Tutorial for Visual Environment 6.

5
ESI Group software

By
Angjele Ivanovski

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 1
Table of contexts :

Introduction

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 2
Introduction :

Visual Environment is union of programs that help modeling,

simulate and test a lot of mechanical process that industry uses
today and were used before. In this tutorial we will focus on the
Welding process and the benefits of welding simulation. The first
step is making the model with sub program Visual MESH. In this
Sub program you will draw our model, give its geometrical shape
and define the welding path, the surface impact by the heat, the
cooling surface, clamp conditions and much more, as you can see
later. After the preparation of our model in Visual MESH we start
our second sub program Visual Weld. In this program we will put
our welding conditions such as Material that is going to be weld,
Welding speed, energy, cooling conditions and etc. This program
will generate most of our post processing file separating them on
Heat Treatment and Mechanical Treatment. To have a final view of
the results we will start our last program Visual VIEWER where we
can see the hole process and how our model react to the heat
treatment and the influence of the clamped conditions as one of
the many mechanical characteristics of the welded material. In
this Sub program we can create an plot and save it as Image or
we can make an video so that we can have good presentation of
our model.

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 3
ATTENTION : This Tutorial would try to show both versions of ESI
GROUP SOFTWARE
6.1 and 6.5

Visual MESH

The ESI software group can be started under Start button>Alle Programme
> ESI GROUP> Visual Environment>6.5[6.1] (64 bit)>

1. In 6.5 you start Visual WELD *

2. In 6.1 you start Visual MESH

Note * This option can open you Visual Weld so you have to click with the
mouse on the ‘Applications ‘ left upper corner and switch to Visual MESH.

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 4
For easy working and quick learning of this program we will need to know some
basic of drawing and modeling, it’s in our best interest also to read any material
that shows us what we need to know about FEM simulation solutions and tests
and in our high priority is to read and practice more about making the mesh as
close to perfection as it could be.

At the next picture we can see the welcome screen our first start point. Take your
coffee and your positive energy let’s start.

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 5
ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 6
Step by step through the menu:

Aplications : in this menu we can switch between our sub programs : Visual
MESH, Visual WELD and Visual Viewer.

File : is normal menu where you

open new document, save export and
etc.

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 7
 Edit: also is common used menu with the copy,
paste, select and etc.

View: is the menu where you set up

your point of view, Compass option,
change the background color of the
window and etc.

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 8
 Curve: The menu from where we start
our drawing contains: Sketch choice
which we can use for drawing straight
and curve lines, Circle and arc for
drawing of rounded models, trim\split
for cutting, transform for changing the
position of the model or making a copy
out of it and etc.

Surface: this menu can show us the

option where you can create a surface
and edit it.

We will take some time to have a look at the menus

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 9
For our easy learn tutorial we will weld a 200 x 200 x 2mm Steel Probe.
Our material is DP 600 and the welding process is MAG.

We click on the File menu and select New. As we can see the background
of our working space has changed the color.
ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 10
On the left corner of the working space you can find the 3D coordinate
system. While clicking on the circle you can modify the coordinate system
as is your wish. Now we will have to start drawing in 2D coordinate
system, click with the mouse under the surface menu and chose one of
the given 2D coordinate systems.

We will select XY for our start system so that our

extension could be in Z axis.

It is important to safe as much times as you can

and maybe by different names just to have back
up of your last work.

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 11
for our further work is important the files to be saved in one folder, click
on file menu choose save, pick desktop for start and create there an folder
in this example we will call the folder “saved files”, the model name would
be “TEST1” the extension of the file is .vdb it’s the program default and for
our work is the best it saves most of the data used and Visual Weld uses it
for further processing ex. Heat and mechanical.

Now we are at the start line, what we see in front of us it’s a program that
can offer much but here
we will learn about the
basic and I hope it
motivates you to learn as
much as you can from this
program because it has a
wide range of uses.

It’s important to have a

visual in your head or even
more drawn on paper of
what your probe looks like.
The proper dimensions are
priority for better and
better results.
ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 12
Now select the Sketch menu and chose Curve, a small window pop up in
the left corner, take the mouse and drag near the coordinate start.

Select the Linear option, and with the

mouse click on two random points at the
background screen.

Note * the pictures from now on would be in white background so that

when we make a print we don’t use much color. You can change the
background workspace color following this step’s: click on View menu and
from there you choose Window Background color and you select what you
mostly like.

After we click two random points, we would like to edit them so that we
can get in the dimensions that we want. Go with the mouse and click on
the red point that it’s close to the coordinate system, a new window is
open here first select the axis that you would like to edit and then delete
the previous number and write the one you need for our example its 0 (x)
ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 13
0 (y) and 0 (z), after that press enter or press the axis button in the point
definition window.

The same we will do for our second point over there we will put number
100(x), 0(y), 0(z). While clicking next to the point, not on the point you will
draw a third point. That is what we don’t like for this example so just click
undo on the Sketch Curve Window.

