Wind Attenuation Simulation with Obstacle Line-of-Sight Vectors
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing flight simulators face challenges in accurately determining wind attenuation caused by obstacles in simulations, which is costly and time-consuming using computational fluid dynamics methods.
Innovation Solution
A computer-implemented method and system that generates line of sight vectors from a simulated vehicle to determine wind attenuation by identifying the closest obstacle within a defined range, using a database of terrain and structures, and calculating attenuation gains based on distance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If computational fluid dynamics (CFD) methods are used to pre-calculate the flow and turbulence fields around structures, then measurement precision of wind attenuation is improved, but productivity and cost efficiency deteriorate due to high computational costs and time consumption
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the complex CFD calculation domain into simplified geometric representations (bounding boxes) for each obstacle. Instead of modeling the complete fluid dynamics around intricate structures, the method divides the simulation space into discrete obstacle regions with simplified geometries, allowing rapid calculation of wind attenuation effects while maintaining sufficient accuracy for simulation purposes.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces expensive, computationally intensive CFD models with inexpensive geometric proxies (bounding boxes). These simplified representations serve as disposable approximations that capture the essential wind blockage effects without requiring the computational resources of full CFD simulations, enabling real-time or near-real-time calculations.
2Measurement precision
If CFD methods are used to determine wind blockage by obstacles, then measurement precision is improved, but loss of time increases due to costly pre-calculation requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary action by pre-defining the geometric bounding boxes for all obstacles in the simulation environment before the actual flight simulation begins. However, unlike traditional CFD methods that require extensive pre-calculation of flow fields, this method only requires pre-establishing the simplified geometric representations, which can be done once and reused across multiple simulation scenarios, significantly reducing both time and computational cost.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the fundamental parameters used to represent obstacles from detailed CFD mesh geometries to simple bounding box parameters (position, size, orientation). This parameter transformation allows the system to maintain sufficient accuracy for wind attenuation calculations while reducing the computational complexity from O(n^3) or higher to O(n) or O(n log n), enabling rapid evaluation.
3Reliability
If detailed CFD solutions are generated for the visual database, then reliability of wind interaction simulation is improved, but device complexity increases due to the complexity of implementing and managing CFD solutions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates simplified copies of obstacles in the form of bounding boxes that replicate the essential wind-blocking properties of the original structures. These geometric copies are integrated directly into the visual database and simulation engine, eliminating the need for separate CFD solution management while preserving the functional effect of wind attenuation. The copying approach maintains reliability by ensuring that the simplified representations accurately reflect the positional and dimensional characteristics of the original obstacles.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2A~2B
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AI summary
A method for determining an attenuation of a wind caused by a simulated obstacle and experienced by a simulated vehicle in a simulation, comprising: receiving a wind direction and an initial speed for a simulated wind (12); generating a line of sight vector (14) having a source position, a given direction and a given length, the given direction being one of opposite to the wind direction and identical to the wind direction; determining a distance between the simulated obstacle and the simulated vehicle (16) using the line of sight vector, the distance being at most equal to the given length of the line of sight vector; determining a wind attenuation gain (18) using the distance between the simulated obstacle and the simulated vehicle; determining an actual speed for the simulated wind using the initial speed of the simulated wind and the gain for the wind attenuation (20); and outputting the actual speed (22).