Altair SimLab 14.

0
Basic Training

Altair SimLab

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Altair SimLab
Copyright © 2015 Altair Engineering, Inc. Proprietary and Confidential. All rights reserved.

Requirements

• Average size 5; minimum size 0.8-1

• Washer needed
• 2D: aspect ratio<5; absolute aspect ration<10
• 3D: tet collapse: >0.1
• Fillet, cylinder can’t be deleted

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• Enclosed
 Free edges and T-connection
 Intersection
• Elements quality

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Altair SimLab
Why SimLab?
SimLab objectives:
• Reduce the time from CAD to Solver time without compromising the quality
• Easy automation of the CAE Process
•  PROVIDE BETTER RETURN ON INVESTMENT

SimLab strengths:
• Intuitive, Easy to learn
• Robust Tet-Meshing also for complex geometries
• no CAD cleanup or defeaturing needed.
• Efficient control over model size and element quality.
• Repeatibility: Feature-based, Template-based
• Function level (Templates for Meshing, Props, Contacts, Excite modeling, ,…..)
• Process level (CAD to Deck)
• Complete solution: Pre, Solver (OptiStruct integrated), Post, Optimization.
• Solver Neutral
• Physical-Entitiy Based Modeling: knowledge of solver card details not needed
• Solver interfaces: OptiStruct, Abaqus, ANSYS, Nastran, Permas, ADVC, …
• Advanced tools for specific application (Powertrain)

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Altair SimLab
Modeling Process

1. Import CAD/FEM

2.1 2D Mesh

3. Modify 4. Assembly

2.2 Volume Mesh 5. Cleanup

6. Connections

7. Analysis Setup

8. Post Processing A1. Automation

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Altair SimLab
Agenda

DAY 1 1. Import CAD/FEM

DAY 2 2.1 2D Mesh

3. Modify 4. Assembly

2.2 Volume Mesh 5. Cleanup

6. Connections

7. Analysis Setup

8. Post Processing

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Getting Started
Agenda

0. Getting Started
• SimLab Installation
• Initial settings
• SimLab GUI

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Getting Started
SimLab Installation – CAD Access
• In order to handle CAD files in the native format ProE/Creo, CATIA and UG, SimLab
must have access to a working installation of the CAD Software on the machine.
• Please specify the installation path of the CAD Software. The path can be edited
manually later in the file [Install_Dir]\bin\win64\vp_init.bat .
• Note: The access to CATIA files requires the purchase of an additional reader. Otherwise
please use the option “CAD through translation”.

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Getting Started
SimLab Installation – Solver Access
• SimLab can invoke directly the solver and visualize the results after computing.
• Please specify the installation path of the Solver executable. The path can be edited
manually later in the file [Install_Dir]\bin\win64\STS_solver_setup.bat .
• SimLab comes with its own solver – OptiStruct, of the platform HyperWorks. The path to
address an existing HyperWorks installation is: [HW_Install_Dir]\hwsolvers\scripts.

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Getting Started
SimLab Installation – Temp Folders

• While using SimLab, some files are created in the temporary folders to allow
the recovery of the session if a crash occurs.
• Please ensure that you have writing permission on the entered path and
enough disk space.
• The path of the temporary folders can be edited manually later in the file
[Install_Dir]\bin\win64\vp_init.bat .

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Getting Started
Initial Settings – View

The first time you are opening SimLab after the installation
or after an application reset, make sure that Selection List
and Output Windows are turned on.

• All the selected (picked) entities will appear in the

Selection List. This will help users to find the selected
entities and correct them before giving as input in any
dialog box or applications.

• Output window is used to display error messages and

information (that can be copy and pasted whenever
needed).%

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Getting Started
Initial Settings– Edit | Preferences

Depending from the model size (and to your If you are planning to use Ansys
graphic card), consider to decrease the Solver, please turn on Use Ansys
tessellation angle for Parasolid and Step files element types in Edit | Preference |
under Edit | Preference | Geometry. This will Analysis
give a smoother representation of the CAD.

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Getting Started
Initial Settings – Edit | Preferences | System

Edit | Preference | System: choose the Set the number of cores to be used
mouse settings which suites to you. for meshing (1 Body for each core)

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Getting Started
SimLab GUI – Standard Mouse Buttons

Left Button Click

• Selection/ de-selection of geometry, elements and nodes
• +CTRL & drag for zoom

Middle Button
• Roll on the Mouse: Zoom in and out
• Middle Button Click: Model Rotation

Right Button Click

• Panning
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Getting Started
SimLab GUI
Menu Bar

Model Browser
• Assembly
Ribbon Area
• Mesh Control
• LBC Selection Toolbar
• Property • Picking mode
• Group • Entity filter
• Results

Graphics Area

Selection List

View Toolbar
Output Window

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Getting Started
SimLab GUI – Ribbons

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Getting Started
SimLab GUI – Ribbons

Single-selection icon

Multiple Choice icon

Multi-selection icon

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Getting Started
SimLab GUI – Ribbons

Additional functions

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Getting Started
SimLab GUI – Panels

• Panels remember the values which

have been entered. Right Click on the
dotted area allows to reset all fields to
default.

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Getting Started
SimLab GUI – Customizing the GUI

Custom Toolbar(s):
• Select “+” to create a new toolbar.
• Add icons to a custom toolbar jus by drag-and-drop.
• Right click opens options to Import/Export the custom toolbars.
• Right click on the toolbar name to Rename/Delete.

Browsers Repositioning :
• Browsers can be(un)docked, resized and
repositioned.
• Just drag them into the desired position.
• Browsers can be also overlaid to be visualized
as tabs.

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Getting Started
SimLab GUI – Model Browser
• The Model Browser lists the entities of the current database.
• Hide/show and other operations can be performed (right click menu).
• Different types of entities are grouped into 6 tabs.

Assembly Mesh Control LBC

tree View

Material &
Property Groups Results
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Getting Started
SimLab GUI – Entity Selection

Selection
Toolbar

Right-Click
Menu

Selection
List

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Getting Started
SimLab GUI - Main Shortcut Keys

Ctrl + R - Remove Last Picked Entity F - Fit View

Ctrl + A - Select all the entity Z - Rectangle Zoom

Shft + Z - Scribble Zoom

Ctrl + Z - Undo

Ctrl + Y - Redo
F1 - Help
Ctrl + N - New Window
F5 - Redisplay
Ctrl + O - File Open
F12 - Save as
Ctrl + S - File Save

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Getting Started
SimLab GUI – Help

• File | Help gives information about the software and the

system.
• File | Help | SimLab… opens the software help in a
dedicated browser.
• Use the keyboard shotcut F1 to open directly the
Help page for the panel you are currently using

Help

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Getting Started
SimLab GUI – Reset Application
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Getting Started
SimLab GUI - Exercise
Open SimLab and perform following operations on the GUI:
• Turn on the visualization of the Output Window and – if needed - of the Selection List.
• Move the browsers into the desired position (“drag & drop”).
• Go to Edit |Preferences and choose your favourite Mouse Settings
• Go to Edit |Preferences and set the tessellation angle for a better visualization of the CAD.
• Explore the SimLab Ribbons. Create a Custom Toolbar and drag some icons into it.
• Import one of the predefined Process Toolbars located in:
…\Models\0_GUI\*.xml
• Remove the created Toolbars, leaving one «personal» toolbar where you will pin the functions that
you will consider particulary useful.

Now you are ready to import your first model to begin to work with SimLab.

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01 – Importing CAD and FEM

Agenda

1. Importing CAD and FEM:

• Reading Files 1. Import CAD/FEM

• CAD Geometry
2.1 2D Mesh
• Models
• Entities 3. Modify 4. Assembly

• Entity Selection
• Entity Display
2.2 Volume Mesh 5. Cleanup
• Groups
6. Connections

7. Analysis Setup

8. Post Processing A1. Automation

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Reading Files
Begin your work by importing either CAD or FEM Geometry.
Following possibilities are available:

• SimLab Data: previously saved SimLab database (*.slb and

*.slb.X) can be opened or merged into the current session.
GDA format (graphics data) – also written by SImLab - is
similar to SLB format, but contains elements and topology
information only.
• CAD: direct access to CAD native formats such as Parasolid,
Step, CATIA, ProE, JT, UG, NX.
• CAD: Through Translation: to convert native CAD formats
into Step or Parasolid files when direct access is not available.
• Discrete Models: facet geometry formats such as STL,
VRML, I-Deas.
• Solver Input File: existings deck for the solvers:
• OptiStruct
• Abaqus
• Nastran
• Permas
• Patran
• Ansys
• ADVENTURECluster
• Marc
• Fluent
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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Reading Files – Recent Files

• SimLab offers a list of Recent Files to be imported or

opened right away.

• You can pin your frequently used files to the list to be

always available.

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

CAD Geometry – CAD Access

SimLab does not actually import CAD Geometry

• The work with traditional preprocessors consists mainly in manipulating

CAD geometry, which has to be imported, i.e. converted into an internal
format. This causes very often problems, because a “clean” CAD
geometry may get corrupted while converting.

• SimLab does not manipulate CAD geometry: all the work is done directly
on the mesh. Therefore, there is no need to convert a file into an internal
format: CAD geometry is read as it is, in its original format.

• SimLab just creates a graphic representation of the geometry

(“tessellation”) but the CAD information are not saved into the SLB
database.

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

CAD Geometry – CAD Access

• Instead of importing CAD, SimLab just creates a

graphic representation of it (“tessellation”).
• Geometry information remain stored in the original
CAD file.

• Therefore, in order to be able to access the CAD for a

new meshing, CAD geometry file needs to be copied
together with the *.slb file when transferring the
database.

Transfer both SLB and CAD files for

later access to CAD features!

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

CAD Geometry – CAD Access

• Since it is not a true CAD Import, in SimLab

we prefer to speak of CAD access.

• The access to CAD is made possible by

CAD readers which are invoked every time
information from CAD is required (typically,
when meshing).

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

CAD Geometry – Exchange formats

• For the exchange formats:

• Parasolid (*.x_t, *.xmt_txt, *.x_b)
• Step (*.stp, *.step)
• JT (*.jt)
SimLab has its own readers – i.e., no additional tool must be installed.
• In particular, Parasolid format should be preferred when available.
• Only when exporting from CATIA (and from HyperMesh) STEP format should be preferred.

If some Parasolid bodies are not imported, it could be

because the geometry is somehow “broken” and some
solid definition got lost. Try activating the Sheet option.

Imprint solid bodies will speed up the

assembly through coincident nodes.

