SolidWorks® 2011

SolidWorks Simulation

Dassault Systemes SolidWorks Corporation 300 Baker Avenue Concord, Massachusetts 01742 USA

© 1995-2010, Dassau1t Systemes SolidWorks Corporation, a Dassault Systemes S.A. company, 300 Baker Avenue, Concord, Mass. 01742 USA. All Rights Rese1·ved.

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Solid Works® 30 mechanical CAD software is protected by U.S. Patents 5,815,154; 6,219,049; 6,219,055; 6,611,725; 6,844,877; 6,898,560; 6,906,712; 7,079,990; 7,477,262; 7,558,705; 7,571,079; 7,590,497; 7,643,027; 7,672,822; 7,688,318; 7,694,238; and foreign patents, (e.g., EP I, 116,190 and JP 3,517,643) .

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Document Number: PMT1140-ENG

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Dassault Systemes Solid Works Corporation, 300 Baker Avenue, Concord, Massachusetts 01742 USA

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Contents

Introduction

About This Course . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Prerequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Course Design Philosophy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Using this Book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Laboratory Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

About the Training Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Windows® XP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Conventions Used in this Book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Use of Color . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

What is SolidWorks Simulation? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

What Is Finite Element Analysis? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Build Mathematical Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Defeaturing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Idealization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Clean-up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Build Finite Element Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Solve Finite Element Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Analyze Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Errors in FEA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . I 0

Contents SolidWorks 2011

Finite Elements .......................................... 10

Element Types Available in SolidWorks Simulation .......... 10

First Order Solid Tetrahedral Elements .................... 11

Second Order Solid Tetrahedral Elements .................. 12

First Order Triangular Shell Elements ..................... 13

Second Order Triangular Shell Elements ................... 14

Beam Elements ....................................... 14

Choosing Between Solid and Shell Elements ................ 15

Draft vs. High Solid and Shell Elements ................... 15

Degrees ofFreedom ...................................... 15

Calculations in FEA ...................................... 16

Interpretation of FEA Results ............................... 17

Principal Stresses: PI, P2, and P3 ......................... 18

Units of Measurement. .................................... 19

Limitations of Solid Works Simulation ........................ 19

Linear Material ....................................... 20

Small Structural Deformations ........................... 20

Static Loads .......................................... 21

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Lesson 1:

The Analysis Process

Objectives .............................................. 23

The Analysis Process ..................................... 24

Stages in the Process ................................... 24

Case Study: Stress in a Plate ................................ 24

Project Description ....................................... 24

SolidWorks Simulation Interface ......................... 26

SolidWorks Simulation Options ............................. 28

Plot Settings ......................................... 29

Preprocessing ........................................... 31

New Study ........................................... 31

Assigning Material Properties ........................... 32

Fixtures ............................................. 34

Fixture Types ........................................ 34

Display/Hide Symbols ................................. 35

External Loads ....................................... 38

Size and Color of Symbols .............................. 41

Preprocessing Summary ................................ 42

Meshing ............................................... 43

Curvature Based Mesh ................................. 43

Mesh Density ........................................ 43

Element Sizes ........................................ 43

Minimum Number of Elements in a Circle ................. 44

Ratio ............................................... 44

Mesh Quality ......................................... 46

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SolidWorks 2011 Contents

Postprocessing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 7

Result Plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 7

Editing Plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Nodal vs. Element Stresses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Show as Tensor Plot Option ............................. 50

Modifying Result Plots ................................. 50

Other Plot Controls .................................... 52

Other Plots .......................................... 59

Multiple Studies ......................................... 60

Creating New Studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Copy Parameters . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Check Convergence and Accuracy ........................ 64

Results Summary ..................................... 65

Comparison With Analytical Results ...................... 66

Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

References .............................................. 69

Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Exercise 1: Bracket . ...................................... 71

Exercise 2: Compressive Spring Stiffness ..................... 81

Exercise 3: Container Handle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

