BeamNG and Dimenco BV have joined forces to unveil an innovative driving simulator at this year’s ADAS & Autonomous Vehicle Technology Expo. The BeamNG simulator incorporates Dimenco’s state-of-the-art PC display technology, featuring 2D/3D switchable (micro) lenses, eye tracking, and an impressive 8K resolution.
“We are thrilled to showcase immersive simulations utilizing this groundbreaking display technology,” said Thomas Fischer, co-founder and CEO of BeamNG. “By immersing users in a 3D world and integrating our physics simulation, we ensure an accurate representation of all ADAS features related to vehicle dynamics and physics.”
At its core, Dimenco’s technology projects two distinct images onto a screen, one for each eye, creating a sense of depth and immersion. Real-time tracking of the user’s eyes and head movements adjusts the pixels and perspective of the displayed images, aligning them with the user’s point of view. This creates the illusion that the objects on the screen exist in the user’s physical space rather than being mere projections on a flat surface. The technology is aptly referred to as ‘Simulated Reality’.
“The outcome is an impressively realistic experience that significantly benefits drivers,” explained Guillaume Gouraud, senior director of strategic partnerships at Dimenco. “We have received feedback from professional drivers who found that their skills did not translate well into traditional simulators. However, they now report that the physical realism of our simulator, combined with accurate car physics, provides an authentic experience where they have a keen sense of braking distance and spacing between vehicles in traffic. They feel that driving in this simulator is truly authentic and no longer feels disconnected. We believe this technology can greatly assist driver-in-the-loop simulators, which is why we are excited to be a part of this exhibition. Simulation teams from various automotive brands have expressed interest, stating that Simulated Reality offers a preferable alternative to VR headsets and surpasses traditional simulations on 2D displays. Simulated Reality is more accessible and user-friendly, allowing the user to stay connected with people in their surroundings.”
BeamNG.tech incorporates highly detailed soft-body vehicle models within a virtual environment, serving as the user’s digital twin or testing ground. The company’s approach to soft-body physics modeling provides more authentic vehicle behavior compared to the industry’s conventional rigid-body solvers. Detailed tire, suspension and powertrain modeling more accurately depict damping and vibration behavior across a wide range of vehicles.
BeamNG.tech’s physics modeling revolves around a highly optimized, real-time mass-spring model. Vehicles are composed of nodes (point masses distributed across the vehicle) and beams (linkages between specific pairs of nodes) which describe elastic-plastic relationships between them. The simulator’s physics engine updates rapidly, at a rate of 2,000 times per second, allowing users to access real-time data for analysis.
Visit BeamNG on Booth 6120, and read more about simulation here.
