Is it worth noting that if query_data is an associative array and a value is itself an empty array, or an array of nothing but empty array (or arrays containing only empty arrays etc.), the corresponding key will not appear in the resulting query string?
E.g.
$post_data = array('name'=>'miller', 'address'=>array('address_lines'=>array()), 'age'=>23);
echo http_build_query($post_data);
will print
name=miller&age=23