To improve the reusability of three-dimensional （3D） models and simplify the complexity of natural scene reconstruction, this paper presents a 3D model database for universal 3D GIS. After the introduction of its extensible function architecture, accompanied by the conclusion of implicit spatial-temporal hierarchy of models in any reconstructed scene of 3D GIS for general purpose, several key issues are discussed in detail, such as the storage and management of 3D models and related retrieval and load method, as well as the interfaces for further on-demand development. Finally, the validity and feasibility of this model database are proved through its application in the development of 3D visualization system of railway operation.
Aiming at the integrative management and comprehensive applications of large-scale 3D geospatial information covering the full 3D space of a city, this paper briefly introduces the design and implementation of a full 3D GIS platform： GeoScope, which provides a professional solution for the massive full three-dimensional geospatial data integration, management, analysis, visualization, and applications. GeoScope is characterized by： （1） extendible software architecture based on the hierarchical message bus, facilitates multimodal integrative applications of 2D GIS and 3D GIS; （2） unified 3D city models, support multiscale se- mantic representation of outdoor ＆ indoor and aboveground ＆ underground 3D objects; （3） high-efficient 3D geospatial database engine, supports integrated management of massive 3D geospatial data for real-time applications; and （4） high-performance visualization engine exploiting the massively parallel computation architecture of modem GPUs, supports real-time realistic rendering of large-scale complicated 3D geospatial environments. The successful pilot application of GeoScope is also illustrated with the 3D city models of 8494 knl2 of the whole Wuhan City, the largest city in middle China.
The way we interact with spatial data has been changed from 2D map to 3D Virtual Geographic Environment （VGE）. Three-dimensional representations of geographic information on a computer are known as VGE, and in particular 3D city models provide an efficient way to integrate massive, heterogenous geospatial information and georeferenced information in urban areas. 3D city modeling （3DCM） is an active research and practice topic in distinct application areas. This paper intro- duces different modeling paradigms employed in 3D GIS, virtual environment, and AEC/FM. Up-to-date 3DCM technologies are evolving into a data integration and collaborative approach to represent the full spatial coverage of a city, to model both aboveground and underground, outdoor and indoor environments including man-made objects and natural features with 3D geometry, appearance, topology and semantics.
