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Natural Language Meets Spatial Calculi

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Spatial Cognition VI. Learning, Reasoning, and Talking about Space (Spatial Cognition 2008)

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Computer Science ((LNAI,volume 5248))

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Abstract

We address the problem of relating natural language descriptions of spatial situations with spatial logical calculi, focusing on projective terms (orientations). We provide a formalism based on the theory of \(\mathcal{E}\)-connections that connects natural language and spatial calculi. Semantics of linguistic expressions are specified in a linguistically motivated ontology, the Generalized Upper Model. Spatial information is specified as qualitative spatial relationships, namely orientations from the double-cross calculus.

This linguistic-spatial connection cannot be adequately formulated without certain contextual, domain-specific aspects. We therefore extend the framework of \(\mathcal{E}\)-connections twofold: (1) external descriptions narrow down the class of intended models, and (2) context-dependencies inherent in natural language descriptions feed back into the representation finite descriptions of necessary context information.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. SFB/TR 8 Spatial Cognition, University of Bremen, Germany

    Joana Hois & Oliver Kutz

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  1. Joana Hois
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  2. Oliver Kutz
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Christian Freksa Nora S. Newcombe Peter Gärdenfors Stefan Wölfl

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Hois, J., Kutz, O. (2008). Natural Language Meets Spatial Calculi. In: Freksa, C., Newcombe, N.S., Gärdenfors, P., Wölfl, S. (eds) Spatial Cognition VI. Learning, Reasoning, and Talking about Space. Spatial Cognition 2008. Lecture Notes in Computer Science(), vol 5248. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-87601-4_20

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-87601-4_20

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-540-87600-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-540-87601-4

  • eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)

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