Mesh Generation for Finite Element Analysis of Electric Machines

This paper describes two modified methods for triangular and quadrilateral meshing for finite element analysis of 2D electric machines. One is coupling the classic Delaunay method and advancing front method to generate optimal triangulation; the other is coupling the classic paving and Delaunay triangulation for optimal quadrilateral meshing. Various electric machine models are meshed successfully to demonstrate the robustness and effectiveness of the methods.

Time-Domain Analysis of Body Freedom Flutter Based on 6DOF Equation

The reduced weight and improved efficiency of modern aeronautical structures result in a decreasing separation of frequency ranges of rigid and elastic modes.Particularly,a high-aspect-ratio flexible flying wing is prone to body freedomflutter(BFF),which is a result of coupling of the rigid body short-periodmodewith 1st wing bendingmode.Accurate prediction of the BFF characteristics is helpful to reflect the attitude changes of the vehicle intuitively and design the active flutter suppression control law.Instead of using the rigid body mode,this work simulates the rigid bodymotion of the model by using the six-degree-of-freedom(6DOF)equation.A dynamicmesh generation strategy particularly suitable for BFF simulation of free flying aircraft is developed.An accurate Computational Fluid Dynamics/Computational Structural Dynamics/six-degree-of-freedom equation(CFD/CSD/6DOF)-based BFF prediction method is proposed.Firstly,the time-domain CFD/CSD method is used to calculate the static equilibrium state of the model.Based on this state,the CFD/CSD/6DOF equation is solved in time domain to evaluate the structural response of themodel.Then combinedwith the variable stiffnessmethod,the critical flutter point of the model is obtained.This method is applied to the BFF calculation of a flyingwing model.The calculation results of the BFF characteristics of the model agree well with those fromthe modalmethod andNastran software.Finally,the method is used to analyze the influence factors of BFF.The analysis results show that the flutter speed can be improved by either releasing plunge constraint or moving the center ofmass forward or increasing the pitch inertia.

A fast and practical method to pack spheres for mesh generation

Sphere packing is an attractive way to generate high quality mesh. Several algorithms have been proposed in this topic, however these algorithms are not sufficiently fast for large scale problems. The paper presents an efficient sphere packing algorithm which is much faster and appears to be the most practical among all sphere packing methods presented so far for mesh generation. The algorithm packs spheres inside a domain using advancing front method. High efficiency has resulted from a concept of 4R measure, which localizes all the computations involved in the whole sphere packing process.

Mesh Generation and Dynamic Mesh Management for KIVA-3V

To improve mesh quality for KIVA-3V a method has been developed for rapid mesh generation and dynamic mesh management with moving valves for internal combustion engines. Two phases are included in rapid mesh generation： the initial mesh generation and the mesh pre-treatment. In the second step （pre-treatment）, the connectivity of those cells is generated by a new algorithm added to the KIVA-3V code after the initial mesh generated. In dynamic mesh management phase, a new rezoning algorithm is developed and the basic principle is that the rezoning starts from the moving part. The movement of the adjustment is treated as an ＂earth quake wave＂ propagating to the surrounding vertexes. The amount of coordinate adjustment of the surrounding vertexes is determined by the movement of the epicenter and the distance between the vertexes and the ＂epicenter＂. Finally, a real IC engine mesh is generated and managed aceording to the new method. It gives a new theory and a new method for creating and managing the mesh in IC engine.

METHOD FOR ADAPTIVE MESH GENERATION BASED ON GEOMETRICAL FEATURES OF 3D SOLID

In order to provide a guidance to specify the element size dynamically during adaptive finite element mesh generation, adaptive criteria are firstly defined according to the relationships between the geometrical features and the elements of 3D solid. Various modes based on different datum geometrical elements, such as vertex, curve, surface, and so on, are then designed for generating local refined mesh. With the guidance of the defmed criteria, different modes are automatically selected to apply on the appropriate datum objects to program the element size in the local special areas. As a result, the control information of element size is successfully programmed covering the entire domain based on the geometrical features of 3D solid. A new algorithm based on Delatmay triangulation is then developed for generating 3D adaptive finite element mesh, in which the element size is dynamically specified to catch the geometrical features and suitable tetrahedron facets are selected to locate interior nodes continuously. As a result, adaptive mesh with good-quality elements is generated. Examples show that the proposed method can be successfully applied to adaptive finite element mesh automatic generation based on the geometrical features of 3D solid.

Study on boundary search method for DFM mesh generation

The boundary mesh of the casting model was determined by direct calculation on the triangular facets extracted from the STL file of the 3D model. Then the inner and outer grids of the model were identified by the algorithm in which we named Inner Seed Grid Method. Finally, a program to automatically generate a 3D FDM mesh was compiled. In the paper, a method named Triangle Contraction Search Method (TCSM) was put forward to ensure not losing the boundary grids; while an algorithm to search inner seed grids to identify inner/outer grids of the casting model was also brought forward. Our algorithm was simple, clear and easy to construct program. Three examples for the casting mesh generation testified the validity of the program.

