Virtual Ship Modelling for Simulations

[Chris G]

I have been modeling historic ships mostly from the steam era for some decades now. I use an old modeling program created for a Railroad Simulation called Microsoft Train Sim, but i wanted to include ships from the eras of the routes I was interested in. I have slowly developed skills to do this work, and have expanded into older eras including the US Civil War in the 1860s. The Ships, some of them will be animated to the degree that they can be controlled and manuvered by the user/player. I model in other forms and scales, including 3000, 1250, and 1200 scale metal waterline models that I have collected for over 50 years but the actively modeled work I do are in a VN format that is true to scale, within the simulation. It requires a lot of research and development of accurate details, textures and overall result. I shared some about this some years ago here, but I had just registered and in the process of things, my thread got lost. I will try to repost a detailed thread about a Civil War Project that is a team effort that I started some four years ago after many years of research.

For now here are some of my virtual models of various ships, mostly from the US and the steam era.

Chris G.



















the Civil War Project some of these ships were made for is about 2/3 coimpleted but in the process we experimented with several simulation formats, here are a couple early test pictures from the simulator called Trainz....of a major Union supply base in Virginia at the end of the war at the Petersburg Siege called City Point. This was from 1865. i will open another thread about the project in detail. The Ships were of all types from that era from schooners, and full rigged ships to steamships of every size.

Due to the age of the simulation software, some models can be high detail and some are more generalized for distance placement. One has to balance things in a way that physical models are not limited by.

[Iceman 29]

Amazing work !

[DrPR]

I remember when you started posting about this project years ago. It's good to see how it is coming along.

Phil

[Chris G]

Hello All
wanted to update my project postings, we as in the team and I have continued to work on the Civil War Project based on the Siege at Petersburg, circa 1864-5, and have completed about 85% of the project planned. We have been working on the modeling and installation of the town of Petersburg, a town of some 15,000 in that era, and that is going well.

It has been necessary to research ancillary items and model them, but the main structures are all in place. Currently we completed modeling all of the needed horse drawn carriages, delivery wagons, service wagons, freight wagons and other vehicles, and are now making figure models for both men, women and children. We hope to complete sometime in 2026 and will deliver the finished project and all of the rolling stock, railroad equipment and ship models both military and civilian as well as detailed activities for both the trains and ships to the US Park Service, the Smithsonian, the Combined US Armed Services Archives and Data Center, and other museums and collections and individuals who wish to will be able to obtain their own copies of it all, thru a distribution site we will set up.

Has been a very challenging project but is coming out well so far. I will post more pictures soon.



Main Union Army Supply Base and Railroad Terminal at City Point



View of Petersburg from the south 1865'



a digital model of one of the US Military Railroad Locomotives, the General Haupt. This model took one year to create and was the first fully animated model of its type created in any format.



The Weldon and Petersburg Railroad Roundhouse, Petersburg 1865 photograph



Our digital Model of the roundhouse, the turntable is animated and the interior fully detailed



Jarrets's Hotel, Petersburg 1865 Digital Model created from contemporary drawings and publications



Shipping models of the typical ships delivering cargo to the port, up to 100 ships a day came and went.



Hospital Ships picking up wounded from the battlefield to transport them north.



The Medical Supply Wharf just west of City Point



Ships unloading at the wharfs of City Point

the sailing ships were favored for carrying ammunition as there was little fire or danger from it on them as opposed to steam ships.

C Gerlach

[decapod]

Stunning ships and scenery Chris - I must give Openrails another go again soon

[Chris G]

We are experimenting with AI generation of realistic images from our digital restoration.

Here is an example created by our head photographer, Steve Thompson, of City Point the harbour and one of the USMRR Military Railroad Supply trains departing for the front lines at Petersburg.

Welcome to the 21st Century.

[Chris G]

We are continuing to utilize AI to enhance our digital project and add to the realism by adjusting lighting and the envirnomental settings.