Maintain the subassembly structure

to better handle big models.
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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

CAD Geometry – Native Formats – Direct Access
• For the native CAD formats:
• CATIA (*.CATPart and *CATAssembly)
• ProE / CREO (*.prt and *.asm)
• UG NX (*.prt)
SimLab doesn’t have an internal reader: SimLab will use the native “reader” which is the CAD
software itself (direct access).
• Therefore SimLab must have access to a working installation of CATIA, ProE/CREO or UG NX. This
can be linked during the installation of SimLab, or can be entered later manually in
[Install_Dir]\bin\win64\vp_init.bat .
• The licenses of the CAD system will be used by SimLab only when the “reader” is needed, that means
typically only during the meshing process. For the rest of the time the licenses are set free.
• Only for CATIA direct access, an additional reader (CADNexus) is required.

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

CAD Geometry – Native Formats – Direct Access

• Direct access for native CAD, when available, is the most

complete way of handling CAD Geometry, since it allows to
access all model data and metadata, including:
• Design parameters - model regeneration is allowed
directly in SimLab
• Color and Publications – important for automation
purposes
• Attributes, Assembly structure, Part Instances, …

CAD Regeneration
(CREO Parameters)

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

CAD Geometry – Native Formats – Through Translation

• If no installation of CATIA, ProE/Creo or UG/NX is available, it

is always possible to translate the native formats into exchange
formats (Parasolid, Step) before importing.
• Available options are:
• CAD native to Parasolid (recommended)
• CAD native to Step
• Step to Parasolid.
• A Step or Parasolid file containing the translated geometry
information will be written by SimLab into the original folder and
successively imported.
• For this process, no other installation than SimLab is required.
• This doesn’t allow to use the parametrization of the geometry
eventually implemented in the CAD environment for
regeneration.

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

CAD Geometry – SimLab Philosophy
• SimLab is designed to handle with complex CAD Geometry, for which cleanup and defeaturing
operation would take too long.
• Therefore, CAD cleanup and defeaturing are in SimLab generally not needed and mostly not
even possible.
• SimLab allows basically no operation at all on native CAD geometry (CATIA, Pro-E).
• Some operation are supported only on Step geometry (body rename, repositioning) and
especially on Parasolid geometry (fillets/holes removal, subassembly, imprinting, Boolean
operation, repositioning, partitioning, break body…).
• Following the SimLab-Philosophy, CAD geometry remains almost untouched. It is just imported
and meshed. Cleanup, defeaturing and repairing are performed automatically during the
meshing process or manually later directly on the meshed bodies.
• The word “Geometry” in the SimLab is therefore not to be intended as a synonym of “CAD”.
With Geometry is mostly meant “Shape/topology of the meshed bodies”, since most
geometry operation can be performed on mesh bodies only.

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Model Structure

Model • Any CAD (or FEM) file read into SimLab will be referred as model.
• If the CAD or the FEM file has multiple parts, each part will be
referred as body.
Bodies

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Model Structure

FEM Model (*.gda)

• Generated as result of meshing, it contains only
• Shell Mesh Bodies
• Solid Mesh Bodies
• Different kinds of 1D Mesh Bodies
• NO CAD Body!
• Reorganizing fully allowed (Rename, Body Transfer,
Model Merge, SubModel creation…)

CAD Model (same extension of the CAD file)

• Generated as result of importing a CAD file or assembly, it contains
ONLY CAD Bodies - NO FEM Body!
• Sub Models may follow the structure of the CAD Assembly.
• Few operations allowed (delete bodies, regenerate parametric CAD,…)
• Reorganizing only partially allowed:
• Renaming only for Parasolid and Step
• NO Body Transfer between CAD Models
• NO Model Merge, SubModel creation…)
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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Model Structure

Solid Mesh Body

Surface Mesh Body

CAD body

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Model Structure

• In case of Multiple Models, each model has its own

numbering (“restarting from zero”).
• For this reason, many interaction among FE bodies are
only possible after the bodies have been moved into the
same model.
• On the other side, it is not a problem at all to keep
different version of the same mesh, as long as they
remain in different model.
• Within a model:
• Geometry ids are unique (A face cannot have the
same id as a body or a vertex)
• Nodes ids are unique
• Element ids are unique

• Remember:
• CAD Bodies cannot be moved between models
• Mesh Bodies can be moved between Mesh models
• Mesh bodies can be renamed while CAD bodies can
not (with the exceptions of Parasolid and Step).

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Entities – Topology Entities

• SimLab is an Entity Based Tool.

• Entities are organized hierarchically, have an own ID and can be grouped together.

• Geometry Entities, also referred as Topology Entities, can be selected on both

CAD and FEM, and are:

BODY FACE

VERTEX
EDGE

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Entities – FEM Entities

• FEM entities can only be selected on FEM Bodies, and are:

• Elements

• Element edges

• Nodes

• Loads.

• It can be said that on FEM Bodies, Topology Entities consist of FEM Entities, since:
• Faces consist of Elements
• Edges are particular cases of Element Edges
• Vertices are particular cases of Nodes.

• A mesh in slb or gda format contains the definition of both FEM and Topology
Entities.
• A Solver Input File contains only the definistion of FEM entities. Topology Entities
must be generated

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Entity Selection

Selection Right-Click
Toolbar Menu

• Quick selection of entities is a fundamental aspect of the work with

SimLab.
• The selected entities populate the Selection List (if active). Once one
operation is confirmed, it applies to all entities that are currently in the
Selection List.
Selection • The entity selection is done according to the active Picking Method and
List Entity Filter.
• These options can be selected in the Selection Toolbar, in the
Selection List and through Right Click Menu in the graphics area.

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Entity Selection – Picking Method

• The list of the Picking Methods which can be used for the selection of entities is accessible
through the Selection Toolbar and through right click menu in the Graphics Area.

• Available Picking Methods are: Single, Polygon, Intersection, Deselect, Enclose, Visible,
Transparency.

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Entity Selection – Entity Filter

• The Entity Filters define which kind of entities will be highlighted and selected.
• Only one filter at the time is active.
• Many filters apply on both CAD and FE entities.
• SimLab tries to activate these filters automatically depending on the context of
the operations and functions used at a particular time. In this case, the active
filter is highlighted in the Selection Toolbar.

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Entity Selection – Topology Entities

• Geometry Filters can refer to both CAD and FE:

• Vertex
• Edge
• Circle
• Edge Loop
• Free Edge Loop
• Edge Path
• Face
• Cylinder
• Fillet
• Body

• Note: the selection mode Edge Path works differently from the
others:
• Select the guide edges to define the path
• A preview of the found path is shown.
• Right click co confirm or reject the selection.

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Entity Selection – FEM Entities

• FEM Filters can refer to FE only:

• Node
• RBE Node
• Element Edge
• Bar Element
• Element
• Loads
• RBE
• Co-ordinate
• RBAR

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Entity Selection

Following options are available in the Selection

List and through Right click Menu:

• Deselect All
Deselect Geometry
Delesect FEM
to clear the selection list (eventually only
Geometry/FEM filters)

• Previous Selection
to recall the last selected items, for example
if the selection was cleared.
• The Keyboard Shortcut CTRL+R will
remove the last selected entity from the list.

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Entity Display – Right Click Options

• Isolating and hiding entities is an efficient way of selecting entities.

• Most option for the Show/Hide of entities are accessible through context-sensitive
menus (right mouse button in the Modeling Window).

Standard options, available also when no entity is selected, are:

• Redisplay: cancels hiding of faces and edited entities and display the active bodies.
• Reset: brings all the view to the original state including the view angle.
• Invert: displays all the entities that are not currently displayed and hides all the entities
that are currently displayed.

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Entity Display – Right Click Options

Following right click options are the most used among the ones
available when geometry entities (Body, Face, Edge) are
selected:
• Hide: hide selected entity
• Reverse Hide: hide not selected entity (i.e. isolate selected)
• Select Features: opens dialog to identify/group features like
fillets, cylinders, discs a. s. o. (more info in the meshing
chapter).
• Select Adjacent: faces which are adjacent to the selected
ones
• Select Adjacent Layers: opens dialog to break-angle based
face selection
• Invert Transparency / Reset Transparency: switches /
resets the transparency status of the selected entities.

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Entity Display – View Toolbar

View Toolbar |Views : used to View Toolbar |Render Mode : controls how
• Align the view to one of the global axes the model displayed in 3D graphics area,
(other custom views can be defined in Rendering and coloring options for both CAD
the drop down menu View|Views|Create and FEM models are available.
View)
• Rotate the current view of a fixed angle.

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Entity Display – View Toolbar

View Toolbar |Visibility: View Toolbar | Add/Remove Layer:

• used hide/show categories of expands/reduces the current selection by
objects from the graphics area: selecting/deselecting entity layers.
• Loads
• Mesh Controls
• Results
• All CAD bodies
• All FEM bodies.
• It allows also to activate the
Exploded View

Add
Remove

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Entity Display – View Toolbar | Cutting Plane
View Toolbar | Cutting Plane:
• Activates and deactivates the Cutting Plane tool, which is used to cut a 3D
solid model and view the interior.
• Cutting plane can be manipulated on screen as follows:
• Use the sphere handles to rotate and orient it.
• Grab the square edges of the 3D tool to translate it to the desired
direction.
• More options are available via right click menu when Cutting Plane is
activated.

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Entity Selection – Inspect

• Advanced tools for the selection of

entities are available in the Inspect
Menu

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Groups

• A very common way of managing entities in SimLab is to

use the Group functionalities.

• Groups are available for following entities:

• Face
• Edge
• Vertex
• Element
• Element edge
• Node.

• Each Group can contain only entities of unique type.

• One entity can belong to different groups.

• Options to show, hide, rename… groups are available

through right click in the Group page of the Model Browser.

• Many panels accept Groups to be entered as input instead

of entities.
• Groups are a very important to implement automated
processes.

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Groups

• Group Creation can be done directly in the graphics window.

• To edit a group, just double click it in the Group Tree.
• Advanced options in the Group Menu.
• Transfer create automatically groups in a FE Model based on
existing groups of a CAD model.

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Exercises
Import: Or open
…\Models\1_Import_Models\ D_wheelasy.gda …\Models\1_Import_Models\ D_wheelasy.slb
…\Models\1_Import_Models\D_wheelasy.xmt_txt
…\Models\1_Import_Models\D_wheelasy.fem

What to do :

1. Familiarize with the SimLab GUI:

• Turn on/off components from the Assembly Tree
• Pan / Zoom the part
• Try different Visibility modes and Cutting Plane

2. Familiarize with the SimLab Entities:

• Select different types of entities by exploring different selection modes.
• Create Groups out of the selected entities.
• Edit the groups using the Group Tree in the Model Browser.
• Inspect the Size of the model.