Lesson 2:

Mesh Controls, Stress Concentrations and Boundary Conditions Objectives .............................................. 85

Mesh Control ........................................... 86

Case Study: The L Bracket ................................. 86

Project Description ....................................... 86

Stages in the Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

Run All Studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Analysis with Local Mesh Refinement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

Mesh Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Results Comparison ................................... 95

Stress Singularities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . 95

Case Study: Analysis of Bracket with a Fillet .................. 97

Case Study: Analysis of a Welded Bracket. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

Understanding the Effect of Boundary Conditions .............. 102

Conclusion ......................................... 103

Summary .............................................. 104

Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104

Exercise 4: C-bracket .................................... 105

Exercise 5: Bone Wrench . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

Exercise 6: Foundation Bracket ............................ 119

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Contents SolidWorks 2011

Lesson 3: Assembly Analysis with Contacts

Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129

Contact Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130

Case Study: Pliers with Global Contact . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130

Project Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130

Stages in the Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130

Applying Materials to Assemblies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

Component Contact . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

Component Contact: Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

Component Contact: Default setting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134

Component Contact: Hierarchy and Conflicts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134

Viewing Assembly Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 7

Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138

Handle Contact . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138

Required Force . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . I 3 9

Pliers with Local Contact . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

Local Contact . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140

Local Contact Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140

No Penetration Local Contact Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142

No Penetration Local Contact: Accuracy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143

No Penetration Local Contact: Remarks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143

Contact Stresses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145

Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146

Exercise 7: Two Ring Assembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147

Lesson 4:

Symmetrical and Free Self-Equilibrated Assemblies Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151

Shrink Fit Parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

Case Study: Shrink Fit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

Project Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

Symmetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

Stages in the Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

Defeaturing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

Rigid Body Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155

Shrink Fit Contact Condition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156

Plot Results in Local Coordinate System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158

Cylindrical Coordinate Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158

Saving All Plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162

What's Wrong Feature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162

Analysis with Soft Springs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162

Soft Springs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163

Inertial Relief . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163

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SolidWorks 2011 Contents

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166

Exercise 8: Chain Link . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167

Exercise 9: Chain Link 2 ................................. 182

Lesson 5:

Assembly Analysis with Connectors Objectives ............................................. 187

Connecting Components .................................. 188

Connectors ............................................ 188

Connector Types ..................................... 188

Case Study: Vise Grip Pliers ............................... 190

Project Description ................................... 190

Stages in the Process .................................. 190

Spring Connector Types ............................... 196

Spring Connector Options ............................. 196

Pin/Bolt Force ....................................... 201

Summary .............................................. 203

Exercise 10: Lift Assembly ................................ 205

Exercise II: Analysis with Base (optional) ................... 214

Exercise 12: Shock Absorber .............................. 215

Exercise 13: Spot Welds-Solid Mesh ........................ 219

Lesson 6: Compatible/Incompatible Meshes

Objectives ............................................. 227

Compatible I Incompatible Meshing ......................... 228

Case Study: Rotor ....................................... 228

Project Description ................................... 228

Compatible Mesh .................................... 229

Incompatible Mesh ................................... 232

Automatic Switch to Incompatible Mesh .................. 232

Incompatible Bonding Options .......................... 234

Discussion .......................................... 236

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . · ..... 236

Lesson 7:

Assembly Analysis Mesh Refinement Objectives ............................................. 237

Mesh Control in an Assembly ............................. 238

Case Study: Cardan Joint ................................. 238

Problem Statement ...................................... 238

Part I: Draft Quality Coarse Mesh Analysis .................. 239

Remote Load ........................................ 240

Bolt Tight fit and Diameter. ............................ 243

Bolt Pre-load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244

Local Contact Sets ................................... 248

No Penetration Local Contact Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248

Rotational and Axial Stiffness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254

