ITR: (ASE+NHS+ECS)-(int+dmc+sim): Generation of Complex Environmental Flow Patterns for Virtual Environments

虚拟现实的目标是模拟物理世界和令人信服的模拟显示。虽然在开发视觉、听觉和触觉显示方面已经取得了进展，但虚拟环境通常仍不令人信服。一种假设是，所有的感官效果是创造一个现实的沉浸感所必需的，包括空气的影响，如风，气味和辐射，但很少有系统的研究纳入这些影响。 在这个项目中，PI和他的团队将创建Treadport主动风洞（TPAWT），这是Treadport运动界面的3D风显示增强，包括一个大型倾斜跑步机，一个类似CAVE的视觉显示器和一个连接到躯干的主动机械系绳。 考虑到几何限制，如正面屏幕的存在，一个系统的控制方向通风口将放置在用户周围。 将使用专用可编程空气处理装置从通风口排出空气。 根据模型简化技术，气流将被精确混合，并被控制以产生来自任何方向的风的感觉，速度高达每小时20英里。 非线性反馈控制器将被设计用于感测和调节用户附近的气流。 气味和化学物质将通过注入气流系统向用户显示，而排列在天花板上的红外线灯将产生辐射热。 PI希望将3D风和嗅觉功能集成到现有的Treadport系统中，以加强图形，听觉和运动效果，这将使沉浸式虚拟现实界面的真实性达到新的高度。 为了测试和微调该系统，风力发电将被纳入一个城市虚拟环境，其中包括行人和产生噪音和气味的汽车。 模拟风的大小和方向，以及气味或空气传播的化学品的扩散，将基于QUIC（快速城市工业综合体）扩散建模系统，该系统可快速模拟建筑物周围的流场和化学羽流的浓度场。& 一项实验性应用将涉及开发追踪释放到环境中的有毒化学品来源的方法。 通过实时风和烟羽扩散模拟，可以制定应对和培训方案。 带有化学传感器的小型移动的机器人可以放置在跑步机上，使用考虑风向、风速和当地浓度的算法来跟踪羽流。3D气流的产生是一个新的研究课题，它将允许真实的风和嗅觉显示的虚拟环境，并提供了一种替代传统的风洞通过将气流放置在感兴趣的局部区域，而不是沉浸在整个结构，并通过模拟蜿蜒的风。 通过模拟化学品在城市建筑物周围的羽流扩散，可以为向大气中释放化学剂制定培训和应急反应方案。 这项研究增加了流体力学和控制已经高度跨学科的Treadport项目，还包括心理学，生物力学，机器人技术和计算机图形学，并将导致相当数量的研究生有能力进行跨学科研究的培训。

A goal of virtual reality is the simulation of the physical world and convincing displays of the simulation. Although progress has been made in developing visual, auditory, and haptic displays, virtual environments are still generally unconvincing. One hypothesis is that a totality of sensory effects is necessary to create a realistic sense of immersion, including atmospheric effects such as wind, smell, and radiance, yet there has been little systematic research on incorporating such effects. In this project, the PI and his team will create the Treadport Active Wind Tunnel (TPAWT), a 3D wind display enhancement for the Treadport locomotion interface, which comprises a large tilting treadmill, a CAVE-like visual display, and an active mechanical tether attached to the torso. Taking into account geometrical constraints such as the presence of frontal screens, a system of controlled directional vents will be placed around a user. Air will be discharged from the vents using a dedicated programmable air-handling unit. Flows will be precisely mixed, based on model reduction techniques, and controlled to produce a sensation of wind from any direction and up to speeds of 20 mph. Nonlinear feedback controllers will be devised to sense and regulate airflow near a user. Odors and chemicals will be displayed to users by injection into the airflow system, while infrared lamps arrayed in the ceiling will generate radiant heat. The PI expects the integration of 3D wind and olfactory capabilities into the existing Treadport system to reinforce the graphical, auditory and locomotion effects will result in a new degree of realism in the immersive virtual reality interface. To test out and fine-tune the system, wind generation will be incorporated into an urban virtual environment, which includes pedestrians and cars generating noises and smells. The simulation of the magnitude and direction of the wind, as well as the dispersion of odors or air-borne chemicals, will be based on the QUIC (Quick Urban & Industrial Complex) dispersion modeling system, which provides fast simulation of the flow field around buildings and the concentration fields of chemical plumes. One experimental application will relate to developing methods for tracing the source of noxious chemicals released into the environment. With a real-time wind and plume dispersion simulation, response and training scenarios can be developed. Small mobile robots with chemical sensors can be placed on the treadmill to track plumes using algorithms that take into account wind direction, wind speed and local concentrations.Broader Impacts. The generation of 3D airflow is a new research topic, which will allow realistic wind and olfactory displays for virtual environments, and offer an alternative to traditional wind tunnels by placing airflow at a local region of interest without immersing a whole structure, and by simulating meandering wind. By simulating plume dispersion of chemicals around city structures, training and emergency response scenarios can be developed for the release of chemical agents into the atmosphere. The research adds fluid mechanics and control to the already highly interdisciplinary Treadport project that also includes psychology, biomechanics, robotics, and computer graphics, and will result in the training of a sizable number of graduate students competent to conduct interdisciplinary research.