GeoZui3D: Data Fusion for Interpreting Oceanographic Data

GeoZui3D stands for Geographic Zooming User Interface. It is a new visualization software system designed for interpreting multiple sources of 3D data. The system supports gridded terrain models, triangular meshes, curtain plots, and a number of other display objects. A novel center of workspace interaction method unifies a number of aspects of the interface. It creates a simple viewpoint control method, it helps link multiple views, and is ideal for stereoscopic viewing. GeoZui3D has a number of features to support real-time input. Through a CORBA interface external entities can influence the position and state of objects in the display. Extra windows can be attached to moving objects allowing for their position and data to be monitored. We describe the application of this system for heterogeneous data fusion, for multibeam QC and for ROV/AUV monitoring

AFIT UAV Swarm Mission Planning and Simulation System

The purpose of this research is to design and implement a comprehensive mission planning system for swarms of autonomous aerial vehicles. The system integrates several problem domains including path planning, vehicle routing, and swarm behavior. The developed system consists of a parallel, multi-objective evolutionary algorithm-based path planner, a genetic algorithm-based vehicle router, and a parallel UAV swarm simulator. Each of the system\u27s three primary components are developed on AFIT\u27s Beowulf parallel computer clusters. Novel aspects of this research include: integrating terrain following technology into a swarm model as a means of detection avoidance, combining practical problems of path planning and routing into a comprehensive mission planning strategy, and the development of a swarm behavior model with path following capabilities

Procedural generation of virtual worlds

Trabalho de projeto de mestrado, Engenharia Informática (Interação e Conhecimento) Universidade de Lisboa, Faculdade de Ciências, 2020Procedural generation is a method of algorithmically generating data instead of manually doing so. There is an increasing opportunity for the use of procedural generation techniques, mainly in the ever growing video-game and movie industries, due to the necessity of creating virtual content. Even though the manual creation of such content offers an higher level of control, it is also usually a long process with the necessity of one or more technical experts, making the possibility of automation for these processes something desirable. When it comes to the video-game industry, replayability is a term used to assess a video-game’s potential for continued play value after its first completion. Using procedural generation it is possible for a game to offer very different experiences each time it is played, potentially increasing the game time, which is something commonly wanted in the industry. An example where this is implemented successfully is in the game Minecraft [12]. The possibility to generate different worlds each time offers unique experiences to each player, not only turning it into a more personal experience but also increasing the level of replayability as well. In the case of procedurally generating terrain in a virtual world we must take into account not only its shape and height points but also the type of terrain being created. Whether it be a beach or a mountain, the decision of what type of terrain to generate depending on the context can be as important as its shape. The intent of this dissertation is to develop a procedural generator of virtual worlds, so the results of the application of a decision tree evolved through genetic programming can be visualized. The decision to be done by the decision tree will be regarding the type of terrain to be generated. To perform the genetic evolution a small set of decision trees will be generated to be evolved simultaneously, with each generation the terrains resultant being shown to the user, allowing them to perform a choice according to their own criteria of which trees they wish to crossover for future generations

Automated Classification of Airborne Laser Scanning Point Clouds

Making sense of the physical world has always been at the core of mapping. Up until recently, this has always dependent on using the human eye. Using airborne lasers, it has become possible to quickly "see" more of the world in many more dimensions. The resulting enormous point clouds serve as data sources for applications far beyond the original mapping purposes ranging from flooding protection and forestry to threat mitigation. In order to process these large quantities of data, novel methods are required. In this contribution, we develop models to automatically classify ground cover and soil types. Using the logic of machine learning, we critically review the advantages of supervised and unsupervised methods. Focusing on decision trees, we improve accuracy by including beam vector components and using a genetic algorithm. We find that our approach delivers consistently high quality classifications, surpassing classical methods

A multi-objective optimization framework for terrain modification based on a combined hydrological and earthwork cost-benefit

The escalating risk of urban inundation has drawn increased attention to urban stormwater management. This study proposes a multi-objective optimization for terrain modification, combining the Non-dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm II (NSGA-II) with digital elevation model (DEM)-based hydrological cost factor analysis. To reduce the precipitation erosive forces and runoff kinetic energy, the resulting framework offers the possibility of efficiently searching numerous solutions for trade-off sets that meet three conflicting objectives: minimizing maximum flow velocity, maximizing runoff path length and minimizing earthwork costs. Our application case study in H{\o}je Taastrup, Denmark, demonstrates the ability of the optimization framework to iteratively generate diversified modification scenarios, which form the reference for topography planning. The three individual objective preferred solutions, a balanced solution, and twenty solutions under regular ordering are selected and visualized to determine the limits of the optimization and the cost-effectiveness tendency. Integrating genetic algorithms with DEM-based hydrological analysis demonstrates the potential to consider more complicated hydrological benefit objectives with open-ended characteristics. It provides a novel and efficient way to optimize topographic characteristics for improving holistic stormwater management strategies

improving path planning of unmanned aerial vehicles in an immersive environment using meta-paths and terrain information

