OGC RSI for Context

The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) (MA, USA) has published a Request for Information (RFI) to solicit input on technologies related to Contextual State Descriptions (CSD). A CSD describes the context in which a service chain is executed. CSD is a potential new element of Sensor Web Enablement (SWE); it also is relevant for chaining various image-processing services and other services for geospatial processing in web-services environments. The objective of this RFI is to identify existing capabilities that can provide a robust metadata foundation for supporting agile, adaptive, autonomous processes capable of producing repeatable, predictable results with no intervention. Organisations with relevant products regarding CSD are urged to respond to this RFI.
In August 2004 the OGC issued a call for sponsors for an OGC Web Services 3 (OWS-3) interoperability initiative, a multi-threaded test-bed activity to advance OGC's open framework for interoperability in the geospatial industry. The contents of the OWS-3 Request For Quotations (RFQ) will be based in part on the response to the CSD RFI.
One essential component of OWS-3 will be the ongoing SWE effort, in which OGC members are developing standard interfaces for real-time integration of heterogeneous sensor webs. Web-connected sensors may, for instance, be flood gauges, air-pollution monitors, stress gauges, heart monitors, ordinary webcams and robots. Spaceborne and airborne imaging systems may also be included. Several elements of SWE have already been developed and will be completed before their submission to the OGC membership for adoption.