Diagram Generation

What it does

VDF can generate interactive visualizations and diagrams to help you understand data, processes, and relationships. The system supports over 50 diagram types including charts, networks, maps, and business diagrams. All diagrams are interactive with zoom, pan, and export capabilities.

Where diagrams appear

• Inline in conversations: Diagrams appear directly in chat responses when generated
• Canvas pane: Full-screen preview with zoom, pan, and export controls
• Artifact preview: Generated diagrams can be saved as artifacts for later reference

Supported diagram categories

Basic Charts (Trends & Comparisons)

• bar, horizontalBar - Compare categories
• line_chart, multiline - Show trends over time
• area, stackedArea - Cumulative values over time
• pie, donut - Show proportions
• simple_chart - Quick basic visualization

Advanced Comparisons

• groupedBar - Compare multiple series side-by-side
• stackedBar - Show part-to-whole relationships
• waterfall - Show incremental changes
• bullet - Performance vs target
• lollipop - Emphasize individual values
• gaugeArc - Display single metric with threshold

Distributions & Statistics

• histogram - Frequency distribution
• density - Smooth distribution curve
• boxplot - Show quartiles and outliers
• violin - Distribution shape and density
• ridgeline - Multiple distributions stacked
• beeswarm - Individual data points arranged by value

Relationships & Networks

• network_graph, networkForce - Dynamic node relationships
• networkStatic - Fixed layout networks
• company_graph - Organizational structures
• sankey - Flow between categories
• alluvial - Changes over categorical stages
• chord - Inter-relationships matrix
• arcDiagram - Minimalist connection view
• adjacencyMatrix - Matrix view of connections
• causal_loop - Cause-effect feedback loops

Hierarchical Structures

• treemap - Nested rectangles showing hierarchy
• sunburst - Radial hierarchy visualization
• icicle - Vertical hierarchy partitions
• circlePack - Nested circles hierarchy
• tree, radialTree - Classic tree layouts
• okr_tree - Objectives and Key Results tree
• edgeBundle - Hierarchical edge bundling

Business & Strategy

• flowchart - Process flows and logic
• sequence_diagram - Interaction sequences
• gantt, roadmap_timeline, timeline - Project scheduling
• strategy_map - Strategic objectives map
• strategy_canvas - Strategy comparison
• canvas_grid - Business model canvas
• wardley_map - Value chain evolution
• value_stream - Process value analysis
• value_chain - Business value activities
• journey_map - Customer/user journey
• raci_grid - Responsibility assignment

Risk & Prioritization

• risk_heatmap - Risk probability/impact matrix
• prioritization_matrix - Effort vs value matrix
• bubble_chart, bubble - Multi-dimensional comparison

Spatial & Geographic

• choropleth - Colored regions on map
• symbolMap - Symbols at geographic points
• bubbleMap - Sized bubbles on map
• hexbinMap - Hexagonal binning on map
• contourMap - Density contours on map
• tileMap - Grid-based geographic representation
• cartogram - Distorted map by data values

Heat & Density

• heatmap - 2D color-coded matrix
• calendarHeatmap - Time-based activity heatmap
• hexbin - Hexagonal binning density
• contour - Density contour lines

Specialized Visualizations

• scatter, connectedScatter - Point relationships
• parallelCoordinates - Multivariate data patterns
• radar - Multi-axis comparison
• wordCloud - Text frequency visualization
• funnel - Conversion/process stages
• streamgraph - Stacked area with baseline
• voronoiOverlay - Spatial partitioning
• smallMultiples - Multiple charts in grid

Data Modeling

• er_diagram - Entity-relationship diagrams

Custom

• d3_script - Custom D3.js implementation
• html_fragment - Custom HTML/CSS/JS visualization

How to generate diagrams

Using Agent Mode (Recommended) Simply describe what you want to visualize in natural language:

• "Create a causal loop diagram showing how WIP and context switching impact delivery time"
• "Visualize our incident flow with inputs, bottlenecks, and feedback loops"
• "Generate a simple dashboard wireframe with a header, three metric cards, and a chart area"
• "Turn this process description into a step-by-step flow and highlight risks"
• "Create a risk heatmap for our project portfolio"
• "Show our organizational structure as a network graph"

Using Manual Tools

• Navigate to Manual Tools → Diagram Generation
• Select diagram type from the dropdown
• Provide data and configuration
• Generate and preview

Diagram interaction features

Zoom and Pan

• Mouse wheel to zoom in/out
• Click and drag to pan around
• Use toolbar buttons for precise control
• "Fit to page" automatically adjusts view

Export Options

• PDF: High-quality vector export for presentations
• Image: PNG export for documents and reports
• HTML: Standalone HTML file with full interactivity
• Copy: Copy diagram code for reuse

Accessibility

• Keyboard navigation support
• Screen reader compatibility
• ARIA labels and descriptions
• High contrast mode support

Best practices for diagram generation

Data preparation

• Provide clear, structured data
• Include meaningful labels and categories
• Specify time ranges for temporal data
• Include metadata like units and descriptions

Choosing the right diagram type

• Time series data → line_chart, area, stackedArea
• Categorical comparisons → bar, groupedBar, stackedBar
• Part-to-whole relationships → pie, donut, treemap
• Network relationships → networkForce, sankey, chord
• Geographic data → choropleth, symbolMap, bubbleMap
• Distributions → histogram, boxplot, violin
• Hierarchical data → treemap, sunburst, tree

Context and requirements

• Describe your audience and use case
• Specify any specific styling or branding needs
• Mention if you need interactive features
• Include any constraints or preferences

Examples and use cases

Business Analysis

• "Create a value stream map for our software development process"
• "Generate a Wardley map showing the evolution of our platform components"
• "Visualize our OKR structure with progress indicators"

Data Visualization

• "Create a scatter plot showing customer satisfaction vs response time"
• "Generate a heatmap of our team's availability across time zones"
• "Show our revenue trends with seasonal adjustments"

Process Documentation

• "Create a flowchart for our incident response procedure"
• "Generate a sequence diagram for our authentication flow"
• "Visualize our deployment pipeline with decision points"

Strategic Planning

• "Create a strategy canvas comparing our product to competitors"
• "Generate a risk heatmap for our project portfolio"
• "Show our customer journey with touchpoints and pain points"

Troubleshooting

Common issues

• Diagram not rendering: Check if data is properly formatted and complete
• Missing interactivity: Ensure you're viewing in the canvas pane, not inline
• Export failures: Try refreshing the page and regenerating the diagram
• Performance issues: For large datasets, consider sampling or aggregation

Data format requirements

• Time series: Include date/time fields in ISO format
• Networks: Provide nodes and links with unique identifiers
• Hierarchies: Use nested structure with parent-child relationships
• Geographic: Include latitude/longitude or region identifiers

Browser compatibility

• Modern browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge)
• JavaScript enabled
• Canvas and SVG support required
• WebGL recommended for complex 3D visualizations

Advanced features

Custom styling

• Specify colors, fonts, and themes
• Include company branding elements
• Set custom dimensions and aspect ratios
• Configure animation and transition effects

Interactive elements

• Hover tooltips with detailed information
• Click handlers for drill-down functionality
• Filtering and selection capabilities
• Real-time data updates

Integration options

• Embed diagrams in reports and presentations
• Export for use in other tools
• API access for programmatic generation
• Webhook notifications for completion

Contact Support

• Email: support@vdf.ai
• Hours: Mon–Fri, 09:00–18:00 UTC
• First response SLA: Within 1 business day
• To open a case: Email us with your workspace name, diagram type, and a brief description of the issue.