mapping time space - the basics

Faculty of Architecture

TIME-SPACE MAPPING THE BASICS

Jeroen van Schaick – [email protected] – Room 8.12a


DID YOU EVER DRAW TIME?


TODAY• Some theoretical background

• Time-space visualisation techniques: some principles

• indicating time in visualisations

• activity patterns

• isochronic maps

• tempographic maps

• rhythm maps

• Time-space maps: some classics


Visualisation in architecture, urban design and planning is never a goal in itself.

Maps are information carriers, communication tools and research tools.

(Visual) models are simplifications of reality and can be descriptive, explanatory, explorative, or predictive, regarding existing or probable situations.

In architecture, urban design and planning (visual) models are also used to explore, plan and project future situations that may be realised through interventions


NORMALLY in architecture, urban design and spatial planning TIME is thought of - in large quantities (years, decades, centuries)- in terms of transformation- visualised in the form of historic analysis and future plans (as 4th dimension)

TIME in terms of the USE of urban space is not the fourth dimension after 3-D space- Time as measure (clock & calendars = time made spatial) - Time as container - Time as system (natural time, social time, cultural time, religious time)

In the context of architecture, urban design and spatial planning- Time as distance- Time as moment (e.g. snapshot of an urban situation, the time your work starts…)- Time as amount- Time as rhythm- Time as flow (movement)- Time as history/future (change&transformation!)


TIME is about processes: Cyclical, linear and on multiple scales

Problems and challenges for time-space mapping:

Freezing time in maps: a spatial model of time

Scale errors: time scales do not relate directly to spatial scales

Analogies between time and space are not straigthforward

Simultaneously showing multiple processes in/as space


Drewe 2004


….so far the theory


….now some techniques


….basic techniques: general


TIME INDICATORS:

1. Symbols: labels, pictograms, scale and colors (legenda!)

2. Reference: clock time, timeline and/or intuitive time representation

3. Forms: Point-Line-Surface-Volume-Animation

4. Medium: map, map series, 3-D model, interactive media, multimedia/multiview, movie

5. Explicit model of the structure of time in relation to the structure of space: what do you want to show?!


Beware for ambiguousmeanings: e.g. arrow

transformation

movement

TIME INDICATORS:

1. Symbols: labels, pictograms, scale and colors (legenda!)

2. Reference: clock time, timeline and/or intuitive time representation

3. Forms: Point-Line-Surface-Volume-Animation

4. Medium: map, map series, 3-D model, interactive media, multimedia/multiview, movie

5. Explicit model of the structure of time in relation to the structure of space: what do you want to show?!


….basic technique 1


ACTIVITY PATTERNS1. Activities of 1 person or 1 household

2. Topological (nodes and lines – activity pattern)

3. Elliptical (activity space)

4. 3-dimensional with time as third dimension

A. Additional information in text, symbols ormanipulation of lines and/or points

B. Space as reference map or as integral part of the activity pattern?

C. Potentially overlaps & accumulation of multiple individual activity patterns


POTENTIAL PERCEIVED REALIZED


Vidakovic 1988; Klaasen 2003


Lenntorp 1976


Parkes & Thrift 1978; after Dagens Nyheter 1976


ISOCHRONIC MAPS1.Isolines: connecting points with the same ‘value’ (e.g. temperature, height,

distance in minutes from a point)

2. Projected on a topographic or other geographical map

3. Displaying accessibility to and/or from a place in travel time (be aware of how these travel times are calculated and for what mode of transport!)

4. “Centre of the world”

A. Overlaps of mulitple isochronic analyses can show best origin ordestination to centre(s)

B. Additional possibilities: showing accesibility of number of jobs, potentialemployees, amenities, etc. within one hour

C. Can be used for user-base-analysis for public transport stops, etc.


Offenhuber 2002

Influence of urban structure and of transport modes:

what can YOU do with multimodal transport chains…….?


Do not forget travel byfoot and bike!

Klaasen 2004


…and what aboutINaccessibility?

- For specific groups

- For specific places

- With a limited amountof money

- What do you miss…

e.g. the “food-vacuum”


VS.

Individual accessibility Place accessibility

Weber 2003 Boer 2003


….so far

A. some theory

B. techniques:

indicators

activity patterns (1)

isochronic maps (2)

….next

C. techniques:

tempographic maps (3)

rhythm maps (4)

D. some classics

...and some closing remarks


TEMPOGRAPHIC MAPS (cartograms)

1. Distortion of geographical distance as temporal distance (distortion of mesh, point position, infrastructure network, urban form, shape of a nation or relative distance experienced)

2. Distortion of temporal distance over time

A. From a centre

B. Multiple time scales (distance & transformation)

C. Tentative, but often simplistic

D. The flow of movement is lost in representation


Effect of introduction of HighSpeed Train in Europe on Travel Times 1993-2020

Geography of Europe

no time-distortion

Source: Wegener & Spiekermann 1994


Ahmed, N. and H.J. Miller (2006 in press) Time-space transformations of geographic space for exploring, analyzing and visualizing transportation systems


KW Axhausen, C. Dolci, Ph. Fröhlich, M. Scherer, A. Carosio(2006) Constructing time-scaled maps: Switzerland 1950 to 2000


RHYTHM MAPS (cartograms)

1. On/Off maps

2. Time envelopes

3. Influx/outflux

4. Population and intensity maps

A. Static single maps

B. Dynamic maps: animation of rhythms (also 3-D possibilities for intensities)

C. Flow maps (commuting, congestion,


Source: l Piano dei Tempi e Degli Orari della Città di Pesaro 1997


The large difference in intensity of use of the same area at differing times of day (Doxiadis 1968: 325); courtesy Klaasen 2005


• Some theoretical background

• the goal of mapping time-space

• the nature of time in architecture & urbanism

• scale and other problems and challenges

• Time-space visualisation techniques: some principles

• indicating time in visualisations

• activity patterns

• isochronic maps

• tempographic maps

• rhythm maps

….summarizing


….lastly some classics


(Minard 1861)


(Chombart De Lauwe 1957)

Source: Else/Where Mapping; original in “Paris et l'agglomeration parisienne” (1952)


(Galton, 1881)


Cheysson1888


(Harness, 1837)


Technological innovation in society that has an effect on time-space behaviour of people

The complexity of reciprocal effects of changes in networks, places, relations and actors

People are at the centre of why we design buildings and urbanspace

Unequal distribution of inclusion, speed, prosperity over peopleand places

Some closing remarks on why time-space visualisations are generallydeveloped


TIME-SPACE MAPPING THE BASICS

Jeroen van Schaick – [email protected] – Room 8.12a

mapping time space - the basics

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