Development of SISGeM - An Online System for 3D Geologic Modeling -

GIS can be readily used to manage and analyze 2D information and also afford 3D visualization of surface features. However, general-purpose GIS packages do not offer capabilities for constructing or visualizing 3D geologic models. GIS tools must, therefore, be appropriately tailored to handle geologic data and accommodate the special spatial analysis needs of geologic information. Since 3D geologic information consists of both spatial and relational components, integration of GIS and RDBMS into a common environment is necessary to facilitate efficient handling of geologic data. Further, the fact being that both GIS and RDBMS tools require specialized training, it is desirable that a user-friendly interface that hides the underlying complexities of GIS and RDBMS is also designed. We have developed a prototype Spatial Information System for Geologic Modeling (SISGeM). SISGeM has been successfully implemented by integrating GIS and RDBMS with Internet. The system is capable of generating 3D geologic models using data that is recorded in a field outcrop or derived by digitizing hardcopy geologic maps and visualizing horizontal sections at user-defined depths. In this study, we present functions of SISGeM and an example of generating 3D geologic model using actual geologic data derived from geological survey.