Mechdyne Installs Advanced Computer Visualization Systems

By DE Editors

Mechdyne Corporation (Marshalltown, IA) announced that it has completed a multi-room computer simulation and visualization center installed at Alliant Techsystems Inc.‘s (ATK) Mission Systems that features a 40-seat immersive visualization theater with an 8 megapixel (MP) projection system, two team collaboration rooms with stereoscopic display capability, and a conference room with high definition (HD)-quality viewing.

ATK is using the simulation center for a range of projects, including real-time review of mission simulations and virtual engineering of manufacturing and production systems. The center is linked via secure network connections to other ATK facilities, with efforts underway to also connect to U.S. Government sites, providing the capability for engineering teams from across the country to collaborate on design and engineering programs, and to participate in reviews of actual and simulated missions via shared presentation and videoconferencing.

Mechdyne provided an advanced computer graphics cluster; 3D visualization software; all of the large screen displays, audio/visual and control station systems; fiber optic connectivity; and complete system design and integration for the Simulation Center. This included the challenging installation of the theater’s single-piece 20 ft x 8 ft flat glass screen, which was lifted by crane to the 11th floor location.

Mechdyne’s Conduit software is used to enable multi-channel stereoscopic viewing and virtual reality interaction capabilities, such as six degree-of-freedom navigation and viewer motion tracking, in several applications used in the Simulation Center, including PTC’s Pro/ENGINEER and AGI’s Satellite Toolkit (STK). This ability to work with virtual prototypes as if they were real, allows faster, more intuitive analysis of 3D models compared to mouse and keyboard navigation.

For more on display components and theater layout, visit Mechdyne Corporation.

Sources: Press materials received from the company and additional information gleaned from the company’s website.