Project Ideas

Over the course of the semester, you'll work on two research projects centered around collaborative VR software. If you're feeling stuck, consider pursuing one of the following projects:

Software Analysis

• Find a scientific dataset (e.g. from the scientific data page) and compile a list of collaborative visualization software that supports your dataset. Then, compare the features and usability of each piece of software. 

  • Core questions: How simple is it to view your dataset in each piece of software? In other words, quantify the time and number of steps each software package requires. What collaborative features are supported, if any? What obstacles exist for scientists who may want to use this software. 

• Consider pursuing one of the project ideas from CSCI 2370.

• Find and evaluate frameworks / plugins for Unity and/or Unreal Engine that support collaborative VR scientific visualization (e.g. volume rendering).

  • Core questions: How easy is it to build a collaborative VR app? How much programming experience is required to build collaborative experiences? 

• Find and evaluate VR games that support collaboration and which could potentially extended to support scientific visualization.

  • Core questions: To what extent can VR games be used for collaboration and scientific visualization? 

• Evaluation and Exploration of Paraview Web / VTkWeb

  • With emphasis on analysis of performance, speed, comprehensiveness as a visualization library. This will be especially helpful since the main critiques of current WebVR libraries are that they lack comprehensiveness for visualization-specific applications, and Paraview Web could solve that gap. 

Software Development 

• Extend Gaia Sky (open-source real-time astro visualization software) to support collaboration

• Expand upon the collaborative functionality of Cave Painting and/or DinoVR.

  • Skills required: Experience with C++, CMake, and OpenGL, windows development, possibly ocuslus development

• Extend MinVR to support collaborative VR development. 

  • Skills required: Experience with C++, CMake, and OpenGL, windows development, possibly oculus development

• Find what VR support ParaView has, whether it is collaborative, and if it can be extended

  • same as above

User Experience (UX)

• Evaluate the state of scientific tooling (e.g. UI elements designed specifically for collaborative scientific visualization) across various VR software.

  • Core questions: How can existing VR software be redesigned to better support the needs of scientists?  

• Evaluate what collaborative techniques work well in VR and propose some new techniques that could aid scientific visualization. 

  • Core questions: What visual cues are missing from virtual environments that might help collaborative work? How do sound and latency impact collaborative work? What can be done to reduce motion sickness and fatigue when working in collaborative environments? '

Past Projects

The wiki is chock full of past projects.  Search the wiki for "Project 1" or "Project 2" or just "Project" and you will get a list of past projects that you can check out for inspiration.

Miscellaneous

• Use medical data to visualize in VR

• Use data visualization dashboards to render in VR