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01 - Importing CAD and FEM

Exercises – Complete Workflow

Import Parasolid Geometry:

…\Models\_Complete_Workflow\A_Transmissional_Housing\A_transmissional_housing_v2.xmt_txt

What to do :

• Ensure you import also the groups definded on the CAD geometry
• Explore the defined group

You can use this model to work you through the complete workflow in the next
chapters.

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02 – Meshing Tools
Agenda

2. Meshing Tools
• Meshing Fundamentals 1. Import CAD/FEM

• Mesh Controls
2.1 2D Mesh
• Mesh Template
3. Modify 4. Assembly

2.2 Volume Mesh 5. Cleanup

6. Connections

7. Analysis Setup

8. Post Processing A1. Automation

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02 – Meshing Tools
Overview

Mesh | 2D Create Mesh | 3D Create

Commands for the creation of Commands for the creation of
Shell Mesh Bodies (typically Solid Mesh Bodies (typically
from CAD bodies, but also from Shell Mesh Bodies, but
from Shell Mesh Bodies) also from CAD Bodies)

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02 – Meshing Tools
Meshing Fundamentals – 2D Mesh

Mesh | 2D Create | Mesh

• Meshes selected Bodies or Faces (CAD or
FEM) with 2D Elems (Tri/Quad)

• A new Model (Assembly) will be created,

containing the meshed bodies.

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02 – Meshing Tools
Meshing Fundamentals – Element Type

Mesh | 2D Create | Mesh

Select Element Type:
• „Tri6 with straight edges“ available under
Advanced Options (or via Body Mesh
Control)
• Even a Tri3 mesh can be used later to
generate a second order Tet10 Solid
Mesh.

• SimLab allows to hide the MidNodes to

simplifying the work with second order
elements. Please check the setting under
Render Mode | FEM Model | Quadratic
Element Display

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02 – Meshing Tools
Meshing Fundamentals – Element Size

Avg/Max Mesh Size

Minimum element size

Mesh growth
• 1.5 means that an element can be
max. 50% bigger than its neighbour

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02 – Meshing Tools
Meshing Fundamentals – Element Size

Minimum element size:

• SimLab basically doesn’t require geometry cleanup.
• CAD Edges are automatically “suppressed” whenever
they would origin elements smaller than the min size.
• Instead, it possible to specify which entities shall NOT
be suppressed (see Preserve Mesh Control)

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02 – Meshing Tools
Meshing Fundamentals – Curvature

Geometry Approximation:
• The mesh approximates the geometry by varying the
mesh size as a function of the curvature.
• Such geometry approximation cannot result in a mesh
size smaller than Curvature Minimum Element Size.

Max. angle 45° Max. angle 30°

• 8 Elems around holes • 12 Elems around holes
• 2 elems across a 90°fillets • 3 elems across a 90°fillets

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02 – Meshing Tools
Meshing Fundamentals – Curvature

Example of Geometry Approximation for Fillets:

• Min element size: 0.45
• Max angle per element: 30°
• Curvature min size: 1.5

3 element rows 2 element rows 1 element row Fillets with

• Size ≥ 4.5 (=3x1.5) • 3 ≤ Size ≤ 4.5 • 0.45 ≤ Size < 1.5 Size<0.45 are
• Angle ≥ 60° • 30°≤ Angle ≤ 60° • Angle < 30° defeatured

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02 – Meshing Tools
Meshing Fundamentals – Mesh vs Remesh

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02 – Meshing Tools
Meshing Fundamentals – Solid Mesh

Mesh | 3D Create | Solid Mesh

• Fills the water-tight mesh of an empty Shell
Body with Tet elements.
• Inputs:
• Elem Type (Tet4, Tet10)
• Elem Size
• Growth Rate (Internal Grading)
• 2 Quality criteria can be selected

• Solid Mesh Bodies are listed as:

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02 – Meshing Tools
Meshing Fundamentals – Solid Mesh – Advanced Options

To maintain the shell mesh bodies

and create Tets in a new model

Generally Solid Mesh does not

modify the mesh on the outer
surface, but in some case some
node could be moved to improve the
element quality.
Activate this option to preserve all Tri
Elems on the surface without
exceptions.

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02 – Meshing Tools
Meshing Fundamentals – Solid Mesh – Remarks

REMEMBER: a Body never contains shell and solid elems at the same
time. Therefore:
• Once a Solid Mesh is created, the surface elems continue to exist only as
faces of the solid elements, but they will not be exported.
• In other words: there is no need of deleting any Tri elem once Tets are
created.
• If membrane elements are required on the surface, they can be created
in a new (shell) body using Geometry | Body | Create | From Faces |
Duplicate and make shared faces .
• To delete the solid mesh and go back to the shell mesh:
[Select body] | RMB | Delete Solid Elements.

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02 – Meshing Tools
Exercise – Complete Workflow – Quick Mesh
Continue with the model used in the last chapter
OR
Import Parasolid Geometry:
…\Models\_Complete_Workflow\A_Transmissional_Housing\A_transmissional_housing_v2.xmt_txt
OR
Import the geometry without logo in the folder A1_QuickMesh

What to do :
• Inspect the model size to decide a suitable mesh size
• Use the tools in the menu Inspect|Distance
or
• Select an edge and read its length in the Output Window
• Mesh the surface of the parts with Mesh|2D Create|Mesh.
• Use second order (Tri6) elements.
• Choose adequate parameters.
• Ensure that Render Mode | FEM Model | Quadratic Element Display is turned on, to visualize the
midnodes.
• Create Tet10 elements with Mesh|3D Create|Solid Mesh
• Activate the Cutting Plane to visualize the elements inside the body.
• In needed, use [Select Body]|RMB|Delete Solid Elements to go back to the shell mesh.

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02 – Meshing Tools
Mesh Controls

Mesh Controls (MC)

• The density, the quality and the structure of th mesh can be controlled
by defining Mesh Controls on the geometry.

• Mesh Controls are assigned to topology entities (Body, Face, Edge)

and can refer to particular Features (Fillets, Cylinders) or regions in
space.

• Mesh Controls can be used indifferently on both CAE and on FE

bodies.

• When a body is meshed (2D or 3D), all Mesh Controls defined on

its entities (not on the entities of its CAD-parent or on its FE-
children!) will be considered.

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02 – Meshing Tools
Mesh Controls – Browser

Mesh Controls are listed in a dedicated page of

the Model Browser.
• Edit a MC by double clicking on it.

• Empty MCs are marked with Ø

• Hide/Show the MCs by clicking on the icons

• Further options available through RMB.

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02 – Meshing Tools
Mesh Controls – Local MCs

Define new Local Mesh Controls from the MC panel

or by Right Click Menu after selecting the entities.

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02 – Meshing Tools
Mesh Controls | Body

• Body Mesh Control is defined on (CAE/FE) bodies only

• It defines locally - for each body - the same
parameters which are otherways defined globally in
the 2D Mesh and in the Solid Mesh panel:
• Mesh Size
• Geometry Approximation (curvature)
• Mesh Growth
• …

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02 – Meshing Tools
Mesh Controls | Body – Naming

Attention! Characters like spaces, points and commas are not

supported in the naming of Mesh Controls!

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02 – Meshing Tools
Mesh Controls | Face

• Face Mesh Control can be defined on Face entities

to refine or coarsen the mesh locally.

• Merge selected faces joins the selected faces by

suppressing the edges between them.

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02 – Meshing Tools
Mesh Controls | Face – Selection Tips

• Use the Select Adjacent Layers option (available

on RMB) select the full water jacket at once.

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02 – Meshing Tools
Mesh Controls | Edge

• Edge Mesh Control controls the size, the density

and the biasing of the mesh directly on edges.

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02 – Meshing Tools
Mesh Controls | Edge – Selection Tips

• Use the Edge Path selection

filter to select quickly edges
along a path.

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02 – Meshing Tools
Mesh Controls | Fillet

• Fillet Mesh Control is used to control the mesh over selected fillets,
along the length and the curve direction.
• Typically the number of element rows and the length of the elems
along the fillet are entered.

• Use this option on bodies to apply the MC to all fillets within a

radius range.
• Attention: using this option together with the option Number of
elements along curvature hardly gives good results!
• Prefer in this case Geometry Approximation or control the global
definition of fillets using the parameters of the Body MC.

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02 – Meshing Tools
Mesh Controls | Fillet

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02 – Meshing Tools
Mesh Controls | Fillet – Selection Tips

• Use Select Features | Fillets (RMB Menu) to identify

convex/concave fillets within a radius range

Fillet Mesh Control

Surfs to search in (with
Select Adjacent Layers)

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02 - Meshing Tools
Cylinder Mesh Control

• Cylinder Mesh Control is used to control the mesh both axially and
radially on the selected cylindrical faces
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02 - Meshing Tools
Cylinder Mesh Control
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02 - Meshing Tools
Cylinder Mesh Control

• It is common to find several cylinders with the same axis but separated by discs, cones
or circular edges.
• It is sufficient to assign mesh control to one or part of a circular edge and all the edges
will pick up the mesh seed.
• It is sufficient if the axial mesh size is assigned to one cylinder and all cylinders will pick
it up.
• This transmission of the mesh size will stop if the circular disk separating the cylinders
is too thick.
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02 - Meshing Tools
Washer Mesh Control

• Washer mesh control is used to create rings around a circle

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02 - Meshing Tools
Circle Imprint Mesh Control

• Creates circular edge on a face with the specified radius and the number of seeds
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02 - Meshing Tools
Region Mesh Control

• Region mesh control applies local refinement within the defined shape (Cuboid /
Cylinder / Sphere) of region.
• The selected entities (faces/bodies) that lies inside the region will be assigned the
specified size.
• Entities which are partially inside the region will be graded according to region of
overlap.
• Also the region can break the face/body along the boundary of the chosen shape
(Cuboid / Cylinder / Plane / Cone).
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02 - Meshing Tools
Region Mesh Control

Example : Region Mesh Control / Plane / Without Size / Break Boy

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02 - Meshing Tools
Region Mesh Control

Example : Region Mesh Control / box / Local Size / Without Break

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02 - Meshing Tools
Include

• Include mesh

• Include mesh specified in Body Mesh Control

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02 - Meshing Tools
Valve Seat Mesh control

• Valve Seat Mesh control is used to control the mesh in the valve seat pocket region. This
controls the mesh on the cylinder and disc faces in the axial and radial direction and also
preserves the chamfer faces if needed
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02 - Meshing Tools
Valve Seat Mesh control

