ANSYS Meshing User's Guide

ANSYS, Inc. Release 2020 R1

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Table of Contents
Capabilities in ANSYS Workbench .............................................................................................................. 1
Meshing Overview ................................................................................................................................. 1
Meshing Implementation in ANSYS Workbench ...................................................................................... 1
Types of Meshing ................................................................................................................................... 2
Assembly Level Meshing vs. Part/Body Level Meshing ........................................................................ 2
Mesh Methods ................................................................................................................................. 2
Conformal and Non-Conformal Meshing ................................................................................................. 3
Conformal Meshing Within a Part ...................................................................................................... 3
Conformal Meshing Across Parts ....................................................................................................... 6
Connections/Interface Handling ....................................................................................................... 6
Usage in Workbench ................................................................................................................................... 9
Basic Meshing Application Workflows ..................................................................................................... 9
Overview of the Meshing Process in ANSYS Workbench ..................................................................... 9
Overview of the Meshing Process for CFD/Fluids Analyses ............................................................... 10
Overview of the Meshing Process for Hydrodynamics Analysis ......................................................... 12
Combining CFD/Fluids Meshing and Structural Meshing ................................................................. 13
Strategies for CFD/Fluids Meshing in ANSYS Workbench ........................................................................ 15
Accessing Meshing Functionality .......................................................................................................... 16
Overview of the Meshing Application Interface ..................................................................................... 18
Determination of Physics, Analysis, and Solver Settings .......................................................................... 20
Working with Legacy Mesh Data ........................................................................................................... 21
Exporting Meshes or Faceted Geometry ................................................................................................ 23
Mesh Application File Export ........................................................................................................... 24
Fluent Mesh Export ......................................................................................................................... 24
Classes of Zone Types in ANSYS Fluent ...................................................................................... 26
Standard Naming Conventions for Naming Named Selections ................................................... 29
Zone Type Assignment ............................................................................................................. 30
Examples of Fluent Mesh Export: An Alternative to Using a Fluid Flow (Fluent) Analysis Sys-
tem .......................................................................................................................................... 35
Polyflow Export .............................................................................................................................. 43
CGNS Export ................................................................................................................................... 44
ANSYS ICEM CFD Export ................................................................................................................. 45
Exporting Faceted Geometry to ANSYS Fluent Meshing ................................................................... 54
Named Selections and Regions for ANSYS CFX ................................................................................ 57
Passing Named Selections to the Solver .......................................................................................... 58
Repairing Geometry in Overlapping Named Selections ................................................................... 58
Resolving Overlapping Contact Regions .......................................................................................... 59
Extended ANSYS ICEM CFD Meshing ..................................................................................................... 63
Writing ANSYS ICEM CFD Files ......................................................................................................... 64
Rules for Interactive Editing ............................................................................................................ 66
Limitations of ANSYS ICEM CFD Interactive ...................................................................................... 66
Working with Meshing Application Parameters ..................................................................................... 67
ANSYS Workbench and Mechanical APDL Application Meshing Differences ........................................... 67
Mesh Controls Overview ........................................................................................................................... 69
Global and Local Mesh Controls ............................................................................................................ 69
Understanding the Influence of the Sizing Options ................................................................................ 69
Adaptive Sizing .............................................................................................................................. 70
Uniform, Curvature, Proximity, or Proximity and Curvature Sizing ...................................................... 70
Overriding Sizing Minimum and Maximum Sizes ............................................................................. 71
Global Mesh Controls ............................................................................................................................... 73

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Defaults Group ..................................................................................................................................... 73

Physics Preference .......................................................................................................................... 73
Solver Preference ............................................................................................................................ 75
Export Format ................................................................................................................................ 76
Export Unit ..................................................................................................................................... 76
Export Preview Surface Mesh .......................................................................................................... 76
Element Order ................................................................................................................................ 76
Element Size ................................................................................................................................... 78
Sizing Group ......................................................................................................................................... 78
Mesh Sizing Defaults ...................................................................................................................... 79
Using Dynamic Mesh Sizing Defaults ......................................................................................... 79
Sizing Options ................................................................................................................................ 80
Curvature-Based Sizing ................................................................................................................... 82
Proximity-Based Sizing .................................................................................................................... 82
Uniform Sizing ................................................................................................................................ 83
Setting Sizing Options .................................................................................................................... 83
Resolution ................................................................................................................................ 84
Growth Rate ............................................................................................................................. 85
Max Size ................................................................................................................................... 85
Mesh Defeaturing ..................................................................................................................... 85
Transition ................................................................................................................................. 87
Span Angle Center .................................................................................................................... 87
Initial Size Seed ......................................................................................................................... 87
Curvature Min Size .................................................................................................................... 88
Curvature Normal Angle ........................................................................................................... 88
Proximity Min Size .................................................................................................................... 89
Num Cells Across Gap ............................................................................................................... 89
Proximity Size Function Sources ................................................................................................ 90
Use Uniform Size Function for Sheets ........................................................................................ 92
Enable Washers ........................................................................................................................ 92
Height of Washer ................................................................................................................ 93
Allow Nodes to be Moved off Boundary .............................................................................. 93
Limitations for Washers ....................................................................................................... 95
Bounding Box Diagonal ............................................................................................................ 95
Average Surface Area ................................................................................................................ 96
Minimum Edge Length ............................................................................................................. 96
Quality Group ....................................................................................................................................... 96
The Mesh Quality Workflow ............................................................................................................ 96
Check Mesh Quality ........................................................................................................................ 97
Error and Warning Limits ................................................................................................................. 97
Target Quality ............................................................................................................................... 100
Target Skewness ........................................................................................................................... 101
Target Jacobian Ratio (Corner Nodes) ............................................................................................ 101
Smoothing ................................................................................................................................... 102
Mesh Metric ................................................................................................................................. 102
Element Quality ...................................................................................................................... 107
Aspect Ratio Calculation for Triangles ...................................................................................... 108
Aspect Ratio Calculation for Quadrilaterals ............................................................................. 109
Jacobian Ratio ........................................................................................................................ 109
Warping Factor ...................................................................................................................... 114
Parallel Deviation .................................................................................................................... 116
Maximum Corner Angle ......................................................................................................... 117

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 Meshing User's Guide

Skewness ............................................................................................................................... 118

Orthogonal Quality ................................................................................................................. 120
Characteristic Length .............................................................................................................. 122
Inflation Group ................................................................................................................................... 123
Use Automatic Inflation ................................................................................................................ 125
None ...................................................................................................................................... 125
Program Controlled ................................................................................................................ 126
All Faces in Chosen Named Selection ...................................................................................... 127
Inflation Option ............................................................................................................................ 128
Transition Ratio ............................................................................................................................. 130
Maximum Layers .......................................................................................................................... 131
Growth Rate ................................................................................................................................. 131
Number of Layers ......................................................................................................................... 131
Maximum Thickness ..................................................................................................................... 132
First Layer Height .......................................................................................................................... 132
First Aspect Ratio .......................................................................................................................... 132
Aspect Ratio (Base/Height) ............................................................................................................ 132
Inflation Algorithm ....................................................................................................................... 132
View Advanced Options ................................................................................................................ 136
Collision Avoidance ................................................................................................................ 136
Fix First Layer .................................................................................................................... 139
Gap Factor ........................................................................................................................ 139
Maximum Height over Base .................................................................................................... 139
Growth Rate Type ................................................................................................................... 140
Maximum Angle ..................................................................................................................... 140
Fillet Ratio .............................................................................................................................. 141
Use Post Smoothing ............................................................................................................... 142
Smoothing Iterations .............................................................................................................. 142
Assembly Meshing Group of Controls .................................................................................................. 142
Method ........................................................................................................................................ 143
Feature Capture ............................................................................................................................ 143
Tessellation Refinement ................................................................................................................ 144
Intersection Feature Creation ........................................................................................................ 144
Morphing Frequency .................................................................................................................... 144
Keep Solid Mesh ........................................................................................................................... 145
Batch Connections .............................................................................................................................. 145
Advanced Group ................................................................................................................................. 154
Number of CPUs for Parallel Part Meshing ..................................................................................... 155
Straight Sided Elements ................................................................................................................ 155
Rigid Body Behavior ...................................................................................................................... 156
Triangle Surface Mesher ................................................................................................................ 156
Topology Checking ....................................................................................................................... 158
Protecting Topology Defined Prior to Meshing ........................................................................ 159
Protecting Topology Post Meshing .......................................................................................... 161
Pinch ............................................................................................................................................ 161
Pinch Control Automation Overview ....................................................................................... 164
How to Define Pinch Control Automation ................................................................................ 168
How to Define or Change Pinch Controls Manually .................................................................. 169
Usage Information for Pinch Controls ...................................................................................... 169
Loop Removal ............................................................................................................................... 171
Statistics Group .................................................................................................................................. 172
Nodes ........................................................................................................................................... 172

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Meshing User's Guide

Elements ...................................................................................................................................... 172

Local Mesh Controls ................................................................................................................................ 173
Method Control .................................................................................................................................. 174
Method Controls and Element Order Settings ................................................................................ 174
Setting the Method Control for Solid Bodies .................................................................................. 177
Automatic Method Control ..................................................................................................... 177
Tetrahedrons Method Control ................................................................................................. 178
Patch Conforming Algorithm for Tetrahedrons Method Control ......................................... 178
Patch Independent Algorithm for Tetrahedrons Method Control ........................................ 178
Hex Dominant Method Control ............................................................................................... 200
Sweep Method Control ........................................................................................................... 201
MultiZone Method Control ..................................................................................................... 205
Cartesian Method Control ....................................................................................................... 213
Layered Tetrahedrons Method Control .................................................................................... 217
Setting the Method Control for Surface Bodies .............................................................................. 221
Quadrilateral Dominant Method Control ................................................................................. 221
Triangles Method Control ........................................................................................................ 222
MultiZone Quad/Tri Method Control ....................................................................................... 222
Mesh Grouping Control ...................................................................................................................... 224
Sizing Control ..................................................................................................................................... 224
Notes on Element Sizing ............................................................................................................... 224
Applying a Local Sizing Control ..................................................................................................... 228
Descriptions of Local Sizing Control Options .................................................................................. 229
Contact Sizing Control ........................................................................................................................ 238
Refinement Control ............................................................................................................................ 239
Face Meshing Control ......................................................................................................................... 240
Setting Basic Face Meshing Controls for Mapped Meshing ............................................................. 241
Understanding Advanced Mapped Face Meshing Controls ............................................................ 242
Restrictions Related to Vertex Types ........................................................................................ 243
Restrictions Related to Edge Mesh Intervals ............................................................................. 244
Selecting Faces and Vertices .................................................................................................... 244
Effect of Vertex Type on Face Meshes ....................................................................................... 246
Setting Advanced Face Meshing Controls for Mapped Meshing ............................................... 247
Notes on Face Meshing Controls for Mapped Meshing ................................................................... 249
Mesh Copy Control ............................................................................................................................. 252
Match Control ..................................................................................................................................... 255
Cyclic Match Control ..................................................................................................................... 257
Arbitrary Match Control ................................................................................................................ 258
Pinch Control ...................................................................................................................................... 260
Defining Pinch Controls Locally ..................................................................................................... 261
Changing Pinch Controls Locally ................................................................................................... 263
Inflation Control ................................................................................................................................. 265
Gasket Control .................................................................................................................................... 269
Sharp Angle Tool ................................................................................................................................. 269
Repair Topology .................................................................................................................................. 270
Weld ................................................................................................................................................... 271
Options ................................................................................................................................................... 277
Accessing the Options Dialog Box ....................................................................................................... 277
Meshing Options on the Options Dialog Box ....................................................................................... 277
Specialized Meshing ............................................................................................................................... 283
Mesh Sweeping .................................................................................................................................. 283
Thin Model Sweeping ................................................................................................................... 290

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 Meshing User's Guide

MultiZone Meshing ............................................................................................................................. 303

MultiZone Algorithms ................................................................................................................... 304
MultiZone for Sweepable Bodies ................................................................................................... 306
Using MultiZone ........................................................................................................................... 307
MultiZone Source Face Selection Tips ...................................................................................... 309
MultiZone Source Face Imprinting Guidelines .......................................................................... 310
Internal Loops .................................................................................................................. 310
Boundary Loops ............................................................................................................... 311
Multiple Internal Loops ..................................................................................................... 311
Multiple Connected Internal Loops ................................................................................... 312
Parallel Loops ................................................................................................................... 313
Intersecting Loops ............................................................................................................ 314
MultiZone Face Mappability Guidelines ................................................................................... 314
Side Face Handling of Imprinted Regions .......................................................................... 315
Using Virtual Topology to Handle Fillets in MultiZone Problems ............................................... 321
MultiZone Support for Inflation ..................................................................................................... 322
MultiZone Limitations and Hints ................................................................................................... 324
Assembly Meshing .............................................................................................................................. 325
The Assembly Meshing Process ..................................................................................................... 326
The Assembly Meshing Workflow .................................................................................................. 329
Setting Prerequisites ............................................................................................................... 331
Selecting an Assembly Mesh Method ...................................................................................... 332
Changing Fluid/Solid Material Property Settings ...................................................................... 336
Defining Virtual Bodies ........................................................................................................... 337
Defining Mesh Groups ............................................................................................................ 345
Setting Global Assembly Meshing Options .............................................................................. 346
Defining Sharp Angle Controls ................................................................................................ 347
Setting Sizing Options ............................................................................................................ 347
Finding Thin Sections .............................................................................................................. 349
Finding Contacts .................................................................................................................... 351
Generating the Mesh .............................................................................................................. 353
Applying Contact Sizing .......................................................................................................... 355
Setting Global Inflation Controls ............................................................................................. 356
Generating the Inflation Mesh ................................................................................................. 357
Applying Local (Scoped) Inflation Controls and Regenerating the Inflation Mesh ...................... 358
Exporting the Mesh ................................................................................................................ 360
Selective Meshing ............................................................................................................................... 361
Inflation Controls ................................................................................................................................ 370
Mesh Refinement ............................................................................................................................... 378
Mixed Order Meshing ......................................................................................................................... 378
Contact Meshing ................................................................................................................................ 378
Winding Body Meshing ....................................................................................................................... 378
Wire Body Meshing ............................................................................................................................. 379
Pyramid Transitions ............................................................................................................................. 379
Match Meshing and Symmetry ............................................................................................................ 379
Rigid Body Meshing ............................................................................................................................ 380
Thin Solid Meshing ............................................................................................................................. 383
CAD Instance Meshing ........................................................................................................................ 383
Meshing and Hard Entities .................................................................................................................. 384
Baffle Meshing .................................................................................................................................... 386
Parallel Part Meshing .......................................................................................................................... 388
Mesh Control Interaction Tables ............................................................................................................. 391

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Interactions Between Mesh Methods ................................................................................................... 391

Interactions Between Mesh Methods and Mesh Controls ..................................................................... 394
Miscellaneous Tools ................................................................................................................................ 397
Generation of Contact Elements .......................................................................................................... 397
Renaming Mesh Control Tools ............................................................................................................. 398
Mesh Numbering ................................................................................................................................ 398
Mesh Editing ...................................................................................................................................... 398
Inserting a Mesh Edit Object ......................................................................................................... 399
Mesh Connections ........................................................................................................................ 399
Contact Matches ........................................................................................................................... 410
Considerations for Contact Matches ........................................................................................ 410
How Mesh Size Affects Contact Matches .................................................................................. 411
How Tolerances Affect Contact Matches .................................................................................. 411
Applying Contact Matches ...................................................................................................... 414
Displaying Multiple Views of Contact Matches ......................................................................... 418
Troubleshooting Failed Contact Matches ................................................................................. 419
Node Merge ................................................................................................................................. 421
Node Move ................................................................................................................................... 425
Common Display Features .................................................................................................................. 429
Hiding or Suppressing Bodies ....................................................................................................... 429
Hiding or Showing Faces ............................................................................................................... 430
Creating Section Planes ................................................................................................................ 430
Ease of Use Features ............................................................................................................................... 431
Updating the Mesh Cell State .............................................................................................................. 431
Generating Mesh ................................................................................................................................ 432
Previewing Surface Mesh .................................................................................................................... 435
Exporting a Previewed Surface Mesh in Fluent Format ................................................................... 436
Previewing Source and Target Mesh .................................................................................................... 437
Previewing Inflation ............................................................................................................................ 437
Exporting a Previewed Inflation Mesh in Fluent Format .................................................................. 439
Showing Program Controlled Inflation Surfaces ................................................................................... 439
Showing Sweepable Bodies ................................................................................................................ 440
Showing Problematic Geometry .......................................................................................................... 440
Show Problematic Location ................................................................................................................. 440
Showing Elements that Do Not Meet the Target Metric ........................................................................ 441
Showing Removable Loops ................................................................................................................. 441
Inspecting Large Meshes Using Named Selections ............................................................................... 441
Generating Multiple Mesh Controls from a Template ........................................................................... 442
Clearing Generated Data ..................................................................................................................... 442
Showing Missing Tessellations ............................................................................................................. 443
Showing Mappable Faces .................................................................................................................... 444
Grouping Mesh Objects By Type .......................................................................................................... 444
Virtual Topology ..................................................................................................................................... 445
Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 445
Creating and Managing Virtual Cells .................................................................................................... 446
Creating and Managing Virtual Split Edges .......................................................................................... 460
Creating and Managing Virtual Split Faces ........................................................................................... 464
Creating and Managing Virtual Hard Vertices ....................................................................................... 467
Common Virtual Topology Operations ................................................................................................. 467
Common Virtual Topology Features ..................................................................................................... 471
Troubleshooting ..................................................................................................................................... 477
Index ........................................................................................................................................................ 497

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List of Figures
1. Baffle Model Constructed in SpaceClaim .................................................................................................... 5
2. Solid/Skin Model With Coincident Faces ..................................................................................................... 6
3. Meshing Application Interface ................................................................................................................. 18
4. Boundary Zone Type and Continuum Zone Type Specifications in ANSYS Fluent ....................................... 28
5. Multibody Part Containing All Fluid Bodies in the DesignModeler Application .......................................... 36
6. Named Selections Defined in Meshing Application .................................................................................. 37
7. Boundary Zone Names and Types Transferred to ANSYS Fluent ................................................................. 38
8. Continuum Zone Names and Types Transferred to ANSYS Fluent .............................................................. 39
9. Multibody Part Containing Mix of Solid and Fluid Bodies in the DesignModeler Application ...................... 40
10. Multibody Part Being Edited in the Meshing Application ........................................................................ 41
11. Changing the Fluid/Solid Material Property of a Body ............................................................................. 42
12. Continuum Zone Names and Types Transferred to ANSYS Fluent ............................................................. 43
13. Meshed Model (Four Separate Workbench Parts) Ready for Export to ANSYS ICEM CFD ........................... 47
14. Opening the .prj File (Four Separate Workbench Parts) in ANSYS ICEM CFD ............................................. 48
15. Meshed Model (One Multibody Workbench Part) Ready for Export to ANSYS ICEM CFD ........................... 49
16. Opening the .prj File (One Multibody Workbench Part) in ANSYS ICEM CFD ............................................. 50
17. Meshed Model (with Named Selections) Ready for Export to ANSYS ICEM CFD ........................................ 51
18. Fluid1_Fluid2 Named Selection .............................................................................................................. 51
19. InterfaceSolidFluid2 Named Selection .................................................................................................... 52
20. SharedEdge Named Selection ................................................................................................................ 52
21. SharedVertices Named Selection ............................................................................................................ 53
22. Opening the .prj File (with Named Selections) in ANSYS ICEM CFD .......................................................... 54
23. Part, Body, and Named Selection Names in the Meshing Application ....................................................... 56
24. Objects/Zone Names Transferred to ANSYS Fluent Meshing .................................................................... 56
25. First Contact Region: One Contact and One Target .................................................................................. 60
26. Second Contact Region: One Contact, Two Targets .................................................................................. 60
27. Third Contact Region: One Contact, Two Targets ..................................................................................... 61
28. Fourth Contact Region: One Contact, Two Targets ................................................................................... 61
29. Geometry with Cyclic Redundancies ...................................................................................................... 63
30. Proximity Sizing Limitation .................................................................................................................... 83
31. Proximity Size Function Sources = Edges ................................................................................................ 91
32. Proximity Size Function Sources = Faces ................................................................................................. 91
33. Proximity Size Function Sources = Faces and Edges ................................................................................ 92
34. Washers Generated Around Two Holes ................................................................................................... 93
35. Washer Element Nodes Not Moved ........................................................................................................ 94
36. Washer Element Nodes Moved ............................................................................................................... 95
37. Mesh Metrics Bar Graph ....................................................................................................................... 103
38. Geometry View After Selecting an Individual Bar .................................................................................. 104
39. Clicking and Holding on an Individual Bar ............................................................................................ 105
40. Bar Graph Controls Page ...................................................................................................................... 106
41. Triangle Aspect Ratio Calculation ......................................................................................................... 108
42. Aspect Ratios for Triangles ................................................................................................................... 109
43. Quadrilateral Aspect Ratio Calculation .................................................................................................. 109
44. Aspect Ratios for Quadrilaterals ............................................................................................................ 109
45. Jacobian Ratio (MAPDL) ....................................................................................................................... 112
46. Jacobian Ratio (Corner Nodes) ............................................................................................................. 113
47. Jacobian Ratio (Gauss Points) ............................................................................................................... 114
48. Shell Average Normal Calculation ......................................................................................................... 115
49. Shell Element Projected onto a Plane ................................................................................................... 115
50. Quadrilateral Shell Having Warping Factor ............................................................................................ 116

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51. Warping Factor for Bricks ..................................................................................................................... 116

52. Parallel Deviation Unit Vectors .............................................................................................................. 117
53. Parallel Deviations for Quadrilaterals .................................................................................................... 117
54. Maximum Corner Angles for Triangles .................................................................................................. 117
55. Maximum Corner Angles for Quadrilaterals .......................................................................................... 118
56. Ideal and Skewed Triangles and Quadrilaterals ..................................................................................... 118
57. Vectors Used to Compute Orthogonal Quality for a Cell ........................................................................ 120
58. Vectors Used to Compute Orthogonal Quality for a Face ....................................................................... 122
59. Inflation into Volume Mesh Methods .................................................................................................... 124
60. Last Aspect Ratio Option ...................................................................................................................... 129
61. Different Numbers of Layers Are Respected .......................................................................................... 135
62. Portion of Project Tree .......................................................................................................................... 135
63. Different Numbers of Layers Are Not Respected ................................................................................... 135
64. Layer Compression vs. Stair Stepping Option (Full Mesh View) ............................................................... 138
65. Layer Compression vs. Stair Stepping Option (Detail View) .................................................................... 139
66. Maximum Angle = 140 ......................................................................................................................... 140
67. Maximum Angle = 180 ......................................................................................................................... 141
68. Fillet Ratio = 0.0 ................................................................................................................................... 141
69. Fillet Ratio = 0.5 ................................................................................................................................... 141
70. Fillet Ratio = 1.0 ................................................................................................................................... 142
71. Triangle Surface Mesher = Program Controlled ..................................................................................... 157
72. Triangle Surface Mesher = Advancing Front .......................................................................................... 158
73. Protecting Topology ............................................................................................................................ 160
74. Locations of Pinch Controls .................................................................................................................. 163
75. Mesh Generated Without Pinch Controls .............................................................................................. 163
76. Mesh Generated With Pinch Controls ................................................................................................... 164
77. Automatic Pinch Control for Edges on Left; Manual Pinch Control Required for Edges on Right .............. 165
78. Mesh Generated with Automatic Pinch Control and Manual Pinch Control on Similar Geometry ............ 166
79. Pinch Not Recommended for Models with Multiple Complications ....................................................... 170
80. Mixed Order Meshing of a Multibody Part ............................................................................................ 176
81. Mixed Order Elements ......................................................................................................................... 177
82. Geometry Input to Patch Independent Tetra Mesher ............................................................................. 179
83. Full Tetrahedron Enclosing the Geometry ............................................................................................. 179
84. Full Tetrahedron Enclosing the Geometry in Wire Frame Mode .............................................................. 180
85. Cross-Section of the Tetrahedron ......................................................................................................... 180
86. Mesh After Capture of Surfaces and Separation of Useful Volume .......................................................... 181
87. Final Mesh Before Smoothing .............................................................................................................. 181
88. Final Mesh After Smoothing ................................................................................................................. 182
89. Example (a) Showing Base Geometry ................................................................................................... 190
90. Example (b) Min Size Limit (Described Below) Set to 1 .......................................................................... 191
91. Example (c) Min Size Limit (Described Below) Set to 0.5 ........................................................................ 191
92. Example (d) Defeature Size Set to 1 ...................................................................................................... 192
93. Example (e) Defeature Size Set to 1 and Element Order Set to Linear ..................................................... 192
94. Example (f ) Defeature Size Set to 1 and Min Size Limit Set to 0.5 ........................................................... 193
95. Example (a) Showing Base Geometry ................................................................................................... 196
96. Example (b) Default Patch Independent Tetrahedron Mesher ................................................................ 197
97. Example (c) Patch Independent Tetrahedron Mesher with Min Size Limit Set to Capture Curvature ........ 197
98. Effect of Smooth Transition Setting ...................................................................................................... 198
99. Element Edge Lengths Smaller Than Specified Element Size .................................................................. 199
100. Sweep Method Would Require Slicing to Obtain Pure Hex Mesh .......................................................... 205
101. MultiZone Generates Pure Hex Mesh without Slicing .......................................................................... 206
102. Free Mesh Type = Tetra ....................................................................................................................... 208

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103. Free Mesh Type = Tetra/Pyramid ......................................................................................................... 209

104. Free Mesh Type = Hexa Dominant ...................................................................................................... 210
105. Free Mesh Type = Hexa Core ............................................................................................................... 211
106. Source Face Selection for MultiZone ................................................................................................... 212
107. Layered Tetrahedrons Mesh ............................................................................................................... 218
108. Sweeping a Closed Torus .................................................................................................................... 226
109. Resulting Mesh for Closed Torus ......................................................................................................... 226
110. Inside Corner Vertex ........................................................................................................................... 243
111. Face Vertex Types ............................................................................................................................... 245
112. Seven-sided Planar Face ..................................................................................................................... 246
113. Example Face Mesh—Side Inside Corner Vertex .................................................................................. 247
114. Example Face Mesh—Corner Inside Corner Vertex .............................................................................. 247
115. Mesh Copy Scope .............................................................................................................................. 254
116. Generated Mesh ................................................................................................................................ 254
117. Match Controls Used with Thin Sweeping ........................................................................................... 257
118. Coordinate Systems for Arbitrary Mesh Matching ............................................................................... 260
119. Matched Mesh ................................................................................................................................... 260
120. Snap to Boundary Set to Yes ............................................................................................................... 263
121. Snap to Boundary Set to No ............................................................................................................... 263
122. Axis Sweep Representation ................................................................................................................ 285
123. Edge Only Sweep Path ....................................................................................................................... 285
124. Edge Plus Closed Surface Sweep Path ................................................................................................. 285
125. Example (a) Showing Invalid Closed Cylindrical Face as Source Face .................................................... 287
126. Example (b) Valid Open Cylindrical Face as Source Face ....................................................................... 287
127. Example (c) Multiple Connected Side Faces ........................................................................................ 288
128. Axial Sweep Model ............................................................................................................................ 288
129. Axial Sweep Model: Face Meshing Control .......................................................................................... 289
130. Axial Sweep Model: Hard Edge Sizing Control ..................................................................................... 290
131. Axial Sweep Model: Meshed ............................................................................................................... 290
132. Example (a) N Source to 1 Target or 1 Target to N Source Topology ...................................................... 292
133. Example (b) N Source to N Target Topology ........................................................................................ 293
134. Example (c) 1 Source to N Target Mesh ............................................................................................... 293
135. Example (d) N Source to 1 Target Mesh ............................................................................................... 294
136. Example (e) N Source to N Target Mesh ............................................................................................... 294
137. Using Virtual Topology to Create Single Edge Between Source/Target Faces ........................................ 295
138. Example (a) Mapped Face Control Applied to Target Is Ignored ........................................................... 295
139. Example (b) Mapped Face Control Applied to Source Is Respected ...................................................... 296
140.Thin Solid Sweeper Used to Mesh a Single Body Part ........................................................................... 297
141. Thin Solid Sweeper Used to Mesh a Single Body Part: Detail ................................................................ 297
142. Thin Solid Sweeper Used to Mesh a Multibody Part ............................................................................. 298
143. Thin Solid Sweeper and Laminated Composite Models ....................................................................... 299
144. Ambiguous Source Face Definition for Laminated Composite Model ................................................... 300
145. Recommended Source Face Definition for Laminated Composite Model ............................................. 301
146. Thin Solid Sweeper Limitation ............................................................................................................ 302
147. Adding Face Projections (Splits) in the DesignModeler Application ..................................................... 302
148. Defining Source Faces when Face Splits Are Present ............................................................................ 303
149. Three Plates Model Meshed with Thin Solid Sweeper .......................................................................... 303
150. Blocking Algorithm—Sample Geometry ............................................................................................. 304
151. Blocking Algorithm—Step 1: 2D Blocking ........................................................................................... 305
152. Blocking Algorithm—Step 2: 3D Blocking ........................................................................................... 305
153. Blocking Algorithm—Step 3: Inflation ................................................................................................. 306
154. Classifying the Problem: Sources ........................................................................................................ 307

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155. Classifying the Problem: Handling of Paths and Imprints ..................................................................... 307
156. Collective Source Faces ...................................................................................................................... 308
157. Classifying the Problem: Sweep Path .................................................................................................. 308
158. Valve Body: Traditional Approach ....................................................................................................... 309
159. Valve Body: Automatic Source Faces with MultiZone ........................................................................... 309
160. Source Imprinting Classifications: Internal Loops ................................................................................. 311
161. Source Imprinting Classifications: Boundary Loops ............................................................................. 311
162. Source Imprinting Classifications: Multiple Internal Loops ................................................................... 312
163. Source Imprinting Classifications: Multiple Connected Internal Loops View 1 ....................................... 312
164. Source Imprinting Classifications: Multiple Connected Internal Loops View 2 ....................................... 313
165. Source Imprinting Classifications: Parallel Loops ................................................................................. 313
166. Source Imprinting Classifications: Intersecting Loops View 1 ............................................................... 314
167. Source Imprinting Classifications: Intersecting Loops View 2 ............................................................... 314
168. Simple Cutout Case ............................................................................................................................ 315
169. Cutouts at Multiple Levels .................................................................................................................. 316
170. Intersections Between Levels and Sides .............................................................................................. 316
171. Meshed Model ................................................................................................................................... 317
172. Vertices in a Split Circle ...................................................................................................................... 317
173. 360 ˚ Cutout ...................................................................................................................................... 318
174. Internal Loops along Side Faces of the Sweep Path ............................................................................. 319
175. Map Face Control Assigned to Side Faces ............................................................................................ 319
176. Connecting Faces Assigned as Source Faces ....................................................................................... 320
177. Using Inflation on Cylindrical Side Faces ............................................................................................. 320
178. Using Inflation on Cylindrical Side Faces ............................................................................................ 321
179. Fillets and MultiZone ......................................................................................................................... 321
180. Fillets and Inflation ............................................................................................................................ 322
181. Fillets as Side Faces ............................................................................................................................ 322
182. Sphere of Influence on Face that Doesn't Intersect Edges .................................................................... 325
183. Mesh After Refinement ...................................................................................................................... 327
184. Mesh After Projection ........................................................................................................................ 327
185. Cells Separated After Decomposition ................................................................................................. 328
186. CutCell Mesh After Boundary Recovery ............................................................................................... 329
187. Solid Bodies Dividing a Fluid Body ...................................................................................................... 342
188. Virtual Body Defined to Separate Fluid Region .................................................................................... 343
189. Two Boxes with Sizing on One Face .................................................................................................... 363
190. Mesh Generated for Entire Part ........................................................................................................... 363
191. Selective Meshing: Left Body First ....................................................................................................... 364
192. Selective Meshing: Right Body First .................................................................................................... 364
193. Mesh Worksheet ................................................................................................................................ 366
194. Mesh Worksheet Step Deactivation .................................................................................................... 369
195. Sweep Method With Inflation: Hex Fill ................................................................................................. 372
196. Sweep Method With Inflation: Wedge Fill ............................................................................................ 372
197. Swept Body Shares Source/Target Face With Tet Body ......................................................................... 375
198. Defining Inflation for a Swept Body Sharing Source/Target Face With Tet Body .................................... 376
199. Detail of Proper Connections on the Common Interface ..................................................................... 376
200. Tet Body Surrounds Swept Body ......................................................................................................... 377
201. Detail of Well-aligned Layers Between the Swept and Tet Regions ....................................................... 378
202. 2D Rigid Body Contact Meshing ......................................................................................................... 381
203. Error Handling for Instances ............................................................................................................... 384
204. Cylinder Containing Baffles ................................................................................................................ 387
205. Section Cut Showing Baffle Meshing .................................................................................................. 387
206. Detail of Inflation on Baffles ............................................................................................................... 388

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207. Setting the Contact Match Tolerance .................................................................................................. 412

208. Contact Match with Gaps Between "Master" and "Slave" Bodies .......................................................... 413
209. Viewing the "Master" and "Slave" Bodies in Auxiliary Windows ............................................................ 418
210. Previewed Inflation Mesh ................................................................................................................... 438
211. Section Plane View of Previewed Inflation Mesh ................................................................................. 439
212. Mesh Objects Grouped By Type .......................................................................................................... 444
213. Merge Face Edges Off ........................................................................................................................ 448
214. Merge Face Edges On ......................................................................................................................... 448
215. Single Face Virtual Cell Limitations ..................................................................................................... 450
216. Formation of Virtual Faces .................................................................................................................. 451
217. Virtual Faces After Operation .............................................................................................................. 451
218. Formation of Virtual Edges ................................................................................................................. 452
219. Gauss Curvature Angle ....................................................................................................................... 453
220. Curvature Angle at 25, 60, and 120 degrees ......................................................................................... 453
221. Feature Angle .................................................................................................................................... 454
222. Feature Angle at 20, 40, and 80 Degrees .............................................................................................. 454
223. Aspect Ratio at 0.2, 0.5, and 0.9 ........................................................................................................... 454
224. Contact Angle at 270, 330, and 355 degrees ........................................................................................ 455
225. Edge Angle at 80, 100, and 150 degrees ............................................................................................. 455
226. Shared Boundary Ratio at 0.2, 0.3, and 0.4 ........................................................................................... 455
227. Small Edges Between Faces ................................................................................................................ 456
228. Small Edges Removed ........................................................................................................................ 457
229. Small Edges Attached to the Same Faces ............................................................................................ 457
230. Small Edge Repair with Edge Merge ................................................................................................... 457
231. Sliver Face ......................................................................................................................................... 458
232. Sliver Repair ....................................................................................................................................... 458
233. Small Face ......................................................................................................................................... 459
234. Small Face Repair ............................................................................................................................... 459
235. Original Virtual Split Edge with Dependent Virtual Split Edge .............................................................. 462
236. Unlocked Dependent Splits ................................................................................................................ 463
237. Locked Dependent Splits ................................................................................................................... 463
238. Overridden Locked Dependent Splits ................................................................................................. 463
239. Types of Faces Requiring Two Virtual Split Face Operations ................................................................. 465
240. Splits Requiring a Series of Virtual Split Face Operations ...................................................................... 466
241. Virtual Topology Properties Dialog: Example 1 .................................................................................... 473
242. Virtual Topology Properties Dialog: Example 2 .................................................................................... 473
243. Virtual Topology Properties Dialog: Example 3 .................................................................................... 474
244. Virtual Topology Properties Dialog: Example 4 .................................................................................... 474
245. Virtual Topology Properties Dialog: Example 5 .................................................................................... 475
246. Obsolete Mesh ................................................................................................................................... 479
247. Failed Mesh ....................................................................................................................................... 479
248. Example with Missing Face ................................................................................................................. 483
249. Problematic Topology Highlighted During Meshing ............................................................................ 484
250. Failed Surface Mesh Due to Protected Topology ................................................................................. 484
251. Mesh Respecting Protected Topology ................................................................................................. 485
252. Patch Independent Tet Mesh Failure Due to Geometry Gap ................................................................. 485
253. Patch Independent Tet Mesh Failure Corrected with Larger Mesh ........................................................ 486
254. Edge Biasing Not Respected by MultiZone .......................................................................................... 489
255. Edge Biasing Respected by MultiZone ................................................................................................ 489
256. Leak Path for a Failed Assembly Mesh ................................................................................................. 492
257. Closer View of Leak Path ..................................................................................................................... 493

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List of Tables
1. Washer Limitations .................................................................................................................................. 95
2. Mesh Matching for Symmetrical Parts .................................................................................................... 379
3. Rigid Body Meshing: Default Behaviors for Rigid Dynamics, Transient Structural, and Explicit Dynamics
Analyses ................................................................................................................................................... 380
4. Mesh Matching for Gaps ........................................................................................................................ 413

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Meshing: Capabilities in ANSYS Workbench
The following topics are discussed in this section.
Meshing Overview
Meshing Implementation in ANSYS Workbench
Types of Meshing
Conformal and Non-Conformal Meshing

Meshing Overview

Philosophy
The goal of meshing in ANSYS Workbench is to provide robust, easy to use meshing tools that will
simplify the mesh generation process. These tools have the benefit of being highly automated along
with having a moderate to high degree of user control.

Physics Based Meshing

When the ANSYS Meshing application is launched (that is, edited) from the ANSYS Workbench Project
Schematic, the physics preference will be set based on the type of system being edited. For analysis
systems, the appropriate physics is used (p. 20). For a Mechanical Model system, the Mechanical
physics preference is used. For a Mesh system, the physics preference defined in Tools> Options>
Meshing> Default Physics Preference (p. 277) is used.

Meshing Implementation in ANSYS Workbench

The meshing capabilities are available within the following ANSYS Workbench applications. Access to
a particular application is determined by your license level.

• The ANSYS Mechanical application - Recommended if you plan to stay within the ANSYS Mechanical applic-
ation to continue your work (preparing and solving a simulation). Also, if you are planning to perform a
Fluid-Structure Interaction problem, and desire to use a single project to manage your ANSYS Workbench
data, you can use the Mechanical application to perform your fluid meshing. This is most conveniently done
in a separate model branch from the structural meshing and structural simulation.

• The ANSYS Meshing application (p. 9) - Recommended if you plan to use the mesh to perform physics
simulations in ANSYS CFX or ANSYS Fluent. If you wish to use a mesh created in the Meshing application

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Capabilities in ANSYS Workbench

for a solver supported in the Mechanical application, you can replace the Mesh system with a Mechanical
Model system. See Replacing a Mesh System with a Mechanical Model System (p. 18).

Note:

In the 2020 R1 release, ANSYS Autodyn runs inside the Mechanical application. The recom-
mendation is to use an Explicit Dynamics analysis system, in which meshing comes as part
of that system. As an alternative, you can also use this system to prepare a model for the
traditional ANSYS Autodyn application (AUTODYN component system). For simple ANSYS
Autodyn models, you can use the meshing tools within the traditional ANSYS Autodyn ap-
plication (AUTODYN component system).

Types of Meshing
The following types of meshing are discussed in this section.
Assembly Level Meshing vs. Part/Body Level Meshing
Mesh Methods

Assembly Level Meshing vs. Part/Body Level Meshing

“Assembly meshing” (p. 325) refers to meshing an entire model as a single mesh process, as compared
to part-based or body-based meshing, in which meshing occurs at the part or body level respectively.

In part-based meshing, parts are meshed individually and have no connections (other than mesh
connections (p. 399) or node merge (p. 421)). Assembly meshing performs mesh-based Boolean opera-
tions that you would otherwise have to perform manually in ANSYS Discovery SpaceClaim or ANSYS
DesignModeler, or a CAD system. These operations include a mixture of volume filling, volume inter-
section, and volume combination operations that create a conformal mesh between all solids, fluids,
and virtual bodies in the analysis.

Assemblies can also be meshed using part-based meshing methods, but in such cases the mesher
operates one part at a time, and therefore cannot mesh virtual bodies or evaluate parts that occupy
the same space.

Mesh Methods
This section describes types of meshing in terms of element shapes. Applicable mesh control options
are presented for each element shape shown below, and operate at the part level unless otherwise
noted. See the Method Control (p. 174) section for further details.

Tet Meshing
• Patch Conforming Tetrahedron Mesher (p. 178)

• Patch Independent Tetrahedron Mesher (p. 178)

• Tetrahedrons (p. 325) algorithm (assembly level)

• Layered Tetrahedrons Mesher (p. 217)

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 Conformal and Non-Conformal Meshing

Hex Meshing
• Swept Mesher (p. 201)

• Hex Dominant Mesher (p. 200)

• Thin Solid Mesher (p. 202)

• MultiZone Mesher (p. 205)

Cartesian Meshing
• CutCell (p. 325) algorithm (assembly level)

• Body-Fitted Cartesian (p. 213) (part level)

Quad Meshing
• Quad Dominant (p. 221)

• MultiZone Quad/Tri (p. 222)

Triangle Meshing
• All Triangles (p. 222)

Conformal and Non-Conformal Meshing

This section describes meshing options for Conformal and Non-conformal meshing.
Conformal Meshing Within a Part
Conformal Meshing Across Parts
Connections/Interface Handling

Conformal Meshing Within a Part

A conformal mesh can be generated in a variety of ways when meshing in ANSYS Workbench. In
general, a part can be used to prescribe a region where you want a conformal mesh. Unless using
Assembly Meshing (p. 325), the mesh generation operates at the part level. When a part is meshed,
only the geometry in that part is sent to the mesher so geometry in other parts will generally not
influence the mesh of a given part (there are some exceptions to this; for example, contact sizing
controls). To create a conformal mesh consisting of multiple different regions or bodies, a multibody
part should be used.

The following notes apply to multibody parts:

• Multibody parts need to be formed in DesignModeler or SpaceClaim.

• There are different types of multibody parts. The types of multibody parts prescribe how the interface
between the different bodies should be handled. Options include:

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Capabilities in ANSYS Workbench

– Shared Topology: Merges the pair(s) of common faces between bodies into a single set of common
faces (2 faces become 1 face). The shared faces belong to both of the neighboring bodies. When
meshing these types of multibody parts, the mesh at the interface will be conformal.

– No Shared Topology: Leaves the pair(s) of common faces between bodies separate. The separate
faces are meshed separately so the mesh would be non-conformal. Contact detection (p. 6) should
pick up these duplicate faces so that you can easily see the non-conformal interfaces.

→ Often it is helpful to imprint the bodies with each other so that there are pairs of common faces
with the face boundaries being the same. This could help in creating more similar mesh at the
non-conformal interface between the bodies. DesignModeler has Imprint as a method for Shared
Topology. It is similar to None, but it will imprint all bodies in the multibody part with each
other.

→ In some cases this option is used to help organize bodies into parts, but it is important to note
that this has ramifications. A multibody part will have all bodies meshed using only 1 meshing
process. If instead the bodies are in separate parts, parallel part by part meshing will be utilized
and could significantly reduce the meshing time.

→ Patch Independent Tetrahedrons has an option Match Mesh Where Possible that will try to
make the mesh conformal across bodies even without shared topology.

Note:

The Patch Independent Tetrahedrons method is being deprecated and will

be removed in future releases.

• It is common to use multibody parts in hex meshing. The approach is to slice the model into sweepable
bodies and use Shared Topology to get conformal mesh between those sweepable bodies.

• Generally multibody parts are formed from all solid bodies or all sheet bodies or all line bodies.

– Multibody parts of solids, sheets, and line bodies are not allowed.

– Multibody parts of solids and sheets are allowed, but note the following:

→ Solids are meshed first by default. You can use selective meshing (p. 361) to obtain a different
behavior.

→ In SpaceClaim, the Shared Topology options: Share and Merge, both create shared topology.
Use Merge when trying to embed sheets within a solid to construct a zero-thickness or baffle
model. Otherwise, use the Share option.

Figure 1: Baffle Model Constructed in SpaceClaim (p. 5) shows a model with one solid
body with a baffle face embedded in it. This model was constructed from one solid body
and one sheet body, using the Merge option in SpaceClaim.

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 Conformal and Non-Conformal Meshing

Figure 1: Baffle Model Constructed in SpaceClaim

To construct the same model in ANSYS DesignModeler, use the Automatic option for
Shared Topology.

→ Solid/skin models can be constructed using the Share option in SpaceClaim. Like with other
multibody parts, the common faces will become shared.

Solid/skin models where the sheets are coincident to the solid's faces are supported
(Figure 2: Solid/Skin Model With Coincident Faces (p. 6)).

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Capabilities in ANSYS Workbench

Figure 2: Solid/Skin Model With Coincident Faces

– Multibody parts of sheets and beams (line bodies) (p. 379) are supported.

• For related information, refer to Geometry Introduction in the Mechanical help.

Conformal Meshing Across Parts

In some cases, you may want to get conformal mesh without having to use Shared Topology.

For example, maybe instances are being used to create repetitive copies of the mesh, and you want
to get conformal mesh between the copies. Shared Topology could be used within the part that is
being copied, but each copy would have to be a unique part. Or, maybe meshing speed is paramount
so you want to use parallel part by part meshing and later connect the meshes. There are several
mesh-based ways to make the mesh conformal across parts. These include:

• Assembly meshing (p. 325): The assembly meshing approach takes all parts into the mesher at one time.
With this approach everything is conformal if the parts are close enough.

• Mesh connections (p. 399): This approach starts from an existing shell mesh and imprints and connects
the mesh to make it conformal.

• Node merge (p. 421): After meshing, you can insert a node merge operation to make coincident mesh
(nodes close together within a tolerance) conformal. Merge nodes can be used in conjunction with match
mesh (p. 255) or contact match mesh (p. 410) controls to make the nodes coincident prior to merging.

Connections/Interface Handling
When coming into the Meshing/Mechanical application, by default, connections are found between
parts that have faces in proximity of each other. This automatic detection of connections or interfaces
can be disabled if it is not desired. The Auto Detect Contact On Attach can be changed by selecting

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 Conformal and Non-Conformal Meshing

Tools> Options from the ANSYS Workbench main menu, and then selecting either the Mechanical
or Meshing category as appropriate. The option is enabled by default in both applications.

These contact regions can be used for mesh sizing (p. 238), and/or are used to define the behavior
on how the contact/interface is treated when running the simulation.

For structural solvers see the description of connections in the ANSYS Mechanical help.

For CFD solvers, contact regions are used differently by the ANSYS CFX and ANSYS Fluent solvers:

• Contact regions are used in ANSYS CFX as General Grid Interface (GGI) definitions. For details, refer to the
documentation available under the Help menu within CFX.

• Contact regions are used in ANSYS Fluent as mesh interfaces. See Special Cases (p. 34) for details.

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Meshing: Usage in Workbench
The ANSYS Meshing application is a separate ANSYS Workbench application. The Meshing application
is data-integrated with ANSYS Workbench, meaning that although the interface remains separate, the
data from the application communicates with the native ANSYS Workbench data. The following topics
are addressed in this section:
Basic Meshing Application Workflows
Strategies for CFD/Fluids Meshing in ANSYS Workbench
Accessing Meshing Functionality
Overview of the Meshing Application Interface
Determination of Physics, Analysis, and Solver Settings
Working with Legacy Mesh Data
Exporting Meshes or Faceted Geometry
Extended ANSYS ICEM CFD Meshing
Working with Meshing Application Parameters
ANSYS Workbench and Mechanical APDL Application Meshing Differences

Basic Meshing Application Workflows

The following sections describe several basic workflows for using the Meshing application in ANSYS
Workbench:
Overview of the Meshing Process in ANSYS Workbench
Overview of the Meshing Process for CFD/Fluids Analyses
Overview of the Meshing Process for Hydrodynamics Analysis
Combining CFD/Fluids Meshing and Structural Meshing

Overview of the Meshing Process in ANSYS Workbench

The following steps provide the basic workflow for using the Meshing application as part of an ANSYS
Workbench analysis (non-Fluid Flow). Refer to the ANSYS Workbench help for detailed information
about working in ANSYS Workbench.

