physics engine for accurate punch simulator?

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mscottveach
Posts: 6
Joined: Sat Nov 30, 2013 9:31 am

physics engine for accurate punch simulator?

Post by mscottveach »

i don't have a lot of experience with physics engines but as far as i can tell,
most of them seem focused on supporting realistic-looking animation rather than
predictive simulation...

I'm interested in building a very accurate punch simulator. And I have no idea
if the abstractions that are common in modern physics engines are likely to
help or hurt...?

I want to be able to model a body and then predict the maximum force that
body could bring to bear in a punch.. or accurately predict how fast that punch could
be delivered...

I know the engines will help me get it working in broad strokes... certainly enough
to help me animate a punch in a way that looks realistic... but can they help me
model so accurately that I could use it to test out different styles of punching to
see the difference in how much and how fast force is delivered to a target? And
then assuming I got the muscle data correct would be confirmed by real-world
testing?

I have a vague sense that I may not even know enough for this question to not
be asinine, so if that's the case, my apologies in advance!
Basroil
Posts: 463
Joined: Fri Nov 30, 2012 4:50 am

Re: physics engine for accurate punch simulator?

Post by Basroil »

Since the force will depend on material strength and deformation (assuming you punch with the intent to deform), you'll probably be better off with FEM techniques unless you're talking about a very simple case like a box,which you can simulate as a rigid body sandwich with a spring in the middle, and then just calculate hook's law. Theoretically you could try FEM like simulation using connected rigid bodies, but don't expect it to be as efficient (speed vs accuracy) as FEM.
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