On-demand map design based on user-oriented specifications Laurence Jolivet COGIT laboratory, IGN France Laurence.Jolivet@ign.fr ABSTRACT: Map making includes many tasks that can not be entirely formalized if we include in that creation not only the drawing but also the good transmission of information. In order to improve the message of a map, we propose a process that would help a map designer to make choices on the display. This process has been enclosed in three main Web services that interpret user-oriented specifications into a relevant selection of data and definition of styles to draw a map that meets these specifications. The initial service is a map specifications service. It aims at completing from the context, the abstract definition of a map: we mean the geographical area, the scale, the type of map, the themes to display and other abstract characteristics. The user needs assistance to build these formal specifications, indeed the notions of map model, data relations, or reading level which are specific terms in cartography are not instinctive. This first service aims at providing this assistance. The second service aims at interpreting the formal abstract specification of a map yielded by the previous service into data selection and styles definition. We would like to propose a legend that respects cartographic rules within the context of the initial map description. In that objective, we constitute a base of cartographic knowledge readable by computer systems. We rely on the literature as well as on existing maps to propose map templates. Though, predefined layers might not always be accurate enough to manage the constraints from the user specifications. To propose new legends or to improve existing ones, we have to encode in an operational model, principles of cartographic theory, definition of standard maps and researches. The third service that we describe aims at evaluating the map once displayed. Legibility problems, like unexpected interactions between graphical signs, may occur due to the data. The submitted evaluation module mainly focuses on the colour contrasts. An example of a scenario from a user’s specifications to the proposal of a final map is described and discussed. KEYWORDS: mapping, semiology, geographical data, Web services, user specifications, graphical interfaces. Introduction Map design includes dealing with several requirements, and it becomes quite complex when there are many data to manage, and many constraints to consider. Precise demands may concern various characteristics like the dimension, the scale, the data to display, or the symbolisation. Though, the cartographic process has been simplified. More and more people have the opportunity to read or draw geographical data thanks to interoperability standards, Web services and free softwares. Nevertheless, the access to data and to mapping tools is not the guarantee of an optimized map. The effectiveness of a map indeed lies in its ability to convey the message meant by the writer to the reader.