There are several types of Geography Markup Language, or GML data:
- Simple GML
- CityGML
- INSPIRE GML
As time and technologies improve data providers are publishing the more advanced GML formats. To import the EXPIRE GML format you currently need to use the FME Interface provided by Bentley Map. Use of this interface requires an active license of the FME Desktop software. Please refer to the OpenGIS website for complete details about the GML format:
The OpenGIS® Geography Markup Language Encoding Standard (GML) The Geography Markup Language (GML) is an XML grammar for expressing geographical features. GML serves as a modeling language for geographic systems as well as an open interchange format for geographic transactions on the Internet. As with most XML based grammars, there are two parts to the grammar – the schema that describes the document and the instance document that contains the actual data.
The Bentley Map README file includes the FME and GML versions and formats that are supported.,
When the schema is missing, or present but not well-described the data may not import propertly. This is apparent in the messages that are returned from the Import command. Some examples are shown here:
Exception: The 'http://www.w3.org/XML/1998/namespace:lang' attribute is not declared.
System.Xml.Schema.XmlSchemaException
System.Xml.Schema.BaseProcessor.SendValidationEvent(XmlSchemaException e)
The FME Interface is accessible through the File | Import | FME menu item, as-shown here:
This short video shows the comparison of importing an INSPIRE formatted GML file, using the Import GML file command, vs. using the FME Interface:
(Please visit the site to view this video)
* As-of the time of this writing, Enhancement 677540 is being worked on to include the INSPIRE GML format as an option in Bentley Map.