A visualization tool for exploratory analysis of cyclic multivariate data

Abstract.

This paper presents an interactive visualization tool for the qualitative exploration of multivariate data that may exhibit cyclic or periodic behavior. Glyphs are used to encode each multivariate data point, and linear, stacked, and spiral glyph layouts are employed to help convey both intra-cycle and inter-cycle relationships within the data. Users may interactively select glyph and layout types, modify cycle lengths and the number of cycles to display, and select the specific data dimensions to be included. We validate the usefulness of the system with case studies and describe our future plans for expanding the system's capabilities.