Dawar Khan

Biography

I am working as a Postdoctoral Researcher with Professor Ivan Viola in the Nanovisualization Research Group at KAUST, Saudi Arabia. I earned my Ph.D. in Computer Science from the National Laboratory of Pattern Recognition (NLPR), Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CASIA), under the supervision of Prof. Xiaopeng Zhang and Prof. Dong-Ming Yan, in 2018. I was honored with the 🏅 2018 Excellent International Graduate Award from UCAS. Soon after completing my Ph.D., I worked as an Assistant Professor with Prof. Hirokazu Kato (the inventor of ARToolKit) at the IMD–Interactive Media Design Lab, Nara Institute of Science and Technology (NAIST), Japan. I later served as an Assistant Professor at the University of Haripur, Pakistan, before joining KAUST.

My research interests include computer graphics, computer vision, visualization, VR, 3D deep learning, HCI, and human-AI interaction, with a recent focus on leveraging LLMs/VLMs for XR, 3D scene understanding, and HCI (AI4XR).

*** I am actively seeking a faculty or researcher position.

Connect with Me:

Publications (Selected)

(# Joint first authors, * Corresponding author)

arXiv 2025

AIvaluateXR: An Evaluation Framework for on-Device AI in XR with Benchmarking Results
Dawar Khan, Xinyu Liu, Omar Mena, Donggang Jia, Alexandre Kouyoumdjian, Ivan Viola
arXiv preprint, https://arxiv.org/abs/2502.15761, (2025)
[Project] [Source Code ] [Video ] [Poster (IEEE VR 2025)] [Paper (arXiv)] [BibTeX]

@article{khan2025aivaluatexr,
  title        = {{AIvaluateXR}: An Evaluation Framework for on-Device {AI} in {XR} with Benchmarking Results},
  author       = {Khan, Dawar and Liu, Xinyu and Mena, Omar and Jia, Donggang and Kouyoumdjian, Alexandre and Viola, Ivan},
  year         = {2025},
  eprint       = {2502.15761},
  archivePrefix = {arXiv},
  primaryClass = {cs.CG},
  url          = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2502.15761}
}

IEEE VR 2025 Poster

LLMs on XR (LoXR): Performance Evaluation of LLMs Executed Locally on Extended Reality Devices
Xinyu Liu, Dawar Khan, Omar Mena, Donggang Jia, Alexandre Kouyoumdjian, Ivan Viola
IEEE Conference on Virtual Reality and 3D User Interfaces Workshops (VRW), 2025
[Project] [Source Code] [Video] [ Paper (IEEE VR Poster)] [Poster & More] [BibTeX]

@inproceedings{liu2025loxr,
  title     = {{LLMs on XR (LoXR)}: Performance Evaluation of {LLMs} Executed Locally on Extended Reality Devices},
  author    = {Liu, Xinyu and Khan, Dawar and Mena, Omar and Jia, Donggang and Kouyoumdjian, Alexandre and Viola, Ivan},
  booktitle = {2025 {IEEE} Conference on Virtual Reality and 3D User Interfaces Abstracts and Workshops ({VRW})},
  pages     = {1212--1213},
  year      = {2025},
  doi       = {10.1109/VRW66409.2025.00252},
  keywords  = {Performance evaluation, Three-dimensional displays, Extended reality, Large language models}
}

arXiv 2024

MidSurfer: A Parameter-Free Approach for Mid-Surface Extraction from Segmented Volumetric Data
Eva Boneš^#, Dawar Khan^#, Ciril Bohak, Benjamin A. Barad, Danielle A. Grotjahn, Ivan Viola, Thomas Theußl
arXiv preprint, 2405.19339, (2024)
[Project] [Video Demo] [Source Code] [Paper] [BibTeX]

@article{MidSurfer2024,
  title     = {{MidSurfer}: A Parameter-Free Approach for Mid-Surface Extraction from Segmented Volumetric Data},
  author    = {Boneš, Eva and Khan, Dawar and Bohak, Ciril and Barad, Benjamin A. and Grotjahn, Danielle A. and Viola, Ivan and Theußl, Thomas},
  journal   = {arXiv preprint},
  volume    = {2405.19339},
  year      = {2024},
  url       = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2405.19339},
  keywords  = {Mid-surface, Medial surface, Volumetric data, Biomedical imaging, Visualization}
}

arXiv 2025

GHAR: GeoPose-based Handheld Augmented Reality for Architectural Positioning, Manipulation and Visual Exploration
Sabahat Israr, Dawar Khan^*, Zhanglin Cheng, Mukhtaj Khan, Kiyoshi Kiyokawa,
arXiv preprint, https://arxiv.org/abs/2506.14414, (2025) [BibTeX]

