Illustrative interactive stipple rendering

Journal ArticleAbstract-Simulating hand-drawn illustration can succinctly express information in a manner that is communicative and informative. We present a framework for an interactive direct stipple rendering of volume and surface-based objects. By combining the principles of artistic and scientific illustration, we explore several feature enhancement techniques to create effective, interactive visualizations of scientific and medical data sets. We also introduce a rendering mechanism that generates appropriate point lists at all resolutions during an automatic preprocess and modifies rendering styles through different combinations of these feature enhancements. The new system is an effective way to interactively preview large, complex volume and surface data sets in a concise, meaningful, and illustrative manner. Stippling is effective for many applications and provides a quick and efficient method to investigate both volume and surface models

Stylized 3D Scene Synthesis in Virtual Reality

Many forms of life in the natural world have the extraordinary capacity to sense their environments, to learn, and to remember, just as humans do, even though they are vastly different from us. In this dissertation, I presented novel techniques developed to exhibit an interactive abstract virtual reality experience that invites viewers to see the natural world from a different perspective. I developed the vertex displacement and color turbulence approaches to showcase organisms. The organisms can also modulate their shapes according to the volumes and frequencies of sound. Furthermore, the experience displays turbulent flow on the organisms’ surface to demonstrate the concept of energy flow, or vitality, among all organisms in the natural world. Another novel feature is that viewers can interact with the surface colors through ray casting from a handheld controller

Multivariate relationship specification and visualization

In this dissertation, we present a novel method for multivariate visualization that focuses on multivariate relationshipswithin scientific datasets. Specifically, we explore the considerations of such a problem, i.e. we develop an appropriate visualization approach, provide a framework for the specification of multivariate relationships and analyze the space of such relationships for the purpose of guiding the user toward desired visualizations. The visualization approach is derived from a point classification algorithm that summarizes many variables of a dataset into a single image via the creation of attribute subspaces. Then, we extend the notion of attribute subspaces to encompass multivariate relationships. In addition, we provide an unconstrained framework for the user to define such relationships. Althoughwe intend this approach to be generally applicable, the specification of complicated relationships is a daunting task due to the increasing difficulty for a user to understand and apply these relationships. For this reason, we explore this relationship space with a common information visualization technique well suited for this purpose, parallel coordinates. In manipulating this space, a user is able to discover and select both complex and logically informative relationship specifications

Toward a hybrid aesthetic: an interplay between traditional 2D hand drawn and 3D computer animation for a dream-inspired story

This research is a conceptual investigation into visual storytelling techniques for a dream-inspired story, and an empirical study for the production processes of a 3D computer animation with 2D graphical representations. The major project of this research, Sophie’s Secret, is a 3D computer animated short film rendered with 2D graphical styles to tell a dream-inspired story. A methodological model is established to organize the multiple disciplines in relation to this research. Theories in both psychoanalysis and biological study of dreaming significantly inform storytelling in moving images. Strong emotions and bizarre scenarios are the two overarching characteristics that have been identified in both psychoanalytical and biological studies of dreaming. I have used a dream-inspired story to evoke emotion and juxtaposed bizarre scenarios in the production. Layers of meanings are expressed in the animation through the use of symbolization and condensation, the two mechanisms of Freud’s ‘dream work’. The adaptation and reconstruction for the story from the original dream ideas were conducted for meaningful self-expression and effective communication. The narrative structure after adaptation fits into the classic three acts and the ‘monomyth’ structure. A hybrid aesthetic with multiple visual styles is created in this animation to represent a dream-like quality. This hybrid aesthetic is achieved through visual referencing of traditional 2D line and cel animations, alongside 3D computer techniques. The visual referencing of 2D line and cel animations, and the aesthetic judgment, were based on my professional experience and personal interests. United Production of America’s (UPA) animations, especially Gerald McBoing Boing, and Japanese anime, are the two major sources I referenced, because both are produced to express story ideas with stylised imagery and simplified processes. With the decision to create the hybrid aesthetic and 2D graphical styles in this animation, 3D production processes are significantly simplified and the workflow becomes more flexible. This simplicity and the flexibility also make possible the creation of multiple visual styles that enable the animation to represent a dream-like quality. It is proposed that, from the production experience of this project, emerges a set of strategies and a set of visual ideas that will enable the creation of hybrid aesthetics between 3D computer and 2D graphical styles. These strategies and visual ideas can be further applied in my future productions and will also be of benefit to animators and artists who intend to apply 2D graphical styles to 3D computer techniques

A volume filtering and rendering system for an improved visual balance of feature preservation and noise suppression in medical imaging

Preserving or enhancing salient features whilst effectively suppressing noise-derived artifacts and extraneous detail have been two consistent yet competing objectives in volumetric medical image processing. Illustrative techniques (and methods inspired by them) can help to enhance and, if desired, isolate the depiction of specific regions of interest whilst retaining overall context. However, highlighting or enhancing specific features can have the undesirable side-effect of highlighting noise. Second-derivative based methods can be employed effectively in both the rendering and volume filtering stages of a visualisation pipeline to enhance the depiction of feature detail whilst minimising noise-based artifacts. We develop a new 3D anisotropic-diffusion PDE for an improved balance of feature-retention and noise reduction; furthermore, we present a feature-enhancing visualisation pipeline that can be applied to multiple modalities and has been shown to be particularly effective in the context of 3D ultrasound

Illustrative Informationsvisualisierung

Mit wachsender Größe von Daten wird es zunehmend schwerer, die in der Informationsvisualisierung erzeugte visuelle Repräsentation zu interpretieren und die relevanten Informationen adäquat darzustellen. Die Illustration beschäftigt sich seit längerem mit der Kommunikation wichtiger Bildinformationen. Das Ziel dieser Dissertation ist es deshalb, illustrative Verfahren in Techniken der Informationsvisualisierung zu integrieren - sowohl konzeptuell als auch in praktischer Anwendung. Als Ergebnis unterstützen die neu entwickelten Lösungsansätze die Kommunikation dargestellter Informationen