applications
engineering data I
A real look at
Visualisation of data from engineering simulations can cut time and increase innovation, as Robert Roe discovers
ncreasingly sophisticated soſtware and more powerful hardware mean that graphical visualisations play a key role in interpreting the data from engineering
simulations, saving money and opening up new markets. Barry Christenson, director of product
management for Ansys, said: ‘No engineer is happy with just finding a number; they want to be able to look at the results as a whole, because the graphics and the visualisations help them to develop a better understanding of the total engineering space.’ Christenson went on: ‘It helps them
understand the relationships between things they may want to change in subsequent iterations.’ For example, in stress calculations, visualisations ‘tell them more about the severity, and if there is a localised stress versus a general stress, or a localised cavitation problem with fluids or a general flow problem.’ With the advent of photorealistic modelling,
simulation soſtware is being used in new applications within existing markets. Jonah Normand, simulation specialist for design, lifecycle and simulation at Autodesk, said: ‘One of the areas that Autodesk is focused around is high-end visualisation – photo-realistic rendering, animations, games creation, and things like that – and we are seeing that leveraged in mechanical engineering and architectural engineering to create real- world scenes, to help customers sell more of their products, to reach new markets, and to communicate ideas, before physical parts are actually produced.’ Within a tool like Autodesk’s 3Ds Max and V-RED soſtware, photo-realistic modelling allows users to represent realistic scenes and show products in a real world environment, helping engineers communicate their ideas effectively. ‘We are seeing a lot of cross-over with visualisation into the simulation space. Users can interpret simulation data by combining some of our visualisation tools, like photo-realistic
40 SCIENTIFIC COMPUTING WORLD Visualisation can provide a more comprehensive overview of a specific challenge ENGINEERS WILL
ALWAYS WANT TO ANALYSE THE DATA FROM THEIR SIMULATIONS
rendering, with simulation data, to help analysts and design engineers communicate ideas better,’ said Normand. Engineers will always want to analyse the
data from their simulations as well as look at it. But visualisation, whether using 2D or complex 3D models, can provide a more comprehensive overview of a specific challenge than just looking at a graph or deriving a number from a calculation, Christenson pointed out. ‘Looking at the results is really what they are aſter, and that is really the engineering behind the simulation – that’s how we allow our customers to be engineers. Tat’s one of the biggest changes. What I think is becoming a trend within the simulation space is to enable our users to simplify and
automate the meshing and the set-up process, and deliver them a solution so engineers can do more engineering early on in the design process. Visualisations enable our users to do that.’ Normand stressed that visualisation still requires an understanding of the products performance to interpret the data effectively. ‘It’s a different, more impactful way of processing and interpreting the data. If you have ever seen the analysis results from an FEA or a CFD, it might be a lot of bright colours and a lot of interesting things happening, but without a technical background it can be hard to interpret what it is that you are seeing.’ Visualisation tools, delivered as part of a
simulation soſtware package, are being used more during the initial product development, as they provide a comprehensive overview of the whole product. Because users can see the interactions in a product, any modifications can be made easily which, in turn, can improve the quality of the product quickly and at less cost. Visualisation can increase design engineers’ creativity and their ability to produce new ideas entirely.
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