Virtual Prototyping Environment Research Articles

A Virtual Prototyping Platform for Exploration of Vehicular Electronics

A critical requirement for robust, optimized, and secure design of vehicular systems is the ability to do system-level exploration, i.e., comprehend the interactions involved among ECUs, sensors, and communication interfaces in realizing system-level use cases and the impact of various design choices on these interactions. This must be done early in the system design to enable the designer to make optimal design choices without requiring a cost-prohibitive design overhaul. In this paper, we develop a virtual prototyping environment for the modeling and simulation of vehicular systems. Our solution, is modular and configurable, allowing the user to conveniently introduce new system-level use cases. Unlike other related simulation environments, our platform emphasizes coordination and communication among various vehicular components and just the abstraction of the necessary computation of each electronic control unit. We discuss the ability of to explore the interactions between a number of realistic use cases in the automotive domain. We demonstrate the utility of the platform, in particular, to create real-time in-vehicle communication optimizers for various optimization targets. We also show how to use such a prototyping environment to explore vehicular security compromises. Furthermore, we showcase the experimental integration and validation of the platform with a hardware setup in a real-time scenario.

Spatial ability of transitioning 2D to 3D designs in virtual environment: understanding spatial ability in apparel design education

As the apparel industry has been transforming through digital-driven technologies in the apparel design process, the need for students to learn spatial visualization skills specified within a three-dimensional virtual environment is critical. By applying an apparel spatial visualization test into a virtual environment (ASVT-V), the purpose of this study is to examine the three-dimensional visualization skills in a virtual prototype environment of students who are majoring in apparel design and product development at the college level. The dataset was collected from 70 college students and analyzed by adopting correlation and variance analysis (ANOVA). Results from an online survey indicate that their ASVT-V scores were positively related to their general spatial visualization skills measured by a paper folding test. The results also indicate that students who received higher scores on the ASVT-V performed better in apparel design-related courses, while there was no influence on their perceived performance from the number of apparel design-related courses taken. This study provides practical implications for professionals in apparel design and product development education in that they can consider ASVT-V scores to understand and enhance domain-specific spatial visualization skills.

Adaptive robust control of moving-target tracking for marching tank based on constraint following

This paper is devoted to the constraint-following scheme for the moving-target tracking control problem of tank on move. The mission of tank on the battlefield is to find and shoot the armored vehicle, both conditions are required to accomplish this task: complete the process from finding a moving target (time-varying constraints) to pointing to it; keep the barrel stable under highly nonlinear disturbance (which is caused by the battlefield environment). Considering modeling uncertainty and initial condition deviation, an adaptive robust strategy based on Udwadia-Kalaba scheme is presented to solve the matters of target tracking and stable following. Considering the limitation of the analytical model, a tracking system model and a target movement model are built in virtual prototyping environment, complicated road condition, and real target motion state are restored by this method. The model-based control system and the three-dimensional model are combined to verify the feasibility of the control algorithm by the method of RecurDyn/Matlab. By this way, the barrel responds and follows the movement of the target stably within [Formula: see text] s under the action of the stabilization system, and the constraints are approximately satisfied under complex perturbations.

Using a Virtual Engineering Environment for the Design and Development of a Compact Pilot Plant

This paper introduces a new implementation using virtual engineering approaches in support of the design and development of a compact pilot plant. Developing a compact pilot plant is a costly and high-risk approach. Risk and resource investments can be optimized by using commercially based virtual engineering, integrated simulation, and virtual prototyping environments in the design and development of a compact pilot plant. This paper identifies both the users of the virtual engineering environment as well as where in the system lifecycle it can be implemented. The environment will use and extend existing multiphysics models and simulation of products and characteristics through the development of system-level models and an investigation of virtual prototypes of component elements. The second level involves knowledge sharing across phases of the lifecycle of products, including all contributors and stakeholders in the virtual environment.

Research on compliant configuration of hydraulic manipulator with passive following characteristic

To decrease the injury caused by an accidental collision between the hydraulic manipulator and human, a hydraulic rotating angle self-servo compliant robot driver joint is designed. Based on this joint, a variable stiffness passive servo-hydraulic rotary joint is improved. The passive follow-up characteristics of the improved servo-hydraulic rotary joint enable it to enter the low stiffness mode by itself when it encounters collisions beyond the force limit. Combining this characteristic, the research method of the hydraulic mechanical arm flexible configuration is proposed. Firstly, the joint motion mode is defined by the Euler angle, and a variety of configurations conforming to the motion characteristics of the manipulator are determined. Then, the virtual prototype and collision environment are built, and the dynamic characteristics of the end effector of the arm under high and low stiffness are measured. The results show that the flexible configurations with passive follow-up characteristics can significantly suppress the collision force. Finally, the visual method is employed to solve, draw, and compare the workspace of the selected compliant configuration, to obtain the optimal compliant configuration with both flexibility and motion, which provides theoretical guidance for the subsequent design of the compliant manipulator.

