Skip to main content

Charting a Course into the Digital Era Guidance for NOAA's Nautical Charting Mission (1994) / Chapter Skim
Currently Skimming:

4 The Digital Nautical Data Base: From Paper Charts to Electronic Charts and Beyond
Pages 31-36

The Chapter Skim interface presents what we've algorithmically identified as the most significant single chunk of text within every page in the chapter.
Select key terms on the right to highlight them within pages of the chapter.


From page 31...
... The nautical charting world reflects these changes in a growing demand for digital data sets to support electronic charts and other uses of marine geographic information and in new automated nautical chart production systems. This chapter begins with a review of the rationale for making the maintenance of a national nautical information data base a central focus of NOAA's nautical charting activities.
Read the entire page →
From page 32...
... Recently, it has also included digital records of surveys; in the near future the data base we consist primarily of digital data. Reaching this objective requires the conversion of much existing data to digital form in a centralized digital nautical data base.
Read the entire page →
From page 33...
... PLANS FOR LOADING THE ANCS II DATA BASE Converting paper chart data to the digital format required for the ANCS I} data base involves two steps: digitization and attribution. Digitization is the process of constructing a numerical description of the lines, points, and other features shown in the paper chart.
Read the entire page →
From page 34...
... While the raster images contain the same source information from which vectorized data ultimately will be produced, the plan to maintain and support a separate raster data base represents a significant departure from the goal of rapidly populating the ANCS II vector NIDB. This activity threatens to divert resources from the development of the NIDB and to delay further the time when the full advantages of a vector-based master digital nautical data base will be attained.
Read the entire page →
From page 35...
... An efficient approach would be to retract the plan to maintain a raster data base and use all available resources to push the population of a digital nautical data base (such as the ANCS II NIDB) to fruition as quickly as possible, eliminating as many of the attributes as is consistent with safe and accurate paper chart production.
Read the entire page →
From page 36...
... Maintenance of a separate raster image data base threatens to divert limited resources from the population of a vector-based master digital nautical data base and is not an efficient way to effect the improvements in chart production time that NOAA envisions. A more fruitful course for NOAA to follow into the digital information future lies in focusing on a lean approach to attribution and a full effort at vector digitization.
Read the entire page →

Key Terms

  • digital nautical
  • chart production
  • paper chart
  • raster data
  • nautical chart

  • nautical charting
  • master digital
  • nautical information
  • digital data
  • automated nautical

  • chart products
  • vector data
  • master nautical
  • raster images
  • source data

  • information data
  • electronic chart
  • nidb loading
  • separate raster
  • information activities

  • charting mission
  • digital form
  • chart data
  • national nautical
  • paper charts

  • raster image
  • maintenance process
  • goals include
  • official digital
  • avenues exist


    • This material may be derived from roughly machine-read images, and so is provided only to facilitate research.
    More information on Chapter Skim is available.