1. Select the appropriate template in the Toolbox, such as Static Structural. Double-click the template in
the Toolbox, or drag it onto the Project Schematic.

2. If necessary, define appropriate engineering data for your analysis. Right-click the Engineering Data cell,
and select Edit, or double-click the Engineering Data cell. The Engineering Data workspace appears,
where you can add or edit material data as necessary.

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Usage in Workbench

3. Attach geometry to your system or build new geometry. Right-click the Geometry cell and select Import
Geometry... to attach an existing model or select New SpaceClaim Geometry... or New DesignModeler
Geometry... to launch the ANSYS Discovery SpaceClaim or ANSYS DesignModeler application, respectively.

4. Access the Meshing application functionality. Right-click the Model cell and choose Edit. This step will
launch the ANSYS Mechanical application.

5. Once you are in the Mechanical application, you can move between its components by highlighting the
corresponding object in the Tree as needed. Select the Mesh object in the Tree to access Meshing ap-
plication functionality and apply mesh controls.

6. Define loads and boundary conditions. Right-click the Setup cell and select Edit. The appropriate applic-
ation for your selected analysis type will open (such as the Mechanical application). Set up your analysis
using that application's tools and features.

7. You can solve your analysis by issuing an Update, either from the data-integrated application you're using
to set up your analysis, or from the ANSYS Workbench GUI.

8. Review your analysis results.

Note:

You should save your data periodically (File> Save Project). The data will be saved as a
.wbpj file. Refer to the ANSYS Workbench help for more information about project file
management in Workbench.

For more information:

• For information on identifying and correcting mesh failures, refer to Meshing: Troubleshooting (p. 477).

• For information about using the ANSYS Meshing application to import or export mesh files, refer to
Working with Legacy Mesh Data (p. 21) and Exporting Meshes or Faceted Geometry (p. 23).

• Fluids users of the ANSYS DesignModeler, ANSYS Meshing, and ANSYS CFX applications should refer
to Named Selections and Regions for ANSYS CFX (p. 57) for important information about region
definitions.

• Fluids users of the ANSYS DesignModeler, ANSYS Meshing, and ANSYS Fluent applications should
refer to Fluent Mesh Export (p. 24) for important information about Named Selection support.

Overview of the Meshing Process for CFD/Fluids Analyses

This section describes the basic process for using the ANSYS Meshing application to create a mesh
as part of an ANSYS Workbench CFD/fluids analysis. Refer to Strategies for CFD/Fluids Meshing in
ANSYS Workbench (p. 15) for information about different CFD/Fluids meshing strategies. Refer to the
ANSYS Workbench help for detailed information about working in ANSYS Workbench. There are four
basic steps to creating a mesh:

Create Geometry
You can create geometry for the Meshing application in the ANSYS Discovery SpaceClaim or ANSYS
DesignModeler application. You can also import the geometry from an external CAD file.

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 Basic Meshing Application Workflows

The Meshing application requires you to construct solid bodies (not surface bodies) to define the region
for the 3D mesh (for 2D simulations a sheet body can be used). A separate body must be created for
each region of interest in the fluids simulation; for example, a region in which you want the fluids
solver to solve for heat transfer only must be created as a separate body. Multiple bodies are created
in the DesignModeler application by using the Freeze command; see Freeze in the DesignModeler
help for details.

It is best practice to explicitly identify any fluid regions in the model as fluids rather than solids.

For new users or new models it is often useful to first generate a default mesh, evaluate it, and then
apply the controls described in Define Mesh Attributes (p. 11) as appropriate to improve various
mesh characteristics.

Define Named Selections

During the fluids simulation setup, you will need to define boundary conditions where you can apply
specific physics. For example, you may need to define where the fluid enters the geometry or where
it exits. Although it may be possible to select the faces that correspond to a particular boundary
condition inside the solver application, it is rather easier to make this selection ahead of time in either
the CAD connection, the ANSYS DesignModeler application, or the Meshing application. In addition,
it is much better to define the location of periodic boundaries before the mesh is generated to allow
the nodes of the surface mesh to match on the two sides of the periodic boundary, which in turn
allows for a more accurate fluids solution.

Creating a Named Selection will affect how the mesher treats that topology. For details, see Protecting
Topology Defined Prior to Meshing (p. 159).

You can define the locations of boundaries by defining Named Selections, which can assist you in
the following ways:

• You can use Named Selections to easily hide the outside boundary in an external flow problem.

• You can assign Named Selections to all faces in a model except walls, and Program Controlled (p. 126)
inflation will automatically select all walls in the model to be inflation boundaries.

For more information:

• Fluids users of the ANSYS DesignModeler, ANSYS Meshing, and ANSYS CFX applications should refer
to Named Selections and Regions for ANSYS CFX (p. 57).

• Fluids users of the ANSYS DesignModeler, ANSYS Meshing, and ANSYS Fluent applications should
refer to Fluent Mesh Export (p. 24).

Define Mesh Attributes

The mesh generation process in the Meshing application is fully automatic. However, you have con-
siderable control over how the mesh elements are distributed. To ensure that you get the best fluids
solution possible with your available computing resources, you can dictate the background element
size, type of mesh to generate, and where and how the mesh should be refined. In general, setting
up the length scale field for your mesh is a three-step process, as outlined below:

• Assign a suitable set of global mesh controls (p. 73).

• Override the default mesh type by inserting a different mesh method (p. 174).

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Usage in Workbench

• Override the global sizing or other controls locally on bodies, faces, edges, or vertices and the regions
close to them by scoping local mesh controls (p. 173).

Generate Mesh
When you are ready to compute the mesh, you can do so by using either the Update feature or the
Generate Mesh feature. Either feature computes the entire mesh. The surface mesh and the volume
mesh are generated at one time. The mesh for all parts/bodies is also generated at one time. For help
in understanding the difference between the Update and Generate Mesh features, see Updating
the Mesh Cell State (p. 431).

For information on how to generate the mesh for selected parts/bodies only, refer to Generating
Mesh (p. 432). The Previewing Surface Mesh (p. 435) and Previewing Inflation (p. 437) features are also
available if you do not want to generate the entire mesh at one time.

Once the mesh is generated, you can view it by selecting the Mesh object in the Tree Outline. You
can define Section Planes to visualize the mesh characteristics, and you can use the Mesh Metric (p. 102)
feature to view the worst quality element based on the quality criterion for a selected mesh metric.

Note:

Fluids users should refer to Generation of Contact Elements (p. 397) for recommendations
for defining contact for fluids analyses.

Overview of the Meshing Process for Hydrodynamics Analysis

This section describes the basic process for using the ANSYS Meshing application to create a mesh
as part of a hydrodynamics analysis. Refer to the Aqwa User's Manual for more information about
hydrodynamics analysis. There are three basic steps to creating a mesh:

Create Geometry
You can create geometry for the Meshing application in the ANSYS Discovery SpaceClaim or ANSYS
DesignModeler applications, or import a geometry from an external file. The model should consist of
surface and line bodies only (no solid bodies). See General Modeling Requirements in the Aqwa User's
Manual for full details of what is required for creating geometry for a hydrodynamics analysis.

Select Physics Preference

Before performing meshing, select Hydrodynamics as your Physics Preference (p. 73).

Note:

Hydrodynamics can be set as the default preference by selecting Tools > Options, clicking
the Meshing heading, and changing the Default Physics Preference to Hydrodynamics.
For more information, see Meshing: Options (p. 277).

Once defined, you can define the following mesh controls:

• Element Size (p. 78)

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 Basic Meshing Application Workflows

• Defeature Size (p. 86)

Define Mesh Attributes

The mesh generation process in the Meshing application is fully automatic. The Hydrodynamics
preference corresponds to the uniform sizing with quad dominant method. However, you have con-
siderable control over how the mesh elements are distributed. To ensure that you get the best solution
possible with your available computing resources, you can dictate the background element size, type
of mesh to generate, and where and how the mesh should be refined. In general, setting up your
mesh is a two-step process, as outlined below:

• Assign suitable global mesh sizes within the Hydrodynamics Physics Preference

• Override the global sizing locally on bodies, faces, edges, or vertices and the regions close to them
by scoping local mesh controls (p. 173)

Generate Mesh
When you are ready to compute the mesh, you can do so by using either the Update feature or the
Generate Mesh feature. The mesh for all parts/bodies is also generated at one time. For help in un-
derstanding the difference between the Update and Generate Mesh features, see Updating the Mesh
Cell State (p. 431).

Once the mesh is generated, you can view it by selecting the Mesh object in the Tree Outline. You
can use the Mesh Metric (p. 102) feature to view the worst quality element based on the quality criterion
for a selected mesh metric.

Combining CFD/Fluids Meshing and Structural Meshing

In some applications, a CFD/fluids mesh and a structural mesh are required within the same workflow.
For these one-way coupling applications, the loading, solving, and postprocessing of the fluids meshed
part(s) later occur in a Fluid Flow analysis system, while the loading, solving, and postprocessing of
the structurally meshed part(s) later occur in a Structural analysis system. The best approach for this
kind of application is to break the model into separate parts rather than use a continuous multibody
part.

The following approach is recommended for these applications:

1. Attach the model to a Geometry (DesignModeler) system and use the Explode Part feature to create in-
dependent parts within the model.

2. Link a Fluid Flow analysis system and a Structural analysis system to the Geometry system. The geometries
may be shared or not, depending on whether defeaturing needs to be done to one or the other system.

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Usage in Workbench

Dedicate the Fluid Flow analysis system to meshing the appropriate fluid domain for the fluids application.
Suppress the structural part(s) in the model. Dedicate the Structural analysis system to meshing the ap-
propriate structural part(s). Suppress the fluid part(s) in this model.

In this case, only the respective parts are meshed. The mesh of the Fluid Flow analysis system is
shown below on the left, and the mesh of the Structural analysis system is shown on the right.

Note:

• You can set up the workflow schematic in different ways depending on various factors, in-
cluding variations in the fluid/structural model, persistence, the desired multiphysics simu-
lation, and so on.

• The coupling of the solvers is also handled from the Project Schematic. For details, refer to
the discussion about creating and linking a second system in the ANSYS Workbench help.

• For geometry persistence, both models will require updating when changing CAD paramet-
ers.

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 Strategies for CFD/Fluids Meshing in ANSYS Workbench

Strategies for CFD/Fluids Meshing in ANSYS Workbench

ANSYS Workbench offers various strategies for CFD/Fluids meshing. For each strategy, certain defaults
are in place to target the particular needs of an analysis. The strategies and circumstances in which
each of them are appropriate are described below. In all cases, your first decision is to determine
whether you want to use assembly meshing (p. 2) or part-based meshing.

Tetra Dominant Meshing - Patch Conforming Tetra/Prism Meshing

The first strategy is to use conformal tetra/prism meshing plus the default Sweep (p. 201) method. This
strategy is recommended for models involving moderately clean CAD (for example, native CAD, Parasolid,
ACIS, and so on) for which you desire a tetra/hybrid dominant mesh.

Although the Patch Conforming Tetra (p. 178) mesh method is fully automated, it interacts with addi-
tional mesh controls and capabilities as necessary, including:

• Advanced tetra and inflation layer technology

• Pinch (p. 161) controls for removing small features at the mesh level (offered as an alternative to Virtual
Topologies (p. 445), which work at the geometry level)

• Sizing (p. 80) controls for providing greater control over mesh distribution

• Conformal swept regions (p. 375)

• Body of influence (p. 233) (BOI) for setting one body as a size source for another body

Tetra Dominant Meshing - Patch Independent Tetra/Prism Meshing

An alternative for those desiring a tetra dominant mesh is Patch Independent Tetra (p. 178)/Prism
meshing. This approach is best for "dirty CAD"—CAD models with many surface patches (for example,
IGES, CATIA V4, and so on) and in cases with large numbers of slivers/small edges/sharp corners. It in-
cludes support for post inflation (p. 136), as well as CAD simplification built-in to the tetra mesher.

Note:

The Patch Independent Tetrahedrons method is being deprecated and will be removed
in future releases.

Mapped Hex Meshing - All Hex Swept Meshing

This mapped hex approach (which includes both general Sweep (p. 283) and thin Sweep (p. 290)) is re-
commended for clean CAD. It supports single source to single target volumes, and may require you to
perform manual geometry decomposition.

Benefits of this approach include:

• Support for Sizing (p. 80) controls

• Compatibility with Patch Conforming Tetra (p. 178) meshing

• Support for swept inflation (p. 370)

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Usage in Workbench

Mapped and Free Meshing - MultiZone Meshing

Best for moderately clean CAD, the MultiZone (p. 205) strategy for meshing provides multi-level sweep
with automatic decomposition of geometry into mapped (structured) and free (unstructured) regions.
When defining the MultiZone mesh method, you can specify a Mapped Mesh Type and a Free Mesh
Type that will be used to fill structured and unstructured regions respectively. Depending on your settings
and specific model, the mesh may contain a mixture of hex/prism/tetra elements.

The MultiZone mesh method and the Sweep (p. 201) mesh method described above operate similarly;
however, MultiZone has capabilities that make it more suitable for a class of problems for which the
Sweep method would not work without extensive geometry decomposition.

Additional benefits of this approach include:

• Support for 3D inflation

• Ability to selectively ignore small features

Assembly Meshing - CutCell and Tetrahedrons Algorithms

CutCell Cartesian meshing is a general purpose assembly meshing (p. 325) algorithm designed for ANSYS
Fluent.

CutCell is in principal a top-down mesher, and it is mostly suitable for moderately clean CAD models.
It results in a mesh of 80-95% hex cells, which often leads to very accurate solutions, providing the
physics can handle the relatively rapid size changes due to hanging-node configurations.

Additional benefits of this approach include:

• Support for Sizing (p. 80) controls

• Support for 3D inflation, although very thick inflation should be avoided when using the CutCell al-
gorithm

• Ability to selectively ignore features

The Tetrahedrons assembly meshing algorithm is a derivative of the CutCell algorithm, with strengths
and weaknesses similar to those of CutCell. The Tetrahedrons method starts from the CutCell mesh and
through various mesh manipulations creates a high quality unstructured tet mesh.

Note:

Assembly Meshing is being deprecated and will be removed in future releases.

Accessing Meshing Functionality

You can access Meshing application functionality from the Model/Mesh cell in an analysis system, or
from the Mesh cell in a Mesh component system. Before using the steps provided in this section, you
should be familiar with the concepts of analysis systems and component systems in ANSYS Workbench.

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 Accessing Meshing Functionality

Accessing Meshing Functionality from an Analysis System

The Model cell (Mesh cell in Fluid Flow analysis systems) allows you to access a meshing application or
share a mesh with another system. Model corresponds to the contents of the Model branch within the
ANSYS Mechanical application and allows you to perform physics-based meshing capabilities, such as
spot welds, contact, etc. Mesh contains just node coordinates and mesh connectivity.

To launch the Meshing application from a Model cell in an analysis system (non-Fluid Flow):

1. From the Analysis Systems group of the ANSYS Workbench Toolbox, either double-click or drag an analysis
system onto the Project Schematic. As a result, a template for that type of analysis system appears in the
Project Schematic.

2. In the analysis system, right-click the Geometry cell and choose New SpaceClaim Geometry... or New
DesignModeler Geometry... to create geometry within the ANSYS Discovery SpaceClaim or ANSYS
DesignModeler application, respectively; or choose Import Geometry to attach existing geometry.

3. Right-click the Model cell and choose Edit. This step will launch the Mechanical application. From the
Mechanical application, you can access the Meshing application controls by clicking on the Mesh object
in the Tree Outline.

To access meshing from a Mesh cell in a Fluid Flow analysis system:

1. From the Analysis Systems group of the ANSYS Workbench Toolbox, either double-click or drag a Fluid
Flow analysis system onto the Project Schematic. As a result, a template for that type of analysis system
appears in the Project Schematic.

2. In the analysis system, right-click the Geometry cell and choose New SpaceClaim Geometry... or New
DesignModeler Geometry... to create geometry within the ANSYS Discovery SpaceClaim or ANSYS
DesignModeler application, respectively; or choose Import Geometry to attach existing geometry.

3. Right-click the Mesh cell and choose Edit. This step will launch the appropriate mesh application (for ex-
ample, the Meshing application, etc.).

Accessing Meshing Functionality from a Mesh Component System

To launch the Meshing application from a Mesh component system:

1. From the Component Systems group of the ANSYS Workbench Toolbox, either double-click or drag a Mesh
component system onto the Project Schematic. As a result, a template of a Mesh system appears in the
Project Schematic.

2. In the Mesh system, right-click the Geometry cell and choose New SpaceClaim Geometry... or New
DesignModeler Geometry... to create geometry within the ANSYS Discovery SpaceClaim or ANSYS
DesignModeler application, respectively; or choose Import Geometry to attach existing geometry.

3. Right-click the Mesh cell and choose Edit. This step will launch the appropriate mesh application (for ex-
ample, the Meshing application, etc.).

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Usage in Workbench

Replacing a Mesh System with a Mechanical Model System

You can replace a Mesh component system with a Mechanical Model component system. This system
can then be shared with any analysis system. For details, refer to the description of Mechanical Model
systems in the ANSYS Workbench help.

Overview of the Meshing Application Interface

The intuitive Meshing application interface, which is shown in Figure 3: Meshing Application Inter-
face (p. 18), facilitates your use of all meshing controls and settings (p. 69).

Figure 3: Meshing Application Interface

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 Overview of the Meshing Application Interface

The functional elements of the interface are described in the following table.

Note:

The links in the table redirect you to topics in the ANSYS Mechanical help that contain
supplemental information. Not all of the items described in the Mechanical help are
available in the Meshing application interface.

Window Component Description

Main Menu This menu includes the basic menus such as File
and Edit.
Standard Toolbar This toolbar contains commonly used application
commands.
Graphics Toolbar This toolbar contains commands that control
pointer mode or cause an action in the graphics
browser.
Context Options Toolbar This toolbar contains task-specific commands
that change depending on where you are in the
Tree Outline.
Unit Conversion Toolbar Not visible by default. This toolbar allows you
to convert units for various properties.
Named Selections Toolbar Not visible by default. This toolbar contains
options to manage Named Selections similar to
how they are managed in the Mechanical
application.
Edge Graphics Options Toolbar This toolbar provides quick access to features
that are intended to improve your ability to
distinguish edge and mesh connectivity in a
surface body model.
Explode View Options Toolbar This toolbar is a graphical display feature used
to create imaginary distance between geometry
bodies (only) of your model for viewing
purposes.
Tree Outline Outline view of the project. Always visible.
Location in the outline sets the context for other
controls. Provides access to object's context
menus. Allows renaming of objects. Establishes
what details display in the Details View.
Details View The Details View corresponds to the Outline
selection. Displays a details window on the lower
left panel which contains details about each
object in the Outline.
Geometry Window (also sometimes called the Graphics Displays and manipulates the visual
window) representation of the object selected in the
Outline. This window may display:

• 3D Geometry

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Usage in Workbench

Window Component Description

• 2D/3D Graph

• Spreadsheet

• HTML Pages

• Scale ruler

• Triad control

• Legend

Note:

• Hover your mouse over the time

stamp in the legend and RMB click
to toggle the time stamp off and
on.

• The Geometry window may include

splitter bars for dividing views.

• See ANSYS.com > Support >

Platform Support for a complete list
of 3Dconnexion products certified
with the current release of ANSYS
applications.

Reference Help Opens an objects reference help page for the

highlighted object. These are the same pages
that are available in the Mechanical application.
Tabs The document tabs that are visible on the lower
right portion of the window.
Status Bar Brief in-context tip. Selection feedback.
Splitter Bar Application window has up to 3 splitter bars.

Determination of Physics, Analysis, and Solver Settings

Most systems in ANSYS Workbench are defined by three primary attributes: physics type, analysis type,
and solver type. The method you use to launch the Meshing application functionality determines how
default physics, analysis, and/or solver settings are defined:

• Mesh systems, which are a type of component system, are unfiltered (physics, analysis, and solver). If
you launch the Meshing application from a Mesh component system (p. 16), your preferences will be
set to the defaults you previously defined within the Meshing application. See Meshing Overview (p. 1)
for more information.

• If you launch the Meshing application from an analysis system (p. 16) (whether it be via the Model cell
in a non-Fluid Flow analysis system or the Mesh cell in a Fluid Flow analysis system), your Physics,

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 Working with Legacy Mesh Data

Analysis, and Solver settings will be set according to the selected type of analysis system. To change
the Physics Preference, you must use the Details View of the Mesh folder.

Note:

• To view the physics, analysis, and solver types that are defined for an analysis system, right-
click the Model cell (non-Fluid Flow analyses) or Mesh cell (Fluid Flow analyses) and select
Properties. This step will open the Properties window, where you can view the attributes.
For example, for an Electric system, the Properties window will show that Physics is Electric,
Analysis is Steady-State Electric Conduction, and Solver is Mechanical APDL.

• Mechanical Model systems, which are a type of component system, are unfiltered (physics
and solver). For details, refer to the discussion of Mechanical Model systems in the ANSYS
Workbench help.

For more information:

• For a list of analysis systems available in ANSYS Workbench and basic steps for building each type of
system, refer to the discussion of analysis systems in the ANSYS Workbench help.

• For details about the various types of non-Fluid Flow analyses and how to perform them, refer to the
discussion of analysis types in the ANSYS Mechanical help.

• For details about Fluid Flow analyses and how to perform them, refer to the documentation available
under the Help menu within ANSYS CFX or ANSYS Fluent.

Working with Legacy Mesh Data

You can import legacy mesh files using the following methods. The method that is best for you depends
on the type of file that you want to import and how you intend to use it:

• Choose File> Import from the ANSYS Workbench Menu bar or click the Import button on the ANSYS
Workbench Toolbar to read legacy ANSYS Workbench mesh data

• Right-click the Mesh cell and choose Import Mesh File to import a read-only mesh for downstream
use

• Use the External Model system to read third-party mesh formats for other ANSYS Workbench systems.
You can use the External Model system for importing the following file formats:

– NASTRAN Bulk Data (.bdf, .dat, .nas)

– Abaqus Input (.inp)

– Fluent Input (.msh, .cas)

– ICEM CFD Input (.uns)

– LS-DYNA Input (.k)

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Usage in Workbench

Importing Using File> Import or the Import Button

If you choose File> Import or click the Import button from ANSYS Workbench, you can import mesh
files that have an extension of .cmdb or .meshdat. Doing so creates a Mesh system in the ANSYS
Workbench Project Schematic. When the Mesh cell is edited, the mesh will open in the Meshing applic-
ation where you can edit it.

For more information about reading a simulation/mesh database (.dsdb/.cmdb) from previous ANSYS
versions, refer to the discussion of importing legacy databases in the ANSYS Workbench help.

Importing Read-only Meshes for Downstream Application Use

You can right-click a Mesh cell and choose Import Mesh File to browse to a mesh file that you want
to import, provided the file is of one of the following types:

• ANSYS CFX mesh file with extension .gtm or .cfx

• ANSYS ICEM CFD mesh file with extension .cfx, cfx5, or .msh

• ANSYS Fluent mesh file with extension .cas, .msh, or .gz

• ANSYS Polyflow mesh file with extension .poly, .neu, or .msh

Note:

When you use this method, in the strictest sense you are not “importing” the mesh file. That
is, you will not be able to edit the file in the Meshing application using this method. Rather,
you are making the mesh available for downstream systems.

To be able to edit these types of files in the Meshing application, you must import the mesh
into the External Model application, and then into another system.

The Import Mesh File method is enabled when:

• No geometry is associated with the Geometry cell.

• No generated mesh is associated with the Mesh cell. (Imported meshes do not disable the Import Mesh
File menu item.)

• No incoming connections are associated with the Geometry cell or Mesh cell.

• No outgoing connections are associated with the Geometry cell.

• No outgoing connections from the Mesh cell are connected to the Mechanical APDL or ANSYS Autodyn
applications.

When you import the mesh to the Mesh cell:

• The Geometry cell is deleted.

• The title of the cell changes from “Mesh” to “Imported Mesh.”

• The state of the Mesh cell is “Up to Date.”

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 Exporting Meshes or Faceted Geometry

• No incoming connections are allowed.

• Outgoing connections can be established with a Mechanical APDL, ANSYS Autodyn, ANSYS CFX, ANSYS
Fluent, or ANSYS Polyflow system.

• The Geometry cell in the target system is deleted.

• Using the reset command (right-clicking on the Imported Mesh cell and choosing Reset) deletes the
imported mesh.

Exporting Meshes or Faceted Geometry

A mesh generated by the Meshing application can be exported into the following file formats:

• Meshing File format (*.meshdat), suitable for import into ANSYS Workbench (p. 24)

• ANSYS Fluent mesh format (*.msh), suitable for import into ANSYS Fluent

• ANSYS Polyflow format (*.poly), suitable for import into ANSYS Polyflow

• CGNS format (*.cgns), suitable for import into a CGNS-compatible application

• ANSYS ICEM CFD format (*.prj), suitable for import into ANSYS ICEM CFD

• TGrid Faceted Geometry format (*.tgf ), suitable for import into Fluent Meshing (formerly TGrid)

To export a mesh:

1. Generate the mesh.

2. If necessary, select an Export Unit (p. 76) or Export Format (p. 76) from the Defaults group in the Details
View.

3. Select File> Export from the main menu.

4. In the Save As dialog box, choose a directory and specify a file name for the file. Then choose a file type
from the Save as type drop-down menu and click Save.

Note:

• You can also use the Meshing application to export faceted geometry for use in ANSYS Fluent
Meshing. In such cases you can skip step 1 above. A file with the extension .tgf is created, suitable
for import into ANSYS Fluent Meshing.

• When the same entity is a member of more than one Named Selection, those Named Selections
are said to be “overlapping”. If you are exporting a mesh into the ANSYS Fluent, ANSYS Polyflow,
CGNS, or ANSYS ICEM CFD format (or faceted geometry into the ANSYS Fluent Meshing format),
and overlapping Named Selections are detected, the export will fail and you must resolve the
overlapping Named Selections before proceeding. Any Named Selection whose Send to Solv-
er (p. 58) option is set to No is skipped during the check for overlapping entities in Named Se-
lections. For this reason, an easy way to avoid overlapping Named Selections is to set all values
of Send to Solver to No. For details, see Repairing Geometry in Overlapping Named Selec-
tions (p. 58).

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Usage in Workbench

For details, refer to:

Mesh Application File Export
Fluent Mesh Export
Polyflow Export
CGNS Export
ANSYS ICEM CFD Export
Exporting Faceted Geometry to ANSYS Fluent Meshing
Named Selections and Regions for ANSYS CFX
Passing Named Selections to the Solver
Repairing Geometry in Overlapping Named Selections
Resolving Overlapping Contact Regions

Mesh Application File Export

When you export a mesh file to Meshing File format (File> Export from the Meshing application main
menu, then Save as type Meshing File), a file with the extension .meshdat is created. The exported
file can be imported as a legacy file into ANSYS Workbench by either selecting File >Import (p. 21)
from the Menu bar or clicking the Import button on the Toolbar, and then selecting an Importable
Mesh File. This will create a Mesh System in the ANSYS Workbench Project Schematic.

Fluent Mesh Export

When you export a mesh file to ANSYS Fluent mesh format (File> Export from the Meshing application
main menu, then Save as type Fluent Input Files), a mesh file with the extension .msh is created.
The exported mesh file is suitable for import into another product such as ANSYS Fluent, or into
ANSYS Fluent Meshing outside of ANSYS Workbench. For more control over the input file, refer to
Meshing Options on the Options Dialog Box (p. 277).

CutCell meshes exported from the Meshing application are always in polyhedral format. When read
into ANSYS Fluent Meshing, it will skip the polyhedral cells.

If the mesh file you export contains quadratic elements, all midside nodes will be dropped during
export; that is, all element types will be exported as linear element types for ANSYS Fluent.

An orientation check/correction will be performed for 3D geometry models exported as 2D mesh

such that all 2D cells will have the same orientation. You do not need to manually correct the orient-
ation of the geometry face(s).

When the mesh file is exported to ANSYS Fluent mesh format, the material properties of the bod-
ies/parts in the model must be translated to proper continuum zone types (p. 26) for use in ANSYS
Fluent. To provide this information to ANSYS Fluent, the following logic is used:

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 Exporting Meshes or Faceted Geometry

1. If Physics Preference (p. 73) is set to CFD and you do not use either of the methods described in
steps 2 or 3 below to explicitly assign a body/part to be either solid or fluid, all zones are exported
to ANSYS Fluent mesh format as FLUID zones by default.

Note:

An exception to the above involves models that include an enclosure. If you used
the Enclosure feature in the ANSYS DesignModeler application, the enclosure body
will be assigned a continuum zone type of FLUID by default.

2. For models created/edited in the DesignModeler application, a Fluid/Solid material property can
be assigned to a solid body or a multibody part (if the multibody part contains at least one solid
body). This material assignment appears under Details of Body in the Details View of the Design-
Modeler application.

For multibody parts, you can change the material property for all bodies in one operation in
the DesignModeler application by modifying the Fluid/Solid property for the multibody part
and the modification will propagate to any solid bodies in the part. Similarly, you can use
the DesignModeler application to modify the Fluid/Solid property for a solid body that belongs
to a multibody part, and the Fluid/Solid property for the multibody part will be modified
accordingly.

When exported to Fluent Meshing format, a body/part with a material property of Solid will
be assigned a continuum zone type of SOLID and a body/part with a material property of
Fluid will be assigned a continuum zone type of FLUID. This setting in the DesignModeler
application overrides the default behavior described in step 1.

Note:

Refer to Figure 5: Multibody Part Containing All Fluid Bodies in the DesignModeler
Application (p. 36) for an example that illustrates where to set the Fluid/Solid
material property in the DesignModeler application.

3. Finally, the Fluid/Solid material property setting in the Meshing application is considered. This
material assignment appears in the Details View of the Meshing application when a prototype (Body
object) is selected in the Tree Outline. Similar to the DesignModeler application feature described
in step 2, the Meshing application lets you change the Fluid/Solid material property for a body.

When exported to ANSYS Fluent mesh format, a body with a material property of Solid will
be assigned a continuum zone type of SOLID and a body with a material property of Fluid
will be assigned a continuum zone type of FLUID. This setting in the Meshing application
overrides any assignments that were made based on the default behavior described in step
1 or the Fluid/Solid setting described in step 2. Refer to Changing Fluid/Solid Material
Property Settings (p. 336) for more information.

Note:

If there are multiple continuum zones or boundary zones of the same type in the
DesignModeler application or the Meshing application, each zone name in the exported

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Usage in Workbench

ANSYS Fluent mesh file will contain the necessary prefix and an arbitrary number will
be appended to the name to make it unique. Refer to Examples of Fluent Mesh Export:
An Alternative to Using a Fluid Flow (Fluent) Analysis System (p. 35) for an example
that illustrates multiple zones of the same type.

For related information, refer to:

Classes of Zone Types in ANSYS Fluent
Standard Naming Conventions for Naming Named Selections
Zone Type Assignment
Examples of Fluent Mesh Export: An Alternative to Using a Fluid Flow (Fluent) Analysis System

Note:

• Contact regions are said to be “overlapping” when the same entity (face or edge) is a member
of more than one contact region or when multiple contact regions share the same geometry.
ANSYS Fluent does not support overlapping contact regions. For part-based meshing only, if
you are exporting a mesh into the ANSYS Fluent format and overlapping contact regions are
detected, the software will attempt to combine the regions. If it is unable to combine them,
the export will fail and you must resolve the overlapping contact regions manually before
proceeding. You can use the Check Overlapping Contact Regions option to identify the
problematic contact regions. For details, see Resolving Overlapping Contact Regions (p. 59).

• If you are performing a 2D analysis and intend to export to ANSYS Fluent, you should disable
the Auto Detect Contact On Attach option to avoid problems that may otherwise occur upon
export. You can access this option by selecting Tools> Options from the ANSYS Workbench
main menu, and then selecting either the Mechanical or Meshing category as appropriate. The
option is enabled by default in both applications.

• Assembly meshing (p. 325) or Fluent mesh export may fail if you are using shared licensing, no
licenses are available, and ANSYS Fluent is running already. In such cases, the error is due to
shared licensing restrictions, but the error message that is issued does not identify licensing
as the cause.

• For additional information about importing files into ANSYS Fluent or ANSYS Fluent Meshing,
refer to the documentation available under the Help menu within the respective product.

Classes of Zone Types in ANSYS Fluent

Zone type specifications in ANSYS Fluent define the physical and operational characteristics of the
model at its boundaries and within specific regions of its domain. There are two classes of zone
type specifications:

• Boundary zone types (sometimes called “face zones”)

• Continuum zone types (sometimes called “cell zones”)

Boundary zone type specifications, such as WALL or INLET_VENT, define the characteristics of the
model at its external or internal boundaries. Boundary zones are collections of faces in 3D, and
collections of edges in 2D. By default, a boundary zone of type WALL is created for the boundary

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 Exporting Meshes or Faceted Geometry

of each body in the geometry during export to ANSYS Fluent mesh format. Continuum zone type
specifications, such as FLUID or SOLID, define the characteristics of the model within specified regions
of its domain. By default, a continuum zone is created for each body in the geometry during export
to ANSYS Fluent mesh format. (By default, continuum zone types will be assigned as described in
Fluent Mesh Export (p. 24).)

If you do not want the default zone type to be assigned to a boundary zone, you can set the Auto
Zone Type Assignment (p. 277) option to Off. You can then override default type of WALL by defining
Named Selections and naming them according to the conventions (p. 29) provided. All faces be-
longing to the same body in a Named Selection are placed into a single boundary zone.

Note:

For 2D models, you can group sheet surface bodies into a Named Selection, and the
underlying faces contained in the sheet surface bodies will be placed into a single con-
tinuum zone (as long as the faces themselves are not contained in a Named Selection).

The following sections further describe boundary zone type and continuum zone type specifications
and illustrate their purposes in the definition of an example computational model involving simple
geometry.

For details on how zones are named and how zone types are assigned during export, refer to Zone
Type Assignment (p. 30).

For an example that illustrates the basic workflow for using ANSYS Workbench to create a model
in the ANSYS DesignModeler application, mesh it in the Meshing application, and export the mesh
to ANSYS Fluent, refer to Examples of Fluent Mesh Export: An Alternative to Using a Fluid Flow
(Fluent) Analysis System (p. 35). In the example, Named Selections are defined in the Meshing ap-
plication and the correct ANSYS Fluent zone names/types are assigned in the exported Fluent mesh
file based on those definitions.

Comparing and Contrasting Boundary Zone Types and Continuum Zone Types
Boundary zone type specifications define the physical and operational characteristics of the model
at those topological entities that represent model boundaries. For example, if an INFLOW boundary
zone type is assigned to a face entity that is part of three-dimensional model, the model is defined
such that material flows into the model domain through the specified face. Likewise, if a SYMMETRY
boundary zone type is assigned to an edge entity that is part of a two-dimensional model, the
model is defined such that flow, temperature, and pressure gradients are identically zero along the
specified edge. As a result, physical conditions in the regions immediately adjacent to either side
of the edge are identical to each other.

Continuum zone type specifications define the physical characteristics of the model within specified
regions of its domain. For example, if a FLUID continuum zone type is assigned to a body entity,
the model is defined such that equations of momentum, continuity, and species transport apply
at mesh nodes or cells that exist within the body. Conversely, if a SOLID continuum zone type is
assigned to a body entity, only the energy and species transport equations (without convection)
apply at the mesh nodes or cells that exist within the body.

Generally speaking, entities are assigned to zone type classes in ANSYS Fluent as shown in the fol-
lowing table:

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Usage in Workbench

Model Dimension Entity Zone Type Class

3D Body Continuum
Face Boundary
2D Face Continuum
Edge Boundary

The Effect of Zone Type Specifications

As an example of the effect of zone type specifications on the specification of a computational
model, consider the geometry shown in Figure 4: Boundary Zone Type and Continuum Zone Type
Specifications in ANSYS Fluent (p. 28), which consists of a single volume in the shape of a straight,
elliptical cylinder. The geometry includes one body, three faces, two edges, and two vertices.

Figure 4: Boundary Zone Type and Continuum Zone Type Specifications in ANSYS Fluent

The geometry shown in Figure 4: Boundary Zone Type and Continuum Zone Type Specifications in
ANSYS Fluent (p. 28) can be used to model many different types of transport problems, including
fluid flow through a straight, elliptical pipe and heat conduction through a solid, elliptical rod. The
following table shows the zone type specifications associated with the fluid flow problem using
the geometry shown in Figure 4: Boundary Zone Type and Continuum Zone Type Specifications in
ANSYS Fluent (p. 28).

Entity Zone Class Zone Type

face.1 Boundary WALL
face.2 Boundary INFLOW
face.3 Boundary OUTFLOW
body.1 Continuum FLUID

The following table shows the zone type specifications associated with the heat conduction problem
using the geometry shown in Figure 4: Boundary Zone Type and Continuum Zone Type Specifications
in ANSYS Fluent (p. 28).

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Entity Zone Class Zone Type

face.1 Boundary WALL
body.1 Continuum SOLID

Note:

For additional information about boundary (face) zones and continuum (cell) zones in
ANSYS Fluent, refer to the documentation available under the Help menu within ANSYS
Fluent.

Standard Naming Conventions for Naming Named Selections

This section is applicable to boundary zones only.

If you want to override the default boundary zone type assignments by using Named Selections,
naming conventions have been provided for you to follow. Use these conventions when defining
Named Selections in either the ANSYS DesignModeler application or the Meshing application. By
following these naming conventions consistently, you can ensure that ANSYS Fluent boundary zone
types will be assigned correctly and predictably in the exported ANSYS Fluent file.

When naming Named Selections, it is best practice to specify the appropriate name from the list
below exactly as shown (case-insensitive). In cases where the name shown below contains an un-
derscore character, a hyphen is also acceptable (for example, both EXHAUST_FAN and EXHAUST-FAN
will work). (Note, however, that although the Meshing application allows both hyphens and under-
score characters to be used when defining Named Selections, the DesignModeler application allows
only underscore characters.)

The name of each Named Selection is filtered upon export such that only allowable characters remain.
Allowable characters include all alphanumeric characters as well as the following special characters:

` ! $ % ^ & * _ + - = :< > .? /

All other characters, including spaces, are invalid. If an invalid character is used, it is replaced by
an underscore (_) upon export.

In addition, the export process does allow for partial matches and special abbreviations, which are
described in Zone Type Assignment (p. 30).

AXIS
EXHAUST_FAN
FAN
INLET_VENT
INTAKE_FAN
INTERFACE
INTERIOR
MASS_FLOW_INLET
OUTFLOW
OUTLET_VENT

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Usage in Workbench

PERIODIC
POROUS_JUMP
PRESSURE_FAR_FIELD
PRESSURE_INLET
PRESSURE_OUTLET
RADIATOR
RECIRCULATION_INLET
RECIRCULATION_OUTLET
SYMMETRY
THIN
VELOCITY_INLET
WALL

Note:

For details about the boundary (face) zone and continuum (cell) zone types in ANSYS
Fluent, refer to the documentation available under the Help menu within ANSYS Fluent.

Zone Type Assignment

This section describes zone naming and the zone type assignment process.

Zone Naming
By default, zones are named after the part and body from which they are derived. For example,
part “part” and body “solid body” will result in a zone name of “part-solid_body.” When the zone
name is created:

• Any invalid characters (such as the space in “solid body”) are replaced by an underscore character
(“solid_body”).

• Names that begin with a digit are prefixed by “zone.”

• If the part name and the body name are identical, only the body name is used to create the zone
name. The same rule applies to single body parts.

Note:

If you set the Auto Zone Type Assignment option to Off (as described in Meshing
Options on the Options Dialog Box (p. 277)), all boundary zones are set to the default
zone type WALL.

If a boundary zone was created for a Named Selection (as described in Classes of Zone Types in
ANSYS Fluent (p. 26)), the name of the boundary zone is set to the name of the Named Selection.

In cases where the zone naming process could lead to conflicting zone names (for example, in a
situation where the potential exists for a zone name that is already in use to be used to name a
new zone), one of the following approaches is used:

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• If the zone type is not similar to the zone name in question, the zone type will be prefixed to the
zone name to make it unique. For example, an existing continuum zone named “fluid” and a new
boundary zone named “fluid” (with zone type WALL) will result in the boundary zone being renamed
“wall-fluid.”

A unique integer will be suffixed to the zone name, preceded by a dot character (.). For ex-
ample, an existing continuum zone named “solid” (with zone type SOLID) and another con-
tinuum zone named “solid” (with zone type FLUID) will result in the continuum zone being
renamed “solid.1.”

• If the zone type is similar to the zone name in question, the approach is dependent on whether
the zone is a continuum zone or a boundary zone:

– If multiple continuum zones have the same type and same zone name, they are merged into a
single continuum zone.

– If multiple boundary zones have the same type and same zone name, a unique integer will be
suffixed to the zone name, preceded by a dot character (.). For example, an existing boundary
zone named “wall” and a second boundary zone named “wall” will result in the second boundary
zone being renamed “wall.1.” Subsequent boundary zones named “wall” will be renamed “wall.2,”
“wall.3,” and so on.

Because part and body names influence the creation of continuum zones in ANSYS Fluent, it is best
practice to assign distinct part and body names that follow these rules:

• Names should include only allowable characters. Allowable characters include all alphanumeric
characters as well as the following special characters:

` ! $ % ^ & * _ + - = :< > .? /

All other characters, including spaces, are invalid. If an invalid character is used, it is replaced
by an underscore (_) upon export.

• It is not sufficient for part and body names to differ by case only. This approach may lead to name
conflicts for zones in ANSYS Fluent, because names are converted to all lowercase characters upon
export.

• Using "INTER" as zone name or part of a zone name should be avoided. Because the mesher does
not allow named selections with identical names and interface definitions require two named se-
lections, using "INTER" can cause zone type conflicts.

Zone Type Assignment Process

The section is applicable to boundary zones only.

The zone type is derived from the zone name. To assign zone types, the string comparison operations
detailed below are performed during the export process. These string comparison operations, which
correspond to the naming conventions described in Standard Naming Conventions for Naming
Named Selections (p. 29), are applied in the order in which they are listed below (that is, at first
an exact match is tested, after that a partial match is tested, etc.) and are always case-insensitive.
For example, fan, Fan, FAn, and faN are all exact matches for the 'FAN' string comparison and result
in a zone type of FAN being assigned.

When the search operation begins, it will start by searching the first portion (or sub-string) of the
string and if no match is found, it will search for a match anywhere in the string. For example, if a

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Usage in Workbench

Named Selection with the name wall_inlet_flange is defined, it will be exported as zone type WALL.
The 'inlet' portion of the name will have no effect on zone type assignment.

In some cases a name may match multiple patterns or rules, and the expected zone type may not
be assigned. For this reason it is strongly advisable to use only unambiguous names that exactly
match one of the rules presented below.

Once they are exported, names are all lowercase. The single quotation marks that are shown en-
closing the strings below are not considered during the string comparison operations.

1. Exact matches are checked:

'AXIS'
'EXHAUST_FAN'
'FAN'
'INLET_VENT'
'INTAKE_FAN'
'INTERFACE'
'INTERIOR'
'MASS_FLOW_INLET'
'OUTFLOW'
'OUTLET_VENT'
'POROUS_JUMP'
'PRESSURE_FAR_FIELD'
'PRESSURE_INLET'
'PRESSURE_OUTLET'
'RADIATOR'
'RECIRCULATION_INLET'
'RECIRCULATION_OUTLET'
'SYMMETRY'
'THIN'
'VELOCITY_INLET'
'WALL'

2. Partial matches are considered only if an exact match was not found in step 1:
'AXIS'
{'EXHAUST' && 'FAN'}
'FAN'
{'INLET' && 'VENT'}
{'INTAKE' && 'FAN'}
'INTERFACE'
'INTERIOR'
{'MASS' && 'FLOW' && 'INLET'}
'OUTFLOW'
{'OUTLET' && 'VENT'}
{'POROUS' && 'JUMP'}
{'PRESSURE' && 'FAR' && 'FIELD'}
{'PRESSURE' && 'INLET'}
{'PRESSURE' && 'OUTLET'}
'RADIATOR'
{'RECIRCULATION' && 'INLET'}
{'RECIRCULATION' && 'OUTLET'}
'SYMMETRY'
{'VELOCITY' && 'INLET'}

3. String comparisons to the special abbreviations listed in the table below are performed if no match
was found in step 1 or step 2. If an exact match to one of the strings listed in the table is found, the
corresponding zone type is assigned:

When a match for this string is found... This zone type is assigned...
'CNDBY' INTERFACE
'EXFAN' EXHAUST FAN

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When a match for this string is found... This zone type is assigned...
'IFACE' INTERFACE
'IN' PRESSURE INLET
'INFAN' INTAKE FAN
'INTERFACE' INTERFACE
'IVENT' INLET VENT
'MASFI' MASS FLOW INLET
'OUT' PRESSURE OUTLET
'OVENT' OUTLET VENT
'PFAR' PRESSURE FAR FIELD
'PORJ' POROUS JUMP
'PRESF' PRESSURE FAR FIELD
'PRESI' PRESSURE INLET
'PRESO' PRESSURE OUTLET
'PRESS' PRESSURE FAR FIELD
'RAD' RADIATOR
'RINLT' RECIRCULATION INLET
'ROUT' RECIRCULATION OUTLET
'SLIDE' INTERFACE
'SYM' SYMMETRY
'SYMET' SYMMETRY
'SYMM' SYMMETRY
'VELF' VELOCITY INLET
'VELI' VELOCITY INLET

4. Partial matches are considered if no match was found in steps 1, 2, or 3. If a partial match to one of
the strings listed in the following table is found, the corresponding zone type is assigned:

When a match for this string is found... This zone type is assigned...
'EXHAUST' EXHAUST FAN
'INLET' VELOCITY INLET
'OUTLET' PRESSURE OUTLET
'SYM' SYMMETRY

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Usage in Workbench

When a match for this string is found... This zone type is assigned...
'THIN' THIN
'WALL' WALL

5. If none of the string comparisons described in steps 1, 2, 3, or 4 result in a match, the boundary zone
is assigned zone type WALL by default.

Note:

• If you are using CutCell and are defining Named Selections for 3D bodies, it is best practice
to avoid the use of ANSYS Fluent keywords. For example, do not include the string "inlet" in
the Named Selection name.

• When Named Selections defined in the ANSYS DesignModeler application are required in
the Meshing application, you must set the appropriate geometry import options to ensure
the Named Selections will be transferred properly. Refer to Importing DesignModeler Named
Selections into the Meshing Application (p. 57) for details.

• For assembly (p. 325) meshing algorithms, the names of parts, bodies, and Named Selections
should be limited to 64 characters.

Handling Periodic Regions

To export matching face meshes as PERIODIC boundary zone types, you must perform the following
steps:

1. Define matching face meshes (for 3D) or edge meshes (for 2D only) as Periodic Regions or Cyclic
Regions in a Symmetry folder (p. 379) or as Match Controls or Arbitrary Match Controls.

2. Define two Named Selections for each periodic boundary condition, one Named Selection per side,
ensuring that ”periodic” is used in the name (for example, periodic1A, periodic1B...). The
same Named Selections could be used to define the periodic or cyclic region.

Note:

• Periodic regions must belong to the same Fluent mesh cell zone to ensure a successful export.

• When match controls on faces are used, only one periodic or cyclic transformation is supported
(for example, you can export multiple match controls as long as they use the same coordinate
system and have the same angle/translation).

Special Cases
Be aware of the following special cases related to boundary zone type assignment:

• If Physics Preference (p. 73) is set to CFD and no other zone assignment has been explicitly defined,
all zones are exported as FLUID zones. See Fluent Mesh Export (p. 24) for more information.

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 Exporting Meshes or Faceted Geometry

• A boundary zone type of INTERFACE is assigned automatically to the contact source and contact
target entities that compose contact regions at the time of mesh export. For this reason, you are
not required to explicitly define INTERFACE zones to resolve contact regions. The zone type of IN-
TERFACE, along with the contact information, is written to the mesh file.

