ANALYSIS OF MASSIVE IMPORTS OF OPEN DATA IN OPENSTREETMAP DATABASE: A STUDY CASE FOR FRANCE

Abstract. Importing spatial open data in OpenStreetMap (OSM) project, is a practice that has existed from the beginning of the project. The rapid development and multiplication of collaborative mapping tools and open data have led to the growth of the phenomenon of importing massive data into OSM. The goal of this paper is to study the evolution of the massive imports over time. We propose an approach in three steps: classification of the sources used to edit features in the OSM platform including those massively imported, classification of modifications, and identification of evolution patterns. The approach is mixing global analysis (i.e. sources and modifications are classified) and feature based analysis (i.e. imported features are analyzed with respect to their evolution over time). The approach is applied on three datasets coming from OSM considered for their heterogeneity in terms of complexity, imports, and spatial and temporal characteristics. The results show that there is a sustained activity of edition on imported features, with a ratio between geometry editions and semantic editions depending on the type of the features, with roads being the features concentrating the most activity.