SOLIDWORKS Simulation: Result Plot Tips – Part 2

May 5, 2020 by Kurt Kurtin

In a previous CATI blog accessible here, several tips were presented related to post-processing SOLIDWORKS Simulation results. It featured stress plots on mixed mesh models, showed how to present results on selected entities, and highlighted the Stress Hot Spot Diagnostics tool to locate stress singularities. Here I will mention others that I use nearly every time I conduct an analysis. Controlling plot display via the color bar The image below shows the items that are available via right mouse button […]

Particle Separation using SOLIDWORKS Flow Simulation

April 1, 2020 by Kurt Kurtin

Particle separators are important devices used to clean industrial process air. One such device that uses inertial and gravitational forces as the separation mechanism is shown in simplified form below. The top view shows that the inlet introduces the flow in a direction that is tangent to the separator wall. In principle, as the flow is introduced, the inertia of the entrained particles makes them collect near the separator walls. Clean air collects in a vortex near the center of […]

3D Hydraulic Jump in SOLIDWORKS Flow Simulation

February 21, 2020 by Kurt Kurtin

In my previous blog, I showed an application of the free surface feature in SOLIDWORKS Flow Simulation. For a 2D section of a spillway and flow over a weir, I showed how this feature can accurately predict the hydraulic jump. Well, 2D isn’t that exciting, is it? That’s why we love to use SOLIDWORKS in the first place! So I generated a 3D simulation and found impressive looking results while learning some new things along the way. Here’s the model […]

SOLIDWORKS Simulation: Linking Evaluator Results to Studies

January 21, 2020 by Kurt Kurtin

The 2020 release of SOLIDWORKS Simulation includes a new utility for study management. In a prior CATI blog, my colleague, Alon Finkelstein, introduced the Simulation Evaluator, which checks a study’s setup to determine if it will allow a successful simulation. He gave a great description of how the Evaluator verifies the results folder and material assignments and does a comparison of mesh/solid model volumes to ensure accuracy. I wondered about the usefulness of the “Results” section, and if I would […]

SOLIDWORKS Flow Simulation: Hydrology Applications

December 18, 2019 by Kurt Kurtin

With the addition of the free surface capability, SOLIDWORKS Flow Simulation can now perform simulations of more real-world applications. One commonly encountered Civil Engineering application in open-channel flow design is an energy-dissipation phenomenon called hydraulic jump, which occurs when a fast-moving, shallow flow encounters a relatively slow-moving, deep flow field. Fluid Mechanics texts classify open-channel flow using the dimensionless Froude number (Fr), which is a function of the fluid velocity (V) and depth (y) (ref. F. M White, Fluid Mechanics). […]

SOLIDWORKS Simulation Setup Tips – A Few Favorites

November 12, 2019 by Kurt Kurtin

Everybody loves shortcuts, right? Who doesn’t like to save time and energy? Setup of SOLIDWORKS Simulation studies is no exception, so I’ll show some of my favorite time saving tips in the analysis of my small garden cart. You may notice that most of these tips are really just SOLIDWORKS CAD functions applied to Simulation, which shows just how well Simulation is integrated into the SOLIDWORKS interface! Hide Excluded Bodies: Simulation has its own set of options. Open the Options […]

SOLIDWORKS Simulation Setup Tips – A Few Favorites

November 12, 2019 by Kurt Kurtin

Everybody loves shortcuts, right? Who doesn’t like to save time and energy? Setup of SOLIDWORKS Simulation studies is no exception, so I’ll show some of my favorite time saving tips in the analysis of my small garden cart. You may notice that most of these tips are really just SOLIDWORKS CAD functions applied to Simulation, which shows just how well Simulation is integrated into the SOLIDWORKS interface! Hide Excluded Bodies: Simulation has its own set of options. Open the Options […]

SOLIDWORKS 2020 What’s New – Plastics Material Updates Summary and 3D Content Central

October 21, 2019 by Kurt Kurtin

There are several exciting changes to the SOLIDWORKS Plastics program for the 2020 release that will increase ease of use. A couple that I want to highlight are related to the database of polymer materials. First, a couple of vendors, specifically Chevron Phillips and RadiciGroup, have added 29 materials to the installed database. These are shown below. Also, 13 obsolete material grades from EMS-Grivory have been removed from the database. Second, 3D Content Central now has a library of polymer […]

SOLIDWORKS 2020 What’s New – Draft and High Quality Mesh Definition

September 26, 2019 by Kurt Kurtin

In the search for faster and more efficient simulations, SOLIDWORKS Simulation 2020 introduces new meshing functionality for linear static studies that is sure to help. We can now mix draft and high quality solid element meshes in the same study. Individual bodies can be meshed with either formulation to help reduce the total degree of freedom (DOF) count, resulting in quicker solutions. If you aren’t familiar with the concept, here’s a brief overview. Tetrahedral-shaped elements are formed when you mesh […]

SOLIDWORKS Flow Simulation: Calculation of Hydrostatic Pressure

September 10, 2019 by Kurt Kurtin

If you are an experienced SOLIDWORKS Flow Simulation user, chances are you’ve turned on the “Gravity” setting to account for buoyancy effects that exist when a fluid’s density changes with temperature. This is a very commonly used feature of the program. Buoyancy is an amazing physics principle that allowed the Montgolfier brothers to make the historic first “lighter than air” flight in Paris in 1783. One thing you may not be aware of is that when the gravity feature is […]