Real walking in virtual environments for factory planning and evaluation

Nowadays, buildings or production facilities are designed using specialized design software and building information modeling tools help to evaluate the resulting virtual mock-up. However, with current, primarily desktop based tools it is hard to evaluate human factors of such a design, for instance spatial constraints for workforces. This paper presents a new tool for factory planning and evaluation based on virtual reality that allows designers, planning experts, and workforces to walk naturally and freely within a virtual factory. Therefore, designs can be checked as if they were real before anything is built.ISSN:2212-827

MODELING OF PARTICULATE RADIONUCLIDE DISPERSION AND DEPOSITION FROM A CEMENT FACTORY

Particulate dispersions from industrial stacks are referred to as pollutants - chemical components that portend threats to life forms. Based on research work around a known cement factory, the model described in this paper is a holistic analysis of dispersion and deposition of radionuclide and non-radionuclide particulates. A virtual mathematical experimentation laboratory was used to simulate different possibilities in this indigenous model. The 3D model showed a good level of accuracy by determining field values of airdeposited pollutants. The highest chemical transformation and air transport path was seen in the mild diffusion region. The radionuclide dispersion from the cement factory could be controlled by building very high wind breakers 50m to 500m along the horizontal location of the factory

Discrete event simulation and virtual reality use in industry: new opportunities and future trends

This paper reviews the area of combined discrete event simulation (DES) and virtual reality (VR) use within industry. While establishing a state of the art for progress in this area, this paper makes the case for VR DES as the vehicle of choice for complex data analysis through interactive simulation models, highlighting both its advantages and current limitations. This paper reviews active research topics such as VR and DES real-time integration, communication protocols, system design considerations, model validation, and applications of VR and DES. While summarizing future research directions for this technology combination, the case is made for smart factory adoption of VR DES as a new platform for scenario testing and decision making. It is put that in order for VR DES to fully meet the visualization requirements of both Industry 4.0 and Industrial Internet visions of digital manufacturing, further research is required in the areas of lower latency image processing, DES delivery as a service, gesture recognition for VR DES interaction, and linkage of DES to real-time data streams and Big Data sets

Proposing A Cyber-Physical Production Systems Framework Linking Factory Planning And Factory Operation

The challenges for industrial companies in the area of factory planning and operation are characterised on the one hand by permanently shortening product life cycles and increasing product diversity. Furthermore, the demand for ecologically sustainable processes is growing and the complexity of production systems is increasing due to higher product complexity. This results in a complex decision-making space for companies within factory planning and factory operation which is difficult to plan. The advancing digitalisation can bring a great opportunity here. Modelling and simulation can create greater transparency in the context of planning and operation, and processes can be designed to be ecologically sustainable and efficient. Currently, research approaches in the context of factory planning and operation are focussing on the application and use of digital methods and tools of the Digital Factory (DF). However, the application is limited to individual areas in factory planning or factory operation. For this reason, this paper focuses on the design of a framework that addresses both factory planning and factory operation aspects and links them through modelling and simulation. Cyber-physical production systems (CPPS) can help here by mapping the individual modules within planning and operation using individual agents in agent-based simulation (AB). By linking planning and real data, the processes from planning and operation can be taken into account. From this, insights gained from planning can be simulated in an early phase and subjected to optimisation during operation. The cycle-oriented CPPS can be used on an ongoing basis by preparing the generic building blocks on the planning and operational sides through structured data acquisition and implementing them in the real world with the help of decision support from the virtual world

Agent fabrication and its implementation for agent-based electronic commerce

In the last decade, agent-based e-commerce has emerged as a potential role for the next generation of e-commerce. How to create agents for e-commerce applications has become a serious consideration in this field. This paper proposes a new scheme named agent fabrication and elaborates its implementation in multi-agent systems based on the SAFER (Secure Agent Fabrication, Evolution & Roaming) architecture. First, a conceptual structure is proposed for software agents carrying out e-commerce activities. Furthermore, agent module suitcase is defined to facilitate agent fabrication. With these definitions and facilities in the SAFER architecture, the formalities of agent fabrication are elaborated. In order to enhance the security of agent-based e-commerce, an infrastructure of agent authorization and authentication is integrated in agent fabrication. Our implementation and prototype applications show that the proposed agent fabrication scheme brings forth a potential solution for creating agents in agent-based e-commerce applications

Panel on future challenges in modeling methodology

This panel paper presents the views of six researchers and practitioners of simulation modeling. Collectively we attempt to address a range of key future challenges to modeling methodology. It is hoped that the views of this paper, and the presentations made by the panelists at the 2004 Winter Simulation Conference will raise awareness and stimulate further discussion on the future of modeling methodology in areas such as modeling problems in business applications, human factors and geographically dispersed networks; rapid model development and maintenance; legacy modeling approaches; markup languages; virtual interactive process design and simulation; standards; and Grid computing

Building Huys Hengelo in VRML

In this paper we report about our attempts to rebuild a historical building, ‘Huys Hengelo’, its interior, a farm built next to it and other parts of its environment (including a draw-bridge and a gate) using the Virtual Reality Modeling Language (VRML). This castle building played an important role in the history of its region. The main issues we deal with in this paper are: the unreliability of available sources − forcing us to show alternatives rather than ‘the building as it was’, the possibility to allow users to make changes and to experiment with different geographies, animations showing how parts of the wooden buildings were constructed during that time, the interface with the user and, as the project started as a student project on the request of some local historians and architects, some of our experiences with the co-operation between them and computer science students and researchers

A Framework for Systematic use of Realistic Visualisation to Support Layout Planning of Production Systems

The process of designing production systems comprises a sequence of steps toward the final design and realisation. Layout planning is a significant part of this process. Its outcome should be a layout which matches the existing spatial conditions of the factory building and desired performance of the production system. To support layout planning, virtual representations of layouts can be created to plan and evaluate layout alternatives. Costly problems can arise during the realisation, if the virtual representations are inaccurate or lack details of the factory building and planned production systems. 3D laser scanning can be used to create accurate and detailed virtual representations by capturing the spatial conditions of existing factory buildings. The data from a 3D laser scan can be used for realistic visualisation of the existing factory building. If this is combined with 3D CAD models of new equipment, the planned production system layout can also be visualised realistically. Realistic visualisation has been shown to enable accurate planning and evaluation of production system layouts, but it does require a systematic working method.The aim of this thesis is to outline and evaluate a framework for systematic use of realistic visualisation to support layout planning of production systems. This aim is addressed using an action research design; this incorporates five industrial studies targeting industrial projects designing production systems. The framework is outlined and evaluated based on the results of the industrial studies.The outlined framework follows a project model for production systems design. It includes several design activities which rely on realistic visualisation of the planned production system layouts. The framework can be used to support the layout planning of industrial projects designing production systems. Its outcomes include making the correct decisions, reducing costly risks and problems and reducing overall project time. Layout planning supported by realistic visualisation allows manufacturing companies to reduce uncertainty when realising planned production systems

Programs as Polypeptides

We describe a visual programming language for defining behaviors manifested by reified actors in a 2D virtual world that can be compiled into programs comprised of sequences of combinators that are themselves reified as actors. This makes it possible to build programs that build programs from components of a few fixed types delivered by diffusion using processes that resemble chemistry as much as computation.Comment: in European Conference on Artificial Life (ECAL '15), York, UK, 201