Abstract
Previous recent research on human wayfinding has focused primarily on mental representations rather than processes of wayfinding. This paper presents a formal model of some aspects of the process of wayfinding, where appropriate elements of human perception and cognition are formally realized using image schemata and affordances. The goal-driven reasoning chain that leads to action begins with incomplete and imprecise knowledge derived from imperfect observations of space. Actions result in further observations, derived knowledge and, recursively, further actions, until the goal is achieved or the wayfinder gives up. This paper gives a formalization of this process, using a modal extension to classical propositional logic to represent incomplete knowledge. Both knowledge and action are represented through a wayfinding graph. A special case of wayfinding in a building, that is finding one’s way through an airport, is used to demonstrate the formal model.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Chellas, B., Modal Logic. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 1980.
Cohn, A., “The Challenge of Qualitative Spatial Reasoning”. ACM Computing Surveys, vol. 27, pp. 323–325, 1995.
Epstein, S., “Spatial Representation for Pragmatic Navigation”. In Spatial Information Theory-A Theoretical Basis for GIS, International Conference COSIT’’97, Laurel Highlands, PA, vol. 1329, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, Hirtle, S. and Frank, A., Eds. Berlin: Springer, 1997, pp. 373–388.
Fagin, R., Halpern, J., Moses, Y., and Vardi, M., Reasoning about Knowledge. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1996.
Frank, A., “Spatial Reasoning-Theoretical Considerations and Practical Applications”. EGIS’92, vol. 1. München, Deutschland, 1992.
Frank, A., “Qualitative spatial reasoning: cardinal directions as an example”. International Journal of Geographical Information Systems, vol. 10, pp. 269–290, 1996.
Freksa, C., “Using Orientation Information for Qualitative Spatial Reasoning”. In Theories and Methods of Spatio-Temporal Reasoning in Geographic Space, Lecture Notes in Computer Science 639, Frank, A., Campari, I., and Formentini, U., Eds.: Springer-Verlag, 1992, pp. 162–178.
Gärling, T., Bö öök, A., and Lindberg, E., “Spatial orientation and wayfinding in the designed environment: A conceptual analysis and some suggestions for postoccupancy evaluation.”. Journal of Architectural Planning Resources, vol. 3, pp. 55–64, 1986.
Gärling, T., Lindberg, E., and Möntylä, T., “Orientation in buildings: Effects of familiarity, visual access, and orientation aids.”. Journal of Applied Psychology, vol.68, pp. 177–186, 1983.
Gibson, J., The Ecological Approach to Visual Perception. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1979.
Gluck, M., “Making Sense of Human Wayfinding: Review of Cognitive and Linguistic Knowledge for Personal Navigation with a New Research Direction”. In Cognitive and Linguistic Aspects of Geographic Space, vol. 63, Series D: Behavioural and Social Sciences, Mark, D. and Frank, A., Eds. Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Kluwer Academic Publishers, 1991, pp. 117–135.
Golledge, R., “Place Recognition and Wayfinding: Making Sense of Space”. Geoforum, vol. 23, pp. 199–214, 1992.
Gopal, S., Klatzky, R., and Smith, T., “NAVIGATOR: A Psychologically Based Model of Environmental Learning Through Navigation.”. Journal of Environmental Psychology, pp. 309–331, 1989.
Hintikka, J., J., Knowledge and Belief. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1962.
Johnson, M., The Body in the Mind: The Bodily Basis of Meaning, Imagination, and Reason. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1987.
Kripke, S., “A completeness theorem in modal logic”. Journal of Symbolic Logic, vol. 24, pp. 1–14, 1959.
Kuhn, W., “Handling Data Spatially: Spatializing User Interfaces”. In SDH’96, Advances in GIS Research II, Proceedings, vol. 2, Kraak, M. and Molenaar, M., Eds. Delft: International Geographical Union, 1996, pp. 13B.1–13B.23.
Kuipers, B., “Modeling Spatial Knowledge”. Cognitive Science, vol. 2, pp. 129–154, 1978.
Kuipers, B., “The’ Map in the Head’ Metaphor”. Environment and Behaviour, vol. 14, pp. 202–220, 1982.
