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Three dimensional computer animation
is becoming increasingly available due
to more efficient personal computers
and supporting 3D animation softwares.
3D animation is now being produced by
a variety of video production agencies,
marketing and promotion firms, and graphic
designers. However, there are a limited
number of engineers in North America
who are producing 3D scientific animation.
3D animations produced by engineers
become essential, when an animation
based on scientific and engineering
is to be presented in court.
3D scientific animation is becoming
increasingly acceptable in Canadian
courts. Lawyers have a new alternative,
for effectively presenting their case
in a 3D model based on scientific
engineering analysis rather than relying
solely on words, diagrams, and miniature
models.
Engineers are able to accurately
demonstrate to the court the results
of their analysis, thus providing
viewers with a better understanding
of the spatial and temporal aspects
of the accident. The occurrence of
events could unfold infront of viewers
in real time, thus demonstrating how
quickly events occurred. Objects such
as vehicles, individuals, animals,
road geometry, and obstructions can
be placed in the accident scene at
specific locations and at specific
points in time.
Once the accident scene is setup
according to the engineering analysis,
the accident can be viewed from different
perspectives. An overall accident
occurrence can be viewed from overhead.
The point of view of drivers, occupants,
pedestrians, and witnesses could be
shown in real time.
3D scientific animation provides
the engineer/accident reconstructionist
with flexible and efficient tools
in demonstrating different scenarios
based on different engineering analyses.
Since a considerable amount of the
time that was spent in producing the
animation is consumed on scene setup,
the production of alternate scenarios
becomes much quicker for the same
scene.
A variety of accident situations
could make use of 3D scientific animation.
Driver action, road geometry, visibility,
speed, perception-reaction, etc. could
be situations that are best demonstrated
using 3D scientific animation. For
example, in Figure 1, a moose comes
out of the roadside at a high speed
into the travel path of a vehicle,
leaving the driver with no time to
react.
In addition to motor vehicle accidents,
animation can be used to demonstrate
a sequence of events in many other
types of cases. Fire origin and spread
in a structure, movement of a mechanical
apparatus involved in a failure for
personal injury or product liability
cases, movement of contaminants through
soil, or many other applications are
possible. Any case where motion is
involved could be a good candidate
for animation, since drawings and
photographs can only show one point
in time.
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