Line and area chart performance by data filtering

Abstract

Systems and methods are disclosed that, in various embodiments, improve chart performance by data filtering. In one aspect, the disclosed techniques allow all visible local maxima and minima to be rendered without having their values altered. In another aspect, the disclosed techniques filter data by skipping points evenly. In some embodiments, every horizontal pixel contains two points, so the line is visually uniform. This can dramatically enhance visualizations where data point intervals are uneven (e.g., having 'mixed frequency'). Using a two point per pixel approach, the disclosed techniques ensure that a resulting simplified line looks almost identical to the original line by drawing at the limit of the screen resolution. The disclosed techniques allow for an algorithmic complexity of O(n), which is significantly faster than existing solutions.