Approximation of topological relations on fuzzy regions: an approach using minimal bounding rectangles

Topological relations among spatial objects with indeterminate boundaries constitute an active area in GIScience. This paper addresses the problem of fuzzy boundaries in particular in regions with smooth variation of their attributes. The work approach presented here allows us to model, in a more realistic way, geographic phenomena like air pollution and storm intensity. Broad fuzzy boundaries are represented as a set of the /spl alpha/-cuts nested around the minimum bounding rectangle enclosing the fuzzy region.