Efficient Workflow for Fabricated Structures
Introduction
This video demonstrates a highly efficient process for setting up shell and beam models, exemplified by the barge model shown here. We will guide you through the process from geometry setup to simulation.
Step-by-Step Process
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Geometry Preparation:
- Start with the geometry of the model.
- Ensure that imprints are made on the geometry to establish connections between faces. Note that these are just imprints, not actual connections.
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Mesh Creation:
- Open the mechanical model for simulation by importing the geometry from the geometry module into ANSYS Mechanical.
- Set the algorithm for meshing, including minimum and maximum mesh sizes.
- Begin meshing the entire model. This process is parallelized, utilizing all available cores on your machine.
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Mesh Connection:
- Review the connections between faces. Red indicates that faces are independent.
- Use the automated mesh connection tool to reconnect faces. After connection, overlapping faces will show triple multiple edges, indicating coincident nodes.
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Adding Beam Structures:
- Add beam structures to the barge model from the project page.
- Mesh the beam structures independently.
- Integrate the shell and beam models into a global model by linking them at the project level.
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Node Merging:
- Merge the geometries using node merging, linking coincident nodes.
- Select one geometry as the master (beam truss) and the other as the slave (barge).
- Ensure all nodes are properly connected by performing a model analysis.
Conclusion
By following this streamlined process, you can efficiently transition from geometry setup to simulation for complex structures. For more information, please visit ansys.com.
Thank you for watching. For further assistance, contact Ozen Engineering, Inc.
This video will show you a very efficient process for setting up shell and beam models, as shown here. In our case, we start from a geometry. The first step is to ensure that we have imprints on the geometry for connections between faces.
This is just imprints, not real connections, just marking the faces. Once this is done, we can move on to creating the mesh on this part. We then open the mechanical model for the simulation, importing the geometry from the geometry module into ANSYS Mechanical.
The next part is setting the algorithm for meshing, as well as minimum and maximum mesh sizes. Once this is done, we can start meshing the entire model. This will be done in parallel, leveraging all cores on your machine. Once the mesh is created, we can check face connections.
Red color indicates independent faces. We reconnect them using an automated mesh connection tool. After the mesh connection, edges will turn to multiple edges wherever there are overlapping faces. This connects the mesh between faces, creating coincident nodes.
To add a beam structure to the barge model, we can do this from the project page, adding beams into the model. We first mesh the structures independently, then bring the two together by adding a new system and linking the models.
The link between the two models is done at the project level with blue lines going to the full system. When we open the full system, we can now see both geometries. We want to merge them using a node merging operation, which links coincident nodes. This allows us to fuse nodes together.
We select one geometry as the master, the other as the slave. In this case, the master is the beam truss, the slave is the barge. We connect the nodes and check that all nodes are properly connected using a model analysis.
In the first mode, we have a process that goes from geometry to simulation in a very efficient way for fabricated structures. Thank you for listening. Please visit ansys.com if you need more details.
