Research Initiation Award: A Problem Solving Environment for Mechanical System Simulation

本项目涉及开发用于机械系统仿真的问题求解环境的实验研究。具体地说，这项研究开发了促进快速、高水平创建机械系统模拟器的软件工具。这些工具用于为各种应用生成模拟器，包括实时车辆模拟、腿部运动和机器人，以及碰撞和接触问题的调查。针对工程和科学问题的问题解决环境(PSES)的开发引起了人们的极大兴趣。关键挑战之一在于开发计算机科学技术，使其能够集成计算机代数系统、数值分析库、几何建模系统和面向对象编程系统等支持技术。这项研究通过专注于一个定义明确但内容丰富的领域-刚体动力学模拟来解决这个问题。该项目有两个具体目标：(1)通过使创建和修改动力学仿真器变得更容易，来提高机械系统仿真的最新水平，以及(2)开发从该领域延伸到更一般问题解决环境的软件体系结构和软件工具。为许多不同应用程序生成动力学模拟器的软件工具展示了该方法的强大功能。

This project involves experimental research to develop problem solving environment for mechanical system simulation. Specifically, the research develops software tools that facilitate rapid, high-level creation of mechanical system simulators. These tools are used to generate simulators for a variety of applications, including real-time vehicle simulation, legged locomotion and robotics, and investigation of collision and contact problems. There is a great interest in the development of problem solving environments (PSEs) for engineering and science problems. One of the key challenges lies in developing computer science techniques that enable integration of supporting technologies such as computer algebra systems, numerical analysis libraries, geometric modeling systems, and object-oriented programming systems. This research attacks the problem by concentrating on one well-defined but rich domain, rigid-body dynamics simulation. The project has two specific goals: (1) advance the state of the art in mechanical system simulation by making it easier create and modify dynamics simulators, and (2) develop a software architecture and software tools that extend from this domain to more general problem solving environments. of the software tools to generate dynamics simulators for a number of different applications demonstrate the power of the approach.