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• Using Geospatial Technologies to understand Mixed Reality better. • Utilizing the Internet of Things to communicate between Mixed Reality Environments and the Real Worlds. • Defining a novel Virtual-to-Real interaction method for Mixed Reality Interactions. • Demonstrating a case study with an application prototype, where a virtual man executes a physical task. As Mixed Reality applications penetrate people's daily activities, strong synergies with Geospatial technologies and the Internet of Things are revealed. The first is due to the significance of the spatial reference of all involved actors of a Mixed Reality environment: the end-user, the real and the virtual objects. The second is due to the ever-increasing participation of sensors controlling devices and machines always and everywhere. This paper highlights these synergies and proposes a case proving they crucially empower a Mixed Reality experience. Through this synergy, a novel interaction method for Mixed Reality Environments emerges, the "physical task execution" interaction method. An open-source application prototype was developed to support the case study where we assign a physical task to a virtual man to execute, utilising the Internet of Things in a Mixed Reality Environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digital Elevation Models (DEMs), in combination with high quality raster graphics provide realistic three-dimensional (3D) representations of the globe (virtual globe) and amazing navigation experience over the terrain through earth browsers. In addition, the adoption of interoperable geospatial mark-up languages (e.g. KML) and open programming libraries (Javascript) makes it also possible to create 3D spatial objects and convey on them the sensation of any type of texture by utilizing open 3D representation models (e.g. Collada). One step beyond, by employing WebGL frameworks (e.g. Cesium.js, three.js) animation and motion effects are attributed on 3D models. However, major GIS-based functionalities in combination with all the above mentioned visualization capabilities such as for example animation effects on selected areas of the terrain texture (e.g. sea waves) as well as motion effects on 3D objects moving in dynamically defined georeferenced terrain paths (e.g. the motion of an animal over a hill, or of a big fish in an ocean etc.) are not widely supported at least by open geospatial applications or development frameworks. Towards this we developed and made available to the research community, an open geospatial software application prototype that provides high level capabilities for dynamically creating user defined virtual geospatial worlds populated by selected animated and moving 3D models on user specified locations, paths and areas. At the same time, the generated code may enhance existing open visualization frameworks and programming libraries dealing with 3D simulations, with the geospatial aspect of a virtual world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Data semantics play an extremely significant role in spatial data infrastructures by providing semantic specifications to geospatial data and enabling in this way data sharing and interoperability. By applying, on the fly, composite geospatial processes on the above data it is possible to produce valuable geoinformation over the web directly available and applicable to a wide range of geo-activities of significant importance for the research and industry community. Cloud computing may enable geospatial processing since it refers to, among other things, efficient computing resources providing on demand processing services. In this context, we attempt to provide a design and architectural framework for web applications based on open geospatial standards. Our approach includes, in addition to geospatial processing, data acquisition services that are essential especially when dealing with satellite images and applications in the area of remote sensing and similar fields. As a result, by putting in a common framework all data and geoprocesses available in the Cloud, it is possible to combine the appropriate services in order to produce a solution for a specific need. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]