J.

Cugnoni LMAF / EPFL 2012

Vertices (0D):
Coordinates & coordinate system

Edges (1D):
several Vertices => line / curve

Surfaces (2D):
closed loop of edges (shared vertices),
parametric 2D space, normal = orientation

Volumes (3D):
a closed set of surfaces (shared edges), unified
normal orientation

3D CAD volume:
all edges are shared between boundary faces =>
no free edges => surface is closed => its a
volume!

Several formats are supported by Abaqus CAE:

STEP : universal format, good for volumes & assemblies

IGES : universal format, good for surfaces, ok for volumes
SAT : ACIS engine, native geometry format of Abaqus
CAE, good for nearly everything
CATPart: CATIA v5 format, can be imported with a specific
module (1 licence)

Always check the geometry:

Free edges / invalid entities: tools => query => geom.

diagnostic
If free edges, stitch the surfaces: tools => geom. repair
=> part => stitch
If meshing problems, convert to precise: tools =>
geom. repair => part => convert to precise
Check the dimensions / units !!
If you have problems with geometric operations (like
partition), try to Convert to Precise and Convert to
Analytical representation

Mesh generation in 3D is based on the same

hierarchy as the CAD model:
1D: meshing of the edges, starting from a
user-defined element size / distribution
2D: propagation of 1D mesh to 2D surface;
structured or free (advancing front or
medial axis).
3D: propagation of 2D mesh to the 3D volume;
structured, semi-structured (sweep), free

Method:
Use the curvilinear parameter to distribute nodes
along edges => create 1D elements

Definition:
Constant size: number of elements on edge or
element size
Variable size: number of elements and bias
Bias = ratio of largest to smallest elem. size
Pick the edge close to the end to be refined

Biased
element size
distribution

Default
(global)
element size

Constant
element
size

Methods:

Propagate 1D mesh on the surface

Curved surface:

Nearly planar: use projection on the best plane

General: mesh in Parameter space

Algorithms:

Structured / mapped meshing

Delaunay triangulation
Advancing front meshing
Medial axis

Definition:

Just select the meshing algorithm

Automatically inherits the mesh size from the
edges

Mapped meshing (works for surfaces having 3 to 5 corners)

Advancing front meshing

Medial axis meshing

Methods:
Propagate

2D mesh in the volume

Algorithms:

Structured / mapped meshing :

Semi-structured:

extrusion / sweep of a free 2D mesh (tri or quad)

Generates either hexa or prisms (wedges)

Free meshing:

map volume to a simple case (hexa)

Delaunay or Advancing Front tetrahedralization

Definition:
Just

select the meshing algorithm

Automatically inherits the mesh size from the surfaces
& edges

Mapped meshing for hexa:

any extrusion of mapped quad. mesh

Mapped meshing for hexa:

simple 3D primitives
here 1/8 of a sphere

Sweep meshing for hexa.:

free quad mesh + extrusion

Sweep meshing for wedges :

free tri. mesh + extrusion

Free tetrahedral meshing:

free advancing front 2D meshing + 3D adv. front tetrahedralization
the most general meshing algorithm in Abaqus/CAE

Goal
Decompose the geometry into simpler volumes / faces

Method:
Cut edges, faces or volumes by planes, extrusions,
sketch

Useful to:
Use structured or sweep meshing on certain region of the
part
Enhance mesh quality & assign local refinements
Create new faces / edges for boundary conditions or
output

Drawback:
If not used correctly: create a lot of small faces and edges
=> generate very small elements of bad quality
Example: see demo & tutorial

Continuous Displacement field => need

congruent mesh on the boundaries with shared
nodes at the interface
Continuous mesh if and only if shared face or
edge => When working with imported
geometry, need to merge boundary faces &
edges!! => always check for Free edges !!
Incompatible meshing methods can create
hanging nodes or displacement jumps which
are not linked across boundary; for example,
linear to quadratic or tetra to hexa transitions
are not compatible => discontinuous
displacement
If not possible to have shared boundaries, one
need to impose displacement compatibility
through kinematic constraints => additional
equations (to avoid whenever possible!!)

Two disconnected CAD regions

Two connected CAD regions

Presence of two bounding faces

=> Duplicated nodes & no
continuity of displacement

only one shared bounding face

=> shared nodes so displacement
is continuous at nodes

Duplicated
Duplicated
bounding
bounding
face
face // edge
edge

Shared
Shared
bounding
bounding
face
face // edge
edge

Hanging
nodes!!
Quadratic
Tetrahedral
Mesh

Quad.
Triangular
faces

Linear
Hexahedra
l mesh

Linear
Quadrangular
faces

Tetrahedral mesh regions can only be linked to prismatic (wedge) regions.

Prismatic regions can be linked to both hexa (along structured faces) and tetra.

Criteria

Geometry : Distortion ,aspect ratio, minimum angle,

maximum angle,
FE-based: jacobian

Influence:

Low quality = bad mesh convergence

Large stress field discontinuities
Some elements may lock for high aspect ratio
Create numerical round-off errors & singularities
May completely crash the solver if jacobian is
negative !

Advice:

It is usually better to have good quality quadratic

tetrahedra than highly deformed hexahedra !!
Small edges & nearly tangent junction surfaces can be
problematic because they require too small or too sharp
elements => use virtual topology

In CAD:

Create CLEAN parts for FEA:

Avoid creating small surfaces & edges

Avoid tangent connections (very small angles)
Try to minimize the number of faces present in the
model
Prefer a single sweep / loft to complex cut /
extrude operations (=> can use structured meshing)

Remove unsignificant geometric details:

ask yourself what is important (abstraction) for

the goal of the modelling !!!
Typical details: fillets / chamfers, small holes,
unsignificant components (bolts & nuts, rivets)

For complex parts / assemblies, it is usualy very time consuming to try

to fix the geometry & meshing problems, you should better
completely reconstruct a clean 3D CAD model just for FE analysis

In FEA pre-processor / mesher:

Always check imported geometry (free edges?)

If necessary: repair geometry or try a different format
Partition to create simpler volumes ( symmetries ? )
Choice of meshing method (if possible): Hex
structured > Hex swept > Wedges swept > Tetra free
Use compatible meshes at the interface !!!
Check mesh quality: at least no Analysis Error
Define local refinements where necessary
Use virtual topology if necessary