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Positional Accuracy Improvement (PAI)

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Encyclopedia of GIS

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© Crown copyright 2007. Reproduced by permission of Ordnance Survey.

Synonyms

PAI; Synchronization of spatial data; Map quality; Map overhaul; Digitization of maps; Relative positional accuracy; Absolute positional accuracy; Rubber sheeting; Geometric fidelity; Shifting geometries; Conflation

Definition

Positional Accuracy Improvement is the process of improving the position of the coordinates defining the geometry of a feature in a geospatial dataset to better reflect its “true” position. This “true” position can either relate to the absolute position in an overarching Coordinate Reference System such as WGS-84 or ETRS-89 or to the relative position in relation to the geometry of another feature in the vicinity.

The PAI process is commonly utilized in two different, but related ways:

PAI of Reference Data

This process deals with improving the position of geometries in a reference dataset that describes physical or abstract features of the earth. These reference datasets are...

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Recommended Reading

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  11. Saalfeld, A.: Conflation: Automated Map Compilation. US Bureau of Census, SRD Research Report Number: Census/SRD/RR-87/24. http://www.census.gov/srd/papers/pdf/rr87-24.pdf (1997)

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  13. Ordnance Survey, Positional Accuracy Improvement website, www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/PAI

  14. MAF/Tiger Accuracy Improvement Program, http://www.census.gov/geo/mod/maftiger.html. This article has been prepared for information purposes only. It is not designed to constitute definitive advice on the topics covered and any reliance placed on the contents of this article is at the sole risk of the reader

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ordnance Survey, Southampton, UK

    Carsten Rönsdorf

Authors
  1. Carsten Rönsdorf
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, 55455, USA

    Shashi Shekhar (McKnight Distinguished University Professor) (McKnight Distinguished University Professor)

  2. Management Science and Information Systems Department, Rutgers Business School Newark and New Brunswick Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, 07102, USA

    Hui Xiong (Assistant Professor) (Assistant Professor)

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© 2008 Springer-Verlag

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Rönsdorf, C. (2008). Positional Accuracy Improvement (PAI). In: Shekhar, S., Xiong, H. (eds) Encyclopedia of GIS. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-35973-1_1009

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