Visualization of Coupled FEA, CFD and Multi-body Dynamics
Simulations using EnSight
Darin McKinnisComputational Engineering International (CEI)
Clinton StoneMSC-Africa Simulating Reality (Pty) Ltd
Paul Adams Scientific Visualization Lead
ERDC MSRC - Vicksburg, MS
Visualization of Coupled FEA, CFD and Multi-body Dynamics
Simulations using EnSight
Darin McKinnisComputational Engineering International (CEI)
Clinton StoneMSC-Africa Simulating Reality (Pty) Ltd
Paul Adams Scientific Visualization Lead
ERDC MSRC - Vicksburg, MS
• Most CFD codes already handle basic FSI• Normally limited to Rigid body boundary motion• Mostly limited to rigid body motion by a prescribed
function• Some packages include a 6DOF dynamics model to handle
problems like store separation• Normally FSI requires extensive amounts of remeshing
• Most FEA codes already handle basic FSI• Usually very limited in CFD ability (e.g.. Laminar Flow Only)• Usually limited to relatively small structural displacements• Primarily used to add effects of fluid mass/inertia on
structural dynamics response (e.g. Seismic analysis of dams)
Description of CAE Coupling Technology
Current CFD Implementation
Moving rigid walls with remeshing
Moving rigid walls with overlapping meshes & 6DOF dynamics model
Description of certain FSI Technology
• Certain codes are dedicated to handle FSI• E.g. MSC.Dytran, LS-Dyna, AutoDyn• Very capable in terms of non-linear structural dynamics• Normally limited in terms of CFD capability• Explicit codes are mainly suited to
short-duration events• Normally use the ALE approach where
the structure & fluid share common interface nodes
• Euler mesh is “morphed” as the structure deforms• Limited to mostly relatively small displacements• Focus is usually on the
structural response• Some codes have more powerful
General 3D Coupling
• Despite the progress already made in FSI & FEA/MDB coupling, the tools are either rather limited or very specialized for specific applications• Short Duration, Airbags, explosions, bird-strike, linear
flexibility…
• A growing need exists to make multi-physics coupling more general and powerful
• One solution is to combine the strengths of multiple CAE tools using technology such as MpCCI
Description of CAE Coupling Technology
MpCCI: Description and Motivation
Mesh-based parallel Code Coupling Interface. • Handles data communication between two or more
simulation codes• Supports non-matching grids and handles data
interpolation (conservative and non-conservative) between the grids.
• Supports parallelization of the codes.• Includes an intuitive GUI for setup of the simulation• Developed by:
Fraunhofer Institute for Algorithms and Scientific Computing SCAI
• See: http://www.mpcci.org.
MpCCI: Description and Motivation
• Current MpCCI Technology Partners• MSC.Software• CD-adapco• Abaqus• Ansys• Fluent• CEI (EnSight)• Others…
• MpCCI Code Support (v 3.0.x)ABAQUS (V 3.0.3 Dec 2004)ANSYS (V 3.0.3 Dec 2004)Fluent (V 3.0.3 Dec 2004)StarCD (V 3.0.3 Dec 2004)Permas (V 3.0.4 planned April 2005)RadTherm (V 3.0.4 planned April 2005)CFX (V 3.0.5 planned later 2005)Marc & Nastran (V 3.0.5 planned Q3 2005)
Other MpCCI Technology Projects
Damping of piezo elements StarCD–ANSYS
Aero-elastic in aircraft design Flower–Nastran
Cabin acoustic in aircraft ACTI3S–Nastran
Polymer mixers StarCD–Permas
Airbag gas generator simulations CFX–Marc
Aquaplaning computations Numeca–Marc
Vibration in pipeline systems Fluent–ANSYS
Rubber gaskets Fluent–ANSYS/ ABAQUS
Wind loads in civil engineering CFX–InHouse
Aerodynamics in automotive design StarCD–Nastran/ ABAQUS
Biomechanical simulations StarCD–Mecano
Presentation Overview
• Introduction & Trends in the CAE Industry
• Discussion of CAE Coupling Technologies• Fluid Structure Interaction (FSI)• Multibody Dynamics & Finite Element Analysis (MBD /
FEA)• Mesh-based parallel Code Coupling Interface (MpCCI)
• Postprocessing Challenges• Technology Demonstrator Projects• Conclusion
Postprocessing Challenges
• Any form of multi-code coupled simulation has problems in terms of results visualization
• Each CAE package is designed to only postprocess its specific results
• Viewing the different result domains separately significantly reduces the engineering value of the simulation
• Often sequentially coupled solutions are conducted with very different time scales
Postprocessing Challenges
• EnSight is unique in its ability to postprocess coupled simulation results.
• These can either be:• Directly coupled with co-simulation or MpCCI• Sequentially coupled using tools like iSight-FD or Fiper• Manually coupled solutions using loads transfer• Decoupled simulations of separate physics portions of a
problem
• Ensight features required for this are:• Multi-code readers• Results Timeline manipulation
• Keyframing & Viewport Tracking • Multiple Case Support• Case Mapping (Pressure from CFD to FEA)• Global model repositioning (Frame Mode)
Presentation Overview
• Introduction & Trends in the CAE Industry
• Discussion of CAE Coupling Technologies• Fluid Structure Interaction (FSI)• Multibody Dynamics & Finite Element Analysis (MBD /
FEA)• Mesh-based parallel Code Coupling Interface (MpCCI)
• Postprocessing Challenges• Technology Demonstrator Projects• Conclusion
Technology Demonstrators
• The following examples will illustrate the use of EnSight to postprocess coupled simulations
• These examples highlight all of the methods previously discussed for coupling
Technology Demonstrators
Sequentially Coupled MBD & FEA simulation
Helicopter Crash Investigation
Technology Demonstrators
Sequentially Coupled MBD & FEA simulation
Pickup Truck Crash Investigation
Technology Demonstrators
Sequentially Coupled MBD & CFD simulation
Aircraft flap & air-brake deployment
Technology Demonstrators
Sequentially Coupled MBD & CFD simulation
Aircraft flap & air-brake deployment
Coupled CFD & FEA simulation using MpCCI
Technology Demonstrators
Automotive Manifold
Technology Demonstrators
Coupled CFD & FEA simulation using MpCCI
Flexible Membrane Flutter
Technology Demonstrators
Coupled CFD & FEA simulation using MpCCI
Biomedical Heart-Valve
Technology DemonstratorsBi-Metallic Strip Flow Restrictor
Coupled CFD & FEA simulation using MpCCI
Technology Demonstrators
Co-Simulation coupling with MBD & CFD simulation
Dragline Dynamics & Digging
MSC.ADAMS solves the dynamics of the system
MSC.Dytran solves to system / soil interaction
Technology Demonstrators
Co-Simulation coupling with MBD & Non-linear FEA
Bungee Jumper
Technology DemonstratorsSloshing Tank Test rig
Co-Simulation coupling with MBD & CFD
Technology Demonstrators - Povray !Sloshing Tank Test rig
Co-Simulation coupling with MBD & CFD
Technology Demonstrators - Povray !Flow around bridge footing
Flow simulation vs experimental results