Intelligent System for Physically Challenged Person in Virtual Prototype Environment

In this paper, a framework is fabricated to authorize the physically tested individual device for controlling the needed thing like lighting the room, electrical gadgets with small power application used in an indoor environment. The indoor application controls the wheelchair utilizing only a couple of fingers to do the work effectively. The MEMS-based accelerometers sensor is designed without any pressure and makes the device highly favorable to a physically challenged person. The accelerometers are the small gadget equipped for distinguishing the quickening of the article to which they are appended in which the accelerometers are connected to the fingers for a particular application. The individual, to whom the accelerometers are attached, can assign the control gadget using the straight forward development tool of the fingers like tapping them on the surface to do one particular application in indoor environment. So the novel system is designed and implement for physically challenged person to operate both in indoor and outdoor environment.

Automatic visibility evaluation method for application in virtual prototyping environment

ABSTRACTThe evaluation of visibility factor is an essential activity in the ergonomic analysis and verification process. It influences the product quality and production efficiency significantly. However, manual evaluation of the visibility factor in a virtual prototyping environment is complicated and time-consuming owing to the high complexity of products and manufacturing processes. This paper presents an automatic visibility evaluation method. A view-region model that conforms to the physiological characteristics of field-of-view (FOV) is designed and constructed. The surfaces of the observed-object are discretised into a series of triangular meshes, which function as the evaluation units. A cluster of radial test lines, which represent the rays reflected from each mesh, are generated. The visible types of these meshes are assessed by detecting and analysing these test lines. The authors develop a set of computation models for evaluating various visibility-influencing factors. In addition, the overall quantitative and qualitative visibility evaluation results are provided. A case study is illustrated and the results reveal that this method can evaluate the visibility effectively. Furthermore, the potential visibility-related ergonomic problems can be detected and addressed in advance with the aid of this method.

Dynamic simulation of the adaptive sun tracking system used for an electric unmanned ground vehicle

In this article, the modeling and simulation of the adaptive sun tracking system used for an electric unmanned ground vehicle is carried out. The power supply of the vehicle is an electric one, supported by a photovoltaic (PV) panel with solar tracker, which is positioned on the upper platform of the vehicle (practically, the tracking system thus defined is one with mobile base). The main feature of the adaptive tracking mechanism consists in its ability to correlate the predefined tracking law (which it is designed as system would be one with fixed base) with the random movement of the vehicle. The mechatronic model contains both mechanical and electronic (control) elements, being conceived and analyzed in virtual prototyping environment by using the MBS software package ADAMS.

Multi-body system simulation of the sun trackers used for PV panels

The article approaches the design algorithm of the sun trackers used to improve the energy conversion performance of the photovoltaic systems. In this regard, three specific types of mechanical models are developed in an integrated concept, in the following sequence: kinematics - inverse dynamics - dynamics. The application is carried out by considering a dual-axis sun tracker that uses two linear actuators as driving sources for the diurnal and elevation movements. The MBS package ADAMS is used to model and simulate the behaviour of the sun tracker in virtual prototyping environment.

Optimal design of the dual-axis tracking system used for a PV string platform

This work deals with the optimal design of the dual-axis solar tracker used for a PV (photovoltaic) string platform. The solution of the dual-axis mechanism was developed starting from the monoaxis version (for the diurnal movement), which was outlined in a previous paper. With reference to the initial monoaxis mechanism, the diurnal movement subsystem was simplified from a structural point of view; while adding the actuating and motion transmitting mechanisms for adjusting the elevation angle of the panels, the same type of linear actuator is being used for both the movements. The optimization study was carried out in a virtual prototyping environment, through the development of complex digital models (which integrate not only mechanical, actuating, and control components, but also algorithms for the solar radiation modeling), and two major optimization directions are being targeted: The geometric optimization of the mechanism, with the purpose of determining the optimal arrangement of two linear actuators while respecting several design constraints; the optimal design of the tracking program, with the purpose of maximizing the energy gain of the dual-axis system with reference to the equivalent fixed system (without tracking). The physical prototype of the tracking system was developed on the basis of the virtual prototype specifications, the experimental and simulation results, which are quite well correlated (especially in sunny days), proving the performance of the proposed design.

Computational Simulation as an Organizational Prototyping Tool

AbstractThis case study deals with a redesign effort to face the overcrowding issue in an Emergency Department (ED). A multidiscinary group of healthcare professionals and engineers worked together to improve the actual processes. We integrate the simulation modeling in a human-centered design method. We use the simulation technique as a learning and experimentation tool into a design thinking process: the computational descrete event simulation helps explore the possibile scenarios to be prototyped. We used the simulation to create a virtual prototyping environment, to help the group start a safe ideation and prototyping effort. Virtual prototyping injected into the organizational context the possibility of experimenting. It represented a cognitive low-risk environment where professionals could explore possible alternative solutions. Upon those solutions, we developed organizational prototyping tools. Top management and head physicians gained confidence for a more grounded decision making effort and important choices of change management and investments have been made.

Modeling and simulation of a dual-axis solar tracker for PV modules

The paper deals with the modeling and simulation in virtual prototyping environment of a mechatronic solar tracker used for photovoltaic systems, with the aim to increase the energetic efficiency, by maximizing the rate of incoming incident solar radiation. The solar tracker in study is an equatorial dual-axis mechanism, which allows the adjustment of the diurnal and seasonal angles of the PV module in accordance with a predefined tracking program, the actuating sources being linear actuators. The modeling and simulation of the tracking system is carried out by using the MBS (Multi-Body System) commercial software solution ADAMS (Automatic Dynamic Analysis of the Mechanical Systems).

Optimizing the mechanical device of a mono-axial sun tracking mechanism

The paper deals with the dynamic optimization of the mechanical device for a mono-axial sun tracking system, with application for photovoltaic and solar-thermal systems, which convert the solar radiation in electrical or respectively thermal energy. The actuating of the mono-axial tracking mechanism is carried out by using a linear actuator, the optimization study intending to determine the optimal configuration of the mechanism with the aim to minimize the motor force developed by actuator in order to perform the imposed step-by-step tracking algorithm (motion law). The design variables in the optimal design process are represented by the global coordinates of the connection points of the linear actuator to the adjacent parts (the solar panel and the fixed support). The optimization study is conducted in virtual prototyping environment.

CREATE: Acceptance and Adoption of Virtual Prototyping across the Defense R&D and Acquisition Communities

With an annual budget of nearly US600 billion, the US Department of Defense (DoD) is tasked with protecting the US and its allies and interests abroad against potential adversaries. It must accomplish these tasks in a globalized and highly interconnected world where the pace of technology is moving faster than the current time-consuming DoD acquisition systems can keep up with. Moving forward, the DoD must change these time-consuming paradigms and accelerate the pace of innovation. One way to do this is to shift to a virtual prototyping environment where the benefits of high-performance supercomputing and complex physics-based engineering software can expand the decision space and enable the DoD to field better systems faster, cheaper, and at less risk than previous methods. This is the goal of the Computational Research and Engineering Acquisition Tools and Environments (CREATE) program. This issue of CiSE provides the third installment of articles relating to the history, formation, and ongoing work of the High Performance Computing Modernization Program (HPCMP) CREATE program.

Parametric optimization in virtual prototyping environment of the control device for a robotic system used in thin layers deposition

The paper deals with the optimal design of the control system for a 6-DOF robot used in thin layers deposition. The optimization is based on parametric technique, by modelling the design objective as a numerical function, and then establishing the optimal values of the design variables so that to minimize the objective function. The robotic system is a mechatronic product, which integrates the mechanical device and the controlled operating device.The mechanical device of the robot was designed in the CAD (Computer Aided Design) software CATIA, the 3D-model being then transferred to the MBS (Multi-Body Systems) environment ADAMS/View. The control system was developed in the concurrent engineering concept, through the integration with the MBS mechanical model, by using the DFC (Design for Control) software solution EASY5. The necessary angular motions in the six joints of the robot, in order to obtain the imposed trajectory of the end-effector, have been established by performing the inverse kinematic analysis. The positioning error in each joint of the robot is used as design objective, the optimization goal being to minimize the root mean square during simulation, which is a measure of the magnitude of the positioning error varying quantity.

Building blocks in creative computing: modularity increases the probability of prototyping novel ideas

Design is a cyclical journey from creative ideas to concrete realizations of those ideas though prototyping. Designers today have increasing access to low-cost technology toolkits within the electronic and computational domain. However, for technical novices, including electronic components in prototypes can hamper the ability to create novel ideas by introducing technical obstacles. Electronic modules can increase the probability of prototyping success, at the cost of reduced design flexibility. This research (1) presents the results of a pilot usability evaluation of (N = 68) participants making physical light emitting diode (LED) light creations with non-modular electronics components, and (2) uses this evaluation to motivate a creative prototyping study (N = 86) exploring the question: ‘How does prototyping tool modularity influence the creative result?’ Using a browser-based crowd platform (Amazon’s Mechanical Turk), participants created electric ‘creature circuits’ with LEDs in a virtual prototyping environment. We found that increasing the modularity of LED components (i) increased the novelty rating of prototypes as rated by a condition-blind panel, (ii) increased the quantity of prototypes created and the quantity of LEDs used by study participants, (iii) increased participants’ degree of perceived self-efficacy and cognitive flow, and (iv) reduced the number of errors due to LED polarity. The results highlight that novice prototyping with electronics is difficult due to the number of possible ways to fail. The findings show that modularity can reduce the chance of errors and improve the likelihood of creating novel prototypes.

Post-design analysis for building and refining AI planning systems

The growth of industrial applications of artificial intelligence has raised the need for design tools to aid in the conception and implementation of such complex systems. The design of automated planning systems faces several engineering challenges including the proper modeling of the domain knowledge: the creation of a model that represents the problem to be solved, the world that surrounds the system, and the ways the system can interact with and change the world in order to solve the problem. Knowledge modeling in AI planning is a hard task that involves acquiring the system requirements and making design decisions that can determine the behavior and performance of the resulting system. In this paper we investigate how knowledge acquired during a post-design phase of modeling can be used to improve the prospective model. A post-design framework is introduced which combines a knowledge engineering tool and a virtual prototyping environment for the analysis and simulation of plans. This framework demonstrates that post-design analysis supports the discovery of missing requirements and can guide the model refinement cycle. We present three case studies using benchmark domains and eight state-of-the-art planners. Our results demonstrate that significant improvements in plan quality and an increase in planning speed of up to three orders of magnitude can be achieved through a careful post-design process. We argue that such a process is critical for the deployment of AI planning technology in real-world engineering applications.

Sensitivity analysis of augmented reality-assisted building damage reconnaissance using virtual prototyping

Abstract The timely and accurate assessment of the damage sustained by a building during catastrophic events, such as earthquakes or blasts, is critical in determining the building's structural safety and suitability for future occupancy. Among many indicators proposed for measuring structural integrity, especially inelastic deformations, Interstory Drift Ratio (IDR) remains the most trustworthy and robust metric at the story level. In order to calculate IDR, researchers have proposed several nondestructive measurement methods. Most of these methods rely on pre-installed target panels with known geometric shapes or with an emitting light source. Such target panels are difficult to install and maintain over the lifetime of a building. Thus, while such methods are nondestructive, they are not entirely non-contact. This paper proposes an Augmented Reality (AR)-assisted non-contact method for estimating IDR that does not require any pre-installed physical infrastructure on a building. The method identifies corner locations in a damaged building by detecting the intersections between horizontal building baselines and vertical building edges. The horizontal baselines are superimposed on the real structure using an AR algorithm, and the building edges are detected via a Line Segment Detection (LSD) approach. The proposed method is evaluated using a Virtual Prototyping (VP) environment that allows testing of the proposed method in a reconfigurable setting. A sensitivity analysis is also conducted to evaluate the effect of instrumentation errors on the method's practical use. The experimental results demonstrate the potential of the new method to facilitate rapid building damage reconnaissance, and highlight the instrument precision requirements necessary for practical field implementation.

Bayesian Based Model Validation Method for Uncertain Multivariate Dynamic Systems under Virtual Prototype Environment

In the virtual prototype environment,validation of computational models with multiple and correlated functional responses under uncertainty requires the consideration of multivariate data correlation,uncertainty quantification and propagation,and objective robust metrics.It presents a Bayesian based model validation method,together with statistic error analysis,probabilistic principal component analysis(PPCA),and subjective matter experts' based threshold definition and transformation,to address these critical issues.The statistic error analysis is used to quantify the errors from the repeated test data and computational simulation results.The PPCA is employed to handle multivariate correlation and to reduce the dimension of the multivariate functional responses.The subjective matter experts' based threshold definition and transformation is used to decide the threshold interval in the reduced data space.The Bayesian interval hypothesis testing is used to quantitatively assess the quality of a multivariate dynamic system.The differences between the average test data and computer simulation results are extracted for dimension reduction,and then Bayesian interval hypothesis testing is performed on the reduced difference data to assess the model validity.In addition,physics-based threshold is defined and transformed to the reduced space for Bayesian interval hypothesis testing.This new approach resolves some critical drawbacks of the previous methods and adds some desirable properties of a model validation metric for uncertain dynamic systems,such as symmetry.A real-world dynamic system with multiple,repeated functional responses is used to demonstrate this new approach,and shows its potential in promoting the continual improvement of virtual prototype testing.

Study on Development Technologies and Architecture of Virtual Prototyping for Mechanical Product

Along with the rapid development of computer technology and CIMS technology, virtual prototyping in product design and manufacturing process are playing an increasingly important role. Based on the analysis the function of virtual prototype, the development platform architecture of virtual prototype for mechanical products is proposed in this paper. Furthermore, the integrated framework process, which is support the pump design, testing, operation, is analyzed in detail. The running case of virtual prototyping environment of pump assembly shows that the application of virtual prototyping technology provides a new idea and means for new product development and product performance improvement.