CEI the world’s leader in visualization for science and ... · Kent P. Misegades, President...
Transcript of CEI the world’s leader in visualization for science and ... · Kent P. Misegades, President...
Kent P. Misegades, President Computational Engineering International Inc.
Animating andAnimating andPresentingPresenting
Simulation ResultsSimulation Results
CEI the world’s leader in visualizationfor science and engineering
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
• What this Presentation Is and Isn’t
• Tips for Creating Impressive Images
• What About the Color-Blind?
• Types of Animation
• Animation Dos and Don’ts, or how to keep ‘em awake
• Presenting Animations from a Laptop
• Presenting Animations on High-End Display Systems
Topics
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
• IS– an overview of what has worked well for us
– examples from CEI and its customers
• ISN’T– sales pitch
– see www.ensight.com for CEI product information
What this Presentation Is and Isn’t
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
• Harpoon– automatic (mostly) hex mesh generator
• EnSight– general-purpose engineering postprocessor
• EnSight Gold– visualization for very large models and virtual reality
• EnLiten– platform-independent “rich” geometry viewer
• EnLiten Gold– virtual reality presentation tool
• EnVideo– platform-independent animation player
• EnVe– engineering video editor
Software Tools from CEISoftware Tools from CEI
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Tips for Creating Impressive Images
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
• Part Colors– avoid fully saturated; pastels are warmer and print better– use banded color palettes that provide strong contrasts– avoid using more than one color palette / image; confuses
• Shading– adjust lighting parameters to mimic realistic conditions
• intensity, diffusion, highlights
– use a single white light source, adjust position to enhancecomprehension of surface curvature
• Anti-Aliasing– SGI hardware does this automatically, very nice images– otherwise use line thickness of at least 2 pixels
Tips for Creating Impressive Images
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Tips for Creating Impressive Images
Fully-saturated colors • Pastel colors• Alpha-blending transparency• Wire-frame to expose internals
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Tips for Creating Impressive Images
Which palette tells you more?
Continuous color palette Banded color palette
Banded color palette with black contours
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Tips for Creating Impressive Images
Low diffusion, low highlighting High diffusion
Moderate diffusion and highlighting Static light source above & to right
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Tips for Creating Impressive Images
Light source at eye of observer “Static” light source fixed to theleft of the model
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Tips for Creating Impressive Images
No anti-aliasing Anti-aliasing
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
• Background Colors– choose best color for contrast, black is normally best
– most image editing software “likes” black backgrounds
– complicated backgrounds distract viewer from model
• Perspective– while orthographic views may have engineering advantages,
– humans respond best to realistic images, thus use it
• Transparency– most effective means to expose internal details
– alpha blending is far superior to screen door method
Tips for Creating Impressive Images
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Tips for Creating Impressive Images
perspective on perspective off
alpha blending screen door
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
• Overlay CAD Model– overlay transparent CAD data to CFD results
– provides understandable reference to the non-analyst
– complicated backgrounds distract viewer from model
• Reduce Dimension of Model– flow features instead of numerous clips, traces, isos, etc.
• vortex cores, separation lines, shock surfaces, BL profiles, etc.
– developed (unwrapped) quadric surfaces
• Annotation– avoid text cluttering a beautiful image
– consider adding high-quality text later, i.e. in Photoshop
Tips for Creating Impressive Images
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Tips for Creating Impressive Images
Too many traces! Fewer traces shown as ribbons
Fewer traces shown as tubes Reduce dimension of visual (next slide)
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Tips for Creating Impressive Images
Reduce dimension of visual by depicting features, not raw data
Vortex core (orange)
Surface traces (dark blue)
Sep/attachment lines (green/magenta)
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
• Close-ups– several close-up views are generally better than one overall– strong perspective adds excitement, motion
• Display of Computational Grid– for modern, high-res models, generates too many lines– looks old-fashioned, difficult to reproduce sharply– use wire frame to show model features
• Particle Traces– use as few as possible; too many = spaghetti and confusion– display as ribbons or tubes to add shading– animate; shaded spheres with tails are best for comprehension
Tips for Creating Impressive Images
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Tips for Creating Impressive Images
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Typical Print Formats• JPEG & TIFF
– best choices for PowerPoint and HTML creation– save from a large size to give best image quality
• RGB– perhaps the best pixel format, from SGI– large file size
• GIF– Unisys now demanding royalties, so let’s not use it anymore
• PostScript– vector PS best choice for use in printed documents since scalable– vector with tiff preview and eps options are best, but seldom
available in OpenGL applications– raster postscript defeats the purpose!
• EVO– CEI’s own compressed image format, play with CEI’s EnVideo– good compromise between image quality and file size– API to create these available at www.ensight.com
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
• Color deficiencies are common amongst males
– 8% of all caucasian males
– 5% of all asiatic males
• Most common forms
– six types of dyschromatopsia have been identified
– most are dichromatic, only two of three primary colors seen
– typically, either red- or green-sensitive pigment is missing
– actual “color-blind” are only 0.003% of caucasian males
What About the Color-Blind?
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
• To help the color deficient:– avoid red and green in color palettes and part coloring
– use banded colors and black, delineating contours
– use high brightness levels and shades only of one color
– gray scales also work well
– special color palette in EnSight
• Check your images and web pages– VISCHECK web site
– input is your image
– output is image as seen for the selected color deficiency
What About the Color-Blind?
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
What About the Color-Blind?
