Mechanical Simulation Connects with New Ground for CarSim and TruckSim 2019.1

ANN ARBOR, Mich., July 31, 2019 – Mechanical Simulation Corporation has released the 2019.1 versions of the vehicle dynamics simulation tools CarSim and TruckSim, which are well known for providing high-fidelity math models that reproduce physical test results, yet run fast enough on the computer to support real-time simulation with hardware in the loop.

With the growing need by the automotive industry to improve support for Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) and autonomous vehicles, there is a corresponding need to provide simulation of complicated intersections, urban environments, and test facilities. CarSim and TruckSim have built-in support for multiple road surfaces. However, there are other sources for 3D ground information that use a polygon-mesh description of the ground, and which are available in file formats such as FBX and OpenDRIVE. In order to make use of these resources, Mechanical Simulation introduced a new ground model called VS Terrain, which provides a highly efficient interface between vehicle tire points of contact and the ground. According to Baker Searles, Senior Software Development Engineer, “The use of standard geometry formats combined with optimized 3D collision algorithms provide many new opportunities for vehicle testing.”

The terrain data is loaded in a compact format for use by the vehicle model to find contact information such as slope, rolling resistance, and friction. Users can even install their own functions to include custom terrain data and algorithms if they so choose.

There is also a growing need for highly realistic displays of the scenario as would be viewed by on-board cameras. According to Searles: “The video displays for the simulation are used both for evaluating performance of on-board controllers, and possibly for “machine learning” for the controllers to view hundreds of thousands of simulation conditions.” There has been a growing interest in connecting with sophisticated game engines such as Epic’s Unreal Engine, which is capable of providing realistic camera views for day and night lighting conditions, rain and snow. Mechanical Simulation provides a plugin for Unreal that includes the CarSim and TruckSim vehicle modules.

When simulating ADAS and autonomous driving scenarios, there is often a need to work simultaneously with Unreal and Simulink. Brad Porter, Senior Software Engineer, created the VehicleSim Dynamics Plugin for Unreal Engine and the VS Connect communication library to meet this need. According to Porter: “Combining the features of our Unreal plugin, VS Connect, and VS Terrain allows us to link the Unreal and Simulink simulations together and simultaneously simulate multiple CarSim and TruckSim vehicles in either or both environments.” The data synchronization capabilities of VS Connect also allow users to implement controller logic in either or both environments. Porter adds, “For example, a CarSim vehicle can be simulated within Unreal while its controller logic resides in a Simulink model.”

About Mechanical Simulation Corporation: Mechanical Simulation Corporation is a technology leader in the development and distribution of advanced software used to simulate vehicle performance under a wide variety of conditions. The software is used for traditional vehicle dynamics studies, model in the loop engineering, hardware-in-the-loop applications, and for developing ADAS and autonomous driving technologies. The Ann Arbor, Michigan based company was established in 1996 and provides car, truck and motorcycle simulation packages, training and ongoing support to more than 110 OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers, and over 200 universities and government research groups worldwide. For more information, please visit www.carsim.com.

CarSim and TruckSim include new tools for connecting with external software environments.

Company Press Releases

Jul-23 Expanding Virtual Vehicle Testing into Off-road, Agricultural, Construction, Mining, and Military Applications
Jan-23 CarSim, TruckSim, and BikeSim Version 2023.0 Released
Mar-22 Applied Intuition Acquires CarSim, an Industry-Leading Vehicle Dynamics Simulation Company
Jan-22 CarSim, TruckSim, BikeSim, and SuspensionSim version 2022.0 Released
Jul-21 CarSim, TruckSim, and BikeSim version 2021.1 Released
Apr-21 Mechanical Simulation Corporation Celebrates 25 Years in Business
Jan-21 CarSim, TruckSim, BikeSim, and SuspensionSim version 2021.0 Released
Aug-20 Mechanical Simulation Releases CarSim, TruckSim, and BikeSim 2020.1
Feb-20 Mechanical Simulation Releases CarSim, TruckSim, BikeSim, and SuspensionSim 2020.0
Oct-19 Patented System and Method to Stabilize Motorcycles
Sep-19 Mechanical Simulation’s CarSim and TruckSim Available on NVIDIA DRIVE Constellation
Aug-19 Mechanical Simulation Extends User Programming for CarSim, TruckSim, and BikeSim 2019.1
Aug-19 Mechanical Simulation Extends Driver Control for Autonomous Vehicle Development in CarSim and TruckSim 2019.1
Jul-19 Mechanical Simulation Connects with New Ground for CarSim and TruckSim 2019.1
Jul-19 Mechanical Simulation Adds Electric Powertrains for CarSim and TruckSim 2019.1
Jan-19 Mechanical Simulation Releases CarSim, TruckSim, BikeSim, and SuspensionSim 2019.0
Jun-18 Mechanical Simulation Releases CarSim, TruckSim, and BikeSim 2018.1
Feb-18 Mechanical Simulation Introduces Modular Design for CarSim and TruckSim
Dec-17 Mechanical Simulation Releases CarSim, TruckSim, and BikeSim 2018
Mar-17 Mechanical Simulation Releases SuspensionSim 2017
Dec-16 Mechanical Simulation Releases CarSim, TruckSim, and BikeSim 2017.0
Dec-16 Mechanical Simulation Upgrades NIOSH's QuadDS Driving Simulator
Feb-16 Mechanical Simulation Releases CarSim 2016

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