page_title: Motion simulator
section_title: History of motion platforms
hierarchical_section_title: Motion simulator / History of motion platforms
caption_attribution_description: English: Three rotational degrees of freedom; roll; pitch; yaw.
context_page_description: A motion simulator or motion platform is a mechanism that creates the feelings of being in a real motion environment. In a simulator, the movement is synchronised with a visual display of the outside world scene. Motion platforms can provide movement in all of the six degrees of freedom that can be experienced by an object that is free to move, such as an aircraft or spacecraft. These are the three rotational degrees of freedom and three translational or linear degrees of freedom.
context_section_description: One of the first motion platforms, the Sanders Teacher, was created in 1910. This was a model aircraft connected to the ground by a universal joint. When wind was present, the pilot in training was able to use the aircraft's control surfaces to move the model in the three rotational degrees of freedom pitch, roll and yaw.
  In 1929 a significant advance in motion platform technology was made with the patent by Edwin Link for what became known as the "Link Trainer". This used the pilot's control stick and rudder controls to control organ-type bellows under the simulator cockpit. The bellows could inflate or deflate, giving movement in pitch, roll, and yaw.
  In 1958 a flight simulator for the Comet 4 aircraft used a three-degrees-of-freedom hydraulic system. 
  Simulator motion platforms today use 6 jacks ("Hexapods") giving all six degrees-of-freedom, the three rotations pitch, roll and yaw, plus the three translational movements heave (up and down), sway (sideways) and surge (longitudinal).
  6 Dof motions are powerful cues when combined with outside-world (OTW) imagery. Motion platforms together with OTW imagery are used in : flight simulation, driving simulation, amusement rides, and small home-based simulators.
  The motion platform is used in military and commercial flight instruction training applications. Also in entertainment devices in theme parks, with users from single people to many, seated in rows in front of screens in which pictures are projected, synchronised with motions from the platform under the simulator cab.
  A typical high-end motion system is the Stewart platform, which provides full 6 degrees of freedom (3 translation and 3 rotation) and employs sophisticated algorithms to provide high-fidelity motions and accelerations. These are used in a number of applications, including flight simulators for training pilots.
  The middle of the spectrum includes motion platforms in arcade amusement games, rides, and other arrangements.  These systems fall into a price range from $10,000 to US$99,000.  Typically the space requirements for such a platform are modest requiring only a portion of an arcade room and a smaller range of motion is provided via similar, less expensive, control systems than the high-end platforms.
  The lower-cost systems include home-based motion platforms, which have recently become a more common device used to enhance video games, simulation, and virtual reality.  These systems fall into a price range from $1,000 to US$9,000.  Within the 2000s (decade), several individuals and business entities have developed these smaller, more affordable motion systems.  Most of these systems were developed mainly by flight simulation enthusiasts, were sold as do it yourself projects, and could be assembled in the home from common components for around one thousand US dollars ($1,000).  Recently, there has been increased market interest in motion platforms for more personal, in-home, use.  The application of these motion systems extends beyond just flight training simulation into a larger market of more generalized "craft-oriented" simulation, entertainment, and virtual reality systems.
caption: Low-cost home motion system with 3 rotational degrees of freedom
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