Embodied geosensification-models, taxonomies and applications for engaging the body in immersive analytics of geospatial data

This thesis examines how we can use immersive multisensory displays and body-focused interaction technologies to analyze geospatial data. It merges relevant aspects from an array of interdisciplinary research areas, from cartography to the cognitive sciences, to form three taxonomies that describe the senses, data representations, and interactions made possible by these technologies. These taxonomies are then integrated into an overarching design model for such "Embodied Geosensifications". This model provides guidance for system specification and is validated with practical examples

Immersive tangible geospatial modeling

Tangible Landscape is a tangible interface for geographic information systems (GIS). It interactively couples physical and digital models of a landscape so that users can intuitively explore, model, and analyze geospatial data in a collaborative environment. Conceptually Tangible Landscape lets users hold a GIS in their hands so that they can feel the shape of the topography, naturally sculpt new landforms, and interact with simulations like water ow. Since it only affords a bird\u27s-eye view of the landscape, we coupled it with an immersive virtual environment so that users can virtually walk around the modeled landscape and visualize it at a human-scale. Now as users shape topography, draw trees, define viewpoints, or route a walkthrough, they can see the results on the projection-augmented model, rendered on a display, or rendered on a head-mounted display. In this paper we present the Tangible Landscape Immersive Extension, describe its physical setup and software architecture, and demonstrate its features with a case study