Enhanced Visualization of Modeling and Simulation Processes

This document proposes a system that allows engineers from multiple disciplines, using numerous simulation packages, to input data from a variety of sources, both run-time and off-line, in a manner that allows them to examine that data in a number ofdifferent ways. The architecture should allow for a great deal of flexibility and extensibility, allowing engineers to add multiple types and styles of real-time 2D and 3D visualization methods, different methods and formats of data input, and diversemethods of data manipulation and processing. This type of flexibility provides utility to engineers at all levels of the design process, with each engineer using a common visualization platform.Our Phase I efforts proved the effectiveness this type of visualization system had in analyzing a single macro-level simulation scenario. Our Phase II objective is to implement a prototype system that demonstrates this utility as it applies to a broadrange of M&S topics. Currently, there are a number of popular packages used for modeling and simulation, each with various forms of visualization capabilities. Our aim is to define a new standard for M&S interactive visualization. This can be achieved by providing avisualization environment that contains numerous standard utilities like interactive 2D and 3D plotting, but also provides an extensible visualization subsystem, the ability to read data in various formats and methods (which can be modified and extended),and most importantly can interface directly with the models created by the engineers.Such a system could emerge as the visualization standard for engineers working at the micro or macro level and across multiple disciplines. This system could provide simulation designers with the ability to more effectively communicate the effectivenessof their system to customers, colleagues, and decision makers.