MAP OVERLAYING

By: Nolzen M. Torres

Definition:
Map Overlay in GIS is the process of taking two different thematic maps of the same area and overlaying them one on top of the other to form a new map layer. The ability to integrate data from two sources using map over is perhaps the key GIS analysis function.

An example diagram illustrating the map overlay process used to evaluate potential agricultural pollution by watershed in Pennsylvania:

The potential agricultural pollution by watershed was estimated by overlaying watershed boundaries, the slope of the terrain, soil types, land use patterns, and animal loading.

Concept:
Map overlay addresses the relationship of the intersection and overlap between spatial features. It is the combination of several spatial datasets (points, lines or polygons) that creates a new output vector dataset and is visually similar to stacking several maps of the same region. These overlays are similar to mathematical Venn diagram overlays.

Three input feature types in map overlay:

1) Point-in-polygon 2) line-in-polygon 3) polygon-in-polygon Point-in-polygon - used to find out the polygon in which a point falls. The output map
can be a new map with additional attributes describing the overlay. Line-in-polygon - The output map will contain roads split into smaller segments representing roads in forest areas and roads outside forest areas. Topological information must be retained in the output map; therefore this is more complex than either of the two input maps. The output map will contain attribute record for each new road segment. Polygon-in-polygon - could be used to examine the overlay of one area on another area. You can have two input data layers.

There are three overlay methods in map overlay:

UNION, INTERSECT, IDENTITY.

UNION - combines the geographic features and attribute tables of both inputs
into a single new output. = or Boolean operator. creates new coverage by overlaying two polygon coverages. the output coverage contains; - the combined polygons - attributes of both coverages all coverages must be polygons

INTERSECT - defines the area where both inputs overlap and retains a set of
attribute fields for each. = and Boolean operator. creates a new coverage by overlaying two sets of features. the output coverage contains; - only those portions of features that are in the area occupied by both the input and intersect coverages.

IDENTITY - overlay also known as symmetric difference overlay defines an

output area that includes the area of both inputs except for the overlapping area. creates a new coverage by overlaying two sets of features the output coverage contains; -all of the input features -keeps only those portions of identity coverage features that overlap the input coverage.