Map Generalization

How cartographers keep maps legible as scale shrinks.

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About this course

When a 1:10,000 map becomes a 1:500,000 map, something has to give. These notes explain why generalisation is necessary, how purpose and scale control it, and the operators cartographers use — selection, simplification, aggregation, exaggeration and displacement — with line-simplification exercises and the selection equation for deciding how many features survive.

Visual scale-reduction examples from 1:10k to 1:500k
Every generalisation operator, illustrated
Selection equation and hands-on simplification exercises

Syllabus

1 document · 31 pages · English

01
Map Generalization
PDF · 31 pages
- Why generalisation is required as map scale decreases
- Purpose- and scale-driven generalisation
- Selection, simplification, aggregation, exaggeration and displacement
- Map simplification using the selection equation
- Line-simplification exercises