Skip to content
210630_Portrait_SenseBox_00108_B5Ohne

About me

Since April 2009, I am a professor at the Institute for Geoinformatics, University of Muenster, Germany.My research deals with intelligent representation and reasoning on spatial information. I investigate human strategies to organize and process spatial knowledge about environments to develop cognitively inspired computational models. I lead the Spatial Intelligence Lab.

Education

2006
Dr. rer. nat., Institute for Geoinformatics, University of Muenster
2003
Master of Science in Information Systems, University of Muenster
2001
Bachelor of Science in Information Systems, University of Muenster

Positions

since 2014
Full Professor, Institute for Geoinformatics, University of Muenster, GER
2009 – 2014
Assistant Professor (W1), Institute for Geoinformatics, University of Muenster, GER
2006 – 2009
Postdoctoral Researcher, Institute of Cognitive Science, University of Osnabrueck, GER

Contact

Institute for Geoinformatics University of Muenster
Heisenberstr. 2 48149 Münster, Germany room: 118
+49 (251) 83-33059
schwering@uni-muenster.de

Research Areas

Sketch Maps

Sketch maps are informal drawings that reflect a person’s perception of spatial areas. Because they are intuitive and easy to create, they are used in community mapping activities and in psychological experiments to capture individuals’ spatial knowledge. However, just like cognitive maps, sketch maps are incomplete, distorted, and schematized, which poses a challenge for the analysis.

We develop a computational approach to analyse hand-drawn sketch maps with respect to their completeness, correctness and degree of generalization, paying attention to the fact that human knowledge is qualitative in nature, thus sketch maps should be analysed qualitatively.

Projects

its4land

delivers fit-for-purpose land tenure recording tools
❯ Learn More

3D Sketch Maps

extends our sketch map analysis method "SketchMapia to 3D
❯ Learn More

SketchMapia

software for analyzing freehand sketch maps for their correctness, completeness and degree of generalization
❯ Learn More

Publications

2024

VResin: Externalizing spatial memory into 3D sketch maps

Xiao T.; Kim K.G.; Krukar J.; Subramaniyan R.; Kiefer P.; Schwering A.; Raubal M.

International Journal of Human-Computer Studies

2023

Route effects in city-based survey knowledge estimates

Krukar J.; Navas Medrano S.; Schwering A.

Cognitive Processing

Schematizing car routes with their surrounding street network

Galvão M.L.; Krukar J.; Schwering A.

Cartography and Geographic Information Science

Task-dependent sketch maps

Krukar J.; van Eek A.; Schwering A.

Spatial Cognition and Computation

Zukunftsweisender MINT-Unterricht mit dem senseBox-Ökosystem. Die Plattform für partizipative Data Science mit Physical Computing.

Witte, V.; Schwering, A.; Bartoschek, T.; Pesch, M.

Der mathematisch-naturwissenschaftliche Unterricht

Assessing navigational map reading competencies with the location-based GeoGame “GeoGami”

Bistron, Janina Schwering, Angela

Journal of Geoscience Education

2022

Educational location-based geogame “GeoGami” for map-related spatial learning

Bistron Janina Qamaz Yousef Schwering Angela

Children’s Navigational Map Reading Strategies and Implications for Educational Geogames

Bistron, Janina; Schwering, Angela; Özkaya, Ilhan Talha; Qamaz, Yousef

Empirical characterisation of agents’ spatial behaviour in pedestrian movement simulation

Filomena G., Kirsch L., Schwering A., Verstegen J.

Journal of Environmental Psychology

Spatial generalization in sketch maps: A systematic classification

Manivannan C.; Krukar J.; Schwering A.

