Further Towards Unambiguous Edge Bundling: Investigating Power-Confluent Drawings for Network Visualization

TL;DR

This paper improves power-confluent edge bundling algorithms for network visualization by addressing key issues, classifying the drawing type, and providing an enhanced implementation with better power graph construction.

Contribution

It identifies and solves node split and short-circuit problems in existing methods, classifies power-confluent drawings, and offers an improved algorithm with source code.

Findings

Resolved node split and short-circuit issues

Classified power-confluent as a subclass of strict confluent

Provided an improved implementation with source code

Abstract

Bach et al. [1] recently presented an algorithm for constructing confluent drawings, by leveraging power graph decomposition to generate an auxiliary routing graph. We identify two issues with their method which we call the node split and short-circuit problems, and solve both by modifying the routing graph to retain the hierarchical structure of power groups. We also classify the exact type of confluent drawings that the algorithm can produce as 'power-confluent', and prove that it is a subclass of the previously studied 'strict confluent' drawing. A description and source code of our implementation is also provided, which additionally includes an improved method for power graph construction.