@misc{israr2025ghargeoposebasedhandheldaugmented,
  title        = {{GHAR}: GeoPose-based Handheld Augmented Reality for Architectural Positioning, Manipulation and Visual Exploration}, 
  author       = {Israr, Sabahat and Khan, Dawar and Cheng, Zhanglin and Khan, Mukhtaj and Kiyokawa, Kiyoshi},
  year         = {2025},
  eprint       = {2506.14414},
  archivePrefix= {arXiv},
  primaryClass = {cs.GR},
  url          = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2506.14414}
}

arXiv 2024

Biomedical Image Segmentation: A Systematic Literature Review of Deep Learning Based Object Detection Methods
Fazli Wahid, Yingliang Ma^*, Dawar Khan^*, Muhammad Aamir, Syed U. K. Bukhari
arXiv preprint, 2408.03393, (2024) [BibTeX]

@article{BiomedSeg2024,
  title     = {Biomedical Image Segmentation: A Systematic Literature Review of Deep Learning Based Object Detection Methods},
  author    = {Wahid, Fazli and Ma, Yingliang and Khan, Dawar and Aamir, Muhammad and Bukhari, Syed U. K.},
  journal   = {arXiv preprint},
  year      = {2024},
  volume    = {2408.03393},
  url       = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2408.03393}
}

TVCG (VIS2024)

DiffFit: Visually-Guided Differentiable Fitting of Molecule Structures
Deng Luo, Zainab Alsuwaykit, Dawar Khan, Ondřej Strnad, Tobias Isenberg, Ivan Viola
IEEE TVCG 2024, IEEE Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics, vol. 31, no. 1, pp. 558-568, Jan. 2025
[Project] [Video] [Paper] [Source Code] [BibTeX]

@article{DiffFit2024,
  title     = {{DiffFit: Visually-Guided Differentiable Fitting of Molecule Structures to a Cryo-EM Map}},
  author    = {Luo, Deng and Alsuwaykit, Zainab and Khan, Dawar and Strnad, Ondrej and Isenberg, Tobias and Viola, Ivan},
  journal   = {IEEE Transactions on Visualization \& Computer Graphics},
  volume    = {31},
  number    = {01},
  pages     = {558--568},
  year      = {2025},
  month     = jan,
  doi       = {10.1109/TVCG.2024.3456404},
  url       = {https://doi.ieeecomputersociety.org/10.1109/TVCG.2024.3456404},
  ISSN      = {1941-0506},
  publisher = {IEEE Computer Society},
  address   = {Los Alamitos, CA, USA}
}

TVCG (VIS2023)

Dr. KID: Direct Remeshing and K-Set Isometric Decomposition for Scalable Physicalization of Organic Shapes
Dawar Khan, Ciril Bohak, Ivan Viola
IEEE VIS 2023 (🏅 Best Paper Honorable Mention Award ) , IEEE Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics, vol. 30, no. 1, pp. 705-715, Jan. 2024
Project] [Video] [Presentation (11mins) ] [Presentation (30 mins) ] [Paper] [BibTeX]

@article{Khan:2023:DrKID,
  title     = {{Dr. KID: Direct Remeshing and K-Set Isometric Decomposition for Scalable Physicalization of Organic Shapes}},
  author    = {Khan, Dawar and Bohak, Ciril and Viola, Ivan},
  journal   = {IEEE Transactions on Visualization \& Computer Graphics},
  volume    = {30},
  number    = {01},
  pages     = {705--715},
  year      = {2024},
  month     = jan,
  doi       = {10.1109/TVCG.2023.3326595},
  url       = {https://doi.ieeecomputersociety.org/10.1109/TVCG.2023.3326595},
  ISSN      = {1941-0506},
  publisher = {IEEE Computer Society},
  address   = {Los Alamitos, CA, USA}
}

CGI 2023

Molecular Surface Mesh Smoothing with Subdivision
Dawar Khan, Sheng Gui, Zhanglin Cheng
Computer Graphics International, 2023, pp. 236–248 [BibTeX]

@InProceedings{Khan2023CGImeshsmoothing,
  author    = {Khan, Dawar and Gui, Sheng and Cheng, Zhanglin},
  editor    = {Sheng, Bin and Bi, Lei and Kim, Jinman and Magnenat-Thalmann, Nadia and Thalmann, Daniel},
  title     = {Molecular Surface Mesh Smoothing with Subdivision},
  booktitle = {Advances in Computer Graphics, CGI 2023. Lecture Notes in Computer Science,},
  year      = {2024},
  publisher = {Springer Nature Switzerland},
  address   = {Cham},
  pages     = {236--248},
}

