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Summary: A Design and Implementation for Effective Computer-Generated Route Maps
Maneesh Agrawala and Chris Stolte
Computer Science Department
Stanford University
Abstract
A route map depicting a path from one location to another
is a powerful tool for visualizing and communicating direc-
tions. However, it can be difficult for a computer to automati-
cally render route maps that meet the four design goals of ef-
fective route maps: readability, clarity, completeness, and con-
venience. Achieving all of these goals requires trade-offs. We
survey the cartography, graphic design, and psychology litera-
ture for insight about these trade-offs. We then analyze several
common route-mapping styles to demonstrate the variables in
map design: what information is included, the precision of that
information, and the rendering style. This analysis illustrates
that hand-drawn route maps are particularly effective. Finally,
we describe in detail a design and implementation for com-
puter-generated maps that mimics the style of hand-drawn
route maps.
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