Journal of Environmental Psychology

2021

Evaluating schematic route maps in wayfinding tasks for in-car navigation

Galvão M, Krukar J, Schwering A

Cartography and Geographic Information Science

SmartSkeMa: Scalable Documentation for Community and Customary Land Tenure

Chipofya, Malumbo C.; Jan, Sahib; Schwering, Angela

Land

2020

An algorithm for the selection of route dependent orientation information

Löwen Heinrich, Schwering Angela

Journal of Spatial Information Science

Route schematization with landmarks

Galvão Marcelo, Krukar Jakub, Nöllenburg Martin, Schwering Angela

Journal of Spatial Information Science

Local Domain Models for Land Tenure Documentation and their Interpretation into the LADM

Chipofya, Malumbo; Karamesoutib, Mina ; Schultz, Carl, Schwering, Angela

Land Use Policy

2019

Functional Scales in Assisted Wayfinding

Löwen H, Krukar J, Schwering A

Wayfinding Through Orientation: Schematizing Landmark, Route and Survey Information in a Single Map

Schwering Angela, Galvão Marcelo, Löwen Heinrich, Krukar Jakub, Schick Wiebke

Route Schematization With Polygonal Landmarks

Galvão M, Krukar J, Nöllenburg M, Schwering A

Spatial Learning with Orientation Maps: The Influence of Different Environmental Features on Spatial Knowledge Acquisition

Löwen Heinrich, Krukar Jakub, Schwering Angela

ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information

2018

Spatial distribution of local landmarks in route-based sketch maps

A. Anacta Vanessa Joy, Li Rui, Löwen Heinrich, De Lima Galvao Marcelo, Schwering Angela

How should Orientation Maps look like?

Löwen Heinrich, Krukar Jakub, Schwering Angela

Towards automatically generating maps for wayfinding and orientation

Löwen Heinrich, Krukar Jakub, Schwering Angela

Schematizing regional landmarks for route maps

Galvão Marcelo, Krukar Jakub, Schwering Angela

A Tool for Large-Scale Spatial Behavior Analysis in Indoor Environments

Schwering Angela, Mukhametov Sergey, Krukar Jakub

Evaluating Sketch Maps Qualitatively: A new Software-Supported Method

Schwering Angela, Jan Sahib, Krukar Jakub, Chipofya Malumbo

Distinguishing Sketch Map Types: A Flexible Feature-Based Classification

Krukar J, Münzer S, Lörch L, Anacta VJ, Fuest S, Schwering A

2017

Towards Smart Sketch Maps for Community-driven Land Tenure Recording Activities

Chipofya M, Jan S, Schultz C, Schwering A

Landmark-Based Navigation in Cognitive Systems

Krukar J, Schwering A, Anacta VJ

Künstliche Intelligenz

Cognitively Plausible Representations for the Alignment of Sketch and Geo-referenced Maps

Jan Sahib , Schwering Angela , Schultz Carl , and Chipofya Malumbo

Wayfinding Through Orientation

Schwering, A. Krukar, J. Li, R. Anacta, V. J. Fuest, S.

Spatial Cognition and Computation

Perspectives in externalizations of mental spatial representations

Löwen Heinrich, Schwering Angela, Krukar Jakub, Winter Stephan

Rethinking Wayfinding Support Systems—Introduction

Krukar J, Schwering A, Löwen H, De Lima Galvao M, Anacta VJ

2016

What is Orientation?

Krukar J, Schwering A

Visualizing salient features in spatial descriptions

Anacta,VJA, Krukar,J, Humayun,MI,Schwering,A

2015

Left-right relations for Qualitative Representation and Alignment of Planar Spatial Networks

Malumbo Chipofya, Angela Schwering, Carl Schultz, Emily Harason, and Sahib Jan

A metaheuristic approach for efficient and effective sketch-to-metric map alignment

Chipofya Malumbo Chaka, Schultz Carl, Schwering Angela

International Journal of Geographical Information Science

A metaheuristic approach for efficient and effective sketch-to-metric map alignment

Chipofya Malumbo, Schultz Carl, Schwering Angela

International Journal of Geographical Information Science

Spatial Rules for Capturing Qualitatively Equivalent Configurations in Sketch maps

Jan Sahib , Schultz Carl, Schwering Angela, and Chipofya Malumbo

RCC11: A Finer Topological Representation for the Alignment of Regions in Sketch Maps

Jan Sahib , Schwering Angela, Schultz Carl and Chipofya Malumbo

Navigating on Web Maps: Route Characteristics and Performance.

