Aesthetic of Angular Resolution for Node-Link Diagrams: Validation and Algorithm

Abstract

When visualizing graphs into node-link diagrams, angular resolution is often used as one of the aesthetic criteria measuring the diagram quality in terms of human comprehension. However, angular resolution has not been empirically validated for its relevance to humans. In addition, although many force-directed algorithms have been proposed for automatic graph drawing, performance evaluation of these algorithms has not been conclusive due to the lack of proper methods. To shorten these gaps, this paper 1) validates the aesthetic based on human experimental data and identifies the best of angular resolution measures used in the literature; 2) introduces a force-directed algorithm, forceAR, for improving angular resolution; 3) proposes a new framework for more reliable and thorough evaluation of force-directed algorithms. Finally as a case study, our forceAR algorithm is evaluated using this framework.