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The University of Tennessee College of Engineering 114 Perkins Hall Knoxville, TN 37996-2012 |
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| Newsletter
of the UT College of Engineering |
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The Applied Visualization Center |
"I'm really not able to enjoy watching movies much any more," he admits. "I keep trying to figure out how the effects were created."
Koch and his employees and students at the AVC are working with clients in such diverse fields as architecture, transportation and computer science.
"We are completely funded through sponsored research," says Koch. "We don't receive any funding from the university."
The original Data Visualization Lab (DVL) was established in the Science and Engineering Research Facility under the guidance of Dr. Rafael Gonzalez, the former department head of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. The DVL reported to the UT Department of Information Infrastructure and served several disciplines, including departments in the College of Arts and Sciences and the College of Architecture, as well as the College of Engineering.
In 1999 the DVL was reorganized under the Office of Research and became the Applied Visualization Lab (AVL). In 2002, the AVL was promoted to center status as the AVC. The administration decided that the newly renamed center would be better housed within the COE and placed the AVC under the direction of Koch.
Koch had been interested in simulation technology since coming to UT in 1987, at which time he started out using 3-D graphics to visualize simulations. Koch was asked by Gonzalez to coordinate the DVL in 1996, and when UT granted the AVL full center status in April 2002, Koch established the research and office facility in the UT Conference Center.
Today, the AVC is a multidisciplinary effort whose goal is to assist both faculty and researchers who deal with the analysis and presentation of large, complex numerical data sets. Preferring to call the technology "virtual environments" rather than the overused term "virtual reality," Koch observes that "basically, what you are doing is creating an environment that does not exist in the real world."
The technology lets the user interact in an immersive experience: The images and sounds from the computer convince your senses that something real is happening.
"Since the user is cut off from outside stimulation by the equipment, the environment becomes 'real.' Most of the images are also presented with stereo sound, which adds depth perception and contributes to the real world effect," Koch explains.
Virtual environments involve the use of a head-mounted display, which blocks off external vision and sound and allows the user to focus on the computer images. The user also wears gloves, which allow movement and tracking within the environment. The AVL uses a Virtual Research V8 head-mounted display and Fakespace pinch gloves for trips into the virtual environment.
Virtual environments and information visualization have many applications. For example, physicians can use the technology to superimpose live ultrasound images of internal organs onto the body or to view real-time information, such as a patient's vital signs, during surgery. Rehabilitation and physical therapy can also be enhanced by the use of VR sensory equipment to pinpoint motor control problems.
Many scientists and mathematicians use VR to visualize models and equations in 3-D. VR is also an effective training tool for pilots, using flight simulation, or for automobile drivers through the use of virtual cars.
One of Koch's most successful projects so far has been working with the Federal Aviation Administration through the National Safe Skies Alliance (NSSA). UT is a founding member of NSSA, along with American Engineering Inc., the Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority, and the Minneapolis-St. Paul Metropolitan Airports Commission.
Thanks to a $250,000 grant received in 2001, Koch and his team developed CheckPoint Viz, a computer program that assists airports in improving passenger traffic flow checkpoints by allowing personnel to explore the impact of various layouts on passenger and baggage thoroughfares and security.
"Strangely enough, we had already begun working on this before September 11, 2001," Koch comments. "Afterwards we had a heightened sense of the importance of this project."
The AVC has also worked on projects for Bechtel, Inc., creating a virtual model of the East Tennessee Technology Park, and has worked on 3-D modeling projects for the city of Chattanooga and the National Transportation Research Facility.
Koch believes the future of virtual environments is unlimited, and that numerous scientific and technical fields will be able to use the technology for many diverse purposes. And, of course, thereŐs always the glamorous movie business.
Koch notes that in films such as Lord of the Rings and Titanic, many of the extras were computer-generated. He also mentions Ananova, the first animated newscaster on the World Wide Web and the spoof film Simone, which features an entirely computer-generated character.
"This technology is already replacing live actors as extras," says Koch. "Who knows what may come next--I think some of these Hollywood types are getting nervous."
For more information, contact:
Dr. Dan Koch
(865) 974-9585
e-mail at dbk@utk.edu
htpp://viz.utk.edu
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Story by Kim Cowart
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