Now it’s ok so we must click Apply if we don’t like this to happen again.
You can click on the Apply button inside the Sketch Curve menu or the
small box with orange ‘enter’ sign. When you click apply the line cannot
be changed any more. Now click on other two random points on the
background. First select the point that it’s close to our last point. We have
two ways to connect them one it’s that we manually write down the
ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 14
coordinates or we click End of Curve Button that’s inside Point Definition
window. Either of the ways will take us to our result. On the other point we
would put 100(x) 100 (y) 0 (z). Click Apply our line goes out of the
window?!?!?! Its easy we can get it back : scrolling the middle mouse
wheel forward to undo zoom or to get a bigger view, scroll it backwards

you will get zoom in, if you don’t have mouse wheel you click on the
keyboard strg(ctrl)+ F this is command for fit to window.

Now we will use the same procedure for the two edges, after we click for
the creation of two new random points, one point of the horizontal line
would be End of Curve, the other one would have this coordinates 0(x),
100(y),0(z). The last vertical curve is also created by two random points,
but here
we click
End of
Curve

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 15
for both of them selecting it in order to get a square shape connected
curves.

Don’t forget to save as many times you feel it’s necessary. We should
save the probes with names in other to remember our work step by step so if we

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 16
make mistake in the next step or our pc makes us problem we would have a
good back up.

Now we have curves but not a surface, we have to create surface

following this steps: Click on the surface menu and select sweep drag. The
following new window appears. Click on the vector button select global
axis and in the “Along” box choose X Axis.

After we select what we what it is shown in the orange circle in the picture
above we Click OK to continue.

After that click on the button Points marked with light

green circle shown on the picture that it is on the previous
page. Then click on two vertical points away from the
square but close to his surroundings. You will get this
yellow line click on the middle wheel mouse button and
we will get Orange Square who is located outside of our
curve square. To create a surface out of curves we have
to change the distance so in the distance box we put 200
just to be sure that all of our curves are inside the created
box.

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 17
“Before “

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 18
“After“

To make sure that we have made surface we can change our view point
for a second of time.

Go with the mouse below Edit and View

menu see some gray color small squares
click on the one Smooth. See the
pictures below the curves are covert with
green surface.

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 19
 Click on Edge the first square from left to right to get back in previous
point of view.

Now we have to separate our curve square from the surface square, for
that we would use command Split from the Surface menu.

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 20
There is a new window, down the left corner of the program. We will click
on the Surface menu and select the Surface button and we click between
our curved drawn surface and our created surface. Then click on the
middle mouse. After that we shall click in the small menu “Split by “we
choose Curves and we select the curves that we draw manually. When we
select them step by step we can notice that they are turning yellow. After
selecting them we press middle wheel of the mouse. We can notice that
the color of our bigger surface has change this shows that we are on a
good way click apply and its finished.

To make sure that we have created two surfaces we go on the falling down
menu on the left side.

We don’t need the bigger surface so, we

click on
the space
between
them.
Can we
see the
yellow

transformation of the lines of the bigger surface and the lines that go
around the drawn surface? If we can that means that we have made good
choose, press delete ( Einfg) and the bigger surface would be gone.

This is too big, now we have to make a smaller section of our plate. Let’s
divide on three smaller parts. To do that we have to draw two more curves

Let it be for our example the curves have coordinate 20mm and 50 mm.
ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 21
Our first curve will be 20 x 0 y and 20 x 100 y
second curve will be 50 x 0 y and 50 x 100 y .

We select Sketch menu and we click on Curve the procedure is the same
after we finish we should get this.

after we click apply and we close the window we have to split this
surfaces, select Surface form the up menu and click on Split. For selection
of surface you select the square surface and under curves you select the
two new drawn curves. Click on the middle button of the mouse and then
apply.

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 22
Now its good point to save the work you have done so this save could be
saves as TEST1surface.vdb.

If we like to make welding we must put net on our probe, net also
known as mesh. Maybe at the start we would find some problems
during the mesh but don’t worry with practice it will get better
and better.

To activate the mesh window we select the 2D menu and click on the Auto
mesh Surfaces.

Now select the smallest surface or the first from right to left, because here
we like to put the welding we would have to give this surface more
detailed mesh. Soon as you clicked on the surface, click on the Create
mesh button in the Auto mesh window.

The new window appears and there is auto generated mesh that it’s too
big for our probe. That why we change the number in the Element size box
from 10 to 2 and we click on Create mesh button that is down in the right

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 23
corner of 2d mesh window.

Now we click on the ok and we can continue with the second surface but
lets make it bigger now. After we click on the surface and then click on
create mesh then we this time put 3 For ELEMENT SIZE, and click on
Advanced in the small option menu and sign on the box within part. * you
can see on the picture below! After that you will click on method in the
small option menu, in Element options under type put :Quad – Tria , and
under Order : Quadric. For Method choose MAP. This may not look like a
good mesh but for this tutorial its ok, the mesh would get better with
experience and strongly depends on the welding process and on what you
would like to get out from your simulation.