When reading the mesh file, ANSYS Fluent creates a mesh interface for each contact region
automatically. Each interface can consist of any number of INTERFACE zones for the source
and any number of INTERFACE zones for the target.

For 3D meshes, only face zones referenced in the contact region are considered during export.
For 2D meshes, only face zones consisting of edges are considered. Each contact region can
contain one or more face zones as sources and one or more face zones as targets. If any
entity referenced in a contact region (either as source or target) is also contained in a Named
Selection, that contact region is not considered during export.

For more accurate results in cases in which one face zone in a pair has a higher element
count than the other, the zone with the lower element count should be defined as Interface
Zone 1 of the mesh interface and the zone with the higher element count should be defined
as Interface Zone 2. In the transfer of the contact region source and target regions it is
ensured that the source regions are defined as interface zone 1 and the target regions as
interface zone 2.

• A boundary zone type of INTERIOR is assigned automatically between two FLUID zones (sharing a
common boundary) at the time of mesh export. For this reason, you are not required to explicitly
define an INTERIOR zone in such cases if the name of this zone does not contain any special name
derived from the part/body or Named Selection name.

• A boundary zone type of WALL is assigned automatically to a baffle, unless the baffle is part of a
Named Selection that was defined in the ANSYS DesignModeler application or the Meshing applic-
ation, and the name of the Named Selection results in a different zone type assignment.

• A boundary zone type of WALL is assigned automatically between a FLUID zone and a SOLID zone
at the time of mesh export. For this reason, you are not required to explicitly define a WALL zone
in such cases. When reading the mesh file, ANSYS Fluent will generate an additional WALL SHADOW
zone automatically.

Examples of Fluent Mesh Export: An Alternative to Using a Fluid Flow (Fluent)

Analysis System
The first example illustrates the basic workflow you can follow to create a multibody part in the
ANSYS DesignModeler application, mesh the model in the Meshing application, and export the
mesh to ANSYS Fluent. In the example, the bodies are renamed in the DesignModeler application,
and Named Selections are defined in the Meshing application. Based on these definitions, ANSYS
Fluent zone names/types are assigned correctly and predictably (for both continuum and boundary
zones) in the exported Fluent mesh file.

First, the model is imported into the DesignModeler application. The model consists of nine solid
bodies after import. In the DesignModeler application, a multibody part is formed, the bodies are
renamed, and all bodies are assigned a material property of fluid. (See Fluent Mesh Export (p. 24)
for more information about the Fluid/Solid material property in the DesignModeler application.)
Shared Topology is also used in this example. Refer to Figure 5: Multibody Part Containing All Fluid
Bodies in the DesignModeler Application (p. 36).

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Usage in Workbench

Figure 5: Multibody Part Containing All Fluid Bodies in the DesignModeler Application

Next, the model is edited in the Meshing application. The patch conforming mesh method is applied
with inflation, and Named Selections are defined for boundary zones. Virtual Topology is also used
in this example to provide geometry cleanup. Refer to Figure 6: Named Selections Defined in
Meshing Application (p. 37).

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 Exporting Meshes or Faceted Geometry

Figure 6: Named Selections Defined in Meshing Application

After meshing, the mesh is exported to ANSYS Fluent format and read into ANSYS Fluent. As shown
in Figure 7: Boundary Zone Names and Types Transferred to ANSYS Fluent (p. 38), the boundary
zone names and types are transferred as expected.

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Usage in Workbench

Figure 7: Boundary Zone Names and Types Transferred to ANSYS Fluent

Similarly, continuum (or cell) zone names and types (in this case, all fluid) are transferred as expected.
Refer to Figure 8: Continuum Zone Names and Types Transferred to ANSYS Fluent (p. 39).

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 Exporting Meshes or Faceted Geometry

Figure 8: Continuum Zone Names and Types Transferred to ANSYS Fluent

The second example also illustrates a workflow involving the DesignModeler application, the
Meshing application, and ANSYS Fluent. However, in this example the Fluid/Solid material property
of a body is changed while the model is being edited in the Meshing application.

First, the model is imported into the DesignModeler application. The model consists of 13 parts
and 17 bodies, but 12 of the bodies are not needed for this example and are suppressed. This leaves
a multibody part consisting of five bodies. The Fluid/Solid material property is set to Solid for four
of the bodies and to Fluid for the remaining body. Notice that one body is selected in the Tree
Outline and is highlighted in the Geometry window. Refer to Figure 9: Multibody Part Containing
Mix of Solid and Fluid Bodies in the DesignModeler Application (p. 40).

See Fluent Mesh Export (p. 24) for more information about the Fluid/Solid material property in
the DesignModeler application.

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Usage in Workbench

Figure 9: Multibody Part Containing Mix of Solid and Fluid Bodies in the DesignModeler
Application

Next, the model is opened in the Meshing application for editing. Notice that the same body has
been selected in the Tree Outline and is highlighted in the Geometry window. Also notice that the
Fluid/Solid setting for the body is set to Defined By Geometry (Solid) in the Details View. When
set to Defined By Geometry, the value is based on the Fluid/Solid material property that was as-
signed to the body in the DesignModeler application. Refer to Figure 10: Multibody Part Being Edited
in the Meshing Application (p. 41).

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 Exporting Meshes or Faceted Geometry

Figure 10: Multibody Part Being Edited in the Meshing Application

Next, the Fluid/Solid material property of the highlighted body is changed to Fluid. For all other
bodies, the Fluid/Solid material property that was assigned in the DesignModeler application will
be retained for this example. Refer to Figure 11: Changing the Fluid/Solid Material Property of a
Body (p. 42).

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Usage in Workbench

Figure 11: Changing the Fluid/Solid Material Property of a Body

After meshing, the mesh is exported to ANSYS Fluent format and read into ANSYS Fluent. As shown
in Figure 12: Continuum Zone Names and Types Transferred to ANSYS Fluent (p. 43), the continuum
(or cell) zone names and types are transferred as expected. Notice that the zone named “part-solid,”
which is highlighted in the panel on the left, has a zone type of FLUID.

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 Exporting Meshes or Faceted Geometry

Figure 12: Continuum Zone Names and Types Transferred to ANSYS Fluent

Polyflow Export
When you export a mesh file to Polyflow format (File> Export from the Meshing application main
menu, then Save as type Polyflow Input Files), a mesh file with the extension .poly is created. The
exported mesh file is suitable for import into ANSYS Polyflow and supports the following features:

• Named Selections - Named Selections that are present in the Meshing application will appear in the ex-
ported mesh file.

• PMeshes - You can create Named Selections to specify specialized modeling conditions on edges for 2-D
or shell geometry; and edges and faces for 3-D geometry. The exported mesh file will contain the mesh
nodes and elements associated with those Named Selections in PMesh format. For more information,
refer to Generating Meshes in ANSYS Meshing for Polyflow.

• Element types - Those that are supported in the exported mesh file are listed in the table below. Only
linear meshes are supported for Polyflow export.

Dimension Supported Element Type

3D 8–node hexahedral
4–node tetrahedral
5–node pyramid
6–node wedge
2D 3–node triangle

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Usage in Workbench

Dimension Supported Element Type

4–node quadrilateral

Note:

• If you are using the CutCell assembly meshing algorithm (p. 325), the exported mesh file is in
Fluent Meshing format. For all other mesh methods, including the Tetrahedrons assembly
meshing algorithm, the exported mesh file is in Patran format. The Fluent Meshing format is
used for CutCell because the Patran format does not support hanging nodes.

• As an alternative to the export process described here, you can transfer a mesh from a Mesh
system into a downstream Polyflow system.

• If you change your mesh settings after generating the mesh and do not perform an Up-
date (p. 431), the mesh that is exported is the currently existing mesh (that is, a mesh that does
not reflect your new settings). In such cases, a warning message is issued that indicates that
the mesh you are exporting to Polyflow format has not been updated. If you want the latest
settings to affect the mesh, perform an Update and export the mesh again.

CGNS Export
When you export a mesh file to CGNS format (File> Export from the Meshing application main menu,
then Save as type CGNS Input Files), a CGNS mesh file with the extension .cgns is created. The ex-
ported mesh file is suitable for import into a CGNS-compatible application. For more control over the
input file, refer to Meshing Options on the Options Dialog Box (p. 277).

Named Selections are supported in the CGNS file.

Element types that are supported in the exported CGNS mesh are listed in the table below. Only linear
meshes are supported for CGNS export.

Dimension Supported Element Type

3D 8–node hexahedral
4–node tetrahedral
5–node pyramid
6–node wedge
2D 3–node triangle
4–node quadrilateral

The maximum number of elements in a part multiplied by the number of nodes per element cannot
exceed 2 billion. For linear HEXA meshes, the maximum number of elements in a part (or body) should
not exceed 250 million elements. For linear TETRA meshes, the maximum number of elements in a
part (or body) should not exceed 500 million elements.

To export larger meshes, split them into several smaller parts (or Named Selections).

If you exceed the CGNS export limits, you will get the error message:
Error: CGNS section CGNS_section_name exceeds maximum mesh size limit, please split the mesh into smaller sectio

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 Exporting Meshes or Faceted Geometry

ANSYS ICEM CFD Export

When you export from the Meshing application to ANSYS ICEM CFD format, an ANSYS ICEM CFD
project file with the extension .prj, along with a geometry file (*.tin) and/or mesh file (*.uns) are
written. The files that are created are the same as those that are created if you begin in ANSYS ICEM
CFD and use its Import Model option to import a file from the Meshing application.

Anytime you plan to export from the Meshing application to ANSYS ICEM CFD format, it is best
practice to define the desired part and body names for your model in the DesignModeler or SpaceClaim
application prior to meshing the model in the Meshing application. This is recommended because
the ANSYS ICEM CFD part names will be derived from the part and body names that are defined for
the model when you initially open the model in the Meshing application; the export process will ignore
any renaming or Named Selections created in the Meshing application.

There are three ways to export meshing data to ICEM CFD format:

1. Choose File> Export from the Meshing application main menu, then Save as type ICEM CFD Input
Files.

ANSYS ICEM CFD part names that appear in the exported files are derived from the ANSYS
Workbench geometry part and body names. In the case of a single body part, only the body
name is used.

Note:

The concept of a part in ANSYS Workbench and a part in ANSYS ICEM CFD is
not the same. For information about parts in ANSYS Workbench, refer to
Conformal and Non-Conformal Meshing (p. 3) in the Meshing application
help and Geometry Introduction in the Mechanical help. For information about
parts in ANSYS ICEM CFD, refer to the documentation available under the
Help menu within ANSYS ICEM CFD.

2. Save your ANSYS Workbench files (*.mechdat or *.meshdat) and use the ANSYS ICEM CFD File >
Import Model option to import the files into ANSYS ICEM CFD (as long as ANSYS Workbench and
ANSYS ICEM CFD are installed on the same machine). Legacy formats such as *.dsdb and *.cmdb
are also supported.

Any defined Named Selections will be imported into ANSYS ICEM CFD as subsets because
subsets support non-exclusive sets (overlapping Named Selections). However, each entity
can only be in a single part (exclusive sets). In cases where you want overlapping Named
Selections to be converted to ANSYS ICEM CFD parts, the overlapping subsets can be cleaned
up in ANSYS ICEM CFD and then converted into parts. For details about handling imported
ANSYS Workbench files in ANSYS ICEM CFD, refer to the documentation available under the
Help menu within ANSYS ICEM CFD.

3. Use the ANSYS ICEM CFD Workbench Add-In. In ANSYS Workbench, right-click on a Geometry or
Mesh cell and choose Transfer Data Into New > ICEM CFD. The advantage of the Add-In connection
is that it maintains the connectivity once the geometry is modified so, unlike the previous two
methods, you can easily refresh the geometry in ICEM CFD and then update the mesh and the
solver input. For more information, see Component Systems in the [ANSYS Workbench User's Guide].

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Usage in Workbench

Rules Followed By the Export Process

When exporting to ANSYS ICEM CFD format, these rules are followed:

Note:

The series of examples that follows this list illustrates many of the rules listed here.

• To achieve unique ANSYS ICEM CFD part names in the ANSYS ICEM CFD format files, a unique integer
is suffixed to all ANSYS Workbench part/body names.

• A single body part in ANSYS Workbench will appear as <part_name>_<part_index> in the ANSYS
ICEM CFD format files.

• A multibody part in ANSYS Workbench will appear as <part_name>_<part_in-

dex>/<body_name>_<body_index> in the ANSYS ICEM CFD format files. The / character denotes
hierarchy.

• Bodies that are in a multibody part in ANSYS Workbench are put into an ANSYS ICEM CFD assembly.
The structuring in the ANSYS ICEM CFD format files reflects the part/body structure present in ANSYS
Workbench.

• As long as they are not contained in Named Selections, faces that are shared between bodies in the
same multibody part in ANSYS Workbench are put into separate ANSYS ICEM CFD parts. This type of
shared face is named according to the bodies having the face in common, with the body names
separated by the # character.

• Entities that are contained in a Named Selection are put into a separate ANSYS ICEM CFD part.

• For each body, an ANSYS ICEM CFD Material Point is created and put into the corresponding ANSYS
ICEM CFD part. The names of Material Points have the suffix _MATPOINT.

• If a mesh has been generated, it is exported along with the geometry. In such cases, these additional
rules are followed:

– As long as they are not contained in a Named Selection, node/line/surface mesh cells are associated
with the corresponding geometry part/body in ANSYS ICEM CFD.

– As long as they are not contained in a Named Selection, volume mesh cells are associated with the
Material Point part.

– Mesh cells that are associated with geometry entities that are contained in a Named Selection are
associated with the ANSYS ICEM CFD part that corresponds to that Named Selection.

The first example is a model consisting of four separate single body parts in ANSYS Workbench. The
single body parts are named fluid1, fluid2, fluid3, and fluid4. The table below shows the geometry in
ANSYS Workbench and the corresponding part names that will appear in ANSYS ICEM CFD:

This geometry in ANSYS Workbench... Results in these part names in ANSYS ICEM
CFD...
A model consisting of four separate single body parts
named:
fluid1 FLUID1_1

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 Exporting Meshes or Faceted Geometry

This geometry in ANSYS Workbench... Results in these part names in ANSYS ICEM
CFD...
fluid2 FLUID2_2
fluid3 FLUID3_3
fluid4 FLUID4_4

The figure below shows the model after it was meshed in the Meshing application:

Figure 13: Meshed Model (Four Separate Workbench Parts) Ready for Export to ANSYS ICEM
CFD

Next, the model was exported from the Meshing application to ANSYS ICEM CFD format. In the figure
below, the corresponding .prj file has been opened in ANSYS ICEM CFD. Notice the names that are
assigned to the various entities in the ANSYS ICEM CFD format file:

• Each body/part name has been suffixed with a unique integer to distinguish it from similarly named
bodies/parts. (Note that in this example, part_name is equal to body_name.)

• Each single body part in ANSYS Workbench appears as <part_name>_<part_index> in the ANSYS
ICEM CFD format files. For example, the part named fluid1 in ANSYS Workbench has a part name of
FLUID1_1 in ANSYS ICEM CFD, which appears as FLUID1_1_1 in the ANSYS ICEM CFD format files
after the part_index is added.

• For each body in the ANSYS Workbench file (fluid1, fluid2, fluid3, fluid4), a Material Point has been
assigned (FLUID1_1_1_MATPOINT, FLUID2_2_1_MATPOINT, FLUID3_3_1_MATPOINT, FLUID4_4_1_MAT-
POINT).

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Usage in Workbench

Figure 14: Opening the .prj File (Four Separate Workbench Parts) in ANSYS ICEM CFD

The second example is a model consisting of one multibody part in ANSYS Workbench. The multibody
part, which is named Part 4, contains four bodies named fluid1, fluid2, fluid3, and fluid4. The table
below shows the geometry in ANSYS Workbench and the corresponding part names that will appear
in ANSYS ICEM CFD:

This geometry in ANSYS Workbench... Results in these part names in ANSYS ICEM CFD
(the / character denotes hierarchy)...
A model consisting of one multibody part named
Part 4, containing four bodies named:
fluid1 PART_4_1/FLUID1_3
fluid2 PART_4_1/FLUID2_2
fluid3 PART_4_1/FLUID3_1
fluid4 PART_4_1/FLUID4_4

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 Exporting Meshes or Faceted Geometry

Figure 15: Meshed Model (One Multibody Workbench Part) Ready for Export to ANSYS ICEM
CFD

Next, the model was exported from the Meshing application to ANSYS ICEM CFD format. In the figure
below, the corresponding .prj file has been opened in ANSYS ICEM CFD. Notice the names that are
assigned to the various entities in the ANSYS ICEM CFD format file:

• Each body/part name has been suffixed with a unique integer to distinguish it from similarly named
bodies/parts.

• Each multibody part in ANSYS Workbench appears as <part_name>_<part_in-

dex>/<body_name>_<body_index> in the ANSYS ICEM CFD format files. For example, the fluid1 body
in Part 4 in ANSYS Workbench has a part name of PART_4_1/FLUID1_3 in the ANSYS ICEM CFD format
files.

• The bodies that are in the multibody part in the ANSYS Workbench file (fluid1, fluid2, fluid3, and fluid4)
have been put into an ANSYS ICEM CFD assembly named Part_4.

• The faces that are shared between the various pairs of bodies have been named FLUID2_2#FLUID1_3,
FLUID3_1#FLUID2_2, and FLUID3_1#FLUID4_4.

• For each body in the ANSYS Workbench file (fluid1, fluid2, fluid3, fluid4), a Material Point has been
assigned (FLUID1_3_MATPOINT, FLUID2_2_MATPOINT, FLUID3_1_MATPOINT, FLUID4_4_MATPOINT).

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Usage in Workbench

Figure 16: Opening the .prj File (One Multibody Workbench Part) in ANSYS ICEM CFD

The third (and final) example involves a model for which four Named Selections are defined in the
DesignModeler application. The model is meshed in the Meshing application, exported to ANSYS
ICEM CFD format, and opened in ANSYS ICEM CFD.

The first figure shows the model after it was meshed in the Meshing application.

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 Exporting Meshes or Faceted Geometry

Figure 17: Meshed Model (with Named Selections) Ready for Export to ANSYS ICEM CFD

The next four figures show the entit(ies) in the model that are contained in each of the four Named
Selections. In the figure below, the Fluid1_Fluid2 Named Selection is highlighted.

Figure 18: Fluid1_Fluid2 Named Selection

In the figure below, the InterfaceSolidFluid2 Named Selection is highlighted.

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Usage in Workbench

Figure 19: InterfaceSolidFluid2 Named Selection

In the figure below, the SharedEdge Named Selection is highlighted.

Figure 20: SharedEdge Named Selection

In the figure below, the SharedVertices Named Selection is highlighted.

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 Exporting Meshes or Faceted Geometry

Figure 21: SharedVertices Named Selection

Next, the model was exported from the Meshing application to ANSYS ICEM CFD format. In the figure
below, the corresponding .prj file has been opened in ANSYS ICEM CFD. Notice the names that are
assigned to the various entities in the ANSYS ICEM CFD format file:

• Each body/part name has been suffixed with a unique integer to distinguish it from similarly named
bodies/parts.

• The bodies that are in the multibody part in the ANSYS Workbench file (Solid, Fluid1, and Fluid2)
have been put into an ANSYS ICEM CFD assembly named Part_1.

• The face that is shared between SOLID_1 and FLUID1_2 has been named SOLID_1#FLUID1_2.

• Because Fluid1_Fluid2, InterfaceSolidFluid2, SharedEdge, and SharedVertices are all Named Selections
in the ANSYS Workbench file, each of them has been put into a separate ANSYS ICEM CFD part.

• For each body in the ANSYS Workbench file (Solid, Fluid1, Fluid2, Solid), a Material Point has been
assigned (SOLID_1_MATPOINT, FLUID1_2_MATPOINT, FLUID2_3_MATPOINT, and SOLID_2_1_MAT-
POINT).

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Usage in Workbench

Figure 22: Opening the .prj File (with Named Selections) in ANSYS ICEM CFD

Note:

For additional information, refer to the documentation available under the Help menu
within ANSYS ICEM CFD.

Exporting Faceted Geometry to ANSYS Fluent Meshing

You can use the Meshing application to export faceted geometry for use in ANSYS Fluent Meshing
(formerly TGrid):

1. Select File> Export from the main menu.

2. In the Save As dialog box, choose a directory and specify a file name for the file. Then choose TGrid
Faceted Geometry File from the Save as type drop-down menu and click Save.

As a result, a file with the extension .tgf is created. The exported file can be imported into ANSYS
Fluent Meshing, where you can use such features as the ANSYS Fluent Meshing wrapper utility.

Note:

The .tgf file has the same format as a .msh file and will be recognized as a "Mesh File"
when read into ANSYS Fluent Meshing (File/Read/Mesh... menu item).

Upon export, ANSYS Fluent Meshing objects and zones are created according to geometry bodies
and Named Selections. Part and body names are used in the ANSYS Fluent Meshing object/zone
names to identify the parts and bodies from which they originated.

Remember the following information when exporting to ANSYS Fluent Meshing:

• The quality of the exported facets is derived from the CAD system. You can use the Facet Quality
option (Tools > Options > DesignModeler > Graphics > Facet Quality) to control the quality of
the exported facets (the higher the setting, the higher the quality). However, be aware that higher
settings create large numbers of facets, which can slow down the Meshing application.

• The part, body, and Named Selection names that were present in the Meshing application are exported
in all lowercase characters for use in the corresponding ANSYS Fluent Meshing zone names.

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 Exporting Meshes or Faceted Geometry

• Only part and body names that were imported into the Meshing application are used in the exported
zone name. For example, names that were initially defined in the ANSYS DesignModeler application
or initially appeared in the Tree Outline when a CAD file was loaded directly into the Meshing applic-
ation will be used. Any subsequent renaming of parts and bodies that occurs in the Meshing applic-
ation will not be taken into account in the exported zone names.

• Vertices (regardless of whether they are contained in a Named Selection) are ignored.

• The name of each Named Selection is filtered upon export such that only allowable characters remain
in the name of the ANSYS Fluent Meshing zone. Allowable characters include all alphanumeric
characters as well as the following special characters:

_+-:.

All other characters, including spaces, are invalid. If an invalid character is used, it is replaced
by a hyphen (-) upon export.

• When the same entity is a member of more than one Named Selection, those Named Selections are
said to be “overlapping.” If you are exporting faceted geometry into the ANSYS Fluent Meshing format
(or a mesh into the ANSYS Polyflow, CGNS, or ANSYS ICEM CFD format), and overlapping Named Se-
lections are detected, the export will fail and you must resolve the overlapping Named Selections
before proceeding. For details, see Repairing Geometry in Overlapping Named Selections (p. 58).

• For assembly (p. 325) meshing algorithms, the names of parts, bodies, and Named Selections should
be limited to 64 characters.

The figures below illustrate the process of exporting geometry in faceted representation from the
Meshing application to ANSYS Fluent Meshing. Figure 23: Part, Body, and Named Selection Names in
the Meshing Application (p. 56) shows the model in the Meshing application. The geometry consists
of a multibody part named AeroValve, and the three bodies that AeroValve contains are named
Outletbody, Valve, and Inletbody. Notice that three Named Selections have been defined and are
highlighted in the Geometry window: Inlet, Outlet, and Valve_opening.

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Usage in Workbench

Figure 23: Part, Body, and Named Selection Names in the Meshing Application

Figure 24: Objects/Zone Names Transferred to ANSYS Fluent Meshing (p. 56) shows the Surface Retri-
angulation panel after the exported .tgf file is imported into ANSYS Fluent Meshing.

Figure 24: Objects/Zone Names Transferred to ANSYS Fluent Meshing

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 Exporting Meshes or Faceted Geometry

Named Selections and Regions for ANSYS CFX

There are a number of places in the ANSYS Workbench and CFX applications where geometric faces
and regions of mesh can be grouped together and assigned names. While this provides a large amount
of flexibility, it can lead to confusion. To have more control over which groups of names are loaded
into CFX to help simplify this issue, this section describes the ‘best practices’ for region definitions
and is targeted mainly at ANSYS CFD users of the DesignModeler, Meshing, and CFX applications.

Note:

Refer to Passing Named Selections to the Solver (p. 58) for related information.

Defining Names in the DesignModeler Application or the Meshing Application

When creating or importing geometry in the DesignModeler application or editing a mesh in the
Meshing application, Named Selections can be defined in terms of one or more CAD faces. If it is
desirable for these Named Selections to be available in CFX-Pre, then they must adhere to these
simple rules: Named Selections should not overlap or be defined as multi-dimensional and all Named
Selections must have unique names.

Importing DesignModeler Named Selections into the Meshing Application

If the Named Selections defined in the DesignModeler application are required in the Meshing applic-
ation, you must set the appropriate geometry import options to ensure the Named Selections will
be transferred properly:

1. From the ANSYS Workbench Menu Bar, select Tools> Options.

2. In the left pane of the Options dialog box, select Geometry Import.

3. In the right pane of the Options dialog box, select the Named Selections check box and either
clear the Filtering Prefixes field (to import all names) or set it to the appropriate filter if required.

The next time that you attach geometry containing Named Selections and launch the Meshing applic-
ation, the application will start, load the geometry, and load any Named Selections previously defined
for that geometry. The preferences you set on the Options dialog box are local settings and affect
only you.

If a mesh is generated, the Named Selections defined in the DesignModeler application will be available
when the mesh is imported into CFX-Pre.

Note:

For detailed descriptions of the geometry import options, see the CAD Integration section
in the ANSYS Workbench help.

Using Multiple Mesh Methods

Named Selections can be defined in the Meshing application, the DesignModeler application, or
supported CAD systems. When the resulting mesh is loaded into CFX-Pre, all of these Named Selections

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Usage in Workbench

are available. Control over which names are imported with the mesh is available in the Mesh Import
options.

It is possible to define Named Selections that conflict with some virtual topology, or do not conform
to the CFX Topology Model in some other way. Such Named Selections will not be imported into
CFX-Pre.

If a Named Selection is created that contains characters not supported in CFX-Pre names, these names
will be modified on import to remove the illegal characters.

Invalid Named Selections

The use of Virtual Topology within the Meshing application can invalidate Named Selection definitions.
Consider the case where a Named Selection ‘Region1’ is defined in terms of 4 CAD faces (1, 2, 3 and
4). If this geometry is then loaded into the Meshing application and Virtual Topology is used to merge
2 of these faces (3 and 4), the original Named Selection can no longer be resolved. In CFX-Pre, the
Named Selection will be modified so that it only refers to the ‘resolvable’ faces. Hence, in CFX-Pre,
the Named Selection ‘Region1’ would be defined in terms of faces 1 and 2 only.

Named Selections Involving Interior Faces

If an interior face (for example, a face that is shared between two bodies in the same part in
DesignModeler) is included in a Named Selection in the Meshing application, then the corresponding
location in CFX-Pre will be a Composite region that includes two Primitive regions: one for each side
of the interior face. Care should be taken when using the resulting Composite region for evaluating
expressions and performing calculations: for example, areas evaluated on such a Composite region
would be likely to give double the expected result (since the area is evaluated over both of the
primitive regions that form the two sides of the interior face) and mass flows will be approximately
zero (since the mass flow is evaluated on both of the primitive regions and will have the opposite
sign on each). You can optionally edit the Composite region in CFX-Pre to include only one of the
primitive regions.

Passing Named Selections to the Solver

When defining Named Selections, you can use the Send to Solver option to control whether a Named
Selection is passed to the solver. Send to Solver is available in both the Mechanical and Meshing
applications.

The default is Yes for Named Selections that you create, and No for Named Selections that are gen-
erated automatically by the Mesh worksheet (p. 365). When set to No, the selected Named Selection
is not passed to ANSYS Fluent, ANSYS CFX, Polyflow, CGNS, ANSYS ICEM CFD, ANSYS Fluent Meshing,
Mechanical APDL, ANSYS Autodyn, or any other downstream system that may be connected to the
Mechanical or Meshing application.

Repairing Geometry in Overlapping Named Selections

When you export (p. 23) a mesh into the ANSYS Fluent, Polyflow, CGNS, or ANSYS ICEM CFD format,
or as a faceted geometry (p. 54) for use in ANSYS Fluent Meshing, each Named Selection must be
unique. In other words, the entities (bodies, faces, or edges) in one Named Selection cannot also exist

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 Exporting Meshes or Faceted Geometry

in a second Named Selection. Any entity that is in two or more Named Selections is considered
overlapping. The overlapping entities need to be resolved before the mesh can be exported.

Note:

Any Named Selection whose Send to Solver (p. 58) option is set to No is skipped during
the processing described above. For this reason, an easy way to avoid overlapping Named
Selections is to set all values of Send to Solver to No.

If a mesh fails to export and an error about overlapping Named Selections occurs, you can display
the overlapping entities by right-clicking on the Mesh object in the Tree Outline and choosing
Show>Geometry in Overlapping Named Selections. You can then inspect the Named Selections
to remove the duplicate (overlapping) entities and proceed with exporting the mesh.

Alternatively, you can repair the overlapping Named Selections automatically by right-clicking on the
Named Selections folder and choosing Repair Overlapping Named Selections. This option checks
all Named Selections (for which Send to Solver is set to Yes) in the order in which they appear in
the Tree (top to bottom). When it encounters an overlapping Named Selection, it moves that Named
Selection to a new folder called Overlapping Named Selections and sets its Send to Solver option
to No. You can delete the Overlapping Named Selections folder.

The repaired Named Selections are placed at the bottom of the Tree and their names are prefixed
with Repaired. To repair a Named Selection, the Meshing application removes any duplicate (overlap-
ping) entities from the Named Selection and sets its Send to Solver option to Yes.

Note:

• In cases where you want overlapping Named Selections to be converted to ANSYS ICEM CFD
parts, the overlapping subsets can be cleaned in ANSYS ICEM CFD and then converted into
parts.

• If you are using Named Selections for mesh settings (such as sizing), set the Send to Solv-
er (p. 58) option for these Named Selections to No so that they are skipped when the check
for overlapping Named Selections is performed. Otherwise, the check may cause the mesh
state to go out-of-date.

Resolving Overlapping Contact Regions

Contact regions are said to be “overlapping” when the same entity (face or edge) is a member of
more than one contact region; or when multiple contact regions share the same geometry. When
you export a mesh to ANSYS Fluent or ANSYS CFX, contact regions become mesh interfaces, and in-
terfaces must be unique. In other words, if there are overlapping contact regions, the overlaps need
to be resolved into exclusive groups for the export to be successful.

Overlapping entities can come from a variety of sources. In the example shown in the following series
of images, the first contact region has one face as a contact and one as a target; this is a good con-
nection for ANSYS Fluent or ANSYS CFX. The other three contact regions have two faces as targets
and only one face as a contact; the extra target face in each of these contact regions overlaps, resulting
in overlapping contact regions that may need to be addressed for the export to succeed. In this par-
ticular case, the default tolerance that was used to detect contacts was too large. This problem could
be fixed by deleting all the contacts and using a smaller Face Overlap Tolerance to recreate them.

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Usage in Workbench

Figure 25: First Contact Region: One Contact and One Target

Figure 26: Second Contact Region: One Contact, Two Targets

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 Exporting Meshes or Faceted Geometry

Figure 27: Third Contact Region: One Contact, Two Targets

Figure 28: Fourth Contact Region: One Contact, Two Targets

Other cases of overlap may have different causes and solutions. To identify overlapping contact regions
so that you can resolve them and export the mesh successfully, follow these steps:

1. Right-click the Connections, Connection Group, or Contacts folder in the Tree and choose Check
Overlapping Contact Regions.

If any overlapping contact regions are found, an informational message appears in the Messages
window.

2. Right-click the message and select Go To Object.

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The overlapping contact regions that are responsible for the message are highlighted in the Tree.

3. With all of the overlapping contact regions still highlighted in the Tree, right-click one of them and select
Group.

All of the overlapping contact regions are grouped into a new folder to isolate them for diagnosis.

To resolve the overlapping contact regions, select each contact region that was placed into the new
folder one at a time and examine its properties. Verify that all associated properties are defined ap-
propriately. The following approaches are recommended:

• Often tolerances are set too large, as described in the example shown above. Try deleting all the
contacts and using smaller tolerance values to recreate them. It may help to set Tolerance Type to
Value rather than Slider, so that you can enter an exact Tolerance Value. Make sure the Tolerance
Value and Face Overlap Tolerance are set to reasonable values before regenerating the contacts.

• Depending on the case, setting Group By to Faces may help to pinpoint problematic faces. In other
situations, setting Group By to Bodies and promoting the overlapping contact regions to Named
Selections may be a better approach.

• If the tolerances are different for different bodies, run contact on selected bodies with different tol-
erances.

• If the faceting of the geometry is too coarse, increase the facet tolerance in DesignModeler.

• If some of the overlapping contact regions are not needed in ANSYS Fluent or ANSYS CFX, you can
suppress them so they will not affect the success of the export.

• If the case involves cyclic constraints, use imprinting in DesignModeler or SpaceClaim. Imprinting
results in exact pairs and ensures faces have common boundaries between parts. Refer to Fig-
ure 29: Geometry with Cyclic Redundancies (p. 63), which illustrates a complex case of cyclic redund-
ancy. Here the overlap is A->B->C->A, where A is the face contact of the top body, B is the cylindrical
face of the middle body, and C is the face in contact of the bottom body.

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 Extended ANSYS ICEM CFD Meshing

Figure 29: Geometry with Cyclic Redundancies

After you have resolved all of the overlapping contact regions, you can retry the export.

Note:

This feature is applicable to part-based meshing only. The check for overlapping contact
regions does not occur when assembly (p. 325) meshing algorithms are being used.

Extended ANSYS ICEM CFD Meshing

The features described here extend Meshing application functionality through integration of the
Meshing application with ANSYS ICEM CFD, and enable you to use ANSYS Workbench to drive automation
of ANSYS ICEM CFD.

With this approach you can leverage advantages of ANSYS Workbench such as:

• Its capabilities for running design optimization and what-if scenarios using parameters

• The strength of its core product solvers

The following topics are discussed in this section:

Writing ANSYS ICEM CFD Files
Rules for Interactive Editing
Limitations of ANSYS ICEM CFD Interactive

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Usage in Workbench

Writing ANSYS ICEM CFD Files

The Write ICEM CFD Files control determines whether ANSYS ICEM CFD files are written, and includes
options for running ANSYS ICEM CFD interactively or in batch mode from an ANSYS ICEM CFD Replay
file.

Note:

The Write ICEM CFD Files control is available when you use any ANSYS ICEM CFD mesh
method that is available in the Meshing application (Patch Independent Tetra (p. 178),
MultiZone (p. 205), or MultiZone Quad/Tri (p. 222)). However, the Interactive and Batch
options are available only if ANSYS ICEM CFD is installed. A warning is issued if you try to
use one of these options and ANSYS ICEM CFD cannot be found.

Note:

Another method for writing meshing data to ICEM CFD files is to select the Mesh cell in
Workbench and select Transfer Data to New>ICEM CFD. While the Write ICEM CFD
control writes the geometry of a part, using the ANSYS ICEM CFD Add-in component links
to the entire Geometry assembly. For more information, see Component Systems in the
ANSYS Workbench User's Guide.

Options for Write ICEM CFD Files include:

No
No files are written. This is the default.

Yes
Writes ANSYS ICEM CFD files. Useful when you are working in ANSYS Workbench but you want to
export your project files for further mesh editing in ANSYS ICEM CFD. If this control is set to Yes, your
ANSYS ICEM CFD project (.prj), geometry (.tin), unstructured domain (.uns), and blocking (.blk) files
will be saved during mesh generation.

• If your ANSYS Workbench project file has been saved, your ANSYS ICEM CFD files will be written to the ANSYS
Workbench project directory. ANSYS Workbench creates a project folder as the top level folder for each
project, at the same level as the project file. The project folder will be named <filename>_files,
where <filename> is a name you provide. The project file will be named <filename>.wbpj. Under
the project folder is a design point subdirectory for each design point in the project. The active design
point is always design point 0 (dp0) and corresponds to the design point labeled Current in the ANSYS
Workbench GUI. Under each design point folder are system folders for each system type in the project (
Mechanical, Fluent, etc.). Each system folder contains solver-specific files and folders, such as input files,
model directories, engineering data, resources, etc. Following this structure, the ANSYS ICEM CFD files
will be written to <filename>_files\dp0\global\MECH\SYS.

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 Extended ANSYS ICEM CFD Meshing

• If your ANSYS Workbench project file has not been saved, your ANSYS ICEM CFD files will be written to the
temporary ANSYS Workbench folder, as follows: %TEMP%\WB_<computer>\unsaved_pro-
ject_files\dp0\global\MECH\SYS.

Note:

• Only appropriate files are written, based on the selected mesh method.

• Refer to the ANSYS Workbench help for more information about project file management in
ANSYS Workbench.

Interactive
Applicable only when ANSYS ICEM CFD is installed.

When the Interactive option is set and you select Generate Mesh, the Meshing application launches
ANSYS ICEM CFD in interactive mode. When you specify the Interactive option, you must also select
an option for ICEM CFD Behavior (p. 66) to determine whether the geometry and/or mesh is trans-
ferred to ANSYS ICEM CFD.

Typically you will run in interactive mode to set up an ANSYS ICEM CFD Replay script file (*.rpl) that
can be run later in either batch or interactive mode. You will begin by loading a generic Replay file.
It is important to use this default Replay file because the batch process requires the pre and post
steps that are defined within it. To load the default Replay file:

1. From within ANSYS ICEM CFD, select File > Replay Scripts > Replay Control and the Replay Control
window appears.

2. Click Load on the Replay Control window and the Open Script File window appears.

3. Click Open on the Open Script File window to load the default Replay file.

You can incorporate your custom commands into the Replay file by using the Replay Control feature
or a text editor. The Replay file will be associated with your ANSYS ICEM CFD project when you save
the project and exit ANSYS ICEM CFD.

After the mesh is returned to the Meshing application and the ANSYS Workbench project is saved,
the Replay file will be written to the ANSYS Workbench project directory. Later you can set Write
ICEM CFD Files to Batch and the mesh will be updated automatically in batch. You can change
parameters on the ANSYS Workbench project page and Update the mesh in batch from either the
project page or from within the Meshing application.

Refer to Rules for Interactive Editing (p. 66) and Limitations of ANSYS ICEM CFD Interactive (p. 66)
for related information.

For more information about Replay Control, refer to the documentation available under the Help
menu within ANSYS ICEM CFD.

Batch
Applicable only when ANSYS ICEM CFD is installed.

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Usage in Workbench

Runs ANSYS ICEM CFD in batch mode from an existing Replay file. If you specify the Batch option,
you must also select an option for ICEM CFD Behavior (p. 66) to determine whether the geometry
and/or mesh is transferred to ANSYS ICEM CFD.

ICEM CFD Behavior

Determines ANSYS ICEM CFD behavior when running ANSYS ICEM CFD in Interactive or Batch mode.

For Patch Independent Tetra, the available options under Advanced are:

• Generate Mesh - After the meshing operation completes, transfers both the geometry and mesh to
ANSYS ICEM CFD for editing.

• Skip Meshing - Bypasses the meshing operation and transfers only the geometry to ANSYS ICEM
CFD for meshing and editing.

For MultiZone and MultiZone 2D, the available options under Advanced are:

• Generate Blocking and Mesh - After the meshing operation completes, transfers the geometry,
blocking, and mesh to ANSYS ICEM CFD for editing.

• Generate Blocking - Bypasses the meshing operation and transfers only the geometry and blocking
to ANSYS ICEM CFD for meshing and editing.

• Update pre-existing Blocking - Bypasses the blocking operation, updates pre-existing blocking and
meshes, and transfers the geometry and mesh to ANSYS ICEM CFD for meshing and editing.

Rules for Interactive Editing

The final mesh must pass ANSYS Workbench shape and topology checks in order for the mesh to be
returned to ANSYS Workbench. This requirement imposes the following rules and guidelines for
editing in ANSYS ICEM CFD:

• Do not modify the geometry.

• Pay attention to face and volume part naming. Use the same naming conventions and do not adjust
the part naming.

• Pay attention to mesh quality. If the mesh quality becomes degraded, the mesh will not be returned
to ANSYS Workbench unless Check Mesh Quality (p. 97) is set to No.

• The final mesh must pass ANSYS Workbench shape and topology checks in order for the mesh to be
returned to ANSYS Workbench without a warning or error message.

• Follow file naming conventions for proper archiving and batch interaction. Retain the default names.
Changing the names will break the association between the Replay file and the ANSYS Workbench
project.

Limitations of ANSYS ICEM CFD Interactive

Be aware of the following limitations when using ANSYS ICEM CFD Interactive:

• ANSYS ICEM CFD Interactive is designed to work at the part level. If you have assigned multiple ANSYS
ICEM CFD mesh methods (Patch Independent Tetra (p. 178), MultiZone (p. 205), or MultiZone

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 ANSYS Workbench and Mechanical APDL Application Meshing Differences

Quad/Tri (p. 222)) to different bodies of a multibody part, the ANSYS ICEM CFD Interactive options
specified for the ANSYS ICEM CFD method control that appears lowest in the Tree will be honored.
In other words, those ANSYS ICEM CFD Interactive options will affect all bodies being meshed with
ANSYS ICEM CFD methods regardless of whether a particular option is turned on for a particular body.

Working with Meshing Application Parameters

The term parameters in the Meshing application includes mesh input parameters (such as element size,
height of the initial inflation layer, and growth rate) as well as mesh output parameters (number of
elements, number of nodes, and mesh metric values).

A check box appears to the left of each field in the Details View that can be treated as a parameter.
Clicking the check box causes a P to appear in the box, which indicates that the field has been exposed
as a parameter for use in the Parameter Workspace. Fields that cannot be parameterized do not contain
a check box and are left-aligned to save space. The Parameter Workspace collects all specified parameters
and lists them in the Parameter Workspace grids for later use and/or modification.

Note:

• If an object has a parameterized field, and that object definition is changed in a way that makes
that parameterization non-meaningful, the non-meaningful parameterization will not be removed
by the program. For example, if there is a parameterized Number of Divisions sizing control
defined in the Meshing application and you switch to the Element Size sizing control and para-
meterize it, the Number of Divisions parameterization will not be removed and will continue
to appear in the Parameter Workspace grids. The presence of a non-meaningful parameter in
the grids has no harmful effect, but you can delete the parameter manually if you do not want
it to appear. To do so, return to the Meshing application and uncheck the corresponding check
box in the Details View.

• If a mesh control is suppressed, the parameter associated with the control will be deleted.

• If you are using a parameterized field in a Design Point study, you must specify a real value for
the field rather than using its default value.

• Refer to the ANSYS Workbench help for detailed information about the Parameter Workspace
and Design Points.

ANSYS Workbench and Mechanical APDL Application Meshing Differences

While the meshing algorithms used by ANSYS Workbench Mechanical originated from the meshing
capabilities present in the Mechanical APDL (MAPDL) application, over time these algorithms have di-
verged. The divergence was due to the different focus of early versions of the Workbench Mechanical
application (then known as DesignSpace). As Workbench Mechanical and its meshing and solving cap-
abilities evolved, new technology was added and existing technology was enhanced, making Workbench
Mechanical a full, general-purpose, finite element code that supports all levels of multiphysics disciplines.

To accommodate ease of use in Workbench Mechanical, as well as the need for different default meshes
based on simulation type, physics preferences (p. 73) are available. These physics preferences automate
default mesh settings related to element size, element quality, and so on. The Mechanical physics
preference has two choices for Error Limits (p. 97), or shape check values:

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Usage in Workbench

• Standard Mechanical, which uses quality error limits that are less strict than those used by MAPDL.

• Aggressive Mechanical, which uses quality error limits that are similar to those used by MAPDL.

In addition to letting you set a value for Error Limits, Workbench Mechanical lets you set values for
Target Quality and Check Mesh Quality (p. 97). The mesher uses the Target Quality as a goal for
mesh quality. You can think of the Target Quality as a warning limit (in MAPDL terminology), but you
can set the Target Quality however you deem appropriate. Check Mesh Quality is very similar to
MAPDL's Level of shape checking. Depending on the setting of Check Mesh Quality, you can check
for errors, errors and warnings, or neither (turn off checks altogether).

One of the major differences between Standard Mechanical and Aggressive Mechanical error limits
is in the computation of the Jacobian ratio. The Jacobian Ratio (p. 109) is a metric that compares a given
element's shape to that of an ideal element. Jacobian ratio can be computed at the corner nodes (Ag-
gressive Mechanical) or at Gauss points (Standard Mechanical). Depending on the type of simulation,
the calculation at the Gauss points may be sufficient and thus Standard Mechanical is the default as
it makes meshing more robust. If you are interested in higher accuracy or your problem is nonlinear,
you may want to either set Error Limits to Aggressive Mechanical or set Physics Preference to
Nonlinear Mechanical. In both cases, the Jacobian ratio that is used is computed at the corner nodes
(as it is in MAPDL).

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Meshing: Mesh Controls Overview
When in the Mechanical application, your part or multibody part is automatically meshed at solve time.
The default element size is determined by the software (for details, see default sizing (p. 79)).

You can also create the mesh before solving. To do this, select Mesh from the Tree Outline and right-
click your mouse. Mesh controls are available to assist you in fine tuning the mesh to your analysis.
These controls are described in the sections that follow.

Mesh control overview topics include:

Global and Local Mesh Controls
Understanding the Influence of the Sizing Options

Global and Local Mesh Controls

If you want more control over the mesh, you can get it by using mesh control tools. Both global mesh
controls (p. 73) and local mesh controls (p. 173) are available. Global mesh controls are located in the
Details View when the Mesh object is selected in the Tree Outline. To access the local mesh control
tools, highlight the Mesh object, then either click the right mouse button and choose Insert> {<choose
a mesh control tool>}, or choose a mesh control from the Mesh Control context toolbar.

In general, in cases where a numeric value can be specified for an option but a value of 0 would not
make sense within the context of the option, specifying 0 resets the option to its default. For example,
the Curvature Normal Angle (p. 88) option accepts a value from 0 to 180, but since 0 does not make
sense within its context, specifying 0 resets Curvature Normal Angle to its default.

Understanding the Influence of the Sizing Options

An important aspect of meshing in Workbench is the size function. Depending on the physics preference,
the sizing options allow you to control whether you want a uniform mesh or whether the mesh should
be influenced by the model's curvature and/or proximity of faces next to each other (thickness of
model).

The following chart recommends how to get the appropriate mesh:

Uniform mesh Mesh with Mesh with Mesh with 2D

Curvature Proximity Curvature and
Refinement Refinement Proximity Refinement
Physics Prefer- Set Capture Set Capture Set Capture Not recommended
ence = Nonlin- Curvature and Cap- Curvature to Yes Proximity to Yes
ear Mechanical ture Proximity to No
If using any Set Use Adaptive Siz- Set Capture Set Capture Set both Capture
other physics ing, Capture Curvature to Yes Proximity to Yes Curvature and Cap-
preference

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Mesh Controls Overview

Curvature, and Cap- ture Proximity to

ture Proximity to No Yes

Note:

When Physics Preference is Hydrodynamics, the only properties you can set are Element
Size (p. 78) and Defeature Size (p. 86).

Adaptive Sizing
Adaptive Sizing can be thought of as a 2D curvature and proximity-based refinement approach which
refines edges based on curvature and/or proximity but does not propagate the refined mesh along
the face. It works with Resolution, Span Angle Center and Transition, and has historically been
used as a way to reduce the total element count while capturing every edge of the model. This ap-
proach can significantly stretch the mesh leading to poor mesh quality, so it is generally recommended
to use one of the other sizing options and use defeaturing to reduce the total element count when
needed.

When Use Adaptive Sizing is set to Yes, the mesher uses the value of the element size property to
determine a starting point for the mesh size. The value of the element size property can be set by
the user or automatically computed using Defaults (p. 79). When meshing begins, edges are meshed
with this size initially, and then they are refined for curvature and 2D proximity. Next, mesh based
defeaturing and pinch control execution occurs. The final edge mesh is then passed into a least-
squares fit size function, which guides face and volume meshing.

