Mobile, Low-Cost, and Large-Scale Immersive Data Visualization Environment for Civil Engineering Applications

Abstract

This case study presents the design and development of a three-dimensional (3D) immersive visualization system constructed from commercial off-the-shelf components and open-source software that is intended to address the following key challenges for the practical use of immersive environments: (1) extreme costs in both hardware and software; (2) immobility due to calibration and darkroom requirements; and (3) extensive and expensive manpower requirements for both operation and maintenance. The system—called the VuePod—uses 12 consumer grade passive 3D television monitors, an active tracking system, and a modular construction approach. The VuePod capitalizes on recent functional advancements and cost decreases in both hardware and software and is demonstrated herein as a viable alternative to prohibitively expensive projector-based walk-in computer automatic virtual environments (CAVEs). The case study presents a full description of the hardware and its assembly, the software and its configuration, the modular structural system, results from benchmark computation and visualization tests, and a comparison to other several other immersive visualization systems in terms of cost, scale, pixel density, and system requirements.