Grob Upgrades with VIOSO Projection

Grob Aircraft chose German projection specialist VIOSO to upgrade its training facility. The VIOSO team supported the project and integration with the simulators’ software, Frasca. VIOSO also provided its Anyblend VR&SIM software and a customised camera for the calibration of the projectors’ optical systems, as well as colour calibration.

“Our simulators are manufactured in house, and the old system needed an upgrade,” said Alf Gerlach, Head of Grob Training Systems and the Project Implementation Manager. “We’d developed an in-house visual system called MoViS (Modular Visual System), and we needed a state-of-the-art calibration solution for the projectors.”

The project required a 250-degree projection on Grob Aircraft’s composite screen surface. The projection would act as the simulated field of vision for the pilots and was therefore vital to the overall effectiveness of the project. In addition, the design of the project needed to account for the cockpit controls and projectors inside the dome.

“We were able to calibrate the entire set up with our special customized version of fisheye camera kit, which has massively extended field of view,” said Sergey Kovyryalov, director of VIOSO Simulation. “So with the use of one single camera, we were able to achieve complete calibration to the pixel.”

VIOSO’s Anyblend VR&SIM integration with Frasca allowed the use of calibration data directly in the rendering software, which performs perspective correction for the pilot viewpoint.

The project presented several challenges for VIOSO and the Grob Aircraft teams. With the pandemic’s restrictions, VIOSO was unable to travel to the large-scale installation and provide an in-person team to calibrate and support the project. This had to be done remotely in collaboration with Grob Aircraft’s specialists.

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“I think this was the first project of this scale that we’ve done that was calibrated remotely,” said Kovyryalov. “We provide onsite expertise as this operation can be quite complex, however on this occasion, we were able to overcome this challenge by using video conferencing and remote access software, and it worked successfully to achieve the outcome we wanted.”

After completion, VIOSO provided a full study of the project along with full training to on site staff to control and use the Anyblend VR&SIM effectively.

“VIOSO were with us every step of the way,” said Gerlach. “Their support and easy to use Anyblend VR&SIM software was invaluable and continues to be so. Despite the limitations and challenges of the pandemic, everything was successful. We are very pleased with the process and the result.”