Reconfigurable easily deployable simulator
AssigneeLockheed Martin Corporation
InventorEytan Pollak
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A modular, reconfigurable and easily deployable simulator system includes a plurality of vehicle personality kits and at least one frame to support a single crewstation. Members of a selected kit are coupled to the frame. A multi-platform control system provides on-the-window and in vehicle instrument displays in real-time in response to the crewperson manipulating platform controls. An editor with a graphical user interface provides a capability to modify program segments of the control system thereby altering the behavior of the simulated platform.
Claims48
A reconfigurable simulator comprising:
- at least one base for configuring a platform to be simulated;
- a control unit coupled to the base;
- a plurality of sets of hardware modules,wherein each set is associated with a selected platform and wherein members of a selected set are removably engageable with the base, wherein when a selected set is so engaged, the modules present a simulation environment corresponding to the respective platform to a user and wherein the control unit includes a storage medium wherein a plurality of software based control modules is stored and accessible by the control unit wherein some members of the selected set of hardware modules are adapted to interact with respective ones of the control modules thereby enabling the control unit to present to a user a plurality of different simulation experiences as the platform moves in a simulated environment and wherein the control unit includes an icon driven configuration editor for modifying characteristics of the platform.
A reconfigurable simulator comprising:
- a base;
- a control unit coupled to the base;
- a plurality of hardware modules, removably engageable with the base, wherein the modules present a differing simulation environment corresponding to a selected platform to a user and wherein the control unit includes a storage medium wherein a plurality of software based control modules is stored and accessible by the control unit wherein some members of the plurality of hardware modules are adapted to interact with respective ones of the control modules thereby enabling the control unit to present to a user a plurality of different simulation experiences as the platform moves in a simulated environment;
- and
- wherein some of the control modules correspond to different platforms and including at least one mechanical template corresponding to a plurality of different display devices for the respective platform, wherein platform display devices are simulated by a selected control module and presented to the user aligned with openings in the template thereby providing selected instruments as would be seen by a user in the platform.
A reconfigurable simulator system comprising:
- at least two, substantially identical, manually operable vehicle modules each having a plurality of instrument module receiving ports;
- first and second pluralities of interchangeable instrument modules wherein the members of the pluralities correspond to instruments and control elements for a vehicle in a class which includes an airborne vehicle, a land vehicle, and a waterborne vehicle wherein the members of the two pluralities are removably received in respective module receiving ports so as to configure both of the control modules to visually correspond to the interior appearance of the selected vehicle with at least some of the instrument modules carrying manually operable control elements corresponding to those in the selected vehicle and wherein the vehicle modules can be arranged relative to one another to correspond to the physical layout of the selected vehicle;
- a programmable control unit coupled to the instrument module receiving ports wherein the control unit includes circuits for storage of instructions for simulating in real-time, at least in part, the vehicles from the class.
A reconfigurable simulator system comprising:
- a plurality of platform personality kits;
- and
- a modular base adapted to receive each member of the plurality thereby configuring the system in accordance with the platforms associated with the respective kits wherein each of the kits when mounted on the base presents to a user the appearance of the respective platform and provides at least some of the manually operable features of the platform.
A method of simulating a platform comprising:
- specifying platform characteristics including specifying platform propulsion characteristics, platform dynamic characteristics, platform environmental sensing characteristics;
- creating a configuration file including interconnected modular segments corresponding to the specified characteristics;
- converting the interconnected segments to executable, software modules;
- providing a frame corresponding to a single crewstation of the platform;
- coupling to the frame a window display device intended to provide a display of an adjacent simulated terrain;
- coupling to the frame an instrument display for displaying a plurality of simulated instruments arranged in a predetermined fashion;
- covering the instrument display, at least in part with a template having a plurality of openings arranged to be in register with the plurality of simulated instruments, thereby providing a simulated instrument panel;
- coupling the executable modules to the displays;
- and
- initiating execution of the modules.
A multi-level system for control of a hardware unit that can be used as a prototyping tool for new and revised platforms, the system comprising:
- an operating system for controlling the functioning of at least one programmable processor and selected processor related input/output devices;
- a services element which interacts with the operating system to provide an extended group of services to executable object like, application segments;
- a plurality of application segments which includes at least a platform dynamics segment, a platform control segment, a visual segment and a manager segment;
- and,
- including a configuration file which defines interconnectivity between application segments.
A method of reconfiguring a simulator from a first platform to a second platform wherein the simulator has at least a single crewstation frame with a set of personality modules compiled thereto which are associated with the first platform and a set of software modules also associated with the first platform, the method comprising:
- replacing the set of personality modules with a second set of modules associated with the second platform;
- replacing at least some of the software modules with a second set of modules associated with the second platform.
A method of reconfiguring a platform simulator from a first platform to a second comprising:
- selecting a set of software modules which, when executed in combination with a hardware unit, representative at least in part of the second platform, provide a simulation thereof;
- transmitting information to an element on the unit thereby causing that unit to emulate at least in part, a corresponding unit of the second platform.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.