Issueson Interoperability and Integration of HeterogeneousGeographicalData

Theinteroperabilityof informationsystemshasbeenpursuedfor a long timeby researchers andpractitioners.It involvestheexchangeof informationamongdifferentsystems,andrequiresagreement on formatsand applicationdomainconcepts.Interoperabilitymay alsoencompasscommonalityof userinteractionandsystem behavior. Oneof theinteroperabilityproblemswhichhasbeeninvestigatedfor over20yearson differentcontexts is thatof integrationof heterogeneous data.However, eventhis fundamental andold problemis veryhardto solve. Thedataintegrationproblemmaybeconsideredfrom many perspecti vesandon increasinglevelsof complexity or abstraction.Thispaperreviewstheliteratureaboutinteroperabilityin general,andintegrationof heterogeneous geographicaldatain particular, presentsseveral facetsof the dataintegrationproblem,andsomeapproachesto dealwith them.