under many guises; Analysis Testing, ... performance from the safety of your screen .... be more robust than is necessar
SIMULATING SUCCESS
How analysis testing can dramatically impact your business offering.
SIMULATION CONTENTS WHAT IS SIMULATION?
WHAT IS SIMULATION? 2
SIMULATE 3 WHAT CAN I TEST FOR?
4
WHAT TESTS CAN SIMULATION SOFTWARE DO?
6
4 KEY BENEFITS OF SIMULATION
8
3D Simulation software for CAD designers and engineers comes under many guises; Analysis Testing, Virtual Prototyping, Finite Element Analysis (FEA), Failure Mode Analysis and Design Validation and it can be used in many contexts for example safety engineering, testing, training and computer experiments to name but a few.
SIMULATE, VERB: TO PRODUCE A CONVINCING RE-CREATION OF A REAL LIFE EVENT OR SET OF CONDITIONS
However when it comes to making things, Simulation’s key purpose is about getting the design right first time, before any expensive prototyping or manufacturing begins. By simulating how your product will work in the real world, you can virtually test new ideas, push innovations further and evaluate performance from the safety of your screen before you even have to cut a piece of metal.
2
3
SIMULATION WHAT CAN I TEST FOR? PRETTY MUCH EVERYTHING, BUT HERE ARE A FEW EXAMPLES TO GET YOUR CREATIVE JUICES WORKING.
GOLF BALLS
WASHING MACHINES Will your washing machine last for 5 million cycles or just one? Find out which parts need strengthening, so your design will perform efficiently for a predefined warranty period.
BEER CANS
PACKAGING – By how much can you reduce the thickness of a plastic water bottle before it fails?
Can you stop your beer bottle warming up if you use a different material or make the top smaller?
If you hit a golf ball at 40m/s will the ball’s surface last longer if you use a different material? CARS Be more aerodynamic but do it with confidence. Test the air-flow over your designs before hauling an expensive prototype into a wind tunnel.
Finding the optimal thickness can mean huge material savings through mass production.
IN THE PAST, YOU MAY HAVE ANSWERED THESE TYPES OF QUESTIONS WITH TIME-CONSUMING HAND CALCULATIONS AND A FEW BUILD/ TEST/REDESIGN CYCLES. BUT NOW THE TECHNOLOGY IS HERE TO DO IT FOR YOU IN A FRACTION OF THE TIME AND WITHOUT THE GUESSWORK.
PLASTIC MOULDS
SCUBA TANKS How deep can a SCUBA tank go before overloading the metal tank becomes a problem?
4
STRUCTURAL STRENGTH Verify the earthquake resistance of structures such as a chemical storage tank and identify problems before they become an issue.
Reduce warpage and defects by seeing how melted plastic flows during the injection moulding process.
PACKAGING How can I be confident my product will be delivered safely, even if someone accidently drops the box off the back of a lorry?
DRILLING Will the spindle speed of oil well-drilling machinery keep the system in a safe operating region without vibrating apart?
5
SIMULATION WHAT TESTS CAN SIMULATION SOFTWARE DO?
There is an extensive selection of simulation packages out there to cover a wide range of scenarios. You can test against a broad range of parameters during the design process, such as durability, static and dynamic response, assembly motion, heat transfer, fluid dynamics and plastics injection moulding. Here is a quick guide to some of the more widely used tests in the design and engineering industry: MOTION SIMULATION
When you are working with a design with moving parts, it is important to check how the design will function before you make it and avoid costly mistakes. Motion analysis lets you move your assembly to accurately determine the physical movements of the assembly under load as well as the timing (time-based motion) or sequencing (event-based motion), which can enhance product performance.
FATIGUE SIMULATION
Being able to pinpoint the effect of repeated or random load cycles on your design is crucial in evaluating the structural life of your products. Fatigue Simulation will not only give you a much better idea of how long your product will last (and help with those pre-defined warranties) but it can also give you invaluable insight into the type of materials you should choose. Simulation software will look at the material properties for each and you can apply it straight to your design at the click of a button, without any change in geometry.