Above: typical rainbow color palette, below: special palette for color red/green deficiency
normal vision
normal vision
red/green deficiency
red/green deficiency
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Types of Animation• Streamline Animation
– massless or massed, streamlines or pathlines• Plane Sweep Animation
– XYZ, IJK, arbitrary planes, quadric surfaces, lines• Isosurface Animation
– isosurfaces or isovolumes (isosolids)• Transient Solution Animation
– often with moving meshes• Keyframe Animation
– fly-arounds, walk-throughs, part explosions• Linear Load and Mode Shape Animation (CSM)
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
• Follow Tips for Creating Impressive Images
• Create short segments, composite later (EnVe)
• Start with a fly-around, stopping every 90o
• Fade away obstructing model parts using transparency
• Animate while object fixed in space
• 30 frames/second remains recording rule of thumb
• Better to repeat short, quick animation than show long,
slow animation; KISS
Animation Dos and Don’tsor how to keep ‘em awake
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
• Recording options
– best are digital video formats (see below)
– preview speed during creation is not playback speed
– playback speed depends on many factors
• format used
• animation player used
• system performance and memory
• image size and total length
– videotape now considered obsolete, few companies have VCRs
Animation Dos and Don’tsor how to keep ‘em awake
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Typical Animation Formats• MPEG
– small file size, but poor image quality– huge variation in MPEG formats, players– best played on Unix systems, Windows like Russian Roulette
• AVI– good image quality, but huge files unless compressed– compression tools not generally available due to license issues– best played on Windows systems, Unix like Russian Roulette
• Animated GIF– Unisys now demanding royalties, so let’s not use it anymore
• Quicktime– Apple’s solution; anyone remember the Mac?
• EVO– CEI’s own compressed image format– good compromise between image quality and file size– create anywhere, play anywhere using CEI’s free EnVideo player
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
• Most common playback today; PowerPoint is preferred tool
• How To:
– link an animation file to an object
• link to a separate image of the animation’s initial frame
• animation file separate from .ppt file, smaller files but less portable .ppt
• Action Settings... > Hyperlink to: > Other File …
– animation file inserted (embedded) as an object into .ppt file
• initial frame of animation appears automatically in presentation
• works well for MS-native formats, OLE players of which there are few
• increases .ppt file size by length of animation files, .ppt huge but portable
Presenting Animations from a Laptop
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Sample Animations
Model courtesy Advantage CFD
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Sample Animations
Model courtesy Modine Manufacturing
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Sample Animations
Model courtesy Advantage CFD
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
• Less common today but has major advantages– show the entire geometry with color, annotations, legends, etc.– rotate, translate, zoom, animate models from laptop– existing standard formats few, file size can be very large
• How To:– VRML (.wrl file type)
• now defunct effort to create a standard geometry format• many programs can export VRML 1.0, fewer support VRML 2.0• SGI’s free but unsupported COSMO product one of few reliable viewers
– CEI’s scenario files and free EnLiten viewer (.els file type)• create scene, i.e. rendered model plus animations, in EnSight• view, move, animate model in CEI’s free EnLiten• create anywhere, play anywhere, free on www.ensight.com
Presenting Geometry from a Laptop
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
EnLiten .elsVRML .wrl
Presenting Geometry from a Laptop
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Stereo (3D) ViewingStereo (3D) Viewing• No longer an exotic technology
– most modern graphics processors now stereo ready– require monitor displaying at 60 Hz or better– active (shutter) glasses relatively cheap, under $200/bundle– CEI’s supports stereo viewing in all products on all platforms– stereo-capable projectors still expensive, but prices will drop soon
• Most common stereoscopic display methods– Active
• left/right eye images interleaved vertically or horizontally• LCD shutter glasses synchronized by infrared signal or simple wire
– Passive• two polarized images created using two projectors or LCD monitor panel• throw-away plastic or cardboard polarizing eyewear
– Red/Green or Red/Blue• poor quality, but inexpensive eyewear, easily printed, use in .ppt
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Stereo (3D) ViewingStereo (3D) Viewing
active stereopassive stereo
red/green stereo
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Presenting Animations onHigh-End Display Systems
• What is High-End ?– one or more large display screens with edge blending– ceiling hung or back projection– stereo viewing– 3D or 6 DOF input device using tracker– head tracking driving scene
• Becoming more common as costs fall– automotive styling– engineering design review centers in aero and auto industries– oil exploration– architectural firms - buildings, major industrial construction– defense laboratories– EnSight Gold designed for such systems
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Presenting Animations onHigh-End Display Systems
“In 2009, virtual reality tools will be usedfor the interpretation of results.”
Michael Engelman, VP of Technology, Fluent Inc.Technology Trends in CFD
Detroit, March, 1999
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Software Tools from CEISoftware Tools from CEI
EnSight - Full Featured
EnLiten - Geometry EnVideo - Animations
EnSight GoldVR and Parallel
Auto Meshing
Solvers & Formats• CFD• CSM• CEM• CAD• Thermodynamics• Imaging• Experiments• etc….
EnVeengineeringvideo editor
.evo
Presentation ToolsEnLiten, EnVideo, EnVe
.cas
.els
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Concluding Remarks• A good animation starts with impressive images
• Plan your animation as would a cartoonist, make sketches
• KISS
• Experiment with quality vs. file size vs. playback speed
• Test your animations on multiple computers
• Good productivity = 1 minute of animation created / day
• Use stereo viewing to enhance understanding and impress
• Use high-end display systems if available in your organization
• See www.ensight.com > News > White Papers for more info
CEI … analyze, visualize, communicate
Thank YouThank Youwww.ensight.comwww.ensight.com
9.11.01