Data in Smart Cities

Overview

  • real time data
    • collected from
      • devices
      • sensor network
      • IoT
    • sources
      • parking spaces
      • city trash bins
      • vehicles
      • energy turbines, etc.
  • data: existing in different forms
    • data in cloud
      • pay for actual usage
      • centralized & remote management
      • accessible in different locations
    • big data
      • large and complex data sets
      • difficult to be handled by traditional technologies like relational database
      • requires new technologies and processing applications like Hadoop to deal with
    • spatial data
      • 80% of data generated in our daily lives are spatial data
      • identifies the geographic location of features and boundaries on earth
  • value of data in developing smart city
    • to understand where, when, how and why
    • to support policy-making
    • to optimize operations
    • to enable smart apps and services

Future

  • stimulating innovation
  • revolutionizing business models
  • creating new jobs
  • improve quality of life

Open Data

Overview

  • definition
    • refers to information that can be freely used, modified, & shared by anyone for any purpose
    • it must be available under an open licence & provided in a convenient and modifiable form that is machine readable
    • is not just about sharing data
    • it is also about using it in innovative ways, such as creating apps and solutions with it and helping stakeholders make data-driven decisions
    • setting up an open data site allows citizens, government employees, developers, startups, and more, to launch new solutions and applications almost immediately
  • 8 principles of open data
    • complete
    • primary
    • timely
    • accessible
    • machine processable
    • non-discriminatory
    • non-proprietary
    • license-free

Advantages and disadvantages

  • advantages
    • individual
      • make more informed decisions & new services
    • business
      • cost-effective resource to combine with proprietary databases
    • government
      • increase transparency & collaboration
      • direct improved city planning & job creation
      • driving economy
    • global
      • location-based open data could suggest sustainable solutions to address the problems
  • disadvantages
    • privacy concerns
    • lose control over confidential information
    • expense of creating and curating an open data portal
    • data must be machine-readable
    • constant updating and promotion
    • effort must be spent engaging the community

Aggregate information

  • definition
    • collective data that relates to a group or category of services or customers, from which individual customer identities & characteristics have been removed
  • function
    • to utilize these data can promote efficiency and create opportunities to the community
  • key points
    • using crowdsourcing
    • a serious limitation - the data mainly depends on the number of service subscribers, and cannot be comprehensive
    • government open data + aggregate information -> form complete pictures of relevant fields

The roadmap for open data infrastructure - 10 key steps

  • understand & advocate
  • resource & govern
  • align & integrate
  • create & commit
  • secure & protect
  • build capcity
  • prioritise & crowdsource
  • connect & communicate
  • maintain & sustain
  • listen, adjust & share

Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI)

Overview

  • data is “new oil”
  • spatial data sharing as a smart city infrastructure
  • definition
    • the term Spatial Data Infrastructure was coined in 1993 by the U.S. National Research Council to denote a framework of technologies, policies and institutional arrangements that together facilitate the creation, exchange, and use of geospatial data and related information resources across an information-sharing community
    • such a framework can be implemented narrowly to enable the sharing of geospatial information within an organization or more broadly for use at a national, regional, or global level
    • in all cases, an SDI will provide an institutionally sanctioned, automated means for posting, discovering, evaluating, and exchanging geospatial information by participating information producers and users
    • SDI extends a GIS by ensuring geospatial data and standards are used to create authoritative datasets and polices that support it
  • IGIF (The Integrated Geospatial Information Framework)
    • note: geospatial information is a nation’s “digital currency” for evidence-based decision-making
  • what is behind to build a SDI
    • policy & institutional framework
    • data & technical standard
    • technologies & applications
    • people & sharing
  • summary
    • SDI provide government departments as well as public and private organisations with an information infrastructure to share spatial data, supporting smart city applications

CSDI (Common Spatial Data Infrastructure)

  • framework
  • importance
    • better city planning & management
    • unlock the wealth of existing knowledge & boost the economy
    • make right and agile decisions
  • potential applications
    • COP (Common Operation Picture) - online operations dashboard
      • provides a central location to access a suite of maps and applications for the various groups within the Emergency Operations Center (EOC)
      • the applications support focused workflows and allow each group to contribute to a common operational dataset through a shared services catalog
    • risk assessment
    • pattern and hotspots analysis
    • route planning & navigation
    • spatial market research

Spatial data management

  • backbone technology
    • GIS (provides the location platform)
      • integrating people, processes, things, and data about them
      • system of engagement
      • system of record
      • system of insight
      • using the power of where to integrate everything

SDI around the world - examples

  • GeoPlatform
  • INSPIRE Geoportal (EU)
  • OneMap (Singapore)
  • The SDG (Sustainable Development Goals) Hub (UN)
  • Los Angeles GeoHub
    • success factors
      • explorable data
      • includes map and operational data
      • opens data internally and externally
      • launches apps for immediate use
      • provides context of issues through story maps
      • offers training and developer resources
      • leverages a larger ecosystem
  • map-centric city dashboard
    • contents
      • provide at-a-glance views of KPI
      • interactive (trigger response in other elements)
      • support real-time data feeds
      • data display includes a map or spatial context
      • share with others
    • key usage pattern
      • monitor and manage operations/assets
        • IoT
        • COP
      • event management
        • situational awareness
        • emergency management
      • executive summaries
        • visualize & compare
        • reporting dashboard
    • CSDI readiness to map-sensitive dashboard
    • a map is worth a thousand words (such as the period of Covid-19)

Summary

Begin with smart response

  • a smart future begins with a smart response to changes and challenges
  • a smart response begins with the adoption of essential technologies which generate large volume of real-time spatial data in open format

To enable public engagement

  • for citizens
    • to voluntarily collect information about surroundings and share with the community
  • for government
    • use SDI to aggregate the data to identify hot spots of services
    • to inform citizens and seek their approval when drafting development plans for the future

To build a hub of innovation

  • SDI and open data strategy creates the infrastructure for information sharing, solution creation, and innovation
  • data and initiatives in SDI can be actionable and reusable by different communities in the city
  • a hub of innovation can be built together by government departments, NGOs, startups, academia, businesses, and citizens

An open and smarter future

  • open data and SDI bring more collaboration and transparency by enabling citizens, businesses, NGOs, academia and government departments working together
  • a Smart City enabled by open data and SDI is a place where people feel safe, healthy, happy and motivated to improve

SDI is an enabling technology

  • today’s government & communities need collaboration
    • people
    • process
    • data
    • technology
  • example
    • 3D Singapore Sandbox @ GeoWorks

Additional Reading