BAE Systems is at the forefront of companies bringing simulation and Virtual Reality (VR) visualisation technologies into the design environment.  For more than a decade, specialist company, Virtalis has supported BAE Systems Submarines in its exploration of this field.  The company has designed and built two VR suites for BAE Systems and continues to supply ongoing consultancy.

John Martin, consultant engineer at BAE Systems Submarines, commented: “VR visualisation technologies are not treated as a specialist technology, but rather have been implemented as an everyday tool.  More people from different disciplines are getting involved earlier in the design’s evolution.  Since installation, the VR visualisation technologies have been extensively used on a daily basis by design and build teams on warship and submarine contracts including: LPD’s (Landing Platform Dock), Type 45 Destroyer, Future Carrier, fleet auxiliary oil tankers and nuclear submarines.  The system has also been used on ship concept design studies (aircraft carriers, surface warships and submarines) as a means of addressing key design issues, introducing simulation-based design technologies and reviewing design solution options with the customer.  It has contributed to the introduction of concurrent design and to the synchronisation of an integrated design and build plan.

HEAD UP Displays have been in use by military aircraft for years. They display all the information a pilot needs to carry out his mission. A couple of years ago, Future Systems Technology, QinetiQ, Farnborough and the Flight Research Laboratory of the National Research Council, Canada in Ottawa decided to conduct joint research into whether similar systems could be developed for helicopter pilots.

NRC has one of the very few facilities in the world that is able to virtually replicate every pilot action and QinetiQ has extensive experience in system development of this type. Trials were performed under the aegis of The Technical Co-operation Programme, where information is shared between member countries.

British leading light in the advanced visualisation sector Virtalis Limited has brought a technological edge to the new generation of 3D and 4D theatre projects – demonstrated by their involvement as a key supplier in supporting the leading developer AI Group at the award winning Kalamazoo Aviation History Museum, which opened in May and is located midway between Chicago and Detroit in the United States.

Virtalis has developed the primary means to present the required immersive experience for the new generation of mid-size theatre attractions. In the case of the Kalamazoo Air Zoo, Virtalis was commissioned by the primary contractor, the AI Group, to supply and install their unique ‘StereoServer’ package that allows the 3D visuals to be presented via multiple projectors onto a 60-foot 180 degree wraparound screen.

AN INTERACTIVE Virtual Reality (VR) ceramic design system is now in use at Wedgwood’s Visitor Centre in Stoke.  The joint project was the brainchild of the Hothouse Ceramic Design Centre who, after investigating the use of VR in ceramics, called in Virtalis to create the system.  Advantage West Midlands and Wedgwood provided the funding for the system’s initial development.

The user can choose between four different room types and can then see different place settings of a chosen design within that setting.  VR allows full exploration of a 3D model, so the user can “fly” all over the room, pick up an object and view its fine detail.

VIRTALIS, the Manchester-based advanced visualisation company, has appointed Tom O’Brien as its new non executive director.  With an impressive career encompassing the Army and partnerships at Deloitte & Touche, Arthur Andersen, Accenture (formerly Andersen Consulting) and Cap Gemini, Tom now offers consultancy to high tech businesses all over the North West.

Tom commented: ”I will offer Virtalis an outside perspective.  People still don’t understand how visualisation can help them.  I hope that my ideas will help them create a market where none currently exists.  For instance, their StereoWorks technology could deliver benefits in completely new areas, like fashion or construction.  It isn’t just about new markets, I’ll be looking at the complete business cycle and how they service and deliver to existing customers and markets.”

Virtalis MD, David Cockburn-Price, explained: “We welcome Tom at a time when we are busy developing plans to bring our technology to new sectors and educate people about its numerous uses.  We also have several new products in development.  Tom’s exceptional experience will help us to target new customers whilst helping us to keep pace with a rapid growth rate.” 

THE FARNBOROUGH Air Show saw the announcement of a partnership between the Merlin Flight Simulation Group and Virtalis, the Virtual Reality (VR) specialists.

Chris Neal, MD of Merlin, commented: “Virtalis created a concept demonstrator for us and we were completely bowled over by the level of realism they could bring to our system.  Consequently, we have entered into a long-term partnership. As well as bringing their VR expertise to bear on our visual scene rendering, we now have a multi-stage product development plan in place.”

The Merlin Flight Simulation Group comprises two specialist simulator companies.  Both employ teams of experienced engineers, designers, and flight test personnel who are responsible for the development of the Group’s two products, the M520 and the M521.  These were designed specifically for use by aeronautical university students to demonstrate the subjective aspects of flight.  The simulators provide the link between theory and practice for mechanics of flight and aerodynamics students. Merlin recently released its second generation, fully nonlinear six degree-of-freedom flight software, Excalibur.

VIRTALIS has strengthened its world-renowned Technical Development Team by recruiting three new people.  Andrew Connell, technical director at Virtalis, said: “Over the past dozen years, the team has achieved many breakthroughs in advanced visualisation and has played a part in turning VR from a fledgling concept to the mature technology we have today.”

Adrian Scarlett is a former electrician who later took a degree in computing science.  This combination makes him not only useful for the numerous VR suite installations, but also equips him for graphical programming.  He commented: “I have just been given a very exciting project – developing a head-up display design for a flight simulator.  In fact, programming is also my hobby!  In my free time, I analyse the structure of computer programming language structure.  Using these precepts, I hope to eventually move onto the analysis of natural languages.”

