To detect errors or find potential for improvement during the CAD-supported development of a complex technical system like modern industrial machines, the system's virtual prototype can be examined in virtual reality (VR) in the context of virtual design reviews. Besides exploring the static shape of the examined system, observing the machines' mechanics (e.g., motor-driven mechanisms) and transport routes for the material transport (e.g., via conveyor belts or chains, or rail-based transport systems) can play an equally important role in such a review. In practice it is often the case, that the relevant information about transport routes, or kinematic properties is either not consequently modeled in the CAD data or is lost during conversion processes. To significantly reduce the manual effort and costs for creating animations of the machines complex behavior with such limited input data for a design review, we present a set of algorithms to automatically determine geometrical properties of machine parts based only on their triangulated surfaces. The algorithms allow to detect the course of transport systems, the orientation of objects in 3d space, rotation axes of cylindrical objects and holes, the number of tooth of gears, as well as the tooth spacing of toothed racks. We implemented the algorithms in the VR system PADrend and applied them to animate virtual prototypes of real machines.

To detect errors or find potential for improvement during the CAD-supported development of a complex technical system like modern industrial machines, the system’s virtual prototype can be examined in virtual reality (VR) in the context of virtual design reviews. Besides exploring the static shape of the examined system, observing the machines’ mechanics (e.g., motor-driven mechanisms) and transport routes for the material transport (e.g., via conveyor belts or chains, or rail-based transport systems) can play an equally important role in such a review. In practice it is often the case, that the relevant information about transport routes, or kinematic properties is either not consequently modeled in the CAD data or is lost during conversion processes. To significantly reduce the manual effort and costs for creating animations of the machines complex behavior with such limited input data for a design review, we present a set of algorithms to automatically determine geometrical properties of machine parts based only on their triangulated surfaces. The algorithms allow to detect the course of transport systems, the orientation of objects in 3d space, rotation axes of cylindrical objects and holes, the number of tooth of gears, as well as the tooth spacing of toothed racks. We implemented the algorithms in the VR system PADrend and applied them to animate virtual prototypes of real machines.

In der CAD-unterstützten Entwicklung von technischen Systemen (Maschinen, Anlagen etc.) werden virtuelle Prototypen im Rahmen eines virtuellen Design-Reviews mit Hilfe eines VR-Systems gesamtheitlich betrachtet, um frühzeitig Fehler und Verbesserungsbedarf zu erkennen. Ein wichtiger Untersuchungsgegenstand ist dabei die Analyse von Transportwegen für den Materialtransport mittels Fließbändern, Förderketten oder schienenbasierten Transportsystemen. Diese Transportwege werden im VR-System animiert. Problematisch dabei ist, dass derartige Transportsysteme im zugrundeliegenden CAD-Modell in der Praxis oft nicht modelliert und nur exemplarisch angedeutet werden, da diese für die Konstruktion nicht relevant sind (z.B. der Fördergurt eines Förderbandes, oder die Kette einer Förderkette), oder die Informationen über den Verlauf bei der Konvertierung der Daten in das VR-System verloren gehen. Bei der Animation dieser Transportsysteme in einem VR-System muss der Transportweg also aufwändig, manuell nachgearbeitet werden. Das Ziel dieser Arbeit ist die Reduzierung des notwendigen manuellen Nachbearbeitungsaufwandes für das Design-Review durch eine automatische Berechnung der Animationspfade entlang eines Transportsystems. Es wird ein Algorithmus vorgestellt, der es ermöglicht mit nur geringem zeitlichem Benutzeraufwand den Animationspfad aus den reinen polygonalen dreidimensionalen Daten eines Transportsystems automatisch zu rekonstruieren.

<jats:p>Today’s simulation software normally has fixed, built-in editing and visualization views adapted to a specific problem domain. Often this monolithic concept prevents collaborative editing altogether. Even with more flexible concepts, editing simulation models with a heterogeneous set of clients is not possible. In this article we describe a flexible concept for collaborative editing of simulation models with heterogeneous clients, such as web-based, desktop and mobile clients. The clients may even show different editing views adapted to the user’s role. The concept we describe in this paper overcomes several problems: First we need to be able to connect and manage a set of heterogeneous clients in the simulation software. The very different user inputs from the connected clients then need to be processed, interpreted and combined to allow editing in a collaborative way for all users. At last we show a prototypical integration of the presented concept into our research platform d3fact.</jats:p>