TVCG 2022

Surface Remeshing: A Systematic Literature Review of Methods and Research Directions
Dawar Khan, Alexander Plopski, Yuichiro Fujimoto, Masayuki Kanbara, Gul Jabeen, Yongjie Jessica Zhang, Xiaopeng Zhang, Hirokazu Kato
IEEE Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics (TVCG), vol. 28, no. 3, pp. 1680-1713, 1 March 2022 [BibTeX]

@article{khan:2022:tvcgSLR,
  title     = {Surface Remeshing: A Systematic Literature Review of Methods and Research Directions},
  author    = {Khan, Dawar and Plopski, Alexander and Fujimoto, Yuichiro and Kanbara, Masayuki and Jabeen, Gul and Zhang, Yongjie Jessica and Zhang, Xiaopeng and Kato, Hirokazu},
  journal   = {IEEE Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics},
  volume    = {28},
  number    = {3},
  pages     = {1680--1713},
  year      = {2022},
  doi       = {10.1109/TVCG.2020.3016645},
  keywords  = {Systematics, Data mining, Quality assessment, Libraries, Search problems, Three-dimensional displays, Solid modeling, Mesh generation, surface remeshing, meshing quality, finite element method, systematic literature review}
}

Computers & Graphics 2022

Recent Advances in Vision-Based Indoor Navigation: A Systematic Literature Review
Dawar Khan, Zhanglin Cheng, Hideaki Uchiyama, Sikandar Ali, Muhammad Asshad, Kiyoshi Kiyokawa
Computers & Graphics, vol. 104, pp. 24-45, 2022 [BibTeX]

@article{KHAN202224,
  title     = {Recent Advances in Vision-Based Indoor Navigation: A Systematic Literature Review},
  author    = {Khan, Dawar and Cheng, Zhanglin and Uchiyama, Hideaki and Ali, Sikandar and Asshad, Muhammad and Kiyokawa, Kiyoshi},
  journal   = {Computers \& Graphics},
  volume    = {104},
  pages     = {24--45},
  year      = {2022},
  issn      = {0097-8493},
  doi       = {10.1016/j.cag.2022.03.005},
  url       = {https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0097849322000371}
}

La Radiologia Medica 2023

Trends in Brain MRI and CP Association Using Deep Learning
M. Hassan, J. Lin, A. Ameen Fateh, Y. Zhuang, G. Lin, Dawar Khan, A. AQ Mohammed, H. Zeng
La Radiologia Medica, vol. 129, pp. 1667–1681, Springer Milan, 2024 [BibTeX]

@article{Hassan2024,
  author    = {Muhammad Hassan and Jieqiong Lin and Ahmad Ameen Fateh and Yijiang Zhuang and Guisen Lin and Dawar Khan and Adam A. Q. Mohammed and Hongwu Zeng},
  title     = {Trends in brain MRI and CP association using deep learning},
  journal   = {La Radiologia Medica},
  volume    = {129},
  pages     = {1667--1681},
  year      = {2024},
  publisher = {Springer Milan},
  doi       = {10.1007/s11547-024-01893-w},
  url       = {https://doi.org/10.1007/s11547-024-01893-w}
}

Applied Intelligence 2022

Machine Learning Techniques for Software Vulnerability Prediction: A Comparative Study
Gul Jabeen, Sabit Rahim, Wasif Afzal, Dawar Khan^*, Aftab Ahmed Khan, Zahid Hussain, Tehmina Bibi
Applied Intelligence, vol. 52, pp. 17614–17635, 2022 [BibTeX]

@article{Jabeen2022,
  author    = {Gul Jabeen and Sabit Rahim and Wasif Afzal and Dawar Khan and Aftab Ahmed Khan and Zahid Hussain and Tehmina Bibi},
  title     = {Machine Learning Techniques for Software Vulnerability Prediction: A Comparative Study},
  journal   = {Applied Intelligence},
  year      = {2022},
  volume    = {52},
  pages     = {17614--17635},
  doi       = {10.1007/s10489-022-03350-5},
  url       = {https://doi.org/10.1007/s10489-022-03350-5}
}

Visual Comp. 2020

Valence Optimization and Angle Improvement for Molecular Surface Remeshing
Dawar Khan, Alexander Plopski, Yuichiro Fujimoto, Masayuki Kanbara, Zhanglin Cheng, Hirokazu Kato
The Visual Computer, vol. 36, no. 10, pp. 2355-2368, 2020 [BibTeX]

