. To
create a new template, simply save or copy the map
document into a special folder in your user profile. This will
create a template that only you can see. You can also add
user-defined categories (folders) to organize templates within
the special folder. Copy the map document templates and
folders to the following location:
 %APPDATA%\ESRI\Desktop10.x\ArcMap\Templates
CREATING AND USING MAP TEMPLATES

 To print your map, use the following steps:

1. From the File pulldown menu, click Print.
2. On the Print window, make sure you point to the
available printer and select the printer engine (three
are available, listed above) by clicking the Setup button.
3. On the Document Properties window of your printer
or plotter, select the paper size and source, the
number of copies, the orientation, and the color
appearance. Depending on which printer engine was
selected, the format of the Document Properties
window may be different from the above graphic.
EXPORTING A MAP
EXERCISE
GEOPROCESSING

 Geoprocessing is for everyone that uses ArcGIS. Whether

you're a beginning user or a pro, geoprocessing will
become an essential part of your day-to-day work with
ArcGIS.
 The fundamental purposes of geoprocessing are to allow
you to automate your GIS tasks and perform spatial
analysis and modeling. Almost all uses of GIS involve the
repetition of work, and this creates the need for methods
to automate, document, and share multiple-step
procedures known as workflows. Geoprocessing supports
the automation of workflows by providing a rich set of
tools and a mechanism to combine a series of tools in a
sequence of operations using models and scripts.
GEOPROCESSING

 Geoprocessing is based on a framework of data

transformation. A typical geoprocessing tool performs an
operation on an ArcGIS dataset (such as a feature class,
raster, or table) and produces a new dataset as the result
of the tool. Each geoprocessing tool performs a small yet
essential operation on geographic data, such as projecting
a dataset from one map projection to another, adding a
field to a table, or creating a buffer zone around features.
ArcGIS includes hundreds of such geoprocessing tools.
 Geoprocessing allows you to chain together sequences of
tools, feeding the output of one tool into another. You can
use this ability to compose an infinite number of
geoprocessing models (tool sequences) that help you
automate your work and solve complex problems
GEOPROCESSING FRAMEWORK

 Geoprocessing's language is its collection of tools. The

geoprocessing framework is a small collection of built-in user
interfaces for organizing and managing existing tools and creating
new tools. The basic components of the framework are shown in
A quick tour of geoprocessing and consist of the following:
1. The Search window to find and execute tools and the Catalog
window to browse to toolboxes to manage or execute their
tools
2. The tool dialog box for interactively filling out tool
parameters and executing the tool
3. The Python window for executing a tool by typing in its
parameters
4. The ModelBuilder window for chaining together sequences of
tools
5. Methods for creating scripts and adding them to toolboxes.
GEOPROCESSING WITH TOOLS AND TOOLBOXES

 Geoprocessing tools perform small yet essential

operations on geographic data, such as extracting and
overlaying data; changing map projections; adding a
column to a table; and calculating attribute values, polygon
overlays, and optimal routes, to name a few. There are
hundreds of tools at your disposal, and you can create
your own tools using ModelBuilder, a visual programming
language, or scripting, a text-based programming language.
 Tools are stored in toolboxes. ArcGIS ships with hundreds
of tools organized into a dozen or so toolboxes, providing
a rich set of functionality across a wide range of
disciplines.
FINDING TOOLS

 There are two basics ways to find tools:

1. Search using the Search window.
2. Browse using the Catalog or ArcToolbox window.
 In addition, tools can be found on menus and toolbars. ArcGIS is installed
with a few commonly used tools on the Geoprocessing menu, and you can
add tools to any menu or toolbar.
 Using the Search window to search for tools
To open the Search window, do one of the following:
1. Click Geoprocessing > Search For Tools.
2. Click the Search button.
3. Click Windows > Search.
4. Press CTRL+F.
 As illustrated above, the Search window has four filters: All, Maps, Data,
and Tools. Both the All and Tools filters will return tool results. When
searching for tools, the best results are obtained using the Tools filter.
ARCGIS TABULAR FORMATS

