Spatial targeting using queries in a 3-D GIS environment with application to mineral exploration

A query framework for spatial targeting within a 3-D geographic information system (GIS) software environment is introduced. Input to a query consists of parameters relevant to the query type together with a set of Common Earth Modelling objects represented as point sets, polygonal lines, surfaces, and grids or a region set (subset) thereof. The result of a 3-D GIS query is a region within each of the input objects that consists of nodes or grid cells where the query criteria was satisfied. We provide example scenarios, drawn from mineral exploration, where 3-D queries are used to guide spatial targeting within a near-mine or regional map scale setting. Query types supported are: proximity query (to a “probe” object), property query (numeric attribute), shell query (containment within a closed surface), meta-data query, feature query (dome, depression, curvature), trend query (dip plane, vector) and intersection query (with a “probe” object). Queries can be specific for a given object type but in general transcend object types. Standard set theoretical operations for a query results in newly defined regions and are supported within the Gocad© development environment. This development focuses on queries relevant in the 3-D data integration and interpretation stages of mature geological model development as well as early analysis, typically undertaken before a fully partitioned and attributed 3-D topological model is available.