Measuring the Performance of the SIMONA Research Simulator's Motion System

A hardware and software system is presented that is used to measure the motion performance of Delft University’s SIMONA Research Simulator. It uses the simulator’s operational software environment and an onboard Inertial Measurement Unit to measure motion performance metrics that are based on AGARD report no. 144. The metrics can be used to assess the simulator’s motion capabilities, but can also serve to evaluate different control algorithms for the motion base. An example of this last use is presented in this paper. The measured data shows that the effort put into the lightweight design of the simulator cab and the advanced motion control algorithms, has resulted in good motion performance in terms of time delay and bandwidth. Also, increased motion performance is expected to be possible with further tuning of the control algorithms and enhancements in the driving software.