ORLANDO, Florida, USA — Bohemia Interactive Simulations (BISim), a global developer of advanced military simulation and training software, released today updated versions of VBS3, VBS Control Behavior Pack 1, and VBS Simulation SDK. Customers can access the new versions using the VBS License Manager.
VBS3 UPDATES
VBS3 provides a virtual training environment for land, air and sea training, and mission rehearsal applications. It combines a massive content library, scenario development tools, and after action review capability that immerses trainees in a high-fidelity virtual environment. The vast range of capabilities and functionality in VBS3 has been honed over 17+ years to reduce negative training, facilitate fast, accurate scenario set up, and deliver highly impactful training and mission rehearsal. VBS3 is currently used in hundreds of separate training use cases by over 50 militaries around the world.
The updates to VBS3 listed below include core engine improvements, additional complex damage capabilities, and new 3D models.
Core Engine Improvements
The latest version, VBS3 v18.2, features performance optimizations, more than 70 customer-requested fixes, and other core engine improvements. VBS3 v18.2 includes performance improvements for GPU-demanding scenes. Core engine improvements in VBS3 include enhancing the accuracy of how boats perform in high sea states, extending the capabilities for modeling thermal properties of buildings and trees, and introducing a new script command for changing the altitude of cloud layers.
Complex Damage Capabilities
VBS3 v18.2 also enables configuration of vehicle models with components that have their own advanced damage “hit boxes,” able to receive individual damage from weapons and collisions, or specific script commands, functions, and events. Using the complex damage model in VBS3 requires the specific configuration of vehicles and their components.
New 3D Models
VBS3 v18.2 introduces a new 3D model of a 400-by-250-meter shopping center. The shopping center represents one of the largest objects created for VBS3 and provides an excellent setting for counter-terror training and other urban tactical response training scenarios. The shopping center model incorporates the following features: a 2D Plan View User Interface that enables administrators to monitor trainee activity in real time during a scenario and a CCTV Camera View that enables administrators to quickly access various camera views inside the shopping center during a scenario, using the 2D Plan View UI.
A 3D model of the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer was also added to the VBS3 content library, which now exceeds 10,000 detailed military models. Users can land PhysX helicopters on the ship and fire the ship’s main guns.
VBS CONTROL BEHAVIOR PACK 1 UPDATES
A set of pre-programmed AI behaviors for the most common training use cases, VBS Control Behavior Pack 1 is available as a separate add-on to VBS3 v18.2. VBS Control Behavior Pack 1 leverages the VBS Control runtime which has been supplied for free with all versions of VBS3 since VBS3 v17.2. Control AI behaviors will interact with the VBS3 existing AI system.
New to VBS Control Behavior Pack 1 are tracked vehicle convoy behaviors. Now, users can create convoys from tracked vehicles or a mix of wheeled and tracked vehicles. The behaviors are simple to use and offer different behavior options, such as setting rules of engagement or driving in the middle of the road. The updated VBS Control Behavior Pack 1 also enables soldier units using Control AI to switch their weapon to a launcher (if equipped) when encountering enemy armored vehicles. Units will switch back to rifles only if enemy infantry is present.
VBS SIMULATION SDK UPDATES
VBS Simulation SDK allows developers to customize and extend VBS3 by providing an API and suite of tools. VBS Simulation SDK includes core and simulation-specific APIs, a copy of the VBS Control Editor, which is BISim’s advanced artificial intelligence behavior editing toolkit, and a run-time copy of VBS3. VBS Simulation SDK provides low-level, direct access to the VBS3 engine without any intermediate layer. The APIs included with VBS Simulation SDK cover everything from basic application control to mission management to environment settings.
The latest updates to VBS Simulation SDK offer several new engine APIs, component APIs, and samples. The new APIs include WebView APIs, which BISim used to create custom HTML user interfaces for the Swedish Armed Forces’ CV9040 part-task trainer. VBS Simulation SDK v18.2 also includes a Localization Component API, providing easy access for adding translations to components. VBS Simulation SDK also now features a new Rendering Listener API for direct access to the D3D device.
A list of new APIs added in VBS Simulation SDK v18.2 is below.
Engine Component APIs
- Light Aspect API
- Multiplayer API & Listener
- Rendering Listener API
- Skeleton API & Listener
- Sound Aspect API
- VBS3 Biotope API
WebView Component APIs
- WebView & Listener
- WebView Browser & Listener
- WebView Resource Handler
Localization Component APIs
- Localization API & Listener API
- Translation API
BOHEMIA INTERACTIVE SIMULATIONS
Founded in 2001, Bohemia Interactive Simulations (BISim) is a global software company at the forefront of simulation and training solutions for defense and civilian organizations. Our mission is to harness the explosive potential of technology to revolutionize training and simulation. BISim utilizes the latest game-based technology and a large, experienced in-house team of engineers to develop high-fidelity, cost-effective training and simulation software products and components for defense applications.