3. 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
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4. 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
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5. 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!)
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6. 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
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11. 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?!
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12. 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 ambiguous
meanings: e.g. arrow
transformation
movement
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14. ACTIVITY PATTERNS
1. 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 or
manipulation 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
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15. POTENTIAL PERCEIVED REALIZED
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22. ISOCHRONIC MAPS
1.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 or
destination to centre(s)
B. Additional possibilities: showing accesibility of number of jobs, potential
employees, amenities, etc. within one hour
C. Can be used for user-base-analysis for public transport stops, etc.
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23. Influence of urban structure and of transport modes:
what can YOU do with multimodal transport chains…….?
Offenhuber 2002
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24. Do not forget travel by
foot and bike!
Klaasen 2004
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25. …and what about
INaccessibility?
- For specific groups
- For specific places
- With a limited amount
of money
- What do you miss…
e.g. the “food-vacuum”
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28. ….so far ….next
A. some theory C. techniques:
B. techniques: tempographic maps (3)
indicators rhythm maps (4)
activity patterns (1) D. some classics
isochronic maps (2)
...and some closing remarks
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30. 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
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31. Geography of Europe Effect of introduction of HighSpeed Train in
no time-distortion Europe on Travel Times 1993-2020
Source: Wegener & Spiekermann 1994
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32. Ahmed, N. and H.J. Miller (2006 in press) Time-space transformations of geographic space for exploring, analyzing and visualizing transportation systems
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33. KW Axhausen, C. Dolci, Ph. Fröhlich, M. Scherer, A. Carosio(2006) Constructing time-scaled
maps: Switzerland 1950 to 2000
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34. KW Axhausen, C. Dolci, Ph. Fröhlich, M. Scherer, A. Carosio(2006) Constructing time-scaled
maps: Switzerland 1950 to 2000
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35. 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,
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40. The large difference in intensity of use of the same area at differing
times of day (Doxiadis 1968: 325); courtesy Klaasen 2005
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41. ….summarizing
• 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
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49. Some closing remarks on why time-
space visualisations are generally
developed
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 urban
space
Unequal distribution of inclusion, speed, prosperity over people
and places
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50. TIME-SPACE MAPPING
THE BASICS
Jeroen van Schaick – j.vanschaick@tudelft.nl – Room 8.12a
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