Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis for Aiding Glyph Design

Area of Science:

• Information Visualization
• Human-Computer Interaction
• Data Science

Background:

• Glyph-based visualization is crucial for complex multivariate data, but encoding many variables with small glyphs presents challenges.
• Current methods lack a systematic approach for evaluating design trade-offs in glyph creation.
• Low visual precision in small glyphs necessitates careful allocation of visual channels.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present a structured evaluation scheme for glyph design.
• To assist visualization designers in evaluating trade-offs in glyph design options.
• To provide a framework for semi-quantitative assessment of glyph designs.

Main Methods:

• Developed an evaluation scheme based on multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA).
• The scheme offers a structured approach for considering diverse design perspectives.
• Provides a semi-quantitative template for comparing different glyph design options.

Main Results:

• Introduced a systematic method to evaluate glyph design trade-offs.
• The MCDA-based scheme allows for structured consideration of multiple design criteria.
• Generated a template for semi-quantitative evaluation of visualization designs.

Conclusions:

• The proposed MCDA scheme provides a structured approach for evaluating glyph designs.
• This framework aids designers in managing trade-offs when visualizing complex data.
• The work offers guidance for future empirical research in quantitative glyph design evaluation.