Creo Manikin Vision for Mirrors

[Mks]

Hello All,

I been using Creo Manikin to simulate vision in and around an operator environment, such as looking out the window of a truck to see what part of the surroundings are obscured by parts of the vehicle. I would really like to be able to use the manikin vision window to "see" what is in the mirrors that are placed both inside and outside of the vehicle. With just the basic rendering package that comes with Creo, I have tried to apply a 100% reflection to the mirror's surface and render the manikin vision window, but so far all I can get for output is a solid dark image. Rendering normally, outside the manikin vision window, seems to work, but this is not from the manikin's viewpoint. Anyone have any experience with this, or suggestions? Thanks in advance...

(btw: I did review the mirror analysis presentation that was on the PTC site, which shows the area on the ground covered by the mirror, but while quite helpful is not exactly what I am looking for...)

[dschenken]

The PTC literature suggests it should work - www dot ptc dot com/WCMS/files/109782/en/5218B_FA_Manikin_EN.pdf

Maybe it requires a setting in the Pro/Manikin environment to force an item to be a mirror rather than depending on the item color attributes.

[Mks]

Thanks for the reply, and the link...I'm not terribly familiar with the rendering capabilities, and we do not currently have the Photolux license, so I was thinking maybe it is something I am unaware of and/or missing. I spoke with a PTC rep a few weeks back on this subject, and he explained there were some bugs (in some cases, the manikin's head will not show in the mirror's reflection), but it sounded like the mirror should show some type of image, and I'm not concerned with 'seeing" his reflection anyway...

[dschenken]

That it isn't showing anything is the problem the Rep should be working on, given that their sales brochure clearly indicates this is a capability the software has. Contact your sales rep and ask him to help fix it or how to get a refund.

There are two topics covered in the brochure - one is that the Manikin view uses mirrors; the other is that the Manikin itself is visible when rendered.

"Engineers/designers can also take advantage of Creo Element's mirror reflection capability to determine what a manikin can see while looking into a mirror, such as in the example at right, which shows what an operator of agricultural machinery can see in the mirror. The designer can also determine whether the manikin could use a mirror to see a small remote part in an industrial engine bay."

The image showing the manikin's head in the brochure is demonstrating that the Manikin is an actual model that can be used in any way any model might be used.

[Mks · Accepted solution]

Well, it turns out that the function does require the user to have the advanced rendering extension. No mention of this in the literature (?), and PTC reps that I spoke with were not aware of this firsthand. We are obtaining an eval for the rendering, so if things work out perhaps I'll post a few pics for those that may be interested...

[Mks]