An Investigation on a Virtual Assembly System for Structural Experiments

The complexity of marine structural experimental devices is usually attributed to the boundary conditions and loads applied to the objects. As a result, the complexity of the device and the volume of the objects make strict requirements on the experimental designs and assembly of these devices. In this study, a virtual assembly system for a structural laboratory (VAL) is developed in the Unity 3D environment, and collision detection algorithms are derived based on bounding box models and mesh models. This research realized the parametric modeling or importing of 3D objects and reconstructed pressure loading experimental scenarios in a 3D environment. The algorithm can automatically select a detection method according to the geometric object, and every assembly step is recorded and visualized. The system can effectively simulate the assembly of a structural experimental device. Moreover, the 3D file importing interface, the rendering of transporting tracks, and interaction detection algorithms can support the construction of a virtual scenario for more experiments.