Changes in This Release for Oracle Spatial Developer's Guide

The preface contains:

Changes in Oracle Database Release 23ai

The following are the new Oracle Database Release 23ai features for core Spatial capabilities covered in this document:

New Procedures in SDO_PC_PKG Package

You can use the PC_DIFFERENCE procedure to detect the difference between two point clouds. See SDO_PC_PKG.PC_DIFFERENCE for more information.

You can use the GENERATE_CROSS_SECTION_AS_GEOMS procedure to perform cross section computation of a point cloud. See SDO_PC_PKG.GENERATE_CROSS_SECTION_AS_GEOMS for more information.

New Procedure in SDO_TIN_PKG Package

You can use the CREATE_MESHES procedure to generate a 3D mesh. See SDO_TIN_PKG.CREATE_MESHES for more information.

Using Predefined Constants for SDO_GTYPE and SDO_SRID Values

Predefined constants having descriptive names can be used to replace selected SDO_GTYPE and SDO_SRID values in SDO_GEOMETRY constructors and spatial queries.

Spatial Metadata Automatically Updated in USER_SDO_GEOM_METADATA View

If you are creating a spatial index on a spatial column, then the spatial metadata for the table is automatically created in the USER_SDO_GEOM_METADATA view, if it had not been created earlier. Therefore, effective with Release 23ai, it is optional to manually insert the spatial metadata in USER_SDO_GEOM_METADATA view. See Geometry Metadata Views for more information.

New Geometry Constructor for Creating Longitude and Latitude Spatial Data

You can use the new SDO_GEOMETRY(-73.45, 45.2) constructor to store the longitude and latitude spatial data. See Getting Started with Longitude/Latitude Spatial Data for more information.

Vector Tiles Generation

Vector tiles support efficient streaming of spatial data to map visualization web clients with a simple SQL call. They are compatible with the popular Mapbox vector tile specification. Vector tiles enable dynamic styling, fast performance, smooth map interactions, and dynamic map queries.

Using the SDO_UTIL.GET_VECTORTILE function, you can generate vector tiles from spatial data in database tables. See Vector Tiles for more information.

H3 Indexing Support

Oracle Spatial supports hexagonal hierarchical spatial indexing (H3) in Oracle Database. H3 is an indexing system that uses hexagons in a grid to cover the earth’s surface. For very large volumes of point data, H3 is useful to easily aggregate and visualize it on thematic maps. Developer-ready database functions are provided to create H3 cells, and generate vector tiles for map visualization.

See H3 Indexing for more information.