Walkinside are developing towards IFC compliance with the first release scheduled for 2009. Walkinside’s graphics engine provides a superior quality of visualisation compared to any IFC viewer currently available on the market.

POWERFUL VISUALISATION

Walkinside® is a powerful software application for 3D real-time visualisation and simulation that automatically renders very large, complex, computer-generated models. Through its user-friendly menus, design, maintenance and safety engineers working on complex facilities are more capable of integrating competencies, information, and applications across all disciplines.

GEOMETRY AND INFORMATION

Walkinside captures all 3D CAD data of components generated by Engineering/Procurement/Construction (EPC) firms, as well as associated engineering information. This may be combined with laser scan data, aerial photography, and digital terrain data to assemble a 3D Virtual Reality (VR) mock-up of the asset.

SMART LINKS TO DATABASES

Walkinside extends the life of a 3D model from the design phase to the operation phase by means of ‘smart links’ to production, scheduling, maintenance, and document management databases. By bringing together all project information into a single resource, Walkinside aids decision-support through its intuitive interface and provides the means for effective coordination, collaboration and communication.

AVATARS
Both computer and user-controlled avatars can interact with the virtual model using patented gravity and object collision to walk on surfaces and climb stairs. When walking, running, or swimming, avatars are rendered in real time via patented dynamic tessellation.

ACCESSABILITY CLASH DETECTION & REVIEW
Walkinside’s patented Real-Time Collision Detection and Gravity Simulation technologies allow users to immediately and intuitively explore the virtual 3D model through the eyes of a virtual human character in ways that uniquely emulate real-life experiences. Avatars will be stopped by railings, low-lying piping, and clutter. There is an awareness of obstacles as avatars interact with them aided through ground and gravity restrictions.

REDLINE, COLLABORATE, INTERROGATE
Walkinside provides the ability to redline, mark-up and add comments in saved views for ease of collaboration with team members through VR or email. Multi functional queries can be sent allowing users to find 'items' based on database information. Measurements, including 3D distances and angles can be taken and are assisted by the ability to hide equipment or place another object in its place to measure areas etc.

ASSET MANAGEMENT
Walkinside is integrated with electronic document management systems including SAP®, EMC/Documentum®, Opidis, and IBM/Maximo®. Integrated CAD, engineering and EDM databases are linked to corresponding objects in the model allowing maintenance teams to; visualise outstanding and future work certificates and simulate complex change-outs, by moving plant- and materials-handling equipment through the model.

INDUCTIONS AND TRAINING
Managers can effectively communicate status, plans, and incidents using a user-friendly virtual model that offers simulated recording options. Employee inductions will have reduced learning curves through immersive and non-immersive training in a model of the actual asset.

CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY

VRcontext provides the tools for large AEC firms, owner-operator and contractors working on large and complex building and infrastructure projects, such as railways, airports, shopping malls, and theme parks. Walkinside supports the multi-stakeholder and multi-discipline envoronment by creating realistic-looking 3D virtual models, covering a large field of view. The use of avators for crowd simulation provides the means to study and ‘feel’ the environments scale and dimensions.

OIL & GAS OWNER/OPERATORS

For Oil & Gas Owners/Operators, VRcontext’s products provide strategic benefits to upstream and downstream facility managers for both green and brown field assets. Through creating a unified model, CAD and point-cloud data from 3D laser scans and discipline specific applications can be linked using object tag information to facilitate the use of real-time operations data including SCADA and DCS systems.

ENERGY

VRcontext applications are valuable tools for the Energy sector, including nuclear and conventional power plants. Walkinside allows construction managers to enter and interact with the content of a full-scale nuclear power plant, including inaccessible and hazardous areas, which are faithfully represented in a 3D virtual environment.

PROCESS INDUSTRY

In the Process industry, large processing plants are designed using 3D CAD systems with correspondingly large files. VRcontext's Walkingside and ProcessLife, can handle the large amounts of data and provide the bi-directional functionality to link equipment tags with a dynamic process model P&ID based prototype control system.

HOMELAND SECURITY

Since the terrorist attack of 9/11, Homeland Security applications have received considerable attention. Two major challenges characterise the sector: an ever-increasing number of possible targets and the fact that these are often located in urban or industrial areas. VRcontext technology federates all the relevant information about these environments, and merges them into a highly immersive and responsive virtual model, connected with all the sensors, video sources, documents, schemas, and drawings. Massive amounts of information can be accessed from a single, centralized location, enabling operators to optimize infrastructure and security operations.