Flight simulators drive automobile simulator technology
Famous for the first flight of a powered aircraft, the Wright brothers were also instrumental in building the world's first flight simulator. Today, a little over 100 years later and technology has advanced so far that almost anyone has access to a simulator of sorts, whether that be for professional pilots or in the home with our gaming consoles. The problem with gaming consoles and even the more advanced arcade games is that these simulators cannot produce contained noise and vibrations and suitable graphics within a contained environment. Hence the exposure and the pleasure are muted by the lack of realism, motion sensation reconstruction and transmission senses. Introduce that realism; the adrenalin will rush, as will the fear, anticipation, apprehension - and the experience will become far more realistic. However to do this requires advanced technology combined with a sizeable sprinkling of innovative thought, ingenuity, commercial vision and all at an affordable price. One such simulator aimed at the entertainment industry has been developed and its technological results are said to be remarkable. Hardly surprising really, especially since it implements a motion based algorithm derived from flight simulators; such that it can sense the special characteristics and peculiarities unique to ground vehicles. The innovative use of a uniquely developed PC based imaging system, incorporated into a simple video game engine avoids the use of large computing systems and complex commercial software. Hence it has evolved into a dynamic driving simulator which functions in real time, whilst also integrating the most up to date tyre ground contact theories. The demonstration prototype is available for inspection at the university of Zaragoza, Spain.
