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(Received 28 April 2010; final version received …)Visual analytics aims to combine the strengths of human and electronic data processing. Visualization, whereby humans and computers cooperate through graphics, is the means through which this is achieved. Seamless and sophisticated synergies are required for analyzing spatio-temporal data and solving spatio-temporal problems. In modern society, spatio-temporal analysis is not solely the business of professional analysts. Many citizens need or would be interested in undertaking analysis of information in time and space. Researchers should find approaches to deal with the complexities of the current data and problems and find ways to make analytical tools accessible and usable for the broad community of potential users to support spatio-temporal thinking and contribute to solving a large range of problems.
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AbstractThe paper investigates the possibilities of using clustering techniques in visual exploration and analysis of large numbers of trajectories, i.e. sequences of time-stamped locations of some moving entities. Trajectories are complex spatio-temporal constructs characterized by diverse non-trivial properties. To assess the degree of (dis)similarity between trajectories, specific methods (distance functions) are required. A single distance function accounting for all properties of trajectories, first, is difficult to build, second, would require much time to compute, third, might be difficult to understand and to use. We suggest the procedure of progressive clustering where a simple distance function with a clear meaning is applied on each step, which leads to easily interpretable outcomes. Successive application of several different functions enables sophisticated analyses through gradual refinement of earlier obtained results. Besides the advantages from the sense-making perspective, progressive clustering enables a rational work organization where time-consuming computations are applied to relatively small potentially interesting subsets obtained by means of "cheap" distance functions producing quick results. We introduce the concept of progressive clustering by an example of analyzing a large real dataset. We also review the existing clustering methods, describe the method OPTICS suitable for progressive clustering of trajectories, and briefly present several distance functions for trajectories.
Fig. 1. Hourly flows of residential Twitter users in Greater London area over a week are spatially and temporally simplified to gain an overview of mobility dynamics. A calendar view shows the temporal cluster distribution over a week. Each map displays movements between spatial aggregates in a temporal cluster. Movement direction is represented by a color gradient from dark to light blue.Abstract-Learning more about people mobility is an important task for official decision makers and urban planners. Mobility data sets characterize the variation of the presence of people in different places over time as well as movements (or flows) of people between the places. The analysis of mobility data is challenging due to the need to analyze and compare spatial situations (i.e., presence and flows of people at certain time intervals) and to gain an understanding of the spatio-temporal changes (variations of situations over time). Traditional flow visualizations usually fail due to massive clutter. Modern approaches offer limited support for investigating the complex variation of the movements over longer time periods. We propose a visual analytics methodology that solves these issues by combined spatial and temporal simplifications. We have developed a graph-based method, called MobilityGraphs, which reveals movement patterns that were occluded in flow maps. Our method enables the visual representation of the spatio-temporal variation of movements for long time series of spatial situations originally containing a large number of intersecting flows. The interactive system supports data exploration from various perspectives and at various levels of detail by interactive setting of clustering parameters. The feasibility our approach was tested on aggregated mobility data derived from a set of geolocated Twitter posts within the Greater London city area and mobile phone call data records in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. We could show that MobilityGraphs support the identification of regular daily and weekly movement patterns of resident population.
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