The Keys to Scalable, Cost-Effective CFD Investment

The applications of computational fluid dynamics are broad, spanning multiple industries and requiring varying degrees of detail and analysis. For an analyst performing advanced computational fluid dynamics modelling or a design engineer quickly needing to understand fluid or thermal effects on a design proposal, Altair offers a complete set of tools to support each project.

Radomes are used across multiple industries, including aerospace, defense, electronics, and telecommunications. When properly designed, the radome can actually enhance the performance of an antenna system. The proper selection of a radome for a given antenna can help improve the overall electromagnetic system performance by eliminating wind loading, allowing for all-weather operation, and providing shelter for installation and maintenance. Altair’s radome simulation solution helps to streamline the design of these complex components, ensuring performance while significantly reducing development time.

The advancements in the fields of AI and ML, combined with the increased availability of robust simulation, testing, and field data sets has made engineering data science a critical component of the modern product development lifecycle, but in order to extract maximum value from these exciting tools, companies need a plan to store, manage, and utilize their data efficiently. They need data discipline

Learn how Altair AcuSolve™ performs with AMD EPYC™ 7003 series processors

Today, most products are complex mechatronic combinations of advanced technologies, mixing electrical parts with controllers and embedded software. To efficiently manage innovative products, organizations are turning to a Model-Based Development approach for concept studies, control design, multi-domain system simulation and optimization. To meet this demand, Altair’s simulation and optimization suite aims to transform design and decision-making throughout product lifecycles with their multi-disciplinary software tools and consultancy services.

A company specializing in 3D printing relies on simulation to make tools for injection molding that are less expensive, lighter and better than those created with traditional methods.

In this white paper, we present the innovative commercial GPU-based Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) solver Altair ultraFluidX. This work features simulations of the DrivAer model, a generic, publicly available vehicle geometry that was developed by the Chair of Aerodynamics and Fluid Mechanics at the Technical University of Munich and which is widely used for testing and validation purposes. The DrivAer model features rear end, underbody designs, and underhood flow. This model was then used to perform both wind tunnel tests and numerical simulations of the 40% scale open cooling geometry using perforated aluminum sheets with different opening ratios to mimic different radiator properties. Within, we will compare some of the results from these wind tunnel tests with numerical results obtained with Altair ultraFluidX.

To design and build an aerial ladder for a firetruck, the engineer needs to accurately determine the working loads the ladder will encounter. Some of these can be easy to interpret such as the weight of the firefighter in the basket at the end of the ladder, or the weight of the water being supplied to the nozzle. Other loads can be a little harder to quantify, such as how wind affects the ladder. There are several different ways to determine this effect, and two of those will be explored in this paper: the standard equation (ASCE 7-10), and CFD.

Optimal design methods involving the coupling of fluid and structural solutions are a topic of active research; particularly for aerospace applications. The paper presents a coupled fluid and structure approach to topology optimization using two commercial finite element solutions; AcuSolve and OptiStruct. A gradient based method is used to minimize the compliance of a structure subject to thermal loading. The optimal material distribution to minimize compliance is computed using the Solid-Isotropic Material with Penalty (SIMP) method available in OptiStruct. A volume fraction constraint is imposed in order to iteratively reduce the parts mass. Draw constraints are used to ensure manufacturability. The thermal loading is computed iteratively using a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) solution from AcuSolve. The optimization produces an innovative design which increases the heat rejection rate of the part while reducing the mass.

Nowadays, it is more and more difficult to design electro-technique devices without having a look at thermal stress. In more and more applications (more electric vehicles, more electric aircrafts, …) designers need to reduce weight, cost, increase efficiency, and keep the same security factor. One possibility is to increase current for the same device, needing to check how to draw away the heat. This is why the classical approximations need to be cross checked with complementary analysis. These new tools have to be rapid and accurate in order to run parametric and even optimization analysis. There is also a need for fast model in order to check robustness versus driving cycles. The goal in this article is to review rapidly the different methods available, depending on the accuracy required and the solving speed. The method includes equivalent thermal circuits, Finite elements methods and CFD analysis.

Development tools and methods, such as simulation, are increasingly important to face and address the pressure of innovation. As an example, for successful new design methods and to show how simulation tools are used, Altair developed a virtual demonstrator based on a cobot application. This complex machine interacts with a human operator as the ultimate smart manufacturing equipment - to show how challenges in modern product design can be overcome.

When applied to engineering, Machine Learning can be a powerful tool to aid in a range of applications, from faster finite-element (FE) model building to optimizing manufacturing processes and obtaining more accurate results from physics-based simulations. Although incorporating this collection of technology is relatively new in the field of engineering, Altair has made leaps forward in this space to provide users with the tools they need to make a difference.