Effect of graph generation on slope stability analysis based on graph theory

Limit equilibrium method （LEM） and strength reduction method （SRM） are the most widely used methods for slope stability analysis. However, it can be noted that they both have some limitations in practical application. In the LEM, the constitutive model cannot be considered and many assumptions are needed between slices of soil/rock. The SRM requires iterative calculations and does not give the slip surface directly. A method for slope stability analysis based on the graph theory is recently developed to directly calculate the minimum safety factor and potential critical slip surface according to the stress results of numerical simulation. The method is based on current stress state and can overcome the disadvantages mentioned above in the two traditional methods. The influences of edge generation and mesh geometry on the position of slip surface and the safety factor of slope are studied, in which a new method for edge generation is proposed, and reasonable mesh size is suggested. The results of benchmark examples and a rock slope show good accuracy and efficiency of the presented method.

Mesh Generation from Dense 3D Scattered Data Using Neural Network

An improved self-organizing feature map (SOFM) neural network is presented to generate rectangular and hexagonal lattic with normal vector attached to each vertex. After the neural network was trained, the whole scattered data were divided into sub-regions where classified core were represented by the weight vectors of neurons at the output layer of neural network. The weight vectors of the neurons were used to approximate the dense 3-D scattered points, so the dense scattered points could be reduced to a reasonable scale, while the topological feature of the whole scattered points were remained.

Energy-Minimizing Curve Fitting for High-Order Surface Mesh Generation

We investigate different techniques for fitting Bézier curves to surfaces in context of high-order curvilinear mesh generation. Starting from distance-based least-squares fitting we develop an incremental algorithm, which incorporates approximations of stretch and bending energy. In the process, the algorithm reduces the energy weight in favor of accuracy, leading to an optimized set of sampling points. This energy-minimizing fitting strategy is applied to analytically defined as well as triangulated surfaces. The results confirm that the proposed method straightens and shortens the curves efficiently. Moreover the method preserves the accuracy and convergence behavior of distance-based fitting. Preliminary application to surface mesh generation shows a remarkable improvement of patch quality in high curvature regions.

Mesh generation and optimization from digital rock fractures based on neural style transfer

The complex geometric features of subsurface fractures at different scales makes mesh generation challenging and/or expensive.In this paper,we make use of neural style transfer(NST),a machine learning technique,to generate mesh from rock fracture images.In this new approach,we use digital rock fractures at multiple scales that represent’content’and define uniformly shaped and sized triangles to represent’style’.The 19-layer convolutional neural network(CNN)learns the content from the rock image,including lower-level features(such as edges and corners)and higher-level features(such as rock,fractures,or other mineral fillings),and learns the style from the triangular grids.By optimizing the cost function to achieve approximation to represent both the content and the style,numerical meshes can be generated and optimized.We utilize the NST to generate meshes for rough fractures with asperities formed in rock,a network of fractures embedded in rock,and a sand aggregate with multiple grains.Based on the examples,we show that this new NST technique can make mesh generation and optimization much more efficient by achieving a good balance between the density of the mesh and the presentation of the geometric features.Finally,we discuss future applications of this approach and perspectives of applying machine learning to bridge the gaps between numerical modeling and experiments.

Two-dimensional finite element mesh generation algorithm for electromagnetic field calculation

Two-dimensional finite element mesh generation algorithm for electromagnetic field calculation is proposed in this paper to improve the efficiency and accuracy of electromagnetic calculation. An image boundary extraction algorithm is developed to map the image on the geometric domain. Identification algorithm for the location of nodes in polygon area is proposed to determine the state of the node. To promote the average quality of the mesh and the efficiency of mesh generation, a novel force-based mesh smoothing algorithm is proposed. One test case and a typical electromagnetic calculation are used to testify the effectiveness and efficiency of the proposed algorithm. The results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm can produce a high-quality mesh with less iteration.

Mapping-Based 3D Hexahedral Finite Element Mesh Generation Method

Mapping mesh generation is widely applied in pre-processes of Finite Element Method （FEM）. In this study, the basic 3D mapping equations by Lagrange interpolating function are founded. Based these equations, a mapping pattern library, which maps essential configurations e.g. line, circle, rotary body, sphere etc. to hexahedral FEM mesh, has been built. Then available FEM mesh will be generated by clipping and assembling the mapped essential objects. Study case illustrates that the proposed method is simple and efficient to generate valid FEM mesh for complex 3D engineering structure.

