docs/simulator_quickstart.md

OpenFlySplat UE — Expo East demo

This scene-inclusive Linux package contains the Expo East Gaussian scene, the OpenFlySplat UE runtime, and a converter for replacing it with another 3DGS PLY. The historical source directory calls this scene expo_north; the display name is Expo East. Conversion keeps the full input and SH3; no point-count crop is applied. The source PLY is not required to open the converted scene.

Open the scene

On a Linux x86-64 desktop with Vulkan SM6 and a compatible GPU driver:

cd Linux/OpenFlySplatUE
./run_expo_east.sh

The scene opens at its shared start position with the HIL monitor visible. The HIL and renderer panels use English labels; no language selector is needed. Until the phone connects, the monitor displays a waiting state. Starting UE does not start the aircraft-side DJI Simulator or issue takeoff commands. No UE editor, Python, phone or DJI controller is required just to open the scene.

To show the renderer controls, launch with ./run_expo_east.sh --ui All.

For the separate software-only SimpleFlight preview, use ./run_expo_east.sh --preview. Close it before starting HIL.

Connect Android / DJI HIL

The default launcher already starts HIL mode; connect the phone to that window. The equivalent explicit command is:

./run_openfly_hil.sh --settings NanoGSConverter/Config/OpenFlyHil.json

Follow English HIL setup or 中文 HIL 操作步骤. These cover the matching Android app, USB connection to the remote, hotspot/LAN discovery, DJI Simulator state, virtual-camera selection, ports and troubleshooting. HIL is a bench workflow; remove propellers and confirm simulation is active before issuing controls.

Replace the scene

With Python 3 and NumPy installed:

./convert_nanogs_ply.sh /path/to/model.ply --crop-mode none --spawn-height 0.5

Restart the application after conversion. This replaces the active scene in this extracted copy; keep a second copy if you want to preserve Expo East. The renderer's ground floor is not a collision mesh of the GS buildings.

Distribution layout

Keep the entire Linux directory together, including its sibling Engine runtime. The scene is stored in OpenFlySplatUE/Content/NanoGSData/RuntimeActive. Intermediate conversion caches and local logs are not required for playback. release_manifest.json records the runtime origin, source model identity and scene/start settings. The source repository and the scene-inclusive package are separate distributions; included third-party components retain their individual licenses.