Real-Time Mobile GIS Prototype: Design, Architecture, and Usability Study

In the past, mobile communication devices (such as cell phones) have not been utilized in flood forecasting and warning due to limitations in technology that have limited the ability of forecasters to gather and interpret geographical data in near real-time. This paper presents a prototype that integrates a GIS (geographic information system) with a hydrological model. It is a mobile mapping application for J2ME-enabled mobile communication devices that allows those in the flood forecasting, prevention, and related fields to execute programs and run mapping functions from a server using their mobile device. The proposed client-server network application uses mobile devices to connect to a server via the Internet. This study also evaluates the usability of the system using an in-lab tests. The favourable research and experimentation related to the prototype suggests that a location-based service (LBS) may also be implemented effectively on J2ME-enabled phones. Although environmental events such as floods cannot be predicted with certainty, the proposed application, if correctly implemented, may change how professionals identify and respond to flood disasters and thus greatly increase the potential for saving both life and property. Since this work lays a foundation for future mobile mapping applications, suggestions on possible design and implementation of the application are discussed.