Uniform, Curvature, Proximity, or Proximity and Curvature Sizing

A size function is computed when meshing begins. The mesher examines the global and local sizes
and uses the smallest, most local size to seed the mesh. It uses the growth rate to transition the mesh
from a small size to a larger size.

The following factors contribute to the final mesh distribution obtained by the mesher:

• The value of the Element Size (p. 78) option

• The value of the Curvature Min Size (p. 88)/Proximity Min Size (p. 89) option

• The value of the Max Size (p. 85) option

• The value of the Growth Rate (p. 85) option

• Features of the geometry, which can be any of the following:

– Edge and face curvature (p. 82), based on the normal angle variation between adjacent mesh
elements in 2D (edge) or 3D (face)

– Edge and face proximity (p. 82), based on the number of element layers created between a gap
between edges in 2D or between faces in 3D

• Local element sizing (p. 224) on selected edges, faces, or bodies

• Sphere of influence (p. 232) scoped to a selected body, face, edge, or vertex

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 Understanding the Influence of the Sizing Options

• Body of influence (p. 233) scoped to a selected body

• Influence of an existing mesh or a swept (p. 283) body

Note:

• The mesher uses the sizes defined by the user or computes its own Defaults (p. 79).

• The size function works within parts, but not across parts.

• When Capture Curvature and/or Capture Proximity are set to Yes, the default pinch toler-
ance (p. 166) is 90% of the value of Curvature Min Size/Proximity Min Size (whichever is
smaller). This differs from the tolerance used by the default mesh based defeaturing; refer to
Mesh Defeaturing (p. 85) for details.

• The size function computes a background grid prior to meshing and re-uses that background
grid during meshing. This background grid could differ for solid parts and sheet parts.

• The size function may over-refine bodies being meshed with sweep or MultiZone as side faces
can influence source faces and source faces can influence side faces to try to make the mesh
more uniform. Use hard edge sizing controls or set the number of divisions along the sweep
path to override such behavior.

• In some situations, the mesh will exceed the applied Element Size setting to create a better
quality mesh. To set a strict upper limit for each element edge, set the Element Size to a size
slightly smaller than the desired size.

Overriding Sizing Minimum and Maximum Sizes

One of the most important values related to sizing is minimum size (Curvature Min Size (p. 88) and
Proximity Min Size (p. 89) controls). Setting a value for minimum size that is too small may lead to
an unnecessarily fine mesh and longer meshing time or robustness issues due to the mesh tolerances
being smaller than the geometry tolerances (mesh falling into holes/gaps in the model). On the other
hand, setting a value that is too large may mean that important features are not captured by the
mesh.

The following notes may help:

• Use local sizing controls to override global controls to either increase or decrease the mesh size as necessary.

• Use the Mechanical Min Size Factor and/or CFD Min Size Factor to change the relationship between
Element Size and the default min size. See Sizing (p. 279) for details.

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Meshing: Global Mesh Controls
Global mesh controls are located in the Details View when the Mesh object is selected in the Tree
Outline.

Global settings are categorized into the following groups and are available through drop-down menus:
Defaults Group
Sizing Group
Quality Group
Inflation Group
Assembly Meshing Group of Controls
Batch Connections
Advanced Group
Statistics Group

Defaults Group
The Defaults group allows you to control these options:
Physics Preference
Solver Preference
Export Format
Export Unit
Export Preview Surface Mesh
Element Order
Element Size

Physics Preference
The Physics Preference option allows you to establish how Workbench will perform meshing based
on the physics of the analysis type that you specify. Available options are: Mechanical, Electromag-
netics, CFD, Explicit, Nonlinear Mechanical, and Hydrodynamics. The value of the Physics Preference
option sets the default for various meshing controls, as detailed in the following table.

Note:

• When Physics Preference is CFD, Solver Preference is Fluent or Polyflow, and an assembly
meshing algorithm is being used, some defaults will differ from those that appear in the table.
Refer to Assembly Meshing (p. 325) for details.

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Global Mesh Controls

• The solver options for the Mechanical physics preference appear within the Mechanical applic-
ation only, and only under certain circumstances. See Solver Preference (p. 75) for more inform-
ation.

• When Physics Preference is Hydrodynamics, the only properties you can set are Element
Size (p. 78) and Defeature Size (p. 86). The meshing controls that appear in the table below
are not applicable to the Hydrodynamics physics preference; therefore, Hydrodynamics is
not included in the table. Refer to Overview of the Meshing Process for Hydrodynamics Analys-
is (p. 12) for related information.

• Refer to the Meshing Overview (p. 1) section for further details about physics based meshing.

Physics Preference
Mechanical Nonlinear CFD
Meshing Mechanical Rigid Mechanical CFX-Solver (p.
Fluent
75) Polyflow
Control APDL Body Electromagnetics Solver (p. 75) Explicit
Solver (p. 75)
Solver (p. 75)
Dynamics
Solver (p. 75)
Program Linear Program
Element Quad-
Con- (Read- Con- Linear Linear Linear Linear
Order (p. 76) ratic
trolled only) trolled
Straight
Sided No N/A No Yes N/A N/A N/A N/A
Elements (p. 155)
Element
Default Default Default Default Default Default Default Default
Size (p. 78)
Cap-
Capture Capture
ture
Curvature Curvature
Curvature
set to set to
set to
Yes for Yes for
Use Ad- Cap- Cap- Yes for
shell shell Capture
Capture aptive ture ture shell
Sizing models; models; Curvature
Curvature Sizing Curvature Curvature models;
Options (p. 80)
otherwise otherwise set to
set to Yes set to set to set to otherwise
Use Ad- Use Ad- Yes
Yes Yes Yes Use Ad-
aptive aptive
aptive
Sizing Sizing
Sizing
set to set to
set to
Yes Yes
Yes
Transition (p. 87)
Fast / Fast / Fast / N/A / N/A / Slow /
/ Growth N/A / 1.5 N/A / 1.2
1.85 1.85 1.85 1.2 1.2 1.2
Rate (p. 85)
Span
Angle Coarse Coarse
Coarse / Coarse / N/A / N/A / N/A /
Center (p. 87) N/A / 60° / /
70.395° 70.395° 18° 18° 18°
/ 70.395° 70.395°
Curvature

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 Defaults Group

Physics Preference
Mechanical Nonlinear CFD
Meshing Mechanical Rigid Mechanical CFX-Solver (p.
Fluent
75) Polyflow
Control APDL Body Electromagnetics Solver (p. 75) Explicit
Solver (p. 75)
Solver (p. 75)
Dynamics
Solver (p. 75)
Normal
Angle (p. 88)
Stand- Nonlin-
Standard Electro-
Error ard ear
Mechan- magnet- CFD CFD CFD Explicit
Limits (p. 97) Mechan- Mechanic-
ical ics
ical al
Medi- Medi- Medi-
Smoothing (p.
Medium
102) Medium N/A Medium High
um um um
Inflation
Pre Pre Pre Pre Pre Pre Pre Pre
Algorithm (p. 132)
Layer
Stair Stair Stair Stair Stair
Collision Stair Stair Com-
Step- Step- Step- Step- Step-
Avoidance (p.Stepping
136) Stepping pres-
ping ping ping ping ping
sion
Transition
0.272 0.272 0.272 0.272 0.77 0.272 0.272 0.272
Ratio (p. 130)
Dimen- Dimen- Dimen-
Rigid Dimen- Dimen- Dimen- Dimen-
sionally sion- sionally Full
Body sionally sionally sionally sionally
Re- ally Re- Re- Mesh
Behavior (p. 156)
Reduced Reduced Reduced Reduced
duced duced duced

Solver Preference
Choosing CFD as your Physics Preference causes a Solver Preference option to appear in the Details
View of the Mesh folder. The value of Solver Preference can be CFX, Fluent, or Polyflow. Based on
the value, the Meshing application sets certain defaults that will result in a mesh that is more favorable
to the CFX, Fluent, or Polyflow solver, respectively. Inflation controls with defaults that are affected
by the Solver Preference setting include:

• Aspect Ratio (Base/Height) (p. 132)

• Collision Avoidance (p. 136)

• Transition Ratio (p. 130)

Within the Mechanical application only, choosing Mechanical as your Physics Preference also causes
a Solver Preference option to appear, providing the analysis system is a Transient Structural or Rigid
Dynamics system during the initial geometry attach. In such cases, Solver Preference can be set to
either Mechanical APDL or Rigid Body Dynamics. Controls with defaults that are affected by the
Solver Preference setting include Element Order (p. 76).

Other differences (such as what happens when you insert a Method control) are dependent on the
behavior of the geometry bodies and the Rigid Body Behavior setting. See Rigid Body Meshing (p. 380)
for more information.

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Global Mesh Controls

Refer to Physics Preference (p. 73) for more information about defaults that are set based on Physics
Preference and Solver Preference.

Export Format
Available only when Physics Preference is set to CFD and the Solver Preference is set to Fluent,
the Export Format option defines the format for the mesh when exported to ANSYS Fluent. The
default is Standard. You can change this to Large Model Support to export the mesh as a cell-based
Fluent mesh.

Note:

The Large Model Support option is not available for the following types of meshes:

• 2D

• Assembly (using the CutCell method)

For more information about exporting meshes to ANSYS Fluent, see Fluent Mesh Export (p. 24).

Export Unit
Available only when Physics Preference is set to CFD and the Solver Preference is set to Polyflow,
the Export Unit option defines the unit of measurement for the mesh when exported to ANSYS
Polyflow. The default is Use Project Unit, which means the mesh is not scaled. If you change this to
another value (centimeter, millimeter, micrometer, inch, or foot), the mesh is scaled according to the
export unit you select.

Export Preview Surface Mesh

Available only when Physics Preference is set to CFD, the Solver Preference is set to Fluent, and
the Export Format is set to Standard, the Export Preview Surface Mesh option controls the export
of the preview surface mesh elements. This option can be used when the bodies have been meshed
only partially, that is, not all volumes have been filled with elements and only previewing of surface
meshes was done. In such cases, you can choose to export the previewed surface meshes and continue
meshing in Fluent Meshing.

The default is No, which results in export of only volume mesh elements to the Fluent mesh file. You
can change this to Yes to export both the volume mesh and the preview surface meshes to the Fluent
mesh file.

Element Order
The global Element Order option allows you to control whether meshes are to be created with
midside nodes (quadratic elements) or without midside nodes (linear elements). Reducing the number
of midside nodes reduces the number of degrees of freedom. Choices for the global Element Order
option include Program Controlled, Linear, and Quadratic.

Examples are presented below. The heavy vertical line in each graphic represents the body boundary.

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 Defaults Group

Program Controlled
Program Controlled is the default. For surface bodies and beam models, Program Controlled is
identical to the Linear option described below. For solid bodies and 2-D models, Program Controlled
is identical to the Quadratic option described below.

Linear
The Linear option removes midside nodes on all elements. Examples shown below are for a solid
body.

Quadratic
The Quadratic option retains midside nodes on elements created in the part or body. All elements
will have midside nodes.

If Element Order is set to Quadratic, and if Straight Sided Elements is set to No, the midside nodes
will be placed on the geometry so that the mesh elements properly capture the shape of the geometry.
However, if the location of a midside node might affect the mesh quality, the midside node may be
relaxed to improve the element shape. Therefore, some midside nodes might not follow the shape
of the geometry precisely.

For more information about how the Straight Sided Elements control affects midside nodes, see
Straight Sided Elements (p. 155).

Note:

• Both linear and quadratic elements are supported for 2D axisymmetric models. This includes
support for 2D linear and quadratic inflation layers on axisymmetric parts. You must set Element
Order to Linear to obtain linear elements in such cases.

• Both linear and quadratic elements are supported for 2D shell and line models. This includes
support for 2D linear and quadratic inflation layers on shell models.

• When setting the Method control (p. 174) to a scoped body, you can change the setting of the
Element Order option to control whether meshes are to be created on the scoped body with
midside nodes or without midside nodes. You do this by using the Element Order setting
under Definition in the Details View. This setting will override the setting of the global Element
Order option described here. See Method Controls and Element Order Settings (p. 174) for ad-
ditional information.

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Element Size
Element Size allows you to specify the element size used for the entire model. This size will be used
for all edge, face, and body meshing.

• For solids, the Element Size is calculated as Bounding Box Diagonal (p. 95) * Bounding Box Factor (p. 279).

• For sheets or solids/sheets, the Element Size is calculated as Average Surface Area (p. 96) * Surface Area
Factor (p. 279).

Sizing Group
Mesh Sizing Defaults (p. 79) describes how default sizes are computed and how the values respond
when you modify other sizing values.

The Sizing group contents depend on the Physics Preference being used.

• When the Physics Preference is Mechanical, Electromagnetics, or Explicit, Use Adaptive Sizing is set to
Yes by default.

• When the Physics Preference is Nonlinear Mechanical, or CFD, Capture Curvature is set to Yes by default.

• When the Physics Preference is Hydrodynamics, the only properties you can set are Element Size (p. 78)
and Defeature Size (p. 86).

With Use Adaptive Sizing set to Yes, it includes:

• Resolution (p. 84)

• Mesh Defeaturing (p. 85) (Defeature size)

• Transition (p. 87)

• Span Angle Center (p. 87)

• Initial Size Seed (p. 87)

• Enable Washers (p. 92)

• Bounding Box Diagonal (p. 95)

• Average Surface Area (p. 96)

• Minimum Edge Length (p. 96)

With Use Adaptive Sizing set to No, it includes:

• Growth Rate (p. 85)

• Max Size (p. 85)

• Mesh Defeaturing (p. 85) (Defeature size)

• Capture Curvature (Curvature Min Size (p. 88) and Curvature Normal Angle (p. 88))

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• Capture Proximity (Proximity Min Size (p. 89), Num Cells Across Gap (p. 89), and Proximity Size Function
Sources (p. 90))

• Enable Washers (p. 92)

• Bounding Box Diagonal (p. 95)

• Average Surface Area (p. 96)

• Minimum Edge Length (p. 96)

Mesh Sizing Defaults

When a model is loaded, the default Element Size is automatically set by the software using the
physics preference and characteristics about the model.

• If the model only has solid parts, the Element Size is set as a factor of the Bounding Box Diagonal (p. 95).
When Use Adaptive Sizing is set to Yes, the factor is determined by using a combination of the Physics
Preference (p. 73) and Initial Size Seed (p. 87). For other sizing options, the default Bounding Box Factor
is set to 0.05, but you can modify this in the Options dialog box ( Tools-> Options-> Meshing->
Bounding Box Factor (p. 279)).

• If the model has sheet parts, the Element Size is set as a factor of the average surface area. When Use
Adaptive Sizing is set to Yes, the factor is determined by using a combination of the Physics Prefer-
ence (p. 73), and Initial Size Seed (p. 87). For other sizing options, the default Surface Area Factor is set
to 0.125, but you can modify this in the Options dialog box ( Tools-> Options-> Meshing-> Surface
Area Factor (p. 279)).

Other default mesh size settings, such as defeature size, curvature minimum size, and proximity
minimum size, are set in relation to the Element Size. If Use Adaptive Sizing is set to No, a simple
factor is used to scale the defeature size, curvature minimum size, and proximity minimum size.

Beginning in Release 18.2, you can rely on dynamic defaults to scale other sizes off of the element
size. When you modify the element size, the other default sizes update dynamically in response,
thereby providing a more direct scaling of sizing values.

Dynamic defaults are controlled by the Mechanical Min Size Factor, CFD Min Size Factor, Mechan-
ical Defeature Size Factor and CFD Defeature Size Factor options. These options are available in
the Options (p. 277) dialog box. You use these options to set your preferences for the scale
factors (p. 279) that will be used to calculate the corresponding default sizes. Essentially, the scale
factors control the default values for global minimum size and global defeature size, as well as the
default sizes used by local mesh sizing controls when Type is set to Factor of Global Size (p. 234).

Using Dynamic Mesh Sizing Defaults

To use dynamic defaults:

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1. Retain the default settings of Defeature Size, Curvature Min Size, Proximity Min Size, and/or
Max Size.

Note:

If you modify any of these default sizes, their values will not update dynamically.
This is because user-defined sizes are always retained.

2. Adjust the Element Size.

In response, the other default global mesh sizes will update dynamically.

3. (Optional) For more control over global size scaling, modify the values of the Mechanical Min
Size Factor, CFD Min Size Factor, Mechanical Defeature Size Factor and/or CFD Defeature
Size Factor options (p. 279) to obtain the desired scaling.

4. (Optional) To control scaling locally, choose Factor of Global Size (p. 234) as the Type when you
define a local sizing control. Then, depending on the entities and other options you select for the
control, use the Defeature Size Scale, Curvature Min Size Scale, and Proximity Min Size Scale
local sizing control options (p. 229) to obtain local sizing based on the global sizing.

Note:

By setting Type to Factor of Global Size, you ensure the local sizes will update
dynamically if you change the global element size.

Sizing Options
The Sizing options provide greater control over the following properties:

• Mesh growth (transition) between small and large sizes based on a specified growth rate

• Curvature based refinement and angles between normals for adjacent mesh elements
(curvature (p. 82)-based sizing)

• Number of mesh elements employed in the gaps between two geometric entities (proximity (p. 82)-based
sizing)

By default, Use Adaptive Sizing is set to Yes, unless Physics Preference (p. 73) is set to CFD or
Nonlinear Mechanical (in which case the default is Capture Curvature set to Yes), or Hydrodynamics
(in which case the sizing is Uniform). The option you choose determines which refinement mechanisms
are activated, as described in the following sections.

Controls for sizing include Element Size (p. 78), Growth Rate (p. 85), Max Size (p. 85), and
Curvature Min Size (p. 88)/ Proximity Min Size (p. 89). The Curvature Min Size/Proximity Min
Size and Max Size specifications represent, respectively, the global minimum and global maximum
allowable element size. The Element Size specification represents the global maximum allowable
size of the elements created by the free surface meshers of the supported methods. The Growth
Rate represents the increase in element edge length with each succeeding layer of elements from

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the edge or face. For example, a growth rate of 1.2 results in a 20% increase in element edge length
with each succeeding layer of elements.

Sizing options are applicable to the following mesh methods:

Volume Meshing:

• General Sweep (p. 283) (Surface mesh only)

• Thin Sweep (p. 290) (Surface mesh only)

• Hex Dominant (p. 200) (Surface mesh only)

• Patch Conforming Tetrahedron (p. 178)

• Patch Independent Tetrahedron (p. 178)

• MultiZone (p. 205)

• Assembly meshing algorithms (CutCell and Tetrahedrons) (p. 325)

Note:

• The sizing controls are passed to the Patch Independent Tetrahedron method. That is, the
Patch Independent Tetrahedron method does not use the same sizing algorithms; rather, this
method interprets the controls and uses internal algorithms to respect the user-defined settings.

• The General Sweep, Thin Sweep, and Hex Dominant mesh methods use the sizing controls in
the creation of the surface mesh, but the volume mesh does not use them.

Surface Meshing:

• Quad Dominant (p. 221)

• All Triangles (p. 222)

• MultiZone Quad/Tri (p. 222)

Note:

For an overview of how using the sizing influences mesh distribution, refer to Understanding
the Influence of the Sizing Options (p. 69).

Sizing topics include:

• Curvature-Based Sizing (p. 82)

• Proximity-Based Sizing (p. 82)

• Uniform Sizing (p. 83)

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Curvature-Based Sizing
The mesher examines curvature on edges and faces and computes element sizes on these entities
such that the size will not violate the maximum size or the curvature normal angle, which are either
automatically computed by the mesher or defined by the user.

Curvature-based sizing is defined by the following properties:

• Curvature Normal Angle (p. 88)

• Curvature Min Size (p. 88)

• Element Size (p. 78)

• Max Size (p. 85)

• Growth Rate (p. 85)

The Curvature Normal Angle (p. 88) is the maximum allowable angle that one element edge is
allowed to span given a certain geometry curvature.

Proximity-Based Sizing
You can specify the minimum number of element layers created in regions that constitute “gaps” in
the model for proximity-based sizing. For the purposes of specifying proximity-based sizing, a “gap”
is defined in one of two ways:

• The internal volumetric region between two faces

• The area between two opposing boundary edges of a face

Proximity-based sizing is defined by the following properties:

• Proximity Min Size (p. 89)

• Num Cells Across Gap (p. 89)

• Proximity Size Function Sources (p. 90)

• Element Size (p. 78)

• Max Size (p. 85)

• Growth Rate (p. 85)

The Num Cells Across Gap (p. 89) is the number of layers of elements to be generated in the gaps.
Proximity Size Function Sources (p. 90) determines which regions of proximity are considered in
calculations.

Note:

The proximity sizing does not recognize the proximity between certain entities in cases
involving voids in a model. For example, the proximity between a vertex and an edge on
a face in 2D (below left) is ignored if the triangle is a void in the rectangle. Similarly, the

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proximity between a vertex or edge and a face in 3D (below right) is ignored if the prism
and the block are voids in a larger domain. The two-headed arrows in the figure indicate
the areas where proximity is ignored.

Figure 30: Proximity Sizing Limitation

Uniform Sizing
Uniform sizing does not refine the mesh based on curvature or proximity. Rather, you specify defeature
and maximum sizes and gradation is provided between sizes based on a specified growth rate.

Uniform sizing is defined by the following properties:

• Defeature Size (p. 86)

• Element Size (p. 78)

• Max Size (p. 85)

• Growth Rate (p. 85)

With uniform sizing, you must use size controls to control mesh sizes locally, as opposed to the
curvature and proximity sizing, which refine the sizes locally based on curvature and proximity of
features in the geometry. Even if the specified local sizes are Soft (p. 237) sizes, they may override
the global sizes when the uniform sizing is being used.

Note:

The Use Uniform Size Function for Sheets (p. 92) enables you to use uniform sizing
while you are using other sizing options to refine the mesh for the rest of the model. This
setting is available only when the model contains mixed body types (for example, sheet
and solid bodies), and when Capture Curvature and/or Capture Proximity is set to Yes.

Setting Sizing Options

By default, Use Adaptive Sizing is set to Yes, unless Physics Preference (p. 73) is set to CFD or
Nonlinear Mechanical (in which case the default is Capture Curvature set to Yes), or Hydrodynamics

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(in which case the sizing is uniform). The option you choose determines which refinement mechanisms
are activated.

The following options are available:

Resolution
Growth Rate
Max Size
Mesh Defeaturing
Transition
Span Angle Center
Initial Size Seed
Curvature Min Size
Curvature Normal Angle
Proximity Min Size
Num Cells Across Gap
Proximity Size Function Sources
Use Uniform Size Function for Sheets
Enable Washers
Bounding Box Diagonal
Average Surface Area
Minimum Edge Length

Resolution
Available when Use Adaptive Sizing is set to Yes, the Resolution option controls the mesh distri-
bution. The default setting is Program Controlled (see Adaptive Resolution in the Options dialog
box (p. 279)). The range of values that can be set is 0 to 7, with the mesh resolution changing from
coarse (0) to fine (7).

A value of -1 will set the Resolution to the default value set for Adaptive Resolution in the Options
dialog box (p. 279).

• If Adaptive Resolution is set to Program Controlled, the default value is 4 when the Physics Prefer-
ence (p. 73) is Electromagnetics or Explicit. For all other Physics Preference (p. 73), the default value
is 2.

• If Adaptive Resolution is explicitly set in the Options dialog box (p. 279) (0-7), the value set will be
used as default.

Note:

• If you set the Resolution explicitly, the set value will be retained.

• For databases from previous releases (prior to Release 2020 R1), the Resolution will be expli-
citly set to a value which is not the default.

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• For new databases, if Resolution is set to Default and the Adaptive Resolution in the
Options dialog box (p. 279) is different than it was when the database was saved, the new
value will be used instead.

Growth Rate
Growth Rate represents the increase in element edge length with each succeeding layer of elements.
For example, a growth rate of 1.2 results in a 20% increase in element edge length with each suc-
ceeding layer of elements. This option is available when Use Adaptive Sizing is set to No. Specify
a value from 1 to 5 or accept the default.

The default is calculated based on the Physics Preference (p. 73) option and the presence of sheet
bodies.

Note:

For sheet models, the Details View does not display the default value of Growth Rate.

Max Size
Max Size is the maximum size that the sizing controls will return to the mesher. This option is
available when Use Adaptive Sizing is set to No. Specify a value greater than 0 or accept the default.

Note:

• The Max Size option is hidden if there are no solids in your model.

• For information about overriding sizes, refer to Overriding Sizing Minimum and Maximum
Sizes (p. 71).

• For information about the relationship between the Element Size control and the Min Size,
and Max Size controls, refer to Understanding the Influence of the Sizing Options (p. 69).

Mesh Defeaturing
The Meshing application automatically defeatures small features and dirty geometry according to
the Defeature Size you specify here.

Mesh defeaturing is supported for the following mesh methods:

Solid Meshing:

• Patch Conforming Tetrahedron (p. 178)

• Patch Independent Tetrahedron (p. 178)

• MultiZone (p. 205)

• Thin Sweep (p. 290)

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Global Mesh Controls

• Hex Dominant (p. 200)

Surface Meshing:

• Quad Dominant (p. 221)

• All Triangles (p. 222)

• MultiZone Quad/Tri (p. 222)

For the Patch Independent Tetrahedron (p. 178), MultiZone (p. 205), and MultiZone Quad/Tri (p. 222)
methods, the Defeature Size you set here will be populated to the local (scoped) method controls.
If you subsequently make changes to the local settings, the local settings will override the global
Defeature Size set here. See the descriptions of the individual methods for more information.

See Protecting Topology Defined Prior to Meshing (p. 159) for details on protecting defeatured to-
pology.

The options for defining mesh defeaturing are described below.

Mesh Defeaturing
Use the Mesh Defeaturing control to enable and disable defeaturing. When Mesh Defeaturing is
Yes (default), features smaller than or equal to the value of Defeature Size are removed automat-
ically.

Defeature Size
Defeature Size is available only when Mesh Defeaturing is set to Yes. Specify a positive value to
set the global tolerance for defeaturing, or accept the default. Specifying a value of 0.0 resets the
Defeature Size to its default, which is determined by the Mechanical Defeature Size Factor or
CFD Defeature Size Factor preference (p. 279) specified in the Options dialog box. If you retain the
default Defeature Size and subsequently modify the Element Size (p. 78), the default Defeature
Size is recalculated to reflect the size factor preferences.

Note:

• If a user-defined value has been specified for Defeature Size, that value will be used for
everything—sheets and solids. In addition, the value will not update dynamically if you
modify the Element Size because user-defined values are always retained.

• If you allow the Defeature Size to default and you modify the mesh size by applying local
sizing controls (for example, local face or edge sizing), the tolerance may be modified auto-
matically. In such cases, a warning message is issued to notify you that the global defeature
size has been modified. To prevent this behavior, manually specify a value for Defeature
Size.

• Some bodies or parts might be ignored if the Defeature Size is too high. If this happens,
the body will be considered to be meshed but will have no elements. These bodies or parts
can be suppressed if desired. To capture these bodies or parts in the mesh, regenerate the
mesh with a reduced Defeature Size.

• If the geometry contains close vertices, setting the Defeature Size can resolve them.

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On the Graphics Options toolbar, you can click the Close Vertices button to determ-
ine if there are any close vertices in the model, and then set the Defeature Size to a
value that will sufficiently defeature any extra vertices.

• You can also set the Defeature Size on a body, face, or edge by inserting a local size con-
trol (p. 228).

Transition
When Use Adaptive Sizing is set to Yes, Transition affects the rate at which adjacent elements
will grow. Slow produces smooth transitions while Fast produces more abrupt transitions.

Span Angle Center

When Use Adaptive Sizing is set to Yes, Span Angle Center sets the goal for curvature-based
refinement. For a curved region, the mesh will subdivide along the curvature until the individual
elements span this angle.

You can set the span angle by choosing one of the following options:

• Coarse - 91o to 60o

• Medium - 75o to 24o

• Fine - 36o to 12o

Example 1: How the Span Angle Center Controls Element Placement

The following figure shows a curved region. If the curvature were extended to 360o to create a
circle, the Curvature Normal Angle is the arc span from the center of the circle to the curved region.
The Curvature Normal Angle (α = 45o) is computed based on the Span Angle Center setting.

Initial Size Seed

When Use Adaptive Sizing is set to Yes, Initial Size Seed allows you to control the initial seeding
of the mesh size for each part.

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Global Mesh Controls

• Assembly (default) bases the initial seeding on the diagonal of the bounding box that encloses all as-
sembly parts regardless of the number of suppressed parts. As a result, the mesh never changes due
to part suppression.

• Part bases the initial seeding on the diagonal of the bounding box that encloses each particular indi-
vidual part as it is meshed. The mesh never changes due to part suppression. This option typically leads
to a finer mesh and is recommended for situations where the fineness of an individual part mesh is
important relative to the overall size of the part in the assembly.

Note:

When Use Adaptive Sizing is set to No, Assembly is set internally and cannot be
modified.

Curvature Min Size

Available when Capture Curvature (p. 82) is set to Yes, Curvature Min Size is the minimum size
returned to the mesher. Some element sizes may be smaller than this based on local feature sizes
or other geometric anomalies.

Specify a positive value or accept the default, which is determined by the size factor prefer-
ences (p. 279) (Mechanical Min Size Factor and/or CFD Min Size Factor) specified in the Options
dialog box. If you retain the default Curvature Min Size and subsequently modify the Element
Size (p. 78), the default Curvature Min Size is recalculated to reflect the size factor preferences.

Note:

• The appropriate size factor is based on the physics preference. The Mechanical Min Size
Factor applies when physics preference is Mechanical, Electromagnetics, or Explicit. The
CFD Min Size Factor applies when physics preference is CFD.

• When Capture Proximity (p. 82) is also set to Yes, you can specify a global Proximity Min
Size to be used in proximity calculations in addition to the global Curvature Min Size. When
only Capture Proximity is selected, only Proximity Min Size is available. Refer to Proximity
Min Size (p. 89) for details.

• For information about overriding sizes, refer to Overriding Sizing Minimum and Maximum
Sizes (p. 71).

• For information about the relationship between the Element Size control and the Max Size
controls, refer to Understanding the Influence of the Sizing Options (p. 69).

Curvature Normal Angle

Curvature Normal Angle is the maximum allowable angle that one element edge is allowed to
span given a particular geometry curvature. This option is available only when Capture Curvature
is set to Yes. You can specify a value from 0 to 180 degrees or accept the default. (A value of 0 resets
the option to its default.) The default value depends on the Physics Preference (p. 73) selected.

You can use the Curvature Normal Angle to limit the number of elements that are generated
along a curve or surface if the Curvature Min Size (p. 88) is too small for that particular curve.

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Example 2: How the Curvature Normal Angle Controls Element Placement

The following figure shows a curved region with a Curvature Normal Angle of α = 45o. If the
curvature were extended to 360o to create a circle, the Curvature Normal Angle is the arc span
from the center of the circle to the curved region. Three arc spans are needed to span the entire
curvature, which results in three elements placed along the curvature: one in each arc span.

Proximity Min Size

Available when Capture Proximity (p. 82) is set to Yes, Proximity Min Size enables you to specify
a global minimum size to be used in proximity sizing calculations. Specify a positive value or accept
the default, which is set equal to the default of Curvature Min Size.

Any feature that operates based on minimum element size will be based on the smaller of the two
minimum size values. Affected features include: Tessellation Refinement (p. 144), Pinch Toler-
ance (p. 166), Defeature Size (p. 86), Finding Thin Sections (p. 349), Finding Contacts (p. 351), and
contact sizing (p. 355) when used with assembly meshing.

When only Capture Proximity is selected, only Proximity Min Size is available.

Some element sizes may be smaller than this based on local feature sizes or other geometric anom-
alies.

Num Cells Across Gap

Num Cells Across Gap is the minimum number of layers of elements to be generated in the gaps.
This option is available only when Capture Proximity is set to Yes. You can specify a value from
1 to 100, or accept the default (3).

Remember the following information:

• The value of Num Cells Across Gap is an estimate; it may not be exactly satisfied in every gap. When
using mapped Face Meshing controls (p. 240) or sweeping (p. 283), interval assignment may change the
number of divisions (elements or cells) in a gap.

• The value of Num Cells Across Gap is approximate for assembly (p. 325) meshing algorithms. For example,
if you specify 3 cells per gap on a narrow face, the final mesh may contain anything between 2-4 cells
across the gap, depending on the orientation in relation to the global X, Y, Z axis.

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• In cases involving Patch Conforming tetra (p. 178) meshing and Swept (p. 283) meshing, the proximity
sizing drives the surface mesh size distribution as follows. The value of Num Cells Across Gap is applic-
able to both 3D proximity (the number of 3D elements/cells between two faces in a body) and 2D
proximity (the number of 2D elements/cells between two edges on a face), and the global Growth
Rate (p. 85) value is automatically taken into account in the gap. However, the 3D proximity sizing affects
only the surface mesh in the gap, and assumes the volume mesh will use the global settings. Hence, if
you define local mesh sizing on a body and specify local Element Size (p. 230) or local Growth Rate
(p. 236) settings that differ drastically from the global sizing settings (or if inflation is specified), the final
number of cells across a 3D gap may deviate from the specified Num Cells Across Gap value.

• When Method (p. 174) is set to Automatic (p. 177), the proximity calculation in swept bodies may result
in an under-refined mesh. You can use inflation (p. 265) layers or a scoped fixed size at such locations
to produce a sufficient number of elements/cells.

Proximity Size Function Sources

Proximity Size Function Sources determines whether regions of proximity between faces and/or
edges are considered when proximity size function calculations are performed. This option is
available only when Capture Proximity is set to Yes. You can specify Edges, Faces, or Faces and
Edges:

• Edges - This is the default when an assembly meshing algorithm (p. 325) is selected. Considers edge-
edge proximity. Face-face and face-edge proximity are not considered.

• Faces - Considers face-face proximity between faces. Face-edge and edge-edge proximity are not
considered (that is, the trailing edge of fluid around wings will not be captured with this setting).

• Faces and Edges - This is the default for part/body-based meshing methods. Considers face-face and
edge-edge proximity. Face-edge proximity is not considered.

Note:

• In cases involving face-face proximity, the face normal orientation is ignored during the
proximity calculation.

• In cases involving edge-edge proximity, edges across voids in a model are refined with as-
sembly meshing because the volume exists at the time the refinement occurs. With part/body-
based meshing methods, these edges are not refined.

• It is important to resolve all edges as much as possible for better feature capturing and for
minimizing the occurrence of non-manifold nodes. For this reason, you should specify a
setting of either Edges or Faces and Edges. For many models, the Edges setting may be
sufficient to resolve all proximity situations. For large complex models, using either the Faces
and Edges or Faces setting may result in longer computation time.

The figures below illustrate the effect of each Proximity Size Function Sources setting. For all
three meshes, the Tetrahedrons assembly meshing algorithm was used.

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Figure 31: Proximity Size Function Sources = Edges

Figure 32: Proximity Size Function Sources = Faces

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Global Mesh Controls

Figure 33: Proximity Size Function Sources = Faces and Edges

Use Uniform Size Function for Sheets

Use Uniform Size Function for Sheets enables you to use the Uniform sizing while you are using
other options to refine the mesh for the rest of the model. This setting is available only when the
model contains mixed body types (for example, sheet and solid bodies), and when Capture
Curvature and/or Capture Proximity is set to Yes. The default for this setting is No.

Enable Washers
Enable Washers controls the pattern of the mesh that is generated around any holes in a sheet
body. If you set this option to Yes, the mesh will be generated with a layer of equally-spaced
quadratic elements—called washers—around each hole.

The Enable Washers option is only available for sheet bodies when Use Adaptive Sizing, Capture
Curvature, and Capture Proximity are all set to No. If the model contains both solid and sheet
bodies, Enable Washers is available, but washers will only be generated for the sheet bodies.

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Figure 34: Washers Generated Around Two Holes

If you enable washers, you can specify the height of the washers and whether the washer element
nodes should be moved for holes that are close to a boundary. You should be aware of the scen-
arios in which a washer might not be generated for a hole.
Height of Washer
Allow Nodes to be Moved off Boundary
Limitations for Washers

Height of Washer
Height of Washer controls the height of the washer elements to be generated around each hole.
By default, the height is set to the Defeature Size (p. 86).

You should ensure that the height of the washer is set to a value between the target minimum
element size in the model and the Element Size (p. 78) (the nominal uniform element size ex-
pected in the overall model).

Note:

The mesher attempts to respect the minimum size and Element Size when the mesh
is generated. However, you may notice variations in the final mesh due to local feature
sizes, transition areas, or other geometric anomalies.

Allow Nodes to be Moved off Boundary

Allow Nodes to be Moved off Boundary controls the placement of the nodes for holes that are
too close to a boundary to place the washer elements. If you select Yes, the nodes will be moved
such that the washer elements can be placed without compromising any boundaries. The default
value for Tolerance for Moving Nodes is 10% of the value specified for Height of Washer. If
you select No, the mesher will not generate any washer elements in any locations in which the
elements do not fit.

The following figure shows a hole that is too close to an edge for the washer elements to be
generated between the hole and the edge.

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Figure 35: Washer Element Nodes Not Moved

After setting Allow Nodes to be Moved off Boundary to Yes, the washer elements are now
generated by slightly moving some of the nodes away from the edge of the hole.

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 Sizing Group

Figure 36: Washer Element Nodes Moved

Limitations for Washers

The following table describes the scenarios in which a washer might not be generated for a hole:

Table 1: Washer Limitations

Scenario Description
A hole is shared by two faces The hole is not detected, and a washer is not
generated around the hole. To ensure that a
washer is generated, you should merge the
faces (p. 446).
A local mesh control (p. 173) is set Washers are not generated on any face to which
a local mesh control has been applied.
The Defeature Size (p. 86) is greater than the Washers might not be generated.
Minimum Edge Length
A hole has a diameter less than the Minimum A washer will not be generated for the hole.
Edge Length
The Min Size and Element Size (p. 78) are set Washers might not be generated.
to the same value

Bounding Box Diagonal

Bounding Box Diagonal provides a read-only indication of the length of the assembly diagonal.

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Global Mesh Controls

Average Surface Area

Average Surface Area provides a read-only indication of the average surface area of the model.

Minimum Edge Length

Minimum Edge Length provides a read-only indication of the smallest edge length in the model.

Quality Group
The Mesh Quality Workflow (p. 96) describes the steps for configuring mesh quality. The Quality group
includes:

• Check Mesh Quality (p. 97)

• Error and Warning Limits (p. 97)

• Target Quality (p. 100)

• Target Skewness (p. 101)

• Target Jacobian Ratio (Corner Nodes) (p. 101)

• Smoothing (p. 102)

• Mesh Metric (p. 102)

The Mesh Quality Workflow

The general workflow for configuring mesh quality is as follows:

1. Set Physics Preference (p. 73).

2. (Optional) If Physics Preference is Mechanical, set Error Limits (p. 97).

3. Set Check Mesh Quality (p. 97) depending on how you want the mesher to respond when elements
reach error or warning limits.

4. Set appropriate quality targets based on your physics preference:

• Target Quality (p. 100)

• Target Skewness (p. 101)

• Target Jacobian Ratio (Corner Nodes) (p. 101)

5. Generate the mesh. (p. 432)

6. Review warning or error messages. Use Show Elements (p. 441) if needed.

7. Review mesh metrics (p. 102).

8. Perform troubleshooting (p. 477) if needed.

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 Quality Group

Check Mesh Quality

Check Mesh Quality determines how the software behaves with respect to error and warning lim-
its (p. 97):

• Yes, Errors (default) - If the meshing algorithm cannot generate a mesh that passes all error limits, an
error message is printed and meshing fails.

• Yes, Errors and Warnings - If the meshing algorithm cannot generate a mesh that passes all error limits,
an error message is printed and meshing fails. In addition, if the meshing algorithm cannot generate a
mesh that passes all warning (target) limits, a warning message (p. 441) is printed.

• No - Mesh quality checks are done at various stages of the meshing process (for example, after surface
meshing prior to volume meshing). The No setting turns off most quality checks, but some minimal
checking is still done. In addition, even with the No setting, the target quality metrics are still used to
improve the mesh. The No setting is intended for troubleshooting (p. 477) and should be used with caution
as it could lead to solver failures or incorrect solution results.

Note:

Changing the Check Mesh Quality setting after you have meshed affects the mesh status
as follows:

• If, after meshing, you change the Check Mesh Quality setting from No to another setting, or
you change the setting from Yes, Errors to Yes, Errors and Warnings, the mesh becomes
out-of-date and requires action.

• If, after meshing, you change the Check Mesh Quality setting from Yes, Errors and Warnings
to another setting, or you change the setting from Yes, Errors to No, the mesh will not go out-
of-date. However, some old messages may not directly apply anymore.

Error and Warning Limits

During mesh generation, an element's quality (which is sometimes called the element shape) is cal-
culated. The meshing algorithm uses error limits to obtain a valid mesh. It performs extra mesh
cleanup to ensure the error limits are met, such that a valid mesh is one that satisfies the necessary
(minimum) conditions and can be consumed by the solver. The meshing algorithm then attempts to
improve quality based on warning (target) limits. Error and warning (target) limits can be defined
further as:

• An error limit is the value at which an element's quality is not suitable for the solver being used, and
by default the mesh would fail (see Check Mesh Quality (p. 97)). Priority is given to ensure there are
no elements below the error limits. Error limits are determined by the physics preference as shown
in the table below. You cannot change error limits. However, if you are using the Mechanical physics
preference, you can choose from two sets of error limits: Standard Mechanical or Aggressive
Mechanical. You can think of the error limits as the minimum quality criteria of the meshing.

• A warning (target) limit has two purposes:

1. It is used as a warning limit. If the mesh has elements that are questionable for the solver being
used, these elements can be flagged for you via the warning limit. To configure this warning be-
havior, set Check Mesh Quality (p. 97) to Yes, Errors and Warnings.

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2. It is used as a target limit. The mesh methods will first try to improve the mesh to ensure there
are no elements that do not pass the error limits. If successful, the mesh methods do further im-
provements to try to meet the target limits. You can think of the target limits as the quality goals
for the meshing. If the mesher cannot meet the goals, a warning can be issued. To configure this
warning behavior, set Check Mesh Quality (p. 97) to Yes, Errors and Warnings.

Note:

All mesh methods use the warning (target) limits to flag warning elements if Check Mesh
Quality (p. 97) is set to Yes, Errors and Warnings. However, not all mesh methods use
the target limits to improve the mesh. Currently, only the Patch Conforming Tetra (p. 178)
mesh method uses the target limits to improve the mesh.

You can control how the mesher responds when it reaches error and warning limits by setting the
Check Mesh Quality (p. 97) option.

The error limits for each physics preference are:

• Mechanical - Uses either of these sets of error limits, depending on the setting of the Error Limits option:

– Standard Mechanical - These error limits have proven to be effective for linear, modal, stress, and
thermal problems.

– Aggressive Mechanical - These error limits are more restrictive than the error limits for Standard
Mechanical. Aggressive Mechanical may produce more elements, fail more often, and take longer to
mesh. You can use these error limits by setting Error Limits to Aggressive Mechanical. As an alternative,
you can set Physics Preference to Nonlinear Mechanical. However, doing so changes other defaults
and may significantly change the mesh size and/or which features the mesh is capturing, and therefore
may have a big impact on mesh quality. This is the default when Physics Preference is set to Mechan-
ical, but you can use the Error Limits option to change it.

• Nonlinear Mechanical - Uses error limits as shown in the table below to produce a high quality mesh
that meets the shape checking requirements of tetrahedral elements for nonlinear analysis. If the element
quality cannot meet the error limits, the mesh is not desirable for nonlinear analysis. These error limits
are used whenever Physics Preference is set to Nonlinear Mechanical; you cannot change them.

Note:

Using the Nonlinear Mechanical option typically produces more elements and longer
meshing times. If the element size is too coarse, meshing robustness may be problem-
atic because it is sometimes difficult to get a good quality mesh that not only meets
the coarse element size but also captures the features of the model. In such cases, you
should reduce the element size, simplify the model, or set Check Mesh Quality (p. 97)
to No to turn off the error checks.

• Electromagnetics - Uses error limits based on element volume, face warping, and face angle. These error
limits are used whenever Physics Preference is set to Electromagnetics; you cannot change them.

• CFD - For non-assembly meshing algorithms, uses error limits based on element volume. For as-
sembly (p. 325) meshing algorithms, uses error limits based on orthogonal quality (p. 120). These error
limits are used whenever Physics Preference is set to CFD; you cannot change them.

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• Explicit - Uses error limits based on Jacobian ratio and element volume. These error limits are used
whenever Physics Preference is set to Explicit; you cannot change them.

The following table presents the error and warning (target) limits for different values of Physics Pref-
erence (p. 73). The Hydrodynamics physics preference does not have error and warning limits, so it
is not included in the table.

Physics Mechanical Nonlinear Electromagnetics CFD Explicit

Preference Mechanical
CriterionStandardAggressive
WarningError Warning Error WarningError WarningError Warning
Mechanical
Mechanical
(Target) Limit (Target) Limit (Target) Limit (Target) Limit (Target)
Error Error Limit Limit Limit Limit Limit
Limit Limit
Element< < < < N/A N/A < N/A N/A N/A <
Quality (p.
5 107) 5 0.05 5 0.05 0.05
x x (default) x (default) (default)
10-6 10-4 10-4
for for for
3D 3D 3D

< < <

0.01 0.02 0.02
for for for
2D 2D 2D

< < <

0.75 0.85 0.85
for for for
1D 1D 1D
Jacobian< N/A N/A < N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Ratio (p.0.025
109) 0.025
(Gauss
Points)
JacobianN/A < N/A < < 0.04 N/A N/A N/A N/A < N/A
Ratio (p. 109) 0.025 0.001 (default) 0.001
(Corner
Nodes)
Skewness
N/A(p. 118)
N/A N/A N/A > 0.9 N/A N/A N/A > 0.9 N/A N/A
(default) (default)
Orthogonal
N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A <= 0 <= N/A N/A
Quality (p. 120) for 0.05
assemblyfor
meshing,assembly
not meshing,
used not
for used
other for
methodsother
methods

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Physics Mechanical Nonlinear Electromagnetics CFD Explicit

Preference Mechanical
Element< 0 <0 N/A <0 N/A < N/A < N/A <0 N/A
Volume 10-30 10-32,
not
used
for
assembly
meshing
Aspect N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Ratio
(for
triangles (p. 108)
and
quadrilaterals (p. 109))
Face N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A > 150 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Angle
Face N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A > 0.4 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Warping (p. 114)

Target Quality
The Target Quality global option allows you to set a target element quality (p. 107) that you would
like the mesh to satisfy.

The target quality value drives improvements to tetrahedral elements. If you set the target quality
and the mesh contains tetrahedral elements, the mesher will attempt to improve the tetrahedral
elements to meet the target quality that you specified. If the target quality cannot be met, a valid
mesh may still be generated. In addition, if Check Mesh Quality (p. 97) is set to Yes, Errors and
Warnings, a warning message is displayed to help you address the issues preventing the mesh from
satisfying the target quality. You can right-click the Message field and select the Show Elements (p. 441)
option from the context menu to create Named Selections for the elements that don't meet the target.

You should set the target quality if you intend to run a simulation that is sensitive to mesh quality.
However, because setting the target quality increases memory usage and the time required to generate
the mesh, you should not set the quality any higher than necessary.

To set the Target Quality, enter a value between 0 (lower quality) and 1 (higher quality). The default
is 0.05.

Note:

• Target Quality is supported for the Patch Conforming Tetra (p. 178) mesh method only.

• The Adaptive sizing can result in coarse mesh sizes with stretched elements that cannot be
improved with a higher target quality value. Therefore, if you are using the Adaptive sizing,
you should set the Target Quality to a value < 0.1. Alternatively, you could use a different
sizing option (such as Curvature (p. 82)).

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Target Skewness
The Target Skewness global option allows you to set a target skewness (p. 118) that you would like
the mesh to satisfy.

