Path Patterns Visualization in Semantic Graphs

Abstract

Graphs with a large number of nodes and edges are difficult to visualize. Semantic graphs add to the challenge since their nodes and edges have types and this information must be mirrored in the visualization. A common approach to cope with this difficulty is to omit certain nodes and edges, displaying sub-graphs of smaller size. However, other transformations can be used to abstract semantic graphs and this research explores a particular one, both to reduce the graph’s size and to focus on its path patterns. Antigraphs are a novel kind of graph designed to highlight path patterns using this kind of abstraction. They are composed of antinodes connected by antiedges, and these reflect respectively edges and nodes of the semantic graph. The prefix “anti” refers to this inversion of the nature of the main graph constituents. Antigraphs trade the visualization of nodes and edges by the visualization of graph path patterns involving typed edges. Thus, they are targeted to users that require a deep understanding of the semantic graph it represents, in particular of its path patterns, rather than to users wanting to browse the semantic graph’s content. Antigraphs help programmers querying the semantic graph or designers of semantic measures interested in using it as a semantic proxy. Hence, antigraphs are not expected to compete with other forms of semantic graph visualization but rather to be used a complementary tool. This paper provides a precise definition both of antigraphs and of the mapping of semantic graphs into antigraphs. Their visualization is obtained with antigraphs diagrams. A web application to visualize and interact with these diagrams was implemented to validate the proposed approach. Diagrams of well-known semantic graphs are also presented and discussed. © José Paulo Leal.