Virtual Reality Visualization of FE Simulations

Simulation

This section is comprised of three parts. It explains how to prepare your files, how to interact with the software through the Java Applet and how to navigate through the model.

How to get ready - Input Files Preparation

You need the following two files to get started:

1. LS-DYNA Input File (.DYN)

2. LS-DYNA Displacement File (.TME) obtained from LS-PREPOST

 

[1] Choose Output

[2] Check the "Nodal Displacement" option

[3] Write in a specific time state number

[4] Check the "Append" option

[5] Write the displacement data in a file (choose extension .TME)

 

How to interact - Java Applet Interface

A Java Applet allows the user to interact with the model. It includes a Play Tool Box, an Interactive Display Box and a Touch Sensor.

[1] Play Tool Box

 

The play tool box is included in the Java Applet interface to control animation of the dynamic data.

 

Start – start or restart the animation for both forward or reverse directions

Stop – stop the animation and go to initial start position

Pause – pause the animation or restart a paused animation

Reverse – change the animation playing direction

Fast – increase the animation speed by a factor of 2

Slow – decrease the animation speed to half

 

[2] Interactive Display Box

 

The interactive display box controls visible and invisible part-based objects.

 

[2-1] Parts that are visible are shown in the list of visible-state parts. Visible parts can be made invisible by selecting and clicking the 'Invisualize' button. A visible-state part can also be selected by the touch sensor.

 

[2-2] Invisible parts are listed in the invisible-part list. Invisible parts can be made visible by selecting them and clicking the 'Visualize' button. All invisible parts can be made visible by clicking the Reset button, except parts that have been deleted by the analysis.

 

[3] On/Off Touch Sensor

 

When navigating with a 2D mouse, parts sensed by TouchSensor node can interfere with smooth navigation. The sensor on/off switch allows the user to turn on or off the touch sensor.

How to Navigate - Examples

Three examples are provided next. Click on a picture to explore an example. When a picture is clicked, a VRML file (.wrl) along with a Java Applet (.class) should be loaded into your web browser. If it does not work properly, see guidelines in the Application section.

 

1.  Simple Moving Ball

 

 

 

2. Truck Crash

 

 

 

3.  8-story Building Collapse

 

 

Click here to return home.

Computational Structural Simulation Laboratory (CSSL), University of Michigan

Prof. Sherif El-Tawil, eltawil@umich.edu

Dr. Eun-Jin Lee, lejbae@umich.edu

  

This research was sponsored by the National Science Foundation under grants CMS-0408243 and CMS-0408363