Data visualisation interfaces excite me

There are so many variables our system has to consider before it can approve a booking for a set of equipment.

• If a student requests a camera for two days, we have to go through our inventory and examine the existing bookings for each camera. We have to determine whether one of the cameras is available for both days.
• We have to make sure that camera is not out-of-service for repairs.
• We have to verify that the student is permitted to borrow that camera (there are postgrad/undergrad cameras, and the student may have gone over their borrowing limit).
  
• We have to check whether the collection or return date is a University holiday, and modify the dates of the booking accordingly.
• If the student also wants to borrow a microphone and lights with their camera, we have to repeat this process for those items too - and make sure that they are all available at the same time.

The challenge for us is to develop an intuitive interface that lets users visualise equipment availabilities whilst simultaneously tweaking variables like collection date, booking length and required equipment. I love this stuff!