Haptic visualization: the use of multi-modal visualization to better interpret multi-variate data
Doanna M. Weissgerber, Alex Pang · 2004
The purpose of scientific visualization is to accurately transmit data from the computer to the user in a way that enhances the user's ability to understand the physical phenomena [93]. Recently scientific visualization methods have been motivated by the necessity of visualizing high-dimensional data sets. According to a summary written for the Department of Energy (DOE): “Current graphics and visualization technology cannot cope with the volume and complexity of the data produced by the simulations that will be carried out on the high-end computer platforms in the next two to four years” [31]. As a result, they suggest the need for new techniques that merge visual, sonification, and haptic data representations. It is important to realize that visualization means that the user can form a mental image of the portrayed information. It does not specifically require sight [41]. Currently, haptic research utilizes haptic devices that occupy the user's hands (Haptic mice, Phantom Devices, etc.). If the hands are removed from the device, it is possible to lose some of the haptic information. I have designed and implemented VisPad, a prototype for a new haptics design which visualizes data. VisPad is constructed out of commodity massage pads and custom controllers and interfaces to a computer. It is an output device for information that can be transmitted to a user who sits on the pad. Two unique properties of the design are its large feedback area and its passive nature, where unlike most current haptics devices, the user's hands are free to work on other things. To test how useful such a device is for visualizing data, the VisPad interface was added to ProtAlign, my protein structure-sequence alignment assessment program. VisPad is the first large scale force feedback device software. A usability study was performed. There was a significant difference between the mean times for experimental and control groups to perform visualization at one time utilizing this novel multi-modal presentation compared to a vision-based graphical visualization alone.