SYNTHETIC INTERFACE STUDY
Interfaces for subsea operations
Designing a shared operational picture for teams of divers and autonomous underwater vehicles.
My role Visual-interface & front-end design lead
CUIIS · Subsea interfaces GARETH WALSH, PhDDESIGN & RESEARCH PORTFOLIO
Research. Design. Prototype.
UX designer and visualisation researcher, with a PhD in HCI and visual analytics.
I design interfaces for complex, data-heavy decisions,
test them with the people who use them, and prototype them in code.
Based in Wicklow, Ireland · Open to UX and product design roles, and to research posts in visualisation and HCI
MY WORK AS A NETWORKMethods, data and tools from five projects. Point at a node to name it.
01 / SELECTED WORK
Selected projects.
Interface design, dashboard development and research.
Each case study sets out my role, methods and outputs.
LIVE REACT + D3 APPLICATION
Mapping the EU defence ecosystem
Coordinated views of EU defence institutions, policies, funding and EDF projects, with every link traceable to its source.
My role Sole designer & developer · Data curation
EU Defence Ecosystem · Evidence-linked explorerSYNTHETIC D3 DASHBOARD
Exploring equipment incident reporting
A visual analytics dashboard for exploring rebreather incident reports across civilian and military diving.
My role Dashboard development · First-author research
MDIR / Diving incident analysisLOCAL PYTHON + D3 APPLICATION · AI AGENTS
Agents propose, a person decides
A job-search tool where AI agents read, judge and score adverts, and every proposal waits for a person to accept, correct or reject it.
My role Designer & product owner · AI-assisted build
Trig · Multi-agent career intelligenceILLUSTRATIVE VISUALISATION
Geospatial–temporal visualisation
Surveying how spatial and temporal visualisations support the understanding of complex operations.
My role First-author research · Visualisation survey
Geospatial–temporal research02 / DESIGN PROCESS
How I work.
01 / MAKE THE STRUCTURE VISIBLEUnderstand the task.
Start with the people, the task and the context. What needs to be understood? What decisions does the interface need to support?
Design and prototype.
Turn requirements into prototypes. Bring space, time and uncertainty into coordinated views that people can inspect and question.
Test with users.
Use feedback and evaluation to challenge assumptions. Refine the interface around what people actually need to see and do.
03 / RESEARCH & PUBLICATIONSResearch &
Research &
publications.
Visual analytics, HCI and human–AI collaboration
for complex operational decisions.
RESEARCH FOCUS
Human–AI collaboration
State-dependent coordination, mixed initiative, appropriate reliance
RESEARCH FOCUS
Visual analytics & HCI
Interactive decision support, uncertainty, information abstraction
RESEARCH FOCUS
Autonomous systems
Human supervision, UUVs, complex operational environments
RESEARCH FOCUS
Methods
Prototyping, human-centred design, experimental evaluation, data analysis
FIRST-AUTHOR PAPERS · 5
- 2024Poster paper
Visual Analysis of Military Diving Incident Reports
Walsh, G., Andersen, N. S., Kusnick, J., Sørensen, E. A. W. B., Jänicke, S. · IVAPP 2024, pp. 749–758
- 2024Extended survey
Visualizing Military Operations: Extended Geospatial-Temporal Survey
Walsh, G., Andersen, N. S., Stoianov, N., Jänicke, S. · Communications in Computer and Information Science 2103, pp. 374–396. Springer
- 2023Workshop paper
The Lack of Specialized Symbology and Visual Interaction Design Guidance for Sub-Sea Military Operations
Walsh, G., Andersen, N. S., Stoianov, N., Jänicke, S. · VisGap @ EuroVis 2023, pp. 19–26
- 2023Proceedings paper
Towards a New Symbology and Visual Interaction Design for Sub-Sea Military Operations
Walsh, G., Andersen, N. S., Stoianov, N., Jänicke, S. · Proceedings of the EDA Research, Technology and Innovation Papers Award 2023, pp. 24–31
- 2023Full paper
A Survey of Geospatial-Temporal Visualizations for Military Operations
Walsh, G., Andersen, N. S., Stoianov, N., Jänicke, S. · IVAPP 2023, pp. 115–129
THESIS & PREPRINTS · 3
- 2025PhD thesis
Visual Interaction Design for Sub-Sea Military Operations in the Context of European Defence
Walsh, G. · PhD thesis, University of Southern Denmark
- 2024Preprint
Advancing C3S Systems for Subsea Tactical Operations: Insights from the CUIIS Project
Walsh, G., Andersen, N. S., Filipov, V., Kehayov, T., Manjukov, M., Jänicke, S. · SSRN 5464354
- 2025Unpublished preprint
Visual Insights into European Defence: Mapping Policies, Institutions, and Capabilities
Walsh, G., Peters, D., Jänicke, S. · February 2025
MENTORED STUDENT PAPERS · 6
As teaching assistant on DM878 Visual Data Analytics at the University of Southern Denmark, I mentored the MSc students who are first authors, and co-supervised the projects behind the three EuroVis 2024 posters.