Lakoff, G., “Cognitive Semantics”. In Meaning and Mental Representations, Eco, U., Santambrogio, M., and Violi, P., Eds. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1988, pp. 119–154.
Leiser, D. and Zilbershatz, A., “The Traveller-A Computational Model of Spatial Network Learning”. Environment and Behavior, vol. 21, pp. 435–463, 1989.
Lynch, K., The Image of the City. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press, 1960.
Mark, D. and Frank, A., “Experiential and Formal Models of Geographic Space”. Environment and Planning B, vol. 23, pp. 3–24, 1996.
McCalla, G., Reid, L., and Schneider, P., “Plan Creation, Plan Execution, and Knowledge Acquisition in a Dynamic Microworld”. International Journal of Man-Machine Studies, vol. 16, pp. 89–112, 1982.
McDermott, D. and Davis, E., “Planning Routes through Uncertain Territory”.Artificial Intelligence, vol. 22, pp. 107–156, 1984.
Norman, D., The Design of Everyday Things. New York: Doubleday, 1988.
O’Neill, M., “Effects of signage and floor plan configuration on wayfinding accuracy”. Environment and Behavior, vol. 23, pp. 553–574, 1991a.
O’Neill, M., “Evaluation of a conceptual model of architectural legibility”. Environment and Behavior, vol. 23, pp. 259–284, 1991b.
Pawlak, Z., “Rough Sets”. International Journal of Computer and Information Sciences, vol. 11, pp. 341–356, 1982.
Piaget, J. and Inhelder, B., The Child’s Conception of Space. New York: Norton, 1967.
Raubal, M., “Structuring Wayfinding Tasks with Image Schemata”. Department of Spatial Information Science and Engineering, University of Maine, U.S.A., 1997.
Raubal, M. and Egenhofer, M., “Comparing the complexity of wayfinding tasks in built environments”. Environment & Planning B, vol. 25, pp. 895–913, 1998.
Raubal, M., Egenhofer, M., Pfoser, D., and Tryfona, N., “Structuring Space with Image Schemata: Wayfinding in Airports as a Case Study”. In Spatial Information Theory-A Theoretical Basis for GIS, International Conference COSIT’97, Laurel Highlands, PA, vol. 1329, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, Hirtle, S. and Frank, A., Eds. Berlin: Springer, 1997, pp. 85–102.
Seidel, A., “Way-Finding in Public Spaces: The Dallas/Fort Worth, USA Airport.”. 20th International Congress of Applied Psychology. Edinburgh, Scotland, 1982.
Siegel, A. and White, S., “The development of spatial representations of large-scale environments”. In Advances in child development and behavior, vol. 10, Reese, H., Ed. New York: Academic Press, 1975, pp. 9–55.
Weisman, J., “Evaluating architectural legibility: Way-finding in the built environment”. Environment and Behavior, vol. 13, pp. 189–204, 1981.
Worboys, M., “The Role of Modal Logics in the Description of Knowledge in a Geographic Information System”. In Cognitive and Linguistic Aspects of Geographic Space, Mark, D. and Frank, A., Eds. Dordrecht, Netherlands: Kluwer, 1991, pp. 403–414.
Worboys, M., “Computation with imprecise geospatial data”. Computers, Environment and Urban Systems, vol. 22, pp. 85–106, 1998.
Worboys, M., “Imprecision in finite resolution spatial data”. GeoInformatica, vol. 2, pp. 257–279, 1998.
Worboys, M., “Observations and Knowledge”. Department of Computer Science, Keele University, Staffs., England, Science Technical Report TR99.01, 1999.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1999 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
About this paper
Cite this paper
Raubal, M., Worboys, M. (1999). A Formal Model of the Process of Wayfinding in Built Environments. In: Freksa, C., Mark, D.M. (eds) Spatial Information Theory. Cognitive and Computational Foundations of Geographic Information Science. COSIT 1999. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 1661. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-48384-5_25
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-48384-5_25
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
Print ISBN: 978-3-540-66365-2
Online ISBN: 978-3-540-48384-7
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive