Chart Visualization

Chart Visualization Skill

This skill provides a comprehensive workflow for transforming data into visual charts. It handles chart selection, parameter extraction, and image generation. Supports both static images and interactive HTML charts.

Workflow

To visualize data, follow these steps:

1. Intelligent Chart Selection

Analyze the user's data features to determine the most appropriate chart type. Use the following guidelines (and consult references/ for detailed specs):

• Time Series: Use generate_line_chart (trends) or generate_area_chart (accumulated trends). Use generate_dual_axes_chart for two different scales.
• Comparisons: Use generate_bar_chart (categorical) or generate_column_chart. Use generate_histogram_chart for frequency distributions.
• Part-to-Whole: Use generate_pie_chart or generate_treemap_chart (hierarchical).
• Relationships & Flow: Use generate_scatter_chart (correlation), generate_sankey_chart (flow), or generate_venn_chart (overlap).
• Maps: Use generate_district_map (regions), generate_pin_map (points), or generate_path_map (routes).
• Hierarchies & Trees: Use generate_organization_chart or generate_mind_map.
• Specialized:
  • generate_radar_chart: Multi-dimensional comparison.
  • generate_funnel_chart: Process stages.
  • generate_liquid_chart: Percentage/Progress.
  • generate_word_cloud_chart: Text frequency.
  • generate_boxplot_chart or generate_violin_chart: Statistical distribution.
  • generate_network_graph: Complex node-edge relationships.
  • generate_fishbone_diagram: Cause-effect analysis.
  • generate_flow_diagram: Process flow.
  • generate_spreadsheet: Tabular data or pivot tables for structured data display and cross-tabulation.

2. Parameter Extraction

Once a chart type is selected, read the corresponding file in the references/ directory (e.g., references/generate_line_chart.md) to identify the required and optional fields. Extract the data from the user's input and map it to the expected args format.

3. Chart Generation

Invoke the scripts/generate.js script with a JSON payload.

Payload Format (Static Image):

{
  "tool": "generate_chart_type_name",
  "args": {
    "data": [...],
    "title": "...",
    "theme": "...",
    "style": { ... }
  }
}

Payload Format (Interactive HTML):

{
  "tool": "generate_chart_type_name",
  "args": {
    "data": [...],
    "title": "...",
    "theme": "...",
    "interactive": true,
    "style": { ... }
  }
}

Execution Command:

node ./scripts/generate.js '<payload_json>'

4. Result Return

The script will output the URL of the generated chart image (or HTML file for interactive charts). Return the following to the user:

• The image/HTML URL.
• The complete args (specification) used for generation.

Enhanced Capabilities (v2.0)

Interactive Charts (NEW!)

In addition to static images, now you can generate interactive HTML charts with ECharts:

When to Use Interactive Charts

• User wants to explore data (hover, zoom, click)
• Dashboard presentations
• Web embedding
• Data storytelling with drill-down

Interactive Chart Types

All 26 chart types support interactive mode. Key additions:

How to Generate Interactive Charts

Step 1: Add interactive: true to args:

{
  "tool": "generate_line_chart",
  "args": {
    "data": [
      {"month": "Jan", "value": 120},
      {"month": "Feb", "value": 150},
      {"month": "Mar", "value": 180}
    ],
    "title": "Monthly Sales Trend",
    "interactive": true
  }
}

Step 2: Execute:

node ./scripts/generate.js '<payload>'

Step 3: Output:

• Returns HTML file path: /mnt/user-data/outputs/chart_xxxxx.html
• Open in browser for full interactivity
• Can be embedded in websites

Interactive Features Available

3D Charts (NEW!)

Generate 3D visualizations for impressive presentations:

Available 3D Charts

• generate_3d_bar_chart - 3D bar comparison
• generate_3d_scatter_chart - 3D scatter plot
• generate_3d_surface_chart - 3D surface (for terrain/heatmaps)
• generate_globe_chart - Interactive globe for geographic data

Usage

{
  "tool": "generate_3d_bar_chart",
  "args": {
    "data": [...],
    "title": "3D Sales Comparison",
    "theme": "dark"
  }
}

Real-time Dashboard (NEW!)

Create a dashboard with multiple interactive charts:

Use Case

• Multi-metric monitoring
• Cross-chart filtering
• Time-range selection

How to Create

1. Generate multiple interactive charts
2. Combine into dashboard HTML
3. Add cross-filter functionality

Example payload:

{
  "tool": "generate_dashboard",
  "args": {
    "charts": [
      {"type": "line", "data": [...], "title": "Trend"},
      {"type": "bar", "data": [...], "title": "Comparison"},
      {"type": "pie", "data": [...], "title": "Distribution"}
    ],
    "layout": "grid",
    "theme": "light"
  }
}

Geo Visualization (NEW!)

Enhanced map capabilities:

Features

• Choropleth Map: Color-coded by value
• Heat Map: Density visualization
• Flow Map: Movement between locations
• Bubble Map: Size-coded points
• Route Map: Path visualization

Data Format

{
  "data": [
    {"name": "Beijing", "value": 100},
    {"name": "Shanghai", "value": 80},
    {"name": "Guangzhou", "value": 60}
  ],
  "geoJson": "china"  // or custom GeoJSON URL
}

Usage Guidelines

Choosing Chart Type

Best Practices

1. Interactive for exploration - Use interactive when user will explore data
2. Static for reports - Use static images for PDF reports
3. 3D sparingly - 3D can distort perception, use for impact only
4. Dashboard for monitoring - Combine related metrics
5. Mobile consideration - Interactive charts work on mobile too

Output Handling

Static Images

• Format: PNG
• Resolution: 1920x1080 (default)
• Location: /mnt/user-data/outputs/

Interactive HTML

• Format: HTML with ECharts
• Features: Full interactivity
• Location: /mnt/user-data/outputs/chart_*.html
• Can be opened in browser or embedded

Sharing

• Use present_files tool to share with user
• For interactive, share the HTML file path
• Can be hosted on internal server

Reference Material

Detailed specifications for each chart type are located in the references/ directory. Consult these files to ensure the args passed to the script match the expected schema.

License

This SKILL.md is provided by antviz/chart-visualization-skills. Licensed under the MIT License.