Visual Computing integrates a number of methodologically related and very active research fields where algorithms for the generation, processing and display of visual and visualizable information are being designed, implemented, and analyzed. The research spectrum in Visual Computing ranges from Computer Graphics, Computer Vision, and Visualization to Geometry Processing, Real-time Simulation, and Virtual or Augmented Reality. Consequently, the practical application fields for Visual Computing techniques are quite diverse and comprise engineering science (simulation, CAD/CAM, Rapid Prototyping), architecture, medicine (in particular, medical imaging), film production, gaming, mobile robotics, autonomous vehicles, cultural heritage, and many more.
The rapidly increasing relevance of Visual Computing is a result from multiple trends. First, the amount of data that is generated, stored and made available in worldwide networks is growing exponentially. Much of this data is already visual (pictures, movies) while other data, like 3D geometry, experimental measurements or simulation results, must be visualized in order to get better insight into their shape and structure. Another trend is that more and more numerical simulations are being conducted these days with the goal to develop new products with pre-defined properties and qualities, and to predict evolutions and correlations in complex systems. As a consequence, Simulation Science and Visual Computing are getting tightly linked to each other, in a way that on the one hand, e.g., model generation can be flexibly adapted to computations while on the other hand simulation runs can be controlled interactively from within a visualization framework (“Interactive Supercomputing”). A third trend is the transition of (multimedia) applications from classical desktop systems towards mobile devices. Here, the form factor of these devices but also the typical usage scenarios and usage contexts make graphical user interfaces a mandatory feature.