@article{Khan2020,
  author    = {Dawar Khan and Alexander Plopski and Yuichiro Fujimoto and Masayuki Kanbara and Zhanglin Cheng and Hirokazu Kato},
  title     = {Valence Optimization and Angle Improvement for Molecular Surface Remeshing},
  journal   = {The Visual Computer},
  year      = {2020},
  volume    = {36},
  number    = {10},
  pages     = {2355--2368},
  issn      = {1432-2315},
  doi       = {10.1007/s00371-020-01967-6},
  url       = {https://doi.org/10.1007/s00371-020-01967-6}
}

Surface Remeshing with User-guided Segmentation

CVMJ 2018

Surface Remeshing with Robust User-guided Segmentation
Dawar Khan, Dong-Ming Yan, Fan Ding, Yixin Zhuang, Xiaopeng Zhang
Computational Visual Media (Springer), vol. 4, no. 2, pp. 113—122, 2018 [BibTeX]

@article{Khan2018,
  author    = {Dawar Khan and Dong-Ming Yan and Fan Ding and Yixin Zhuang and Xiaopeng Zhang},
  title     = {Surface Remeshing with Robust User-guided Segmentation},
  journal   = {Computational Visual Media (Springer)},
  year      = {2018},
  volume    = {4},
  number    = {2},
  pages     = {113--122},
  month     = {March},
  note      = {Conference talk with journal publication},
  url       = {#}
}

IEEE Access 2018

Robust Tracking Through the Design of High-Quality Fiducial Markers: An Optimization Tool for ARToolKit
Dawar Khan, Sehat Ullah, Dong-Ming Yan, Ihsan Rabbi, Paul Richard, Thuong Hoang, Mark Billinghurst, Xiaopeng Zhang
IEEE Access, vol. 6, pp. 22421-22433, 2018 [BibTeX]

@ARTICLE{8287815,
  author    = {Khan, Dawar and Ullah, Sehat and Yan, Dong-Ming and Rabbi, Ihsan and Richard, Paul and Hoang, Thuong and Billinghurst, Mark and Zhang, Xiaopeng},
  title     = {Robust Tracking Through the Design of High-Quality Fiducial Markers: An Optimization Tool for ARToolKit},
  journal   = {IEEE Access},
  year      = {2018},
  volume    = {6},
  pages     = {22421--22433},
  keywords  = {Libraries; Robustness; Tools; Complexity theory; Fiducial markers; Cameras; Fiducial markers; ARToolKit; augmented reality; marker tracking; robust recognition},
  doi       = {10.1109/ACCESS.2018.2801028}
}

IJMS 2018

Molecular Surface Remeshing with Local Regions Refinement
Dawar Khan, Dong-Ming Yan, Sheng Gui, Benzhuo Lu, Xiaopeng Zhang
International Journal of Molecular Sciences, vol. 19, no. 5, 2018 [BibTeX]

@article{Khan2018MSR,
  author    = {Dawar Khan and Dong-Ming Yan and Sheng Gui and Benzhuo Lu and Xiaopeng Zhang},
  title     = {Molecular Surface Remeshing with Local Regions Refinement},
  journal   = {International Journal of Molecular Sciences},
  year      = {2018},
  volume    = {19},
  number    = {5},
  month     = {May},
  note      = {Impact Factor: 5.923},
  url       = {#}
}

CAMWA 2017

High-Quality 2D Mesh Generation without Obtuse and Small Angles
Dawar Khan, Dong-Ming Yan, Yiqun Wang, Kaimo Hu, Juntao Ye, Xiaopeng Zhang
Computers & Mathematics with Applications, vol. 75, no. 2, pp. 582-595, 2017 [BibTeX]

@article{Khan2017,
  author    = {Dawar Khan and Dong-Ming Yan and Yiqun Wang and Kaimo Hu and Juntao Ye and Xiaopeng Zhang},
  title     = {High-Quality 2D Mesh Generation without Obtuse and Small Angles},
  journal   = {Computers \& Mathematics with Applications},
  year      = {2017},
  volume    = {75},
  number    = {2},
  pages     = {582--595},
  month     = {October},
  url       = {#}
}

Remote Sensing 2019

A Generic Approach toward Indoor Navigation and Pathfinding with Robust Marker Tracking
Dawar Khan, Sehat Ullah, Syed Nabi
Remote Sensing, vol. 11, no. 24, article 3052, 2019 [BibTeX]

@article{rs11243052,
  author    = {Khan, Dawar and Ullah, Sehat and Nabi, Syed},
  title     = {A Generic Approach toward Indoor Navigation and Pathfinding with Robust Marker Tracking},
  journal   = {Remote Sensing},
  year      = {2019},
  volume    = {11},
  number    = {24},
  article-number = {3052},
  url       = {https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/11/24/3052},
  issn      = {2072-4292},
  doi       = {10.3390/rs11243052}
}

