Lehrstuhl für Fahrzeugtechnik - TU München

The institute builds up a dynamic driving simulator for the research of vehicle components, vehicle intersystem and vehicle handling. Planned is a “fixed screen” concept with a Stewart platform. The choice of a convenient motion platform and the positioning of the projectors permits the usage of different car and truck cabins. The interchange ability of the cabins will be realized by a flexible mechanical interface.
By the implementation it is important to set great store by basing the computer on PC, what concerns the extension with additionally personal computers as well as the disclosure of the interface and codes, therewith it is possible to update and upgrade the system.
The adaptation of different software models for the actual application in cooperation with Vehicle and Simulator producer offers a very big field of activity for interdisciplinary working. The projection dome will be designed and manufactured at the institute according to the requirements.

With the dynamic driving simulator components and systems of vehicles ought to be researched and optimized, what requires accommodation and further development at the driving simulation in the automotive engineering because of the innovation grade. With development of innovative driving assistant systems, concepts of control elements and man-machine interfaces research in the behaviour of drivers is caused.

To build up the sense of presence and after that create different situations of driving, the test person has to drive for a long time concentrated and uncomplaining in the driving simulator, without getting “simulator sickness”. This is valid also for task formulations, which expect the fatigue of the drivers by long driving. After this point of view the dimensioning and coordination of the visualisation and motion system is important for the suitability of the plant.

If the task of formulations get more difficult the requirements of simulation models quality and the results of the tests increase. In this case the FTM driving simulator shall be kept at the interface of the field vehicle and simulator development. According to these tasks of the driving simulator development will be analyzed. The cooperation of the driving simulator producers is very important to implement further developments. Motion systems

The adaptive control of the driver is influenced by the simulated accelerations which differ from the knowledge of the driver in reality. Beside the visualization this is the most important factor for the sense of presence of the driver.

One part of the accelerations at driving operation can be represented by the pitch of the cabin. It has been shown, that this part is infinitesimal small, when the speed of pitch is below the memory threshold for angular acceleration (0,1-0,2rad/s2). If the memory threshold will exceed, to picture a big part of acceleration beyond the gradient, the test person will perceive the pitch motion. This fact can influence the adaptive control of the test person or can result in sickness, what makes a test impossible.

To avoid this effects a concept was chosen, which not or only infinitesimal transforms the pitch and represents only the actual pitch and roll motions. Beside it one part of vibration should be depicted at the driving with the motion system. A Stewart platform with pitch angle to 20°, small payload and thereby a broadly frequency band is with this edge condition the most effective resolution.

To achieve an improved representation of the acceleration in x- and y-direction, it is supposed to enlarge the driving simulator with a transversal skid system.

Vehicle cabin

To offer the driver real operating, an original vehicle will be worked up. Because the driving simulator will be used with different car and truck cabins, a mechanical interface of the motion platform should be designed.

For the FTM driving simulator it is important to install a software concept that allows unfolded and standardized interfaces enhancements and accommodations. Thereof is concerned especially the model of driving dynamics, which can be modified and can be exchanged for different vehicles and above all the replica of a truck.

With the visualization pool the driving situations are immediately determined. Besides the quality of textur and the definiton of attributes of the passable surfaces determines which visual, vestibular and tactile informations for lane can be created for the driver. Therfore it must be possible to generate task-spezified user-defined landscapes and streets and to integrate this in the visualization pool. This point is exspecially interesting for tasks of research in cooperation wirh the industriy, for example for the simulation of the handling cours of a company. Particularly to can test driving assistant systems at the driving simulator, specific traffic and driving situations must be generated. The further development of the necessary intelligent autonomic road user in interaction with a dynamical changeable visualization pool is to visible on a basic point in the driving simulator development. Furthermore software modules are to be integrated in the simulator environments which simulate the functionality of driving assistant systems and utilise the analogical information of the driving environment, traffic and the street course of the visualization pool.

Because of the big qualitative and quantitative deviation of the diagrammed accelerations in the driving simulator compared to a real drive there is a high failure rate of test persons. Simulator and motion sickness make it impossible to carry out long tests in the simulator with the concerned persons. The decrease of this rate by the use of an improved calculating algorithm of the acceleration execution is a further approach of further development of the planned driving simulator. Beneath an improvement of the software the disassembly with a transversal skid system shall contribute an improvement of the acceleration presentation.This topic offers students of the faculty of mechanical engineering the possibility, to handle challenging and interdisciplinary tasks at the field of informatics together with the driving simulator producers.

Sound libraries and sound generation are included in delivery, but FTM wants to specify and build up the end equipment. The high quality presentation of sounds is to get improved by a clever choice and installation. A system of high capacity subwoofer for deep frequencies in combination with a tuned booster will allow the optimization of the sound presentation for the driving simulator with relative small expenditure.

