Electronic Visualization Laboratory
Encyclopedia
The Electronic Visualization Laboratory (EVL) is a cross-disciplinary research lab at the University of Illinois at Chicago
. It brings together faculty and students from the Art
and Computer Science
departments of UIC. The primary areas of research are in computer graphics
, high-performance computer networking, and technological art.
(then of the UIC Chemistry Department, later Computer Science) and Dan Sandin
(of the Art Department). The lab was originally known as the Circle Graphics Habitat, in reference to the then-name of UIC, the University of Illinois at Chicago Circle. DeFanti and Sandin have served as Co-Directors of the lab since its founding. Later in 1987, they were joined by Maxine D. Brown
as Associate Director.
Work at EVL over the years has included:
organization and conference ever since its inception. DeFanti has served as Secretary (1977-1981) and Chair (1981-1985) of the organization, and 1979 conference chair. Brown has served as Vice Chair for Operations (1985-1987) and Secretary (1981-1985), and chaired the 1992 conference. According to Jim Blinn
, the popular Electronic Theatre "started out as a bunch of people crowding into Dan Sandin’s dorm room to watch videotapes." In 1979, DeFanti established the SIGGRAPH Video Review, which EVL has continued to supervise. At SIGGRAPH '92, EVL organized the "Showcase" event, where researchers demonstrated 35 projects in state-of-the-art computational science and scientific visualization
. At SIGGRAPH '94, EVL organized the VROOM event, demonstrations of the state of virtual reality
technology.
In 1998, Brown received the first ever SIGGRAPH Outstanding Service Award for her contributions to the organization. In 2000, DeFanti and EVL alumna Copper Giloth also received the Outstanding Service Award.
University of Illinois at Chicago
The University of Illinois at Chicago, or UIC, is a state-funded public research university located in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its campus is in the Near West Side community area, near the Chicago Loop...
. It brings together faculty and students from the Art
Art
Art is the product or process of deliberately arranging items in a way that influences and affects one or more of the senses, emotions, and intellect....
and Computer Science
Computer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
departments of UIC. The primary areas of research are in computer graphics
Computer graphics
Computer graphics are graphics created using computers and, more generally, the representation and manipulation of image data by a computer with help from specialized software and hardware....
, high-performance computer networking, and technological art.
History
EVL represents one of the oldest art and engineering collaborations in the United States. It was founded in 1973 by Tom DeFantiThomas A. DeFanti
Tom DeFanti is a computer graphics researcher and pioneer. His work has ranged from early computer animation, to scientific visualization, virtual reality, and grid computing...
(then of the UIC Chemistry Department, later Computer Science) and Dan Sandin
Daniel J. Sandin
Daniel J. Sandin is a video and computer graphics artist/researcher. He is a Professor Emeritus of the School of Art & Design, University of Illinois at Chicago, and Co-director of the Electronic Visualization Laboratory at the University of Illinois at Chicago...
(of the Art Department). The lab was originally known as the Circle Graphics Habitat, in reference to the then-name of UIC, the University of Illinois at Chicago Circle. DeFanti and Sandin have served as Co-Directors of the lab since its founding. Later in 1987, they were joined by Maxine D. Brown
Maxine D. Brown
Maxine D. Brown is an American computer scientist and associate director of the Electronic Visualization Laboratory at the University of Illinois at Chicago . Along with Tom DeFanti and Bruce McCormick, she co-edited the 1987 NSF report, Visualization in Scientific Computing, which defined the...
as Associate Director.
Research
- 1977: The Sayre Glove, the first datagloveWired gloveA wired glove is an input device for human–computer interaction worn like a glove.Various sensor technologies are used to capture physical data such as bending of fingers. Often a motion tracker, such as a magnetic tracking device or inertial tracking device, is attached to capture the global...
. - 1981: The Z Box hardware and ZGRASS software (based on DeFanti's prior GRASS programming languageGRASS programming languageGRASS was a programming language created to script 2D vector graphics animations. GRASS was similar to BASIC in syntax, but added numerous instructions for specifying 2D object animation, including scaling, translation, rotation and color changes over time...
), an early graphics system for the Bally home computer. This system featured NTSCNTSCNTSC, named for the National Television System Committee, is the analog television system that is used in most of North America, most of South America , Burma, South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, and some Pacific island nations and territories .Most countries using the NTSC standard, as...
video output and was used by a number of computer graphics artists of the time. - 1988: Computer generated PHSColograms, an autostereoscopicStereoscopyStereoscopy refers to a technique for creating or enhancing the illusion of depth in an image by presenting two offset images separately to the left and right eye of the viewer. Both of these 2-D offset images are then combined in the brain to give the perception of 3-D depth...