The target skewness value drives improvements to tetrahedral elements. If you set the target skewness
and the mesh contains tetrahedral elements, the mesher will attempt to improve the tetrahedral
elements to meet the target skewness that you specified. If the target skewness cannot be met, a
valid mesh may still be generated. In addition, if Check Mesh Quality (p. 97) is set to Yes, Errors and
Warnings, a warning message is displayed to help you address the issues preventing the mesh from
satisfying the target skewness. You can right-click the Message field and select the Show Ele-
ments (p. 441) option from the context menu to create Named Selections for the elements that don't
meet the target.

You should set the target skewness if you intend to run a simulation that is sensitive to mesh quality.
However, because setting the target skewness increases memory usage and the time required to
generate the mesh, you should not set the skewness any lower than necessary.

To set the Target Skewness, enter a value between 0 (higher quality) and 1 (lower quality). The default
is 0.9. For a tetrahedral mesh, you should not set Target Skewness to a value < 0.8.

Note:

Target Skewness is supported for the Patch Conforming Tetra (p. 178) mesh method only.

Target Jacobian Ratio (Corner Nodes)

The Target Jacobian Ratio (Corner Nodes) global option allows you to set a target Jacobian ra-
tio (p. 109) that you would like the mesh to satisfy.

The target Jacobian ratio value drives improvements to tetrahedral elements. If you set the target
Jacobian ratio and the mesh contains tetrahedral elements, the mesher will attempt to improve the
tetrahedral elements to meet the target Jacobian ratio that you specified. If the target Jacobian ratio
cannot be met, a valid mesh may still be generated. In addition, if Check Mesh Quality (p. 97) is set
to Yes, Errors and Warnings, a warning message is displayed to help you address the issues preventing
the mesh from satisfying the target Jacobian ratio. You can right-click the Message field and select
the Show Elements (p. 441) option from the context menu to create Named Selections for the elements
that don't meet the target.

You should set the target Jacobian ratio if you intend to run a simulation that is sensitive to mesh
quality. However, because setting the target Jacobian ratio increases memory usage and the time
required to generate the mesh, you should not set the Jacobian ratio any higher than necessary.

To set the Target Jacobian Ratio (Corner Nodes), enter a value between 0 (lower quality) and 1
(higher quality). The default is 0.04.

Note:

Target Jacobian Ratio (Corner Nodes) is supported for the Patch Conforming Tetra (p. 178)
mesh method only.

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Smoothing
Smoothing attempts to improve element quality by moving locations of nodes with respect to sur-
rounding nodes and elements. The Low, Medium, or High option controls the number of smoothing
iterations along with the threshold metric where the mesher will start smoothing.

Note:

• When Smoothing is set to High, additional smoothing of inflation layers occurs. This may slow
down the prism generation process.

• For details about Smoothing settings and their effects on assembly meshing (p. 325), refer to
Setting Sizing Options (p. 347).

Mesh Metric
The Mesh Metric option allows you to view mesh metric information and thereby evaluate the mesh
quality. Once you have generated a mesh, you can choose to view information about any of the fol-
lowing mesh metrics: Element Quality (p. 107), Aspect Ratio for triangles (p. 108) or quadrilaterals (p. 109),
Jacobian Ratio (p. 109) (MAPDL, corner nodes, or Gauss points), Warping Factor (p. 114), Parallel Devi-
ation (p. 116), Maximum Corner Angle (p. 117), Skewness (p. 118), Orthogonal Quality (p. 120), and
Characteristic Length (p. 122). Selecting None turns off mesh metric viewing.

When you select a mesh metric, its Min, Max, Average, and Standard Deviation values are reported
in the Details View, and a bar graph is displayed under the Geometry window. The graph is labeled
with color-coded bars for each element shape represented in the model's mesh, and can be manipu-
lated to view specific mesh statistics of interest (p. 103).

Note:

If the model contains multiple parts or bodies, you can view the mesh metric information
for an individual part or body. To do so, return to the Tree Outline. Under the Geometry
object, click the specific part or body of interest. In response, the Nodes, Elements, Min,
Max, Average, and Standard Deviation values for the selected metric and part/body are
reported in the Details View. (The graph is not available at the part/body level.)

Accessing Mesh Metric Information

To access mesh metric information:

1. Generate the mesh. You can view mesh metric information for any mesh that was successfully
generated using the Generate Mesh (p. 432), Preview Surface Mesh (p. 435), or Preview Inflation (p. 437)
feature.

2. Click the Mesh object in the Tree Outline.

3. In the Details View, expand the Quality folder.

4. For the Mesh Metric control, select the metric of interest from the drop-down menu.

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By default, the Min, Max, Average, and Standard Deviation values for the selected metric
are reported in the Details View. In addition, a bar graph (p. 103) is displayed under the Geo-
metry window.

Note:

To view the numbers of Nodes and Elements in the meshed model, expand the
Statistics (p. 172) folder in the Details View.

Viewing Advanced Mesh Statistics

When you select a mesh metric, a bar graph is displayed as shown in Figure 37: Mesh Metrics Bar
Graph (p. 103). For this illustration, the Element Quality mesh metric was selected in the Details View,
so the bar graph displays the minimum to maximum Element Quality values over the entire mesh.

Figure 37: Mesh Metrics Bar Graph

In Figure 37: Mesh Metrics Bar Graph (p. 103), the X-axis represents the value of the selected mesh
metric. Using the Y-Axis Option setting described in Using the Bar Graph Controls (p. 106), you control
whether the Y-axis represents the number of elements within a particular quality factor range (the
default), or the percentage of the total volume represented by the elements within a particular
quality factor range. In Figure 37: Mesh Metrics Bar Graph (p. 103), the Y-axis represents the number
of elements. The alternative would be for the Y-axis to represent the percentage of the total volume.
Remember that a model could have a large number of poorly shaped elements that are confined to
a small local area. The total volume of these elements might not be significant compared to the
volume of the entire model. As a result, the bar corresponding to this low quality factor may not be
significant. The Mesh Metric option displays the selected mesh metric without qualifying the elements
for acceptability.

Additional characteristics of the bar graph include:

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Global Mesh Controls

• The graph is displayed only when a mesh metric is selected. If you set Mesh Metric to None, the
graph is not displayed. Alternatively, you can click the Metric Graph button on the toolbar to
hide/show the graph.

• Resuming a model retains the last-saved state of the graph.

• Clicking the Controls button accesses the graph controls described in Using the Bar Graph Con-
trols (p. 106).

• The location of an individual bar along the X-axis is the mid-point of the range of metric values
covered by that bar.

• Clicking an individual bar on the graph (or in the column of white space above the bar) changes the
view in the Geometry window. The geometry becomes transparent and only those elements meeting
the criteria values corresponding to the selected bar are displayed, as shown in Figure 38: Geometry
View After Selecting an Individual Bar (p. 104). (The option to click in the column above the bar is
helpful if the graph contains very short bars that are difficult to click.)

Figure 38: Geometry View After Selecting an Individual Bar

• If you click and hold the cursor on an individual bar or column, you see a tooltip showing the metric
value associated with the bar, along with either a number of elements or the percent of total volume
represented by the elements (depending on the Y-Axis Option setting). For example, in Figure 39: Click-
ing and Holding on an Individual Bar (p. 105), 0.176 is the mid-point of the range of metric values
covered by the selected bar, and there are 10 elements with values that fall within that range. The
10 elements are displayed in the Geometry window.

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 Quality Group

Figure 39: Clicking and Holding on an Individual Bar

• To select multiple bars, hold the CTRL key and click all desired bars. All elements corresponding to
all selected bars are displayed in the Geometry window.

• To return the Geometry window to the full mesh view (no transparency; all elements are displayed),
click on empty white space on the graph. Empty white space does not include the column of white
space above a bar, as clicking in this area selects the bar and displays only those elements associated
with it.

• If you click in a column for which there are 0 elements, all that is displayed in the Geometry window
is the transparent geometry.

• The graph can be filtered based on element types. See Using the Bar Graph Controls (p. 106) for more
information.

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• The graph respects section planes and hiding of bodies in the Geometry window. For example, if
you hide a body and then click an individual bar to view the elements corresponding to the selected
bar, elements in the hidden body are not displayed in the Geometry window, even if they meet the
criteria that the bar represents.

• To zoom the graph, hold the ALT key and use your mouse to define a selection box on the graph
(click the graph and drag the mouse downward and to the right to define the area to zoom; then
release the mouse button). To reset the graph to its initial view, hold the ALT key, click the graph
and drag the mouse downward and to the left; then release the mouse button.

• The values of the X-axis and Y-axis labels on the graph correspond to the visible ranges, rather than
to global values. For example, the value 198 in Figure 39: Clicking and Holding on an Individual
Bar (p. 105) is the maximum end of the range for the Y-axis, based on the current content of the graph.
If you zoom the graph or define a new range of values to display as described in Using the Bar Graph
Controls (p. 106), the values of the X-axis and Y-axis labels change accordingly along with the content
of the graph.

Using the Bar Graph Controls

When you click the Controls button on the graph, the graph is replaced by the controls page as
shown in Figure 40: Bar Graph Controls Page (p. 106). Clicking the X button applies any changes on
the controls page and returns you to the graph.

Figure 40: Bar Graph Controls Page

From the controls page shown in Figure 40: Bar Graph Controls Page (p. 106), you can set the following
values:

• Y-Axis Option - Determines what the heights of the bars represent. Options include Number of
Elements and Percent of Volume/Area. The default is Number of Elements.

• Number of Bars - Determines the number of bars to include in the graph. You can enter any whole
number greater than or equal to 0. The default is 10. When you click Update Y-Axis, the Min and/or

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 Quality Group

Max values for the Y-Axis are recomputed so that the graph and the Y-Axis values on the controls
page reflect the new number of bars.

• Range - Defines a range for the selected metric to display only those elements that fall within the
specified range.

– X-Axis - Specify a Min and/or Max value. To locate and estimate the number of worst elements in
the mesh, adjust the Min and Max values to the lower or upper end of the quality criterion (de-
pending on metric) and click Update Y-Axis. (Determining the distribution and location of all the
bad elements at one time is helpful in cases where you may need to re-import your model into
the DesignModeler application to remove the corresponding problematic geometry.) Click Reset
to return to the X-Axis defaults. (Note: Negative values are acceptable.)

– Y-Axis - Specify a Min and/or Max value. By lowering the Max value, you can clip the Y-axis for
easier visualization of small bars, especially as they relate to different element types. Click Reset
to return to the Y-Axis defaults.

• List of element types - Determines which element types to include in the graph. Element types that
do not appear in the mesh are read-only on the controls page. Select the element types that you
want to include in the graph, or click Select All to include all available element types in the graph.
By default, all available element types are selected.

Note:

Because the bars approximate the metrics across the range of the X-Axis, choosing a very
small number of bars over a large X-Axis range may move the bars away from the actual
average metric of the elements represented by each bar.

Calculation Details
For information about the calculations that are performed for each metric, refer to:
Element Quality
Aspect Ratio Calculation for Triangles
Aspect Ratio Calculation for Quadrilaterals
Jacobian Ratio
Warping Factor
Parallel Deviation
Maximum Corner Angle
Skewness
Orthogonal Quality
Characteristic Length

Element Quality
The Element Quality option provides a composite quality metric that ranges between 0 and 1. This
metric is based on the ratio of the volume to the sum of the square of the edge lengths for 2D
quad/tri elements, or the square root of the cube of the sum of the square of the edge lengths for
3D elements. A value of 1 indicates a perfect cube or square while a value of 0 indicates that the
element has a zero or negative volume.

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This can also be expressed as follows:

• For two-dimensional quad/tri elements:

Note:

For the Mechanical (p. 73) physics preference, if Error Limit is set to Aggressive
Mechanical (p. 97) and the Jacobian Ratio (Corner Nodes) (p. 109) is less than zero,
an error occurs.

• For three-dimensional brick elements:

The following table lists the value of C for each type of element:

Element Value of C
Triangle 6.92820323
Quadrangle 4.0
Tetrahedron 124.70765802
Hexagon 41.56921938
Wedge 62.35382905
Pyramid 96

Aspect Ratio Calculation for Triangles

The aspect ratio for a triangle is computed in the following manner, using only the corner nodes
of the element (Figure 41: Triangle Aspect Ratio Calculation (p. 108)):

Figure 41: Triangle Aspect Ratio Calculation

1. A line is constructed from one node of the element to the midpoint of the opposite edge, and another
through the midpoints of the other 2 edges. In general, these lines are not perpendicular to each
other or to any of the element edges.

2. Rectangles are constructed centered about each of these 2 lines, with edges passing through the ele-
ment edge midpoints and the triangle apex.

3. These constructions are repeated using each of the other 2 corners as the apex.

4. The aspect ratio of the triangle is the ratio of the longer side to the shorter side of whichever of the 6
rectangles is most stretched, divided by the square root of 3.

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 Quality Group

The best possible triangle aspect ratio, for an equilateral triangle, is 1. A triangle having an aspect
ratio of 20 is shown in Figure 42: Aspect Ratios for Triangles (p. 109).

Figure 42: Aspect Ratios for Triangles

Aspect Ratio Calculation for Quadrilaterals

The aspect ratio for a quadrilateral is computed by the following steps, using only the corner nodes
of the element (Figure 43: Quadrilateral Aspect Ratio Calculation (p. 109)):

Figure 43: Quadrilateral Aspect Ratio Calculation

1. If the element is not flat, the nodes are projected onto a plane passing through the average of the
corner locations and perpendicular to the average of the corner normals. The remaining steps are
performed on these projected locations.

2. Two lines are constructed that bisect the opposing pairs of element edges and which meet at the
element center. In general, these lines are not perpendicular to each other or to any of the element
edges.

3. Rectangles are constructed centered about each of the 2 lines, with edges passing through the element
edge midpoints. The aspect ratio of the quadrilateral is the ratio of a longer side to a shorter side of
whichever rectangle is most stretched.

4. The best possible quadrilateral aspect ratio, for a square, is one. A quadrilateral having an aspect ratio
of 20 is shown in Figure 44: Aspect Ratios for Quadrilaterals (p. 109).

Figure 44: Aspect Ratios for Quadrilaterals

Jacobian Ratio
The Jacobian ratio is a measurement of the shape of a given element compared to that of an ideal
element. If an element has a bad quality Jacobian ratio, the element may not map well from element

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space to real space, thereby making computations based on the element shape less reliable. The
ideal shape of an element depends on element type.

Jacobian ratio is not calculated for triangles and tetrahedra that are linear (no midside nodes) or
have straight-sided midside nodes. This is because the shape function for these types of elements
is linear, and the partial derivatives of linear functions are constant. Therefore, the determinant of
the Jacobian ratio for these types of elements is constant over the entire element, which means R
J (min) = R J (max). For such elements, the Jacobian ratio is always 1.

Jacobian Ratio Calculation

There are two ways to calculate the Jacobian ratio: either based on corner nodes (nodal points) or
based on Gauss points (integration points).

When the Jacobian Be aware that...

ratio calculation is
based on...
A sampling of • The calculation is more restrictive.
element corner
nodes • To view mesh metric information based on this calculation, you must set
Mesh Metric (p. 102) to one of the following:

– Jacobian Ratio (Corner Nodes), which is bounded by -1 (worst) and 1

(best) on the mesh metrics bar graph (p. 103). An element with a Jacobian
ratio <= 0 should be avoided.

– Jacobian Ratio (MAPDL), which is used by the MAPDL solver, is the inverse
of Jacobian Ratio (Corner Nodes). Jacobian Ratio (MAPDL) is bounded
by negative infinity and positive infinity, but all negative-value elements
are collected and arbitrarily assigned the value -100 for purposes of the
mesh metrics bar graph (p. 103). An element with a Jacobian ratio <= 0
should be avoided. A Jacobian ratio whose value is close to 1 is best.

Note:

When Physics Preference is set to Mechanical, the Error

Limits (p. 97) option for shape checking is set to Standard
Mechanical by default. The Jacobian ratio calculation used
for Standard Mechanical checks Gauss points but does not
check corner nodes. This may lead to a situation where you
have an element that has a Jacobian Ratio (Gauss Points)
that is > 0 and a Jacobian Ratio (Corner Nodes) that is <=
0.

A sampling of • The calculation is less restrictive.

element Gauss
points • To view mesh metric information based on this calculation, you must set
Mesh Metric (p. 102) to Jacobian Ratio (Gauss Points), which is bounded by
-1 (worst) and 1 (best) on the mesh metrics bar graph (p. 103). An element
with a Jacobian ratio <= 0 should be avoided.

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 Quality Group

An element's Jacobian ratio is computed by the following steps, using the full set of nodes for the
element:

1. Sampling locations are based on the selected Mesh Metric option [Jacobian Ratio (MAPDL), Jacobian
Ratio (Corner Nodes), or Jacobian Ratio (Gauss Points)]. At each sampling location listed in the table
below, the determinant of the Jacobian matrix is computed and called RJ. RJ at a given point represents
the magnitude of the mapping function between element natural coordinates and real space. In an
ideally-shaped element, RJ is relatively constant over the element, and does not change sign.

Element RJ Sampling Locations for RJ Sampling Locations for Jacobian Ratio

Shape Jacobian Ratio (MAPDL) and (Gauss Points)
Jacobian Ratio (Corner Nodes)
10-node Corner nodes Four Gauss quadrature points
tetrahedra
5-node or Base corner nodes and near apex 5-node pyramids use 1 Gauss quadrature
13-node node (apex RJ factored so that a point
pyramids pyramid having all edges the
same length will produce a 13-node pyramids use 8 Gauss quadrature
Jacobian ratio of 1) points
8-node Corner nodes and centroid Four Gauss quadrature points
quadrilaterals
20-node All nodes and centroid Eight Gauss quadrature points
bricks
all other Corner nodes Choose the optimal number of Gauss
elements quadrature points for integration

2. For Jacobian Ratio (MAPDL), the Jacobian ratio of the element is the ratio of the maximum to the
minimum sampled value of RJ, while for Jacobian Ratio (Corner Nodes) and Jacobian Ratio (Gauss
Points), it is the ratio of the minimum to the maximum. For Jacobian Ratio (MAPDL), if the maximum
and minimum have opposite signs, the Jacobian ratio is arbitrarily assigned to be -100 (and the element
is clearly unacceptable).

3. If the element is a midside-node tetrahedron, an additional RJ is computed for a fictitious straight-

sided tetrahedron connected to the 4 corner nodes. For Jacobian Ratio (MAPDL), if that RJ differs in
sign from any nodal RJ (an extremely rare occurrence), the Jacobian ratio is arbitrarily assigned to be
-100. For Jacobian Ratio (Corner Nodes) and Jacobian Ratio (Gauss Points), the Jacobian ratio is
assigned to be -1.

4. If the element is a line element having a midside node, the Jacobian matrix is not square (because the
mapping is from one natural coordinate to 2-D or 3-D space) and has no determinant. For this case, a
vector calculation is used to compute a number which behaves like a Jacobian ratio. This calculation
has the effect of limiting the arc spanned by a single element to about 106°.

The Jacobian ratio of various element shapes may worsen as follows:

• A triangle or tetrahedron has a Jacobian ratio of 1 if each midside node, if any, is positioned at the
average of the corresponding corner node locations. This is true no matter how otherwise distorted
the element may be. Hence, this calculation is skipped entirely for such elements. Moving a midside

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node away from the edge midpoint position will worsen the Jacobian ratio. If the node is moved
significantly, the Jacobian ratio will become negative and the element is invalid.

• Any rectangle or rectangular parallelepiped having no midside nodes, or having midside nodes at
the midpoints of its edges, has a Jacobian ratio of 1. Moving midside nodes toward or away from
each other can worsen the Jacobian ratio. If the node is moved significantly, the Jacobian ratio will
become negative and the element is invalid.

• A quadrilateral or brick has a Jacobian ratio of 1 if (a) its opposing faces are all parallel to each
other, and (b) each midside node, if any, is positioned at the average of the corresponding corner
node locations. As a corner node moves near the center, the Jacobian ratio worsens. If the node is
moved significantly, the Jacobian ratio will become negative and the element is invalid.

The figures below illustrate mesh quality by color for Jacobian Ratio (MAPDL) and Jacobian Ratio
(Corner Nodes).

Note:

To view mesh quality by color, in the Details view, set Display Style to the desired metric.
The use of Display Style to color mesh according to quality and the use of mesh met-
rics (p. 102) to view quality statistics are mutually exclusive. For example, when you are
viewing mesh metrics, you cannot also view the mesh quality by color.

Figure 45: Jacobian Ratio (MAPDL)

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 Quality Group

Figure 46: Jacobian Ratio (Corner Nodes)

Jacobian Ratio (Gauss Points) is a good indicator of quality for quadratic tetrahedrons because
its formulation is similar to that used by the solver. However, it is not very helpful for shell meshes.
For shell meshes, Element Quality (p. 107) is a better indicator of mesh quality. For example, the 2D
elements that register as bad in the preceding figures will not necessarily register as bad elements
for the Jacobian Ratio (Gauss Points) mesh metric, as shown below:

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Figure 47: Jacobian Ratio (Gauss Points)

Warping Factor
Warping factor is computed and tested for some quadrilateral shell elements, and the quadrilateral
faces of bricks, wedges, and pyramids. A high factor may indicate a condition the underlying element
formulation cannot handle well, or may simply hint at a mesh generation flaw.

Warping Factor Calculation for Quadrilateral Shell Elements

A quadrilateral element's warping factor is computed from its corner node positions and other
available data by the following steps:

Note:

When computing the warping factor for a quadrilateral shell element, the Meshing
application assumes 0 thickness for the shell.

1. An average element normal is computed as the vector (cross) product of the 2 diagonals (Figure 48: Shell
Average Normal Calculation (p. 115)).

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 Quality Group

Figure 48: Shell Average Normal Calculation

2. The projected area of the element is computed on a plane through the average normal (the dotted
outline on Figure 49: Shell Element Projected onto a Plane (p. 115)).

3. The difference in height of the ends of an element edge is computed, parallel to the average normal.
In Figure 49: Shell Element Projected onto a Plane (p. 115), this distance is 2h. Because of the way the
average normal is constructed, h is the same at all four corners. For a flat quadrilateral, the distance is
zero.

Figure 49: Shell Element Projected onto a Plane

4. The “area warping factor” ( ) for the element is computed as the edge height difference divided by
the square root of the projected area.

5. For all shells except those in the “membrane stiffness only” group, if the thickness is available, the
“thickness warping factor” is computed as the edge height difference divided by the average element
thickness. This could be substantially higher than the area warping factor computed in 4 (above).

6. The warping factor tested against warning and error limits (and reported in warning and error messages)
is the larger of the area factor and, if available, the thickness factor.

7. The best possible quadrilateral warping factor, for a flat quadrilateral, is zero.

Figure 50: Quadrilateral Shell Having Warping Factor (p. 116) shows a “warped” element plotted on
top of a flat one. Only the right-hand node of the upper element is moved. The element is a unit
square, with a real constant thickness of 0.1.

When the upper element is warped by a factor of 0.01, it cannot be visibly distinguished from the
underlying flat one.

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When the upper element is warped by a factor of 0.04, it just begins to visibly separate from the
flat one.

Figure 50: Quadrilateral Shell Having Warping Factor

Warping of 0.1 is visible given the flat reference, but seems trivial; however, it is well beyond the
error limit for a membrane shell. Warping of 1.0 is visually unappealing. This is the error limit for
most shells.

Warping beyond 1.0 would appear to be obviously unacceptable; however, SHELL181 permits even
this much distortion. Furthermore, the warping factor calculation seems to peak at about 7.0.
Moving the node further off the original plane, even by much larger distances than shown here,
does not further increase the warping factor for this geometry. Users are cautioned that manually
increasing the error limit beyond its default of 5.0 for these elements could mean no real limit on
element distortion.

Warping Factor Calculation for 3-D Solid Elements

The warping factor for a 3-D solid element face is computed as though the 4 nodes make up a
quadrilateral shell element with no real constant thickness available, using the square root of the
projected area of the face as described in 4 (above).

The warping factor for the element is the largest of the warping factors computed for the 6 quad-
rilateral faces of a brick, 3 quadrilateral faces of a wedge, or 1 quadrilateral face of a pyramid. Any
brick element having all flat faces has a warping factor of zero (Figure 51: Warping Factor for
Bricks (p. 116)).

Figure 51: Warping Factor for Bricks

Twisting the top face of a unit cube by 22.5° and 45° relative to the base produces warping factors
of about 0.2 and 0.4, respectively.

Parallel Deviation
Parallel deviation is computed using the following steps:

1. Ignoring midside nodes, unit vectors are constructed in 3-D space along each element edge, adjusted
for consistent direction, as demonstrated in Figure 52: Parallel Deviation Unit Vectors (p. 117).

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 Quality Group

Figure 52: Parallel Deviation Unit Vectors

2. For each pair of opposite edges, the dot product of the unit vectors is computed, then the angle (in
degrees) whose cosine is that dot product. The parallel deviation is the larger of these 2 angles. (In the
illustration above, the dot product of the 2 horizontal unit vectors is 1, and acos (1) = 0°. The dot
product of the 2 vertical vectors is 0.342, and acos (0.342) = 70°. Therefore, this element's parallel de-
viation is 70°.)

3. The best possible deviation, for a flat rectangle, is 0°. Figure 53: Parallel Deviations for Quadrilater-
als (p. 117) shows quadrilaterals having deviations of 0°, 70°, 100°, 150°, and 170°.

Figure 53: Parallel Deviations for Quadrilaterals

0 70 100

150 170

Maximum Corner Angle

Maximum corner angle is computed and tested for all except Emag elements. Some in the finite
element community have reported that large angles (approaching 180°) degrade element perform-
ance, while small angles don't.

Maximum Corner Angle Calculation

The maximum angle between adjacent edges is computed using corner node positions in 3-D
space. (Midside nodes, if any, are ignored.) The best possible triangle maximum angle, for an
equilateral triangle, is 60°. Figure 54: Maximum Corner Angles for Triangles (p. 117) shows a triangle
having a maximum corner angle of 165°. The best possible quadrilateral maximum angle, for a flat
rectangle, is 90°. Figure 55: Maximum Corner Angles for Quadrilaterals (p. 118) shows quadrilaterals
having maximum corner angles of 90°, 140° and 180°.

Figure 54: Maximum Corner Angles for Triangles

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Figure 55: Maximum Corner Angles for Quadrilaterals

Skewness
Skewness is one of the primary quality measures for a mesh. Skewness determines how close to
ideal (equilateral or equiangular) a face or cell is (see Figure 56: Ideal and Skewed Triangles and
Quadrilaterals (p. 118)).

Figure 56: Ideal and Skewed Triangles and Quadrilaterals

The following table lists the range of skewness values and the corresponding cell quality.

Value of Skewness Cell Quality

1 degenerate
0.9 — <1 bad (sliver)
0.75 — 0.9 poor
0.5 — 0.75 fair
0.25 — 0.5 good
>0 — 0.25 excellent
0 equilateral

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According to the definition of skewness, a value of 0 indicates an equilateral cell (best) and a value
of 1 indicates a completely degenerate cell (worst). Degenerate cells (slivers) are characterized by
nodes that are nearly coplanar (colinear in 2D).

Highly skewed faces and cells are unacceptable because the equations being solved assume that
the cells are relatively equilateral/equiangular.

Two methods for measuring skewness are:

• Based on the equilateral volume (applies only to triangles and tetrahedra).

• Based on the deviation from a normalized equilateral angle. This method applies to all cell and
face shapes, including pyramids and prisms.

Equilateral-Volume-Based Skewness
In the equilateral volume deviation method, skewness is defined as

where, the optimal cell size is the size of an equilateral cell with the same circumradius.

Quality meshes have a skewness value of approximately 0.1 for 2D and 0.4 for 3D. The table above
provides a general guide to the relationship between cell skewness and quality.

In 2D, all cells should be good or better. The presence of cells that are fair or worse indicates poor
boundary node placement. You should try to improve your boundary mesh as much as possible,
because the quality of the overall mesh can be no better than that of the boundary mesh.

In 3D, most cells should be good or better, but a small percentage will generally be in the fair range
and there are usually even a few poor cells.

Note:

The Equilateral-Volume-Based Skewness quality metric applies to any mesh element that
includes a triangular face. For triangular and tetrahedral elements, all faces of which are
strictly triangular, the Equilateral-Volume-Based Skewness metric applies directly. For
wedge or pyramidal elements, which include combinations of triangular and quadrilat-
eral faces, the Meshing application computes both Equilateral-Volume-Based Skewness
metrics (for the triangular faces) and Normalized Equiangular Skewness metrics (for the
quadrilateral faces and 3-D element, itself ) and reports the maximum computed metric
as the element skewness. As a result, Equilateral-Volume-Based Skewness metrics reported
for meshes that contain wedge and/or pyramidal elements may include skewness values
attributable to Normalized Equiangular Skewness computations.

Normalized Equiangular Skewness

In the normalized angle deviation method, skewness is defined (in general) as

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where

θmax = largest angle in the face or cell

θmin = smallest angle in the face or cell

θe = angle for an equiangular face/cell (60 for a triangle, 90 for a square)

For a pyramid, the cell skewness will be the maximum skewness computed for any face. An ideal
pyramid (skewness = 0) is one in which the 4 triangular faces are equilateral (and equiangular) and
the quadrilateral base face is a square. The guidelines in the table above apply to the normalized
equiangular skewness as well.

Orthogonal Quality
The range for orthogonal quality is 0-1, where a value of 0 is worst and a value of 1 is best.

The orthogonal quality for cells is computed using the face normal vector, for each face; the
vector from the cell centroid to the centroid of each of the adjacent cells, ; and the vector from
the cell centroid to each of the faces, . Figure 57: Vectors Used to Compute Orthogonal Quality
for a Cell (p. 120) illustrates the vectors used to determine the orthogonal quality for a cell.

Figure 57: Vectors Used to Compute Orthogonal Quality for a Cell

For each face, the cosines of the angle between and , and between and , are calculated.
The smallest calculated cosine value is the orthogonality of the cell. Finally, Orthogonal Quality
depends on cell type:

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 Quality Group

• For tetrahedral, prism, and pyramid cells, the Orthogonal Quality is the minimum of the orthogon-
ality and (1 - cell skewness).

• For hexahedral and polyhedral cells, the Orthogonal Quality is the same as the orthogonality.

Note:

• When the cell is located on the boundary, the vector across the boundary face is ignored
during the quality computation.

• When the cell is separated from the adjacent cell by an internal wall (a baffle), the vector
across the internal boundary face is ignored during the quality computation.

• When the adjacent cells share a parent-child relation, the vector is the vector from the
cell centroid to the centroid of the child face while the vector is the vector from the cell
centroid to the centroid of the adjacent child cell sharing the child face.

Orthogonal quality in the Meshing application is equivalent to Inverse Orthogonal Quality in ANSYS
Fluent Meshing, except that the scale is reversed:

Inverse Orthogonal Quality = 1 – Orthogonal Quality

The orthogonal quality values may not correspond exactly with the inverse orthogonal quality values
in ANSYS Fluent because the computation depends on boundary conditions on internal surfaces
(WALL vs. INTERIOR/FAN/RADIATOR/POROUS-JUMP). ANSYS Fluent may return different results which
reflect the modified mesh topology on which CFD simulations are performed. Also, for CutCell
(p. 325) meshes, the elements in the Meshing application are “traditional” (hex/tet/wedge/pyramid)
elements. When a CutCell mesh is exported from the Meshing application to ANSYS Fluent, elements
that are connected to parent faces are exported in polyhedral format, while all others retain their
type. Note that this behavior is only true for the CutCell assembly algorithm; the Tetrahedrons
assembly algorithm uses only traditional element types.

For more information about Inverse Orthogonal Quality, see Quality Measure.

In a similar way, orthogonal quality for faces is computed as the smallest cosine of the angle between
the edge normal vector, for each edge and the vector from the face centroid to the centroid of
each edge, . Figure 58: Vectors Used to Compute Orthogonal Quality for a Face (p. 122) illustrates
the vectors used to determine the orthogonal quality for a face.

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Figure 58: Vectors Used to Compute Orthogonal Quality for a Face

Characteristic Length
Characteristic length (also sometimes called characteristic dimension) is used to compute the time
step that satisfies the Courant-Friedrichs-Lewy (CFL) condition for a given analysis setup.

The CFL condition is of interest mostly in explicit dynamics and computational fluid dynamics
analyses. It governs the maximum time step for which a solution will be stable, and it must be met
for the solution to converge. The CFL condition can be expressed as follows:

where:

f = time step safety factor (commonly/default 0.9)

h = characteristic length
c = material sound speed
such that if you know the characteristic length and material sound speed, you can determine the
time step safety factor.

As h decreases, so does the time step. The definition of h varies based on element type:

Element Type Definition of Characteristic Length (h)

Hexahedral or wedge The volume of the element divided by the square of the
longest diagonal and scaled by √2/3
Tetrahedral The minimum distance of any element node to its
opposing element face

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 Inflation Group

Inflation Group
Inflation is useful for CFD boundary layer resolution, electromagnetic air gap resolution or resolving
high stress concentrations for structures. Inflation is supported for the following mesh methods:

Volume Meshing:

• Patch Conforming (p. 178)

• Patch Independent (p. 178)

• Sweep (p. 201)

Note:

Inflation is supported for the sweep mesh method only when the Src/Trg Selection option
is set to either Manual Source or Manual Source and Target.

• MultiZone (p. 205)

• Cartesian (p. 213)

• Assembly meshing algorithms (CutCell and Tetrahedrons) (p. 325)

Surface Meshing:

• Quad Dominant (p. 221)

• All Triangles (p. 222)

• MultiZone Quad/Tri (p. 222)

Figure 59: Inflation into Volume Mesh Methods (p. 124) illustrates inflation into the patch conforming,
patch independent, sweep, and MultiZone mesh methods respectively.

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Figure 59: Inflation into Volume Mesh Methods

Defining Global Inflation Controls

The Inflation group of global mesh controls appears in the Details View when the Mesh object is selected
in the Tree Outline. The options in the Inflation group provide global control over all inflation bound-
aries.

In most cases, the controls in the Inflation group apply to both 3D and 2D inflation. Additional inform-
ation that is specific to 2D inflation is noted where applicable.

Basic options include:

Use Automatic Inflation
Inflation Option
Transition Ratio
Maximum Layers
Growth Rate
Number of Layers
Maximum Thickness
First Layer Height
First Aspect Ratio
Aspect Ratio (Base/Height)
Inflation Algorithm
View Advanced Options

Defining Local Inflation Controls

In addition to setting global inflation controls, you can use local (scoped) inflation controls to apply
inflation to specific boundaries. In most cases, the values that you set globally will be populated to the

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 Inflation Group

local inflation controls. If you subsequently make changes to the local inflation settings, the local settings
will override the global settings. For details, refer to Inflation Control (p. 265).

Inflation and Mesh Method Controls

For steps to follow to assign inflation depending on the selected mesh method, refer to Inflation Con-
trols (p. 370). For general information on applying inflation controls in combination with the various
mesh method controls, refer to Meshing: Mesh Control Interaction Tables (p. 391).

Use Automatic Inflation

You can set the Use Automatic Inflation control so that inflation boundaries are selected automat-
ically depending on whether or not they are members of Named Selections groups. The following
options are available:
None
Program Controlled
All Faces in Chosen Named Selection

Remember the following information when using inflation:

• Automatic inflation is supported only for 3D inflation on volume models. It is not supported for 2D inflation
on shell models. You cannot select Program Controlled (p. 126) or All Faces in Chosen Named Selec-
tion (p. 127) for the Use Automatic Inflation option to mesh a 2D model. To apply 2D inflation on a shell
model, use local inflation mesh controls (p. 265) instead.

• In the following scenarios, using inflation results in automatic suppression of the refinement (p. 239) control:

– When automatic inflation (either Program Controlled (p. 126) or All Faces in Chosen Named Selec-
tion (p. 127)) is used with refinement in the same model

– When local inflation (p. 265) is used with refinement in the same body or in the same part

• In general, using a mixture of local inflation and automatic inflation within the same part is not recommen-
ded. When you mix local and automatic inflation, the local inflation settings will be used for the bodies
to which they are applied. The automatic inflation settings will create inflation only on those bodies that
do not have local inflation applied to them. The automatic inflation settings will ignore all bodies and all
attached faces to which local inflation settings are applied.

If an assembly meshing algorithm is being used, a mixture of local and automatic inflation is not
supported. Refer to The Assembly Meshing Workflow (p. 329) for details.

None
If you select None, inflation boundaries are not selected globally. Instead, the inflation boundaries
that you identify using the local inflation mesh controls (p. 265) are used. This is the default.

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Program Controlled
Program Controlled inflation operates differently depending on whether meshing occurs at the
part/body level or assembly level.

Note:

Program Controlled inflation is only supported for 3D models.

Program Controlled Inflation for Part/Body Level Meshing

If you are using a mesh method that operates at the part/body level and you select Program
Controlled inflation, all faces in the model are selected to be inflation boundaries, except for the
following:

• Faces in Named Selection(s)

Note:

By default, faces in Named Selections are not selected to be inflation boundaries when
Use Automatic Inflation is set to Program Controlled. However, you can select
specific Named Selections to be included in Program Controlled inflation. For details,
see the discussion of Named Selections and Program Controlled inflation in the
Mechanical help.

• Faces in Contact region(s)

• Faces in Symmetry definition

• Faces that belong to a part/body that has a mesh method defined on it that does not support 3D inflation
definitions (mesh method is set to Sweep (p. 201) or Hex Dominant (p. 200))

• Faces in sheet bodies

• Faces on bodies that have manual inflation controls

When Program Controlled automatic inflation is used for part/body level meshing, the mesher
inflates in the following manner:

• For single body parts, the face will always inflate into the body.

• For multibody parts with a mix of fluid and solid parts:

– Faces on fluid region will inflate into fluid region; solid region will not be inflated.

– Faces on parts of the same material will not be inflated.

• For parts of the same material, shared faces will not be inflated.

The manner in which inflation is applied depends on values that you enter for the following options:

• Inflation Option (p. 128)

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 Inflation Group

• Inflation Algorithm (p. 132)

• View Advanced Options (p. 136)

Note:

When Program Controlled automatic inflation is being used for part/body level meshing,
you can view the surfaces that have been selected for inflation by using the Show
Program Controlled Inflation Surfaces (p. 439) feature.

Program Controlled Inflation for Assembly Level Meshing

If you are using an assembly meshing algorithm (p. 325) and you select Program Controlled inflation,
all faces in the model are selected to be inflation boundaries, except for the following:

• Faces in Named Selection(s)

Note:

By default, faces in Named Selections are not selected to be inflation boundaries when
Use Automatic Inflation is set to Program Controlled. However, you can select
specific Named Selections to be included in Program Controlled inflation. For details,
see the discussion of Named Selections and Program Controlled inflation in the
Mechanical help.

• Faces in Symmetry definition

When Program Controlled automatic inflation is used for assembly level meshing, the mesher in-
flates in the following manner:

• All fluid bodies, either real or virtual, will be inflated based on the rules above.

• Solid bodies will not be inflated (where a “solid” body is a volume body with Fluid/Solid (p. 336) set
to Solid).

Note:

The Show Program Controlled Inflation Surfaces (p. 439) feature is not supported for
assembly meshing algorithms.

All Faces in Chosen Named Selection

If you select All Faces in Chosen Named Selection, a Named Selection field is displayed to let
you scope inflation to the Named Selection. The manner in which inflation is applied to the Named
Selections group depends on values that you enter for the following options:

• Inflation Option (p. 128)

• Inflation Algorithm (p. 132)

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• View Advanced Options (p. 136)

Note:

The All Faces in Chosen Named Selection option is not supported for assembly (p. 325)
meshing algorithms. If this option is specified and you select an assembly meshing al-
gorithm, the option will be changed automatically to Program Controlled (p. 126) and a
warning will be issued.

Inflation Option
The Inflation Option settings determine the heights of the inflation layers. The following options are
available:

• Smooth Transition - This is the default. The Smooth Transition option uses the local tetrahedral element
size to compute each local initial height and total height so that the rate of volume change is smooth.
Each triangle that is being inflated will have an initial height that is computed with respect to its area,
averaged at the nodes. This means that for a uniform mesh, the initial heights will be roughly the same,
while for a varying mesh, the initial heights will vary.

The computations used for prism layer growth are as follows:

– The following value is computed at each node on the prism base:

Height of last prism (H) = Transition_Ratio (p. 130) * average_edge_length

– The height of the first layer (h) is computed using the following formula, where g = Growth Rate (p. 131)
and n = Number of Layers (p. 131):

H = h * (g ^ (n-1))

Increasing the value of the Growth Rate control reduces the total height of the inflation layer. The
total height approaches an asymptotic value with respect to the number of inflation layers.

For details about the additional controls that appear when Smooth Transition is selected, refer to
the descriptions of the Transition Ratio (p. 130), Maximum Layers (p. 131), and Growth Rate (p. 131)
controls.

Note:

The Smooth Transition option works differently for the MultiZone mesh method. See
MultiZone Support for Inflation (p. 322) for details.

• Total Thickness - The Total Thickness option creates constant inflation layers using the values of the
Number of Layers and Growth Rate controls to obtain a total thickness as defined by the value of the
Maximum Thickness control. Unlike inflation with the Smooth Transition option, with the Total
Thickness option the thickness of the first inflation layer and each following layer is constant.

For details about the additional controls that appear when Total Thickness is selected, refer to
the descriptions of the Number of Layers (p. 131), Growth Rate (p. 131), and Maximum Thickness (p. 132)
controls.

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 Inflation Group

• First Layer Thickness - The First Layer Thickness option creates constant inflation layers using the values
of the First Layer Height, Maximum Layers, and Growth Rate controls to generate the inflation mesh.
Unlike inflation with the Smooth Transition option, with the First Layer Thickness option the thickness
of the first inflation layer and each following layer is constant.

For details about the additional controls that appear when First Layer Thickness is selected, refer
to the descriptions of the First Layer Height (p. 132), Maximum Layers (p. 131), and Growth Rate (p. 131)
controls.

• First Aspect Ratio - The First Aspect Ratio option creates inflation layers using the values of the First
Aspect Ratio, Maximum Layers, and Growth Rate controls to generate the inflation mesh.

Post inflation (p. 136) is not supported when Inflation Option is First Aspect Ratio.

For details about the additional controls that appear when First Aspect Ratio is selected, refer to
the descriptions of the First Aspect Ratio (p. 132), Maximum Layers (p. 131), and Growth Rate (p. 131)
controls.

• Last Aspect Ratio - The Last Aspect Ratio option creates inflation layers using the values of the First
Layer Height, Maximum Layers, and Aspect Ratio (Base/Height) controls to generate the inflation
mesh.

Figure 60: Last Aspect Ratio Option (p. 129) illustrates this option. With the Last Aspect Ratio
method, the First Layer Height is specified. The offset height for the last layer is calculated from
the local base mesh size and specified Aspect Ratio (base/height). For example, if you specify a
value of 3 for Aspect Ratio (base/height), the offset height of the last layer will be the local base
mesh size divided by 3. The local growth rate is calculated using Maximum layers to create expo-
nential growth through the intermediate layers.

Figure 60: Last Aspect Ratio Option

Post inflation (p. 136) is not supported when Inflation Option is Last Aspect Ratio.

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For details about the additional controls that appear when Last Aspect Ratio is selected, refer to
the descriptions of the First Layer Height (p. 132), Maximum Layers (p. 131), and Aspect Ratio
(Base/Height) (p. 132) controls.

Note:

For bodies meshed with the Body Fitted Cartesian method, the Inflation option cannot
be changed. If Physics Preference is set to CFD, then three inflation layers are created
with total thickness proportional to Element Size. For any other physics preference, a
single inflation layer is created with thickness proportional to element size.

Transition Ratio
In basic terms, the Transition Ratio control determines the rate at which adjacent elements grow. It
is the volume-based size change between the last layer of elements in the inflation layer and the first
elements in the tetrahedron region (or hexahedron region for CutCell meshing (p. 325)). The value
of Transition Ratio is an ideal value and should produce accurate size change for inflation from a
planar boundary. However, be aware that areas of strong curvature will introduce an inaccuracy into
the size change. If proximity (p. 80) detection is activated, elements in proximity and elements with
prism aspect ratios meeting the value defined by the Maximum Height over Base (p. 139) control will
ignore this transition ratio.

The Transition Ratio control is applicable only when Inflation Option (p. 128) is Smooth Transition.
Valid values for Transition Ratio are from 0 to 1. When Physics Preference (p. 73) is set to CFD and
Solver Preference (p. 75) is set to CFX, the default for Transition Ratio is 0.77. For all other physics
preferences, including CFD when Solver Preference is set to either Fluent or Polyflow, the default
is 0.272.

The reason for this difference is because the Fluent and Polyflow solvers use a cell-centered scheme
for transition ratio. In a cell-centered scheme, the fluid flow variables are allocated at the center of
the computational cell, and the mesh-element is the same as the solver-element. In contrast, the CFX
solver uses a vertex-centered scheme. In a vertex-centered scheme, the fluid flow variables are stored
at the cell vertex, and the solver-element is a “dual” of the mesh-element. This means that the vertex
of the mesh-element is the center of the solver-element. The difference between the two schemes is
illustrated in the figure below.

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 Inflation Group

Maximum Layers
The Maximum Layers control determines the maximum number of inflation layers to be created in
the mesh. Valid values are from 1 to 1000. The default is 5 for solid bodies and 2 for surface bodies.

If you set a different number of maximum layers on adjacent regions, stair stepping will be used
between the regions.

The Maximum Layers control is applicable only when Inflation Option (p. 128) is Smooth Transition,
First Layer Thickness, First Aspect Ratio, or Last Aspect Ratio.

Growth Rate
The Growth Rate control determines the relative thickness of adjacent inflation layers. As you move
away from the face to which the inflation control is applied, each successive layer is approximately
one growth rate factor thicker than the previous one. Valid values are from 0.1 to 5.0. The default is
1.2.

The Growth Rate control is applicable only when Inflation Option (p. 128) is Smooth Transition, First
Layer Thickness, Total Thickness, or First Aspect Ratio.

Number of Layers
The Number of Layers control determines the actual number of inflation layers in the mesh, except
in places where layers are removed locally for reasons of improving mesh quality (for example, in
areas where inflation layers would otherwise collide with each other). Valid values are from 1 to 1000.
The default is 5 for solid bodies and 2 for surface bodies.

If you set a different number of layers on adjacent regions, stair stepping will be used between the
regions.

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The Number of Layers control is applicable only when Inflation Option (p. 128) is Total Thickness.

Maximum Thickness
The Maximum Thickness control determines the desired thickness of the inflation layer. You must
enter a value for this control, and it must be greater than 0.

The Maximum Thickness control is applicable only when Inflation Option (p. 128) is Total Thickness.

First Layer Height

The First Layer Height control determines the height of the first inflation layer. This first inflation
layer consists of a single layer of prism elements that is formed against the faces of the inflation
boundary. You must enter a value for this control, and it must be greater than 0.

The First Layer Height control is applicable only when Inflation Option (p. 128) is First Layer Thickness
or Last Aspect Ratio.

First Aspect Ratio

By choosing the First Aspect Ratio option for the Inflation Option control, you can control the
heights of the inflation layers by defining the aspect ratio of the inflations that are extruded from the
inflation base. The aspect ratio is defined as the ratio of the local inflation base size to the inflation
layer height. Use the First Aspect Ratio control to specify the first aspect ratio to be used. Enter a
value greater than 0. The default is 5.

The First Aspect Ratio control is applicable only when Inflation Option (p. 128) is First Aspect Ratio.

Aspect Ratio (Base/Height)

By choosing the Last Aspect Ratio option for the Inflation Option control, you can control the
heights of the inflation layers by defining the aspect ratio of the inflations that are extruded from the
inflation base. The aspect ratio is defined as the ratio of the local inflation base size to the inflation
layer height. Use the Aspect Ratio (Base/Height) control to specify the aspect ratio to be used. Enter
a value between 0.5 and 20. The default is 1.5 when Solver Preference (p. 75) is CFX, and 3 when
Solver Preference (p. 75) is Fluent or Polyflow.

The Aspect Ratio (Base/Height) control is applicable only when Inflation Option (p. 128) is Last Aspect
Ratio.