Effective command and control of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) is an issue under investigation as the military pushes toward more automation and incorporation of technology into their operational strategy. UAVs require the intelligence to maneuver safely along a path to an intended target while avoiding obstacles such as other aircraft or enemy threats. To date, path-planning algorithms (designed to aid the operator in the control of semi-autonomous UAVs) have been limited to providing only a single solution (alternate path) without utilizing input or feedback from the UAV operator. The work presented in this thesis builds off of and improves an existing path planner. The original path planner presents a unique platform for decision making in a three-dimensional environment where multiple solution paths are generated using Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) and returned to the operator for evaluation. The paths are optimized to minimize risk due to enemy threats, to minimize fuel consumption incurred by deviating from the original path, and to maximize reconnaissance over predefined targets. The work presented in this thesis focuses on improving the mathematical models of these objectives. Terrain data is also incorporated into the path planner to ensure that the generated alternate paths are feasible and at a safe height above ground. An effective interface is needed to evaluate the alternate paths returned by PSO. A meta-path is a new concept presented in this thesis to address this issue. Meta-paths allow an operator to explore paths in an efficient and organized manner by displaying multiple alternate paths as a single path cloud. The interface was augmented with more detailed information on these paths to allow the operator to make a more informed decision. Two other interaction techniques were investigated to allow the operator more interactive control over the results displayed by the path planner. Viewing the paths in an immersive environment enhances the operator\u27s understanding of the situation and the options while facilitating better decision making. The problem formulation and solution implementation are described along with the results from several simulated scenarios. Preliminary assessments using simulated scenarios show the usefulness of these features in improving command and control of UAVs. Finally, a user study was conducted to gauge how different visualization capabilities affect operator performance when using an interactive path planning tool. The study demonstrates that viewing alternate paths in 3D instead of 2D takes more time because the operator switches between multiple views of the paths but also suggests that 3D is better for allowing the operator to understand more complex situations

Fire propagation visualization in real time

Our motivation comes from the need of a tailored computational tool for simulation and prediction of forest fire propagation, to be used by firefighters in Patagonia, Argentina. Based on previous works on Graphic Processing Units (GPU) for fitting and simulating fires in our region, we developed a visualization interface for real time computing, simulation and prediction of fire propagation. We have the possibility of changing the ensemble of raster maps layers to change the region in which fire will propagate. The visualization platform runs on GPUs and the user can rotate and zoom the landscape to select the optimal view of fire propagation. Opacity of different layers can be regulated by the user, allowing to see fire propagation at the same time that underlying vegetation, wind direction and intensity. The ignition point can also be selected by the user, and firebreaks can be plotted while simulation is going on. After the performance of a high number of stochastic simulations in parallel in GPUs, the application shows a map of the final fire surface colored according to the probability that a given cell burns. In this way the user can visually identify the most critical direction for fire propagation, a useful information to stop fire optimizing resources, which is specially important when they are scarce like is the case of our Patagonia region.Facultad de Informátic

Fire propagation visualization in real time

Our motivation comes from the need of a tailored computational tool for simulation and prediction of forest fire propagation, to be used by firefighters in Patagonia, Argentina. Based on previous works on Graphic Processing Units (GPU) for fitting and simulating fires in our region, we developed a visualization interface for real time computing, simulation and prediction of fire propagation. We have the possibility of changing the ensemble of raster maps layers to change the region in which fire will propagate. The visualization platform runs on GPUs and the user can rotate and zoom the landscape to select the optimal view of fire propagation. Opacity of different layers can be regulated by the user, allowing to see fire propagation at the same time that underlying vegetation, wind direction and intensity. The ignition point can also be selected by the user, and firebreaks can be plotted while simulation is going on. After the performance of a high number of stochastic simulations in parallel in GPUs, the application shows a map of the final fire surface colored according to the probability that a given cell burns. In this way the user can visually identify the most critical direction for fire propagation, a useful information to stop fire optimizing resources, which is specially important when they are scarce like is the case of our Patagonia region.Facultad de Informátic

Fire propagation visualization in real time

Our motivation comes from the need of a tailored computational tool for simulation and prediction of forest fire propagation, to be used by firefighters in Patagonia, Argentina. Based on previous works on Graphic Processing Units (GPU) for fitting and simulating fires in our region, we developed a visualization interface for real time computing, simulation and prediction of fire propagation. We have the possibility of changing the ensemble of raster maps layers to change the region in which fire will propagate. The visualization platform runs on GPUs and the user can rotate and zoom the landscape to select the optimal view of fire propagation. Opacity of different layers can be regulated by the user, allowing to see fire propagation at the same time that underlying vegetation, wind direction and intensity. The ignition point can also be selected by the user, and firebreaks can be plotted while simulation is going on. After the performance of a high number of stochastic simulations in parallel in GPUs, the application shows a map of the final fire surface colored according to the probability that a given cell burns. In this way the user can visually identify the most critical direction for fire propagation, a useful information to stop fire optimizing resources, which is specially important when they are scarce like is the case of our Patagonia region.Facultad de Informátic

Cloud computing application model for online recommendation through fuzzy logic system

Cloud computing can offer us different distance services over the internet. We propose an online application model for health care systems that works by use of cloud computing. It can provide a higher quality of services remotely and along with that, it decreases the cost of chronic patient. This model is composed of two sub-model that each one uses a different service, one of these is software as a service (SaaS) which is user related and another one is Platform as a service (PaaS) that is engineer related. Doctors classify the chronic diseases into different stages according to their symptoms. As the clinical data has a non-numeric value, we use the fuzzy logic system in Paas model to design this online application model. Based on this classification, patienst can receive the proper recommendation through smart devices (SaaS model).Facultad de Informátic