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Welcome to Concurrent
Dynamics International !
Our QX3D package is for animating
mechanical models. Whether you are studying the motion of a double pendulum, a
robotic arm moving objects, or a satellite deploying its payload, QX3D
can help you build that model quickly and animate it with the motion data generated by
your multibody dynamics simulation program.
Automatic Stick Figures
Generation
The following stick-figure of a 6 link
robot arm was put together in less than 5 minutes.
Easy to Add Shapes
With a little more effort of another few
minutes, you get the following robot arm image where each link is given a motor housing
and a body.
Easy to Display Coordinate
Axes
You can display selected coordinate axes or
all coordinate axes with some offset.
Easy to Animate the Model
The static image above can easily be
programmed to become animated. This is done by entering the (time, coordinate) pairs for
selected hinges and then invoke the 'animate' command to create a corresponding VRML file.
The armdemo_an.wrl download file below is such a file whose (time, coordinate) pairs for
all the joints come from a multibody dynamics simulation of that arm using Dynawiz.
 | QX3D's Key Features
 | Allows 40 shapes for each member body of the model
 | QX3D automatically creates the stick-figure of your model
as you define the hinges, cm's, and orientation of frames |
| You can then add or modify the basic figure with
additional shapes that are easy to size, position, and orient in the body frame |
| they can be selected from a variety of general shapes:
boxes, cones, cylinders, spheres, u_brackets, parabolic dishes, jets, tires,... |
| it's just as easy to assign colors and degrees of
transparency to different shapes |
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| Four ways to visualize your model. It generates the VRML code to
| view the shape that you've just added to a body |
| view a body |
| view a branch of bodies |
| view the entire system |
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| Lots of Viewpoints. It
lets you define viewpoints or camera views from anywhere in the model |
| Three ways to animate your model
| Quick animation:
- You define the maximum linear or angular displacement for
each inboard hinge of in the system
- QX3D creates the VRML code to animate hinges from their
zero position to specified displacements
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| Programmed animation:
- You key in the { (t( i ), x( i )) } time-coordinate
pairs for each hinge.
- QX3D creates the VRML code to animate the bodies
according to the programmed coordinate time function
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| Simulated animation:
- Run your multibody dynamics simulation. The result should
be a time versus data ASCII table. The first column is the simulation time, and all other
columns in the table represents the time response of the mechanical system that include
the hinge motions
- Create your model data file using QX3D
- From the Edit Animation Menu, map the location of the coordinate data (column position)
in the output table (from step 1) to the 'Transform' nodes representing articulated
hinges in the mechanical model
- QX3D then creates the VRML file to animate your model
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| No New Language to Learn!
| QX3D is an editor and a code generator. QX3D's user-friendly menu-driven program organizes your model data. Just tell it
the number of bodies in your model, their connectivity, their shapes and shape attributes
and it will generate the requested VRML program. VRML stands for virtual reality modeling
language. These VRML programs (with file suffix .wrl) let you view your model statically
or dynamically. |
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| Easy Scene Manipulation!
| After you have double clicked a .wrl file from your explorer window, your
3D model image would appear in a browser. Generally, browsers with an appropriate plugin
have viewpoint and movement commands to let you move your view about the 3D space in the
window, to rotate and translate the model for different perspectives, and to view your
model from predefined vantage points or camera locations. |
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Click the following VRML (*.wrl) files to view animation of
dynamically simulated mechanisms. Here, XSV and XMR packages were used to
simulate the dynamics of the spacecraft or mechanisms. Their output are input to
QX3D to generate the animation files.
Your browser (internet explorer
or Netscape) must be VRML compatible. If not, you can make it so by installing a VRML
plugin from Parallel Graphics, i.e. download
and install Cortona
VRML Client 4.2 (cortvrml.exe, 1.58MB).
| 1. sat_3panel_an.wrl |
A satellite undergoing the deployment of its two solar arrays.
Display time is 300 seconds (display speed is 10x actual speed). The satellite has an
initial yaw error of 20 degrees. Deployement ends about t=40. At t=50, the ACS starts to
null the yaw error. You will see the
rocking motion of the satellite being damped over time. Solar arrays will be
turned at 0.1 deg/sec. |
| 2. dual_spnr_an.wrl |
A dual spinner (gyrostat), actuated by two jets on the rotor
from the rest condition. It shows a sun sensor with its fov's in motion
with the rotor. Display time is 500 sec. (speed: 2x) |
| 3. sat_door_an.wrl |
Opening two panels of cargo bay door of a spacecraft. Shows
a cut out section of the s/c. As the door opens two roll jets are fired at
100 seconds intervals to introduce s/c roll disturbance. The door panels
are opening at 1 deg/sec. Display time is 200 sec (speed: 2x) |
| 4. robot_arm_an.wrl |
Animates a 6 link arm moving from the initially
vertically aligned configuration to a final [135, 60, 60, -30, 45, 90] configuration. The
display time is 40 seconds. |
| 5. engine_an.wrl |
Animates a crankshaft-connecting rod-piston assembly. The
crankshaft is given some initial angular rate. The crankshaft is driven at a constant
rate. Gravity is applied to all member bodies. |
| 6. pend2_an.wrl |
Animates a two link pendulum. Initially, the two links
are parallel on a line at 45 deg from vertical. Gravity is enabled. Link1 is rate damped,
and link2 has a torsion spring and damper force applied. Display runs for 50 seconds |
| 7. one_body_an.wrl |
Animates a one_body projectile. |
Download a QX3D Demo Package, click here!!!
Information
Write to qx3d@concurrent-dynamics.com
for questions regarding QX3D.
You are welcome to visit our other sites
[Home][Intro][Spacecraft][Robotics]
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