Chart.js API and HTML5 Canvas: State Synchronization During Concurrent Updates

Chart.js utilizes a reference-based system to manage datasets, where modifications to the data array are committed to the HTML5 Canvas via the update() method. To optimize performance, the library employs a requestAnimationFrame loop to batch these changes before the next render cycle.

A design uncertainty arises when the update() method is invoked while a previous animation transition is still active. Because the library must synchronize the internal state of the chart with the visual representation on the canvas, the behavior of overlapping updates can lead to unpredictable transition paths or state inconsistencies.

• Does Chart.js cancel the existing animation transition to start a new one, or does it attempt to interpolate from the current mid-animation state?
• What is the impact on canvas rendering performance when frequent updates are triggered before the previous requestAnimationFrame cycle completes?