A syntax-oriented method for a map-aided analysis of structures in aer
ial images is proposed. First the map must be analysed in order to obt
ain a suitable representation of its knowledge content. A special kind
of graph, a so-called image-description graph, is the result of this
map analysis. The knowledge of the map, represented on different descr
iption levels, is used to control the search process during the image
analysis. Based on this knowledge, expectations for attribute values o
f image objects are defined. Generated objects are assessed relative t
o the expectations of the map and the object model. A set-oriented sel
ection method is applied to deduce the processing priority using these
two assessments. Expected objects are preferably processed for buildi
ng up more complex objects. Thus the map-aided analysis can be used to
reduce the processing time for a verification task.