VIRTALIS has won the contract to furnish Portsmouth University with a complete Virtual Reality (VR) laboratory for its Centre for Design and Technology.

Consisting of two rooms, the first room will boast a five metre wide screen, flanked by two smaller three metre wide screens.  The rear projected stereo system will enable three channel passive stereo with both optical and wireless magnetic tracking.  The second room will feature VR development workstations complete with auto-stereo monitors, Phantom haptic devices and a range of VR development software, allowing students and researchers to create detailed virtual environments which can then be viewed collaboratively in the projection suite.

LEYLAND Trucks’ latest 18 tonne truck prototype has rolled off the production line, having been designed entirely with the use of advanced simulation and Virtual Reality (VR).

Leyland’s design team, which is responsible for the design of both the DAF LF and Foden range of trucks, approached VR specialists, Virtalis, three years ago.  Ian Cure, Leyland’s CAD system manager, explained: “We were using PTC’s Pro/ENGINEER, but we needed to do more than just model.  We wanted to see a whole vehicle on the screen, and be able to move around it to discuss particular design issues, as we would have done using the traditional physical mock-up approach.  The sheer size of the ProEngineer models means that viewing a complete vehicle was nearly impossible to achieve.  However, converting the ProEngineer data into PTC’s DIVISION Mockup resulted in file sizes just a 20th of the original model.  This meant that suddenly everything became easy to manipulate and visualise.  An added bonus of using DVMockup, was that one also had the ability to work in true 3D mode.  When our then engineering director saw what design benefits Virtalis clients were achieving using 3D projection systems, he gave the VR project the immediate green light.”

VIRTALIS has just completed the installation of a Virtual Reality (VR) suite at the Centre for Construction Innovation in the North West (CCINW).  The project was funded by Manchester City Council who will be sharing the facilities, bringing the power of VR to groups of people who have not previously had the opportunity to experience it.

The VR room, which can seat 25, features rear projected active stereo onto a three metre wide screen.  This will enable people to approach the screen without casting a shadow.  The facilities are expected to be used to display large, realistic VR models of construction projects, aiding communication of designs and concepts.  The first demonstrator model to be developed for the system will also be built by Virtalis.  It will depict a Victorian swing bridge in Northwich, Cheshire and will demonstrate how maintenance in confined spaces can be carried out using a flexible robot arm.

Gareth Hughes, CCINW’s IT project manager explained: “We exist to disseminate expertise and best practice to the North West’s construction industry.  This kind of advanced visualisation will allow us to do that effectively.  Bigger firms, once they have experienced VR, might require our help in developing their own facilities, while smaller firms might wish to carry out special projects using our facilities.

PROF. BOB Stone is the first person from outside the U.S. to be appointed to one of the sub committees that runs the prestigious Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference (I/ITSEC).

This annual event is the world’s premier showcase for modelling and simulation training technology.  Prof Stone holds the Chair in Interactive Multimedia Systems at the University of Birmingham, whilst fulfilling a part-time role at Virtalis as the company’s communications, training and defence specialist.

VIRTALIS has been appointed the UK reseller for TGS’s Amira and Open Inventor products.  Used widely in medical research, material science, biology and microscopy, this range of software adds significantly to the Company’s software portfolio.

Andrew Connell, Virtalis technical director explained: “We discovered the power of this software thanks to our recent involvement with Manchester University’s new Visualisation Centre.  We helped to integrate Amira and we saw its tremendous potential for anyone who has a requirement to visualise abstract or volumetric data.  Those wishing to analyse CT scans, MRI scans or explore molecular structures for engineering or geological science will find this software invaluable.”

VIRTALIS, one of the world’s leading Virtual Reality (VR) companies, announces the advent of three very different VR trackers.

Trackers are vital VR components, as they tell the computer where a head or a hand is in space, tracking movement and feeding that information into the visual display in real time.  Co-incidentally, three of Virtalis’s hardware suppliers have developed new trackers at the same time.  Each has different qualities, so they are suited to different types of job and different environments.

STUDENTS in the School of Computing and Technology at The Nottingham Trent University will be able to take their design work to the third dimension, thanks to a Virtual Reality (VR) system from Virtalis. 

An £800,000 grant from the Higher Education Funding Council of England (HEFCE) has allowed the university to develop a state-of-the-art facility, featuring a stereoscopic projection system and Virtalis’s StereoWorks software. 

Dr. Wayne Cranton, a reader in visual technology at Nottingham Trent, explained: “Our courses combine elements of art and design with audiovisual technology and engineering.  The new VR facility will act as an infrastructure for our students to explore and research how different display technologies affect vision and perception. 

VIRTALIS is celebrating its first birthday with an investment by venture capitalists, the North West Equity Fund.

David Cockburn-Price, MD of the specialist virtual reality (VR) providers, explained: ”Only a year ago, VR was perceived to be a risky area, so we did our Buy-In Management Buy-Out without external funding.  Even though it has been a great year, with a turnover double the size of previous year and new staff being taken on board, we realised in November that our expansion plans couldn’t be realised without more funding.”