What is a multipoint, multiline or multipolygon geometry?

In the Spotzi Geomarketing Platform, we offer various geometries, including points, lines, and polygons. However, there is also a way to combine multiple points, lines, or polygons into a single record. Depending on the geometry type you want to combine, we refer to this as multipoint, multiline, or multipolygon.

How can we observe this difference in the data?
Let's take a look at how we can see this in the data. On the left side, we have 5 points, with each row representing a point. On the right side, we see the same points grouped into a MultiPoint geometry.

Which multi geometries are available?

Multipoint Geometry

A multipoint is a collection of individual points or coordinates on a map. It groups multiple geographic locations together in a single entry. Each point within the multipoint represents a specific location, such as store branches or landmarks. Set Up: To set up a multipoint, you provide a list of latitude and longitude coordinates for each location. These coordinates are grouped together to form a single multipoint entry.

Example of a MultiPoint feature

Multiline Geometry

A multiline is used to represent connected line segments on a map. It's ideal for displaying routes, roads, or pathways that consist of multiple segments or lines. Set Up: To create a multiline, you define the starting and ending points of each line segment and connect them to form a continuous path. This set of connected line segments makes up the multiline.

Example of a MultiLine feature

Multipolygon Geometry

A multipolygon represents multiple enclosed geographic areas or regions. It's commonly used to show territories, boundaries, or regions that consist of multiple shapes. Set Up: To set up a multipolygon, you define the individual polygons that make up a larger area. Each polygon has a set of coordinates that outline its shape. The multipolygon groups these polygons together to represent a more complex geographic area.

Example of a MultiPolygon feature

Benefits of using MultiPoint, MultiLine or MultiPolygon features

• Efficient Representation: Multipoints allow for the efficient representation of multiple individual locations in a single entry.
• Clear Visualization: Multipoints provide a clear way to show clustered points of interest on a map, such as store locations.
• Effective Route Display: Multilines are suitable for displaying complex routes, such as road networks or pathways with multiple segments.
• Detailed Information: Multilines offer a way to represent detailed information about connections and directions.
• Accurate Boundaries: Multipolygons are ideal for accurately representing complex geographic areas with multiple enclosed shapes.
• Detailed Mapping: Multipolygons allow for detailed mapping of regions with distinct boundaries or territories.

Shortcomings of using MultiPoint, MultiLine or MultiPolygon features

• Limited Context: Multipoints may not provide context or information about the connections between locations.
• Visual Clutter: Multipoints can lead to visual clutter when dealing with a large number of points, making maps harder to interpret.
• Complex Data Entry: Setting up multilines with numerous line segments can be time-consuming and complex.
• Visual Complexity: Extremely detailed multiline data can result in visually complex maps that are challenging to read.
• Data Complexity: Representing multipolygons with multiple shapes can be data-intensive and require careful management.
• Potentially Overlapping Shapes: When using multipolygons, it's essential to handle overlapping shapes accurately to avoid mapping issues.