making your mesh in solid works

7/27/2019 Making Your Mesh in Solid Works

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Tutorial 2:

Generating you solid using SolidWorks and

reading it into STAR-CCM+

Introduction:

The intention of this tutorial is to use SolidWorks software to generate a mesh that then is exported

to STAR-CCM+ and then imported to STAR-CCM . This tutorial assumes that you have the minimum

knowledge on how to use SolidWorks. This tutorial is essential for later stages in STAR-CCM, if the

student doesnt master this tutorial he wont be able to run flow simulations on desired geometries

he wants. Try to read whats written before each step and what follows it under the figure title.

Step1: Launch Solid works by double clicking on its icon on the desktop, then go to file and choose

New.

Figure1: a reminder that not all lab machines have the STAR-CCM software installed on them.


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Step2: You will get a window asking you to choose an option choose Part.

Figure2: You can generate a mesh also using assembly but that would be covered in later tutorials.

Step3: select the top plane and choose insert sketch, then draw a 2d profile which looks like the

bottom one.

Figure3: you can chose whatever 2d profile you like as long as you can revolve it around a

predefined axis.


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Step4: Once you have revolved the 2d profile around the selected axis and then mirrored the

revolved part against its base side you should get some this like this (capsule shaped object).

Figure4: The student can choose whatever method that proves to be convenient with him,

remember that in modelling there are lots of different approaches used.

Step5: The following step is aimed at generating a cavity shaped like a capsule and thats done by

inserting a new sketch on the top plane and drawing a square that contains the capsule shape. Once

the 2d drawing sketch is done the student choses the extrude command on the square profile. NOTE

THAT REMMBER TO DESELECT THE MERGE REUSLT TICK BOX, IF YOU DONT YOU WILL NOT GET

THE CAPSULE CAVITY BECOUSE THE CAPSULE 3D SHAPE WILL BE MERGED WITH THE BOX DOMAIN.

Figure5: Just by looking at the Output Star 1 , and reading the comments the arrow is pointing at,

you can make sure that things are alright.


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Step6: The extruded box should like something like this.

Figure6: Try to use the rotate view command to check that the box domain is to the required

manner.

Step7: Choose the wire frame to make the solid capsule is inside the extruded box domain.

Figure7: The main objective to use wire frame view is because if you use the slice commands you

cant view the existence of the solid capsule inside the extruded box.


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Step8: Now go to Insert then features and from feature choose combine.

Figure8: Notice that the view of the part is in perspective view and its in shaded mode without

edges.

Step9: Once you get the combine window choose subtract.

Figure9: Notice the main body that was selected is highlighted in green wireframe while the body to

subtract is in blue wire frame.


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Step10: Choose the slice command to view that the cavity has been generated inside the box

domain.

Figure10: try to offset the slice plane in the forward and backward direction to check that the cavity

fulfils the required conditions by the user.

Step11: This is the last step in the SolidWorks environment, go to file and chose save as:

Parasolid(*.x_t).

Figure11: Always try to work in an organized manner create a folder with a name that you can

remember and choose a file name that is application related to your studied case, these tips can

speed up your work.


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Step12: Lunch Star-CCM and choose new session, for more detail on how to start working on STAR-

CCM go to Tutorial 1. Go to file then Import then Choose Import Surface Mesh .

Figure12: You cant Import a volume mesh till you previously generate one, this is a very important

note.

Step13: Then comes choose from the Import Surface Options, Create new Region, then press ok.

Figure13: Getting around the other provided options will be covered at later tutourials.


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Step14: Change the transparency of your part to see what kind of mesh your part is made up of.

Figure14: What is visible to the user is that the grid sizing is to big and their isnt much detail

captured for the modelled part.

Step15: To increase the density and type of structure of the mesh, you will have to modify the base

size for your mesh. Go to Continua then Reference values and under reference values you will find

base size. By looking at the properties section you will find that the base size value is 1, we will haveto see what is the size of the base value for the modelled part, thats done by using the measure

feature covered in Tutorial 1. As is obvious the measured value is 0.116 (m) while the base size value

is one. Go to the Base SizeProperties and modify the value from 1 to 0.01.

Figure15: Its very essential to get the right value for the base size, to ensure that you get the

required grid density to capture as much as possible data from the run simulation.


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Step16: The modified value of the base value is in blue colour.

Figure16: Under the Output-Star 1, you can see the details of the coordinates of the previously

selected points and the measured distance between them.

Step17: Go to Continua and choose click on your right hand mouse button and choose select

meshing model, you will get a Mesh 1 Model Selection choose Surface Remesher.

Figure17: Depending on your studied case for your volume mesh you choose what kind of Mesh

type, either Polyhedral Mesher , Tetrahedral Mesher . etc.


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Step18: For our case choose Tetrahedral Mesher, once finished press close.

Figure18: once the previous steps are accomplished youre nearly got to the end.

Step19: Go to Mesh and Choose: Generate Surface Mesh.

Figure19: Once the command is conducted by the software proceed to the next step.


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Step20: Go to Mesh and choose Generate Volume Mesh

Figure20: Now that you have given the command of Generate Volume Mesh youre in business now.

Step20: The volume mesh you created should look something similar to this.

Figure20: if your note happy with the size of chosen elements you can modify the base size value to

a much smaller value.


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A Reminder on the application of the three mouse button for STAR-CCM+:

Always try to work in an organized manner create a folder with a name that you can remember and

choose a file name that is application related to your studied case, these tips can speed up your

work.

Thats the end of the second tutorial I hope that was helpful please feel free to contact me regarding

any mistakes or recommendations for the tutorial.

Ahmed Al Makky

[email protected]

http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/sci/eng/pg/students/esrhaw

Rotation of View (Left Button):

Press once and the specified

point on the screen and move

mouse you can rotate your view.

Zoom of View (Middle Button):



mouse you can zoom your view.

Pan View (Right Button):



mouse you pan your view angle.
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]

making your mesh in solid works

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