The stream polygon-a technique for 3D vector field visualization

Abstract

A method is presented for the visualization of 3D vector fields. The stream polygon, which is a regular, n-sided polygon, oriented normal to the local vector, can present local deformations due to rigid body rotation and both normal and shear strain. The effect of translation and scalar functions can be represented by sweeping the stream polygon along the streamline, and by appropriately varying the radius and shading the surface of the resulting streamtube. A mathematical foundation for the stream is developed, and examples with application to velocity field visualization are provided.< <ETX xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">&gt;</ETX>