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Texture mapping is a key technology in computer graphics. For the visual design of 3D scenes, in particular, effective texturing depends significantly on how important contents are expressed, e.g., by preserving global salient structures, and how their depiction is cognitively processed by the user in an application context. Edge-preserving image filtering is one key approach to address these concerns. Much research has focused on applying image filters in a post-process stage to generate artistically stylized depictions. However, these approaches generally do not preserve depth cues, which are important for the perception of 3D visualization (e.g., texture gradient). To this end, filtering is required that processes texture data coherently with respect to linear perspective and spatial relationships. In this work, we present an approach for texturing 3D scenes with perspective coherence by arbitrary image filters. We propose decoupled deferred texturing with (1) caching strategies to interactively perform image filtering prior to texture mapping and (2) for each mipmap level separately to enable a progressive level of abstraction, using (3) direct interaction interfaces to parameterize the visualization according to spatial, semantic, and thematic data. We demonstrate the potentials of our method by several applications using touch or natural language inputs to serve the different interests of users in specific information, including illustrative visualization, focus+context visualization, geometric detail removal, and semantic depth of field. The approach supports frame-to-frame coherence, order-independent transparency, multitexturing, and content-based filtering. In addition, it seamlessly integrates into real-time rendering pipelines and is extensible for custom interaction techniques. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Concepts and techniques for integration, analysis and visualization of massive 3D point clouds
(2014)
Remote sensing methods, such as LiDAR and image-based photogrammetry, are established approaches for capturing the physical world. Professional and low-cost scanning devices are capable of generating dense 3D point clouds. Typically, these 3D point clouds are preprocessed by GIS and are then used as input data in a variety of applications such as urban planning, environmental monitoring, disaster management, and simulation. The availability of area-wide 3D point clouds will drastically increase in the future due to the availability of novel capturing methods (e.g., driver assistance systems) and low-cost scanning devices. Applications, systems, and workflows will therefore face large collections of redundant, up-to-date 3D point clouds and have to cope with massive amounts of data. Hence, approaches are required that will efficiently integrate, update, manage, analyze, and visualize 3D point clouds. In this paper, we define requirements for a system infrastructure that enables the integration of 3D point clouds from heterogeneous capturing devices and different timestamps. Change detection and update strategies for 3D point clouds are presented that reduce storage requirements and offer new insights for analysis purposes. We also present an approach that attributes 3D point clouds with semantic information (e.g., object class category information), which enables more effective data processing, analysis, and visualization. Out-of-core real-time rendering techniques then allow for an interactive exploration of the entire 3D point cloud and the corresponding analysis results. Web-based visualization services are utilized to make 3D point clouds available to a large community. The proposed concepts and techniques are designed to establish 3D point clouds as base datasets, as well as rendering primitives for analysis and visualization tasks, which allow operations to be performed directly on the point data. Finally, we evaluate the presented system, report on its applications, and discuss further research challenges.
Cartography-Oriented Design of 3D Geospatial Information Visualization - Overview and Techniques
(2015)
In economy, society and personal life map-based interactive geospatial visualization becomes a natural element of a growing number of applications and systems. The visualization of 3D geospatial information, however, raises the question how to represent the information in an effective way. Considerable research has been done in technology-driven directions in the fields of cartography and computer graphics (e.g., design principles, visualization techniques). Here, non-photorealistic rendering (NPR) represents a promising visualization category - situated between both fields - that offers a large number of degrees for the cartography-oriented visual design of complex 2D and 3D geospatial information for a given application context. Still today, however, specifications and techniques for mapping cartographic design principles to the state-of-the-art rendering pipeline of 3D computer graphics remain to be explored. This paper revisits cartographic design principles for 3D geospatial visualization and introduces an extended 3D semiotic model that complies with the general, interactive visualization pipeline. Based on this model, we propose NPR techniques to interactively synthesize cartographic renditions of basic feature types, such as terrain, water, and buildings. In particular, it includes a novel iconification concept to seamlessly interpolate between photorealistic and cartographic representations of 3D landmarks. Our work concludes with a discussion of open challenges in this field of research, including topics, such as user interaction and evaluation.
The use of Building Information Modeling (BIM) for Facility Management (FM) in the Operation and Maintenance (O&M) stages of the building life-cycle is intended to bridge the gap between operations and digital data, but lacks the functionality of assessing the state of the built environment due to non-automated generation of associated semantics. 3D point clouds can be used to capture the physical state of the built environment, but also lack these associated semantics. A prototypical implementation of a service-oriented architecture for classification of indoor point cloud scenes of office environments is presented, using multiview classification. The multiview classification approach is tested using a retrained Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) model - Inception V3. The presented approach for classifying common office furniture objects (chairs, sofas and desks), contained in 3D point cloud scans, is tested and evaluated. The results show that the presented approach can classify common office furniture up to an acceptable degree of accuracy, and is suitable for quick and robust semantics approximation - based on RGB (red, green and blue color channel) cubemap images of the octree partitioned areas of the 3D point cloud scan. Additional methods for web-based 3D visualization, editing and annotation of point clouds are also discussed. Using the described approach, captured scans of indoor environments can be semantically enriched using object annotations derived from multiview classification results. Furthermore, the presented approach is suited for semantic enrichment of lower resolution indoor point clouds acquired using commodity mobile devices.
