VOLUMETRIC-BASED METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR VISUALIZING DATASETS

The present invention is a method for visualizing a plurality of stochastic datasets. The present invention provides a more accurate account of situations in the real world to better enable scientists and engineers to utilize the results of computer models. The method employs a two-stage process comprising a preprocessing stage and a visualization stage. Activity begins with the preprocessing stage. In this stage, the individual output from a plurality of different computations are converted from being described as two-dimensional surfaces in three-dimensional space to a three-dimensional voxel-based representation. For each surface set in the plurality of two-dimensional representations, a count is obtained of the total number of surfaces in the surface set which intersects the subspace of a voxel (each element of the data structure represents the subspace of a voxel in the three-dimensional voxel-based representation). The count is obtained for each element of the data structure, and the sequence is repeated for each surface set. Finally, in a visualization stage, after the volume is saved as an image file, transparency and color values are determined based on one or more look-up tables. Finally, the volume is rendered and drawn with user-controllable transparency and color.