| Title: |
Minimizing Vertical Length in Linked Bar Charts |
| Authors: |
van den Broek, Steven; van Kreveld, Marc; Meulemans, Wouter; Simons, Arjen; Dep Informatica; Sub Geometric Computing; Di Giacomo, Emilio; Mondal, Debajyoti |
| Publication Year: |
2026 |
| Subject Terms: |
bar chart; dynamic programming; fixed-parameter tractability; Graph drawing; length minimization; Taverne; Theoretical Computer Science; General Computer Science |
| Description: |
A linked bar chart is the augmentation of a traditional bar chart where each bar is partitioned into blocks and pairs of blocks are linked using orthogonal lines that pass over intermediate bars. The order of the blocks readily influences the legibility of the links. We study the algorithmic problem of minimizing the vertical length of these links, for a fixed bar order. The main challenge lies with dependent links, whose vertical link length cannot be optimized independently per bar. We show that, if the dependent links form a forest, the problem can be solved in O(nm) time, for n bars and m links. If the dependent links between non-adjacent bars form a forest, the problem admits an O(n4m)-time algorithm. Finally, we show that the general case is fixed-parameter tractable in the maximum number of links that are connected to one bar. |
| Document Type: |
book part |
| File Description: |
application/pdf |
| Language: |
English |
| ISSN: |
0302-9743 |
| Relation: |
https://dspace.library.uu.nl/handle/1874/483507 |
| Availability: |
https://dspace.library.uu.nl/handle/1874/483507 |
| Rights: |
info:eu-repo/semantics/EmbargoedAccess |
| Accession Number: |
edsbas.8323DF05 |
| Database: |
BASE |