Automatic cabin virtualization based on preliminary aircraft design data

Abstract

Preliminary aircraft design and cabin design are essential and well-established steps within the product development cycle for modern passenger aircraft. In practice, the execution usually takes place sequentially, with the preliminary design defining a basic cabin layout and the detail implementation following in a subsequent step. To enable higher fidelity assessment of the cabin early in the design process—for example by means of virtual reality applications—this paper proposes an interface, which can derive detailed 3D geometry of the fuselage from preliminary design data provided in the Common Parametric Aircraft Configuration Schema (CPACS). This is a key step towards integration of cabin analysis and preliminary design in automated collaborative aircraft design chains, not only in terms of passenger comfort, but also manufacturability or crash safety. Like the TiGL Geometry Library for CPACS, the interface presented acts as a parameter engine, which translates data from CPACS into CAD geometry using the Open Cascade Technology library. However, the scope of TiGL is expanded significantly, albeit with an explicit focus on the fuselage, by including more details such as extruded frame and stringer profiles and floor structures. Furthermore, advanced knowledge management techniques are employed to detect and augment missing data. For virtual reality applications, triangulated representations of the CAD geometry can be provided in established exchange formats, creating an interface to common visualization platforms. Additionally, a new evolution of the cabin definition schema in CPACS is presented, to incorporate models of cabin components such as seats or sidewall panels enabling immersive virtual mock-ups.