Read our WHITE PAPER Preventing Mechanical Fatigue. DROP TEST SIMULATION
If you are designing protective casing for a tablet, wouldn’t it be great to know how well it really would protect an iPad from being dropped on the floor? Simulation software can give your design structural integrity that it will perform correctly. Put your design through rigorous working conditions by analysing complex nonlinear stresses and deformations that would have otherwise shortened product life. 6
VIBRATION SIMULATION
Every component has a natural frequency. Where it gets complicated is when a forced vibration is applied - like shaking – which can reduce product performance or even cause catastrophic failure. In an environment with lots of moving parts Simulation can quickly evaluate the effects of vibration and resonance to pinpoint hidden weak spots. You can get detailed vibration data through frequency analysis and dynamic analysis to ensure product performance and safety. You can also check the results over time or just view the worst condition over the entire test period to quickly highlight the most loaded areas and change the design to meet your goals.
Read our WHITE PAPER Streamlining Design with Real-World Vibration Analysis. FLOW SIMULATION
Often referred to as Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD), Flow Simulation lets you create the movement of fluids and gases during the design phase and save you a lot of headaches and rework. It can calculate lift and drag forces, monitor the pressure drop for a valve or understand the airflow inside a home. The ability to predict ‘what if’ scenarios of such flows on your product performance early in the design process can help you deliver innovative designs and greater product efficiency.
Read our WHITE PAPER The role of CFD designs in the real world. 7
SIMULATION 4 KEY BENEFITS OF SIMULATION
Experimenting in the real world is a costly business. Physical Prototypes can be a huge burden on budgets, especially when you don’t get it right first time. Here we outline some of the benefits of how Simulation software can help businesses. 1 BOOST INNOVATION 2 BETTER DESIGNED PRODUCTS 3 REDUCE HIGH PROTOTYPE COSTS 4 SHORTEN TIME TO MARKET 1 BOOSTING INNOVATION
Empowering your engineering teams with simulation capabilities means they can compare design scenarios and new ideas right at the beginning of the design process. Differentiate your product offering by developing ground-breaking product design and grow your market share.
2 BETTER DESIGNED PRODUCTS
Over-engineering is the death of good design. If you are designing a product to be more robust than is necessary for its application – not only are you wasting valuable resources but you are also probably creating a product that is heavier and more expensive than it needs to be. Simulation not only lets engineers optimise their designs but also allows for collaboration with the end user. In the medical industry, doctors are now able to test surgical instruments in a totally digital environment, and pass on their experiences and thoughts to the designer. In a changing world where designing for the ‘User Experience’ is key, how do you harness that customer input? Do you put them in front of a CAD drawing? Impossible. Do you show them a video simulation? Totally. 8
3) REDUCE HIGH PROTOTYPE COSTS
By integrating simulation early in the product development phase, companies can reduce the need for costly prototyping. No one will ever completely stop building prototypes, but instead of building five prototypes to get it right, wouldn’t it be better to simulate the design first and build just one? Simulation lets you design, simulate, modify, simulate, modify again and simulate it until you are fairly sure it will be right first time. So rather than wait for any problems to be picked up in the prototype – nip them in the bud first time and save yourself a fortune.
4) SHORTEN TIME-TO-MARKET
In today’s competitive world, time to market is king. Reduce the need for time-consuming physical prototyping or outsourcing performance testing, instead by verifying part and mold designs in the earliest stages of development you could shave weeks, if not months, off your design process.
“ With Simulation, I can identify and resolve potential issues during design, so that when we mold those initial pieces, they are right the first time. It’s an incredible tool that has let us save 30 to 60 percent in capital costs in the development of new products. ” — Todd Turner, Senior Product Development Engineer, Macro Plastics 9
To find out how Simulation and Analysis testing can improve product performance and design. Contact leading CAD consultants New Technology CADCAM on 0800 018 6957 www.thenewtechnologygroup.com New Technology CADCAM is one of the UK’s leading resellers of SOLIDWORKS Simulation Solutions and introduced it to the UK in 1996. Offering world-leading CAD and CAM solutions, including CAMWorks and PDM systems, its experienced team of engineers helps businesses of all sizes strive and achieve a more integrated, innovative and cost-effective approach to product design and manufacturing.
New Technology CADCAM Ltd
• Bromsgrove • Bristol • Manchester • Newcastle • Norwich • Oxford • Sheffield • Stirling • Swansea Waterslade House Thame Road Haddenham Buckinghamshire HP17 8NT UNITED KINGDOM 10
NEW TECHNOLOGY CADCAM – EMPOWERING THE UK DESIGN & MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY
