=Paper=
{{Paper
|id=Vol-2618/paper4
|storemode=property
|title=A Proposal for Augmented Situated Visualization Towards EMC Testing
|pdfUrl=https://ceur-ws.org/Vol-2618/paper4.pdf
|volume=Vol-2618
|authors=Renan Luigi Martins Guarese,Emil Nilsson,Pererik Andreasson,Anderson Maciel
}}
==A Proposal for Augmented Situated Visualization Towards EMC Testing==
https://ceur-ws.org/Vol-2618/paper4.pdf
A Proposal for Augmented Situated Visualization Towards EMC Testing
Renan Guarese*12 Emil Nilsson†2 Pererik Andreasson ‡2 Anderson Maciel §1
1 Institute of Informatics, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
2 Halmstad University, Halmstad, Sweden
A BSTRACT
In EMC testing, 3D electromagnetic field data often needs to be
visually analysed by an expert in order to detect product defects
or unwanted interference between multiple devices. In this sense,
the present work proposes the use of data visualization techniques
allied to an Augmented Reality user interface to provide information
that helps professionals to analyse the same data, however spatially
situated where it was first measured.
Apart from visualizing it, users may also interact with the data to
narrow down their search by switching the attributes being displayed,
combining them together, applying filters or changing the formatting
in which data is presented. The approaches being proposed in this
work will ultimately be tested against each other in comparable 2D
and 3D interactive visualizations of the same data in a series of
usability assessments with users to validate the solutions. The goal Figure 1: User interacting with an AR rendering of an electromagnetic
is to ultimately expose whether AR can help users to make more field
accurate decisions, particularly in EMC related tasks.
Index Terms: Human-centered computing—Visualization—Visu-
alization techniques—Treemaps; Human-centered computing— his book, [6] exposes that it advantageous to submit even particular
Visualization—Visualization design and evaluation methods hardware components to tests during the design process of such
equipment. Frequently, these criteria need to be visually observed
1 I NTRODUCTION by an expert, looking at 3D spatial data of the electromagnetic field
In electrical engineering, it is known that activity of electronic and being analysed.
electrical devices can be highly affected by the frequency compo-
nents of electromagnetic waves emitted from external sources, such
as natural lightning, fluorescent lights, digital computers and even
other similar devices [9]. Radio receivers, for instance, intercept
these waves, amplify them and extract the information encoded in
them. Any electromagnetic interference (EMI) intercepted by the
receiver will cause the transmission to be either disrupted or misin-
terpreted, as exposed in Fig. 2. According to Paul, Electromagnetic
Compatibility (EMC) is the study concerned with the design of elec-
tronic systems such that interference from or to that system will
be minimized, in order not to affect any of its surroundings. Still
according to Paul, a system can be considered electromagnetically
compatible with its environment if it satisfies three criteria:
1. It does not cause interference with other systems.
2. It is not susceptible to emissions from other systems.
Figure 2: Illustration of a simple EMI problem [6].
3. It does not cause interference with itself.
EMC testing measures the amount of EMI both radiated and It is possible to redress this sort of problem through a data vi-
conducted by electronic devices. This kind of procedure ensures sualization that presents visual and interactive information situated
whether or not the criteria mentioned above are being obeyed. In in the actual space they are relevant in. Augmented Reality (AR)
arguably has the potential of significantly increasing the possibilities
* e-mail: rlmguarese@inf.ufrgs.br of problem assessment by making data spatially context-aware and
† e-mail: emil.nilsson@hh.se reducing user effort [12]. Tasks such as these that require decision-
‡ e-mail: pererik.andreasson@hh.se making, however simple they are, may be optimized with this sort
§ e-mail: amaciel@inf.ufrgs.br of visualization [8], either by reducing the time, mental effort or
previous knowledge required to perform such tasks. Thus, decision-
making, following Balleine’s definition of being a choice between
Copyright © 2020 for this paper by its authors. Use permitted under multiple courses of action [1], could be facilitated and user comfort
Creative Commons License Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0). elevated. Hereupon, this work intends to review, design and suggest
Figure 3: Scanned data visualization of two circuit boards, superimposed to the actual hardware components submitted to testing.
the use of Information Visualization techniques, especially Situated data. The work will focus both on readings of small device emission
Visualization (SV) [12], as well as novel interaction methods partic- fields (desk-scale), as well as bigger ones (room-scale).
ularly aimed at this context. Alongside an AR Optical See-Through
Head Mounted Display (HMD) to provide information regarding the 3 M ETHODOLOGY
user vicinity, SV aids users in familiarizing themselves with the data In order to expose the adaptability of SV and the proposed methods,
without having to exhaustively explore it or mentally translate it. a few use case scenarios will be designed and tested. These are
meant to be applications of the visualization methods in real com-
2 R ELATED W ORK mercial, academic or day-to-day problems. Specifically aimed at
EMC testing, the following two preliminary use cases are proposed.
In a 2018 study, Sato et al. [11] developed a method to display the in-
tensity of a three dimensional electromagnetic field measured using 3.1 Desk-scale EMC visualization
a tablet screen by combining simple devices. Using AR markers to
Nowadays, the testing of small components is usually done with
position it according to the viewpoint of the observer, it was possible
EMC scanners, such as the Detectus RSE 6421 , which is able to
to visualize the 3D distribution of the field by holding the device
measure the EMI in a high range of frequencies. Since the spec-
over the measured object. The data displayed in the work, however,
trum analysis of this sort of scanner is done with a near field probe
is quite discrete, failing to expose the continuity of the 3D fields. Its
attached to a X-Y-Z robot, it is able to render a three-dimensional
method of measuring the data was also deemed not very precise.
graphical visualization of the data read, much like can be seen in
In a related work of the same year, Isrie et al. [5] described a data Fig. 3. This kind of visualization enables experts to detect potential
acquisition system, which displayed data from a power sensor and emission problems before they become integrated into a final prod-
its GPS location in a heads up display (HUD). This allowed users uct, also exposing what component is causing it, based on the data
to walk and see the measured data in AR without the need to look position.
down at a different screen and missing important real-time data of
the measured electric field strength. Although arguably using AR,
the data in their work is purely 2D and fixed in a HUD display, not
at all being situated in the surrounding area of the user.
Among the most relevant works in the area, a 2019 study by
Rioult et al. [10] demonstrated an EMC scanning system aimed at
facilitating readings in confined and remote environments via a fast
and compact device. Using a smartphone coupled to EMC sensors,
along with AR technologies, the device is capable of measuring elec-
tromagnetic fields as well as presenting them situated in loco. The
work focuses solely on relatively small scale situations, arguably not
being on par with state-of-the-art EMC scanning precision. It also
requires users to hold the scanning device, limiting their interaction
possibilities.
As to address the disadvantages mentioned, the current work
intends on exposing EMC data in a more continuous and precise
manner, preserving the 3D topology of fields, as well as spatially
situating them where they were measured, in relation to the device
being analysed, supporting the Situated Visualization paradigm. In
recent works, different researchers compared the efficiency of data
perception and analysis in SV against traditional 2D manual and
interactive interfaces in different applications. These works exposed
a few advantages in tasks performed in the AR approach, including Figure 4: Sample antenna analysed in the chamber.
gains in accuracy [3], lower time taken for tasks [2] and lower
cognitive effort levels [4]. We propose to implement a framework which will provide users
Much like in these works, our data will be displayed in an AR with an Augmented Reality visualization of EMC scanned data, su-
HMD with spatial mapping capabilities, allowing for a more realistic perimposing the actual scanned components or devices, much like
and precise location of virtual objects, as well as presenting them
in an egocentric view, freeing the user’s hands to interact with the 1 http://www.detectus.se/rse-series.html
Figure 5: SV of two sets of EMC data, superimposed to the actual antenna submitted to testing. Left - 2D data, a planar segment of the field.
Right - 3D full field data.
the mock-ups available in Fig. 3. Since the scanner is able to gen- rendered situated inside the anechoic chamber environment. For this,
erate field plots in a wide band span, it will be possible to compare the physical room was scanned into a three-dimensional mesh, with
visualizations of multiple frequencies, either by overlapping them its points in space being used as anchors for the data to be placed
or interacting with the system to change the current one. Another upon. Then, by loading this environment, with the data already
intention is to render the EMC data from multiple components at being displayed in the right place according to the virtual mesh of
the same time, allowing users to understand how they will interfere the chamber, into an AR HMD with spatial tracking capabilities, the
with each other once they are placed in the same system. For this mesh can be matched with the real architecture of the area the user
purpose, we intend on using the Vuforia Engine2 , which is capable is located at. For the current project, the Microsoft HoloLens (1st
of using 3D scans of real objects as markers, making it possible for generation)3 was used both to scan the room and to display the data
the application to track the actual devices in real time. to users.
As can be seen in Fig. 5, the virtual field is superimposed in
3.2 Room-scale EMC visualization the real environment the user is seeing. This arguably allows for a
Regarding larger devices in their integrity, entire rooms may be less cognitive demanding analysis of the data, since the proposed
required for testing. In conducting this sort of experiment, it is egocentric view of the surroundings does not require the mental
recommended to isolate the test space from the outside electromag- translation from a 2D screen into the 3D surrounding space neces-
netic environment. According to [6], it is undesirable (and in some sary in the allocentric task that is performed nowadays in the EMC
cases illegal) to radiate high field strengths across whole bands of industry. This argument, however, will be put into test in a future
frequencies when conducting radiated susceptibility testing. For user experiment, where decision-making tasks will be performed
this purpose, the use of screened chambers became widespread, and their performances evaluated.
usually built as Faraday cages and lined with absorbing material In a quick demonstration made to three experts in the EMC test-
inside, making them anechoic - i.e. rooms without any reflection ing area, feedback was outright positive. Users commended the
of either sound or electromagnetic waves. Inside the room, a large, visualization presented as being highly useful for analysing real data,
however a simple conducting structure, antenna is used to detect the even at a commercial level. As to work in a spiral model of software
electromagnetic emissions of the devices being tested. Additionally, development, this demonstration served as a first prototype in order
circular platforms are used to rotate the devices during testing, as to to verify and validate the concept, as well as using the feedback
capture a 360 degree view. from the community as to understand their needs and fulfill those in
Having access to one of these anechoic chambers, fully equipped upcoming projects.
for radiated emissions and immunity testing, our proposal is to ren-
der these room-scale EMC readings in 3D, in order to build an AR 5 F UTURE W ORK
situated visualization of the test results. Much like the aforemen- As to properly evaluate the use of SV in the EMC field, formal user
tioned proposal, however in a larger scale, these readings are meant tests are required. The next step in the current project is to test
for users to detect any EMI that may cause the equipment to mal- the proposed visualizations with experts with EMC backgrounds.
function or affect other systems. The main advantage of such an Inspired by User Testing guidelines by Nielsen [7], a test with
application is to spatially expose exactly where the interference is five expert users will be performed, as to look for and address any
being propagated from and into what other components. In a situ- problems with the interaction and visualization, as well as suggest
ated view, it will be possible to perceive the influence of multiple different ways in which this paradigm could be explored. The test
devices on each other in loco, either inside the anechoic chamber or is to be held inside the anechoic chamber, with a set of interference
anywhere else these devices will be located at. avoidance tasks, where subjects will analyze the EMI data between
two different antennas and move them around as to get an optimal
4 P RELIMINARY R ESULTS placement, minimizing interference.
In a preliminary attempt to demonstrate the proposal, an applica-
tion prototype was developed where the real 2D (planar) and 3D 6 C ONCLUSION
EMC data read from a sample antenna (seen in Fig. 4) emission This work presented a proposal for an augmented situated visualiza-
was parsed, converted from spherical to cartesian coordinates and tion method for aiding decision-making in an EMC testing context.
2 https://developer.vuforia.com/ 3 https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/hololens/hololens1-hardware
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