What Fast Simulation Does Today

2023 Author: Hannah Pearcy | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-06-02 20:50

Products are sometimes very complex today and there is no end in sight. With simulation, developers and designers have a tool at their disposal with which they receive decision support at an early stage. Live simulations in particular can make a decisive contribution to greater efficiency in the product development process. There are currently two solutions on the market - Altair Simsolid and Ansys Discovery Live

Both simulation solutions are analysis tools for the designer that deliver fast results. They make it possible to evaluate the effects of design changes in real time and should be used early in the product creation process. Both tools are user-friendly.

Quickly to simulation results

• In order to achieve results quickly, Simsolid works with an adaptive multi-pass analysis. In this way, Simsolid makes geometry simplification and networking superfluous, the two most time and know-how intensive tasks in the traditional FEM process. Dr. Uwe Schramm, CTO Solver Technology at Altair: "Simsolid can be used to carry out analyzes of complex components and very large assemblies that would not be simulated in traditional FEM without simplification - and that very efficiently on normal standard PCs.
• The Ansys Discovery Live solution relies on parallel processing with CUDA-based graphics cards for fast calculation. Mark Hindsbo, Vice President & General Manager at Ansys, compares the design analysis tool to driving a car: "Just as we can drive a car without being a mechanic, the engineer can now experiment with Discovery Live without the specifics of solver technology or to know the math of meshing."

Picture gallery

construction practice at the two manufacturers Altair and Ansys after the

• Features,
• Requirements and
• costs

solutions for live simulation.

Simulation in the middle class

Getting started with simulation: hurdles and how to overcome them

1. Simsolid: possibilities and requirements

Construction practice at Dr. Uwe Schramm, CTO for solver technology at Altair, talked about the advantages of the Simsolid simulation solution.

What geometry is used for the simulation?

No preparation is required - save the design status and read it into Simsolid. Simsolid works with all common CAD programs. Simsolid has direct data integration with all common desktop and cloud-based CAD systems. It can also read CAD and interface formats (Autodesk Fusion 360, Solidworks, Onshape, STL, Acis, Catia, CGR, Inventor, JT, NX, Parasolid, PLMXML, Creo, Solid Edge, VDA, Step).

How is the transition from CAD to simulation designed?

The design status to be simulated is read in as a complete assembly in Simsolid. The tool automatically recognizes connections such as screws, welds and bonds. These can be checked in a browser and adjusted if necessary. The definition of storage and load cases is then carried out. All definitions made are saved and can be automatically applied again when the variant is updated:

• the respective CAD model is imported into Simsolid
• Control of completeness and materials
• Creation of the storage (floating storage, fixed storage)
• Application of loads (forces, pressure, gravitation …)
• Start the calculation run
• Results and evaluation of results

What prior knowledge does the designer need?

A basic understanding of structural mechanics and FEM is certainly useful to define the simulation model including all aspects, such as control of the materials, creation of the conditions (floating bearing, fixed bearing) and attachment of the loads (forces, pressure, gravitation …) and to evaluate the results.

What applications is Simsolid suitable for?

• Solutions: Modal analysis, linear statics, nonlinear statics, frequency response, heat conduction, thermal stress analysis, mass inertia loading, screw preload
• Materials: isotropic, elastoplastic, rigid body, and others individually expandable
• Connections: Auto connections, adhesive contact, sliding contact, contact opening with friction, screws, welding points, welds, virtual connections
• Results: contour plots and animations, displacements, stresses / strains, frequencies and waveforms, XY plots, modal participation factors, forces: reaction, contact, screws and welds, min / max labels, safety factors, bookmarks

Are there also tasks that Simsolid cannot solve - what are the limits?

Current when we leave the field of structural mechanics.

Additional information on how Simsolid works

The Simsolid calculation engine is based on extensions of the external approximation theory. External approximations represent a generalization of the finite element method, so that absolutely any geometric shapes can be used as "finite elements". Basic functions for approximating the calculation field in the component volume can be of any class and are independent of the shape of the volume. Simsolid does not use the point-by-point degrees of freedom inherent in traditional finite element analysis. Degrees of freedom in Simsolid are functions with geometry support in the form of volumes, areas, and straight and point clouds. This makes it possible to treat geometric inaccuracies as well as assembly contact errors such. B. gaps, penetrations and jagged contact surfaces. Simsolid controls solution accuracy using adaptive multi-pass analysis. Adaptivity can be defined on a global or local component basis and is always active.

