About the project
Our task is to design, build and test a simulator modeled after the pilot house of a tugboat.
We will accomplish this by dividing the project into several subsystems. The two electrical engineers, Bryan and Justin, will be responsible for designing a compact, modular analog gauge, which will display various statistics from the simulator, including RPMs, fuel and oil levels, and rudder position.
The EEs will also be responsible for using the gauge hardware to fool a full-scale nautical compass to display heading information from the simulator. This will be accomplshed by attaching a magnet to the motor of one of the gauge assemblies, then mounting it underneath the compass.
The two computer engineers, Mark and Becca, will be responsible for writing software in C# that will extract information from the simulation software, Virtual Sailor, and pass it along to the gauges, compass, and motion platform. They will also be responsible for making sure Virtual Sailor accepts input from the steering wheel and throttles.
Two of the four mechanical engineers will be responsible for modifying a working prototype motion platform. This platform will need to accomodate a much larger load than its previous appication, a flight simulator. The platform will need to hold two passengers, plus all of the housing and equipment for the simulator.
The other two mechanical engineers will be responsible for the steering wheel. This will be accomplished by using a gear system to drive two hydraulic cylinders, which will "push back" on the user, creating a more realistic feeling wheel.
Finally, all of the mechanical engineers will assist in designing and constructing a plywood house to encase the entire simulator.
For more detailed information, see the current draft of our proposal, or the request for proposal from our sponsor, PI Engineering.
