Effective visualization for the use of digital twins in urban planning ought to facilitate that all stakeholders in the planning process have the same understanding of the information. Our workshop focuses on the visual challenges of using colour scales for showing abstract parameters in virtual models for urban planning. We will give examples of visualization of invisible parameters, such as noise and social consequences.

We will base the discussion on a recent study of the use of colour scales for information visualization in urban 3D models, focusing on what colours are appropriate for users with regular colour vision and people with different kinds of colour deficiency.

Heatmaps are the most common means of visualizing noise in urban environments. The level of the noise that occurs on the different surfaces of the environment such as the ground, the facades, and the like is thereby colorcoded, and the color is visually superimposed on the surfaces. For example, red colored portions of a surface may indicate a high level of noise on that surface, yellow portions may indicate a moderate level of noise, and green ones may indicate a low level of noise. Other color schemes are in use, too. The challenges that arise with this are two-fold. Firstly, the computation itself is difficult because of the mere scale of the scenario so that a simplification of the underlying physics is inevitable. And secondly, the resulting heatmaps themselves provide potential for misinterpretation. In this presentation, we will explain the background behind both these challenges, and we will highlight what information can be deduced reliably from visual inspection of a headmap, and what uncertainty remains.

As digital twins constantly gain more momentum, their effectiveness relies on being able to convey complex information to interested stakeholders. Our presentation highlights ready to use methods and tools which can be used to visualize data in the Unreal Engine environment. We are going to cover various topics such as an open-source visualization plugin which can be used to effectively visualize multidisciplinary scientific data in an Unreal Engine scene. Additionally, we are going to showcase a streamlined workflow resulting in a terrain model generation, enriched with simulation data. Last but not least, we are going to showcase how these tools can be leveraged in both VR and AR environments.

The presentation provides an in-depth overview of the ongoing efforts to construct a comprehensive digital twin platform for urban environments. Vasilis delves into the current state of the platform, highlighting its key features and the challenges faced during its development. Furthermore, the talk offers a glimpse into the future trajectory of the platform, outlining potential enhancements and expansions. The insights presented aim to shed light on the transformative potential of digital twins in reshaping urban planning and management. Following the presentation, a small workshop will be held to facilitate hands-on experience with the Digital Twin Cities platform and foster collaborative discussions on its potential applications and improvements.