Inflation Algorithm
The Inflation Algorithm control determines which inflation algorithm will be used. Options for Infla-
tion Algorithm are Pre and Post and are dependent upon the selected mesh method.

Note:

Post Inflation is being deprecated and will be removed in future releases.

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 Inflation Group

The following table shows which inflation algorithms are applicable to each mesh method. For inform-
ation on how the inflation algorithm is handled when a combination of mesh methods is being used,
see Interactions Between Mesh Methods (p. 391).

Note:

The Inflation Algorithm control is hidden when an assembly (p. 325) meshing algorithm
is selected. Refer to The Assembly Meshing Workflow (p. 329) for details.

Mesh Method Inflation Algorithm

Pre Post
Patch Yes, 3D Yes, 3D
Conforming
Tetrahedrons (p. 178)
Patch N/A Yes, 3D
Independent
Tetrahedrons (p. 178)
Hex N/A N/A
Dominant (p. 200)
Sweep (p. 201) Yes, 2D. Occurs in the following N/A
manner: 1) source face is meshed with
triangles, 2) inflation occurs on tri
surface mesh, and 3) source is swept.
Intervals on source and target are
fixed.
MultiZone (p. 205) The Inflation Algorithm displays as N/A
Pre but an O-grid-based algorithm
specific to MultiZone is used. As with
the Pre inflation algorithm, the mesh
is inflated during the meshing
process.
MultiZone The Inflation Algorithm displays Yes, 2D
Quad/Tri (p. 222) as Pre but an O-grid-based
algorithm specific to MultiZone
Quad/Tri is used. As with the Pre
inflation algorithm, the mesh is
inflated during the meshing
process.
Quad Yes, 2D N/A
Dominant (p. 221)
All Yes, 2D N/A
Triangles (p. 222)
Cartesian (p. 213) The Inflation Algorithm displays N/A
as Pre but algorithm specific to
Body Fitted Cartesian is used.
As with the Pre inflation

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Mesh Method Inflation Algorithm

Pre Post
algorithm, the mesh is inflated
during the meshing process.

Note:

• 3D only

• If Physics Preference is
CFD, then 3 layers are
created. For other
physics preferences, only
one layer is created.

Pre
When Pre is selected, the surface mesh will be inflated first, and then the rest of the volume mesh
will be generated. This is the default for all physics types.

Remember the following information:

• Inflation Algorithm must be set to Pre for the Previewing Inflation (p. 437) feature to work.

• When Inflation Option (p. 128) is either First Aspect Ratio or Last Aspect Ratio, Inflation Algorithm is
set to Pre and is read-only.

• Hard points are not supported and may be ignored for 3D Pre inflation.

• Hard edges are not supported and may be ignored for Pre inflation.

• In some cases an additional smoothing attempt will be performed automatically. Refer to Smoothing (p. 102)
for details.

• Match controls (p. 255) on faces are supported with Pre inflation, regardless of whether inflation is set to
Program Controlled (p. 126) or has been set through any global or local inflation definition. In contrast,
match controls on edges are not supported with Pre inflation. Match controls (both faces and edges) are
not supported with Post inflation (p. 136). For all these non-supported cases, ANSYS Workbench automat-
ically suppresses/disables the Match Control feature.

• For swept meshes with inflation (p. 370) and match control (p. 255), inflation is performed ahead of the
match mesh and sweeping. This can affect the sizings on the match controls, which can in turn lead to
meshing failure. Therefore, when using both match controls and inflation with sweeping, it might improve
meshing robustness if you assign hard edge sizings (p. 228) to the high and low edges of the source face
for the sweep.

Pre Inflation and Different Numbers of Layers on Adjacent Faces

The Pre Inflation Algorithm does not support the definition of different numbers of inflation layers
on adjacent faces. For example, Figure 61: Different Numbers of Layers Are Respected (p. 135) shows

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 Inflation Group

a case in which different numbers of inflation layers have been specified on two faces. Since the faces
are not connected, the different numbers of layers are respected.

Figure 61: Different Numbers of Layers Are Respected

Now assume that the Inflation controls shown in Figure 62: Portion of Project Tree (p. 135) define four
inflation layers for the Inflation control, five inflation layers for the Inflation 2 control, and two inflation
layers for the Inflation 3 control, and that the controls are defined on adjacent faces.

Figure 62: Portion of Project Tree

In this case, although different numbers of inflation layers were defined, a two-layer (fewest number
of layers defined) inflation mesh is generated as shown in Figure 63: Different Numbers of Layers Are
Not Respected (p. 135).

Figure 63: Different Numbers of Layers Are Not Respected

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Post
When Post is selected, a postprocessing technique that works after the tetrahedral mesh is generated
is used. A benefit of this option is that the tetrahedral mesh does not have to be generated each
time the inflation options are changed.

Remember the following information:

• Match controls (p. 255) on faces are supported with Pre inflation (p. 134), regardless of whether inflation is
set to Program Controlled (p. 126) or has been set through any global or local inflation definition. In contrast,
match controls on edges are not supported with Pre inflation. Match controls (both faces and edges) are
not supported with Post inflation. For all these non-supported cases, ANSYS Workbench automatically
suppresses/disables the Match Control feature.

• Post inflation is not supported when there is a mixture of tetrahedron and non-tetrahedron mesh methods
applied to the bodies in a multibody part. If you want to apply Post inflation to a multibody part, all bodies
in the part must have a tetrahedron mesh method applied to them.

• Post inflation is not supported when Inflation Option (p. 128) is either First Aspect Ratio or Last Aspect
Ratio.

• Refer to Using the Mesh Worksheet to Create a Selective Meshing History (p. 365) for information about
how Post inflation operations are processed by the Mesh worksheet.

View Advanced Options

The View Advanced Options control determines whether advanced inflation options appear in the
Details View. Choices are No (default) and Yes. When this control is set to Yes, the following options
are available:
Collision Avoidance
Maximum Height over Base
Growth Rate Type
Maximum Angle
Fillet Ratio
Use Post Smoothing
Smoothing Iterations

Note:

In addition to viewing and/or modifying the advanced inflation options in the Details View,
you can view and/or modify them by using the Options dialog box (p. 277).

Collision Avoidance
The Collision Avoidance control determines the approach that is to be taken in areas of proximity
to avoid collisions that may occur from marching inflated surface meshes from opposite sides into
each other.

For 2D inflation, the Collision Avoidance control detects geometry limitations in faces that would
otherwise cause inflation mesh to overlap or cross face boundaries, or result in a space that is so

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 Inflation Group

small that it leads to bad quality mesh for the remaining region of inflation mesh. When Collision
Avoidance is set to Layer Compression or Stair Stepping, the value of the Gap Factor (p. 139)
control, along with the local mesh size, will determine how much space will be adequate for the
remaining region of inflation mesh.

Note:

• The option that you choose for Collision Avoidance is used only in areas of proximity. In
areas of proximity, if the option is set to Layer Compression, layer compression is performed;
if it is set to Stair Stepping, stair stepping is performed; if it is set to None, no collision
checking is performed. However, in all other problematic scenarios (for example, invalid
normals, quality failure, bad surface mesh, and so on), local stair stepping is performed re-
gardless of which option you choose.

• When Collision Avoidance is set to Layer Compression and local stair stepping occurs after
compression, poor quality pyramids may be introduced into the mesh. Because of this pos-
sibility, a warning message will appear whenever stair stepping occurs after compression.
The message will not identify the location of the stair stepping. However, the location of the
stair stepping with added pyramids often coincides with the location of the worst quality
element (specifically, when considering the Skewness metric). For this reason, using the
Meshing application's Mesh Metric (p. 102) feature to locate the worst quality element
(based on Skewness) is also likely to locate the pyramids.

• The Collision Avoidance option is not used for MultiZone (p. 322) as the inflation layers
are created within the blocking approach.

• For assembly meshing algorithms, Collision Avoidance is set to Layer Compression and
is read-only. Refer to Assembly Meshing (p. 325) for details.

The following options are available:

• None - The None option does not check for layer collisions. Selecting this option speeds up inflation
layer computation time; however, it can result in an invalid mesh and mesh failures as a result. For these
reasons, this option is not recommended.

For 2D inflation, if a collision/proximity limitation is detected during layer creation, creation of

inflation layers stops with the previous layer. (Inflation stops completely; contrast with Stair
Stepping below.)

• Layer Compression - The Layer Compression option compresses inflation layers in areas of collision.
In these areas, the defined heights and ratios are reduced to ensure the same number of layers
throughout the entire inflation region. Generally, this option is best for avoiding the creation of pyramids
in the mesh. Layer Compression is the default only when the Physics Preference (p. 73) is set to CFD
and the Solver Preference (p. 75) is set to Fluent; otherwise, the default is Stair Stepping.

For 2D inflation, if a collision/proximity limitation is detected during layer creation, inflation

heights will shrink locally. If Fix First Layer (p. 139) is set to Yes, the First Layer Height (p. 132) will
not be scaled.

For details about the additional controls that appear when Layer Compression is selected, refer
to the descriptions of the Fix First Layer (p. 139) and Gap Factor (p. 139) controls.

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• Stair Stepping - Rather than compressing the prism layers, with Stair Stepping the prism layers are
“stair stepped” in the proximity region to avoid collision and to maintain the gap defined by Gap
Factor (p. 139). The Stair Stepping approach to inflation growth locally reduces inflation layers to avoid
collisions, as well as bad quality elements in sharp or tight corners. The term “stair stepping” refers to
the steps created between one layer and the next. Using this approach, special logic is used to fill the
steps with pyramid and tetrahedron elements for prism steps, or prism, pyramid, and tetrahedron ele-
ments for hex steps. This special logic helps the mesher obtain a high-quality transition to the tetrahedral
mesh. Stair Stepping is the default, unless the Physics Preference (p. 73) is set to CFD and the
Solver Preference (p. 75) is set to Fluent, in which case the default is Layer Compression.

For 2D inflation, if a collision/proximity limitation is detected during layer creation, creation of

inflation layers stops locally. (Contrast with None above.)

An additional control, for Gap Factor (p. 139), appears when Stair Stepping is selected.

The figures below illustrate how the Layer Compression and Stair Stepping options differ.

Figure 64: Layer Compression vs. Stair Stepping Option (Full Mesh View)

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 Inflation Group

Figure 65: Layer Compression vs. Stair Stepping Option (Detail View)

Fix First Layer

The Fix First Layer control determines whether the heights or ratios of the first inflation layer
will be modified to avoid collision. Valid values are Yes and No. The default is No. This option
will not allow the value that is set for the First Layer Height (p. 132) control to be changed.

The Fix First Layer control is applicable only when Collision Avoidance (p. 136) is Layer Compres-
sion.

Gap Factor
The Gap Factor control allows maintenance of the gap between intersecting prisms. Valid values
are from 0 to 2. The default is 0.5. A value of 1 means a gap equal to the ideal tet cell height
based on base face size in proximity to each other is maintained.

The Gap Factor control is applicable only when Collision Avoidance (p. 136) is Layer Compression
or Stair Stepping.

Note:

Refer to the discussion of inflation controls in Selecting an Assembly Mesh Meth-

od (p. 332) for information about specifying Gap Factor for assembly meshing al-
gorithms.

Maximum Height over Base

The Maximum Height over Base control sets the maximum allowable prism aspect ratio (that is,
the ratio of height over base of the base triangle). When the prism aspect ratio reaches this value,
the height of the prisms stops growing. That is, new prisms continue to form, but the heights of
the prisms will not increase. Valid values are from 0.1 to 5. The default is 1.0.

For 2D inflation, the Maximum Height over Base control helps to maintain a good size ratio. Once
the inflation height is greater than the local mesh size multiplied by the value of Maximum Height

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over Base, the inflation height stops growing. New layers continue to form, but the heights of the
inflation layers will not increase. New layers that form will be equal to the inflation base size multi-
plied by the value of Maximum Height over Base.

Growth Rate Type

The Growth Rate Type control determines the height of the inflation layers given the initial height
and height ratio. The following options are available:

• Geometric - This is the default. With this option, the prism height of a particular layer is defined by
h*r(n-1), where h = initial height, r = height ratio, and n = layer number. The total height at layer n is:
h(1–rn)/(1–r).

• Exponential - With this option, the prism height of a particular layer is defined by h*e(n-1)p, where h =
initial height, p = exponent, and n = layer number.

• Linear - With this option, the prism height of a particular layer is defined by h(1+(n-1)(r-1)), where h =
initial height, r = height ratio, and n = layer number. The total height at layer n is: nh((n-1)(r-1)+2)/2.

Maximum Angle
The Maximum Angle control determines prism layer growth around angles and when prisms will
adhere (project) to adjacent surfaces/walls. If the inflated mesh involves extruding from one surface
and not its neighbor, and the angle between the two surfaces is less than the specified value, the
prisms (sides) will adhere (project) to the adjacent wall. Valid values are from 90 to 180 (degrees).
Typically, a value between 120 and 180 is desirable. The default is 140. Refer to the figures below
for examples of maximum angle.

For 2D inflation, the Maximum Angle control determines whether an edge that is adjacent to an
inflation edge can be imprinted with inflation mesh. If the angle between the two edges is smaller
than the value of Maximum Angle, the inflation mesh will be imprinted on the adjacent edge. On
the other hand, if the angle between the two edges is larger than the value of Maximum Angle,
the inflation mesh will not be imprinted on the adjacent edge.

In Figure 66: Maximum Angle = 140 (p. 140), the angle between the planes is 158.2 (21.8) degrees.
Since the maximum angle is less than the angle between the walls, the prism layers are capped
with pyramids.

Figure 66: Maximum Angle = 140

In Figure 67: Maximum Angle = 180 (p. 141), the maximum angle exceeds the separation angle
between the surfaces, so the prism remains attached to the adjacent surface.

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 Inflation Group

Figure 67: Maximum Angle = 180

Fillet Ratio
The Fillet Ratio control determines whether a fillet proportional to the total height of a prism ele-
ment will be created when a prism element is generated in the corner zone of a tetrahedral mesh.
Creating a fillet proportional to the total height of the prism makes it possible to control the
smoothness of the prism layer. Valid values are from 0 to 1 (decimal values are allowed). A value
of 0 means no fillets. The default is 1. Refer to the figures below for examples of fillet ratio.

Note:

For meshing corners with angles less than 60 degrees, there may not be space for
a fillet.

Figure 68: Fillet Ratio = 0.0

In the figure below, the radius of the inner prism fillet is 0.5 times the height of the total prism
thickness.

Figure 69: Fillet Ratio = 0.5

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Figure 70: Fillet Ratio = 1.0

Use Post Smoothing

The Use Post Smoothing control determines whether post-inflation smoothing will be performed.
Smoothing attempts to improve element quality by moving the locations of nodes with respect to
surrounding nodes and elements. Valid values are Yes and No. The default is Yes. When this control
is set to Yes, the Smoothing Iterations (p. 142) control appears in the Details View.

Smoothing Iterations
The Smoothing Iterations control determines the number of post-inflation smoothing iterations
that will be performed to improve the mesh. Valid values are from 1 to 20. The default is 5.

The Smoothing Iterations control is applicable only when Use Post Smoothing (p. 142) is Yes.

Assembly Meshing Group of Controls

“Assembly meshing (p. 325)” refers to meshing an entire model as a single mesh process, as compared
to part- or body-based meshing, in which meshing occurs at the part or body level respectively. If the
assembly meshing Method control is set to None, ANSYS Workbench meshing operates at the part
level, but if it is set to CutCell or Tetrahedrons, the entire assembly will be meshed at one time using
the selected assembly meshing algorithm.

Assemblies can also be meshed using part-based meshing methods, but in such cases the mesher op-
erates one part at a time, and therefore cannot mesh virtual bodies or evaluate parts that occupy the
same space.

The Assembly Meshing group of global mesh controls is available in both the Meshing application
and the Mechanical application, but it is exposed only when Physics Preference is set to CFD and
Solver Preference is set to either Fluent or Polyflow.

Note:

Meshes generated using assembly meshing are not supported for Mechanical solvers. If you
try to use a Mechanical solver to solve an analysis of an assembly mesh, the solution is
blocked and an error message is issued. Refer to Method (p. 143) for details.

The Assembly Meshing group allows you to control these options:

Method
Feature Capture

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Tessellation Refinement
Intersection Feature Creation
Morphing Frequency
Keep Solid Mesh

Method
The Method control determines whether an assembly meshing algorithm will be used and filters user
interface components appropriately. The following options are available:

• None - This is the default. Assembly meshing will not be used and controls are not exposed.

• CutCell - Selects the CutCell strategy for assembly meshing. Exposes assembly meshing controls
and hides controls that are not applicable to assembly meshing. The CutCell option is supported
only in the Meshing application. See also Assembly Meshing (p. 325).

Note:

If CutCell is active in a Mesh system and you replace the Mesh system with a
Mechanical Model system, you will not be able to use CutCell in the Mechanical
Model system.

• Tetrahedrons - Selects the Tetrahedrons strategy for assembly meshing. Exposes assembly meshing
controls and hides controls that are not applicable to assembly meshing. The Tetrahedrons option
is available and supported in the Meshing application. Tetrahedrons is also available in the Mechan-
ical application; however, meshes generated using assembly meshing are not supported for Mechan-
ical solvers. If you try to use a Mechanical solver to solve an analysis of an assembly mesh, the solution
is blocked and an error message is issued. To proceed using a Mechanical solver, you must first deac-
tivate assembly meshing (set Method to None) and then regenerate the mesh. See also Assembly
Meshing (p. 325).

Note:

Changing the Method control from None to Tetrahedrons while using assembly meshing
to mesh an entire model may result in differing named selection titles in the system file.
If so, the new mesh will be incompatible with the Polyflow data file.

Feature Capture
The Feature Capture control determines which CAD features are captured for assembly mesh-
ing (p. 325). The following options are available:

• Program Controlled - This is the default. A feature angle of 40 degrees is used to determine which
features are captured. If the shared faces on an edge form an angle smaller than (180 - 40) degrees,
the edge is selected for assembly meshing.

• Feature Angle - Exposes an additional Feature Angle field, where you can set a value from 0 to 90
degrees instead of using the default of 40. The smaller the angle, the higher the number of features

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that are captured. If you specify a value greater than 90, a feature angle of 90 is used. Setting a neg-
ative value resets the feature angle to its default, while setting the value to 0 captures all features.

Tessellation Refinement
The Tessellation Refinement control specifies the value to be used for tessellation (faceting) refine-
ment for assembly meshing (p. 325). The following options are available:

• Program Controlled - This is the default. Sets tessellation refinement to 10% of the value of Curvature
Min Size (p. 88)/Proximity Min Size (p. 89) (whichever is smaller). This is the recommended value for
most assembly meshing operations.

• Absolute Tolerance - Exposes an additional Absolute Tolerance field, where you can set a numer-
ical value for refinement. The recommended range is between 5 and 10% of the value of Curvature
Min Size (p. 88)/Proximity Min Size (p. 89) (whichever is smaller). A value on the lower end of the
range may work better if you have problems with gaps.

• None - Sets tessellation refinement to the CAD program or DesignModeler application default setting.

Note:

• To assist you in working with assembly meshing (p. 325), you may want to use the Show
Missing Tessellations (p. 443) feature prior to mesh generation.

• Also see Avoiding Bad Feature Capturing in Assembly Meshing (p. 490).

Intersection Feature Creation

In cases where two parts/bodies overlap in space, the Intersection Feature Creation control determ-
ines whether the intersection between faces is computed. When activated, Intersection Feature
Creation computes additional feature edges to be respected during the snapping that occurs within
Assembly Meshing. Activating this feature is very useful for avoiding zigzag boundaries at an intersec-
tion, because it ensures that the “real” intersection lines are respected. However, this operation can
be computationally expensive, so you should de-activate it if you have many non-intersecting bodies
in the model. The following options are available:

• Program Controlled — This is the default, which activates this feature whenever you have assemblies
(intersecting or not intersecting).

• No — Deactivates the feature.

• Yes — Activates the feature.

Morphing Frequency
In the CutCell inflation algorithm, inflation layers are grown into the CutCell mesh. The volume mesh
is morphed so the boundary of the CutCell mesh matches the cap of the inflation. The value set for
the Morphing Frequency determines how often the morphing is repeated. For example, if the
Morphing Frequency is set to 5 (the default) and more than five layers are grown, then morphing

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is repeated at every five layers. Similarly, if the Morphing Frequency is set to 3 and more than three
layers are grown, then morphing is repeated at every three layers.

Note:

Morphing Frequency is applicable only to CutCell meshing with inflation.

Keep Solid Mesh

The Keep Solid Mesh control determines whether the mesh for any body marked as a solid is discarded
or kept. A body may be marked as a solid based on the definition of a solid that the Meshing applic-
ation uses for exporting the assembly mesh (p. 325) to the solver. The following options are available:

• No - This is the default. All solid mesh is discarded. Bodies whose mesh is discarded remain in a
meshed state.

• Yes - All solid mesh is kept.

Note:

The Keep Solid Mesh control does not appear until a virtual body (p. 337) has been created.

Batch Connections
Batch Connections are used for achieving connections in structures made of sheets and beams. In case
of models with solid bodies, you must suppress the solid body to apply batch connections.

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• Mesh Based Connection: Activates mesh based connection. The default value is No. When set to Yes,
provides you various options to define the connection parameters like Connection Size, Multiple
Connection Steps, Connection Tolerance and Mesh Type.

• Connection Size: Defines the size with which you discretize the edges before connecting them. By
default, the connection size is same as Element Size.

• Multiple Connection Steps: Allows you to have multiple connection steps. The default value No. When
set to Yes, Connection Tolerance List appears.

• Connection Tolerance List: This field is available when Multiple Connection Steps is set to yes. It allows
you to specify multiple values for connection tolerance. You can specify any number of connection
tolerance values separated by a space. The first value in Connection Tolerance List performs face to
face intersections, short edge removal, thin face removal etc. From the second tolerance value onwards
only the unconnected (free) edges are considered for performing connections.

• Connection Tolerance: Connects two entities available within the specified tolerance value. By default
Connection Tolerance is one-tenth of the connection size. You can change the value as required. Mesh
size should always be greater than the connection tolerance.

• Mesh Type: Allows you to select the type of mesh to be used for meshing. The mesh types available
are Triangles and Quadrilaterals.

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• Coplanar Angle Tolerance: Checks whether the two faces to be connected are in the same plane or
not. When the faces are in the same plane, intersection is not performed. The value of Coplanar Angle
Tolerance is in degrees.

• Tolerance for Immediate Connections: The field is only applicable when you use the Connect and
Mesh Selected Entities option. There are three options. They are:

– Always Use Global: Allows you to use the global tolerance value(s) of Batch Connections. Always
Use Global is the default value.

– Always Use Local: When you select Always Use Local, the following options are available:

→ Local Connection Tolerance: Allows you to provide the Connection Tolerance value.

→ Local Connection Option: Allows you to select the Connection Option. The connection options
are All to All, Free to All, Free to Free.

– Prompt Each Time: Allows you to enter the desired Connection Tolerance and Connection Option
while performing selective meshing.

• Split: Allows you to split the faces at Z=0 plane, when set to Yes. The field is available in Batch Connec-
tions only when the Physics Preference is set to Hydrodynamics. The default value is No.

When you select Quality in Batch Connections, you have the following options:

• Check Mesh Quality (p. 97): The default value for Check Mesh Quality is Yes.

• Error Limits (p. 97): Allows you to select two options. They are:

– Standard Mechanical (p. ?)

– Aggressive Mechanical (p. ?)

• Mesh Metrics (p. 102)

When you select Advanced, the following option is available:

• Topology Checking (p. 158)

• Loop Removal Tolerance (p. 172)

Batch Connections Using Worksheet

Batch connections can also be performed using Worksheet. Worksheet gives the ability to provide
incremental connections with varying connection parameters. Worksheet is context sensitive. To perform
batch connections using Worksheet, you must be in the Mesh folder. Click Worksheet in Tools under
the Home tab. The Worksheet opens.

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Note:

You can activate, setup and visualize mesh worksheet only from the Mesh folder.

Worksheet allows you to scope named selections. Named selections can either be body based or face
based. For each step you can change connection option and specify connection tolerance(s). The
available connection options are:

• All to All: Connects all possible entities in the scope during the connection process. When All to All is
selected, sliver faces and short edges below the connection tolerance value are removed as a part of
the connection process.

• Free to All: Connects only unconnected edges to rest of the entities in the scope.

• Free to Free: Connects only unconnected edges in the scope.

The steps involved in Worksheet based connection are as follows:

1. Right- click the Worksheet.

2. Click Add to add a step.

3. Specify scope defined by named selection from the drop-down list in the Scoped Bodies field. AllBod-
ies is a named selection available by default.

4. Select the Connection Option.

5. Specify connection tolerance or list of tolerances for the step. The connection tolerance(s) behaves
same as global connection tolerance and list of tolerance.

6. Add as many steps as required for the connection.

When Generate Mesh is clicked connections are established in the sequence defined in the worksheet.
The mesh is generated after all the connections are made.

Note:

All Bodies is available by default under scoped bodies in the Worksheet. This named selection
is scoped to all bodies in the assembly.

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Local Controls in Batch Connections

Batch Connections support local controls. The local controls supported are :

• Sizing

Local Sizing controls are supported in Batch Connections. Sizing controls can be applied to
edges and faces.

– Face Sizing allows you to set the Type as only Element Size. It supports only uniform size
functions.

– Edge Sizing allows both Element size and Number of Divisions to be set.

For both Face Sizing and Edge Sizing, the default value for Element size is same as the Global
Element Size.

Note:

Local sizing controls on vertex and body are not supported in Batch Connections.

When you select Sizing in Batch Connections, the following options are available:

– Growth Rate: The default value for Growth Rate is 1.2.

– Capture Curvature (p. 82): The default value is No. When the Capture Curvature is set to
Yes, the following options are available:

→ Curvature Min Size (p. 88)

→ Curvature Normal Angle (p. 88)

– Capture Proximity (p. 82): The default value is No. When the Capture Proximity is set to
Yes, the following options are available:

→ Proximity Min Size (p. 89)

→ Num Cells Across Gap (p. 89)

→ Proximity Size Function Sources (p. 89)

• Repair Topology (p. 270)

• Weld (p. 271)

• Mapped Meshing (p. 240)

When Batch Connections is set to Yes, right-click the Mesh folder, click Insert >Mapped
Meshing. You can select the faces and click Mapped Meshing (p. 240) to create meshes of the
given Element Size.

• Selective Meshing (p. 361)

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Batch Connections allows Selective Meshing. Click the entities to be connected, then right-
click and select Connect and Mesh Selected Entities to connect and mesh the selected entities.

Best Practices
The recommended inputs for batch connections are as follows:

• Set the facet quality to 7 before importing model into Mechanical. You can set the facet quality in
SpaceClaim by navigating through SpaceClaim > SpaceClaim Options > Rendering quality. The facet
quality in DesignModeler can be set by navigating through DesignModeler > Tools > Options
>Graphics > Facet Quality.

• In SpaceClaim, DesignModeler or in other upstream CAD package, Extend operation should be per-
formed. The largest connection gap to be resolved should be smaller than the specified Element size.

• Remove overhangs in upstream CAD. Overhangs are small penetrations between two surfaces. When
unresolved overhangs can lead to mesh failure or mesh quality issues.

• Imprinting edges or performing share topology at CAD level is not recommended. If CAD model has
edges already imprinted, then use Virtual Topology (p. 445) to remove them.

• If the model has faces with missing facets, then you should fix them in upstream CAD.

The suggested general connection strategy is for clean models that do not have much difference
between the smallest and the largest gap to be connected across. The best practices to follow while
connecting two entities are as follows:

• Find the smallest and largest gap between the entities to be connected.

– Define a list of connection tolerance such that the smallest gap is less than the smallest connection
tolerance and the largest connection tolerance is greater than the largest gap.

– Worksheet is recommended to resolve large gaps rather than using large connection tolerance
globally. Define named selection on the entities which requires large tolerance to be connected.
Then use this named selection in the worksheet as a step.

– Check for any warning message on unconnected edges reported during meshing.

– Right-click the warning message and select Show Problematic Geometry. Use model Walk to analyze
the unconnected regions.

– Create named selections on unconnected entities.

• Activate mesh Worksheet.

– Add a step in the Worksheet and scope the created named selection.

– Add a step for All Bodies with connection tolerance(s) used previously as global tolerance(s).

Remember the following while performing Batch Connections:

• The gap size between the entities to be connected must be smaller than the Element Size. For example,
if the biggest gap size to be resolved is 1 mm then the element size must be greater than 1 mm.

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• Faces (width) and edges (length) of the connected entities below the connection tolerance(s) are de-
featured.

• Mesh is not associated with defeatured entities (edge, face, body/part).

• Mesh is not associated with vertices.

• In case of quadrilateral mesh failure, triangle mesh is generated with a warning message displayed.

– Right-click the warning message and select Show Problematic Topology to display the bodies on
which triangle mesh was generated.

– If triangle mesh also fails, then the mesh failure is reported and CAD facets will be displayed.

Limitations
The limitations of batch connections are as follows:

• Overlapping beams are not supported. Mesh in the overlapping portion of the beams will be assigned
to either one of the involved beams.

• Selective meshing using Connect and Mesh Selected Entities does not allow to save and resume the
project to re-mesh the remaining parts of the model. That is, when you mesh a part of the model, then
save and close the project for future use in Mechanical, you will not be allowed to mesh the remaining
part of the model using Connect and Mesh Selected Entities on reopening the project. When you
reopen the saved project to continue meshing, all the mesh will be cleared. You may need to restart
meshing from the beginning.

• Mapped Meshing does not support mapping of annular region.

• Weld and Mapped control override all other sizing and local control settings.

• Weld control does not support Connect and Mesh Selected Entities option.

Ease of Use Features

When an error or warning such as unconnected edges or mesh failure occurs, you can right-click the
corresponding message and select Show Problematic Geometry to highlight the location at which
error occurred in the model.

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You can click Selections tab in the ribbon and click Start in Walk group to walk through the error
locations. You can use Next to walk to the next location. You can click Previous to go back to the
previous error location.

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You can view the unconnected faces after meshing. To view the unconnected faces, right-click on the
Geometry window. Select Diagnostics > Find Unconnected Faces. The unconnected faces get high-
lighted in the model.

When entities scoped to Named Selection with Protected set to Yes are modified while performing
batch connections, you will receive a warning message.

Advanced Group
The Advanced group allows you to control these options:
Number of CPUs for Parallel Part Meshing
Straight Sided Elements
Rigid Body Behavior
Triangle Surface Mesher
Topology Checking
Pinch
Loop Removal

The Advanced group of controls is inaccessible when an assembly (p. 325) meshing algorithm is selected.

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Number of CPUs for Parallel Part Meshing

Number of CPUs for Parallel Part Meshing: Sets the number of processors to be used for parallel
part meshing. Using the default for specifying multiple processors will enhance meshing performance
on geometries with multiple parts. For parallel part meshing, the default is set to Program Controlled
or 0. This instructs the mesher to use all available CPU cores. The Default setting inherently limits 2
GB memory per CPU core. An explicit value can be specified between 0 and 256, where 0 is the default.
Refer to Parallel Part Meshing (p. 388) for more details.

Straight Sided Elements

The Straight Sided Elements option (which is displayed when the model includes an enclosure from
the DesignModeler application), specifies meshing to straight edge elements when set to Yes. You
must set this option to Yes for Electromagnetic simulations.

This option may affect the placement of midside nodes if the Element Order option is set to Quad-
ratic.

Example 3: Midside Node Placement with Straight Sided Elements

In this example, the mesh is generated with straight sided elements with midside nodes.

Generating the mesh without straight sided elements results in midside nodes that capture the
curvature of the model. If an element edge corresponds to geometry that is curved, the element's
edge will be curved. Likewise, if an element edge corresponds to geometry that is straight, the ele-
ment's edge will be straight.

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Straight Sided Elements is not available if the Element Order option is set to Linear.

Rigid Body Behavior

The Rigid Body Behavior option determines whether a full mesh is generated for a rigid body, rather
than a surface contact mesh. Rigid Body Behavior is applicable to all body types. Valid values for
Rigid Body Behavior are Dimensionally Reduced (generate surface contact mesh only) and Full
Mesh (generate full mesh). The default is Dimensionally Reduced unless the Physics Preference
(p. 73) is set to Explicit. For more information, refer to Rigid Body Meshing (p. 380).

For Explicit, the default behavior is Full Mesh, but Dimensionally Reduced is also available. The
differences between the two options when the Physics Preference is set to Explicit are highlighted
in the table below.

Explicit behavior Full Mesh (default) Dimensionally Reduced

Rigid properties From Mesh, computed in Explicit Solver From Geometry, computed in
Mechanical
Mesh Tets/hexas for solids, Quad/tria for Quad/tria for both solids and shells
shells

Triangle Surface Mesher

The Triangle Surface Mesher control determines which triangle surface meshing strategy will be
used by patch conforming meshers. In general, the advancing front algorithm provides a smoother
size variation and better results for skewness (p. 118) and orthogonal quality (p. 120). This control is
inaccessible when an assembly (p. 325) meshing algorithm is selected. The following options are
available:

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• Program Controlled - This is the default. The mesher determines whether to use the Delaunay or advancing
front algorithm based on a variety of factors such as surface type, face topology, and defeatured bound-
aries.

• Advancing Front - The mesher uses advancing front as its primary algorithm, but falls back to Delaunay
if problems occur.

Note:

If the mesher falls back to Delaunay, the edge mesh from the advancing front algorithm
could still be used and in some rare cases could lead to meshing failures. Switching to
the Program Controlled option could fix the issue as the starting edge mesh could be
better.

The figures below illustrate the difference between the Program Controlled and Advancing Front
options.

Figure 71: Triangle Surface Mesher = Program Controlled

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Figure 72: Triangle Surface Mesher = Advancing Front

Topology Checking
The Topology Checking option controls what happens when a user scopes an object (such as loads,
boundary conditions, Named selections and so on) to geometry (bodies, faces, edges, and vertices)
after the mesh has been generated. If Topology Checking is set to Yes (default), the software will
check to see if the scoped geometry has mesh properly associated to it. If the associations are incorrect,
the scoping of the object will force the mesh to be out of date. The mesh would need to be re-gen-
erated to get proper associations. If the associations are correct, the scoping is performed without
any change to the mesh and the mesh stays up to date. Set Topology Checking to No to avoid the
checks and always keep the mesh up to date.

Note:

• Topology Checking is defaulted to Yes as it is important to have proper associations between

geometry and mesh in order to properly transfer the loads to the solver.

• The best practice is to define all loads and boundary conditions prior to meshing so that the
topology is properly captured during meshing.

You can override the default of the Topology Checking control by setting the Topology Checking
option on the Options panel (p. 277).

The following sections describe how the mesher handles Topology Protection:
Protecting Topology Defined Prior to Meshing
Protecting Topology Post Meshing

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Protecting Topology Defined Prior to Meshing

Protected topology will result in having a better association between the mesh topology (nodes,
faces, elements) and the geometry features (topology). In other words:

• A geometry vertex should have a node associated to it.

• A geometry edge should have mesh nodes/edges associated to it.

• A geometry faces should have mesh nodes/faces/elements associated to it.

• A geometry body should have mesh nodes/elements associated to it.

Since boundary conditions are ultimately applied to the mesh, it is important to have proper asso-
ciations to get proper loading. Thus, if protected topologies are ignored, an error or warning message
may be issued by the mesher.

There are two levels of topology protection, namely hard and soft.

• Hard protected topology can be defined by scoping Named Selections and/or Contact region objects
to geometry (bodies, faces, edges, and vertices) and setting the Protected option to Yes. This in-
structs the mesher to give higher priority to those geometry features. Thus, during mesh generation,
the outer boundaries of a collection of hard protected topologies will be maintained. The mesher
will return an error state and message if the outer boundaries of the hard protected topologies
cannot be protected.

• Soft protected topology can be defined by scoping Named Selections to geometry (bodies, faces,
edges, and vertices) and setting the Protected option to Program Controlled. For soft protected
topologies, mesh-based defeaturing takes priority. Thus, the outer boundaries of soft protected
topologies may be altered by the mesher. In such situations, mesher will return a warning message.
You can right-click on the warning message and use the Show Problematic Geometry option to
visualize problematic geometries. You should verify that the mesh is acceptable in case of defea-
turing of outer boundaries of the soft protected topologies.

Setting up Hard Protected Topology

• For contacts, set Protected to Yes.

• For Named Selections, set Protected to Yes.

Setting up Soft Protected Topology

For Named Selections, set Protected to Program Controlled. When Program Controlled is selected,
the scoped object(s) will be considered as soft protected. The scoped objects will not receive addi-
tional protection by the mesher, even if the Named Selection is used for boundary conditions,
symmetry, other types of loads for the solver, as well as match controls and hard sizing controls
for meshing. Mesh-based defeaturing will have priority and the outer boundaries of these topologies
may be altered by the mesher.

Resuming Legacy Databases (prior to Release 19.0)

If you resume a legacy database (prior to Release 19.0) with protected topologies:

• Contacts are resumed with Protected set to No.

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• Named selections are resumed with Protected set to Program Controlled.

Note:

• If surface bodies have differing thicknesses, the edges between the faces will be protected
unless using MultiZone Quad/Tri mesh method. If using the MultiZone Quad/Tri mesh
method, use Preserve Boundaries = All, or put the faces into separate named selections.

• If you use the MultiZone mesh method and set Preserve Boundaries (p. 205) to All, the
MultiZone method will protect all boundaries.

• Virtual Topology can still be used with patch independent meshing; however, the boundaries
of the virtual cells do not have to be protected unless the virtual topology is scoped to
something. In other words, the virtual cells replace the underlying geometry but follow the
same protection rules.

• You should apply loads/boundary conditions prior to meshing as it is the most robust process
to get the proper mesh to respect the boundary conditions.

• The mesh is associated to the geometry even for bodies, faces, edges, and vertices that are
not protected, but in such cases there may not be the one-to-one relationship that exists
between the mesh and geometry for protected topology. For example, in Figure 73: Protecting
Topology (p. 160) the highlighted edge is protected for the boxes in the bottom row, but not
for the boxes in the top row.

In the two boxes on the right, the faces with red mesh indicate face mesh that is as-
sociated with the triangular face on the left of the geometry. Due to the sharp features
of the box, the side faces all have a one-to-one relationship. You can check the asso-
ciation by using the Plot Elements Attached to Named Selections option.

Figure 73: Protecting Topology

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Protecting Topology Post Meshing

After meshing, if a new object is scoped to the geometry, the associations to the mesh may not
match (see Figure 73: Protecting Topology (p. 160)). In this case, the new object is added to the list
of protected topologies, but you may or may not want to re-mesh because the associations may
be fine. For example, if you scope a control to one of the side faces of the box, the associated mesh
will be fine. However, if you select one of the triangular faces, the associated mesh may be prob-
lematic.

You can set the Topology Checking (p. 158) control in the Advanced group to control the re-
meshing behavior. By default, Topology Checking is set to Yes, which forces a re-mesh.

• If Topology Checking is set to Yes (default), the mesh goes out-of-date, because the state manager
must revalidate that all scoped topology is associated properly as protected topology. If you then attempt
to re-mesh, the software runs the topology checks and ensures all protected topology is respected. If
the topology checks are successful, the mesh is validated but not re-meshed. If the topology checks are
unsuccessful, the software re-meshes the geometry, treating the newly scoped objects as protected
topology.

• If Topology Checking is set to No, the software does not check to ensure that the mesh is associated
to the topology properly, so you must validate the associations manually if you have concerns.

Pinch
The Pinch feature lets you remove small features (such as short edges and narrow regions) at the
mesh level in order to generate better quality elements around those features. The Pinch feature
provides an alternative to Virtual Topology (p. 445), which works at the geometry level. The two features
work in conjunction with one another to simplify meshing constraints due to small features in a
model that would otherwise make it difficult to obtain a satisfactory mesh.

When Pinch controls are defined, the small features in the model that meet the criteria established
by the controls will be “pinched out,” thereby removing the features from the mesh. You can instruct
the Meshing application to automatically (p. 168) create pinch controls based on settings that you
specify, or you can manually (p. 260) designate the entities to be pinched. Pinch controls can be applied
to solid and shell models, with certain restrictions as shown in the table below.

The Pinch feature is supported for the following mesh methods:

Volume Meshing:

• Patch Conforming (p. 178)

• Thin Solid Sweeping (p. 202)

• Hex Dominant Meshing (p. 200)

Surface Meshing:

• Quad Dominant (p. 221)

• All Triangles (p. 222)

• MultiZone Quad/Tri (p. 222)

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Global Mesh Controls

The table below shows the types of model (solid or shell), mesh methods, pinch creation methods
(auto or manual), and pinch behaviors that are supported for each type of pinch control.

Note:

With ANSYS Workbench Release 16.0, post pinch behaviors are migrated into Mesh Con-
nections. When you regenerate a mesh that was created using Pinch Behavior settings,
the new mesh might report different results than the previous mesh.

Entities Model Type Mesh Method Pinch Creation

in Method
Pinch
Control: Thin MultiZone
Master Solid Patch Hex Quad All Auto Manual
Shell Solid Quad /
> Conforming DominantDominant Tri Pinch Pinch
Sweeping Tri
Slave
Edge X X X X X X X X X X
>
Edge
Edge X X X X X X X X X
>
Vertex
Vertex X X X X X X X X X X
>
Vertex
Face > X X X X X
Edge
Face > X X X X X
Vertex

Examples of a Mesh With and Without Pinch

The figures below illustrate the effect of pinch controls on the mesh. The first figure shows where
the pinch controls have been defined in the model. The second and third figures show the meshes
that are generated without the pinch controls and with the pinch controls, respectively.

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Figure 74: Locations of Pinch Controls

Figure 75: Mesh Generated Without Pinch Controls

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Global Mesh Controls

Figure 76: Mesh Generated With Pinch Controls

For More Information

For general information on applying pinch controls in combination with the various mesh method
controls, refer to Meshing: Mesh Control Interaction Tables (p. 391).

Additional pinch topics include:

Pinch Control Automation Overview
How to Define Pinch Control Automation
How to Define or Change Pinch Controls Manually
Usage Information for Pinch Controls

Pinch Control Automation Overview

The Advanced group of global mesh controls appears in the Details View when the Mesh object
is selected in the Tree Outline. By setting pinch options in the Advanced group, you can instruct
the Meshing application to automatically generate pinch controls according to your settings. The
Meshing application can generate the pinch controls based off shell thickness (for surface models
only), or by identifying small features in the model that fall within a tolerance you specify.

Understanding the Automatic Pinch Control Algorithm

The Meshing application uses four major criteria for generating automatic pinch controls. These
criteria (in order of importance) include:

1. Capture geometry of sheet bodies.

2. Edges adjacent to flat surfaces are masters.

3. Cluster masters together so that they are adjacent to one another.

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 Advanced Group

4. All things being equal, longer edges are masters.

Note:

• The master geometry is the entity that retains the profile of the original geometry. The slave
geometry is the entity that changes in order to move towards the master geometry. Depend-
ing on the tolerance, the pinch control will pinch out the entire slave entity or only a portion
of the slave entity into the master.

• The automatic pinch control algorithm supports only one master for each pinch control.

• Once the automatic pinch control algorithm has paired two edges to use as a master and a
slave in an automatic pinch control, the algorithm cannot use either of those same two edges
as master or slave in any other automatic pinch control. For example, in the geometry shown
in Figure 77: Automatic Pinch Control for Edges on Left; Manual Pinch Control Required for
Edges on Right (p. 165), an automatic pinch control has been created for the annotated slave
(red) edges and the master (blue) edge on the left side of the model. However, a pinch control
will not be created automatically for the very similar configuration of edges on the right side
of the model. For the Meshing application to be able to generate the mesh shown in Fig-
ure 78: Mesh Generated with Automatic Pinch Control and Manual Pinch Control on Similar
Geometry (p. 166), a manual pinch control had to be created for the edges on the right.

Figure 77: Automatic Pinch Control for Edges on Left; Manual Pinch Control Required for
Edges on Right

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Global Mesh Controls

Figure 78: Mesh Generated with Automatic Pinch Control and Manual Pinch Control on Similar
Geometry

The basic options for defining automatic pinch controls are described below.

Use Sheet Thickness for Pinch

The Use Sheet Thickness for Pinch control determines whether automatic pinch controls will be
based on the shell thickness of the model, rather than on a specified pinch tolerance (p. 166). When
the sheet thickness method of automatic pinch control is used, the pinch algorithm uses a pinch
tolerance equal to 1/2 of the shell thickness.

Valid values are Yes and No. The default is No.

Note:

• The Use Sheet Thickness for Pinch control is available only for sheet (surface) models. If
your model contains a combination of surface and solid bodies, the Use Sheet Thickness
for Pinch control is available only if all solid bodies are suppressed (p. 432).

• You cannot use the sheet thickness method of automatic pinch control for a surface model
that has no thickness defined or has a 0 (zero) thickness.

Pinch Tolerance
The Pinch Tolerance control allows you to specify a tolerance for the Meshing application to use
when it generates automatic pinch controls. Vertex-vertex pinch controls will be created on any
edge with a length less than the specified tolerance, and edge-edge pinch controls will be created
on any face for which two edges are within proximity according to the specified tolerance. For the

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 Advanced Group

Meshing application to automate pinch control, you must specify a value for Pinch Tolerance unless
Use Sheet Thickness for Pinch (p. 166) is set to Yes. Specify a value greater than 0.0.

Note:

• The value that you specify for Pinch Tolerance should be smaller than the mesh size around
the region in which the pinch control is being applied. For example, if an Edge Sizing control
has been placed on an edge, a Pinch Tolerance value that is greater than that edge sizing
may cause the mesher to fail.

• In general, the value that you specify for Pinch Tolerance should be greater than the value
that appears in the Sizing > Minimum Edge Length (p. 96) field. Exceptions to this guideline
include models without seam edges, such as elliptical prism, cylinder, and sphere models.

• Do not specify an overly high value for the Pinch Tolerance control. The Pinch feature allows
the mesher to mesh over geometry features as if they were not there, and a tolerance that
is set too high can cause inverted elements.

• When Capture Curvature and/or Capture Proximity is set to Yes, the default pinch tolerance
is 90% of the value of Curvature Min Size (p. 88)/ Proximity Min Size (p. 89) (whichever
is smaller). This differs from the tolerance used by the default mesh based defeaturing; refer
to Mesh Defeaturing (p. 85) for details.

Generate Pinch on Refresh

The Generate Pinch on Refresh control determines whether pinch controls will be regenerated
following a change made to the geometry (such as a change made via a DesignModeler application
operation such as a merge, connect, etc.). If Generate Pinch on Refresh is set to Yes and you
change the geometry, all pinch controls that were created automatically will be deleted and recreated
based on the new geometry. If Generate Pinch on Refresh is set to No and you update the geo-
metry, all pinch controls related to the changed part will appear in the Tree Outline but will be
flagged as undefined.

Valid values are Yes and No. The default is No.

Note:

Only Automatic pinch controls are regenerated. That is, if a pinch control has a Scope
Method of Manual (either because it was created manually or because you made a
change to an Automatic pinch control), the pinch control will never be regenerated on
refresh. See Changing Pinch Controls Locally (p. 263) for information about making changes
to pinch controls.

How to Define Pinch Control Automation (p. 168) provides the steps for defining automatic pinch
controls.

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Global Mesh Controls

How to Define Pinch Control Automation

The following sections provide the steps for defining pinch control automation. Pinch can be
automated based on either shell thickness or a user-defined tolerance.

Note:

Use of pinch control automation will delete all existing pinch controls that have a Scope
Method of Automatic before creating the new pinch controls.

Defining Pinch Control Automation Based on Shell Thickness

This section describes the steps for defining pinch control automation based on shell thickness.
This procedure applies to sheet (surface) models only.

To define pinch control automation based on shell thickness:

1. In the Details View of the Mesh folder, expand the Advanced group of controls.

2. Set Use Sheet Thickness for Pinch (p. 166) to Yes.

Notice that the value of the Pinch Tolerance (p. 166) control changes to Based on Sheet
Thickness and is grayed out.

