Integrating Modeling for Profile Analysis of Urban Underground Pipelines Based on 3d Gis

Profile analysis of urban underground pipelines solely from 2D GIS data is very difficult because the two-dimensional geographic information system technologies do not quite meet all the utility's needs. The present study aims at developing a quick and practical method to automatically produce the utility’s profile using 3D GIS techniques. A 3D Urban Pipe Network Model (3DUPNM) about underground pipelines was proposed on the basis of analyzing the basic characteristics of urban underground pipelines in detail. Also, the approach to dynamically analyze the spatial relations between pipelines was presented by integrating the 3DUPNM with the knowledge related to planning of urban pipelines. Finally, the algorithms of automatically producing the cross-sectional profile and vertical-sectional profile were given particularly. Study shows that these algorithms are more efficient than those using 2D GIS techniques.