2D, 2.5D, or 3D?: An Exploratory Study on Multilayer Network Visualisations in Virtual RealityShow others and affiliations
2024 (English)In: IEEE Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics, ISSN 1077-2626, E-ISSN 1941-0506, Vol. 30, no 1, p. 469-479Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]
Relational information between different types of entities is often modelled by a multilayer network (MLN) - a network with subnetworks represented by layers. The layers of an MLN can be arranged in different ways in a visual representation, however, the impact of the arrangement on the readability of the network is an open question. Therefore, we studied this impact for several commonly occurring tasks related to MLN analysis. Additionally, layer arrangements with a dimensionality beyond 2D, which are common in this scenario, motivate the use of stereoscopic displays. We ran a human subject study utilising a Virtual Reality headset to evaluate 2D, 2.5D, and 3D layer arrangements. The study employs six analysis tasks that cover the spectrum of an MLN task taxonomy, from path finding and pattern identification to comparisons between and across layers. We found no clear overall winner. However, we explore the task-to-arrangement space and derive empirical-based recommendations on the effective use of 2D, 2.5D, and 3D layer arrangements for MLNs.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
IEEE, 2024. Vol. 30, no 1, p. 469-479
Keywords [en]
multilayer networks, networks, user study, evaluation, visual analytics, visualization, virtual reality, graph drawing
National Category
Human Computer Interaction Computer Sciences
Research subject
Computer Science, Information and software visualization
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-123519DOI: 10.1109/TVCG.2023.3327402ISI: 001159106500124PubMedID: 37883262Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85181179065OAI: oai:DiVA.org:lnu-123519DiVA, id: diva2:1786478
Conference
IEEE VIS 2023: Visualization & Visual Analytics, 22-27 October 2023, Melbourne, Australia
Funder
ELLIIT - The Linköping‐Lund Initiative on IT and Mobile Communications2023-08-092023-08-092024-05-02Bibliographically approved