With “Preserve Chamfer”

Without “Preserve Chamfer”

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02 - Meshing Tools
Isoline Mesh Control

• Isoline Mesh control is used to control the mesh on cylinders and partial cylinders
• It strictly maintains the axial mesh size and the angle
• This separates iso-line mesh control from fillet and cylinder mesh controls
• Reference point and direction can be used to define the start point and the direction of the
isomesh
• Merge option is used to merge the selected faces
• Reference point is also used to generate a mesh such that a radial shift of the iso-mesh is
required
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02 - Meshing Tools
Isoline Mesh Control

Reference point
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02 - Meshing Tools
Isoline Mesh Control

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02 - Meshing Tools
Volume Layer Mesh Control

• Volume Layer Mesh control is used to generate layers of Tet elements along thin regions.
• The number of layers can also be specified in terms of the thickness of each layers. This
option is useful when the number of layers have to change with the thickness for a body
that has regions of variable thickness.
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02 - Meshing Tools
Volume Layer Mesh Control
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02 - Meshing Tools
Hard Points Mesh Control

Example: Hard Points panel

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02 - Meshing Tools
Preserve Entities Mesh Control

• The automated meshing process can collapse sliver faces. The mesher will
automatically decide which one to preserve and which one to collapse
• Using Preserve Entities mesh control, user can control the features to be
preserved while meshing

There are four types of preserve entities

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02 - Meshing Tools
Preserve Entities Mesh Control

Face Shape
• Option used to retain the planarity of the face after meshing. The
nodes in the face will not get moved out of the face
Face Edges
There are
• Option used to retain all the edges fourface
of the typesafter
of preserve entities
meshing. This
means that tiny edges on the faces will be preserved and the face
will not get collapsed
Edge
• Option used when only few edges of a face are to be preserved
when meshing
Mesh
• Option used to maintain the existing mesh in the face during
meshing
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02 - Meshing Tools
Mesh Patterns
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02 - Meshing Tools
Tree Windows

• Created “Mesh controls” are listed in the “Assembly Model” tree

window under “Process Control” tab
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02 - Meshing Tools
Update Mesh Controls

by double clicking the mesh control

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02 - Meshing Tools
Priorities

For each geometry type the mesh size is determined as follows:

Edge
1. Edge Mesh Seed
2. Region Mesh Size
3. Edge Mesh Size
4. Smaller of the face mesh size on the faces connected to it.
5. Feature Mesh Size
6. Body Mesh Size
7. Global Mesh Size (Size defined in the Surface Meshing dialog box)
Face
1. Region Mesh Size
2. Face Mesh Size
3. Feature Mesh Size
4. Body Mesh Size
5. Global Mesh Size (Size defined in the Surface Meshing dialog box)
Body
1. Region Mesh Size
2. Body Mesh Size
3. Global Mesh Size (Size defined in the Surface Mesh dialog box)
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02 - Meshing Tools
Surface/ Curve Mesh
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02 – Meshing Tools
Exercise – Complete Workflow – Mesh Controls – 1/2
Continue with the model from the last chapter
or Import Parasolid Geometry:
…\Models\_Complete_Workflow\A_Transmissional_Housing\A_transmissional_housing_v2.xmt_txt

What to do :
• Import the empty Mesh Specification: ..\A2_Meshing\A_Mesh_Template.xml
• Assign the Body Mesh Controls (Carrier: coarsen; Cover: fine).
• Assign the Cylinder Mesh Control to the holes of the bolt connection on both Cover and Carrier.
Use Select Feature to identify the cylinders.

• Assign the Washer Mesh Control (representing the imprinting of the bolt heads) to the circles on
the upper side of the Cover. Use Select Feature to identify the circles.

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02 – Meshing Tools
Exercise – Complete Workflow – Mesh Controls – 2/2
• Assign the Fillet Mesh Control to designed fillets in the pockets of the Carrier.
Use Select adjacent layers and Select features to select the fillets.
• Assign the Preserve Mesh Controls to the Faces with the Logo and to the faces which have to
remain planar (contacts).

• Shell Mesh both components.

• Add a Volume Layer Mesh Control to (some faces of the) Cover.
• Solid Mesh the Cover only.

Save the model to be able to go on working on it in the next chapter.

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02 - Meshing Tools
Exercises
Open file:

Altair-SimLab_training_V12\Exercises\Exercise_3_Meshing_Tools\ex_3_crankshaft_portion.xmt_txt

What to do:

1. Open the Parasolid model in millimeters

2. Set Mesh Control
Body mesh control: average size = 5
Isoline mesh control (violet): length along fillet = 5 ; # of element = 60 ; Merge faces ON ; Starting point (0;0;100)

Deselect these faces

Isoline mesh control

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02 - Meshing Tools
Exercises
Fillet mesh control (blue): lenght along fillet = 2 ; # of elements = 6

Fillet mesh control

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02 - Meshing Tools
Exercises
Fillet mesh control (green): lenght along fillet = 1 ; # of elements = 10

Fillet mesh control

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02 - Meshing Tools
Exercises
Face mesh control (yellow): avergae element size = 1
Fillet mesh control : lenght along fillet = 5 ; Geometry approx. Angle = 22.5 ; Radius range = 0 – 5 ; Aspect Ratio =
5

3. Surface/ Curve Mesh

Face mesh control

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02 - Meshing Tools
Exercises
Open file:

Altair-SimLab_training_V12\Exercises\Exercise_3_Meshing_Tools\Ex_3d_Cylinderhead.slb

What to do:

1. Open the SimLab file

2. Check groups
3. Set Mesh Control on groups
Body mesh control: average size : 4
Fillet mesh control: (Face_Group1) length along fillet : 1
Face mesh control: (Face_Group3) average Elem. Size : 3; Use global: on; Merge : on
Valve Seat Pocket: (Face_Group4) cylinder Axis:2;Disc Radial:1;Angular Division:48
Fillet mesh control: (Face_Group5) length along fillet : 1,5
4. Surface/ Curve Mesh

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03 – Modify Geometry
Agenda

3. Modify Geometry:
• Create/modify geometry 1. Import CAD/FEM

• Remove/modify features
2.1 2D Mesh

3. Modify 4. Assembly

2.2 Volume Mesh 5. Cleanup

6. Connections

7. Analysis Setup

8. Post Processing A1. Automation

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03 – Modify Geometry
Meaning of Geometry in SimLab

• SimLab almost doesn’t have any specific CAD kernel: the editing of the body
structure is mainly done after meshing, directly on the FE bodies. That’s why in
SimLab the word Geometry has usually to be intended as “shape”or “structure” of
the FE Bodies and not as a synonym of CAD.
• A SimLab model consists of FE entities (nodes, element edges and triangular elements)
which are grouped into Bodies, Faces, Edges and Vertices - which are the basic
building blocks of the SimLab Geometry.
• When a CAD model is meshed, it is converted into a SimLab Geometry in which (FE-)
Bodies, (FE-)Faces, (FE-)Edges and (FE-)Vertices are mapped with the same ID of the
correspondent CAD Entities (Volumes, Surfaces, Lines and Points).
• SimLab expects most of the geometry to be imported from a CAD system but allows the
creation of simple FE-geometry entities, in addition to the possibility of editing, morphing
and defeaturing of the existing mesh.

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03 – Modify Geometry
Overview

Commands allowing the modification/editing of existing FE-geometry are

spread among different SimLab ribbons, in particular Geometry, Features
and Assembly.

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03 – Modify Geometry
Geometry

The Geometry ribbon and the submenues Edge|Create,

Face|Create, Face|Modify and Body|Create contains all
commands to create, combine and modify geometrical
entities such as:
• Edges
• Faces
• Bodies

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03 – Modify Geometry
Geometry | Edge | Create

Edge | Create | Edge offset

• Creates edges inside a face by offsetting
the boundary edges.
Edge | Create | Element Edge • Can be used to trim washer or welding
• Converts Element Edges („black faces.
edges“) into Geometry Edges („white
edges“)
• Can be used to split Faces.

Face1 Face2

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03 – Modify Geometry
Geometry | Edge

Edge | Chain
Edge | Split • Useful for breaking a face into smaller
• Splits an edge into two portions to apply locally constraints or loads,
or more edges by or for introducing a pretension surface for a
adding vertices solid bolt (option Create face) .
Edge | Merge
• Merges two or more
edges into a single
edge by removing
vertices.

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03 – Modify Geometry
Geometry | Face | Create

New face – from existing

Elements:
New face – coordinate • Converts Element Edges
based into Geom Edges,
• Rectangle trimming a new face
• Cylinder

New face – from existing edges

• Use Edges for the most general case.

New face – from

• In case of Planar Faces consider using existing nodes
Mesh|Modify|Fill Holes|Edge|Single Face • 4 Nodes (Rectangle)
• N Nodes (Polygon)

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03 – Modify Geometry
Geometry | Face | Merge

Merge Faces:
• In general, the possibility to suppress an edge is not provided in SimLab (with the exception of
floating edges). Instead of this, we can perform the equivalent operation of face merging.
• The options Merge, Preserve and Split by angle determine what happens with the boundary edges
(i.e., the external edges which are not suppressed) of the merged face.

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03 – Modify Geometry
Geometry | Face | Split

Split Faces:
• This panel is used to divide automatically face(s) into more faces by creating edges
based on a breaking angle (By an angle) or on the face shape (By feature).
• Split Faces can be used every time edges/faces definition is missing, for example in
case of a mesh imported from a solver deck.
• By an angle: this option is used to break faces using the specified feature angle, i.e.
the but angle between adjacent elements. You can choose to create closed edge loops
only, or to accept also floating edges (i.e., open loops internal to a face).
• By feature: this option is used to extract the planar and cylindrical faces. It can be
used only on whole bodies in which some feature is already present.

By angle
45° By feature

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03 – Modify Geometry
Geometry | Face | Break

Break Faces:
• Allows to split one face into two faces by drawing a new edge between two nodes (or
verteces) or between an edge and a node (or vertex).
• Typically requires remeshing to improve the mesh quality after splitting.

• Consider also using Geometry | Body | Break on faces as an alternative in some cases.

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03 – Modify Geometry
Geometry | Face | Replace

Replace Faces:
• Replaces a face or set of faces in
a body (even in a solid body) with
new faces.
• The option Free edge boundary
allows to insert faces were missing.
• It requires three nodes to be defined
on both new and old geometry to
define the transformation.
• Boundary edges between current
and new faces must match.
However, the mesh on the boundary
between the new and current faces
can be similar or dissimilar.