Frontiers in biomolecular mesh generation and molecular visualization systems

With the development of biomolecular modeling and simulation,especially implicit solvent modeling,higher requirements are set for the stability,efficiency and mesh quality of molecular mesh generation software.In this review,we summarize the recent works in biomolecular mesh generation and molecular visualization.First,we introduce various definitions of molecular surface and corresponding meshing software.Second,as the mesh quality significantly influences biomolecular simulation,we investigate some remeshing methods in the fields of computer graphics and molecular modeling.Then,we show the application of biomolecular mesh in the boundary element method(BEM)and the finite element method(FEM).Finally,to conveniently visualize the numerical results based on the mesh,we present two types of molecular visualization systems.

NUMERICAL MODELING OF THE INITIAL STAGE OF THE GENERATION OF UNSTEADY VORTICES FROM SHARP CORNER IN PLANE COMPRESSIBLE FLOW

The impingement of a plane shock wave in air on a rectangular or triangularobstacle is simulated numerically with high resolution TVD (total variationdiminishing) scheme in finite volume fomulation with Schwarz transformation in meshgeneration. The mesh lines are quite adaptive to the physical features of the unsieadyflow fietd and concentrate locally near the corners. At the initial stage the flow field iscomplex. and the scale of viscous diffusion is very small and the viscosity of fluid incomputation may be neglected. The unsteady generation of concerntrated vorticesdownstream of the sharp corner as the result of the nonnuiformity of both temperatureand entropy fields in plane inviscid compressible fluid, induced by bow shock wave, isshown clearly and in accordance with optical measurements, performed by our request.

THREE-DIMENSIONAL FINITE ELEMENT DELAUNAY MESH GENERATION BY A PERFECTED NODE CONNECTION METHOD

How to automatically generate three-dimensional finite element Delaunay mesh by a peifected node connection method is introduced, where nodes are generated based on existing elements, instead of independence of node creation and elements generation in traditional node connection method. Therefore, Ihe the difficulty about how to automatically create nodes in the traditional method is overcome.

Surface Modelling and Mesh Generation for Simulating Superplastic Forming

This paper presents an approach which enables surface modelling, mesh generation and the Finite Element (FE) analysis to be integrated together to simulate superplastic forming process for complex shaped components. Techniques have been developed to generate an FE mesh over non-four-sided surface areas, the boundaries of which are Bezier curves of arbitrary degree, using a consistent expression. Theoretical evidence is given to determine the number of Bezier triangular patches required for accurately re-constructing die surfaces within a commercial FE solver. The developed techniques have been successfully used in determining the process parameters for forming a 3D rectangular box.

A Modified Paving Approach and Automatic Mesh Grading Method to Quadrilateral Mesh Generation

A modified paving technique for automatic generation of all-quadrilateral mesh fromarbitrary 2-D geometry is presented. The generated mesh elementS are nearly square andperpendicular to boundaries. Aner the nodes and elementS formation is completed. a fully automaticgrading method is applied to increase the accuracy and reliability of engineering analysis. In thispaper, we mainly describe the theory of mathematical algorithm and present some examples ofautomatically generated mesh.

AUTOMATIC FINIT EELEMENT MODELING OF A WING

This paper is concerned about the automatic finite element modeling of a wing structure. The row and column method is used to identify the structure parts(ribs, spars, skins and pillars). A customization module of PCL(PATRAN Command Language under PATRAN 6.0) code from constructing airfoil curves to creating the entire wing FEM model is designed and developed. The geome tric, mesh density, material, load and boundary parameters can be easily and correctly input with the friendly interactive interface. A VFW614 wing is analyzed from creating airfoil curves to the show of stresses calculated by using NASTRAN 68 as an example. The results show that this customization module is very effective and efficient.

Redesign of a conformal boundary recovery algorithm for 3D Delaunay triangulation

Boundary recovery is one of the main obstacles in applying the Delaunay criterion to mesh generation. A stan- dard resolution is to add Steiner points directly at the intersection positions between missing boundaries and triangulations. We redesign the algorithm with the aid of some new concepts, data structures and operations, which make its implementation routine. Furthermore, all possible intersection cases and their solutions are presented, some of which are seldom discussed in the litera- ture. Finally, numerical results are presented to evaluate the performance of the new algorithm.

Advances in Studies and Applications of Centroidal Voronoi Tessellations

Centroidal Voronoi tessellations(CVTs) have become a useful tool in many applications ranging from geometric modeling,image and data analysis,and numerical partial differential equations,to problems in physics,astrophysics,chemistry,and biology. In this paper,we briefly review the CVT concept and a few of its generalizations and well-known properties.We then present an overview of recent advances in both mathematical and computational studies and in practical applications of CVTs.Whenever possible,we point out some outstanding issues that still need investigating.