- 2026Mentored
Interactive Visual Analysis of the Danish District Heating Grid
Vrede, N. E., Sørensen, E. B., Walsh, G., Kusnick, J., Jänicke, S. · GRIVAPP 2026, pp. 488–495
- 2024Mentored
Visual Analysis of Wind Turbines in Denmark
Lamp, F. J., Møller, J. B., Sørensen, E. B., Walsh, G., Kusnick, J., Jänicke, S. · EuroVis 2024 (Short Papers)
- 2024Mentored
Towards Sustainable Wildlife Management through Geospatial-Temporal Visual Exploration
Thomasen, M. M. D., Jørgensen, M. V., Svendsen, L. S., Sørensen, E. B., Walsh, G., Kusnick, J., Jänicke, S. · VisGap @ EuroVis 2024
- 2024Co-supervised
A Visualization Tool for Private Investors: Stock Portfolio Planning and Risk Management
Wang, J. M., Sørensen, E. B., Walsh, G., Kusnick, J., Jänicke, S. · EuroVis 2024 (Posters)
- 2024Co-supervised
Interactive Visual Exploration of Arctic Sea Ice Extent 1978–2023
Pedersen, D. P., Hansen, L. I. K., Sørensen, E. B., Walsh, G., Kusnick, J., Jänicke, S. · EuroVis 2024 (Posters)
- 2024Co-supervised
Visualizing Property Assessments and Taxation: A Danish Case Study
Lund, K. N., Rosenfjeld, M., Vendelsøe, A. N. H., Sørensen, E. B., Walsh, G., Kusnick, J., Jänicke, S. · EuroVis 2024 (Posters)
04 / PRESENTATIONSPresented
Presented
internationally.
Talks and a poster at IVAPP and EuroVis, my PhD and MSc defences, CUIIS demonstrations and meetings with navies and defence institutes, European Commission engagements, and S-Series standards meetings with Airbus, Rolls-Royce, Saab and the International Union of Railways, from Espoo to Washington, DC.
Select a city on the map to see what happened there.