Actuators and sensors for the cabin are parts of the driving simulator, which normally not are in the core competence of the simulator producer, but rather in the core competence of the operator, because here is the interface of the different application-tasks. Therefore the following components are designed and realized in active work:

The projection dome has to be designed and produced individually for the FTM driving simulator concept. Therefore this part will be performed by active work of FTM in cooperation with the driving simulator producer. Students work here for concepts and design. Planned is back light projection.

Because of the increase of traffic and the rise of comfort and drive functions at the vehicle the driver has to work in his car with more information input. To manage the more complex controllers of the driver in the traffic, he will be observed and provided from sophisticated sensors and control technical driving assistant systems. This innovation for the increase of the active driving safety is combined in the term driving assistant system. At the development of the systems it is especially important, to create flexible and reproduced situations, which in reality is difficult to realize. The driving simulator will get an important development tool for the tests of these systems, because he can simulate real situations.

The communication, which results of the interaction between the extern traffic control technique, driving assistant systems of different cars and vehicle intern driving assistant systems dates, is to collect methodical and is to structure recently. The solutions have to be integrated in the operating control and display concept, failure settings for technical failures in reality has to be designed and optimized. Especially worst situations with high stress of the driver and in complex traffic situations shall be analyzed without danger and reproducible.

New controls and man-human interfaces will change the package and design of the interior. Innovative kinds of information presentation with variable displays or projections and the information reception, for example with gesture-, speech- and picture-recognition, demand an accommodation of the control ergonomics and the workout of new package concepts. Also here the test in reality is dangerous and not flexible with variants.

The design of driving assistant systems and innovative kinds of information presentation require the analysis of relevant aspects of driving behaviour. The new task distribution between driver and vehicle will influence in future the traffic view and the configuration of the driving spaces. The usage of a programmable and expandable street visualization pool offers the essential flexibility in the new conceptual design of streets, nodal points and traffic control technique systems.

The drive by wire technology offers the possibility to provide steering, braking, gas and switching with expanded functionalities (active brake systems,…). At the driving simulator the design of the functions and integrations in the control concepts can be practised. Just the design of the security relevant systems offers the usage of the driving simulator.


Contact: Dipl.-Ing. Gunnar Tigges - Dipl.-Ing. Maria Seitz - Dipl.-Ing. Thomas Daun

