An Immersive VR Application for Interactive Product Concept Generation and Qualitative Evaluation

Currently, new product concepts are evaluated by developing detailed virtual models with Computer Aided Design (CAD) tools followed by evaluation analyses (e.g., finite element analysis, computational fluid dynamics, etc.). Due to the complexity of these evaluation methods, it is generally not possible to model and analyze each of the ideas generated throughout the conceptual design phase of the design process. Thus, promising ideas may be eliminated based solely on insufficient time to model and assess them. Additionally, the analysis performed is usually of much higher detail than needed for such early assessment. By eliminating the time-consuming CAD complexity, engineers could spend more time evaluating additional concepts. To address these issues, a software framework, the Advanced Systems Design Suite (ASDS), was created. The ASDS incorporates a PC user interface with an immersive virtual reality (VR) environment to ease the creation and assessment of conceptual design prototypes individually or collaboratively in a VR environment. Assessment tools incorporate metamodeling approximations and immersive visualization to evaluate the validity of each concept. In this paper, the ASDS framework and interface along with specifically designed immersive VR assessment tools such as state saving, dynamic viewpoint creation, and animation playback are presented alongside a test case example of redesigning a Boeing 777 in the conceptual design phase.

Virtual Bloxing – Assembly Rapid Prototyping of Near Net Shapes

Virtual reality (VR) provides another dimension to many engineering applications. Its immersive and interactive nature allows an intuitive approach to study both cognitive activities and performance evaluation. Market competitiveness means having products meet form, fit and function quickly. Rapid Prototyping and Manufacturing (RP&M) technologies are increasingly being applied to produce functional prototypes and the direct manufacturing of small components. Despite its flexibility, these systems have common drawbacks such as slow build rates, a limited number of build axes (typically one) and the need for post processing. This paper presents a Virtual Assembly Rapid Prototyping (VARP) project to evaluate cognitive activities in assembly tasks via immersive virtual reality along with a novel non-layered rapid prototyping for near net shape (NNS) manufacturing of components. It is envisaged that this integrated project will facilitate a better understanding of design for manufacture and assembly (DFMA) by utilising equivalent scale digital and physical prototyping in one rapid prototyping system.

An Augmented Reality Tool for Conceptual Design

Currently, there are many engineering software packages targeted toward high fidelity modeling. Computer aided design (CAD) tools are one example of this. The need for increasingly accurate models has caused this class of software to become even more detailed and comprehensive. Modeling a single design can be a time intensive process; so much so, that most modeling is done by specifically trained CAD professionals, not designers. These advancements in CAD software are at odds with the goal of conceptual design, which is to generate and evaluate as many concepts as possible in a limited amount of time. Within the engineering design process, changes made in preliminary stages have much greater impact for significantly less cost. Unfortunately, few software packages exist that are tailored for use so early in a product’s design cycle. This paper presents an application developed specifically for conceptual design. Through the use of an augmented reality environment, designers are able to quickly and intuitively assemble concepts. Potential designs can be easily manipulated in three dimensions, enhancing the ability to communicate the idea to others.

Enacting Actions in Simulated Environments

The past decade has witnessed incredible advances in building highly realistic and richly detailed simulated worlds. We readily endorse the common-sense assumption that people will be better equipped for solving real-world problems if they are trained in near-life, even if virtual, scenarios. The past decade has also witnessed a significant increase in our knowledge of how the human body as both sensor and as effector relates to cognition. Evidence shows that our mental representations of the world are constrained by the bodily states present in our moment-to-moment interactions with the world. The current study investigated whether there are differences in how people enact actions in the simulated as opposed to the real world. The current study developed simple parallel task environments and asked participants to perform actions embedded in a stream of continuous events (e.g., cutting a cucumber). The results showed that participants performed actions at a faster speed and came closer to incurring injury to the fingers in the avatar enacting action environment than in the human enacting action environment.

Virtual Assembly Environment Modelling

In this paper, we present the virtual environment of assembly sequence generation of a product at the design stage. The interaction technique developed for the manipulation of virtual parts includes visual and haptic feedback limited to force sensation in the fingertips and weight and inertia parts sensation. At this stage of development, the parts and subassemblies have kinematics behaviour in the virtual scene. We present some guidelines for modeling a generic virtual environment for performing assembly tasks. Virtual parts modeling and connections modeling is based on characteristics of real parts and connections. The mating phase of assembly is based on the Snap-Fitting technique, which is improved by the addition of vectors in the symmetry axis of virtual parts. An XML modeling allows the environment to be generic and supporting different products.

