Address geocoding

Address geocoding, or simply geocoding, is the process of taking a text-based description of a location, such as an address or the name of a place, and returning geographic coordinates (typically the latitude/longitude pair) to identify a location on the Earth's surface. Reverse geocoding on the other hand converts geographic coordinates to the description of a location, usually the name of a place or an addressable location. Geocoding relies on a computer representation of address points, the street / road network, together with postal and administrative boundaries. * Geocode (verb): provide geographical coordinates corresponding to (a location). * Geocode (noun): is a code that represents a geographic entity (location or object). In general is a human-readable and short identifier; like a nominal-geocode as ISO 3166-1 alpha-2, or a grid-geocode, as Geohash geocode. * Geocoder (noun): a piece of software or a (web) service that implements a geocoding process i.e. a set of interrelated components in the form of operations, algorithms, and data sources that work together to produce a spatial representation for descriptive locational references. The geographic coordinates representing locations often vary greatly in positional accuracy.…

Address geocoding, or simply geocoding, is the process of taking a text-based description of a location, such as an address or the name of a place, and returning geographic coordinates (typically the latitude/longitude pair) to identify a location on the Earth's surface. Reverse geocoding on the other hand converts geographic coordinates to the description of a location, usually the name of a place or an addressable location. Geocoding relies on a computer representation of address points, the street / road network, together with postal and administrative boundaries. Geocode (verb): provide geographical coordinates corresponding to (a location). Geocode (noun): is a code that represents a geographic entity (location or object). In general is a human-readable and short identifier; like a nominal-geocode as ISO 3166-1 alpha-2, or a grid-geocode, as Geohash geocode. Geocoder (noun): a piece of software or a (web) service that implements a geocoding process i.e. a set of interrelated components in the form of operations, algorithms, and data sources that work together to produce a spatial representation for descriptive locational references. The geographic coordinates representing locations often vary greatly in positional accuracy. Examples include building centroids, land parcel centroids, interpolated locations based on thoroughfare ranges, street segments centroids, postal code centroids (e.g. ZIP codes, CEDEX), and administrative division Centroids. ==Address interpolation== A simple method of geocoding is address interpolation. This method makes use of data from a street geographic information system where the street network is already mapped within the geographic coordinate space. Each street segment is attributed with address ranges (e.g. house numbers from one segment to the next). Geocoding takes an address, matches it to a street and specific segment (such as a block, in towns that use the "block" convention). Geocoding then interpolates the position of the address, within the range along the segment. ===Example=== Take for example: 742 Evergreen Terrace Let's say that this segment (for instance, a block) of Evergreen Terrace runs from 700 to 799. Even-numbered addresses fall on the east side of Evergreen Terrace, with odd-numbered addresses on the west side of the street. 742 Evergreen Terrace would (probably) be located slightly less than halfway up the block, on the east side of the street. A point would be mapped at that location along the street, perhaps offset a distance to the east of the street centerline. ==Other techniques== In rural areas or other places lacking high quality street network data and addressing, GPS is useful for mapping a location. For traffic accidents, geocoding to a street intersection or midpoint along a street centerline is a suitable technique. Most highways in developed countries have mile markers to aid in emergency response, maintenance, and navigation. It is also possible to use a combination of these geocoding techniques — using a particular technique for certain cases and situations and other techniques for other cases. In contrast to geocoding of structured postal address records, toponym resolution maps place names in unstructured document collections to their corresponding spatial footprints. Place codes offer a way to create digitally generated addresses where no information exists using satellite imagery and machine learning, e.g., Robocodes Natural Address Codes are a proprietary geocode system that can address an area anywhere on the Earth, or a volume of space anywhere around the Earth. The use of alphanumeric characters instead of only ten digits makes a NAC shorter than its numerical latitude/longitude equivalent. Military Grid Reference System is the geocoordinate standard used by NATO militaries for locating points on Earth. Universal Transverse Mercator coordinate system is a map projection system for assigning coordinates to locations on the surface of the Earth. the Maidenhead Locator System, popular with radio operators. the World Geographic Reference System (GEOREF), developed for global military operations, replaced by the current Global Area Reference System (GARS). Open Location Code or "Plus Codes," developed by Google and released into the public domain. Geohash, a public domain system based on the Morton Z-order curve. What3words, a proprietary system that encodes geographic coordinate system (GCS) coordinates as pseudorandom sets of words by dividing the coordinates into three numbers and looking up words in an indexed dictionary. FullerCode, an open and free system developed to facilitate the transmission of geographic positions by voice (e.g., over radio or telephone). ==Research== Research has introduced a new approach to the control and knowledge aspects of geocoding, by using an agent-based paradigm. In addition to the new paradigm for geocoding, additional correction techniques and control algorithms have been developed. The approach represents the geographic elements commonly found in addresses as individual agents. This provides a commonality and duality to control and geographic representation. In addition to scientific publication, the new approach and subsequent prototype gained national media coverage in Australia. The research was conducted at Curtin University in Perth, Western Australia. With the recent advance in Deep Learning and Computer Vision, a new geocoding workflow, which leverages Object Detection techniques to directly extract the centroid of the building rooftops as geocoding output, has been proposed. ==Uses== Geocoded locations are useful in many GIS analysis, cartography, decision making workflow, transaction mash-up, or injected into larger business processes. On the web, geocoding is used in services like routing and local search. Geocoding, along with GPS provides location data for geotagging media, such as photographs or RSS items. ==Privacy concerns== The proliferation and ease of access to geocoding (and reverse geocoding) services raises privacy concerns. For example, in mapping crime incidents, law enforcement agencies aim to balance the privacy rights of victims and offenders, with the public's right to know. Law enforcement agencies have experimented with alternative geocoding techniques that allow them to mask a portion of the locational detail (e.g., address specifics that would lead to identifying a victim or offender). As well, in providing online crime mapping to the public, they also place disclaimers regarding the locational accuracy of points on the map, acknowledging these location masking techniques, and impose terms of use for the information. ==See also== Azure Maps, a leading commercial geocoding service Geocode Gazetteer Geocoded photo, which includes methods of geocoding images Geographic information system (GIS) Geolocation Geoparsing Georeference Geotagging Linear referencing Reverse geocoding Toponym resolution ==References== Three Standard Geocoding Methods (in North America) – article The Evolution of Geocoding: Moving Away from Conflation Confliction to Best Match – article A Flexible Addressing System for Approximate Geocoding – paper presented at Geoinfo 2003 The UCDP and AidData codebook on geo-referencing aid – guide for geocoding development aid projects

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