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03 – Modify Geometry
Geometry | Face | Modify

Face|Modify:
• Advanced tools to edit surfaces
• Some of them useful for shell modeling
• See help for further infos

Flatten: tools to align and remove tiny faces

Tools to remove thin faces: adjacent to a base face. It can be used to
• Collapse elements of a thin face to its remove features such as fillets and
midline or to a selected edge (for chamfers (see section about defeaturing)
example, it can be used for the thin faces
on top of ribs).
• Merge tiny FEM faces, those with a width
less than the user-specified value

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03 – Modify Geometry
Geometry | Body | Create | Primitives

Coordinate-based tools for creating shell bodies for geometric primitives such as:
• Blocks (cubes)
• Cylinders
• Spheres (also Hex solid body)
• Cones

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03 – Modify Geometry
Geometry | Body | Create | Extrude and Revolve

Entity-based tools to extrude, revolve and sweep faces and egdes in order to create:
• Solid (Hex/Wedge) Bodies (by extruding faces)
• Shell Bodies (by extruding edges)
It is possible to choose among different methods, depending on which entities have to be
dragged, direction/profile of sweeping, start/end, entities to match etc.

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03 – Modify Geometry
Geometry | Body | Create | Extrude and Revolve

Extrude Revolve Sweep

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03 – Modify Geometry
Geometry | Body | Create | From Existing Entity

Entity-based tools to create bodies from existing entities (elements, faces)

• Entities are copied to a new body or simply moved
• Use Create|From Faces | Duplicate and make shared faces to obtain a shell
body containing membrane elements from the outer surface of a solid body.

Membrane Elements

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03 – Modify Geometry
Geometry | Body | (Un)Merge

• Merge/Unmerge: option used to merge two or more bodies in to a single body, and viceversa.
• Equivalente to the Merge/Unmerge options accessible via Right Mouse Button while bodies are selected.

Merge
Un-
merge

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03 – Modify Geometry
Geometry | Body | Break

• Break is used to break bodies (or sets of faces) using tools such as: plane, cylinder, box,
polygon and cone.
• It works for shell bodies and for Parasolid CAD bodies
• Options allow to create internale faces and to organize the entities into bodies
• Similar results are obtained by using the Region Mesh Control while meshing

Break | Plane
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03 – Modify Geometry
Geometry | Body | Break

Break | Cylinder

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03 – Modify Geometry
Features

The Features ribbon contains all commands to

• Create
• Remove (defeature)
• Modify
geometrical features such as
• Logos
• Holes/Cylinders
• Fillets
• Ribs/Thickness
• Circle/Radius
etc.

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03 – Modify Geometry
Features | Create Rib

Create Rib
Tool to create 2D or 3D ribs in order
to bolster the structure (Tri3 only)

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03 – Modify Geometry
Features | Modify FIllet

Features|Transform|Modify Fillet changes the radius of a fillet and

allows to adapt the number of element rows .

Use the Fillet selection mode!

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03 – Modify Geometry
Features | Transform | Translate / Rotate

Features|Transform|Translate and |Rotate are used to move a group

of faces without breaking the connectivity with the adjacent faces.
Local Remesh may help in case of big displacements.

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03 – Modify Geometry
Features | Transform | ChangeRadius / ChangeThickness

Features|Transform|ChangeRadius and |ChangeThickness are used

to change the radius of a hole or the thickness of a rib without
breaking the connectivity with the adjacent faces. Local Remesh
may help in case of big displacements.

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03 – Modify Geometry
Features | Remove Fillet

Features|Transform|Remove Fillet removes

a fillet face defeaturing the geometry.

Use the Fillet selection mode!

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03 – Modify Geometry
Features | Defeaturing Fillets

Features|Transform|Remove Fillet is not always the most efficient tool for defeaturing. For
example, in some cases more robust solutions are Geometry|Face|Modify|Flatten Face
and, in case of plane faces, Assembly|Align|Plane

Moreover, an opportune selection of the Mesh Control parameters could allow the defeaturing of some
small fillets directly by meshing:
• All fillets smaller than Minimum element size (Body Mesh Control) will be removed.
• Setting angle per element=90° in the Fillet Mesh Control may help to remove fillets in particular cases.

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03 – Modify Geometry
Features | Remove Chamfer

Tool used to remove chamfers faces by projecting to the adjacent (planar) faces

• Select a chamfer loop with one click using the fillet selection mode

• Select many chamfer at once using [RMB]|Select Features|Cones

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03 – Modify Geometry
Features | Remove Logo

• Tool used primarily to remove logos, part numbers and part names in a model.
• It can remove effectively also blind holes, sockets and all kind of “interruption” on the surfaces.
• Before meshing, preserve the interested faces using Mesh Controls|Preserve Entities|Face Edges.

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03 – Modify Geometry
Features | Remove Hole

• The Tool removes solid holes in the body. (Not to be confused with Mesh|Fill Holes, which works on surface holes!)
• It fills both blind and through holes, including chamfers (Remove cones) and closed partial cylinders
• It is possible to select a body and a radius range, or the hole faces (1 face for each hole is enough).

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03 – Modify Geometry
Assembly | Align

• Use the Assembly | Align feature to move nodes by projecting

(“aligning”) faces or edges to shapes such as planes, cylinders,
spheres, circles, straight lines and so on.

• The Assembly | Align operation is especially useful before assembly

operations, which are usually based on feature shapes, such as
plane, cylinder, disc, and so on, to make the faces conform to these
shapes if some nodes are offset slightly.

Notes:
• Similar functions can also be found in the panel FEM | Node | Move.
The main difference between the two panels is that, while Align modifies the mesh by reshaping features
such as faces and edges, Move Node operates directly on the single nodes, even when they are not
grouped in faces.

• Consider also the tools of the panel Features | Transform for particular cases, such as changing a hole
radius, or a thickness, or if you need to translate/rotate faces within a body.

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03 – Modify Geometry
Assembly | Align | Cylinder

Assembly | Align | Cylinder:

• Reshape oval or polygonal faces to cylindrical.
• Change radius (on-screen manipulation of the cylinder tool by
dragging of the transparent faces).

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03 – Modify Geometry
Assembly | Align | Plane

Assembly | Align | Plane

Planar, not aligned

Not planar

Planar, aligned
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03 – Modify Geometry
Assembly | Align | Line / Circle

Assembly | Align | Circle

Assembly | Align | Line

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03 – Modify Geometry
Exercise – Complete Workflow – Modify
Continue with the model from the last chapter
Or open file: .. \_Complete_Workflow\A_Transmissional_Housing\A3_Modify\A3_Housing_2DMesh.slb

Modify the geometry of the 2D Mesh. Make sure to try at least once each of following operations:
1. Remove the part number with Features|Remove|Logo.
2. Remove some chamfers using Features|Remove|Chamfer or Geometry|Face|Modify|Flatten Face.
3. Change the diameter of a non-bolt hole using Features|Transform|ChangeRadius (or Assembly|Align|Cylinder).
4. Remove a the small hole hole (2.5<R<2.6) using Features|Remove|Hole.
5. Align the contact face on the tail to its plane using Assembly|Align|Plane.
6. Optional: Remove some fillets using Features|Remove|Fillets or Geometry|Face|Modify|Flatten Face.
7. Optional: Create a washer face around a hole using Geometry|Edge|Create|Edge Offset (Consoder Remeshing).
8. Solid Mesh the Carrier part.

1. 2. 3.

7.

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04 – Assembly
Agenda

4. Assembly:
• Modify Intersections 1. Import CAD/FEM

• Connect Bodies
2.1 2D Mesh
• Imprint Entities
3. Modify 4. Assembly

2.2 Volume Mesh 5. Cleanup

6. Connections

7. Analysis Setup

8. Post Processing A1. Automation

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04 – Assembly
Overview

• Assembly|Modify: tools to prepare the geometry for the assembly process.

• Assembly|Imprint: tools for the local, entity based realization of congruent
mesh between entities.
• Assembly|Connect: automated creation of matching (shared) nodes
between components.

• Assembly operations are generally supported for mesh bodies only (with some
exception for Parasolid, like Boolean and Imprint).

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04 – Assembly
Modify | Intersections

Assembly|Modify|Intersections: tool to check and resolve overlaps and

intersections between bodies, before they are assembled.
Featured operations:
• Show Intersection
• Delete intersection
• Convert overlap to penetration (useful for example before Boolean
operation)

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04 – Assembly
Modify | Align

Different components are usually assembled through feature shapes, such as plane, cylinder,
disc, and so on. So, if the faces of a mesh body do not conform to these shapes since few of the
nodes are offset slightly, then they can be aligned properly before calling the Assembly functions.

Since Assembly|Align functions are intensively used also for the modification of the geometry, these tools are
described in the Modify Geometry chapter.

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04 – Assembly
Connect – Matching Mesh

The Assembly|Connect ribbon provides the tools to connect FE-Bodies by creating matching
nodes – i.e. shared faces and edges.
• Join – creates automatically matching mesh (shared entities) between selected bodies
• Semi-Auto: allows to select faces or bodies, and to specify the face type.
• Auto: identifies automatically joining and overlapping faces
• Separate – converts shared entities into pairs of identical entities with congruent mesh
• Shared – looks for shared entities between the selected bodies.

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04 – Assembly
Connect | Join |Cylindrical faces

• Join|Cylindrical Faces – identifies and joins automatically matching

pairs of cylindrical faces within tolerance.
• After joining, the faces will preserve the cylindrical mesh pattern.
• Mesh size or [Link] mesh divisions can be specified.

Show Join

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04 – Assembly
Connect | Join |Planar faces

• Join|Planar Faces – identifies and joins pairs of planar faces.

• Shape: this option will modify the mesh of both sides.
• Mesh: Entities selected under Preserve faces will be preserved
as much as possible. This is important in case of slightly different,
non aligned borders, to decide which edge should be preserved
from collapsing.

Show Join

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04 – Assembly
Connect | Join

• Join|Auto: fully automatic way of identifying and joining the

overlapping faces. (The output will come in as a new model).
• Join|General Faces: to identify and join overlapping faces which don't
participate in the standard options (cylinders, hollow discs, matching,
planar and partial). However, a cylindrical face pair joined with
General could loose the cylindrical mesh pattern.

• In case of complex geometry, like for example in Molded parts, it could be quite
difficult to obtain good matching with Join|General. A recommended workflow
could be:
• With Geometry|Face|Replace, create a congruent mesh on both sides you
wanto to join.
• Create the shared faces using Join|Matching Faces.