Data Pipeline From CAD to AR Based Assembly Instructions

One of the main challenges of introducing Augmented Reality technology into industrial applications is fast, reliable, low-cost authoring of animated AR content of product data created in 3D CAD systems. In this paper we present a product data information pipeline from industry used commercial CAD systems to a marker-based augmented reality system. The pipeline utilizes ISO 10303 (STEP) data protocol, DFA-Tool (Design For Assembly), and VTT’s proprietary content creation and augmenting software. The pipeline is verified with a real industrial application.

Motion Cueing Strategies for Driving Simulators

By studying drivers’ behavior, driving simulation is used in automotive industry for designing and testing new driving aid systems. In order to have a behavior similar as much as possible to the one observed in real conditions, driver has to be provided with visual, audio or kinesthesic cues as well as inertial cues. A “one to one” motion rendering is usually not possible due to physical limitations of dynamic driving simulators, so a so-called “motion cueing algorithm” is used to transform virtual vehicle trajectory into admissible simulator trajectory. Our knowledge of the human motion perception is currently incomplete. A way to improve motion rendering is to increase driving simulators physical abilities. “High performance” driving simulators thus obtained can provide inertial cues nearer to those in real conditions, but they need large simulation rooms and complex operational facilities. The second manner to improve motion rendering is to develop new motion cueing algorithms, and this is what is proposed in this paper. In the framework of a partnership between Arts & Me´tiers ParisTech and Renault, a new dynamic simulator called SAM has been built. This simulator is equipped with traditional hexapod motion-platform, nevertheless it is using an innovative motion cueing algorithm. In this paper, an overview of existing motion cueing algorithms will be presented, especially their limitations and the relevance of a predictive algorithm. Finally, an experiment will be also presented for comparison of the different cueing algorithms.

Modeling Dynamic Behavior of Parts in Virtual Assembly Environment

Physically-based behavior of parts and subassemblies provides the user with realistic virtual assembly planning environment. Parts’ mating is an important phase of the assembly operation. It determines the feasibility of the operation and affects the assembly sequence generated from the interaction with virtual parts. Haptic sensation of forces generated by the contacts between parts, during the mating phase, is a perception cue which assists the operator in locating the parts in their final assembly positions and orientations [1]. The research work reported in this paper focuses on modeling the dynamic behavior of mechanical parts during the execution of virtual assembly operation. The concept of spring-damper model was adopted to preclude the interpenetration of parts during the mating phase. The concept of “visual dynamic behavior” representing the manipulation of real parts was developed. More investigations are required to extend this concept to include the manipulation of subassemblies.

Toward Enhancement of the Airborne 3D Visualization Capabilities of the Holovizio System

Implementation of tangible virtuality means providing means for creating airborne visual images, rendering them with physical properties and making them sensible for the human senses. Airborne creation and direct manipulation requires separating the virtual objects from the image generating (physical rendering) device. One step in this direction is using electroholographic, or pseudo-electroholographic, devices which are able to create virtual objects in mid-air by various light interference techniques. A virtual object is a computer model, visualized by the projection system to appear as a real, tangible object. Te enable the required direct interaction with the virtual objects these have to be perceptually separated from the projected device, they have to be perceived as floating in the air. In our research we use the Holovizio Hv128WD system, a mono-parallax, high resolution holographic imaging device supporting 3D image visualization rather than physical rendering of virtual objects. The device generates 62 views of virtual objects where each view is visible from a specific viewing direction. The user of the system perceives this as a stereo view to the object. We have been collecting application experiences related to this device for more than one year, and we have found some restrictions and limitations in the image creating capabilities which we are trying to eliminate in our current research. This paper reports on the first phase of research which focuses on some major image generation problems and exploration of possible hardware, software or data management causes. The goal of this first phase is to develop and validate the proper measurement methods. A pilot experiment is performed to verify the applicability of the method. The results show that the proposed measurement methods are feasible and helpful in analyzing the observed problems. Some problems appear to have a more fundamental cause and may only be worked around.

An Approach for Studying the Effect of High-Level Spatial Properties of 3D Audio in Interactive Systems

In this paper we briefly describe an approach for understanding the psychoacoustic and perceptual effects of what we have identified as the high-level spatial properties of 3D audio. The necessity of this study is firstly presented within the context of interactive applications such as Virtual Reality and Human Computer Interfaces. As a result of the bibliographic research in the field we identified the main potential functions of 3D audio spatial stimulation in interactive applications beyond traditional sound spatialization. In the same sense, a classification of the high-level aspects involved in spatial audio stimulation is proposed and explained. Immediately, the case of study, the experimental methodology and the framework are described. Finally, we present the expected results as well as their usefulness within the context of a larger project.