Scenario development system for vehicle simulators
First Claim
1. A vehicle simulation system for a user of a simulated vehicle, comprising:
- a plurality of simulated input devices for controlling the operation of the simulated vehicle;
modeling means responsive to the input devices for determining position information of the simulated vehicle in a simulated environment;
a video display for presenting the user with a view of the simulated environment;
a memory;
a scenario clock;
scenario development means for developing a scenario that includes a plurality of programmed vehicles, wherein during development of the scenario the simulated input devices direct the movement of selected vehicles to be programmed in the simulated environment, and wherein the scenario development means records the position information of said selected vehicles to be programmed in the memory from first user selected initial positions at first user selected initial times on the scenario clock as part of the scenario; and
means for replaying the scenario form the memory so that the scenario clock is incremented and so that the movement of the plurality of programmed vehicles are reproduced within the stimulated environment while a second user simultaneously directs the operation of the stimulated vehicle in the stimulated universe.
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Abstract
A vehicle simulator containing a system for development of vehicle simulation scenarios. The vehicle simulation system includes simulated vehicle controls providing input signals to a computer, and feedback devices, including a video display, providing a user feedback on the operation and location of the simulated vehicle as it is driven through a simulated universe. One aspect of the invention is a scenario development system which uses the vehicle controls, the computer and the output devices to enable a scenario developer develop a simulation scenario which includes other programmed vehicles. The scenario developer can determine when and where the other programmed vehicles become active in a simulated universe in which the scenario takes place, as well as determine when and where the programmed vehicles leave the simulated universe. The scenario developer can also program the path of the programmed vehicles through the simulated universe by simply driving the programmed vehicles through the simulated universe using the vehicle controls and the feedback devices on the path that the scenario developer wishes the programmed vehicle to appear.
59 Citations
49 Claims
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1. A vehicle simulation system for a user of a simulated vehicle, comprising:
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a plurality of simulated input devices for controlling the operation of the simulated vehicle; modeling means responsive to the input devices for determining position information of the simulated vehicle in a simulated environment; a video display for presenting the user with a view of the simulated environment; a memory; a scenario clock; scenario development means for developing a scenario that includes a plurality of programmed vehicles, wherein during development of the scenario the simulated input devices direct the movement of selected vehicles to be programmed in the simulated environment, and wherein the scenario development means records the position information of said selected vehicles to be programmed in the memory from first user selected initial positions at first user selected initial times on the scenario clock as part of the scenario; and means for replaying the scenario form the memory so that the scenario clock is incremented and so that the movement of the plurality of programmed vehicles are reproduced within the stimulated environment while a second user simultaneously directs the operation of the stimulated vehicle in the stimulated universe. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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4. A method of developing a scenario for a vehicle simulation system, comprising the steps of:
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displaying a simulated universe; manipulating a plurality of input devices to generate signals indicative of movement of selected ones of a plurality of programmed vehicles within the simulated universe; modeling the signals to determine the position information, including an initial position, of each of the selected ones of the plurality of programmed vehicles within the simulated universe; selecting an initial time for each of the selected ones of the plurality of programmed vehicles in the simulated universe; recording the position information of the selected ones of the plurality of programmed vehicles within the simulated universe over time starting from the initial positions and the initial times to thereby develop a scenario which includes the movement of the plurality of programmed vehicles; and simultaneously replaying the scenario while a user is manipulating the plurality of input devices to control the movement of a simulated vehicle in the simulated universe. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. A vehicle simulation system comprising:
