Dynamic features in a 3D city model as an energy system

A dynamic feature refers to an individual feature that can involve the change of population counts, identities, thematic attributes, spatial, or temporal characteristics etc. A 3D visualization of individual dynamic features provides an intuitive and vivid way of conveying information, and it is also an important milestone for achieving a complete spatiotemporal city model, therefore a city model that supports the 3D representation and visualization of dynamic features is of general interest. The solution for 3D interactive dynamic features presented in this paper was developed within the project EnergyCity. This project is situated in the city of Frederikshavn in the north part of Denmark. The goal for the project was to make a 3D city model act as an awareness tool allowing politicians as well as citizens to visualize and understand the change of energy consumption and energy sources in an urban environment over a period of time. By interacting with those dynamic features, users can visually and immediately realize how the change of energy consumptions matters, which helps them to realize a more sustainable while feasible energy scenario. The method called managed object is applied to represent 3D dynamic features in EnergyCity. A managed object refers to a pure object-oriented and platform-independent binary representation that carries both the executable behaviours and attribute data regarding an object