Stony Brook University has announced the completion of the FlexiCAVE, a pioneering flexible and dynamically reconfigurable high-resolution stereo display facility. This innovation is housed in the New Computer Science building and features 40 tiled monitors that render approximately 83 million pixels. The FlexiCAVE's unique ability to transform its shape allows it to support a variety of scientific and data-driven applications.
Arie Kaufman, Distinguished Professor of Computer Science and principal investigator for the project, stated, “We envisioned a display that would adapt to the data—not the other way around.” The FlexiCAVE enables researchers to adjust their workspace according to their analytical needs.
Unlike traditional visualization walls, this system employs a modular architecture with rotatable display columns. It can transition between flat, L-shaped, U-shaped, or semi-circular configurations in real time. These transitions impact not only the visualization but also enhance user experience and data interaction.
The design is powered by a custom-built rendering engine that synchronizes stereo views and updates visualizations as users adjust the screen layout. The team refers to this new interaction paradigm as PIVoT — Physical Interaction to Virtual Transformation. Principal Research Scientist Saeed Boorboor noted that “It’s more than a screen. It’s a physical and tangible interface for virtual exploration where users are immersed in the data.”
The development of FlexiCAVE has been supported by New York State and Federal agencies over several years. It includes customized aluminum framing, inclinometer-equipped hinges, and powerful GPU clusters capable of real-time image updates within a noise-canceling cabinet.
Demonstrations have shown various applications such as virtual colonoscopy transitioning from flat 2D overviews to immersive 3D views; medical imaging where radiologists can virtually "slice" through scans; and urban flood simulations aiding emergency planners by reconfiguring displays spatially.
Researchers are also using FlexiCAVE for multivariate data visualization experiments, allowing dynamic switches between scatter plots and parallel coordinate plots through physical adjustments of screen segments. An early user study indicated participants preferred this flexibility over static layouts due to improved spatial perception.
While manual adjustment is currently required for display columns—a challenge acknowledged by the team—future updates may introduce motorized column rotation for easier use. The research group is exploring further applications in collaborative analytics and adaptable visualization workflows.
Professor Kaufman expressed hope that “FlexiCAVE becomes a blueprint for the next generation of immersive environments—not only here at Stony Brook but also globally.”