Solid Mesh - Tetrahedral Hybrid PropertyManager

The tetrahedral hybrid mesh type uses a triangular surface mesh as a basis for creating tetrahedral volume elements, generally combined with boundary layers. Boundary layers are layers of prismatic elements at the surface of the body.

To open the Solid Mesh - Tetrahedral Hybrid PropertyManager:

  1. Create a Plastics study with the Solid analysis procedure.
  2. In the PlasticsManager , right-click Solid Mesh , and set Mesh Type to Tetrahedral Hybrid. Do one of the following:
    1. In the PlasticsManager, right-click Solid Mesh, and click Create Mesh .
    2. In the Plastics CommandManager, click Create Mesh .

Step 1: Surface Mesh

Surface Mesh Sets the mesh density for a surface mesh.

A proprietary algorithm sets the default surface mesh density based on the dimensions of the body corresponding to the cavity domain. Moving the slider bar to the right increases the mesh density, while moving the slider to the left reduces the mesh density.

Each gradation on the slider changes the mesh size by a factor of approximately 2.

  Reset Resets the mesh density to the default value.
Estimated Number of triangles Provides a crude estimate of the total number of surface mesh elements. The calculation assumes a uniform mesh distribution. The estimate of triangles is less accurate for the curvature-based refinement method.
  Refinement method

Uniform

Applies a uniform mesh size to the model, irrespective of whether there are small local features that the mesh size might not capture. Minimizes the total number of elements created for a given geometry.

A mesh with fewer elements requires less computational time but might not capture fine features. Results accuracy could be compromised in regions with finer features.
   

Curvature-based

Applies a curvature-based mesh that refines the mesh in regions of the model with small features. For example, you can set a refined mesh for small geometric features, such as injection locations, and a coarse mesh for other regions. Refining the mesh in critical regions improves the accuracy of results, but increases the computational time.

Advanced Mesh Control

Faces, Edges, Vertices, Components for Mesh Control Specifies geometry entities (faces, edges, vertices, or bodies) to apply a local mesh size.
Mesh Size Specifies a mesh size to apply to the selected geometry entities.
You set the units in Settings and Help > Unit (Plastics CommandManager)
Mesh Tolerance Available for Curvature-based mesh. Enter a value between 0.1 and 1.0. The minimum allowable element size is the value of Mesh Size multiplied by the value of Mesh Tolerance.
  Gradation Applicable only to selected bodies. Controls how rapidly the mesh size changes from the local size to the default mesh size. Move the slider to the left for a smoother mesh size transition with more elements. Move the slider to the right to decrease the number of elements. Selecting Curvature-based creates a potentially finer mesh near regions of curvature or features such as injection locations.

Options

Save settings without meshing Saves the mesh settings of your model (mesh size, refinement method, and advanced mesh control) without creating the mesh. When you run a study, the mesh settings are applied automatically to generate the mesh.

In a study's PlasticsManager tree, the icon next to Solid Mesh or Shell Mesh indicates that you saved the mesh settings for your model.
Create Creates a surface mesh with the current settings and displays the mesh in the graphics area. Click Create to view the mesh before exiting the PropertyManager.

Create is activated when you modify the current mesh settings.

It is not mandatory to click Create for the software to create a mesh. If you click OK to exit the PropertyManager without clicking Create, the software automatically creates a tetrahedral hybrid mesh with the current settings.
Show preview Displays a surface mesh before creating a solid mesh to validate the mesh of your model.
Edit/Review Displays detailed mesh information and diagnostics tools. You can use advanced meshing tools to inspect the quality of the surface mesh and repair invalid elements.

After you create a surface mesh, click to go to the next step. The software fills in the volume of the part with tetrahedral hybrid mesh elements based on the surface mesh.