topogeometry CreateTopoGeom(varchar  toponame, integer  tg_type, integer layer_id, topoelementarray tg_objs, bigint tg_id)
topogeometry CreateTopoGeom(varchar  toponame, integer  tg_type, integer layer_id)

INSERT INTO ri.ri_roads(road_name, topo) VALUES('Unknown', topology.CreateTopoGeom('ri_topo',2,2,'{{1,2}}'::topology.topoelementarray);

-- create our topo geometry column --
SELECT topology.AddTopoGeometryColumn(
    'topo_boston',
    'boston', 'blockgroups', 'topo', 'POLYGON');

-- addtopgeometrycolumn --
1

-- update our column assuming
-- everything is perfectly aligned with our edges
UPDATE boston.blockgroups AS bg
    SET topo = topology.CreateTopoGeom('topo_boston'
        ,3,1
        , foo.bfaces)
FROM (SELECT b.gid,  topology.TopoElementArray_Agg(ARRAY[f.face_id,3]) As bfaces
    FROM boston.blockgroups As b
            INNER JOIN topo_boston.face As f ON b.geom && f.mbr
        WHERE ST_Covers(b.geom, topology.ST_GetFaceGeometry('topo_boston', f.face_id))
            GROUP BY b.gid) As foo
WHERE foo.gid = bg.gid;

--the world is rarely perfect allow for some error
--count the face if 50% of it falls
-- within what we think is our blockgroup boundary
UPDATE boston.blockgroups AS bg
    SET topo = topology.CreateTopoGeom('topo_boston'
        ,3,1
        , foo.bfaces)
FROM (SELECT b.gid,  topology.TopoElementArray_Agg(ARRAY[f.face_id,3]) As bfaces
    FROM boston.blockgroups As b
            INNER JOIN topo_boston.face As f ON b.geom && f.mbr
        WHERE ST_Covers(b.geom, topology.ST_GetFaceGeometry('topo_boston', f.face_id))
    OR
 (  ST_Intersects(b.geom, topology.ST_GetFaceGeometry('topo_boston', f.face_id))
            AND ST_Area(ST_Intersection(b.geom, topology.ST_GetFaceGeometry('topo_boston', f.face_id) ) ) >
                ST_Area(topology.ST_GetFaceGeometry('topo_boston', f.face_id))*0.5
                )
            GROUP BY b.gid) As foo
WHERE foo.gid = bg.gid;

-- and if we wanted to convert our topogeometry back
-- to a denormalized geometry aligned with our faces and edges
-- cast the topo to a geometry
-- The really cool thing is my new geometries
-- are now aligned with my tiger street centerlines
UPDATE boston.blockgroups SET new_geom = topo::geometry;

topogeometry toTopoGeom(geometry  geom, varchar  toponame, integer layer_id, float8 tolerance)
topogeometry toTopoGeom(geometry  geom, topogeometry  topogeom, float8 tolerance)

 -- do this if you don't have a topology setup already
-- creates topology not allowing any tolerance
SELECT topology.CreateTopology('topo_boston_test', 2249);
-- create a new table
CREATE TABLE nei_topo(gid serial primary key, nei varchar(30));
--add a topogeometry column to it
SELECT topology.AddTopoGeometryColumn('topo_boston_test', 'public', 'nei_topo', 'topo', 'MULTIPOLYGON') As new_layer_id;
new_layer_id
-----------
1

--use new layer id in populating the new topogeometry column
-- we add the topogeoms to the new layer with 0 tolerance
INSERT INTO nei_topo(nei, topo)
SELECT nei,  topology.toTopoGeom(geom, 'topo_boston_test', 1)
FROM neighborhoods
WHERE gid BETWEEN 1 and 15;

--use to verify what has happened --
SELECT * FROM
    topology.TopologySummary('topo_boston_test');

-- summary--
Topology topo_boston_test (5), SRID 2249, precision 0
61 nodes, 87 edges, 35 faces, 15 topogeoms in 1 layers
Layer 1, type Polygonal (3), 15 topogeoms
 Deploy: public.nei_topo.topo

-- Shrink all TopoGeometry polygons by 10 meters
UPDATE nei_topo SET topo = toTopoGeom(ST_Buffer(topo, -10), clearTopoGeom(topo), 0);

-- Get the no-one-lands left by the above operation
-- I think GRASS calls this "polygon0 layer"
SELECT ST_GetFaceGeometry('topo_boston_test', f.face_id)
  FROM topo_boston_test.face f
  WHERE f.face_id > 0 -- don't consider the universe face
  AND NOT EXISTS ( -- check that no TopoGeometry references the face
    SELECT * FROM topo_boston_test.relation
    WHERE layer_id = 1 AND element_id = f.face_id
  );

topoelementarray TopoElementArray_Agg(topoelement set tefield)

SELECT topology.TopoElementArray_Agg(ARRAY[e,t]) As tea
  FROM generate_series(1,3) As e CROSS JOIN generate_series(1,4) As t;
  tea
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
{{1,1},{1,2},{1,3},{1,4},{2,1},{2,2},{2,3},{2,4},{3,1},{3,2},{3,3},{3,4}}

topoelement TopoElement(topogeometry  topo)

-- do this if you don't have a topology setup already
-- Creates topology not allowing any tolerance
SELECT TopoElement(topo)
FROM neighborhoods;

-- using as cast
SELECT topology.TopoElementArray_Agg(topo::topoelement)
FROM neighborhoods
GROUP BY city;