NIST

space ordering method

(algorithm)

Definition: A mapping from a discrete k-dimensional space into a linear order.

See also point access method, spatial access method.

Note: A concrete version of the problem is, in what order should one visit every square in a checkerboard? Equivalently, how should one map a 2-dimensional array in memory?

A transversal of the mapped points in their linear order yields a space-filling curve.

There is a good survey on pages 167-169 of
Hanan Samet, Object-Based and Image-Based Object Representation, ACM Computing Surveys, 36(2):159-217, June 2004. The article describes several methods and reviews their properties:

Author: PEB


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If you have suggestions, corrections, or comments, please get in touch with Paul Black.

Entry modified 14 August 2008.
HTML page formatted Mon Feb 2 13:10:40 2015.

Cite this as:
Paul E. Black, "space ordering method", in Dictionary of Algorithms and Data Structures [online], Vreda Pieterse and Paul E. Black, eds. 14 August 2008. (accessed TODAY) Available from: http://www.nist.gov/dads/HTML/spaceOrderingMethod.html