Using a Gaming Engine for 3D Web Simulations Overview
Gaming engines such as a Unity and Unreal both have the ability to create web-based gaming experiences. Lanner would like to investigate how these platforms could be used for business gamification with its existing simulation product – WITNESS.
WITNESS is a process simulation modelling studio, developed by Lanner. It enables simulation modellers to develop simulation models to provide process insight using a discrete event simulation method (DES)1. One of its key strengths is being able to visualize (2D/3D) simulated processes and to gain insight into the cause and effect of different simulated scenarios. This rich visualization is currently limited to the desktop.
The aim of this project is to be able to take an event stream from a simulation engine and rendering the output over the web of different simulated scenarios as the model progresses through time.
The event stream is a high-level xml / json data feed that are instructions to create update and delete objects in the simulation.
For example: below is an example of a manufacturing cell being modelled to understand throughput and resource requirements.
Lanner wants to investigate the potential use of gaming engines, such as a Unity or Unreal to provide web-based visualization of these simulated processes.
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Aim of the Project
Understand where gaming technology can be used to dynamically visualize simulation model execution in 2D/3D environments over the web. Could gaming technology, such as Unity, be used in a web-based simulation environment to render the model output in the browser and dynamically update it using a stream of simulation events from a simulation engine running in the cloud.
The aim would include some or all, of the following:
• Understand the event stream protocol that Lanner already uses.
• Create a scene in a gaming engine environment by interpreting this text-based protocol –
entities, queues and paths.
• Create a WebGL player of the simulation model.
• Host the WebGL player in a web application.
• Allow multiple WebGL players to run concurrently in the same web application.
• Provide controls for the user to fly around the scene, inspecting queues and statistics
produced by the simulation.
Interested, contact jhorgan@lanner.com for more information, happy to provide more context and scope.
About Lanner
Lanner is a software company that develops predictive simulation products that allow visionary companies to use the power of predictive simulation in decision making, enabling business processes that best balance service delivery and cost.
Our predictive simulation technologies inspire confidence when making process and policy changes, delivering outcome certainty across the full design, create, operate and improve lifecycle.
Lanner is a Microsoft Gold Partner and uses continuous integration and Azure DevOps for source control, backlog and sprint management.
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References
1. Discrete Event Simulation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discrete_event_simulation
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