Abstract
An ontology is a formalized knowledge structure understandable by
humans and machines. Positioned within the interface layer,
domain-specific ontologies can afford simulation model building and
visualization construction. Such an ontology-enabled interface would
allow modelers to interact with the semantics they are already
familiar with, due to their field-specific education and training, in
order to build executable simulation models. We present a methodology
in which ontology visualizations serve as an interface to simulation
model building and visualization construction activities. Further, we
describe how the ontology-centric methodology can be used to link
simulation variables to visualization parameters, thus supporting
integrative multimodeling by allowing simulations and their
corresponding visualizations to be constructed within the same
interface and interaction paradigm. To demonstrate the
ontology-enabled interface, we present a case study: a physiological
simulation of hypovolemic shock and a corresponding three-dimensional
(3D) visualization.