50 January/February 2025 | E-Mobility Engineering Peter Donaldson checks out simulators designed to give drivers the most realistic response and feel Seamless simulation Dynisma’s DMG family of simulators is designed to reduce the time and expense involved in building and testing vehicles by moving as much prototype development as possible into the virtual world. We caught up with the company’s commercial director, Simon Holloway, to bring us up to speed. These simulators are characterised by low latency and high bandwidth to provide the most realistic response and feel, along with adaptability to a wide range of vehicle types and testing scenarios in all kinds of driving conditions, from race tracks and cities to highways, country lanes and offroad courses. The DMG-1, DMG-X and DMG360XY models feature an innovative motion system that eliminates the inherent friction of conventional actuators and carries a cabin whose light, stiff, composite structure avoids unwanted resonance. The DMG family can also run computer models of complete powertrains, chassis, suspension and brakes, and even advanced driver aids and humanmachine interfaces (HMI) for battery electric, fuel cell, hybrid and internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, from Formula One cars to SUVs. Speeding development As manufacturers transition from ICE platforms to EV-specific designs, the ability to test virtual prototypes early in the development cycle becomes invaluable, Holloway says. Traditional methods involve creating mule vehicles and other physical prototypes. Dynisma’s simulators allow engineers to explore scenarios virtually and make rapid adjustments, and test them under consistent conditions. For early development, the virtual environment is particularly valuable in the exploration of different battery configurations and placements, such as centralised or distributed layouts, before any physical prototypes are created. This saves time and resources. “You can replicate all those different things in the simulator before you physically cut any metal or build a battery,” Holloway says. Later in the development cycle, it also makes A-B-A testing much easier. This involves running the car with an initial setup, changing the spring rates or suspension geometry, for example, and then running the same test again as a comparison, subsequently returning it to its original spec to run the same test a third time to confirm that any differences in behaviour are caused by the new setup. “You can do the testing a lot quicker. Unlike a real car, where weather conditions might change or the tyres are 20% more worn, the simulator ensures consistency.” The DMG-360XY is at the top of Dynisma’s range, shown here with wraparound display, cabin on a rocker-and-pushrod motion system, 5 m travel range and unlimited yaw (All images courtesy of Dynisma)
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