Re: XY line graph with an expanding domain and range (strip chart)

  • To: Mike Charters <mcharter@xxxxxxxxx>
  • Subject: Re: XY line graph with an expanding domain and range (strip chart)
  • From: Bill Hibbard <billh@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Wed, 5 Jun 2002 15:33:46 -0500 (CDT)
Hi Mike,

> I am attempting to create a simple XY line graph that I can add points
> to during runtime, so that each time I add a point to it the display
> will update.  I have written a few simple programs to use visAD and I
> have read through the visAD tutorial and... but I cannot find a clean
> way to do this...
>
> All I would like to do is have time on the x-axis, and plot another
> quantity on the y-axis...and efficiently update the display each time I
> add a point.
>
> is this do-able?  it seems like i would need a function
> (time->quantity), with an Integer1DSet for time.  but the Integer1DSet
> would have to grow by 1 and so would the container that holds the
> quantity values, so I would have to create a new Integer1DSet and copy
> over the array to a new one 1 size bigger everytime I want to add a
> point?  this is the only way I can think of doing it with my beginner
> visAD knowledge... there has to be a better way?  (maybe doing something
> with an animation?)

One way to do it is to construct an Integer1DSet with more
sample points than you need, and initially set the 'quantity'
values for the unused samples to Float.NaN (missing indicator)
so they won't be displayed. Then as samples come in call
FlatField.setSample(i, value) to over-write the NaNs one-by-one.

> Eventually, I would like to have an XY line graph that always contains a
> constant number of points, and then it starts scrolling when you add
> points that don't fit on the graph.  for example, the graph could start
> out with the time scale from 0 to 499 ... with no points plotted... then
> when you add point 500 the graph would shift and now be showing points 1
> through 500... then when point 1000 is added points 501 to 1000 are
> showing... then you can scroll through the points after all the data has
> been generated?

You could do this by growing a FlatField as I described above,
plus repeated calls to setRange() for the ScalarMap to XAxis.

This is an easy but not very efficient way to handle your
problem. But if you try it and don't notice delays, go with
it. If you do notice delays, you can make it more efficient
by:

1. Use say 10 FlatFields with 50 samples each, and each
linked to the DisplayImpl by its own DataReference. When
you fill up one FlatField, construct a new one (with an
appropriate Integer1DSet for the next 50 samples) and use
it to replace the oldest FlatField (replace by passing
the new FlatField to the setData() method of the
DataReference of the oldest FlatField).

2. Rather than calling setRange() on each sample, call
ProjectionControl.setMatrix() to move the display slightly.
You will need to experiment a bit to get the matrix right
(call getMatrix() and multiply it by a translation matrix).

Cheers,
Bill


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