IBM OpenDX
| Company type | Software |
|---|---|
| Industry | Scientific data visualization software |
| Founded | 1991 |
| Founder | IBM |
| Products | OpenDX (Open Data Explorer) |
OpenDX (Open Data Explorer) is IBM’s specialized software for scientific data visualization, tailored to manage intricate datasets such as those involving mechanical parts or biological formations. It supports scalar, vector, and tensor field data derived from either measurements or simulations, including datasets with irregular spatial distribution. Initially launched in 1991 under the name Visualization Data Explorer, OpenDX facilitates sophisticated three-dimensional visualizations using color or grayscale schemes, vectors, streamlines, and ribbons. The software allows users to slice through objects to expose internal details and provides animated perspectives from any viewpoint.
Graphical user interface
Built on the Motif widget toolkit within the X Window System environment, OpenDX offers a rich graphical user interface featuring both direct and indirect interaction mechanisms. Direct interactors enable users to manipulate visual elements directly—such as rotating or zooming images—while indirect interactors like dials, switches, buttons, and sliders adjust visualization parameters. These controls are data-responsive, automatically adapting their ranges and available options based on the underlying data types and associated metadata. Moreover, they dynamically adjust according to vector dimensions and component ranges, thereby improving user precision and control during visual analysis.
Design
Data Explorer comprises a collection of tools and interfaces dedicated to data visualization, structured around three primary phases:
- Defining and importing data
- Processing data through visualization programs
- Displaying the generated images
The principal elements of OpenDX consist of:
- Data model
- Establishes the framework and standards for Data Explorer objects such as data fields, geometric shapes, and images.
- Data Prompter
- An interface used for specifying the data to be imported into OpenDX.
- Data Browser
- A tool for examining data files, organizing their structure, and transferring this information to the Data Prompter.
- Scripting Language
- A high-level language designed for creating visualization programs; it can be executed in command-line mode or via the Visual Program Editor. Visual programs are saved using this language.
- Visual Program Editor (VPE)
- A graphical environment for constructing and modifying visual program networks that are translated into the scripting language.
- Modules
- Fundamental visualization components that form networks within the VPE.
- Module Builder
- A tool for developing custom modules to be incorporated into visual programs.
- Image Window
- An interactive viewer for displaying and fine-tuning images produced by visual programs.
- Control Panels
- Interfaces that enable adjustment of parameters utilized by visual programs.
Visualization of a scalar field
This example illustrates particulate flow (dust concentration) inside a building environment. The concentration levels are depicted through color coding, accompanied by a colorbar that indicates specific values. The image uses OpenDX’s rubber-sheet technique, which adds shading effects to create an impression of elevation corresponding to particle concentration.
Visualization of vector fields
Representing Vector fields involves greater complexity. In this instance, flow within a cubic cavity—a standard 3D benchmark—is depicted using streamlines to show flow directionality. Large red arrows (“rockets”) highlight the imposed flow at the top boundary of the cavity.
External links
- (no longer current)
- Commercial assistance and physical distribution (no longer current)
- module designed for accessing HDF5 file formats