CURVS
e-Science 2010
Justin Baker
CSIRO Tiled Displays - Background
• Two large OptIPortals deployed at CSIRO
• 25x30” displays, 5x5 grid, 14 clustered PCs
• >100Mpixel resolution
• Ongoing interaction research
• Multi-touch tabletops, portable devices
• Gesture input, touch points mapped to display-wall
• Tap to select, drag-and-drop using multi-finger gestures
• CSIRO eResearch Program
• Signed off in 2009
• Visualisation recognised as one of several key enabling
technologies
• Formation of eResearch Viz Team (Dec 2009)
• Initial idea to fund 2-3 more large OptIPortals
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CSIRO Visualisation
CSIRO Ultra high Resolution Visualisation Systems
• Instead of OptIPortals...
• EOI announced in Nov 2009
1. Small OptiPortal
EOI Proposed locations at 10 separate sites
• 4 submissions representing11 systems
• Genomics, environmental monitoring,
materials, human factors.
• Commonalities – exploring large/complex
datasets, collaborative real-time viz, associated
video-conferencing
• Hardware now assembled at all avail sites
• Finalising details for software configuration
• Automated session management, simplified
authentication, app set up, tiled display layout
3
CURVS
Possible Use Cases
• Large scale visualisation
• Very large 2D datasets and potentially 3D
• Examples: astronomical data, GIS, microscopy
• Viewing a range of datasets simultaneously
• Compare multiple similar datasets
• Lots of separate displays not necessarily related
• Portable “visualisation lab”
• Group might book the facility for a designated period
• Collaborative viewing
• Controlled/driven remotely
• “Moving Poster”
• Conference, public presentations etc
CURVS
Specifications
• Relatively
simple design
• Standard Dell hardware
•1x 3D Visualisation head node
• 3D hardware capable (FX5800)
•1x Single 2D “Display node” (ATI)
• 6 x 30” monitors
• Total resolution of around 24Mpixels
• 12x improvement on a standard desktop PC
CURVS
Architecture
CURVS
Visualisation Software
• VirtualGL
• Remote visualisation, virtualised graphics
• Allows for shared remote collaborative viewing
• Access to Linux visualisation software for Windows users
• VirtualBox
• Sun open source virtualization solution
• A combination of VirtualBox and VirtualGL lets you display
Windows 3D applications remotely
CSIRO Visualisation
CURVS Vs OptIPortal
CURVS
Software
Stack
User Apps
OptIPortal
VirtualGL, VirtualBox
SAGE, CGLX, DMX..
Most run without mods
Recompilation, porting
required
Multiple nodes
Display driven Single node (more can
be added)
by
Multi OS apps VirtualBox = Win, Mac,
No?
Linux
VisualCasting Any VNC client
OptIPortal only
Bandwidth
Resolution
8
Tuneable through VNC
client
Moderate to high-res
Fixed?
High to very hi-res
CSIRO Visualisation
CURVS Issues
• VirtualGL
• Low frame rates at large screen sizes
• VirtualBox
• Windows texture mapping (occasional)
• TurboVNC
• Best VNC client with VirtualGL but crashed
when window resized too large (fixed)
• Desktop (Nautilus?)
• Strange key mapping (template file fixed)
9
CSIRO Visualisation
Plans for 2010-2011
• Finalise 1st Round CURVS deployment
• Customise group specific apps and configurations
• Trial WA specific screen config (2x3 instead of 3x2)
• Complete by Jan 2011
• Revisit CURVS Design
• PIR of 1st round
• Improve design – eg more displays, diff graphics cards
• Assess demand for 2nd round and/or full-scale OptiPortals
10
Justin Baker
ASC
Collaboration and Visualisation Manager
Phone: 03 86013801
Email: justin.baker@csiro.au
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12
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