Visual Interactive Simulation — History, recent developments, and major issues

Abstract

Visual Interactive Simulation (VIS) has dominated discrete-event simulation in the United Kingdom throughout the eighties. Conceived and initially implemented by Hurrion (1976), who also coined the phrase, VIS first gained widespread exposure through the package SEE-WHY The ideas behind VIS are fundamentally different from what is referred to in the United States as animation, since the prime motivator is user interaction with the running simulation, rather than just portrayal of the simulation. After presenting a short history of VIS, we will discuss some of the research and development that has been undertaken in the United Kingdom and North America. Following presentation of an example, the state of VIS and a number of generally accepted guidelines for doing VIS are discussed. A number of recent developments, many of them also relevant to animation, and four major issues in the research and practice of VIS are presen ted.

An experimental investigation into the role of simulation models in generating insights

“…Proponents of visual interactive simulation (VIS) (Crookes 1982;Bell and O'Keefe 1987;de Vreede and Verbraeck 1996;Paul, Giaglis, and Hlupic 1999;Macal 2001;Wenzel and Jessen 2001), which is the process of interacting with the graphical environment of a model during its execution for the purpose of model experimentation and analysis, argue that by watching the animation of a simulation model clients learn about their systems and so make better decisions. Again, the evidence to support this assertion is largely anecdotal and the empirical evidence is weak.…”

A simple energy usage toolkit from manufacturing simulation data

“…The discipline of simulation modelling has grown with the advance of modern computer systems and the development of Visual Interactive Simulation (VIS), such that its implementation can be found in numerous areas of operations management from manufacturing engineering to supply chain management (Bell & O'Keefe 1986;Jahangirian et al 2010). Law (2007) describes computer simulation as one of the three most important operations research techniques.…”

Using Office Simulation Software in Teaching Computer Literacy Using Three Sets of Teaching/Learning Activities

“…It begins by explaining the meaning of the word simulation and continues to discuss computer software simulation, the features common in Office simulation software, and the automatic grader in Microsoft Office software simulation. Bell and O'Keefe (1987) noted that simulation has existed for many years. They pointed to 1965 as a starting year and gave an example about the simulation from a steel melting shop to show simulation experiments.…”

“…The interactive nature of these tutorials may also increase attention of the students and simulates their interest in the topic (Bell & O'Keefe, 1987;Fenwick et al 2013). However, there is little role for the instructor when teaching in the classroom.…”