Management of Reference Frames in Simulation and its Applications

Abstract

The choice of reference frames used in simulations is typically fixed in dynamic models based on modeling decisions made early during their development, restricting model fidelity, numerical accuracy and integration into large-scale simulations. Individual simulation components typically need to model the transformations between multiple reference frames in order to interact with other components, resulting in additional development effort, time and cost. This dissertation describes the methods for defining and managing different reference frames in a simulation, thereby creating a shared simulation environment that can provide reference frame transformations, comprising of kinematics and rotations, to all simulation components through a Reference Frame Manager. Simulation components can use this Reference Frame Manager to handle all kinematics and rotations when interacting with components using different reference frames, improving the interoperability of simulation components, especially in parallel and distributed simulation, while reducing their development time, effort and cost. The Reference Frame Manager also facilitates the development of Generic Dynamic Models that encapsulate the core service of dynamic model, enabling the rapid development of dynamic models that can be reused and reconfigured for different simulation scenarios and requirements. The Reference Frame Manager can also be used to introduce Intermediate Frames that bound the magnitudes of vehicle states, reducing roundoff error and improving numerical accuracy.