 ArcGIS supports the use of multiple formats for the

storage and management of tabular information. Each of
ArcInfo’s primary spatial formats has its own native
format. Coverages use INFO formatted tables; shapefiles
store their attributes in dBase (dbf) format; Geodatabases
rely on the format of their supporting RDBMS (Access or
Oracle, for example).
 Some formats, such as the coverage, can link to
independent tables, regardless of their format.
 Deciding on the proper format to store attribute
information is an important part of a database design and
can affect the efficiency with which you are able to access
tabular information. To facilitate sharing of data in different
formats, ArcGIS contains tools to convert between the
various tabular formats.
MODELBUILDER

 ModelBuilder is an application you use to create, edit, and manage

models. Models are workflows that string together sequences of
geoprocessing tools, feeding the output of one tool into another tool
as input. ModelBuilder can also be thought of as a visual programming
language for building workflows.
 While ModelBuilder is very useful for constructing and executing
simple workflows, it also provides advanced methods for extending
ArcGIS functionality by allowing you to create and share your models
as tool.
 The benefits of ModelBuilder can be summarized as follows:
1. ModelBuilder is an easy-to-use application for creating and
running workflows containing a sequence of tools.
2. You can create your own tools with ModelBuilder. Tools you
create with ModelBuilder can be used in Python scripting and
other models.
3. ModelBuilder, along with scripting, is a way for you to integrate
ArcGIS with other applications.
GEOPROCESSING WITH PYTHON

 Python is a free, cross-platform, open-source programming language that is

both powerful and easy to learn. It is widely used and supported. To learn
more about Python, visit python.org.
 Python was introduced to the ArcGIS community at 9.0. Since then, it has
been accepted as the scripting language of choice for geoprocessing users
and continues to grow. Each release has furthered the Python experience,
providing you with more capabilities and a richer, more Python-friendly
experience.
 ESRI has fully embraced Python for ArcGIS and sees Python as the
language that fulfills the needs of our user community. Here are just some
of the advantages of Python:
1. Easy to learn and excellent for beginners, yet superb for experts
2. Highly scalable, suitable for large projects or small one-off programs
known as scripts
3. Portable, cross-platform
4. Embeddable (making ArcGIS scriptable)
5. Stable and mature
6. A large user community
DISSOLVING FEATURES

 Use the Dissolve tool when you want to aggregate

features based on a specified attribute or attributes. For
example, you could take a feature class containing sales
data collected on a county-by-county basis and use
Dissolve to create a feature class containing contiguous
sales regions based on the name of the salesperson in
each county. Dissolve creates the sales regions by
removing the boundaries between counties represented
by the same salesperson.
Dissolve fields
 Features with the same value combinations for the
specified fields will be aggregated (dissolved) into a single
feature. The Dissolve Fields are written to the Output
Feature Class.
CLIPPING FEATURES

 Use this tool to cut out a piece of one feature class using one or
more of the features in another feature class as a "cookie cutter". This
is particularly useful for creating a new feature class—also referred to
as study area or area of interest (AOI)—that contains a geographic
subset of the features in another, larger feature class.
 Attribute values from the input feature class(es) will be copied to the
output feature class. However, if the input is a layer(s) created by the
Make Feature Layer tool and a field's "Use Ratio Policy" is checked,
then a ratio of the input attribute value is calculated for the output
attribute value. When "Use Ratio Policy" is enabled, whenever a
feature in an overlay operation is split, the attributes of the resulting
features are a ratio of the attribute value of the input feature. The
output value is based on the ratio in which the input feature
geometry was divided. For example, If the input geometry was divided
equally, each new feature's attribute value is assigned one-half of the
value of the input feature's attribute value. "Use Ratio Policy" only
applies to numeric field types.
SPATIAL ANALYSIS FUNCTIONS

 One of the most basic questions asked of a GIS is "what's

near what?" For example: How close is this well to a
landfill?
1. Do any roads pass within 1,000 meters of a stream?
2. What is the distance between two locations?
3. What is the nearest or farthest feature from
something?
4. What is the distance between each feature in a layer
and the features in another layer?
5. What is the shortest street network route from some
location to another?
SPATIAL ANALYSIS FUNCTIONS

