Visualization is essential not only to gain in-depth understanding of complex engineering problems but also to expand the boundary of knowledge, optimize human potential, and mitigate technology development cost. The Engineering Simulation and Animation Laboratory (ESAL) has been developing a Real-Time Virtual Environment (RTVE) for the Boeing Company since 2004. RTVE is used (1) for health and condition data display as well as for commanding swarms of unmanned vehicles, and (2) to build interactive customizable Concept of Operation Scenarios (CONOPS) to investigate and illustrate new possibilities for swarm technologies and applications. The user can test complex swarm missions in urban, forest, and desert settings and utilize different capabilities including a variety of flight views, flight traces, and situational awareness levels (fog of war-fow). RTVE is an integral part of Boeing’s Vehicle Swarm Technology Laboratory (VSTL) platform used for rapid prototyping of multi-vehicle task and mission planning, health – adaptive control, and vehicle and communication hardware systems. This talk explores engineering visualization as a serious game and highlights its multidisciplinary aspects in terms of integration of science, engineering, and digital arts. Illustrations will be given from the applications listed above.