How fast is the simulation?

The Simsolid methodology is quick and efficient. It offers superior performance metrics and memory usage, which makes it possible to solve very large and / or complex assemblies in the shortest possible time on normal standard PCs; Depending on the model, in seconds or within a few minutes.

What about the hardware requirements?

Normal standard PC / laptop.

What are the costs involved?

from 6900 € subscription 1 year

2. Discovery Live: Possibilities and requirements

Konstruktionsspraxis spoke to Mark Hindsbo, Vice President & General Manager at Ansys, about the benefits of the Ansys Discovery Live simulation solution.

Mr. Hindsbo, what geometry is used for simulation in Discovery Live?

We are CAD neutral and can deal with bad geometry. You can start based on any existing CAD design, in almost any format you can think of, including Auto-CAD Inventor, PTC Creo, Solidedge, Siemens NX, Solidworks, and neutral formats like Step and Iges.

How is the transition from CAD to simulation designed?

You can also start with a blank sheet of paper in Discovery Live and start from scratch. Regardless of where you start, you can edit, change and add new functions. The highlight is that you simulate your design in the meantime and thus receive real-time feedback on your ideas. As soon as you are finished, bring the result back into your CAD system.

What prior knowledge does the designer need?

Our tool turns a good engineer into a great engineer. Nevertheless, the user should of course have a basic technical idea of materials, mechanics or flow. Because the physics are always the same, but the engineer can now experiment without having to worry about geometry preparation, networking or solver technology. Just like we can drive a car without being a mechanic. A good tool does not stand in the way of the user, but enables him to be more creative.

For which applications / questions is Discovery Live suitable?

Discovery Live is suitable for basic calculations in the fields of structural mechanics, fluid mechanics, vibration behavior, thermal analysis and electrical-thermal behavior, where the engineer wants to check his design in seconds before validation. The aim of the tool is quick insight and orientation and not final certification or validation. To this end, Discovery Live interlocks with Ansys tools that are suitable for validation. We are constantly expanding the uses of Discovery Live. For example, we have just introduced a process for topology optimization in a very short time up to the return to the CAD system.

Are there any tasks that Discovery Live cannot solve?

The structure simulation, for example, is currently limited to the linear range, which does not include large deformations in plastics. This low level of complexity proves to be an advantage for fast productive use. Due to the close interlinking with the advanced tools, the door is open at any time to carry out the ideas found, including a detailed calculation with all the accuracy and scope known from Ansys. Discovery Live is evolving very quickly. In order to get a serious picture, we recommend that you simply download the version for a free trial. Our partners are also happy to assist interested parties with technical questions.

How fast is the simulation?

Our breakthrough in programming a native solver on massively parallel GPUs has increased the solution speed for simulation tasks by about a thousand times. In Discovery Live, many simulations run in a matter of seconds. The actual calculation is faster than the setup. And because operation is deliberately kept simple, the user can get from idea to knowledge in just a few minutes. This is a crucial component to provide a truly interactive experience.

What about the hardware requirements?

A modern Windows PC with an Nvidia graphics card that supports CUDA is sufficient. In particular, we support Windows 7, 8 and 10 (64 bit) and recommend a graphics resolution of 1024x768 or higher as well as a graphics card based on the Kepler, Maxwell or Pascal architecture with at least 4 GB dedicated graphics card memory.

And what are the costs involved?

Discovery Live costs a lot less than traditional high-end simulation products. It should be used by every engineer and should therefore be affordable for every engineer. Licenses start at a price of a few thousand euros. There are different license concepts for every requirement, so that, for example, a purchase with maintenance is also possible. Interested parties should contact us or one of our local partners. A free trial version can be downloaded from www.ansys.com/discovery.

Smart engineering day

The digitization of production requires a rethink in product development. The Smart Engineering Day offers decision support for the selection of the most suitable methods for the conception, design and development of smart products and machines.

More info