3. Change the value of the Generate Pinch on Refresh (p. 167) control if desired.

4. Right-click the Mesh folder and select Create Pinch Controls from the context menu.

A pinch control object is automatically inserted into the Tree for each region containing features
that meet the criteria established by the pinch control settings. To display details about an
individual pinch control, highlight it in the Tree and information about it appears in the Details
View. For information about making changes to this information, refer to Changing Pinch
Controls Locally (p. 263).

Defining Pinch Control Automation Based on a Specified Pinch Tolerance

This section describes the steps for defining pinch control automation based on a tolerance that
you specify.

To define pinch control automation based on pinch tolerance:

1. In the Details View of the Mesh folder, expand the Advanced group of controls.

2. Specify a value for Pinch Tolerance (p. 166).

3. Change the value of the Generate Pinch on Refresh (p. 167) control if desired.

4. Right-click the Mesh folder and select Create Pinch Controls from the context menu.

A pinch control object is automatically inserted into the Tree for each region containing features
that meet the criteria established by the pinch control settings. To display details about an
individual pinch control, highlight it in the Tree and information about it appears in the Details
View. For information about making changes to this information, refer to Changing Pinch
Controls Locally (p. 263).

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How to Define or Change Pinch Controls Manually

As an alternative to defining pinch control automation (p. 168), you can define local controls to
pinch scoped entities. You can also make changes to pinch controls, regardless of whether they
were created automatically or manually. For details, refer to Pinch Control (p. 260) in the local mesh
controls section of the Meshing help.

Usage Information for Pinch Controls

Remember the following information when using the Pinch feature:

• The Pinch feature works on faces, edges, and vertices only; bodies cannot be pinched. Refer to the table
in Pinch (p. 161) for restrictions related to entity types.

• The automatic pinch control algorithm supports only one master for each pinch control. In manual
pinch controls, you can specify multiple faces or multiple edges to act as masters, but only one vertex
can act as master.

• When defining manual pinch controls, using the same master in more than one pinch control is suppor-
ted. This is true for all types of manual pinch controls: edge-edge, edge-vertex, vertex-vertex, face-edge,
and face-vertex. When multiple pinch controls use the same master, the aggregate of the pinch controls
is used to determine the pinch. Note that this behavior differs from that of other mesh controls when
multiples are specified. With other mesh controls, the control that appears lowest in the Tree is honored.

• If there are hard size constraints on a master, the pinch control will be skipped completely. If there are
hard size constraints on slaves, only the slaves with the constraints will be skipped. In either case, a
warning message will be issued.

• If your model contains multibody parts and you want pinch controls to operate on selected parts/bodies
only, you must first suppress (p. 432) the parts/bodies that you do not want the pinch controls to apply
to. Then follow the steps outlined in How to Define Pinch Control Automation (p. 168).

Alternatively you can use mesh connections, which supports automatic and manual mesh con-
nections. With mesh connections, you can change the settings in the Details View of the Connec-
tion Group folder to automatically generate mesh connections on scoped geometry only. For
more information, see Common Connections Folder Operations for Auto Generated Connections
in the Mechanical help.

• If the geometry fails to mesh correctly due to the pinched features, an error message is generated. To
highlight the geometry that is responsible for the message, select the message, right-click, and select
Show Problematic Geometry from the context menu.

• When a face contains an internal loop with a pinch control and the edges of the loop become a “single
internal edge” due to pinching, the surface mesher may completely ignore the “single” edge (that is,
the surface mesher may mesh over the edge). The reason that this may occur is that a pinch control
never changes the topology of a model. When a surface mesher collects all boundary edge meshes
before performing surface meshing, it considers the newly created “single” edge to be a regular edge
rather than a hard edge, which most users would expect. As a result, all edge meshes along the “single”
edge may be ignored.

• After pinch controls are generated:

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Global Mesh Controls

– If you highlight a pinch control in the Tree, the pinch region is flagged in the Geometry window. For
more information, see the descriptions of Master Geometry and Slave Geometry pinch controls in
Pinch Control Automation Overview (p. 164).

– You can make changes to pinch controls whether they were generated automatically or created
manually. To do so, in the Mesh folder, highlight the Pinch object that you want to change. As a
result, the Details of the pinch appear in the Details View, where you can change its Scope and
Definition. Making changes to a pinch that was generated automatically causes the value of the
Scope Method control to change from Automatic to Manual. For details about defining or changing
pinch controls manually, see Pinch Control (p. 260) in the local mesh controls section of the Meshing
help.

• If a pinch control has a pinch tolerance defined for it that falls below one or more Hard (p. 237) scoped
size controls, a warning will be issued. The warning will suggest that you either modify the pinch tolerance
or remove any pinch control(s) in close proximity to the Hard size control(s) in question; otherwise,
surface meshing may fail.

• There is no guarantee that features will be preserved when using pinch controls. For this reason, it is
best practice to check the mesh where pinch controls have been defined close to features. If a problem
exists in the mesh, flipping the master and slave entities will be sufficient to solve the problem in many
cases.

• Pinch controls can be used for models involving multiple complications in one location (such as slivers,
sharp angles, and short edges within the same pinch tolerance) as well as for models containing isolated
problem spots. However, when used in combination with the Sizing Options (p. 69), pinch controls are
best used for isolated problems. For example, refer to the meshes in the figure below, which show the
results of applying pinch controls in combination with other sizing options. For the mesh on the left, a
Pinch Tolerance (p. 166) of 3e-3 and a Curvature Min Size (p. 88) of 6.e-3 were specified. For the
mesh on the right, a Pinch Tolerance of 3e-3 and a Min Size of 4.e-3 were specified. Neither is acceptable
due to the presence of high aspect ratio triangles in the mesh. In such cases, the use of Virtual Topology
or defeaturing within the DesignModeler application is recommended as an alternative to pinch.

Figure 79: Pinch Not Recommended for Models with Multiple Complications

• In a face-edge pinch control, the mesh on the edges within the specified tolerance is “snapped” to the
master face. You must choose the master and slaves in such a way that the elements on the face whose
edges are defined as slaves will be stretched onto the master face. If the edges would be "squashed,"
no pinch will be created.

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• When a face pinch control and a Face Meshing (p. 240) control are applied to the same face, the mesher
attempts to generate a mapped mesh for the face. If the mesher cannot retain the mapped mesh pattern,
it will generate a free mesh instead and issue a warning.

• When using a Face as the master geometry, then the pinch control is applied post-processing and does
not support mixed dimension meshing. When using an Edge as the master geometry, then the pinch
control is applied pre-processing, and is recommended in mixed dimension situations.

• If you apply a match control (p. 255) and a face-edge pinch control to the same topology, a warning is
issued.

• Since Pinch objects cannot be duplicated, they cannot be used as template objects for the Object
Generator.

Loop Removal
The Advanced group of global mesh controls appears in the Details View when the Mesh object is
selected in the Tree Outline. The Meshing application automatically removes loops according to the
criteria you specify for the loop removal options in this group. Prior to meshing, you can use the
Show Removable Loops (p. 441) feature to preview the loops that will be removed according to the
current settings.

The loop removal feature is supported for the following mesh methods:

Surface Meshing:

• Quad Dominant (p. 221)

• All Triangles (p. 222)

• MultiZone Quad/Tri (p. 222)

Note:

• The loop removal controls are passed to the MultiZone Quad/Tri method as described in Mul-
tiZone Quad/Tri Method Control (p. 222).

• If you are meshing with loop removal on (using the Quad Dominant or MultiZone Quad/Tri
method), making changes to a loop after meshing (such as adding a load on a loop) invalidates
the mesh and you will need to re-mesh. You should apply loads to the model before meshing
when using these controls. Refer to Protecting Topology Defined Prior to Meshing (p. 159) for
related information.

The options for defining loop removal are described below.

Sheet Loop Removal

The Sheet Loop Removal control determines whether loops will be removed (meshed over) by the
mesher. When Sheet Loop Removal is set to Yes, the mesher removes any loop with a radius less
than or equal to the value of Loop Removal Tolerance.

Valid values are Yes and No. The default is No.

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Global Mesh Controls

Loop Removal Tolerance

The Loop Removal Tolerance control sets the tolerance for loop removal. Any loop with a radius
less than or equal to the value of Loop Removal Tolerance will be meshed over by the mesher.

Specify a value greater than 0.0.

Statistics Group
The Statistics group lets you view and request information about these options:
Nodes
Elements

Nodes
The Nodes option provides a read-only indication of the number of nodes in the meshed model. If
the model contains multiple parts or bodies, you can view the number of nodes in an individual part
or body by highlighting it under the Geometry object in the Tree Outline.

Elements
The Elements option provides a read-only indication of the number of elements in the meshed
model. If the model contains multiple parts or bodies, you can view the number of elements in an
individual part or body by highlighting it under the Geometry object in the Tree Outline.

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Meshing: Local Mesh Controls
Local mesh controls are available when you highlight a Mesh object in the tree and choose a tool from
either the Mesh Control drop-down menu, or from first choosing Insert in the context menu (displayed
when you right-click a Mesh object). You can specify the scoping of the tool in the tool's Details View
under Method to either a Geometry Selection or to a Named Selection.

Note:

Be aware of the following items regarding mesh control tools:

• The Object Generator enables you to make one or more copies of a template object, scoping
each to a different piece of geometry. When defining mesh controls, you can use the Object
Generator to make copies of a template mesh control, which may reduce the necessity to
manually define multiple related mesh controls. For details, refer to Generating Multiple Objects
from a Template Object in the Mechanical help.

• For most mesh controls, the latest control that you add on a particular geometry overrides any
prior controls that you already have added on that geometry. For example, if you apply a Sizing
control setting of 0.5 to faces A,B,C then apply a setting of 1.0 to face B, faces A and C will retain
the 0.5 setting, but the setting for face B will be 1.0. This is also useful when you want to force
sweep many bodies of a multibody part and only tet mesh one or specify special sweeping options
on one. For example, you can select all 1000 parts and then override one or 10 part(s) instead of
picking 999 (990) and then selecting one (10).

Exceptions include the MultiZone Quad/Tri, MultiZone, and All Tetrahedrons - Patch Inde-
pendent controls. For information about how these controls interact with other controls,
refer to Meshing: Mesh Control Interaction Tables (p. 391), Interactions Between Mesh
Methods (p. 391), and Interactions Between Mesh Methods and Mesh Controls (p. 394).

• If you suppress a mesh control tool, the Suppress symbol appears ("x" adjacent to the name of
the tool) and Suppressed is set to Yes in the Details View of the tool. Situations can occur when
you do not suppress a mesh control tool, and the Suppress symbol appears adjacent to the tool
but Suppressed is set to No in the Details View of the tool. In these situations, refer to the mesh
control's Active read-only field for the reason why the tool is suppressed. Examples are a control
applied to a uniform surface body mesh (not supported), a control scoped to suppressed geometry,
or a Contact Sizing control scoped to a suppressed Contact Region.

The following local mesh controls are available:

Method Control
Mesh Grouping Control
Sizing Control
Contact Sizing Control
Refinement Control

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Local Mesh Controls

Face Meshing Control

Mesh Copy Control
Match Control
Pinch Control
Inflation Control
Gasket Control
Sharp Angle Tool
Repair Topology
Weld

Method Control
The Method control is valid only for a body. The default value selects meshing methods that provide
a successful automated mesh. By default, the application attempts to use auto Fing for solid models
and quadrilateral element generation for surface body models. If a model is not sweepable, the Patch
Conforming mesher under Tetrahedrons is used.

To set the values for the Method control, click Mesh on the Tree Outline, right-click to view the menu,
and select Insert > Method. You can also click Mesh on the Tree Outline, select the Mesh Control
button on the Context Toolbar, and select Method.

Note:

The Method control is not supported for assembly (p. 325) meshing algorithms.

In the Details View for the scoped local method, you can set Method based on whether you want to
apply the method to a solid body or a surface body. For more information, refer to:
Method Controls and Element Order Settings
Setting the Method Control for Solid Bodies
Setting the Method Control for Surface Bodies

Method Controls and Element Order Settings

When setting the Method control (p. 174) to a scoped body, you can control whether meshes are to
be created on the scoped body with midside nodes or without midside nodes by using the Element
Order setting under Definition in the Details View. When setting the Element Order option for a
scoped body, choices include Use Global Setting, Linear, and Quadratic.

If you select Use Global Setting, Element Order will be handled as dictated by the global Element
Order option (p. 76). The remaining choices—Linear and Quadratic—have the same descriptions
as their counterparts under the global Element Order option (p. 76). Setting Element Order to Linear
or Quadratic for a scoped body will override the setting of the global Element Order option.

If the Element Order is set to Quadratic, and if Straight Sided Elements is set to No, the midside
nodes will be placed on the geometry so that the mesh elements properly capture the shape of the
geometry. However, if the location of a midside node might affect the mesh quality, the midside

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 Method Control

node may be relaxed to improve the element shape. Therefore, some midside nodes might not follow
the shape of the geometry precisely.

For more information about how the Straight Sided Elements control affects midside nodes, see
Straight Sided Elements (p. 155).

Mixed Order Meshing

Mixed order meshing is supported across bodies for the following mesh methods:

• For solid meshing:

– Patch Conforming Tetrahedron (p. 178)

– Patch Independent Tetrahedron (p. 178)

– MultiZone (p. 205)

– General Sweep (p. 283)

– Thin Sweep (p. 290)

– Hex Dominant (p. 200)

– Cartesian (p. 213)

• For surface meshing:

– Quad Dominant (p. 221)

– All Triangles (p. 222)

– MultiZone Quad/Tri (p. 222)

This means that when scoping one of these mesh methods to bodies in a multibody part, you can
set the Element Order option to Quadratic (resulting in higher order elements) for some bodies and
to Linear (resulting in lower order elements) for others.

Mixed order meshing is supported whether you are performing Selective Meshing (p. 361) or meshing
all of the bodies in the part at the same time. The behavior, and your resulting mesh, is dependent
on the meshing order:

• For simultaneous meshing, the Quadratic bodies generally have precedence at the interface. In such
cases, all of the elements in a lower order body that are adjacent to a higher order body will be
higher order elements, thereby creating one layer of quadratic elements at the interface face. These
elements will be higher order at the interface face but with dropped midside nodes where adjacent
to the linear elements in the mesh.

An exception occurs when a solid body and a sheet body share an interface. In this case, the
solid body takes precedence and will be meshed first using its defined element order. Then
the sheet body is meshed with midside nodes handled as described for Selective Meshing,
below.

• For Selective Meshing (p. 361), the order in which you mesh the bodies determines the precedence.
If you first mesh a linear body followed by meshing an adjacent quadratic body, then the linear body

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Local Mesh Controls

has precedence. Elements in the quadratic body that are adjacent to the linear body will be lower
order elements. Midside nodes will be dropped from the quadratic elements at the interface face.

If you first mesh a quadratic body followed by meshing an adjacent linear body, then the
quadratic body has precedence. Elements in the linear body that are adjacent to the quadratic
body will be higher order elements. Midside nodes will be added to the linear elements at the
interface face.

The figures below illustrate an example of mixed order meshing. To obtain the mesh shown in Fig-
ure 80: Mixed Order Meshing of a Multibody Part (p. 176), the global Element Order option was set
to Quadratic, resulting in a mesh of quadratic tet elements for the topmost body. The sweep method
was applied to the remaining bodies, with the Element Order option set to Linear on the Sweep
Method (p. 201) control. This resulted in a mesh of primarily linear hex/wedge elements for the swept
bodies, with the hex/wedge elements that are attached to the common interface being mixed order
(see Figure 81: Mixed Order Elements (p. 177)).

Figure 80: Mixed Order Meshing of a Multibody Part

Figure 81: Mixed Order Elements (p. 177) shows the mixed order hex/wedge elements that are attached
to quadratic pyramid elements at the interface. On the Mesh Metrics (p. 102) bar graph, mixed order
elements are displayed as quadratic element types.

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 Method Control

Figure 81: Mixed Order Elements

Setting the Method Control for Solid Bodies

The options described below are available for solid bodies.
Automatic Method Control
Tetrahedrons Method Control
Hex Dominant Method Control
Sweep Method Control
MultiZone Method Control
Cartesian Method Control
Layered Tetrahedrons Method Control

Automatic Method Control

By default, the application uses the Automatic Method control, which attempts to use sweep-
ing (p. 201) for solid models and quadrilateral element generation for surface body models. If solid
bodies can't be swept, the body is meshed with the Patch Conforming Tetrahedron (p. 178)
mesher.

You can preview the bodies that can be swept meshed by right-clicking Mesh on the Tree Outline
and choosing Show>Sweepable Bodies from the context menu.

Scoping a mesh method control (Sweep or MultiZone) is a way to force a body to be meshed
with Sweep or MultiZone. To use the MultiZone mesh method in place of Sweep, turn on
Tools>Options>Meshing>Meshing: Use MultiZone for Sweepable Bodies. When using MultiZone
in place of Sweep, Sweepable bodies (p. 283) are meshed with MultiZone.

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Local Mesh Controls

Tetrahedrons Method Control

If you select the Tetrahedrons method, an all tetrahedral mesh is created. An Algorithm setting
is displayed allowing you to choose how the tetrahedral mesh is created based on your choice of
one of the following options:
Patch Conforming Algorithm for Tetrahedrons Method Control
Patch Independent Algorithm for Tetrahedrons Method Control

Patch Conforming Algorithm for Tetrahedrons Method Control

The Patch Conforming Tetra mesh method is a Delaunay tetra mesher with an advancing-front
point insertion technique used for mesh refinement. The Patch Conforming Tetra mesh method
provides:

• Support for 3D inflation (p. 123)

• Built-in pyramid layer for conformal quad-tet transition (p. 379)

• Built-in growth and smoothness control. The mesher will try to create a smooth size variation based
on the specified growth factor.

• Removal of features under a certain size (Mesh Defeaturing (p. 85)).

Remember the following information when using the Patch Conforming Tetra mesh method:

• For problematic geometry given by the Patch Conforming Tetra mesher or regions that self intersect,
you can possibly remedy the problem by adding an extremely large face sizing control in the region
of the self intersection. However, best practice would be to remove the problematic geometry in the
DesignModeler application or your CAD system.

• When Patch Conforming Tetra meshing (with Physics Preference (p. 73) of CFD) fails due to lack of
available memory, an error message will be issued. However, this error message will not identify in-
sufficient memory as the cause. Because meshing will stop before the memory limit is reached, you
may not notice any unusual behavior.

• For information about the Element Order option, refer to Method Controls and Element Order Set-
tings (p. 174).

Patch Independent Algorithm for Tetrahedrons Method Control

The Patch Independent mesh method for tetrahedrons is based on the following spatial subdivision
algorithm: This algorithm ensures refinement of the mesh where necessary, but maintains larger
elements where possible, allowing for faster computation. Once the "root" tetrahedron, which
encloses the entire geometry, has been initialized, the Patch Independent mesher subdivides the
root tetrahedron until all element size requirements (that is, the prescribed local mesh sizes) are
met.

At each subdivision step, the edge length of the tetrahedron (=size) is divided by 2. This means
that the prescribed sizes should all differ by factors that are an integer power of 2. The size of
the root tetra is set to the smallest given size multiplied by 2n. All other prescribed sizes are ap-
proximated by subdividing the root tetra. Refer to the series of figures below, which illustrate
the process that is followed by the Patch Independent tetra mesher.

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Figure 82: Geometry Input to Patch Independent Tetra Mesher

At this point, the Patch Independent tetra mesher balances the mesh so that elements sharing
an edge or face do not differ in size by more than a factor of 2.

Figure 83: Full Tetrahedron Enclosing the Geometry

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Figure 84: Full Tetrahedron Enclosing the Geometry in Wire Frame Mode

Figure 85: Cross-Section of the Tetrahedron

After this is done, the Patch Independent tetra mesher makes the mesh conformal; that is, it
guarantees that each pair of adjacent elements will share an entire face. The mesh does not yet
match the given geometry, so the mesher next rounds the nodes of the mesh to the prescribed
points, prescribed curves, or model surfaces. The Patch Independent tetra mesher then "cuts
away" all of the mesh, which cannot be reached by a user-defined material point without inter-
section of a surface.

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Figure 86: Mesh After Capture of Surfaces and Separation of Useful Volume

Figure 87: Final Mesh Before Smoothing

Finally, the mesh is smoothed by moving nodes, merging nodes, swapping edges and in some
cases, deleting bad elements.

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Figure 88: Final Mesh After Smoothing

Note:

The Patch Independent Tetrahedrons method is being deprecated and will be re-
moved in future releases.

The Patch Independent mesh method includes the following settings:

• Element Order - Refer to Method Controls and Element Order Settings (p. 174).

• Defined By - Choices are Max Element Size and Approx Number of Elements.

• Max Element Size - The size of the initial element subdivision. The default value depends on the
sizing options selected:

– If Use Adaptive Sizing is set to No, the default value of Max Element Size is inherited from the
global Max Size (p. 85) value.

– If Use Adaptive Sizing is set to Yes, the default value of Max Element Size is inherited from the
global Element Size (p. 78) value.

In either case, you can change the value if you want to apply a specific value locally. In such
cases, the maximum size comes from the larger value of the global controls (that is, Max Size
or Element Size, as described above) OR, the largest scoped body size or face size that Patch
Independent is also scoped to. A scoped edge size is not respected if it is larger than either
the global size or the size on an attached face.

With the Patch Independent mesh method, scoped body sizing is supported as follows:

– If a local body size is defined and it is smaller than the global maximum size, the scoped
body size will be assigned inside the volume.

– If the global maximum size is smaller than any scoped body, face or edge sizing, the global
maximum size (Element Size when Use Adaptive Sizing is set to Yes; Max Size when Use
Adaptive Sizing is set to No) will be changed to be the same as the largest sizing within

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the mesher. For example, if Patch Independent is defined on two bodies, and the setup is
as follows:

→ Global Max Size = 4

→ Local body size scoped to Body1 = 8

→ No local body size is scoped to Body2

The Patch Independent maximum size will be 8, and the global Max Size of 4 will be used
for the sizing of Body2.

Note:

The maximum element size inside the volume of Body2 could grow to 8.
Because setting local sizings affects the largest element size in the model,
you should avoid setting local sizes that are larger than the global maximum
size.

• Approx Number of Elements - Prescribes an approximate number of elements for the mesh. The
default is 5.0E+05. Specifying a prescribed number of elements for the Patch Independent method
is applicable only if the method is being applied to a single part.

• Feature Angle - Specifies the minimum angle at which geometry features will be captured. If the
angle between two faces is less than the specified Feature Angle, the edge between the faces will
be ignored, and the nodes will be placed without respect to that edge. If the angle between two faces
is greater than the Feature Angle, the edge should be retained and mesh aligned and associated
with it (note the edge could be ignored due to defeaturing, and so on). You can specify a value from
0 (capture most edges) to 90 (ignore most edges) degrees or accept the default of 30 degrees.

• Mesh Based Defeaturing - Ignores edges based on size. Off by default. If set to On, a Defeature
Size field appears where you may enter a numerical value greater than 0.0. By default, the value of
this local Defeature Size field is the same as the global Defeature Size (p. 86). If you specify a different
value here, it will override the global value. Specifying a value of 0.0 here resets the tolerance to its
default. If multiple Patch Independent tetra mesh method controls are defined with different tolerances,
the smallest tolerance is respected.

There are several basic cases, including the following:

– A small hole with a diameter smaller than the tolerance as shown below.

No edges are dropped. You should defeature manually in this case.

– Two approximately parallel spaced edges (fillet or chamfer), as shown below.

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To determine whether a face is a fillet/chamfer, the Patch Independent mesher evaluates

the face's geometric features. To be considered a fillet/chamfer:

→ A face must be at least twice as long as it is wide.

→ A fillet/chamfer has either three or four sides (that is, two long sides and one or two short sides),
all with angles <= 135 degrees.

In the case of a fillet, which is a curved or rounded face, the angle between the fillet and a
face attached to one of its long sides is 0 degrees (not 180 degrees). In contrast, a chamfer
is a planar face and the angle between the chamfer and a face attached to one of its long
sides is larger than 0 degrees.

For defeaturing of fillets/chamfers, the mesher considers the fillet/chamfer face as well as
the faces adjacent to it (the faces attached to its long sides). The dihedral angles between
these faces are evaluated to determine whether the attached edges of adjacent faces will
be respected (that is, whether nodes will be placed with respect to the edges at the long
sides of the fillet/chamfer).

There are three dihedral angles occurring at a fillet/chamfer:

→ One dihedral angle occurs between the two faces “touching,” or adjacent to, the fillet/chamfer
face. When this angle is compared with the Feature Angle, the angle is measured between the
face normals at the imaginary edge where the two faces (virtually) meet.

→ Two dihedral angles occur between the fillet/chamfer face and the respective faces “touching,”
or adjacent to, the two long sides of the fillet/chamfer. The angles are evaluated as the angles
between the face normals at the common edge of the fillet/chamfer and the attached face.

Defeaturing occurs as follows:

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→ If the angle between the two faces adjacent to the fillet/chamfer face is greater than the Feature
Angle, and the angles between the fillet/chamfer face and the faces attached to its long sides
are less than the Feature Angle, and the minimum fillet/chamfer width is greater than the De-
feature Size, both long sides/edges are respected.

→ If the angle between the two faces adjacent to the fillet/chamfer face is greater than the Feature
Angle, and the angles between the fillet/chamfer face and the faces attached to its long sides
are less than the Feature Angle, and the minimum fillet/chamfer width is less than the Defeature
Size, only one long side/edge is respected.

→ If only one angle between the fillet/chamfer face and the faces attached to its long sides is
greater than the Feature Angle, only one long side/edge is respected.

→ If none of the angles are greater than the Feature Angle, none of the long sides/edges are re-
spected.

The following series of figures illustrates fillet/chamfer detection. In this example, a cross-
section is revolved. The top and bottom of the section are identical, except the bottom has
fillets/chamfers at each corner and the top does not. Because the definition of a fillet/chamfer
is somewhat general, two cases are presented, each with a different angle of revolution. The
angle of revolution is 5 degrees in the first case, as shown below. In this case, only the small
faces fit the criteria of fillets/chamfers.

In the second case, the angle of revolution is 180 degrees, as shown below. In this case, all
faces fit the criteria of fillets/chamfers, except for the front/back faces of the extrusion.

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The figure below shows the angles that are considered for fillet/chamfer detection, and the
small faces that are found to be fillets/chamfers.

As described earlier, the angles that are considered for a given fillet/chamfer are 1) the angle
between adjacent fillet/chamfer faces and 2) the two angles attached to the fillet/chamfer.
Notice the angles in the figure below.

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Notice the settings shown below, with Feature Angle set to 30 and Mesh Based Defeaturing
turned off.

In the figure below, the highlighted edges are the edges that are ignored with the settings
shown above. All edges are captured except for locations where the angle between faces
or adjacent fillet/chamfer faces (two bottom edges) is 20 degrees. Changing the Feature
Angle to a value below 20 will result in the mesher capturing those edges, while increasing
the angle will result in more edges being ignored.

In the settings shown below, Feature Angle is changed to 80 but the other settings used
before are retained.

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In the figure below, the highlighted edges are the edges that are ignored with the settings
shown above. All edges are ignored except for those at angles of 90 degrees, both with or
without fillets/chamfers.

Now consider the settings shown below. Here the Feature Angle is set back to 30, but Mesh
Based Defeaturing is turned on. Both the Defeature Size and the Min Size Limit are set
to 2.5 mm, which is larger than the bottom fillets/chamfers.

In the figure below, the highlighted edges are the edges that are ignored with the settings
shown above. The same edges as before are ignored due to the feature angle, but in addition
every other edge along the bottom fillets/chamfers is ignored.

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The last part of this example involves the case in which the angle of revolution is 180 degrees.
Once again the Feature Angle is set to 80 but Mesh Based Defeaturing is turned off.

In the figure below, the highlighted edges are the edges that are ignored. With the settings
shown above and the longer extrusion, more faces are found to be fillets/chamfers when
compared to the case of the shorter extrusion. In comparison, the bottom section is
identical as all faces are found to be fillets/chamfers (so the meshing behavior does not
change). However, with the inclusion of all faces on top being considered chamfers, the
meshing behavior does change.

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The following series of figures shows examples of the Patch Independent Tetrahedron mesher
with various settings. Figure (a) shows the base geometry.

Figure 89: Example (a) Showing Base Geometry

Figures (b) through (f ) below show examples of the Patch Independent Tetrahedron mesher
under the conditions noted.

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Figure 90: Example (b) Min Size Limit (Described Below) Set to 1

Figure 91: Example (c) Min Size Limit (Described Below) Set to 0.5

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Figure 92: Example (d) Defeature Size Set to 1

Figure 93: Example (e) Defeature Size Set to 1 and Element Order Set to Linear

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Figure 94: Example (f) Defeature Size Set to 1 and Min Size Limit Set to 0.5

• Refinement and Min Size Limit - When Refinement is set to Proximity and Curvature, Curvature,
or Proximity, the mesh is automatically refined based on geometry curvature and/or proximity. This
will result in larger elements on flat planar faces and smaller elements in areas of high curvature or
within small gaps. In addition, a Min Size Limit field is displayed, in which you enter a numerical
value. (The default of Refinement is Proximity and Curvature, unless Physics Preference (p. 73) is
set to Explicit, in which case the default is No.)

Curvature or proximity based refinement will subdivide the elements until this Min Size Limit
is reached. However, projection to geometry and smoothing may push the size even smaller
for some elements. The Min Size Limit prevents curvature or proximity based refinement from
generating elements that are too small. The default value of Min Size Limit depends on
whether Use Adaptive Sizing is set to Yes or No:

– If Use Adaptive Sizing is set to No, the default value of Min Size Limit is inherited from
the global Curvature Min Size (p. 88)/Proximity Min Size (p. 89) control based on the
Refinement type set. The mesher will also use the Min Size values defined locally.

→ When Refinement is set to Proximity and Curvature (default), the maximum of the
global Proximity Min Size (p. 89) and Curvature Min Size (p. 88) is used as the default
Min Size Limit.

→ When Refinement is set to Proximity, the global Proximity Min Size (p. 89) is used as
the default Min Size Limit.

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→ When Refinement is set to Curvature, the global Curvature Min Size (p. 88) is used as
the default Min Size Limit.

Note:

The global Curvature Min Size (p. 88)/Proximity Min Size (p. 89) values
will be used to determine the default value for Min Size Limit based on the
Refinement type set for the Patch Independent method control, irrespective
of the global refinement type set (for example, even if Capture Curvature
and Capture Proximity are both set to No).

– If Use Adaptive Sizing is set to Yes, you must specify a value for Min Size Limit.

Note:

Also see Notes on Element Size Settings for the Patch Independent Tetra
Mesher (p. 198).

• Num Cells Across Gap - (Displayed only when Refinement is set to Proximity and Curvature or
Proximity.) The number of cells desired in narrow gaps. This sets the goal for the proximity based
refinement. The mesh will subdivide in tight regions toward this goal, but the refinement is limited
by the Min Size Limit. It will not override this limit. The default value depends on the Sizing Op-
tions (p. 80):

– If Use Adaptive Sizing is set to No, the default value of Num Cells Across Gap is inherited from
the global Num Cells Across Gap (p. 89) value.

– If Use Adaptive Sizing is set to Yes, the default value of Num Cells Across Gap is 3.

In either case, you can change the value if you want to apply a specific value locally.

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• Curvature Normal Angle - (Displayed only when Refinement is set to Proximity and Curvature or
Curvature.) Sets the goal for the curvature based refinement. The mesh will subdivide in curved regions
until the individual elements span this angle. This refinement is also limited by the Min Size Limit.
You can specify a value from 0 to 180. The default value depends on the Sizing Options (p. 80):

– If Use Adaptive Sizing is No, the default value of Curvature Normal Angle is inherited from the
global Curvature Normal Angle (p. 88) value.

– If Use Adaptive Sizing is Yes, the default value of Curvature Normal Angle will be computed
based on the value of the Span Angle Center (p. 87) global option.

In either case, you can change the value to define specific values locally, but be aware that
with PI Tet, only one value for curvature normal angle (num cells in gap) is used by the mesher.
The smallest curvature normal angle (largest num cells in gap) will be applied globally. A
warning message will indicate this for you.

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Figure 95: Example (a) Showing Base Geometry

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Figure 96: Example (b) Default Patch Independent Tetrahedron Mesher

Figure 97: Example (c) Patch Independent Tetrahedron Mesher with Min Size Limit Set
to Capture Curvature

• Smooth Transition - Determines whether the Octree volume mesh generated from the Patch Inde-
pendent mesh method should be kept or whether it should be replaced with a Delaunay volume
mesh starting from the Patch Independent surface mesh. Options are On or Off (default). If set to On,
the volume mesh will be a Delaunay mesh. If set to Off, the volume mesh will be an Octree mesh.

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Figure 98: Effect of Smooth Transition Setting (p. 198) illustrates the effect of setting Smooth
Transition to Off (Octree volume mesh on the left) or On (Delaunay volume mesh on the
right).

Figure 98: Effect of Smooth Transition Setting

• Growth Rate - Represents the increase in element edge length with each succeeding layer of elements.
For example, a growth rate of 1.2 results in a 20% increase in element edge length with each succeeding
layer of elements. Specify a value from 1.0 to 5.0 or accept the Default. When set to Default, the
value is the same as the global growth rate (p. 85). If Use Adaptive Sizing is set to Yes, the Default
is set differently based on whether Smooth Transition is Off (default is 2.0) or On (default is 1.2).

Note:

If Smooth Transition is set to Off, the growth rate is very approximate since the
volume is filled with an Octree meshing approach which requires 2-to-1 transitions.
Thus in such cases, the growth rate relates only to when the transitions occur through
the mesh.

• Minimum Edge Length - Read-only indication of the smallest edge length in the part.

• Match Mesh Where Possible - The Match Mesh Where Possible control is applicable to contact
definitions between faces. Options are Yes and No. The default is Yes. If contact is defined by a single
face that topologically belongs to two different bodies, setting this option to Yes has no effect.
However, if there are independent faces on the two bodies, setting this option to Yes causes the
Patch Independent mesh method to create nodes on both sides of the contact. The nodes are not
connected but have identical coordinates.

• Write ICEM CFD Files - Sets options for writing ANSYS ICEM CFD files. Refer to Writing ANSYS ICEM
CFD Files (p. 64) for details.

Notes on Element Size Settings for the Patch Independent Tetra Mesher

Remember these notes when using the Patch Independent tetra mesher:

• If you are specifying element sizes with the Patch Independent mesher, you may notice that some
element edge lengths are less than the size that you have entered. For example, if your element size

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is 1, the resulting elements in a uniform tetrahedron mesh will have tetrahedron with edges of length
31/2/2 and edges of length 1. A single tetrahedron in this mesh will have two edges of length 1 and
four edges of length 31/2/2. Two of the three dimensions of the bounding box of this tetrahedron will
have length of 1 while the other dimension will have the length of 0.5. This correlates to an element
size of 1.

Figure 99: Element Edge Lengths Smaller Than Specified Element Size

• If you are using Curvature and Proximity Refinement, you may notice that your elements are always
less than the maximum size specified. Element growth rates with this mesher are always based on
powers of 2. For instance if your minimum size limit is set to 1 and your maximum element size limit
is set to 5, and you have curvature in your model that warrants curvature based mesh refinement
down to the minimum element size, you will see that the largest elements are not size 5 but size 4.
This happens because in order to maintain elements at the minimum size limit, the initial tetrahedron
must be some power of 2 larger than the minimum element size, which in this example case is 1.

• Small features of Named Selections will be checked in comparison to element size settings prior to
meshing. If the minimum element size seems to be too big to capture the essential features of the
geometry, a warning will be issued if small entities could cause the mesher to fail.

Notes on Scoping for the Patch Independent Mesher

You can use the Patch Independent tetra mesh method in combination with other solid mesh
methods in a multibody part, and the bodies will be meshed with conformal mesh. Refer to
Conformal and Non-Conformal Meshing (p. 3) for information about conformal meshing.

Notes on Virtual Topologies and the Patch Independent Mesher

Virtual topologies may affect the success of meshing with the Patch Independent tetra mesh
method. Because virtual topologies are often a coarse approximation of the original faces or
edges, the resulting small inaccuracies (gaps and overlaps) may cause the Patch Independent
tetra mesher to miss some parts of the boundary of the virtual topology. As a result, the mesher
may not accurately model the respected topology and may fail.

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Since in general, the Patch Independent tetra mesh method does not require the use of virtual
topologies to clean up the geometry, you can remove some of the problematic virtual topology
and use Named Selections for boundary conditions instead, as appropriate.

Miscellaneous Notes for the Patch Independent Mesher

The Patch Independent tetra mesh method does not support mesh connections (p. 399), contact
matches (p. 410), pinch controls (p. 161), match controls (p. 255), or face meshing controls (p. 240).

Hex Dominant Method Control

If you select the Hex Dominant method, a free hex dominant mesh is created. If you are interested
in a hex mesh, this option is recommended for bodies that cannot be swept. To preview any bodies
that can be swept, click Mesh on the Tree Outline and right-click the mouse. Select Show>
Sweepable Bodies from the context menu to display bodies that fulfill the requirements of a
sweepable body (other than axis sweeping).

The Hex Dominant mesh method includes the following settings:

• Element Order - Refer to Method Controls and Element Order Settings (p. 174).

• Free Face Mesh Type - Determines the shape of the elements used to fill the body. Allows you to
choose Quad/Tri or All Quad. The default is Quad/Tri.

Hex dominant meshing adds the most value under the following conditions:

• Meshing bodies with large amounts of interior volume.

• Meshing bodies that transition from sweepable bodies in a body that has been decomposed for
sweeping. However, it is better to use Body/Face Sizing to obtain more uniform face meshing, which
leads to more hexes by volume.

Hex dominant meshing adds little value under the following conditions:

• Meshing thin complicated bodies (like a cellular phone case). The number of elements may actually in-
crease compared to a tetrahedron mesh since the element size must be much smaller for this class of
body when using hex dominant meshing to create well shaped hexes.

• A body is sweepable or can easily be decomposed to multiple sweepable bodies. The quality of a swept
mesh is usually superior to that of a hex dominant mesh.

• Models where fast transition of the mesh can result in poor solution accuracy (such as CFD models).
The Hex dominant approach can have very fast transitions at the core of the volume.

Note:

• Mesh Matching for cyclic symmetry is not supported for hex dominant meshing.

• Workbench assists you in determining if hex dominant meshing is applicable to your situation.
When you apply the Hex Dominant option on a body or group of bodies, Workbench calcu-
lates the normalized volume to surface area ratio (p. 201). If it detects a ratio less than 2,
Control Message appears in a highlighted row under Definition in the Details View. If you
click Yes, Click To Display, a warning message states that a low percentage of hex elements

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or poorly shaped hex elements may result. Suggestions are included for alternative meshing
schemes.

The normalized volume to surface area ratio is defined by the following expression:

(Volume of body/(Surface area of body)3/2)/factor

where factor, the ratio for a unit sphere = (4/3 π)/(4 π)3/2

• Adaptive refinement starting from a hex dominant mesh will result in remeshing of the
structure with tetrahedrons.

• If you apply a local Sizing control (p. 224) to a solid body with a Method control set to Hex
Dominant (p. 200) or Sweep (p. 201), or to a sheet body with a Method control set to Quad-
rilateral Dominant (p. 221), a near uniform quadrilateral mesh will result on all affected faces
on a body meshed with Hex Dominant, on the source face meshed with Sweep, and on all
affected faces meshed with Quadrilateral Dominant. To obtain even more of a uniform
quadrilateral mesh, set the Behavior (p. 237) of the Sizing control to Hard.

Sweep Method Control

If you select the Sweep method, a swept mesh is forced on “sweepable” bodies (p. 283) (including
axis-sweepable bodies, which are not displayed when you use the Show Sweepable Bodies feature).
The mesher will fail if a swept mesh cannot be generated on a body with a Sweep Method control.

Use the Sweep option for any of the following situations:

• A swept mesh is required.

• You want a swept mesh on a model that revolves around an axis where the source and target faces
share topology.

When you choose the Sweep option, the Details View expands to include additional settings, many
of which are unique to this option. For basic usage that involves obtaining a swept mesh, the pro-
cedure is to apply a Method Control to one or more bodies, set Method to Sweep, and accept
the default values of the various settings.

For advanced or specialized usage such as meshing thin models or axis sweeping, adjust the settings
as needed. The following is a description of each of these settings.

• Algorithm - Allows you to choose sweep algorithm. The default is set to Program Controlled and you
can also select Axisymmetric.

– Program Controlled - This algorithm can be applied only on the traditional sweepable models.

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– Axisymmetric - This algorithm can be applied to all axisymmetric models. Axisymmetric Sweeper
does not support shared topology. Axisymmetric Sweeper supports Contact Sizing (p. 238) and To-
pology Protection (p. 159)

Note:

Mesh Based Defeaturing (p. ?) is available only when Axisymmetric algorithm is

selected.

• Mesh In Center - Defines the type of mesh in the centre of the Axisymmetric model. The default value
is Hexahedra. When you select Hexahedra,O-Grid mesh is generated at the centre of the axisymmetric
model. You can specify the number of division for the O-Grid using the O-Grid Divisions.

• Element Order - Refer to Method Controls and Element Order Settings (p. 174).

• O-Grid Divisions - Number of divisions per quadrant from the center of the O-Grid to the boundary (or
outside) of the O-Grid. The default value forO-Grid Divisions is 4

• Project Corners to Top - Projects the nodes on the steps along the body of interest to the top surface
of the Axisymmetric model. The default value is Yes.

• Src/Trg Selection - Defines the source and target selection type according to the following choices:

– Automatic - The program determines the best source and target for the body.

– Manual Source - You select the source and the program determines the target. This choice is useful
when there are multiple source target pairs and you want to specify the source in order to get the
correct bias through the sweep direction. Another application is when your cross section is changing
and the mesh quality would be better when sweeping from one side vs. another.

– Manual Source and Target - The sweeper will revolve the mesh around common edges/vertices.
This choice is useful when you want to sweep a body where the source and target faces share vertices
and/or edges.

– Automatic Thin (p. 290) - This choice is for thin models and thin sheet metal parts, or any application
where you want one hex or wedge through the thickness, in preparation for using the Mechanical
APDL application's SOLSH190 element or the LS-DYNA thick shell element. (See the description for
the Mechanical APDL element in the Element Reference within the Mechanical APDL help.) For this
choice, the face with the largest face area is selected as the master source and the algorithm determines
the rest of the source faces. For multibody parts, only one division through the thickness is possible.
For single body parts, you can define multiple elements through the thickness using the Sweep Num
Divs control. Biasing is not available. An Element Option setting is included that instructs the solver
to use the Solid Shell element where possible, or to always use a Solid element.

– Manual Thin (p. 290) - The same restrictions apply as described above for Automatic Thin. However,
with this choice, you can do any of the following:

→ Pick one source face and allow the program to determine the rest.

→ Pick all of the source faces and allow the program to do nothing but mesh the source faces and
sweep them to the target.

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→ Pick multiple source faces and mesh one target face.

Note:

→ The Sweep mesh method does not support the Manual Source, Manual Source and
Target, or Manual Thin settings for Src/Trg Selection if Sweep is applied to more than
one part, even if you suppress all of the other parts.

→ In some cases, the thin model sweeper may want to swap source and target faces based
on meshing conditions in neighboring bodies. In such cases, a warning message will
be issued to alert you.

Refer to Considerations for Selecting Source Faces for the Thin Model Sweep-
er (p. 291) for details.

→ To make source/target face selection easier, select Annotation Preferences from the
Toolbar and then deselect Body Scoping Annotations in the Annotation Preferences
option box to toggle the visibility of annotations in the Geometry window. For example,
after scoping Sweep to a body, the body will be displayed using a blue solid annotation.
Turn off the body scoping annotations; then select the source/target faces. For picking
internal faces, the Hide Faces right-click option may help you to see inside a body. For
example, you can select external faces in the Geometry window and then use the Hide
Faces option to hide the selected faces (making it easier to select the internal faces).

• Free Face Mesh Type - Determines the shape of the elements used to fill the swept body (pure hex,
pure wedge, or a combination of hex/wedge). Allows you to choose All Tri, Quad/Tri, or All Quad
meshing when Src/Trg Selection is Automatic, Manual Source, or Manual Source and Target. Allows
you to choose Quad/Tri or All Quad meshing when Src/Trg Selection is Automatic Thin or Manual
Thin. The default in all cases is Quad/Tri.

Note:

– If the source face is also a side face of another body, the face will always be quad mapped.

– When Free Face Mesh Type is set to either Quad/Tri or All Quad and the source face can
be mapped meshed, the face will sometimes be mapped meshed even if it means applied
sizing controls (such as Contact Sizing (p. 238), Sphere of Influence (p. 232), etc.) will be
ignored.

– In some cases when Src/Trg Selection is set to Automatic, the source face that is selected
by the software must be quad mapped in order for the sweep method to be successful.
In these cases, the value that is specified for Free Face Mesh Type may be ignored.

• Type - Allows you to specify a Number of Divisions or Element Size through the sweep direction.
When sweeping generalized bodies that share faces, the Element Size is a soft constraint on interval
assignment and the Number of Divisions is a hard constraint. If you have conflicting Number of Divi-
sions constraints, the sweeper will fail and yield a message. To obtain a regular mesh in the sweep dir-
ection, the guiding edges must have consistent lengths. You can define virtual split edges to achieve

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consistent lengths for these edges (see Creating and Managing Virtual Split Edges (p. 460)). Also see
Sizing Control (p. 224) for more information.

Note:

The Type ElementSize is not available for Axisymmetric algorithm.

• Sweep Bias Type - Specify bias in the same manner as edge biasing for the Bias Type setting in a Siz-
ing (p. 224) mesh control. There is no graphical feedback for biasing on a Method control. Biasing direction
is based from the source to the target.

Note:

Sweep Bias Type is not available for Axisymmetric algorithm.

• The Constrain Boundary setting is available for multibody parts only (both for general sweeping and
thin sweeping). Specify whether you want to allow the mesher to split the elements at the boundary
of a swept mesh region to aid in meshing. You can choose Yes (constrain boundary; no splitting is al-
lowed) or No (do not constrain boundary; splitting is allowed). Choosing Yes prevents tets from entering
the swept body. The default is No.

Note:

Constrain Boundary setting is not available for Axisymmetric algorithm.

Note:

• For gasket simulations, set the Stiffness Behavior of the body to Gasket and proceed with
adjusting mesh settings as described in the Gasket Meshing section located under Gasket
Bodies in the Mechanical application help.

• In models with swept regions, the sizing controls will affect the mesh gradation in the swept
region. You can override this effect by specifying any Sweep Bias value (including a value
of 1), Sweep Element Size value, or Sweep Num Divs value in the Details View when defining
the sweep method.

• There is a system limitation when using the sweep method with the Size Function (p. 69).
The Size Function may have nodes slightly off because the spacing is queried. The sweeper
then tries to match that spacing, which may lead to unexpected mesh results.

• If you apply a local Sizing control (p. 224) to a solid body with a Method control set to Hex
Dominant (p. 200) or Sweep (p. 201), or to a sheet body with a Method control set to Quad-
rilateral Dominant (p. 221), a near uniform quadrilateral mesh will result on all affected faces
on a body meshed with Hex Dominant, on the source face meshed with Sweep, and on all
affected faces meshed with Quadrilateral Dominant. To obtain even more of a uniform
quadrilateral mesh, set the Behavior (p. 237) of the Sizing control to Hard.

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Limitations
The limitations for Axisymmetric sweep are as follows:

• A warning message appears, when the nodes are off the mesh. You can click the warning message
to locate that area on the model and can redefine mesh using Mesh Based Defeaturing (p. ?)
for the particular area.

• Axisymmetric algorithm does not support models with share-topology.

MultiZone Method Control

The MultiZone mesh method provides automatic decomposition of geometry into mapped
(sweepable) regions and free regions. When the MultiZone mesh method is selected, all regions
are meshed with a pure hexahedral mesh if possible. To handle cases in which a pure hex mesh
will not be possible, you can adjust your settings so that a swept mesh will be generated in structured
regions and a free mesh will be generated in unstructured regions.