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04 – Assembly
Connect | Re-meshing Shared Faces

Re-meshing Shared Faces:

• After joining, the remeshing of the shared faces can be done quickly in the Mesh|Re-mesh panel just
be selecting the whole bodies. Thus, only the shared faces will be remeshed.
• if you used the option Preserve Mesh in the Assembly|Join panel, you may have to provide the faces
with a Preserve Mesh Control to avoid the collapsing of small edges while remeshing. This is important
in case of slightly different faces with non aligned borders.

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04 – Assembly
Connect | Separate

• Assembly|Separate: tool used to separate shared entities (Faces/Edges/Vertices)

between the bodies
• After separating the entities each body will have its own entities. Nodes will be
coincident, i.e., different nodes with different IDs but in the same place.
• Using Separate after Join is a quick way to obtain congruent not shared mesh.

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04 – Assembly
Connect | Shared Entities

• Assembly|Shared: review shared faces of a body or between selected bodies.

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04 – Assembly
Connect | Boolean and Fusion

Assembly|Connect|Boolean allows to perform Boolean operations between bodies with

intersections.
• Combine – body union with or without preserving internal faces
• Remove – body subtraction.
• To obtain an intersection, choose the Combine option preserving the internal faces in all
bodies and delete the external parts.
• Union, Intersection and Subtraction are available also for Parasolid CAD bodies.
• Use Align|Intersection to manage/convert overlapping and penetration between bodies.

Assembly|Connect|Fuse is used to fuse bodies to a single volume by closing the gaps

between them.

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04 – Assembly
Imprint

The Assembly|Imprint ribbon provides tools to imprint single or multiple

entities on other faces or edges, in order to obtain coincident mesh (as
shared faces or as a pair of congruent entities).

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04 – Assembly
Imprint | Face on Face

• Assembly|Imprint|Face on Face and Assembly|Imprint|Gasket creates congruent

mesh on overlapping faces within a tolerance.

• If the faces are not overlapping, and the gap between them must be preserved, you can
first project a copy of the reference face on the target face, for example using
Geometry|Transform|Translate or Offset.

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04 – Assembly
Imprint | Edge

• Different tools in Assembly|Imprint allow the creation of new

edges on faces or for the imprinting of existing ones.

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04 – Assembly
Exercises
Import one of following geometry:
.. \Models\4_Assembly\A_engine_model1.xmt_txt
.. \Models\4_Assembly\ B_block_hole_with_clearance.xmt_txt
.. \Models\4_Assembly\ C_Assy_2bodys.xmt_txt

To do:
1. 2D Surface mesh
2. Join
3. Merge
4. Geometry | Body | Show internal faces
5. Show adjacent face
6. Local Remesh
7. Unmerge

A_engine_model1.xmt_txt B_block_hole_with_clearance.xmt_txt C_Assy_2bodys.xmt_txt

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Agenda

5. Cleanup and Repair:

• Local Remeshing 1. Import CAD/FEM

• Topology Verification
2.1 2D Mesh
• Topology Repair
3. Modify 4. Assembly
• Manual Cleanup
• Element Quality Cleanup
2.2 Volume Mesh 5. Cleanup

6. Connections

7. Analysis Setup

8. Post Processing A1. Automation

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Overview

The ribbons Mesh and FEM contain the tools to repair

the topology and fix the quality of the elements.
Following operations can be performed:
• Quality improvement through local remesh
• Verification and fixing of the mesh topology
• free edges,
• non-manifold edges,
• Intersections
• Element/Node based local mesh modification
• Element quality check and cleanup

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Local Remeshing – Re-mesh

• Local remeshing through Mesh|Re-mesh is typically used:

• for the cleanup after operations like defeaturing, body joining, face
merging, body/face breaking and so on;
• to refine/coarsen the mesh locally.
• Preserve boundary edges determines if the adjacent faces will
be affected or not.

• Note: Re-mesh works on Surface Mesh only. In case of solid body, please
select the body, then RMB|Delete Solid Elements

Preserve boundary edges: ON Preserve boundary edges: OFF

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Local Remeshing – Re-mesh

Re-mesh - Remarks:
• The local remesh does not consider any Mesh Control defined on the CAD bodies!
Only Mesh Controls assigned to the FE Bodies take effect. You can:
• add the interested faces to the Mesh Control you want to use;
• use the option Transfer in the Mesh Control Panel to recreate the Mesh Controls on the mesh.
• For the Re-mesh of cylindrical holes, use the Isoline Mesh Control (instead of the Cylinder
Mesh Control) and turn off Preserve boundary edges.
• To remesh the shared faces after using Assembly|Join, just pick directly the bodies
and SimLab will remesh only the faces in common between them.
• Remember that if you used the option Preserve Mesh in the Assembly|Join panel, you may
have to use a Preserve Mesh Control to avoid the collapsing of small edges while remeshing.

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Local Remeshing – Grid Mesh (MxN Meshing)

Mesh | Grid Mesh is an important remeshing tool to obtain a mapped mesh (90 degree
triangulation) with a given number of elements (“MxN”).
• The surface doesn’t need to be a 4-sided face; anyway, if the face can not be reduced univocally to a
4-sided shape, the input of 4 nodes for the direction will be requested.
• Grid Mesh requires a single face input. Please use Merge Faces to apply it to more faces at once.
• Use Project to the input face to better approximate the shape of the original face
• Note: the Mesh Controls to use to obtain the “MxN”-structure directly from CAD are: Mesh Pattern|Iso
Mesh, IsoLine, and of course Fillet and Cylinder.

Merge Grid

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Local Remeshing – Layers

Use Mesh | Layers to change the number of layers of elements present in isomeshed faces such
as cylinders and hollow discs (and also in 2.5D solid map meshed bodies)

Cylinder

Hollow Disc

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Local Remeshing – CAD Based Remeshing
• A face or a set of faces could have been damaged so seriously that a Remesh is not
possible anymore.
• In such cases, it is possible to go back to the CAD and remesh the interested faces
(including preferably also the adjacent faces);
• Then, replace the damaged faces with the new ones using Geometry|Face|Replace.

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Local Remeshing – Exercise
Open file: .. \_Complete_Workflow\A_Transmissional_Housing\A3_Modify\A3_Housing_2DMesh.slb

1. Realize an Isoline-mapped mesh on selected faces by using

• Face Merge + Grid Mesh or
• Isoline Mesh Control + Re-mesh
2. Change the number of element layers on a washer and on cylinders with Mesh|Layers
3. If something goes wrong, mesh the interested CAD faces and replace the damaged FE-faces using
Geometry|Face|Replace

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Topology Verification

The Topology Verification tools in the Mesh ribbon are used to verify if a 2D shell
mesh fulfills all the topological requirements to allow the solid meshing:
• Mesh enclosure (“Water tightness”): checked with Mesh|Verify|Edges
and Mesh|Verify|Folds
• Non-Manifold Edges (allowed only in case of shared faces and internal
faces): checked with Mesh|Verify|Edges
• No self-intersecting or self-overlapping mesh: Mesh|Verify|Intersection

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Topology Verification – Free Edges

Mesh|Verify|Edges locates and isolates topological issues in an

outer-surface mesh: Non-manifold edge
Free Edge
• Free Edges (displayed in orange): element edge belonging to
one shell element only. Never allowed in solid modeling!
• Non-Manifold Edges: (displayed in yellow): element edge
belonging to three or more shell elements. Allowed only in case of
internal/shared faces.

• In the Free-Edge view, the element patches containing errors are isolated.
The patches disappear in real time as soon as they are fixed.
• Enlarge/reduce the patch size with Right Mouse Button | Add/Remove Layer
• Exit the Free-Edge View with RMB | Redisplay.

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Topology Verification – Intersection

Mesh|Verify|Intersection locates and isolates the self

intersection and the self overlapping of a outer-surface mesh
which has to be filled with a solid mesh. Intersections are
highlighted in orange.

• In the Intersection view, the element patches containing errors are

isolated. The patches disappear in real time as soon as they are fixed.
• Exit the Intersection View with RMB | Redisplay.

• The panel Mesh|Intersection should not be confused with the other

panel Assembly|Modify Intersections:
• Mesh|Verify|Intersection: used to find self-intersections within
a shell body, to allow the solid meshing
• Assembly|Modify Intersections: mainly used to find and
modify the overlapping between different bodies to allow
assembly operations

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Topology Repair – Fill Holes

• Mesh|Fill Holes is the tool to repair the breaks (holes) in the outer surface of a body.
• If the option Body or Faces is selected, all free edge loops within the body or the set of
faces will be filled.
• Use Mesh|Verify|Edges to check residual open loops.

• Note: Mesh|Fill Holes is a repairing tool of the shell mesh, and should not be confused with
Feature|Remove Hole, which is a defeaturing tool to remove design holes like for example bolt
connections or lubrications channels.

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Topology Repair – Fill Holes

• Mesh|Fill Holes with the option Edge|Single Face gives a practical way
to recreate missing (preferably planar) faces.
• Pick the external free edge loop and any internal edge loop, which will be
subtracted from the created face.
• With Fill Partial Loop it is possible to create (planar) faces also from a
not-closed loop of edges.

External Loop

Internal
Loops

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Topology Repair – Fill Cracks and Slots

• Mesh|Fill Cracks allows to fill cracks and slots of selected faces or bodies.
• Cracks are defined as a closed loop of free element edges with an angle smaller than 30°.
Cracks are filled by equivalence the free edge nodes, but no new element is created.
• Slots are cracks with a minimum angle of at least 30°. In this case, if the minimum edge length
allows it, new elements are created, otherwise the slot is closed just by collapsing edges and
equivalence nodes.

Crack Slot

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Manual Repair Tools – Mesh | Modify

Tools for the manual editing of elements

Swap Edge Collapse Edge Equivalence Node

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Manual Repair Tools – Mesh | Modify

Split Edge Quad to trias

Trias to quads

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Manual Repair Tools – Create Element

Create Element

Note: the panel doesn’t allow to create Tri6, but you can simply fill holes in a second order
mesh with first order elements (Tri3). This will not be seen as a free edge: SimLab will just
convert everything to linear or quadratic as soon as a solid mesh is created.
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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Manual Repair Tools – FEM Ribbon

The FEM Ribbon features additional FE-entities-based tool to check

and fix manually the mesh, like:
• FEM|Create Node by coordinate, in an arc center, in the
centroid of a geometrical entity…
• FEM|Delete (Orphan) Nodes
• FEM|Move Node
• FEM|Equivalence Nodes to stich together free nodes (different
selection options available).
• FEM|Show (Free) Nodes to identify free nodes.
• FEM|Separate Nodes

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Manual Repair Tools – Update Model

• When you work directly with FE-Entities like Elements and

Nodes, topology entities like vertices, edges and faces are
NOT always created, and you may have nothing more than
new element edges and nodes.
• Before you continue your work it could be useful to use
Update Model (right click on the model name in the
Assembly Tree): the topology is thus updated, free element
edges are converted into topology edges, IDs of new faces
are defined, and so on.

