Spatial data types
Informix® spatial data types are divided into two categories: the base geometry subclasses and the homogeneous collection subclasses.
- The base
geometries are:
- ST_Point
- ST_LineString
- ST_Polygon
- The homogeneous collections are:
- ST_MultiPoint
- ST_MultiLineString
- ST_MultiPolygon
Homogeneous collections are collections of base geometries; in addition to sharing base geometry properties, homogeneous collections also have some properties of their own.
The ST_GeometryType() function takes an ST_Geometry and returns the instantiable subclass in the form of a character string. The ST_NumGeometries() function takes a homogeneous collection and returns the number of base geometry elements it contains. The ST_GeometryN() function takes a homogeneous collection and an index and returns the nth base geometry.