Computer Solutions
“Work has continued to discover a way to enable designers and engineers to use simulation as a seamless part of their day-to-day work.”
Erwin Burth, Autodesk
to six months. “By bringing FEA and MES in house, we’ve slashed both the time and cost of design validation by 50–60 per cent,” says Albert Allen, Tucker mechanical designer. Primera Plastics, which produces custom plastic parts for
international customers including furniture manufacturers and automotive OEMs, has used injection moulding simulation software to produce more accurate quotes and optimise injection mould design prior to manufacturing. Using Autodesk Simulation Moldflow, engineers run a range of simulations to study the flow of melted plastic, evaluate various runner systems and gate configurations, determine the most efficient cooling systems and predict volumetric shrinkage. It can also use simulations to predict how long it will take for a plastic part to reach ejection temperature and how long it will take for a part to warp. The cost of creating injection moulds often plays a major
role in the total cost of manufacturing – in some cases up to 75 per cent. “If the mould isn’t designed correctly, it can wreak havoc on the entire production process,” says project engineer Scott Leatherman. “A great deal of money is wasted if we have to go back to them after the mould is produced,” he adds. The simulation software also helps find and fix potential defects such as short shots, air traps and weld lines well before manufacturing begins. “We can save months of production time and significant costs,” says Leatherman. It is even helping the company in its bidding process.
“Before this, we approximated cycle time based on part volume and our previous experience. Once we bid, we were locked into a quote, so we always estimated conservatively to reduce our risk,” he adds. Now Primera can perform simulations to develop more accurate quotes. “We can virtually explore a range of issues before we deliver a quote and start manufacturing a plant,” Leatherman continues. “If you underestimate a cycle time, you’ll cut into your
profit, but if you overestimate, you might not get the business. With more accurate predictions, we have much more confidence in our quotes.” However, as product complexity continues to grow, more and more computing power is needed to perform multi-
physics analyses and this can exceed the scope of the desktops and workstations used by most engineers and designers. Yet, fortunately, this is a shortfall that new cloud technology can fill, enabling users to maximise the use of simulation-driven design. No longer do engineers have to spend time simplifying
geometry prior to analysis, the infinite computing power available in the cloud means they can now perform complex multiple pre-processing or multiple simulation tasks in parallel. The software automatically acquires all the appropriate
geometry and inputs (limits and parameters, etc) and then transfers the information to the high performance computing in the cloud. This then performs the meshing, executes the necessary solvers, runs the appropriate post processor and then returns the results to the user who has been able to continue with other tasks on their own computer in the meantime. Cloud-based simulation is a game-changer as it can significantly lower the costs, so making it available to smaller businesses unable to invest in local high performance IT infrastructure. By performing computer-intensive tasks in the cloud,
designers and engineers can test multiple ‘what if ’ design scenarios in parallel. “The ability to run multiple simulation studies in the cloud in the same time as a typical singular study with single variables, really opens up the game for us by helping us understand much more of the system in a shorter amount of time,” says Matt Nowicki, senior product engineer at BioLite, a manufacturer of camping stoves. “It’s impressive how easy, valuable and seamless simulating in the cloud can be for a company such as ours.” The fact that there is even an app for simulation now
is a measure of how far the situation has changed over the past few years. Autodesk ForceEffect is a mechanical statics application for iOS and Android devices enables designers to quickly and easily simulate design options during the concept phase determine the viability of a design. ●
Erwin Burth is with Autodesk, Farnborough, Surrey, UK.
www.autodesk.co.uk
www.engineerlive.com 57
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60