Multi-Touch Interfaces for Public Exploration and Navigation in Astronomical Visualizations

Abstract: OpenSpace is an interactive data visualization software system that portrays the entire known universe in a 3D simulation. Current navigation interface requires explanations, which prohibits OpenSpace to be displayed effectively in public exhibitions. Research has been shown that using large tangible touch surfaces with a multi-touch navigation interface is more engaging to users than mouse and keyboard as well as enhances the understanding of navigation control, thus decreasing the required instructions to learn the systems user interface. This thesis shows that combining a velocity-based interaction model together with a screen-space direct-manipulation formulation produces a user-friendly interface. Giving the user precise control of objects and efficient travels in between in the vastness of space. This thesis presents the work of integrating a multi-touch navigation interface with a combined formulation of velocity-based interaction and screen-space direct-manipulation into the software framework OpenSpace.