VCIBA 2018

Frontiers in Biomolecular Mesh Generation and Molecular Visualization Systems
Sheng Gui, Dawar Khan, Qin Wang, Dong-Ming Yan, Ben-Zhuo Lu
Visual Computing for Industry, Biomedicine, and Art (VCIBA), vol. 1, article 7, 2018 [BibTeX]

@article{Gui2018,
  author    = {Sheng Gui and Dawar Khan and Qin Wang and Dong-Ming Yan and Ben-Zhuo Lu},
  title     = {Frontiers in Biomolecular Mesh Generation and Molecular Visualization Systems},
  journal   = {Visual Computing for Industry, Biomedicine, and Art (VCIBA)},
  year      = {2018},
  volume    = {1},
  article   = {7},
  url       = {https://doi.org/10.1186/s42492-018-0007-0},
  doi       = {10.1186/s42492-018-0007-0}
}

EIT 2022

Minimization of Students’ Cognitive Load in a Virtual Chemistry Laboratory via Contents Optimization and Arrow-Textual Aids
Numan Ali, Sehat Ullah, Dawar Khan
Education and Information Technologies, vol. 27, pp. 7629–7652, 2022 [BibTeX]

@article{Ali2022,
  author    = {Numan Ali and Sehat Ullah and Dawar Khan},
  title     = {Minimization of Students’ Cognitive Load in a Virtual Chemistry Laboratory via Contents Optimization and Arrow-Textual Aids},
  journal   = {Education and Information Technologies},
  year      = {2022},
  volume    = {27},
  pages     = {7629--7652},
  url       = {https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-022-10936-6},
  doi       = {10.1007/s10639-022-10936-6}
}

CAVW 2022

Fusing Surveillance Videos and Three-Dimensional Scene: A Mixed Reality System
Xiaoliang Cui, Dawar Khan, Zhenbang He, Zhanglin Cheng
Computer Animation and Virtual Worlds, vol. 34, no. 1, article e2129, 2022 [BibTeX]

@article{Cui2022,
  author    = {Xiaoliang Cui and Dawar Khan and Zhenbang He and Zhanglin Cheng},
  title     = {Fusing Surveillance Videos and Three-Dimensional Scene: A Mixed Reality System},
  journal   = {Computer Animation and Virtual Worlds},
  year      = {2022},
  volume    = {34},
  number    = {1},
  article   = {e2129},
  url       = {https://doi.org/10.1002/cav.2129},
  doi       = {10.1002/cav.2129}
}

CSI 2015

Factors Affecting the Design and Tracking of ARToolKit Markers
Dawar Khan, Sehat Ullah, Ihsan Rabbi
Computer Standards & Interfaces, vol. 41, pp. 56-66, 2015 [BibTeX]

@article{Khan2015,
  author    = {Dawar Khan and Sehat Ullah and Ihsan Rabbi},
  title     = {Factors Affecting the Design and Tracking of ARToolKit Markers},
  journal   = {Computer Standards \& Interfaces},
  year      = {2015},
  volume    = {41},
  pages     = {56--66},
  url       = {#}
}

SIGGRAPH ASIA 2016 Poster

Obtuse Triangle Removal for 2D Mesh Generation
Dawar Khan, Dong-Ming Yan, Yiqun Wang, Juntao Ye, Xiaopeng Zhang
ACM SIGGRAPH ASIA 2016 Posters, pp. 31:1-31:2 [BibTeX]

@inproceedings{Khan2016,
  author    = {Dawar Khan and Dong-Ming Yan and Yiqun Wang and Juntao Ye and Xiaopeng Zhang},
  title     = {Obtuse Triangle Removal for 2D Mesh Generation},
  booktitle = {ACM SIGGRAPH ASIA 2016 Posters},
  year      = {2016},
  pages     = {31:1--31:2},
  url       = {#}
}

SIGGRAPH 2018, Poster

Improving Regularity of the Centroidal Voronoi Tessellation
Yifan Men, Zeyu Shen, Dawar Khan, Dong-Ming Yan
SIGGRAPH 2018, pp. 66:1–66:2 [BibTeX]

@inproceedings{Men2018,
  author    = {Yifan Men and Zeyu Shen and Dawar Khan and Dong-Ming Yan},
  title     = {Improving Regularity of the Centroidal Voronoi Tessellation},
  booktitle = {SIGGRAPH 2018},
  year      = {2018},
  pages     = {66:1--66:2},
  url       = {#}
}