 Proximity tools can be divided into two categories depending

on the type of input the tool accepts: features or rasters. The
feature-based tools vary in the types of output they produce.
For example, the Buffer tool outputs polygon features, which
can then be used as input to overlay or spatial selection tools
such as Select Layer By Location. The Near tool adds a
distance measurement attribute to the input features.
 An overlay operation is much more than a simple merging of
line work; all the attributes of the features taking part in the
overlay are carried through. You can use overlay analysis to
combine the characteristics of several datasets into one. You
can then find specific locations or areas that have a certain
set of attribute values—that is, match the criteria you specify.
This approach is often used to find locations that are suitable
for a particular use or are susceptible to some risk. For
example, you'd overlay layers of vegetation type, slope, aspect,
soil moisture, and so on, to find areas susceptible to wildfire.
BUFFERING

 Buffer creates a new coverage of buffer polygons around

specified input coverage features. Features can be
polygons, lines, points, or nodes.
 You can use the Buffer tool to identify or define an area
within a specified distance around a feature. For example,
you may create a buffer to define an area around a river
to identify land that can't be developed, or you may want
to create a buffer to select features within a specified
distance of a feature.
FINDING THE NEAREST FEATURE

 The Near tool calculates the distance from each point in

one feature class to the nearest point or line feature in
another feature class. You might use Near to find the
closest stream for a set of wildlife observations or the
closest bus stops to a set of tourist destinations. The
Near tool will also add the Feature Identifier and,
optionally, coordinates of and the angle toward the
nearest feature.
OVERLAY ANALYSIS

 One of the most basic questions asked of a GIS is "What's on top of

what?" For example:
1. What land use is on top of what soil type?
2. What parcels are within the 100-year floodplain? ("Within" is just
another way of saying "on top of.")
3. What roads are within what counties?
4. What wells are within abandoned military bases?
Feature overlay
 The key elements in feature overlay are the input layer, the overlay
layer, and the output layer. The overlay function splits features in the
input layer where they are overlapped by features in the overlay layer.
New areas are created where polygons intersect. If the input layer
contains lines, the lines are split where polygons cross them. These
new features are stored in the output layer—the original input layer
is not modified. The attributes of features in the overlay layer are
assigned to the appropriate new features in the output layer, along
with the original attributes from the input layer.
VECTOR OVERLAY TOOLS

 Feature overlay tools are located in the Analysis toolbox

in the Overlay toolset. Conceptually, the tools are similar
- they differ by the feature types they allow you to
overlay, by whether you can overlay multiple layers at one
time, and by which input and overlay features are
maintained in the output layer.
UNIONS

 Union calculates the geometric union of any number of feature

classes and feature layers. All input feature classes or feature layers
must be polygons.
 The output feature class will contain polygons representing the
geometric union of all the inputs as well as all the fields from all the
input feature classes. See below for examples of how attribute values
are assigned to the output features.
 Union does the following:
1. Determines the spatial reference for processing. This will also be
the output spatial reference. For details on how this is done, see
Spatial Reference. All the input feature classes are projected (on
the fly) into this spatial reference.
2. Cracks and clusters the features. Cracking inserts vertices at the
intersection of feature edges; clustering snaps together vertices
that are within the x,y tolerance.
3. Discovers geometric relationships (overlap) between features
from all feature classes.
4. Writes the new features to the output.
INTERSECT

 The Intersect tool calculates the geometric intersection of any

number of feature classes and feature layers. The features, or portion
of features, that are common to all inputs (that is, they intersect) will
be written to the output feature class.
 Intersect does the following:
1. Determines the spatial reference for processing. This will also be
the spatial reference of the output feature class. For details on
how this is done, see Spatial Reference. All the input features are
projected into this spatial reference for processing.
2. Cracks and clusters the features. Cracking inserts vertices at the
intersection of feature edges; clustering snaps together vertices
that are within the xy tolerance.
3. Discovers geometric relationships (intersections) between
features from all the feature classes or layers.
4. Writes these intersections as features (point, line, or polygon) to
the output.
IDENTIFY

 Identity computes a geometric intersection of the input

features and identity features. The input features or
portions thereof that overlap identity features will get the
attributes of those identity features.
THANK
YOU