Einsatz des FTM-Simulators im F&E-Prozess der Kraftfahrzeugentwicklung
Brief Description The institute builds up a dynamic driving simulator for the research of vehicle components, vehicle intersystem and vehicle handling. Planned is a “fixed screen” concept with a Stewart platform. The choice of a convenient motion platform and the positioning of the projectors permits the usage of different car and truck cabins. The interchange ability of the cabins will be realized by a flexible mechanical interface. By the implementation it is important to set great store by basing the computer on PC, what concerns the extension with additionally personal computers as well as the disclosure of the interface and codes, therewith it is possible to update and upgrade the system. The adaptation of different software models for the actual application in cooperation with Vehicle and Simulator producer offers a very big field of activity for interdisciplinary working. The projection dome will be designed and manufactured at the institute according to the requirements. With the dynamic driving simulator components and systems of vehicles ought to be researched and optimized, what requires accommodation and further development at the driving simulation in the automotive engineering because of the innovation grade. With development of innovative driving assistant systems, concepts of control elements and man-machine interfaces research in the behaviour of drivers is caused. Criteria for design and concepts To build up the sense of presence and after that create different situations of driving, the test person has to drive for a long time concentrated and uncomplaining in the driving simulator, without getting “simulator sickness”. This is valid also for task formulations, which expect the fatigue of the drivers by long driving. After this point of view the dimensioning and coordination of the visualisation and motion system is important for the suitability of the plant. Development of driving simulators If the task of formulations get more difficult the requirements of simulation models quality and the results of the tests increase. In this case the FTM driving simulator shall be kept at the interface of the field vehicle and simulator development. According to these tasks of the driving simulator development will be analyzed. The cooperation of the driving simulator producers is very important to implement further developments. Motion systems The adaptive control of the driver is influenced by the simulated accelerations which differ from the knowledge of the driver in reality. Beside the visualization this is the most important factor for the sense of presence of the driver. One part of the accelerations at driving operation can be represented by the pitch of the cabin. It has been shown, that this part is infinitesimal small, when the speed of pitch is below the memory threshold for angular acceleration (0,1-0,2rad/s2). If the memory threshold will exceed, to picture a big part of acceleration beyond the gradient, the test person will perceive the pitch motion. This fact can influence the adaptive control of the test person or can result in sickness, what makes a test impossible. To avoid this effects a concept was chosen, which not or only infinitesimal transforms the pitch and represents only the actual pitch and roll motions. Beside it one part of vibration should be depicted at the driving with the motion system. A Stewart platform with pitch angle to 20°, small payload and thereby a broadly frequency band is with this edge condition the most effective resolution. To achieve an improved representation of the acceleration in x- and y-direction, it is supposed to enlarge the driving simulator with a transversal skid system. Vehicle cabin To offer the driver real operating, an original vehicle will be worked up. Because the driving simulator will be used with different car and truck cabins, a mechanical interface of the motion platform should be designed. Driving dynamics model For the FTM driving simulator it is important to install a software concept that allows unfolded and standardized interfaces enhancements and accommodations. Thereof is concerned especially the model of driving dynamics, which can be modified and can be exchanged for different vehicles and above all the replica of a truck. Landscape visualization pool and self-governed traffic With the visualization pool the driving situations are immediately determined. Besides the quality of textur and the definiton of attributes of the passable surfaces determines which visual, vestibular and tactile informations for lane can be created for the driver. Therfore it must be possible to generate task-spezified user-defined landscapes and streets and to integrate this in the visualization pool. This point is exspecially interesting for tasks of research in cooperation wirh the industriy, for example for the simulation of the handling cours of a company. Particularly to can test driving assistant systems at the driving simulator, specific traffic and driving situations must be generated. The further development of the necessary intelligent autonomic road user in interaction with a dynamical changeable visualization pool is to visible on a basic point in the driving simulator development. Furthermore software modules are to be integrated in the simulator environments which simulate the functionality of driving assistant systems and utilise the analogical information of the driving environment, traffic and the street course of the visualization pool. Presentation of acceleration Because of the big qualitative and quantitative deviation of the diagrammed accelerations in the driving simulator compared to a real drive there is a high failure rate of test persons. Simulator and motion sickness make it impossible to carry out long tests in the simulator with the concerned persons. The decrease of this rate by the use of an improved calculating algorithm of the acceleration execution is a further approach of further development of the planned driving simulator. Beneath an improvement of the software the disassembly with a transversal skid system shall contribute an improvement of the acceleration presentation.This topic offers students of the faculty of mechanical engineering the possibility, to handle challenging and interdisciplinary tasks at the field of informatics together with the driving simulator producers. Active work at FTM Booster- and loudspeaker for driving sound Sound libraries and sound generation are included in delivery, but FTM wants to specify and build up the end equipment. The high quality presentation of sounds is to get improved by a clever choice and installation. A system of high capacity subwoofer for deep frequencies in combination with a tuned booster will allow the optimization of the sound presentation for the driving simulator with relative small expenditure. Actuators and sensors at the vehicle cabin Actuators and sensors for the cabin are parts of the driving simulator, which normally not are in the core competence of the simulator producer, but rather in the core competence of the operator, because here is the interface of the different application-tasks. Therefore the following components are designed and realized in active work: Electro motor for the simulation of the steering moment with electronics and control Simulation of the prake-pedal and accelerator pedal traits Diverse switches, contacts, conductions camera, screen and interphone Projection dome The projection dome has to be designed and produced individually for the FTM driving simulator concept. Therefore this part will be performed by active work of FTM in cooperation with the driving simulator producer. Students work here for concepts and design. Planned is back light projection. Topics of research at the driving simulator Driving assistant systems Because of the increase of traffic and the rise of comfort and drive functions at the vehicle the driver has to work in his car with more information input. To manage the more complex controllers of the driver in the traffic, he will be observed and provided from sophisticated sensors and control technical driving assistant systems. This innovation for the increase of the active driving safety is combined in the term driving assistant system. At the development of the systems it is especially important, to create flexible and reproduced situations, which in reality is difficult to realize. The driving simulator will get an important development tool for the tests of these systems, because he can simulate real situations. Man-machine-environment communication The communication, which results of the interaction between the extern traffic control technique, driving assistant systems of different cars and vehicle intern driving assistant systems dates, is to collect methodical and is to structure recently. The solutions have to be integrated in the operating control and display concept, failure settings for technical failures in reality has to be designed and optimized. Especially worst situations with high stress of the driver and in complex traffic situations shall be analyzed without danger and reproducible. Interior design and package New controls and man-human interfaces will change the package and design of the interior. Innovative kinds of information presentation with variable displays or projections and the information reception, for example with gesture-, speech- and picture-recognition, demand an accommodation of the control ergonomics and the workout of new package concepts. Also here the test in reality is dangerous and not flexible with variants. Driving behaviour and driving space design The design of driving assistant systems and innovative kinds of information presentation require the analysis of relevant aspects of driving behaviour. The new task distribution between driver and vehicle will influence in future the traffic view and the configuration of the driving spaces. The usage of a programmable and expandable street visualization pool offers the essential flexibility in the new conceptual design of streets, nodal points and traffic control technique systems. Development of steer-by-wire functions The drive by wire technology offers the possibility to provide steering, braking, gas and switching with expanded functionalities (active brake systems,…). At the driving simulator the design of the functions and integrations in the control concepts can be practised. Just the design of the security relevant systems offers the usage of the driving simulator.