Visual Learning Systems, Inc. (VLS) of USA, announced the introduction of the Feature Analyst State and Local Government Grant Program. This Grant Program addresses the pressing need of government organizations to quickly update a GIS database with features extracted from aerial and satellite imagery.
“Commercial imagery is fast-becoming a staple commodity for many local governments struggling to maintain their GIS investments,” said Stuart Blundell, VLS Chief Operating Officer. “Feature Analyst automatically finds features such as buildings and roads from imagery and provides a solution to the human resource and cost bottleneck of getting information into a GIS database from imagery. Government agencies can focus on services, not hand-digitizing features.”
Feature Analyst software technology is widely used within the United States Defense and Intelligence Community to extract geospatial features from high-resolution imagery. The underlying technology, developed by VLS through NASA and DoD research contracts, is exceptionally accurate, simple to use, and works within existing GIS and image processing software such as ESRI’s ArcGIS and ERDAS IMAGINE.
As Homeland Security requirements become more demanding on the GIS resources of state and local governments, Feature Analyst will play an important role in lowering costs, says the company’s release. VLS expects to award up to $5 million dollars in software grants in 2004. Qualified state, city, and local government agencies can apply on-line at www.featureanalyst.com for grants of Feature Analyst software.
