Finding the Culprit Node/Element

Every now and then, I get the question “How do I find a particular node in the mesh?” The most likely reason for the question was to diagnose the cause of a solver error message that referenced a particular node.

The solution is simple yet tricky. The solution can be obtained easily by doing the following:

1. Right click on the mesh folder and select “List Selected”.
2. Choose either nodes or elements based on what was indicated in the error message.
3. Select the component(s) from the solid body/surface body folder in the SOLIDWORKS FeatureManager Design Tree, and hit Update.

This will list all the nodes/elements in the mesh.

Now comes the tricky part – having to scroll inside the small list-window (in the List Selected property manager) until you find the required node/element. A good enhancement to this would be to allow the user to key in the node/element number and thus avoid having to replace the up/down arrow keys on the keyboard prematurely!!