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at least one user operated input device for controlling the operation of a simulated vehicle in a simulated universe and for providing input signals; a controller which receives signals indicative of user manipulation of the at least one input device wherein the controller determines the position of the simulated vehicle in the simulated universe based on the signals indicative of user manipulation of the at least one input device; a display, responsive to signals from the controller, which displays, based in part on the position of the simulated vehicle in the simulated universe, a view of the simulated universe and a scenario occurring within the simulated universe; and a storage medium operably engaged with the controller and containing information defining the simulated universe and the scenario, wherein the scenario is to be replayed to a second user while said second user simultaneously controls a simulated vehicle in a simulated universe and wherein the scenario includes at least one programmed vehicle travelling in at least a portion of the simulated universe and wherein a first user develops the scenario by manipulating the at least one user operated input device so as to direct operation of the simulated vehicle vehicle in the simulated universe and wherein, during development of the scenario, said storage medium records the position information of the programmed vehicle such that during replay of the scenario, the simulated vehicle operates within the simulated universe in accordance with the recorded position information from a first user selected initial position and from a first user selected initial time. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38)
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39. A vehicle simulation system comprising:
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at least one user operated input device for controlling the operation of a simulated vehicle in a simulated universe; a controller; a storage medium operably engaged with the controller and containing information defining the simulated universe and a scenario; a model process associated with the controller and responsive to signals indicative of user manipulation of the at least one input device, for determining the position of the simulated vehicle in the simulated universe; a scenario clock; a display, responsive to signals from the controller, for displaying a view of the simulated universe based in part on the position of the simulated vehicle as determined by the model process; a scenario development process, associated with the controller and responsive to signals from the model process, for developing and storing information in the storage medium defining a scenario, including a path of a programmed vehicle through at least a portion of the simulated universe, in response to a first user controlling operation of the simulated vehicle in the simulated universe using the at least one input device, wherein the path of the programmed vehicle is recorded in the storage medium in terms of a position in the simulated universe at a given time on the scenario clock; and a scenario replay process, associated with the controller, that replays the scenario for a second user while the second user simultaneously directs the simulated vehicle through the simulated universe, wherein the scenario replay process replays the scenario by variably updating the scenario clock, depending upon the relative positions within the simulated universe of the simulated vehicle controlled by the second user and a pre-defined moving point. - View Dependent Claims (40, 41, 42)
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43. A method of developing a vehicle scenario comprising the steps of:
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displaying a simulated universe; manipulating a plurality of input devices to generate signals indicative of movement of a simulated vehicle in the simulated universe; recording the path of the simulated vehicle as a programmed vehicle, which comprises at least a portion of a scenario, in terms of the position within the simulated universe at a particular time on a scenario clock; and replaying the scenario by displaying the scenario to a second user, while the second user simultaneously manipulates a plurality of input devices to control the movement of a simulated vehicle in a simulated universe, wherein the scenario is replayed by variably incrementing the scenario clock depending upon the relative positions within the simulated universe of the simulated vehicle controlled by the second user and a pre-defined moving point. - View Dependent Claims (44, 45, 46)
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47. A vehicle simulation system comprising:
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at least one user operated input device for controlling the operation of a simulated vehicle in a simulated universe and for providing input signals; a controller which receives signals indicative of user manipulation of the at least one input device wherein the controller determines the position of the simulated vehicle in the simulated universe based on the signals indicative of user manipulation of the at least one input device; a display, responsive to signals from the controller, which displays, based in part on the position of the simulated vehicle in the simulated universe, a view of the simulated universe and a scenario occurring within the simulated universe; a scenario clock, responsive to signals from the controller, which increments while the scenario is being replayed on the display; and a storage medium operably engaged with the controller and containing information defining the simulated universe and the scenario, wherein the scenario is replayed to a user while the user simultaneously controls a simulated vehicle in a simulated universe and wherein the scenario includes at least one programmed vehicle travelling along a path in at least a portion of the simulated universe and wherein the position of the at least one programmed vehicle in the simulated universe is recorded in terms of a position in the simulated universe at a given time on the scenario clock and wherein the controller variably increments the scenario clock based on the relative position between the simulated vehicle controlled by the user and a pre-defined moving point in the simulated universe. - View Dependent Claims (48, 49)
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Specification