MapInfo Pro has several geographic operators. Use them to select objects on the basis of their spatial relationship to some other object. MapInfo Pro has a special keyword you use with geographical operators: "obj" or "object". This keyword tells MapInfo Pro that it has to get values based on the graphical objects in the table rather than the tabular data.
The geographic operators go between the objects being specified. Select the geographic operators from the Operators menu. Here are the geographic operators:
|
Contains |
Object A Contains object B if B's centroid is anywhere within A's boundary. |
|
Contains Entire |
Object A Contains Entire object B if B's boundary is entirely within A's boundary. |
|
Contains Part |
Object A Contains Part object B if B's boundary is partly within A's boundary. |
|
Within |
Object A is Within object B if its centroid is inside B's boundary. |
|
Entirely Within |
Object A is Entirely Within object B if A's boundary is entirely within B's boundary. |
|
Partly Within |
Object A is Partly Within object B if A's boundary is partly within B's boundary. |
|
Intersects |
Object A Intersects object B if they have at least one point in common. |
"Contains Part" and "Partly Within" are exactly equivalent to "Intersects"-these are all treated the same way by MapInfo Pro, so the standard syntax "Intersects" is almost universally used.
"Contains" and "Within" are concerned only with objects' centroids.
"Contains Entire" and "Entirely Within" are concerned with the area covered by a region object; the location of the centroid does not matter.
M - Object Centroid
Thus, if A, B, C, and D are all regions:
| A | B | C | D | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Contains |
Object A contains Object B |
Object C contains Object D Object C contains entire Object D |
||
|
Intersects |
Object A intersects Object B |
Object B intersects Object A Object B intersects Object C |
Object C intersects Object D |
|
|
Does Not Intersect |
Object A does not intersect Object C |
|||
|
Does Not Contain |
Object B does not contain Object A |
Object D does not contain Object C |
If A, B, C, and D are all polylines,
then the Contains and Within operators are not applicable, but:
| B | C | D | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Intersects |
Object B intersects Object A Object B intersects Object C |
||
|
Does Not Intersect |
Object C does not intersect Object D |
Object D does not intersect Object C |
Similarly, a polyline can not contain a point, but it can intersect a point; a point can not be within a polyline, but it can intersect a polyline.