VI-grade, a developer of vehicle simulation technology, has acquired physical data from Horiba MIRA’s 850-acre testing facility in Nuneaton, UK, to create a virtual version of the proving ground. These highly accurate digital representations of the various tracks and surfaces at Horiba MIRA’s proving grounds, are now available in VI-WorldSim (VI-grade’s simulation environment) for both offline and online simulations.
The integration of Horiba Mira’s virtual proving ground data into VI-grade’s simulation platforms enables engineers to conduct advanced testing, including vehicle dynamics optimisation, ADAS calibration, and NVH analysis, within an immersive and flexible digital framework – and without transporting test vehicles to Nuneaton.
The newly available virtual Horiba MIRA facilities include:
Ride & Handling and City Circuit: This proving ground features a unique 2.22km multi-user circuit for ride and handling evaluation, along with a 3.7km fully configurable urban and suburban environment for CAV development.
Wet Handling: This 1.7km track is dedicated to wet-handling performance testing, allowing for precise evaluation of vehicle stability and control on wet surfaces.
Ride Routes: The Ride Routes track simulates various urban and suburban driving scenarios around the MIRA Technology Park. It is designed for the evaluation of ride quality, comfort, and durability in real-world conditions.
Ride Surfaces: This 4.2km section consists of parallel lanes designed to assess specific vehicle performance characteristics. The lanes include surfaces for NVH testing, comfort evaluation, and geometric event simulations such as bumps and potholes.
With this collaboration, over 12km of highly detailed digital tracks have been added to VI-WorldSim, further expanding the range of scenarios available for virtual vehicle testing and development.
“It’s fantastic to now offer Horiba MIRA and VI-grade customers the ability to develop their vehicles virtually, on our proving ground surfaces, within industry-leading real-time software applications,” commented Jon Maybin, head of strategic sales, vehicle attributes at Horiba MIRA.
“This offering, together with VI-grade, further expands access to our digital surfaces within a growing software portfolio and cements the long-standing collaboration with VI-grade. The digital twin complements Horiba MIRA’s existing turnkey offering to the industry with engineering services, digital twins and test and validation services, all delivered from Europe’s largest automotive R&D location, the MIRA Technology Park.”
