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The Visual Computer

, Volume 24, Issue 7–9, pp 635–647 | Cite as

Visibility volumes for interactive path optimization

  • Manohar B. Srikanth
  • P.C. Mathias
  • Vijay NatarajanEmail author
  • Prakash Naidu
  • Timothy Poston
Original Article
First Online:

Abstract

We describe a real-time system that supports design of optimal flight paths over terrains. These paths either maximize view coverage or minimize vehicle exposure to ground. A volume-rendered display of multi-viewpoint visibility and a haptic interface assists the user in selecting, assessing, and refining the computed flight path. We design a three-dimensional scalar field representing the visibility of a point above the terrain, describe an efficient algorithm to compute the visibility field, and develop visual and haptic schemes to interact with the visibility field. Given the origin and destination, the desired flight path is computed using an efficient simulation of an articulated rope under the influence of the visibility gradient. The simulation framework also accepts user input, via the haptic interface, thereby allowing manual refinement of the flight path.

Keywords

Visibility analysis Flight paths Force-directed ropes Haptics Multimodal interaction  
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Copyright information

© Springer-Verlag 2008

Authors and Affiliations

  • Manohar B. Srikanth
    • 2
  • P.C. Mathias
    • 3
  • Vijay Natarajan
    • 1
    Email author
  • Prakash Naidu
    • 4
  • Timothy Poston
    • 5
  1. 1.Department of Computer Science and Automation, Supercomputer Education and Research CentreIndian Institute of ScienceBangaloreIndia
  2. 2.Department of Mechanical EngineeringMassachusetts Institute of TechnologyCambridgeUSA
  3. 3.NMR Research Centre, Supercomputer Education and Research CentreIndian Institute of ScienceBangaloreIndia
  4. 4.University of TorontoTorontoCanada
  5. 5.National Institute for Advanced StudiesBangaloreIndia

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