Knowledge Base ..................................... 256

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Contents SolidWorks 2011

Part 2: High Quality Mesh Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259

R.�qy·r�d NYmbt;r gf g!id :m�m�nt in Thin F�atyres � I I I I I I 1 260 Aspect Ratio Plot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260

Jacobian . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268

Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268

Exercise 14: Bolt Connectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269

Exercise 15: Awning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 273

Lesson 8: Analysis of Thin Components

Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275

Thin Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 276

Case Study: Pulley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 276

Project Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277

Part 1: Mesh with Solid Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277

Symmetry Fixtures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 278

Part 2: Refined Solid Mesh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281

Solid vs. Shell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283

Creating Shell Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283

Part 3: Shell Elements - Mid-plane Surface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283

Thin vs. Thick Shells . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285

Shell Mesh Colors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287

Changing Mesh Orientation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287

Shell Element Alignment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 289

Automatic Shell Surface Re-alignment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290

Applying Symmetry Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 293

Deformed Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 296

Results Comparison . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297

Computational Effort . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297

Case Study: Joist Hanger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 298

Project Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305

Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306

Exercise 16: Bracket . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 307

Exercise 17: Shell Mesh Using Outer/Inner Faces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 313

Exercise 18: Spot Welds - Shell mesh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317

Exercise 19: Edge Weld Connector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 318

Exercise 20: Container Handle Weld . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 326

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SolidWorks 2011 Contents

Lesson 9:

Mixed Meshing Shells & Solids

Objectives ............................................. 327

Mixed Meshing Solids and Shells .......................... 328

Bonding Shells and Solids ............................. 329 Mixed Mesh: Supported Analysis Types .................. 329

Case Study: Pressure Vessel ............................... 329

Project Description ................................... 330

Analyze the Assembly ................................ 330

Preparing the Model .................................. 332

Material ............................................ 334

Steel Identification Systems ............................ 334

UNS Index ......................................... 334

Other Indices ........................................ 334

Bulk and Shear Moduli ................................ 336

Bonding Entities with Clearance ........................ 337

Shell Face to Shell Face Bonding ........................ 33 7

Shell Edge to Shell Face Bonding ....................... 337

Shell to Solid Bonded Contact .......................... 338

Failure Diagnostics ................................... 341

Meshing Small Features ............................... 341

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347

Questions ............................................. 347

Exercise 21: Mixed Mesh Analysis ......................... 349

Lesson 10:

Mixed Meshing Solids, Beams & Shells

Objectives ............................................. 359

Mixed Meshing ......................................... 360

Case Study: Particle Separator ............................. 360

Project Description ................................... 360

Element Choices ..................................... 360

Beam elements ...................................... 361

Stages in the Process .................................. 361

Beam Mesh ......................................... 363

Beam Joints: Locations ................................ 365

Beam Joint Types .................................... 365

Section Properties .................................... 366

Connected and Disconnected Joints ...................... 367 Sphere Diameter Defining Beam Joint .................... 368

Cross-section 1st and 2nd Directions ..................... 373

Bending Moment and Shear Force Diagrams ............... 375

Summary .............................................. 376

Exercise 22: Beam Elements .............................. 377

Exercise 23: Cabinet. .................................... 387

Exercise 24: Frame Rigidity ............................... 395

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Contents SolidWorks 2011

Lesson 11:

Design Study Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 397

Design Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398

Case Study: Suspension Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398

Project Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398

Stages in the Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398

Part 1: Multiple Load Cases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 399

Design Studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 400

Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401

Design Study Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 405

Design Study Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 407

Part 2: Geometry Modification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 408

Design Study Graph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 412

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 414

Lesson 12: Exercise 25: Design Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 415

Thermal Stress Analysis Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 421

Thermal Stress Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 422

Case Study: Bimetallic Strip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 422

Project Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 422

Material Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 423

Importing Temperatures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 429

Averaging Stress . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 431

Question . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 436

Examining Results in Local Coordinate Systems (Optional) . . . . . . 436

Saving Model in its Deformed Shape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 438

