Must have animation features
Above is an example of an animation report generated by the software program, FX3. Other programs generate similar reports and all animation movies should be accompanied by a spreadsheet of this sort. Note this spreadsheet informs the reader of the point in time to 1/20th second, stating the x,y,z positions as well as the yaw pitch roll orientation and velocity. This should be standard.
Time stamped animation frames
The animation as it runs, should display the time and some positional information so that any image captured from the animation sequence will demonstrate accurate object placement in time (see image above). Note also in the animation frames (above), an air photo is used as the background. Total station measurement points also appear on the scene giving the viewer further confidence that the animation is based on real measurements and calculations.
It is very important that the animation runs in real time, not displayed time.
Important questions for animation expert witnesses
Who generated the animation movie? Very often the reconstructionist and the animator are different individuals in different companies. If that is the case, it is important to see the communication between the reconstructionist and the animator to verify that the animator based his output movie on real facts.
Is the animation environment to scale? Very often the background roadway scene is not to scale and if the animation is conforming to an inaccurate background. All the time distance features will also be inaccurate.
Explain how the animation software works. Very often, the animator does not fully understand the software application that generates the animation, which can allow inaccurate output movies.