Niklas Elmqvist is known for his work on
human–computer interaction,
data and information visualization, and
visual analytics. His contributions are diverse and focused on innovative human-data interaction and open data infrastructures. Early work centered on multivariate
data visualization, such as in the GraphDice or DataMeadow systems. In his 2009 paper "Hierarchical Aggregation for Information Visualization" he proposed a model for building, visualizing, and interacting with multiscale representations, guiding other researchers toward more scalable visualization techniques. Niklas Elmqvist has developed new architectures that enable novel combinations of multiple devices (such as smartwatches and large displays) as well as thought-provoking new devices, such as the first olfactory data display. He has championed the design of open and standardized infrastructures that support meshing those devices into a coherent whole, with a series of prototypes such as Munin, PolyChrome, and, more recently, the promising Vistrates framework, that supports easily building cross-device and distributed visualization applications. His research exemplifies fluid
interaction in a diverse set of visualization topics, from graphs and time series to animation and games, and, more recently, sensory substitution mechanisms such as
haptic technology and
sonification to improve the
accessibility of visualizations for users with
visual impairments. ==Service==