Multidiscipline
At most companies, CAE is performed as an isolated activity within a single functional team or engineering discipline. The performance, safety, and reliability of their products, however, is greatly influenced by the interactions between these disciplines. Multiphysics FEA can account for some of these interactions, but often the mathematical basis for disciplines are fundamentally different. Multibody dynamics, FEA, and controls systems models, for example, do not share the same numerical foundation, making it difficult to evaluate products from a true system level perspective.
Multidiscipline CAE enables applications from nearly any mathematical regime to share data that enables system level modeling and analysis. Multidisciplinary analysis makes it possible to integrate FEA, controls, multibody dynamics, finite difference, closed form equations, and more, to enable co-simulation across the boundaries of engineering disciplines. Multidiscipline solutions offer interactive analysis for coupled engineering physics such as motion-structures, thermal mechanical, systems and controls, multi-physics, fluid-structure interaction (FSI), composites failure chaining, implicit-explicit, and more. Our robust solver foundation allows engineers to solve the most complex engineering challenges.
Depending on the type of analysis, engineers can use MSC solutions in two ways – Direct Coupling (applying multiple physics to the model simultaneously) or Chaining (passing load case results from one analysis to the next).
MSC Software is used for many types of multidiscipline-based simulations:
|
|
Industry Uses:
|
Motion/Structural Coupled Analysis
Motion structure interaction stress in lower control arm Modal model with integrated flexible component |
Multibody Dynamics (MBD) analysis provides an efficient solution by enabling designers to predict the kinematic (displacements, velocities and accelerations) and dynamic (forces and moments) behavior of mechanical assemblies. Finite Element Analysis (FEA), on the other hand, can include linear and nonlinear material characteristics of individual components in an assembly, and therefore provides detailed insight into component behavior, including prediction of stress and potential failure. An integrated MBD/Structures solution from MSC Software offers the best of both worlds: a simple, robust motion model with selected flexible finite element components. Our MBD/Structures solution is built from two of MSC’s core solvers, Adams and MSC Nastran. By integrating these two technologies within a common user environment, MSC Software delivers unparalleled efficiency and accuracy for the multidisciplinary solution of motion-structures problems. |
Systems and Controls
Satellite dish with integrated control system Optimizing size and performance for a hydraulic pump |
When designing a mechanical system such as an automobile suspension, an aircraft landing gear or a fork-lift, it is critical to understand how various components (pneumatics, hydraulics, electronics, and so on) interact as well as forces generated during operation. Unfortunately, even today, a lot of time and effort is spent on testing physical prototypes without virtually exploring numerous designs to optimize full-system performance. Adams/Mechatronics can be used to directly incorporate control systems into mechanical models by dynamically linking an external system library from a controls application, such as EASY5 and MATLAB, into Adams. It makes the process of performing complete system level investigations like complex vehicle-controller interaction more straightforward. Control system parameters can be quickly adjusted for evaluation and included in a design study for simultaneous optimization of both control system and mechanical system. |
Thermal/Mechanical Coupled Analysis
Coupled thermal-structural (friction) brake squeal analysis Thermal-structural effects of welding |
Understanding the impact of thermal changes and structural responses is important to ensure quality and reliable long term operation for many products. Depending on the size of thermal changes and the materials involved, temperature changes can lead to warping with many unwanted consequences. For example, friction as applied in brake systems creates heat in some areas of the disc structure and these temperature changes may lead to warping which may then be the cause of unwanted noise. MSC’s thermal/mechanical multidiscipline solutions give engineers the ability to simulate the interaction and effects of structural mechanics and thermal conditions, within a single software product. |
Implicit-Explicit-Implicit
Pre-stress – implicit simulation (initial condition for explicit run) Explicit simulation (simulate damage and extract mass, inertia for rotor dynamics unbalance)
Unbalance loading |
Several engineering applications undergo different types of loading events, where one loading scenario is better suited for implicit structural analysis, while another might be better suited for explicit analysis, with results from one loading event affecting the next. For example, a fan-blade-out (FBO) analysis, is often followed by a rotor dynamic stability analysis. FBO analysis requires a detailed model, with millions of degrees of freedom, is better suited for an explicit analysis due to its fast nature of the event. On the other hand, a rotor dynamics analysis can be done with a coarser model. By transferring the loads computed by the explicit solver to a coarser model for rotor dynamics analysis, engineers can obtain accurate results in a much shorter time. MSC offers an automated solution to streamline multidisciplinary problems like these, by transferring the model details and results from one analysis to another without compromising the efficacy of the model. |
Fluid/Structure Interaction
Smooth particle hydrodynamics Hydroplaning solved with MSC Nastran
Drop test of blood bag |
The objective of modeling fluids in a structural analysis is to account for the influence of fluid pressures on the structure and for improved accuracy in structural response prediction. Structures are generally modeled using Lagrangian scheme where material is tied to a finite element mesh. On the other hand, fluids are solved with Eulerian scheme with material being independent of the mesh, but instead flowing through the mesh. Dual schemes are required because of the way structures and fluids behave. |