3D technique, with (art)n. - 1992: The CAVE Automatic Virtual EnvironmentCave Automatic Virtual EnvironmentA Cave Automatic Virtual Environment is an immersive virtual reality environment where projectors are directed to three, four, five or six of the walls of a room-sized cube...
, a projection-based virtual reality system. - 1995: The I-WAY event at Supercomputing '95, a prototype of grid computingGrid computingGrid computing is a term referring to the combination of computer resources from multiple administrative domains to reach a common goal. The grid can be thought of as a distributed system with non-interactive workloads that involve a large number of files...
. - 1997: The STAR TAP project, a linking up of several international high-performance networks. Followed by the StarLight optical networking facility.
Art
Highlights of the electronic art work done at EVL include:- Electronic Visualization Events (EVE) in the mid 1970s - live, real-time performances featuring computer graphics, video processing, and music.
- Early computer graphics art videos, created by combining DeFanti's GRASS system on a PDP-11PDP-11The PDP-11 was a series of 16-bit minicomputers sold by Digital Equipment Corporation from 1970 into the 1990s, one of a succession of products in the PDP series. The PDP-11 replaced the PDP-8 in many real-time applications, although both product lines lived in parallel for more than 10 years...
and the Sandin Image ProcessorSandin Image ProcessorThe Sandin Image Processor is a video synthesizer, usually introduced as the "video equivalent of a Moog audio synthesizer," invented by Dan Sandin. That is, it accepted basic video signals and mixed and modified them in a fashion similar to what a Moog synthesizer did with audio...
. The video Spiral PTL (1980) was included in the inaugural collection of video art at the Museum of Modern ArtMuseum of Modern ArtThe Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
. - Computer artist Larry CubaLarry CubaLarry Cuba is a computer-animation artist who became active in the late 1970s and early 80s.Born in 1950 in Atlanta, Georgia, he received A.B. from Washington University in St. Louis in 1972 and his Master's Degree from California Institute of the Arts which includes parallel schools of Dance,...
spent time at EVL, using the tools there for his films 3/78 and Calculated Movements, as well as a short special effects sequence for Star WarsStar Wars Episode IV: A New HopeStar Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, originally released as Star Wars, is a 1977 American epic space opera film, written and directed by George Lucas. It is the first of six films released in the Star Wars saga: two subsequent films complete the original trilogy, while a prequel trilogy completes the...
. - In 1996, EVL installed the first publicly accessible CAVE at the Ars Electronica CenterArs Electronica CenterThe Ars Electronica Center is a center for electronic arts run by Ars Electronica situated in Linz, Austria, at the northern side of the Danube opposite the city hall of Linz. It has been built on the right side of the Nibelungenbrücke....
in Austria, and presented a number of virtual reality artworks.
SIGGRAPH
The members of EVL have been involved with the SIGGRAPHSIGGRAPH
SIGGRAPH is the name of the annual conference on computer graphics convened by the ACM SIGGRAPH organization. The first SIGGRAPH conference was in 1974. The conference is attended by tens of thousands of computer professionals...
organization and conference ever since its inception. DeFanti has served as Secretary (1977-1981) and Chair (1981-1985) of the organization, and 1979 conference chair. Brown has served as Vice Chair for Operations (1985-1987) and Secretary (1981-1985), and chaired the 1992 conference. According to Jim Blinn
Jim Blinn
James F. Blinn is a computer scientist who first became widely known for his work as a computer graphics expert at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory , particularly his work on the pre-encounter animations for the Voyager project, his work on the Carl Sagan Cosmos documentary series and the research...
, the popular Electronic Theatre "started out as a bunch of people crowding into Dan Sandin’s dorm room to watch videotapes." In 1979, DeFanti established the SIGGRAPH Video Review, which EVL has continued to supervise. At SIGGRAPH '92, EVL organized the "Showcase" event, where researchers demonstrated 35 projects in state-of-the-art computational science and scientific visualization
Scientific visualization
Scientific visualization is an interdisciplinary branch of science according to Friendly "primarily concerned with the visualization of three-dimensional phenomena , where the emphasis is on realistic renderings of volumes, surfaces, illumination sources, and so forth, perhaps...
. At SIGGRAPH '94, EVL organized the VROOM event, demonstrations of the state of virtual reality
Virtual reality
Virtual reality , also known as virtuality, is a term that applies to computer-simulated environments that can simulate physical presence in places in the real world, as well as in imaginary worlds...
technology.
In 1998, Brown received the first ever SIGGRAPH Outstanding Service Award for her contributions to the organization. In 2000, DeFanti and EVL alumna Copper Giloth also received the Outstanding Service Award.