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Element Quality Check & Cleanup

Quality Check
• SimLab generates mesh that can be used for different analysis types. For each of
these analysis mesh should meet certain quality criteria
• Since the definition of these quality measures can differ from one software to
another, see SimLab Help to understand how these criteria are calculated

F1-Help

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Element Quality Check & Cleanup

Element Type

A body must be
selected

Clean Up:
automatic element
Compute: failed clean up for the
elements for the selected criteria.
Display: isolate failed
selected body
elements and create
element group

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Find Element by ID

• If you need to identify an element (or a node) with a particular ID,

please use Search by ID (right click on the model name in the
Assembly Tree)
• To isolate the found element, create an element group containing the
element and than select it on the Group Tree.

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05 – Cleanup and Repair

Exercise

Import file: .. \5_Cleanup_Repair \Manual_cleaning.gda

1. Import the GDA part.

2. Verify elements using Free Edge and Elem intersection
3. Clean the part using Create element, Split, Swap, Collapse, Equivalence and Combine
4. Clean the part using Fill Cracks and Fill holes
5. Clean the part using Delete Floating Edges

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06 - Connections
Agenda

6. Connections:
• Connectors 1. Import CAD/FEM

• 1D Bolts (NVH Bolts)

2.1 2D Mesh
• 3D Bolts (Solid Bolts)
• Contacts 3. Modify 4. Assembly

2.2 Volume Mesh 5. Cleanup

6. Connections

7. Analysis Setup

8. Post Processing A1. Automation

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06 - Connections
Overview

Connectors Contact Bolt Modeling

• RBE Definition • 1D Bolts (NVH Bolts)
• MPC • 3D Bolts
• Bar • Pretension
• Spring
• …

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06 - Connections
Connectors

Automatic, semi-automatic and manual creation of

connectors for structural and thermal analysis:

• Rigid (RBE2, RBE3, RBAR)

• Bar Element
• Bush, Spring, Damper
• MPC
• Joint
• Gap Element
• Plot Element
• Matrix Element

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06 - Connections
Connectors – Rigids (RBE, RBAR)

RBE2/RBE3 “One-to-many” (Spider)

• Select Body, Face or Edge  centroid as central node
or
• Select central node (also through arc edge) and search
within tolerance

RBE2 “One-to-one”
• Select Node Pair
or
• Select Faces/Edges with congruent mesh

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06 - Connections
Connectors – Rigids – Check/Edit

Edit RBE
• Add/Remove/Change Dependent/Independent nodes

Show Attached
• Finds nodes attached to connectors
• Works for RBE/Bar/MPC/Spring

Query RBE (Select Body+Right Mouse Button)

• Finds RBEs attached to selected body

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06 - Connections
Connectors – MPC (Equations)

MPC
• Creates multi-point constraint equations between two sets of
nodes (typically between groups of identical faces)
• Use Cyclic Symmetry to link opposite faces in models with
angular pattern repetition

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06 - Connections
Connectors – Special Connectors

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06 - Connections
Bolt Modeling – Method Overview
Bolt Modeling
Menu: Advanced | Bolt Modeling

1D Modeling (NVH Bolt) 3D Modeling (Solid Bolt)

Rigid/Bar Tet/Hex

Quick Advanced Automatic CAD Pattern/ Face/Group

Pretensioned Head + Template Based Based Template Based
Thread + Based
Connection

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06 - Connections
1D Bolts (NVH Bolts) - Modeling

Picture: Prof. Dr. Dieter H. Pahr

• 1D Bolt Modeling lowers the model complexity

• Bolt Head: RBE Spider
• Prefer RBE3 elems to transfer load without increasing stiffness
• Use RSpider= (RHead+RHole) /2
• Bolt Shaft: Bar Elements
• Assign Property / Section / Material
• Use at least 2 bar elements
• Define Pretension Load between the bars to simulate Bolt Tension

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06 - Connections
1D Bolts (NVH Bolts) – Overview

Quick 1D Bolt

Automatic 1D Bolt

Advanced / Multiple 1D Bolt

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06 - Connections
1D Bolts – Quick Method- Through Hole

Trough Hole

Pick hole

Spider scale

Bar /Pretension

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06 - Connections
1D Bolts – Quick Method - Edit

• Bolt Modeling | Bar Pretension creates

RBE / Bar bodies in the Assembly Tree and
a Static Load for the pretension in the LBC
Tree

• To Edit / delete a bolt and/or its pretension,

preferably open the related Automation
Object in the LBC Tree.

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06 - Connections
1D Bolts – Quick Method- Threaded Hole

Thread Hole

Pick hole

Thread
Spider

Bar /Pretension

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06 - Connections
1D Bolts – Advanced / Multiple

Head / Nut Thread 1D 1D Connection / Pretension

1D Modeling Modeling • Head+Nut  Through Bolt
• Head+Thread  Threaded Bolt

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06 - Connections
1D Bolts – Advanced / Multiple – Head, Nut

Head / Nut Creation (Face Based)

Select:
• Head/Nut Type
• Faces to search in
• Diameter Range

Editing through selecting the

Automation Object “Head” in LBC
Tree

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06 - Connections
1D Bolts – Advanced / Multiple – Thread

Thread Creation (Face Based)

Select:
• Thread Type
• Faces to search in
• Diameter Range
• Depth/Pitch of the spider

Editing through selecting the

Automation Object “Thread” in
LBC Tree

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06 - Connections
1D Bolts – Advanced / Multiple – Connection/1

Connection
• Select the automation objects(Head/Thread)
from the LBC tree view to connect the head and
thread.
• Pick two Head Objects (Head+Nut) in case of
Through Bolt

• Various connection types are available – also

with pretension. Consult the Help (F1) for more
information.

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06 - Connections
1D Bolts – Advanced / Multiple – Connection/2

Connection
• Head and Thread (or Nut) can be also
connected using Rigid Bar or Equivalence

• Use Bolt Modeling | Rigid Bar to connect the

centers of the RBE Spiders or end nodes of the
Bars through Rigid Elements

• Use Bolt Modeling | Equivalence typically to

fix the free nodes of Bar Elements.

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06 - Connections
1D Bolts – Automatic

Import Bolt
• Automatic, template based
creation of 1D Bolt Connection
• The Automation is based on
the Body Names
• The *.dat Template contains
the definition of:
• HEAD
• THREAD
• CONNECTION
• More info about the syntax of
the Bolt Template in the Help

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06 - Connections
1D Bolts – Exercises
Open file: ..\6_Connections_Bolts_Contacts\B_1D_Bolts\Through_Hole\Sample_BarPretension.slb

Try different 1D Bolt realizations

1. Through Hole using 1D Bolt Pretension (Quick Method)
2. Threaded Hole using 1D Bolt Pretension (Quick Method)
3. Other modeling types using Bolt Head, Bolt Thread and one of the connection methods
Optional:
4. Edit the Bolt Modeling thorugh the Automation Objects in the LBC-Tree
5. Run analysis with OptiStruct to view the effects of the pretension

Open file:
..\_Complete_Workflow\A_Transmissional_Housing\A6_Connections_Bolts_Contacts
\A6_Housing_3DMesh.slb

1. Use 1D Bolt Pretension (Quick Method) to realize a Threaded Hole connection

between Carrier and Cover
or
2. Use Import Bolt to import the Solid Bolt Template
transmissional_housing_1D_Bolt.dat

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06 - Connections
3D Bolts (Solid Bolts) – Overview

CAD Based
Solid Bolt

• Pattern / Template Based 3D Pretension

• Face/Group Based

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06 - Connections
3D Bolts (Solid Bolts) – CAD Based

CAD-Based Solid Bolts: Bolted Joint

• Creates 100%-Hex Bolts from CAD Bolts. Inputs requested:
• Mesh Size along radial and axial direction
• Number of elements along circumference.
• Multiple bolt creation is allowed
• Bolted Joint creates a circular bolt even for screws with
hexagonal head or hexagonal socket.
• Pretension cut has to be created separately using
Advanced|Bolt Modeling|Solid Pretension
• If required, angular position may be adjusted with
Geometry|Transform|Position

Mesh Size and Angular Division: enter the

same values used in the Cylinder Mesh
Control of the Bolt Hole to obtain
congruent mesh between Bolt and Flange

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06 - Connections
3D Bolts (Solid Bolts) – Pattern Based

Pattern-Based Solid Bolts

1. Choose one the 4 available Bolt Patterns (with/without
shrinkage, with/without washer)
2. Set Mesh Size (axial/radial) and Elems along circumference
(preferably use the same values of the Mesh Control of the bolt
hole)
3. Define the Pivot Point (the central point right under the
BoltHead):
• Highlight one of the X/Y/Z coordinate of the Pivot Point.
• Pick an arc edge (i.e. the upper edge of the upper hole)
4. Define the direction, orientation and offset of the bolt axis (for
example +/- Y Axis, offset to arc center).

5. Define the Bolt parameters according to the pattern picture.

Instead of typing them it is possibly to pick arc edges or
nodes on the existing hole/bolt mesh/geometry (see example
on next page)
6. Click Apply (or Export to save the template).

The thus created Bolt is already provided with a pretension cut.

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06 - Connections
3D Bolts (Solid Bolts) – Pattern Based - Example

Pattern-Based Solid Bolts

Pivot
Example – Pattern1: picking the bolt
parameters on the existing geometry D1
L5
L2
L3

D2

L4

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06 - Connections
3D Bolts (Solid Bolts) – Template Based

Pattern-Based Solid Bolts:

Xml Template
• Use export/import function to
save/load bolt templates in
form of *.xml files.
• Create your own bolt library.

• The imported solid bolts can

be repositioned by using
Geometry|Transform|Position

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06 - Connections
3D Bolts (Solid Bolts) – Face/Group Based (Automatic)

Face/Group-Based Solid Bolts:

• Requires aligned mesh between Washer Faces (hollow
disc faces) and Thread Faces (cylinder faces)
• Creates automatically congruent mesh between Hex
Bolt and the connected bodies

Pick washer faces or group - use

Select Features|Hollow Discs

Pick thread faces or group - use

Select Features|Cylinder or

Automatic groups to be used

when defining contacts and
pretension

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06 - Connections
3D Bolts (Solid Bolts) – Hole Meshing Tips
Following tools allow the optimal mesh on the bolted bodies:

• Hole Faces (Thread):

• General case: use Cylinder Mesh Control for all joined parts
• In case of not aligned hole division, use IsoLine Mesh Control with the
option Merge faces sharing axial edges. Coaxial holes sharing the same
mesh control will be aligned. Not aligned hole division

• Washer Faces (Head):

• General case: use Washer Mesh Control for the bolt head. (Consider using Select features|Circles
to select quickly the circular edges on the face.)
• If the hollow disc faces are already imprinted on the CAD, use IsoLine Mesh Control (with the
axial parameter to be intended as radial) or Mesh Pattern|Iso Mesh to obtain the structured mesh
of the washer.
• To create a Washer Face on an existing mesh body use Geometry|Edge|Create|Edge Offset.
Choose the option Offset selected edges on faces.

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06 - Connections
3D Bolts (Solid Bolts) – Bolt Positioning
• The easiest way to align an existing bolt to its hole is by using
Geometry|Transform|Position.

• Use the option Copy|with LBC to copy the bolt (including the Pretension
Load) to other holes.

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06 - Connections
3D Bolts – Solid Pretension

Solid Pretension:
• Select: if the pretension cut already exists
(typically, when the bolt was created by
SimLab with Advanced|BoltModeling|Create
Bolt). Pick one shared face or a face pair in
For bolts created with the
case of separeted bodies
Face/Group Based Method, • Create: if the body has not yet been cut (i.e.,
the pretension faces are
already grouped here. for CAD-Based Bolt creation with
Advanced|BoltModeling|Bolted Joint). Pick the
bolt body and define the plane.
• Find: similar to Select, but allows to pick the
body instead of the faces.

• After pretensioning, the bolt body is divided

into 2 separated volumes (divided by a gap, if
requested). Use the Body Merge/Unmerge
function to organize the volumes into different
bodies..
• The Pretension load appears in the LBC|Static
Loads tree.

An alternative, quick way to create a pretension cut is

through Geometry|Edge|Chain|Create Face. See Chapter
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06 - Connections
Contacts

Create
Contact

Define Surf Define

Interaction Clearence /
(Friction) Interference

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06 - Connections
Contacts – Contact Conditions (Friction, Interference)

Surface Interaction: Press Fit:

Define interaction properties for Define clearance or
contact analysis - (i.e. Friction, interference behavior of the
The created Contact Conditions
appear in the LBC Tree Separation, Overclosure) contact pairs

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06 - Connections
Contacts – Contact Creation

Feature Based Pair

Identification
• All
• Planar
Contact Entities • Cylindrical
• Bodies
Contacts listed in • Faces
the LBC Tree or use Auto Contact • Surf Interection (Friction)
• Press-fit behavior

• Solver
• Contact Card
Options

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06 - Connections
Contacts – Feature Based (Planar/Cylindrical)

Contact Pair Identification– Example: Solid Bolts

Different bolt bodies Head: FRICTION (or TIE) contact on PLANAR Faces Thread: TIE contact on CYLINDRICAL Faces
merged into a single body

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06 - Connections
Contacts – Contact Query / Contact Edit

Browser: Full Contact Editing

Contact Query on Body: Quick Contact Editing

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06 - Connections
Contacts – Templates Based

Contact Template – Name Based (bodies, sets, face groups)

Export from
existing model

Automatic Creation
in new model

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06 - Connections
3D Bolts and Contacts – Exercises
Open file: ..\6_Connections_Bolts_Contacts\C_3D_Bolts\GroupFace_Based\[Link]

1. Create 3D Bolts Face/Group Based using

Advanced|BoltModeling|CreateBolt|Pattern1 Using Face/Group
2. Create the Solid Pretension for the Bolts
3. Define TIE Contacts between the two components the bolts
4. Optional: Export a Contact Template
5. Optional: Run Simulation with Optistruct

Open file:
..\6_Connections_Bolts_Contacts\C_3D_Bolts\Pattern_Template_CAD_Based\[Link]
1. Use Advanced|BoltModeling|CreateBolt|Import to import the bolt
M8_Hex_bolt_Cover_Carrier_Pattern4.xml
OR
Import the CAD transmissional_3d_bolts_v1.xmt_txt containing the CAD Geometry of
the Bolts and create one solid bolt using Advanced|BoltModeling|Bolted Joint
2. Create the Solid Pretension for the Bolt
3. Position and copy the Bolt to the other Holes of the Cover using
Geometry|Transform|Position

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06 - Connections
Automated 1D Bolts and Contacts – Exercise
Open file: ..\6_Connections_Bolts_Contacts\E_Contact_Bolt_template\[Link]
1. Use Import Bolt to import the 1D Bolt Template [Link]
2. Use Analysis|Contact|Import to import the contact template Contact_Template.dat

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06 - Connections
Exercise – Complete Workflow – Auto 3D Bolts
Continue with the model from the last chapters
OR
open: .. \_Complete_Workflow\A_Transmissional_Housing\ A6_Connections_Bolts_Contacts
\A6_Housing_3DMesh.slb

1. Use Select Feature to create:

• A face group containing the threaded holes (cylinders) on the Carrier .
• A face group containing the washers (hollow discs) on the Cover upper face.
2. Create automatically solid bolts using the groups:
• Advanced|Bolt Modeling|3D Bolt|Create Bolt - choose the method Pattern1 Using Face/Group
• Select the groups from the Group Browser respectively as Thread Face and Washer Face.
3. Merge the 10 Bolts into a unique Bolt body. Move the Bolt body into the main Model (assembly).
4. Pretension the bolts (OptiStruct) using Advanced|Bolt Modeling|3D Bolt|Solid Pretension. Use the group
with the pretension faces which was automatically created with the bolts.
5. Create OptiStruct Contacts with Analysis|Contact
• Use TIE contact type
• Search for Cylindrical contacts between the bolts and the Carrier
• Search for Planar contacts between the Bolts and the Cover
• Search for Planar contacts between the Cover and the Carrier
6. Explore the created contacts using Contact Query
7. Export a Name-Based Contact Template from the LBC Browser|Contacts

Save the file to continue with the setup in the next chapter.

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07 – Analysis Setup
Agenda

7.1 Analysis Setup:

1. Import CAD/FEM
• Loads
• Constraints 2.1 2D Mesh
• Load Mapping
3. Modify 4. Assembly
• Load Step
• Material 2.2 Volume Mesh 5. Cleanup
• Property
• Export Solver Deck 6. Connections

7. Analysis Setup

8. Post Processing A1. Automation

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07 – Analysis Setup
Overview

Loads Thermal Load Case

Constraints
• Pressure • Flux Creation
• Fixed
• Force • Convection
• Enforced
• Moment
• Temperature
• …….

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07 - Analysis
Coordinate System

Create Local coordinate system

• Rectangular
• Cylindrical
• Spherical

Transform: Translate or Rotate in any

direction

Assign: coordinate system to nodes to define

their position or displacement behavior

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07 - Analysis
Loads – Pressure

Pressure: To apply uniform or varying pressure loads on

Solid element faces or on shell element faces

Represented by
Yellow arrow

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07 - Analysis
Loads – Temperature

Temperature: This option is used to apply uniform or varying

temperature load on a Body or Face

Represented by
Pink markers

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07 - Analysis
Loads – Force and Moment

Force and Moment: This option is used to

apply force or moment on a node in Global
or Local Coordinate system

Represented by
Pink arrow

Represented by
Orange arrow

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07 - Analysis
Loads – Bearing Pressure

Bearing Pressure: This option will distribute the given load on nodes
in cylindrical face, which fall in the given "Semi Load Angle" from the
loading direction using cosine function.

Load Contour

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07 - Analysis
Loads – Body Force

Body Force: This option is used to apply centrifugal force,

accelerations/gravity and rotational velocities on a body

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07 - Analysis
Constraints

Constraints: This option is used to apply on a node or edge

(nodes) or face (nodes)
• Fixed: To define fixed displacement and rotational constraints
• Enforced: To define enforced translational and rotational displacement
constraints
• Velocity: To define velocity constraints for implicit/explicit motion or dynamic
analysis

Represented by
Green marker

Represented by
Blue marker

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07 - Analysis
Mass

Mass: This option is used to add mass to a node or to define mass element.
This tool also has option to calculate mass, centroid and moment of inertia
of meshed models which have property defined.

Represented
by Blue marker

Calculated Mass
Properties

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07 - Analysis
Sets

Sets: This option is used to create node or element sets either by

selecting the entities or automatically through groups/mesh controls

Manual Set Creation

• Select the Set Type eg: Node
• Select the Input entity eg: Face
• Click Apply.
All nodes on that Face will be
added to a Set

Input Entities Face Element Body Edge Vertex Node Region RBE
Node sets      
Shell Element sets   
Solid Element Face sets   
Solid Element sets    
Rigid Body Element (RBE) sets 
Membrane element sets   
Nastran/OptiStruct ASet      
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07 - Analysis
Sets

Automatic Set Creation: This option is used to create node or

element sets using previously created Face/Edge groups. The user
can select from a list of options for creating the sets.

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07 - Analysis
Material

Material: This is option is used to define materials.

Material definitions can be created for elastic, plastic, acoustic, rubber,
gasket and fluid structures.

Click on Material, select Category,

select Type, select Model, Enter
material properties and click OK.

Material information can be exported

and imported as xml files.

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07 - Analysis
Property

Property: This option is used to apply solid, shell,

Beam or Bar and rigid body properties.

Click on Property, select Category, select

Type, select Material, Enter material
properties, select Element type, select the
body on which the property has to be
applied and click OK.

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07 - Analysis
Load Case

Loadcase: This option is used to organize the defined loads and constraints into
Nastran/OptiStruct sub cases or Abaqus load steps. Each Sub Case or Load Step
can have different analysis type, solution control parameters and output requests.

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07 - Analysis
Mapping

Mapping: This option is used to map load with the help

of reference data, or reference data and meshed
models.

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07 - Analysis
Export

Export and Solve: This option is used to export

solver decks and also solve them directly.
Different analysis are supported for different
solvers.
Load case: This is an option to export only a
specific load case or all the load cases (default).
Write option: This option is used export the
solver deck as a single file (default) or separate
files.

• While exporting the solver deck, only the

visible bodies and LBC are exported.
In SimLab numbering is done as per • If property is not defined for any visible
models. So, when there is than one body in the database, SimLab will define
meshed model in the database, default material (Steel) and property for that
renumber it appropriately before or body during export of solver deck.
during export of solver deck. • If no Load Case has been defined, SimLab
will create a default load case containing
the defined loads and boundary conditions.

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