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 24
ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 25
After you do this click on create mesh, we have the final the biggest
surface.

We select it and we click on Create Mesh, because this part we would try
something different just to show the wide selection of opportunities that
this program can offer. Now we are at the first page of 2D mesh menu, in
the Edge Section under Biasing at Type section we put exponential we
choose factor 3. We click on Bias edge and we select the horizontal edges.
Oh no one of our edge its flip on the other side choose Flip the first box
before the Bias Edge and correct the edge in order from smaller start to
bigger size ending. Hmm this is not ok our first section of elements its
smaller than our last section from the second part… that’s not a
characteristic of a good mesh.

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 26
So we would like to change things at the last box with name Count we
enter 10 and we click on set to edge button then we select the horizontal
edges of our third part. To be sure after the click on one of the edges we
will click the edge button again and click on the other Edge. Click Create
mesh and ok now we are Finished with the mesh. To view the part better
click on the Flat and wireframe button under view and edit on the top
menu.

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 27
ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 28
 This is one half of our probe, we
would have to copy to get the other
half. To do this we would use the
transform command from Surface
menu, it is the second command
from down to up.

When you open the transform

window you have to click on Mirror
option and from mirror select copy
option, now you have to chose the
plane, set it to global and choose X
axis.

Click on Element, there is a menu that

falls down, from it choose Element
before 2D options, and after that click
again and Choose Sell ALL button.
After clicking on the green enter sign
next to the Element button, you will

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 29
get half blue half yellow surface, click on Copy button at the end and you
will get the probe in right shape.

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 30
During the transformation some of the nodes are not connected so we
click on the Checks menu and we select the Coincident Nodes option. On
the Coincident Node window we have lot of options but first we have to
press Check under Validate opinion and take a look the Max Gap is 0.1.
This option can be changed that one depends on our next tests.

For this example its good.

The picture on our screen changes,

now click on Node in Fuse Nodes
option and click on Fuse all. Now we
have connected all of the missing
links between elements we can go
to making 3D model.

In the 3D menu choose sweep drag

option, in the small window that pop out
we must select this opinion look at the pic.

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 31
From the vector window we would
select the z axis as our main extrude
axis. And for distance we choose 2
because the probe has 2 mm
thickness.

After this we click on Element face and from the menu above we choose
the option select all

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 32
When all of our elements turn yellow we click on the mesh button in the
Sweep 3D window.

Here we have another window take a look it has many options but we
wont change nothing here just press on the Mesh and green positive sign.

*** for some non-explained reasons

mine first probe didn’t work and I
quickly load the last saved version
and repeat the steps again but with
different mesh because I didn’t had
much time.

It happens I think I found my error but

some time it cannot be to the person
the program can make some troubles.

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 33
I have clicked mirror option more than once so I had two layers of 2d
objects I am sorry. ****

When we will finish with the 3d window, and the swap window, to have a
better look at the probe let’s try on the flat and the wireframe square.

Now we have to delete the previous made 2d plate and renumber.

Select 2d from elements, under geometry at the left side menu. Make a
right click and delete.
ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 34
On the top menu under Assembly click on the Advanced Renumber and on
the new window select all Elements, nodes and parts. Click on the
renumber button and close.

Now we have to start creating the components that are important for the
visual welding.

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 35
Click on the 2D menu and choose extract from 3D .

On the new window we click on the

element face and then from the top
menu we click on select all button.

When all of the elements are in yellow

color click on the extract button. We
can easy see the change in the menu
on the left side.

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 36
 Now we have to make the collectors.

On the left sided menu click on 2d elements with right click and choose
LOCATE, after this click on select all button from the top menu. Since all of
the elements have turned yellow on the background click the right mouse
button and in the tools option click add new collector.

In the left side menu we can notice that

there is a new object added. Click on it with
the right mouse button and press edit This
collector we would name it
SOLID_AIR_HEAT_EXCHANGE.

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 37
 Now we have to make the
same procedure for our
next collector.
Component_1 but this
collector we would take out
from the 3d surface. On the
left side menu we click on
the 3D Element with the
right mouse button and we
press Locate. After we
press locate from the top
menu we press the select
all button. Soon as our
probe turns yellow we click
on the background with
right mouse button and we
select add new collector
from tools menu.

After we see the new component on the left menu we edit its name in
COMPONENT_1

With this component now we have the welded probe and we have the way
of getting the heat out of material, now we have to focus of the heat
effected zone or in our case cold LOAD. On the left side menu we click on
the 3D elements and locate while our point of view its set on Flat and
Wairframe we click on 10 shells in line left rom the centar of the probe
and 10 shells in line that are on the right. If you like you can select all
depends on your choise. When we select 20 shels in line we select all
shells that are in our path starting form top to bottom fo the plane. After
we select them we check if everything is ok and then we click on the

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 38
background with right click and we flow the same procedure only naming
this probe LOAD_1.

Now we have to select clamp nodes.

ISAF – TU Clausthal
Pure Inspiration ®

Seite 39