- 2025—26ASD Europe, international standards engagementRepresentation · Represented ASD Europe across industry, government and standards organisations · Washington, DC, United States
- 2025—26ASD PSSG meeting, hosted by AirbusMeeting · S-Series specifications governance for ASD Europe · Toulouse, France
- 2025—26The S-Series with UIC, the International Union of RailwaysMeeting · S-Series specifications engagement for ASD Europe · Paris, France
- 2025—26ASD PSSG meetings, hosted by Rolls-Royce and AirbusMeetings · S-Series specifications governance for ASD Europe · London, United Kingdom
- 2025—26ASD PSSG meeting, hosted by SaabMeeting · S-Series specifications governance for ASD Europe · Stockholm, Sweden
- 2025Visual Interaction Design for Sub-Sea Military Operations in the Context of European DefencePhD defence · University of Southern Denmark · Odense, Denmark
- 2024Visual Analysis of Military Diving Incident ReportsPoster · IVAPP 2024, poster presentation · Rome, Italy
- 2024EDF funding panel at Hannover MessePanel, organised · Coordinated and curated the panel for DG DEFIS, with a venture capitalist, an SME and an EDF recipient · Hannover, Germany
- 2024TechChill, EUDIS and EDF standEvent · Prepared presentation material, met defence start-ups from Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Finland, and staffed the stand for DG DEFIS · Riga, Latvia
- 2024EU Maritime Security Strategy, EDA Maritime Workshop at EuroguardPresentation, coordinated · Coordinated a joint DG DEFIS–DG MARE presentation and prepared its material · Brussels, Belgium
- 2024European Defence Innovation Network (EDIN) meeting, organised by the EDAMeeting, supported · Helped a DG DEFIS colleague prepare the EUDIS presentation, speaking points, minutes and mission report · Amsterdam, Netherlands
- 2023The Lack of Specialized Symbology and Visual Interaction Design Guidance for Sub-Sea Military OperationsTalk · VisGap workshop @ EuroVis 2023 · Leipzig, Germany
- 2023A Survey of Geospatial-Temporal Visualizations for Military OperationsTalk · IVAPP 2023, full paper · Lisbon, Portugal
- CUIISCUIIS final field demonstrationField demonstration · Showcased the visual user interface in the Black Sea with the Bulgarian Navy, European Commission project officers present · Varna, Bulgaria
- CUIISCUIIS consortium progressProject talk · Polish Naval Academy · Gdynia, Poland
- CUIISCUIIS consortium progressProject talk · Bulgarian Defence Institute, and a project review meeting · Sofia, Bulgaria
- CUIISCUIIS developmentsProject talk · EDF Info Days · Brussels, Belgium
- CUIISCUIIS consortium meetingProject meeting · Consortium meeting in Finland · Espoo, Finland
- 2021The need for greater emphasis on eudaimonia in the design process of virtual environmentsMSc defence · IDM showcase, Trinity College Dublin · Dublin, Ireland
WHERE THE WORK WAS PRESENTED19 ENTRIES · 18 CITIES · 15 COUNTRIES
Country outlines: Natural Earth. Equal-area projection; the United States inset is at a smaller scale.
05 / ABOUT ME
About Gareth.
My work combines interface design, visual analytics and research with users.
My path began in architectural science and moved through interactive digital media into a PhD in human-computer interaction and visual analytics at the University of Southern Denmark, defended in September 2025.
At Trinity College Dublin’s ADAPT Centre I redesigned digital interfaces with an emphasis on accessibility, applying WCAG and ARIA practice.
I’ve led interface design for a European subsea research consortium, built a published visual analytics dashboard, and taught visualisation to more than 100 MSc students per semester, supervising around 30 student dashboard projects each term. Work at the European Commission and ASD Europe adds a wider perspective on technical systems and international collaboration.
I’m interested in how people coordinate with AI systems and judge when to rely on them. I’m also learning to build simple agents, with human review of their outputs. Away from the screen, you’ll usually find me on a trail or training for a triathlon.
Interaction & UI designUser research: interviews, think-aloud, workshopsPrototyping: Figma · Adobe XDAccessibility: WCAG · ARIAVisual analyticsPython · Dash · PlotlyJavaScript · HTML · CSSHuman–AI interaction
EXPERIENCE
- 2025—2026Standards and Services ManagerASD Europe, Brussels
- 2022—2025PhD Researcher, HCI & visual analyticsUniversity of Southern Denmark
- 2024Blue Book Trainee, DG DEFISEuropean Commission, Brussels
- 2021—2022Interactive Media DesignerADAPT Centre, Trinity College Dublin
- 2018—2020Architectural / Visual DesignerAedas London and Dublin practices
- 2025PhD, Computer Science (HCI & visual analytics)University of Southern Denmark
- 2021MSc Interactive Digital Media, DistinctionTrinity College Dublin
- 2018BSc Architectural ScienceUniversity College Dublin