Analytical chart layouts

Chart layouts can reveal groups and patterns in chart data. On association charts, you can identify highly connected entities and groups of entities that are interlinked. On timeline charts, you can identify groups of events that occurred close together in time.

Identify highly connected entities

The Peacock layout and Compact Peacock layout group an entity's connections around it on the chart. Highly connected entities form visible areas of activity on the chart. The areas of activity that are formed by the Compact Peacock layout are closer together, which can result in a smaller chart.

Identify groups of entities that are interlinked

The Grouped and Circular layouts can identify groups of entities that are interlinked on an association chart. The Grouped layout visibly distinguishes several groups within a single network, whereas the Circular layout arranges all members of a network in a circle. Both layouts can identify discrete networks in chart data.

The Peacock and Compact Peacock layouts identify highly connected entities, which might be connected to each other. For example, these entities might be the ringleaders of a gang. When the areas of activity that are formed by the Peacock layout and Compact Peacock layout are separated on the charting surface, the interlinking of the ringleaders is visible.

Identify events that occurred close together in time

The Grouped by Time layout identifies bursts of activity on a timeline chart. If the time interval between two events is below a specified threshold, the events are separated by a small gap of a specified size. A large gap separates each group of events. You can set the threshold value, the size of the small gap, and the size of the large gap.