Result-Driven Exploration of Simulation Parameter Spaces for Visual Effects Design

Abstract

Abstract-Graphics artists commonly employ physically-based simulation for the generation of effects such as smoke, explosions, and similar phenomena. The task of finding the correct parameters for a desired result, however, is difficult and time-consuming as current tools provide little to no guidance. In this paper, we present a new approach for the visual exploration of such parameter spaces. Given a three-dimensional scene description, we utilize sampling and spatio-temporal clustering techniques to generate a concise overview of the achievable variations and their temporal evolution. Our visualization system then allows the user to explore the simulation space in a goal-oriented manner. Animation sequences with a set of desired characteristics can be composed using a novel search-by-example approach and interactive direct volume rendering is employed to provide instant visual feedback. A user study was performed to evaluate the applicability of our system in production use.

Visualization System Requirements for Data Processing Pipeline Design and Optimization

“…The ability to visualize those outputs brings several important benefits, which include allowing users to save considerable time [10], [11], conduct a far more rigorous review of outputs than is possible with the iteration approach [12], and gain a high-level understanding of how different parameters interact to affect the outputs [13], [14].…”

“…Each colored cell indicates a requirement that is important for a given case study/paper, and an 'x' indicates that the requirement remains unmet by users' current tools. [25] req req req req req Chemical process models [26] x req req x Economic modelling [27] req req xx req req x req Aircraft engine design [28] req req x req req Phylogenetic trees [29,30] x req x x req req Molecular evolution [31,32] x x req x req x * Raidou et al [75] iCoCooN req req req * Ruppert et al [46] --x req x Luboshik et al [38] --x req req req Bruckner et al [10] --x req x req * Beham et al [43] Cupid req req xx Konyha et al [39] --x req x Pretorius et al [12] Paramorama req x req Afzal et al [36] RVF x req req x Bergner et al [13] ParaGlide xx req Torsney-Weir et al [33] Tuner x req x x * Padua et al [11] --x req x * Bögl et al [42] TiMoVA req req req x x req Spence et al [73] --req req Berger et al [9] --req x xx Piringer et al [40] HyperMoVal xx req req req Matkovic et al [17] --req x Coffey et al [34] --x x req Matkovic et al [50] --x Potter et al [49] Ensemble-Vis x req Booshehrian et al [19] Vismon req x req x Brecheisen et al [52] --x req x Unger et al [54] --req req req Amirkhanov et al [74] --x Marks et al [48] Design Galleries req x Waser et al [18] World Lines req x x * Martins et al [35] --x req x * Wu [53] --xx x Guo et al [41] --req…”

“…4.2), improve the sophistication of an existing pipeline [17], [40], make a pipeline robust to the characteristics of the input data [12], or design the pipeline from scratch [27], [41], [42]. The latter is particularly true in exploratory analysis, where users are analyzing a new form of data or looking for new patterns (e.g., [9], [10], [11], [43]). …”

Facing the high-dimensions: Inverse projection with radial basis functions

“…Some systems, like the ones presented by Bruckner and Möller [16] and Pretorius et al [17] have also been designed to assist the user to explore multidimensional parameter spaces. In the paper of Bruckner et al [16], it was introduced a system that allows the user to explore simulation results for special effects.…”

“…In the paper of Bruckner et al [16], it was introduced a system that allows the user to explore simulation results for special effects. The focus of their system was not to provide a complete understanding of the parameter space, but to allow users to achieve a desired animation sequence without the hurdle of parameter tuning.…”