Lesson 13: Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 439

Adaptive Meshing Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 441

Adaptive Meshing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 442

Case Study: Support Bracket . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 442

Project Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 442

Geometry Preparation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 443

h-Adaptivity Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 446

h-Adaptivity Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 447

h-Adaptive Plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 450

Convergence Graph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 450

Review h-adaptive Solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 451

Strain Energy Error is NOT Stress Error . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 452

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p-Adaptivity Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... . . . ... . . . . .. . ....... 453

p-Adaptive Solution Method . .. . ...... . . . .. . . . . . ....... 453

h vs. p Elements . . . . . . . .. . . ... . . . .... . . .............. 455

Method Comparison .. . . .. . . . . . . .. . .. . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . .. 459

h vs. p Elements - Summary ... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 460

Which Solution Method is Better? . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . 461

Summary .. . . ... . .. . . . . . .... . ... . . .... . . . . ... . . . . . . . . . . 461

Lesson 14:

Large Displacement Analysis Objectives .. . . .. . . .. . .. . .. . . ... . . .... . . ..... . . . . . . . . ... 463

Small vs. Large Displacement Analysis .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... . 464

Case Study: Clamp ... . ... . .. . . .... . ..... . . . . ..... . ..... . 465

Project Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . ... . . . 465

Part 1: Small Displacement Linear Analysis .... . .......... . . . 465

Results Discussion ... . ... . . ... . . .... . . . ....... . . . . . . . 467

Contact Solution in Small and Large Displacement Analyses . . 467

Part 2: Large Displacement Nonlinear Analysis ... . . . . ......... 467

Permanent Deformation . . .. . ......... . ..... . . . . . . . . .. . 469

SolidWorks Simulation Premium . ..... . ...... . . . . .. . . . . . 470

Summary ... . .. . ... . ... . ... . ... . ...... . . ..... . . . . . . . . . . 470

Questions . . . . . . ..... . . . . . .. . . .... . . . .. . .. . . . .......... 470

Appendix A:

Meshing, Solvers, and Tips & Tricks Meshing Strategies . .. . .. . . . . . . .... . . . . . ... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 472

Geometry Preparation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . .. . . . . 4 72

Defeaturing . . .. . . .. . ... . .... . . .... . . . . . . ...... . . . . . . 473

Idealization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... . . . . . .. . . ... . . . ....... 474

Clean-up ... . .. . . . . . .. . . . . . . .... . . . .... . . . . . ........ 474

Mesh Quality . . .. . .. . .. . . .. . .... . . .... . . . . ..... . . . . . . . . . 475

Aspect Ratio Check .. . . ... . .... . . .... . . . . . ........... 475

Jacobian Check . . . . . . .. . ... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 476

Mesh Controls ...... . .. . . .. . . .. . . . . ... . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . 478

Automatic Trials for Solids . . . . .. . . . . .. . . ....... . . . . . . . . 480

Meshing Stages . . .. . ... . ... . .. . . . . . .. . . . . . . ... . . . . . . . . . . 480

Failure Diagnostics . . . . . . . . . .. . . . .. . . . . ... . . . ........... . 481

Tips for Meshing Parts . . . . . . . . . .... . . . . . ...... . . . . . . . . 48 I

Tips for Meshing Assemblies .... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . 482

Tips for Using Shell Elements . . . . . .. . . .... . . . . . . . . . . . ..... 483

Hardware Considerations in Meshing . .... . .... . . . . . . . ....... 484

Solvers in SolidWorks Simulation .. . .... . . . . . . . ..... . . . . . . . 484

Choosing a Solver . . ... . ... . . . .. . . . . . . . . . .... . . . . . . . . . . . . 485

Appendix B:

Customer Help and Assistance Customer Help and Assistance . . .. . .... . . . . . .. . . ...... . . . .. 488

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