The rapid digitalization of the Facility Management (FM) sector has increased the demand for mobile, interactive analytics approaches concerning the operational state of a building. These approaches provide the key to increasing stakeholder engagement associated with Operation and Maintenance (O&M) procedures of living and working areas, buildings, and other built environment spaces. We present a generic and fast approach to process and analyze given 3D point clouds of typical indoor office spaces to create corresponding up-to-date approximations of classified segments and object-based 3D models that can be used to analyze, record and highlight changes of spatial configurations. The approach is based on machine-learning methods used to classify the scanned 3D point cloud data using 2D images. This approach can be used to primarily track changes of objects over time for comparison, allowing for routine classification, and presentation of results used for decision making. We specifically focus on classification, segmentation, and reconstruction of multiple different object types in a 3D point-cloud scene. We present our current research and describe the implementation of these technologies as a web-based application using a services-oriented methodology.
Currently we are witnessing profound changes in the geospatial domain. Driven by recent ICT developments, such as web services, serviceoriented computing or open-source software, an explosion of geodata and geospatial applications or rapidly growing communities of non-specialist users, the crucial issue is the provision and integration of geospatial intelligence in these rapidly changing, heterogeneous developments. This paper introduces the concept of Servicification into geospatial data processing. Its core idea is the provision of expertise through a flexible number of web-based software service modules. Selection and linkage of these services to user profiles, application tasks, data resources, or additional software allow for the compilation of flexible, time-sensitive geospatial data handling processes. Encapsulated in a string of discrete services, the approach presented here aims to provide non-specialist users with geospatial expertise required for the effective, professional solution of a defined application problem. Providing users with geospatial intelligence in the form of web-based, modular services, is a completely different approach to geospatial data processing. This novel concept puts geospatial intelligence, made available through services encapsulating rule bases and algorithms, in the centre and at the disposal of the users, regardless of their expertise.
Mobile expressive rendering gained increasing popularity among users seeking casual creativity by image stylization and supports the development of mobile artists as a new user group. In particular, neural style transfer has advanced as a core technology to emulate characteristics of manifold artistic styles. However, when it comes to creative expression, the technology still faces inherent limitations in providing low-level controls for localized image stylization. This work enhances state-of-the-art neural style transfer techniques by a generalized user interface with interactive tools to facilitate a creative and localized editing process. Thereby, we first propose a problem characterization representing trade-offs between visual quality, run-time performance, and user control. We then present MaeSTrO, a mobile app for orchestration of neural style transfer techniques using iterative, multi-style generative and adaptive neural networks that can be locally controlled by on-screen painting metaphors. At this, first user tests indicate different levels of satisfaction for the implemented techniques and interaction design.
OpenLL
(2018)
Today's rendering APIs lack robust functionality and capabilities for dynamic, real-time text rendering and labeling, which represent key requirements for 3D application design in many fields. As a consequence, most rendering systems are barely or not at all equipped with respective capabilities. This paper drafts the unified text rendering and labeling API OpenLL intended to complement common rendering APIs, frameworks, and transmission formats. For it, various uses of static and dynamic placement of labels are showcased and a text interaction technique is presented. Furthermore, API design constraints with respect to state-of-the-art text rendering techniques are discussed. This contribution is intended to initiate a community-driven specification of a free and open label library.
Interactive Close-Up Rendering for Detail plus Overview Visualization of 3D Digital Terrain Models
(2019)
This paper presents an interactive rendering technique for detail+overview visualization of 3D digital terrain models using interactive close-ups. A close-up is an alternative presentation of input data varying with respect to geometrical scale, mapping, appearance, as well as Level-of-Detail (LOD) and Level-of-Abstraction (LOA) used. The presented 3D close-up approach enables in-situ comparison of multiple Regionof-Interests (ROIs) simultaneously. We describe a GPU-based rendering technique for the image-synthesis of multiple close-ups in real-time.
Geovisualization offers powerful tools, techniques, and strategies to present, explore, analyze, and manage geoinformation. Interactive geovirtual environments such as virtual 3D maps or virtual 3D city models, however, raise the question how to control geodata usage and distribution. We present a concept for embedding digital rights in geovisualizations. It is based on geo-documents, an object-oriented scheme to specify a wide range of geo visualizations. Geo-documents are assembled by building blocks categorized into presentation, structure, interaction, animation, and Digital Rights Management (DRM) classes. DRM objects allow for defining permissions and constraints for all objects contained in geo-documents. In this way, authors of geo visualizations can control how their geo-documents are used, personalized, and redistributed by users. The strengths of the presented concept include the ability to integrate heterogeneous 2D and 3D geodata within a compact design scheme and the ability to cope with privacy, security, and copyright issues. Embedded digital rights in geovisualizations can be applied to improve the usability of geodata user interfaces, to implement publisher-subscriber communication systems for geodata, and to establish business models for geodata trading systems