Fuest S, Li R, Schwering A

Invariant spatial information in sketch maps – a study of survey sketch maps of urban areas

Wang, J Schwering, A

Journal of Spatial Information Science

2014

Ordering: A Reliable Qualitative Information for the Alignment of Sketch and Metric Maps

Jan Sahib , Schwering Angela ,Wang Jia , Chipofya Malumbo

The Effects of Different Verbal Route Instructions on Spatial Orientation.

Li R., Fuest S, Schwering, A.

Qualitative Representations of Schematized and Distorted Street Segments in Sketch Maps

Jan Sahib , Schwering Angela, Chipofya Malumbo , Wang Jia

SketchMapia: Qualitative Representations for the Alignment of Sketch and Metric Maps

Schwering, Angela; Wang, Jia; Chipofya, Malumbo; Jan, Sahib; Li, Rui; Broelemann, Klaus

Spatial Cognition and Computation

Qualitative Representations of Extended Spatial Objects in Sketch Maps

Jan Sahib, Schwering Angela, Chipofya Malumbo, Binor Talakisew

2013

Matching Qualitative Spatial Scene Descriptions á la Tabu

Chipofya Malumbo, Schwering Angela, Binor Talakisew

Transitional Spaces: Between Indoor and Outdoor Spaces

Kray C, Fritze H, Fechner T, Schwering A, Li R, Anacta VJA

Visualizing Vagueness in Sketch Maps

Anacta, V J, Humayun, M I, Schwering, A

Ori-Gami - Fostering Spatial Competency Development and Learning

Bartoschek Thomas, Schwering Angela, Li Rui

Ori-Gami - An App fostering spatial competency development and spatial learning of children

Bartoschek Thomas, Schwering Angela, Li Rui, Münzer Stefan

Analogies and Analogical Reasoning in Invention

Kühnberger, K.-U.; Krumnack, U.; Schwering, A.; Besold, T.

Sketch Learning by Analogy, The Shape of Things

Abdel-Fattah, A., Besold, T., Gust, H., Krumnack, U., Kühnberger, K.-U., Schmidt, M., Schneider, S., Schwering, A.

2012

Usability of Spatio-Temporal Uncertainty Visualisation Methods

Senaratne, H.; Gerharz, L.; Pebesma, E.; Schwering, A.

2011

An Empirical Study on Relevant Aspects for Sketch Map Alignment

Wang, J.; Mülligann, C.; Schwering, A.

Understanding and Processing Sketch Maps - Proceedings of the COSIT 2011 Workshop

2010

Remarks on the Meaning of Analogical Relations

Krumnack, U.; Gust, H.; Schwering, A.; Kühnberger, Kai-Uwe

Aligning Sketch Maps and Metric Maps

Wang, J.; Schwering, A.

Sketching as Interface for VGI Systems

Schwering, A.; Wang, J.

2009

Editorial of the Special Issue on Analogies - Integrating Cognitive Abilities

Schwering, A.; Kühnberger, K.-U.; Kokinov, B.

Cognitive Systems Research

Structural Alignment of Visual Stimuli Influences Human Object Categorization

Stollinski, R.; Schwering, A.; Kühnberger, K.-U.; Krumnack, U.

The Impact of Gestalt Principles on Solving Geometric Proportional Analogies

Schwering, A., Bauer, C.; Đorčeva, I.; Gust, H.; Krumnack, U.; Kühnberger, K.U.

Solving Geometric Proportional Analogies with the Analogy Model HDTP

Schwering, A.; Gust, H.; Kühnberger, K.-U.; Krumnack, U.

The Role of Logic in AGI Systems: Towards a Lingua Franca for General Intelligence

Gust, H.; Krumnack, U.; Schwering, A.; Kühnberger, K.-U.

A Computational Model for Visual Metaphors - Interpreting Creative Visual Advertisements

Schwering, A.; Kühnberger, K.-U., Krumnack, U., Wandmacher, T.; Indurkhya, B.; Ojha, A.

Special Issue on Analogies - Integrating Cognitive Abilities