RaPro Emulations Ltd

Producers of PC Based Emulations and Prototypes

Contact honeyands@rapro.co.uk

Tel (+44) 01458 441460

Click on an emulation to view a larger version

What is an Emulation?
An emulation mimics the functionality of a piece, or pieces of equipment. If the equipment doesn't exist, we can develop a prototype.
What benefits are there of having an emulation developed?
1. TRAINING. Confucious said: I hear and I forget, I see and I remember, I do and I understand. If you want your personnel to be proficient in the use of a piece of equipment, train them and let them practice with an emulation. The Menn Report (1991) estimates that knowledge retention rises to 90% if a person carries out a task (or emulation) compared to only 10% if they read or 20% if they hear about it. AgustaWestland Helicopters and the Defence Helicopter Flying School (UK) use helicopter systems emulations developed by RaPro. These form a major part of their aircrew and groundcrew training courses.
Visualisation. The student sees the effects of their actions. Many concepts are difficult to visualize. An emulation with an Active Schematic (click on one above to see detail) will simplify the teaching of these subjects. For example, the Bell 412EP Helicopter fuel system emulation (above, second from left) not only mimics all of the operators controls, but also shows the student exactly what effect their interaction has on the complex group of fuel cells, pumps and valves. The instructor may use the emulation to teach the subject, then let the student practice as much as required - building confidence and familiarity. The Electrical Distribution emulation (above, third from left) allows pilots and ground crew to 'see' what is happening as they free-play with the system.
2. MARKETING. Sales personnel may demonstrate the operation of a piece of equipment (existing or prototype) to your clients. Let them 'see' how easy it is to use.
3. PROTOTYPING. Significantly reduce the development phase of your new products. Change you conventional, sequential development activities to a concurrent model. As the functionality of your prototype is progressively modelled, task; marketing, production and testing with it's evaluation - modify and re-evaluate rapidly.
COST. I suppose an emulation will be very expensive?
No, the emulations shown above have cost around US$16k - 20k to develop. The cost depends upon the functionality required. Perhaps your emulation could be bundled with your product, or even sold in order to recoup your development costs.
DYNAMIC SCHEMATIC - What is it?
A Dynamic Schematic may be added to your emulation to help your students visualise a complete system. With the help of 3D models, graphics, flows (air, power, fuel, hydraulics etc), a schematic can be brought to life. Not only does the student see the action-reaction of the actual equipment (switches, lamps, meters etc), they see the effects upon the schematic too. For example; fuel flowing, transferring and depleting.
CBT - Is an emulation Computer Based Training?
No, You will still require an instructor, manual or CBT to show the user how to operate the equipment. An emulation would be described as Computer Aided Instruction.
COMPUTER - Would I need a high-spec computer to run an emulation?
No, most emulations will run on an average, modern Personal Computer (PC). They require MS Windows '98, XP, 2000 or NT4 as an Operating System. They may be run on a Stand-alone PC or over an intranet/internet.
TIE-IN - So you've developed my emulation but I need to update it. This is where you make your money, right?
Wrong, although the software we use for emulation development is expensive, it is readily available for you to buy (training too). All the source code is yours to keep, so if you don't like your developer - change to another, or even develop in-house. We want to keep your custom and recommendation - so we will modify your emulation at a competitive rate.
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