For example, using the Sweep mesh method, you would need to slice the part below into five
bodies as shown to obtain a pure hex mesh:

Note:

This section describes method control settings. See MultiZone Meshing (p. 303) for detailed
algorithm and usage information.

Figure 100: Sweep Method Would Require Slicing to Obtain Pure Hex Mesh

In contrast, using the MultiZone mesh method requires no slicing. MultiZone automates the
geometry decomposition and generates the pure hex mesh shown in Figure 101: MultiZone Generates
Pure Hex Mesh without Slicing (p. 206).

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Figure 101: MultiZone Generates Pure Hex Mesh without Slicing

When you choose the MultiZone mesh method, the Details View expands to expose various settings,
including several that are unique to MultiZone. For basic usage that involves obtaining a MultiZone
mesh, the procedure is to apply a Method Control to one or more bodies, set Method to MultiZone,
and accept the default values of the various settings.

For advanced or specialized usage, adjust the settings as needed. The following is a description of
each of these settings.

• Mapped Mesh Type - Determines the shape of the elements used to fill structured regions according
to the following choices (the default is Hexa):

– Hexa - A mesh of all hexahedral elements is generated for the part the method is scoped to.

– Hexa/Prism - A mesh of hexahedral and prism/wedge elements is generated for the part the method
is scoped to. The main difference between the Hexa/Prism option and the other options is that for
swept regions, the surface mesh can allow triangles for quality and transitioning. The triangles are
later extruded to prisms/wedges.

– Prism - A mesh of all prism elements is generated for the part the method is scoped to. This option
is sometimes useful if the source face mesh is being shared with a tet mesh, as pyramids are not re-
quired to transition to the tet mesh.

• Surface Mesh Method - Specifying a value for Surface Mesh Method instructs MultiZone to use the
Program Controlled, Uniform, or Pave method to create the surface mesh.

– Program Controlled - Automatically uses a combination of Uniform and Pave mesh methods de-
pending on the mesh sizes set and face properties. This is the default method.

– Uniform - Uses a recursive loop-splitting method which creates a highly uniform mesh. This option
is generally good when all edges have the same sizing and the faces being meshed do not have a
high degree of curvature. The orthogonality of the mesh from this method is generally very good.

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 Method Control

– Pave - Uses a paving mesh method which creates a good quality mesh on faces with high curvature,
and also when neighboring edges have a high aspect ratio. This approach is also more reliable to
give an all-quad mesh.

Note:

The Surface Mesh Method is applicable only to faces that are free meshed. If a face
can be mapped meshed, it will be. See Face Meshing Control (p. 240) for more inform-
ation.

• Free Mesh Type - Specifying a value for Free Mesh Type will instruct MultiZone to allow a free mesh
if it is not possible (without slicing) to generate a pure hex or hex/prism mesh. The value of Free Mesh
Type determines the shape of the elements used to fill unstructured regions according to the following
choices (the default is Not Allowed):

– Not Allowed - Choose this option if you require a mapped mesh.

– Tetra – Regions of the model that cannot be meshed with a mapped mesh will be filled with a tetra-
hedral mesh. Figure 102: Free Mesh Type = Tetra (p. 208) shows a MultiZone mesh that was generated
when Free Mesh Type was set to Tetra. Notice the lower section that was able to be mapped meshed,
and the upper section that was free meshed because it could not be map meshed. Refer to Patch
Conforming Algorithm for Tetrahedrons Method Control (p. 178) for more information.

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Local Mesh Controls

Figure 102: Free Mesh Type = Tetra

– Tetra/Pyramid – Regions of the model that cannot be meshed with a mapped mesh will be filled
with a tetrahedral mesh with pyramids at the faces. Figure 103: Free Mesh Type = Tetra/Pyramid (p. 209)
shows a MultiZone mesh that was generated when Free Mesh Type was set to Tetra/Pyramid.
Notice the lower section that was able to be mapped meshed, and the upper section that was free
meshed because it could not be map meshed. Refer to Patch Conforming Algorithm for Tetrahedrons
Method Control (p. 178) for more information.

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 Method Control

Figure 103: Free Mesh Type = Tetra/Pyramid

– Hexa Dominant — Regions of the model that cannot be meshed with a mapped mesh will be filled
with a hex dominant mesh. Figure 104: Free Mesh Type = Hexa Dominant (p. 210) shows a MultiZone
mesh that was generated when Free Mesh Type was set to Hexa Dominant. Notice the upper section
that was able to be mapped meshed, and the lower section that was free meshed because it could
not be mapped meshed. Refer to Hex Dominant Method Control (p. 200) for more information.

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Figure 104: Free Mesh Type = Hexa Dominant

– Hexa Core - Regions of the model that cannot be meshed with a mapped mesh will be filled with a
hexa core mesh. Hexa Core meshes can be generated where the majority of the volume is filled with
a Cartesian array of hexahedral elements essentially replacing the tetras. This is connected to the re-
mainder of a prism/tetra hybrid by automatic creation of pyramids. Hexa Core allows for reduction
in number of elements for quicker solver run time and better convergence. Figure 105: Free Mesh
Type = Hexa Core (p. 211) shows a MultiZone mesh that was generated when Free Mesh Type was
set to Hexa Core. Notice the upper section that was able to be mapped meshed, and the lower section
that was free meshed because it could not be mapped meshed.

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 Method Control

Figure 105: Free Mesh Type = Hexa Core

• Element Order - Refer to Method Controls and Element Order Settings (p. 174). The default is Use
Global Setting.

• Src/Trg Selection - Defines the source and target selection type according to the following choices
(the default is Automatic):

– Automatic - The Automatic option generally works fine for simple sweep configurations, but if there
are multiple levels of sweeps it is often best to manually define the source faces.

– Manual Source - You select the faces that will be used as sources (and targets) using the Source
Scoping Method you specify. MultiZone treats all sources/targets as sources, as imprinting can occur
from either side. For additional details, refer to the description of Source Scoping Method, Source,
and Source Named Selection below.

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• Source Scoping Method -Defines the method for choosing a source face. Geometry Selection enables
you to select sources/targets manually using the Source option. Named Selection enables you to
choose one Named Selection as a source/target using the Source Named Selection option.

• Source - Select the faces that need to be imprinted for proper geometry decomposition. This option is
available if you select Geometry Selection as your Source Scoping Method. The faces you select can
be either “sources” or “targets,” but all of them will be treated as sources by MultiZone, as shown in
Figure 106: Source Face Selection for MultiZone (p. 212).

Note:

To make source face selection easier, select Annotation Preferences from the Toolbar
and then deselect Body Scoping Annotations in the Annotation Preferences option
box to toggle the visibility of annotations in the Geometry window. For example,
after scoping MultiZone to a body, the body will be displayed using a blue solid an-
notation. Turn off the body scoping annotations; then select the source faces. For
picking internal faces, the Hide Faces right-click option may help you to see inside a
body. For example, you can select external faces in the Geometry window and then
use the Hide Faces option to hide the selected faces (making it easier to select the
internal faces).

Figure 106: Source Face Selection for MultiZone

• Source Named Selection - Choose an existing Named Selection to select the faces that need to be
imprinted for proper geometry decomposition. This option is available if you select Named Selection as
your Source Scoping Method.

• Sweep Size Behavior – Enables you to set a Sweep Element Size to define the mesh spacing (default),
or to select Sweep Edges to remove edges and prevent them from constraining the source faces.

• Sweep Element Size - Enables you to set an element size to define the mesh spacing along the sweep
path from source to target faces. If this control is set to a non-zero value, sizing controls applied to the
selected bodies as curvature and proximity refinement and/or local sizing are ignored.

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 Method Control

The Sweep Element Size setting is ignored if hard size controls are applied to side edges/faces.
If multiple bodies with the same sweep direction have different sizes set for Sweep Element
Size, the smallest size is used and the others are ignored.

Clicking the check box adds this setting to the Workbench parameters, enabling you to use ele-
ment size settings as a variable design point when creating multiple solutions.

• Sweep Edges- This option should be used with an edge sizing control. The edge sizing control defines
the distribution along the sweep path, and can also affect the source face. Use this option to remove
the influence of the edge sizing from the source face mesh. That is, the edges selected will only influence
the sweep path and not the source faces.

• Preserve Boundaries- Preserves only the protected topologies (See Protecting Topology Defined Prior
to Meshing (p. 159)) or all features in the model. Protected is the default.

• Mesh Based Defeaturing - “Filters” edges in/out based on size. Off by default. If set to On, a Defeature
Size field appears where you may enter a numerical value greater than 0.0. By default, the value of this
local Defeature Size field is the same as the global Defeature Size (p. 86). If you specify a different value
here, it will override the global value. Specifying a value of 0.0 here resets the tolerance to its default.

• Minimum Edge Length - Read-only indication of the smallest edge length in the model.

• Write ICEM CFD Files - Sets options for writing ANSYS ICEM CFD files. Refer to Writing ANSYS ICEM
CFD Files (p. 64) for details.

Note:

For detailed information about MultiZone, refer to MultiZone Meshing (p. 303). For
general information on applying MultiZone in combination with other mesh method
controls, refer to Meshing: Mesh Control Interaction Tables (p. 391).

Notes on Scoping for the MultiZone Mesh Method

You can use the MultiZone mesh method in combination with other solid mesh methods in a
multibody part, and the bodies will be meshed with conformal mesh.

If a multibody part contains some bodies that are scoped to be meshed with MultiZone and other
bodies that are not scoped with any mesh method, these other bodies will be meshed with the
default mesh method.

Refer to Conformal and Non-Conformal Meshing (p. 3) for information about conformal meshing.

Cartesian Method Control

The Cartesian method creates unstructured hexa mesh of mostly uniform size, aligned to the spe-
cified coordinate system, and fits it to the geometry. The element size should be smaller than the
thickness of the model to prevent the mesher from defeaturing (not capturing) that portion of the
model. Alternatively, the defeaturing could be helpful to eliminate “dirty” geometry smaller than
the element size.

This method is useful when the geometry features align well with a coordinate system and a regular
mesh is desired. Models for explicit dynamics, organic models (models without many feature edges),
process industry and electronic components are good examples that could benefit from this mesh

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method. This method is also recommended for simulating the printing process in additive manu-
facturing.

Note:

The Cartesian method must be applied to an entire part. If a body in a multibody part
is selected, all bodies in the part are added to the Geometry selection.

When you choose the Cartesian Method option, the Details View expands to include additional
settings, many of which are unique to this option. For basic usage that involves obtaining a Cartesian
mesh, the procedure is to apply a Method Control to one or more bodies, set Method to Cartesian,
and accept the default values of the various settings.

For advanced or specialized usage, adjust the settings as needed. The following is a description of
each of these settings.

• Element Order - Refer to Method Controls and Element Order Settings (p. 174).

• Type allows you to specify how edge size is determined. Edge size is considered a soft size, allowing
for small variations depending on geometry and other settings.

– Element Size - You can use the Default setting, which is based on global element size, or manually
set the element size.

You can parameterize the Element Size by clicking the check box to the left of the label.

– Number of Divisions - You can use the Default setting, which is obtained from the model's bounding
box size in the z-direction divided by the global element size, or manually set a Number of Divisions
in Z-Dir. The nominal size found from the computation of the number of divisions is also used for
the spacing in the x and y dimensions.

You can parameterize the Number of Divisions in Z-Dir by clicking the check box.

• Algorithm is set to Body Fitted.

• Spacing Option allows you to force split lines to better capture model features. Select one of the fol-
lowing options.

– Default uses the specified element size for X, Y and Z spacing. This may result in distorted or missing
elements.

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 Method Control

– User Controlled, with Key Points Selection set to Automatic, looks at all vertices in the model and
adds split lines to follow the features, within the specified Tolerance. It will then adjust the mesh
spacing between neighboring split lines so that the hex mesh follows the features.

– User Controlled, with Key Points Selection set to Manual, allows you to select vertices manually
to create split lines in each of the X, Y and Z directions. Mesh spacing is adjusted between neighboring
splits. Additional split lines may be added by the mesher as required to follow the features.

• Projection Factor allows you to set the balance between mesh quality and capturing the geometry.

Set a value between 0 and 1. If the Projection Factor is set to 0, the Cartesian mesh will have
high quality hexa elements that approximate the geometry surface via stairstepping. Increasing
the value of Projection Factor will force the mesh to more closely follow the geometry surface,
but with reduced element quality. If the Projection Factor is set to 1, most of the boundary

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nodes will project to the geometry and perturb only those causing bad element quality. However,
some hexa elements may have pairs of coplanar faces to fit a planar geometry surface.

The following demo is presented as an animated GIF. View online if you are reading the PDF version
of the help. Interface names and other components shown in the demo may differ from those in the
released product.The image shows the effect of decreasing the Projection Factor for a simple
geometry with two sides aligned with the global coordinate system.

• Project in constant Z-Plane - This option is useful for print simulation in Additive Manufacturing.

If enabled, the x and y coordinates of the Cartesian mesh are modified while maintaining a con-
stant height in the Z-direction. The final mesh is much tighter to the geometry.

• Stretch Factor in X - (Also available for Y and Z direction). You can use these controls to modify the
Aspect Ratio of the hexa mesh in the selected dimension(s).

This is useful to reduce the element count for a geometry that may be elongated or shortened
in one dimension. In this image, Stretch Factor in Z has been set to 3.0 while X and Y remain
at 1.0. Mesh elements sizes can be up to about 3x larger in the z-dimension than x-dimension
and y-dimension, within the constraint of the Projection Factor.

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Note:

The process for applying the Stretch Factor depends on how edge sizing is detemined,
however the end result on aspect ratio is the same.

– If Type = Element Size, then the stretch factor will apply a multiplier to the element size,
aligned to a selected dimension. For example, if Element Size = 0.1 and stretch factors of
0.5, 1, and 2 are applied, then the dimensional mesh element size will be approximately
0.05, 0.1 and 0.2.

– If Type = Number of Divisions, then the stretch factor will scale the other dimensions
while preserving the specified number of divisions in the z-dimension. For example, if
stretch factors are 0.5, 1, and 2, then the nominal element size will be scaled by approxim-
ately 1/4, 1/2 and 1 to preserve the number of divisions in the z-dimension.

• Coordinate System allows you to choose the coordinate system to which the mesh is aligned. The
global coordinate system will be used by default.

Layered Tetrahedrons Method Control

The Layered Tetrahedrons mesh method creates unstructured tetrahedral mesh in layers based
on a specified layer height and fits it to the geometry.

This method can be used for simulating the printing process in additive manufacturing as the build
parts must conform to a mesh with fixed step sizes in the global Z direction.

The meshing process involves the following approach:

• An initial surface mesh is generated based on the settings defined.

• The mesher generates mesh layers based on the layer height specified. The starting layer is the z-location
of the plane from which the mesh layers will be generated.

• Nodes on the geometry within the tolerance specified (Relative Tolerance) to the layer plane are pro-
jected to the plane during the initial layering operation.

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Feature nodes and corner nodes determined based on the Feature Angle and the Corner Angle,
respectively, will be preserved.

• Problematic sliver faces are identified based on Sliver Triangle Height and are collapsed or fixed to
improve quality.

• Geometry faces overlapping the layer plane are identified based on the Overlapping Angle and are
inflated. Additionally, geometry faces close to the layer planes which will lead to bad quality tets are
identified based on the Layer Height and proximity to the plane. These faces will be inflated away from
the layer planes to create space for better quality tets based on the Inflate Relative Tolerance value
specified.

• The improved surface mesh is then filled with tetrahedral mesh conforming to the mesh layers and the
tetrahedral mesh quality is improved.

Figure 107: Layered Tetrahedrons Mesh

Note:

• Bodies with shared topology are not supported with this mesh method. Conformal mesh
will not be created even when the bodies have shared interface(s).

• This method cannot be used in conjunction with mesh controls such as Inflation, Refinement,
Match Control, Pinch, Face Meshing and Edge Sizing controls.

• The mesh is not associated back to geometry. See Association Using Named Selections (p. 220)
for more details.

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When you choose the Layered Tetrahedrons Method option, the Details View expands to include
additional settings, many of which are unique to this option. For basic usage, the procedure is to
apply a Method Control to the body and set Method to Layered Tetrahedrons. Set the Layer
Height and accept the default values of the various settings.

Meshing Recommendations
• The Layered Tetrahedrons method is available only when Use Adaptive Sizing is set to No.

• Minimum and maximum sizes should be decided based on the model.

– The minimum size should be decided based on the features which are to be resolved and the Layer
Height. It is recommended to set a value smaller than the Layer Height.

– The Element Size size should not be greater than 6 times the minimum size specified. The mesh
quality reduces as the Element Size / Min Size ratio increases.

– The Max Size does not influence the layered tet mesher.

• Set the Growth Rate, the recommended range of values is 1.2 to 2.

• The recommended range for the Curvature Normal Angle is up to 36 degrees.

• The Sliver Triangle Height is based on the minimum size (p. 88) specified. The default value is 10% of
the minimum size

You should use a sliver height not more than 50% of min size.

• Generating thin pockets of mesh can be avoided by increasing Relative Tolerance and / or Inflate
Relative Tolerance. The recommended range for Relative Tolerance is between 0.01 to 0.02. The re-
commended range for Inflate Relative Tolerance is between 0.1 to 0.3.

The Layered Tetrahedrons mesh method includes the following advanced settings:

• Element Order: The default is Use Global Setting. See Method Controls and Element Order Set-
tings (p. 174) for details.

Note:

Only straight sided mid-nodes are available for quadratic element type.

• Generate Layers Using Facets: Generates layered tetrahedron mesh for the given model using facets.
This allows you to skip the surface mesh generation before slicing. Thus, slicing operation is performed
directly on CAD. The default value is No.

• Repair Facets: Enables you to repair CAD facets. When set to Yes, Repair Facets allows you to fix Sliver
facets and facet intersections aggressively. The default value is No.

• Layer Start: This is the z-location of the plane from which the mesh layers will be generated. The default
value is the min Z-coordinate of the bounding box enclosing the scoped bodies.

• Relative Tolerance: Nodes within the given tolerance value to the layer plane will be projected to the
plane during the initial layering operation. The default value is 0.01 (1%) which can be used for most

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cases. The recommended range of values is 0.01 to 0.02 (1-2%). For extreme cases, you may use a value
of up to 0.05.

• Inflate Relative Tolerance: This relative tolerance is used to improve the surface mesh in the thin layer
regions after the layering operation is done. This tolerance is used to move (inflate) nodes away to the
value specified to improve the quality. The default is 0.1 i.e 10% (of the layer height). One usually gets
good results when this tolerance is used in range of 0.1 to 0.3. Largest acceptable value for this setting
is 0.5, which should be used very carefully.

• Overlapping Angle: Geometry faces overlapping the layer plane are identified based on the overlapping
angle and are inflated. The default is 155 degrees. The acceptable range is an angle greater than the
Feature Angle and less than 180 degrees.

• Defeature Layer Volume: Specifies the threshold volume for defeaturing a thin end layer of cells. This
setting is used only if a very thin end layer is expected since such layers may cause mesh quality issues.

• Aggressive Inflate Option: Enables inflation of faces in the proximity of the layer planes to improve
mesh quality in addition to inflation to resolve overlapping faces. This option is set to Yes, by default.
In some cases, the aggressive inflation may introduce some intersections in the surface mesh, in which
case you can set the Aggressive Inflate Option to No.

• Aggressive Tetrahedrons Improvement: Activates the tetrahedron mesh improvement routines. It

allows you to remove the thin tetrahedrons formed during meshing. The default value is No. When set
to Yes, allows the mesh to do aggressive tetrahedron improvements.

• Sliver Triangle Height: Problematic sliver faces are identified based on Sliver Triangle Height and
are collapsed or fixed to improve quality. The Sliver Triangle Height is based on the minimum size (p. 88)
specified. The default value is 10% of the minimum size. Based on the model, you may need to increase
the value, however, it is recommended that the value should not be greater than 50% of the min size.

• Feature Angle: Feature nodes determined based on the Feature Angle will be preserved during
meshing. The default feature angle is 40 degrees. The acceptable range is from 0 degrees to an angle
less than the specified Overlapping Angle.

• Corner Angle: Corner nodes determined based on the Corner Angle will be preserved during meshing.
The default is 90 degrees. The acceptable range is from 0 to 180 degrees.

Association Using Named Selections

The mesh generated using the Layered Tetrahedrons method is not fully associated to the geometry.
To have mesh associated to the geometry, define Named Selections on the faces on which association
is required prior to meshing.

Note:

Edge and vertex named selections are not considered for mesh association.

Limitations
The Layered Tetrahedrons method has the following limitations:

• Multi-body parts with and without shared topology are not supported. You should separate them into
individual parts in CAD.

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• The model should not have other suppressed bodies.

• The mesh is not associated back to geometry. See Association Using Named Selections (p. 220) for more
details.

• Only straight sided mid-nodes are available for quadratic element type.

• Contact must be used between two bodies even if they have a shared interface.

Note:

Conformal mesh will not be generated even if there is a shared interface between
bodies.

Setting the Method Control for Surface Bodies

The options described below are available for surface bodies.
Quadrilateral Dominant Method Control
Triangles Method Control
MultiZone Quad/Tri Method Control

Quadrilateral Dominant Method Control

If you select the Quadrilateral Dominant method (default), the body is free quad meshed. The
Quadrilateral Dominant mesh method includes the following settings:

• Element Order - Refer to Method Controls and Element Order Settings (p. 174).

• Free Face Mesh Type - Available for most analyses and can be set to either Quad/Tri (default) or
All Quad.

Note:

• If you are using the Quadrilateral Dominant mesh method with inflation (p. 265) and the Size
Function (p. 80) is on, the mesh size of the last inflation layer will be used for the correspond-
ing Quadrilateral Dominant boundary mesh size.

• If you apply a local Sizing control (p. 224) to a solid body with a Method control set to Hex
Dominant (p. 200) or Sweep (p. 201), or to a sheet body with a Method control set to Quad-
rilateral Dominant (p. 221), a near uniform quadrilateral mesh will result on all affected faces
on a body meshed with Hex Dominant, on the source face meshed with Sweep, and on all
affected faces meshed with Quadrilateral Dominant. To obtain even more of a uniform
quadrilateral mesh, set the Behavior (p. 237) of the Sizing control to Hard.

• If you are meshing a multibody part that contains a mix of line bodies and surface bodies,
all surface bodies and all line bodies that share edges with surface bodies will be meshed
with the selected surface mesh method. Any remaining line bodies (where only vertices are
shared with surface bodies) will always be meshed with the Quadrilateral Dominant mesh
method.

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Triangles Method Control

If you select the Triangles method, an all triangle mesh is created. For information on the Element
Order option, refer to Method Controls and Element Order Settings (p. 174).

MultiZone Quad/Tri Method Control

If you select the MultiZone Quad/Tri method, a mesh of quads and/or triangles is created over
the entire part of the selected body, depending on values that you enter for the options described
below.

MultiZone Quad/Tri is a patch independent method.

Surface Mesh Method - Instructs MultiZone Quad/Tri to use the Program Controlled, Uniform,
or Pave method to create the mesh.

• Program Controlled - Automatically uses a combination of Uniform and Pave mesh methods
depending on the mesh sizes set and face properties. This is the default method.

• Uniform - Uses a recursive loop-splitting method which creates a highly uniform mesh. This option
is generally good when all edges have the same sizing and the faces being meshed do not have a
high degree of curvature. The orthogonality of the mesh from this method is generally very good.

• Pave - Uses a paving mesh method which creates a good quality mesh on faces with high curvature,
and also when neighboring edges have a high aspect ratio. This approach is also more reliable to
give an all-quad mesh.

Note:

The MultiZone Quad/Tri method ignores the Sizing Options (p. 80) when Surface Mesh
Method is set to Uniform. In such cases, Element Size acts as a hard size.

Element Order - Refer to Method Controls and Element Order Settings (p. 174).

Free Face Mesh Type - Determines the shape of the mesh elements. Can be All Quad, All Tri, or
Quad/Tri (default) for a mesh of pure quad, pure tri, or a combination of quad/tri elements respect-
ively.

Element Size - Allows you to specify the element size used for the selected geometry. Applicable
only when Surface Mesh Method is set to Uniform. Otherwise, uses the global Element Size (p. 78).

Mesh Based Defeaturing - “Filters” edges in/out based on size and angle. Can be On or Off. By
default, this local Mesh Based Defeaturing setting is the same as the setting of the global Mesh
Defeaturing (p. 86) control. When Mesh Based Defeaturing is On, a Defeature Size field appears
where you may enter a numerical value greater than 0.0. By default, the value of this local Defeature
Size field is the same as the global Defeature Size (p. 86). If you specify a different value here, it

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will override the global value. A recommended setting is at least one-half the value set for Element
Size to assure a successful mesh. Specifying a value of 0.0 here resets the tolerance to its default.

Note:

When the global Mesh Defeaturing (p. 86) control is on but Use Adaptive Sizing
is set to Yes, the default defeaturing performed for MultiZone Quad/Tri includes
defeaturing based on the dihedral angle between the faces as well as edge length
defeaturing based on the smallest element size set by the user.

Sheet Loop Removal - Removes holes on surface bodies based on size. If set to Yes, a Loop Re-
moval Tolerance field appears where you may enter a numerical value greater than 0.0. By default,
the value of this local Loop Removal Tolerance field is the same as the global Loop Removal Tol-
erance (p. 172). If you specify a different value here, it will override the global value. The mesh simply
paves over holes smaller than the Loop Removal Tolerance setting. Holes with boundary conditions
applied to them will not be removed from the mesh. Any boundary conditions applied to holes
that were removed from the mesh will not be respected by the solver.

Minimum Edge Length - Read-only indication of the smallest edge length in the part.

Write ICEM CFD Files - Sets options for writing ANSYS ICEM CFD files. Refer to Writing ANSYS ICEM
CFD Files (p. 64) for details.

Usage Information for the MultiZone Quad/Tri Mesh Method Control

The following usage information is applicable to the MultiZone Quad/Tri mesh method:

• Base mesh caching is not supported for MultiZone Quad/Tri, so a change to inflation controls requires
remeshing.

• Using MultiZone Quad/Tri may allow meshing over very small bodies in a multibody part. This may
lead to a solver error if a body load is associated with that body. If this is the case, you must suppress
the body (p. 432) before solving your model.

• Surface bodies with specified variable thickness are not protected topology. To prevent faces and their
boundaries from being meshed over, create an individual Named Selection for each thickness.

• The MultiZone Quad/Tri mesh method supports mesh connections (p. 399).

• You can use the MultiZone Quad/Tri mesh method in combination with other surface mesh methods
in a multibody part, and the bodies will be meshed with conformal mesh. If you select the MultiZone
Quad/Tri mesh method to mesh a multibody part that contains a mix of line bodies and surface bodies,
all surface bodies and all line bodies that share edges with surface bodies will be meshed with the se-
lected method. Any remaining line bodies (where only vertices are shared with surface bodies) will be
meshed with the Quadrilateral Dominant (p. 221) mesh method. Refer to Conformal and Non-Conformal
Meshing (p. 3) for more information about conformal meshing.

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Local Mesh Controls

• When meshing multibody parts having solid bodies and sheet bodies with some faces shared, it is best
to mesh the shared faces with MultiZone Quad/Tri. If the faces are meshed using the solid body mesh
method control, the MultiZone Quad/Tri body will often fail.

Caution:

Multiple environments with different loadings may over-constrain the MultiZone Quad/Tri
mesher such that the mesher may not be able to return a mesh for the given inputs. If
discretization error is not an issue, the mesher will be less constrained if you duplicate
the model and change the environment instead of adding multiple environments under
the same model.

Mesh Grouping Control

Mesh Grouping identifies bodies that should be grouped together for assembly meshing (p. 325) al-
gorithms and is available only when assembly meshing algorithms are being used. See Defining Mesh
Groups (p. 345) for details.

Sizing Control
The Sizing control sets:

• The element size for a selected body, face, or edge.

• The number of divisions along an edge.

• The element size within a user-defined “sphere of influence” that can include a selected body, face, edge,
or vertex. This control is recommended for local mesh sizing. The control must also be attached to a coordinate
system if it is to be scoped to anything other than a vertex.

• The element size within a user-defined “body of influence.” The body of influence will influence the mesh
of the body to which it is scoped, but the body of influence itself will not be meshed.

• The scale factor for a selected body, face, or edge. The scale factor enables you to define the local element,
minimum, and defeature sizes as factors of the global element size.

• The minimum mesh sizing used for a selected body, face, or edge. This setting overrides the default global
sizing.

The Sizing control is described in the following sections:

Notes on Element Sizing
Applying a Local Sizing Control
Descriptions of Local Sizing Control Options

Notes on Element Sizing

Remember the following notes when using the Sizing control:

• Visual aids are available to assist you. When you pick an edge, the edge length is displayed. A circle is
displayed adjacent to the cursor whose diameter indicates the current setting in the Element Size field.

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 Sizing Control

The scale ruler is displayed below the graphic and provides a good estimate of the scale of the model.
Also for edge sizing, if you specify a bias, and if you set Element Size to a value other than Default, the
size control will be displayed graphically with the initial mesh density (including any specified bias) in the
Geometry window.

• When Applying Sizes to Faces: Faces adjacent to a face that has a scoped size control applied to it respect
the source as part of the sizing control. Meshes on the adjacent faces will transition smoothly to the size
on the scoped face. When size controls that have differing sizes are on adjacent entities, the adjacent to-
pology receives the smallest size.

• When Applying Sizes to Edges: If possible, the meshing algorithm places the requested number of divi-
sions on the specified edge. Otherwise, the algorithm adjusts the number to allow a successful mesh
generation. When Behavior is set to Hard, the number of divisions is given a higher priority and the
mesher may fail rather than adjust the number of divisions. In case of failure, inspect the messages for
more information as to what constraints may be causing it.

Note:

– In MultiZone, a closed edge is represented by more than one blocking topological edges.
Therefore, user-specified edge node distribution size may not be respected. However, the
number of intervals will still be respected.

– For split curves in rotated edge association, only interval count, not distribution, will be re-
spected.

• When Sweeping (p. 283): Consider the following when applying size controls to source and target geometry:

– If your sizing controls are scoped to either the source or target face, the mesher will transfer the size
control to the opposite face. If you have a size control on both faces, the size on one of the faces will
be used. That face is automatically determined by the software. However the size on the edges of the
target face will not be affected if no sizes are explicitly defined on these edges.

– Edge sizing applied to a target face is respected only if Behavior is Hard.

– If you have a sphere of influence on a possible source or target face, the face with the most spheres
will be chosen as the source face. The edge mesh of the source face affected by the sphere of influence
will not affect the target face. This may prevent the model from sweeping with acceptable element
quality. To avoid this, place the sphere of influence on the edges of both the source and target face.

– Applying sizes, regardless of type (that is, size, number of divisions, sphere of influence), to the edges
of possible source and target faces will only affect the faces that use these edges.

If you want to control a side area, the problem must be properly constrained such that the interval
assignment does not override your size control. The divisions on the edge may decrease in order
to make the body sweepable. When using a meshing process other than swept meshing, the divisions
can only increase. When applying a size to a part that is sweepable, the resulting mesh may have
fewer divisions on the edge than specified due to the interval assignment logic of the sweepers.

When sweeping a model, if you use the Sphere of Influence sizing control and the sphere is not
touching the edges of a side area or is totally enclosed in the body, the sphere will have no effect.

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Local Mesh Controls

When sweeping a closed torus (shown below) with an applied size on the face of the torus, the
number of divisions that will result on the torus is governed by the arc length between the caps
of the surface on the inside of the torus.

Figure 108: Sweeping a Closed Torus

Figure 109: Resulting Mesh for Closed Torus

• Using the Sphere of Influence sizing control may not have any effect on the generated mesh if the control
is scoped to the Body of a Line Body.

• In general, users are discouraged from defining a body of influence and a sphere of influence such that
the regions of influence overlap. In cases where elements fall within overlapping bodies/spheres of influ-
ence, elements will be created using the Sphere of Influence sizing that appears lowest in the Tree.

• Regardless of the value for the sizing control you set, other factors such as edge and face curvature and
the proximity of small features may override the effect of the sizing control.

• When using mapped face controls, or Sweep or MultiZone parallel edge assignments are handled auto-
matically for mapped faces. That is, for a mapped face, there are two sets of parallel edges. If you increase
or decrease the sizing on one edge, the same increase or decrease occurs automatically on the other edge
to ensure a mapped mesh is possible. If a model contains a row of mapped faces (such as the sides of a
box), you can set a number of elements on one edge and the same number of elements will be forced on
all side/parallel edges. Setting Behavior to Hard will give that edge priority. In case of conflict between
two edges that should be parallel but have different hard sizing controls assigned to them, the software
will either fail and print a message about the conflict, or a free mesh will be given for that face.

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 Sizing Control

• When using MultiZone:

– If you scope bias settings to parallel edges, and the sizings create conflicts, they are applied according
to the following priority:

1. Double bias edge (highest priority)

2. Single bias edge

3. No bias edge

– Setting Behavior to Hard on an edge gives that edge a higher priority. In other words, a hard edge
sizing takes priority over a soft edge sizing, but among sizing controls that are hard or soft, the order
of priority is double, single, then no biasing.

• If you apply a local Sizing control (p. 224) to a solid body with a Method control set to Hex Dominant (p. 200)
or Sweep (p. 201), or to a sheet body with a Method control set to Quadrilateral Dominant (p. 221), a
near uniform quadrilateral mesh will result on all affected faces on a body meshed with Hex Dominant,
on the source face meshed with Sweep, and on all affected faces meshed with Quadrilateral Dominant.
To obtain even more of a uniform quadrilateral mesh, set the Behavior of the Sizing control to Hard.

• If several sizing controls are attached to the same edge, face, or body, the last control is applied. If a sizing
control is placed on an edge and then another is placed on a face or body that contains that edge, the
edge sizing takes precedence over the face or part sizing.

• If you have adjusted the element size, then changed length units in a CATIA or ACIS model, when you
choose Update or Clear Generated Data at a Model or Project node in the Tree Outline, you may need
to re-adjust the element size. The sizing control does not automatically re-adjust to match this situation.

• When using MultiZone Quad/Tri (p. 222) and Surface Mesh Method is set to Uniform, the Element Size
will take priority over local face or body sizings unless the specified face or body size is smaller than the
Element Size. This means you can use face or body sizing to obtain a finer mesh, but not to obtain a
coarser mesh.

• When using Assembly Meshing (p. 325):

– The Element Size (p. 230) option for Type is supported for local body, face, and edge sizing. Any bias
options (p. 238) applied with edge sizing are ignored.

– The Body of Influence (p. 233) option for Type is supported for local body sizing, but the body of influ-
ence cannot be scoped to a line body.

– If you want to use a body of influence with a virtual body (p. 337), you can scope the body of influence
to any body in the geometry. The body of influence does not have to be inside or even in contact with
the scoped body.

– The Sphere of Influence (p. 232) and Number of Divisions (p. 234) options for Type are not supported.

– No local vertex sizing (p. 228) is supported.

– Contact Sizing (p. 238) is supported. However, if contact sizing is applied to entities on a body that is
scoped to a body of influence, the contact sizing is ignored.

If any unsupported local size controls are defined prior to selection of an assembly meshing al-
gorithm, they are suppressed when an assembly meshing algorithm is selected.

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Local Mesh Controls

• For a table summarizing the behaviors of local sizing controls when used with various mesh methods,
refer to Interactions Between Mesh Methods and Mesh Controls (p. 394).

Applying a Local Sizing Control

You can set the local sizing on a body, face, edge, or vertex.

1. Insert a Sizing control by doing one of the following:

• Right-click a body, face, edge, or vertex, and then select Insert > Sizing.

• In the Tree Outline, right-click the Mesh object and select Insert > Sizing.

2. If necessary, in the Details view, define the scope of the selection:

To apply local sizing to... Do this...

A geometry selection 1. Click Scoping Method and select Geometry
Selection.

2. Select a body, face, edge, or vertex.

3. In the Geometry field, click Apply.

A named selection 1. Click Scoping Method and select Named

Selection.

2. Select a Named Selection.

3. Do one of the following, depending on what entities you selected and how you want to control the
mesh sizing:

If you selected... And you want to... Do this...

Bodies, faces, or edges Specify an element size to 1. In the Type field, select
control mesh sizing Element Size.

2. Define the Element

Size (p. 230).

Bodies, faces, or edges Specify a scale factor to define 1. In the Type field, select
the local minimum and Factor of Global Size.
defeature sizes as factors of the
global element size 2. Define the Factor of Global
Size (p. 234).

Bodies, faces, edges, or vertices Apply mesh sizing within the 1. In the Type field, select
confines of a sphere Sphere of Influence.

2. Define the Sphere of Influ-

ence (p. 232).

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 Sizing Control

If you selected... And you want to... Do this...

Bodies Apply mesh sizing by 1. In the Type field, select
specifying an element size and Body of Influence.
controlling the mesh density
based on neighboring bodies 2. Define the Bodies of Influ-
of influence ence (p. 233).

3. Define the Element

Size (p. 230).

Edges Control mesh sizing according 1. In the Type field, select

to a discrete number of Number of Divisions.
divisions along the edge
2. Define the Number of Divi-
sions (p. 234).

4. If necessary, define any advanced options.

The values of the advanced options are set by default. You can change these values to apply
greater control over the local sizing on an entity.

For more information on the advanced options, see Descriptions of Local Sizing Control Op-
tions (p. 229).

Note:

If Use Adaptive Sizing is set to No, any local size applied to an entity is also applied to
all lower topology entities.

Descriptions of Local Sizing Control Options

Use the options described below to further define local mesh sizing. The choices that are available
depend on the selected topology, physics preference, and as noted in the individual option descriptions.
You can set the following local sizing options:

Definition Options:

• Element Size (p. 230)

• Sphere of Influence (p. 232)

• Body of Influence (p. 233)

• Factor of Global Size (p. 234)

• Number of Divisions (p. 234)

Advanced Options:

• Defeature Size (p. 234)

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Local Mesh Controls

• Defeature Size Scale (p. 234)

• Influence Volume (p. 235)

• Affected Distance (p. 235)

• Capture Curvature (p. 235)

• Capture Proximity (p. 235)

• Growth Rate (p. 236)

• Local Min Size (p. 236)

• Curvature Min Size Scale (p. 236)

• Curvature Normal Angle (p. 237)

• Proximity Min Size (p. 237)

• Proximity Min Size Scale (p. 237)

• Num Cells Across Gap (p. 237)

• Proximity Size Function Sources (p. 237)

• Behavior (p. 237)

• Bias Type and Bias Option (p. 238)

Element Size
If you selected a body, face, or edge, Element Size (default) is one of the available options in the
Type field. Enter a positive value (decimals are allowed) in this field. Smaller values generate more
divisions. A value of "0" instructs the sizing control to use its defaults.

The following series of figures shows the effect of the Element Size option applied to the central
face at 5mm.

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 Sizing Control

Element Size set to

5mm.

Element Size default.

Additional details about the Element Size option differs depending on the sizing options set. The
description of Element Size is as follows:

• For an edge, Element Size is the maximum size on the edge. It takes priority over the global Max
Size (p. 85), and any face or body sizing control that includes the edge(s). If two edge sizing controls
are attached to the same edge, the latter size control takes priority.

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Local Mesh Controls

• For a face, Element Size is the maximum size on the face, which is then propagated down to the
edges (unless a more local edge control is assigned). The value of Element Size takes priority over
Max Size (p. 85) and any body size control that includes the face(s). If two face sizing controls are
attached to the same face, the latter size control takes priority.

• For a body, Element Size is the maximum size on the body, and the maximum sizes on faces and
edges of the body (unless a more local face or edge size control is assigned). The value of Element
Size takes priority over the global Max Size (p. 85). If the body size behavior is Hard (p. 237), the value
of Element Size also takes priority over the global Max Size (p. 85).

Sphere of Influence
The Sphere of Influence option is available in the Type field after you select an entity such as a
body, face, edge, or vertex.

If the Sphere of Influence is scoped to a body or vertex, the Sphere of Influence affects the entire
body regardless of sizing options being used. If the Sphere of Influence is scoped to a face or edge
and Use Adaptive Sizing is set to Yes, the Sphere of Influence only affects the face(s) or edge(s)
that are scoped to the control and the transition away from those entities. If the Sphere of Influence
is scoped to a face or edge and any other sizing option is used, the Sphere of Influence will affect
the whole body (not just scoped face(s) or edge(s)).

Although the Behavior option is not available for Sphere of Influence, Sphere of Influence behaves
as a Hard setting. That is, in the vicinity of a Sphere of Influence, the Sphere of Influence sizing
overrides pre-existing sizing information regardless of whether the pre-existing sizes are larger or
smaller than the Sphere of Influence sizing. This is in contrast to the Body of Influence (p. 233) option,
which behaves as a Soft setting.

For bodies, faces, and edges, Sphere of Influence allows you to apply mesh sizing within the confines
of a sphere in space that you define as follows:

1. Create a local coordinate system whose origin you intend to be the center of the sphere.

2. Select this coordinate system in the Sphere Center field.

3. Enter the radius of the sphere in the Sphere Radius field.

4. Enter a value in the Element Size field. The element size will be applied to all topologies within the
confines of the sphere. For example, if you are applying the element size to a face, the size will also be
applied to the edges of that face, and to the vertices of those edges, but only within the confines of the
sphere. An example is shown below.

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 Sizing Control

If you selected a vertex, the only option available in the Type field is Sphere of Influence. The de-
scription is the same as presented above except that the center of the sphere is the vertex. There is
no need to create or use a local coordinate system to define the center of the sphere. After applying
element size to a vertex using Sphere of Influence, the element size is applied to all topologies
connected to that vertex, such as all edges and faces containing that vertex, if they fall within the
sphere. An example is shown below.

Body of Influence
The Body of Influence option is available in the Type field if you selected a body and Use Adaptive
Sizing is set to No. Using this option, you can set one body as a source of another body (that is, a
Body of Influence). The Body of Influence will influence the mesh density of the body that it is
scoped to, but it will not be a part of the model geometry nor will it be meshed. Body of Influence
bodies are noted in the Details View of each prototype.

Although the Behavior option is not available for Body of Influence, Body of Influence behaves as
a Soft setting. That is, in the vicinity of a Body of Influence, the specified Body of Influence sizing
must be larger than the smallest Curvature Min Size (p. 88)/Proximity Min Size (p. 89) and smaller
than the global Max Size (p. 85) to have an effect on the mesh size distribution. The specified Body
of Influence sizing imposes a local maximum size on all elements that are inside the boundary of
the body. This is in contrast to the Sphere of Influence (p. 232) option, which behaves as a Hard
setting.

Remember the following notes when using Body of Influence:

• If your source body is a sphere, it is best for you to use the Sphere of Influence option instead of Body
of Influence. Body of Influence is intended for non-spherical bodies.

• In general, users are discouraged from defining a Body of Influence and a Sphere of Influence such that
the regions of influence overlap. In cases where elements fall within overlapping bodies/spheres of influ-
ence, elements will be created using the Sphere of Influence sizing that appears lowest in the Tree.

• You cannot apply loads, mesh controls, etc. on bodies of influence. Bodies of influence are used only to
influence the sizing controls and therefore only sizing attributes can be applied to them.

• You can suppress and unsuppress bodies of influence.

• If you are using Body of Influence with Match Control, be aware that the body of influence will not be
copied from one matched entity to the other. As a workaround, you can copy the body in the Design-
Modeler application and use both bodies as your source.

• When using Assembly Meshing (p. 325), the body of influence cannot be scoped to a line body. If you want
to use a body of influence with a virtual body (p. 337), you can scope the body of influence to any body

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in the geometry. The body of influence does not have to be inside or even in contact with the scoped
body. Although Contact Sizing (p. 238) is supported for assembly meshing algorithms, if it is applied to
entities on a body that is scoped to a body of influence, the contact sizing is ignored.

Factor of Global Size

If you select a body, face, or edge, Factor of Global Size is one of the available options in the Type
field (unless Use Adaptive Sizing is set to Yes). Choose Factor of Global Size and enter a value for
Element Size Factor to define the local minimum and defeature sizes as factors of the global element
size. If local sizings are defined as a factor of global size and you modify the Element Size (p. 78),
the local sizings are recalculated.

Number of Divisions
Number of Divisions can be used with all meshers except for Assembly Meshing (p. 325) algorithms.

If you select an edge, the options available in the Type field are Element Size and Sphere of Influence,
along with the Number of Divisions option. Choosing Number of Divisions and entering a value
in the Number of Divisions field is an alternative to choosing Element Size if you are interested in
having the mesh be sized according to a discrete number of divisions along an edge. If you set
Number of Divisions to a value greater than 1000, the number of divisions will not be drawn on the
edge in the Geometry window.

Defeature Size
For body sizing and face sizing controls, sets the local tolerance for defeaturing. Features smaller than
or equal to this value will be removed when the mesh is generated. You can specify any value
greater than 0.0.

If the local sizing is Uniform, the default local Defeature Size is set to the smaller of the following
two values:

• Global Defeature Size

• 50% of the value of the local Element Size

For all other local sizing controls, the default local Defeature Size is set to the smaller of the following
two values:

• Global Defeature Size

• 50% of the value of the local Curvature Min Size or Proximity Min Size (whichever is smaller)

For more information about setting the defeature size, see Defeature Size (p. 86).

Defeature Size Scale

Specify the scale factor for the defeature size. The default values comes from the scale factors for
Mechanical Defeature Size Factor and CFD Defeature Size Factor depending on the physics pref-
erence (CFD physics preference uses the CFD Defeature Size Factor, other physics preferences use
the Mechanical Defeature Size Factor). The default value or the value that you specify is multiplied
by the global element size to determine the local defeature size.

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 Sizing Control

Influence Volume
When Element Size is selected, the Influence Volume appears with Yes or No option. The default
option is No. If you select Yes, the Affected Distance field appears. When influencing the volume,
the face size control generates spheres of influence internally by automatic determination of radius
and size based on the Affected Distance.

Note:

• Cartesian method does not support Influence Volume meshing.

• Layered Tetrahedrons Method does not support Influence Volume meshing.

Affected Distance
When Influence Volume is set as Yes, the Affected Distance option appears. You can enter the
distance up to which the defined Element Size will affect the volume mesh.

Capture Curvature and Capture Proximity

If a global sizing option is defined for the model, then you can set a local sizing on a body, face, or
edge to further refine the local entity's sizing. When you set a local sizing on an entity, the local sizing
options default to the same values that are defined for the global size function. You can change any
of these values, and the local values will take precedence over the global values when the mesh is
generated.

For example, if Capture Curvature and/or Capture Proximity are selected, and the local sizing is
Uniform (or vice versa), the local sizing option takes precedence.

Example 4: Setting a Local Sizing Option

If the global sizing option is set to Curvature with a 20° Curvature Normal Angle, and you set a
local sizing of Curvature on a face with a 60° Curvature Normal Angle, the local Curvature Normal
Angle will take precedence when the mesh is generated. In this example, the face with the local sizing
control will use a Curvature Normal Angle of 60° even though the global value is 20°.

If using Nonlinear Mechanical or CFD physics preference, or when Use Adaptive Sizing is set to
No; the following options are available and work as follows:

• Capture Curvature = Yes turns on the Curvature-based Sizing (p. 82).

• Capture Proximity = Yes turns on the Proximity-based Sizing (p. 82).

• If Capture Curvature and Capture Proximity are both set to Yes, then both Curvature-based Sizing (p. 82)
and Proximity-based Sizing (p. 82) will be used.

• If Capture Curvature and Capture Proximity are both set to No, then Uniform (p. 83) sizing will be used.

Note:

Local sizing limitations include:

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Local Mesh Controls

• If Use Adaptive Sizing is set to Yes, then you cannot set a local size function.

• If the global sizing option is set to Capture Proximity or both Capture Proximity and Capture
Curvature, and the local sizing option is set to Capture Curvature or both Capture Proximity
and Capture Curvature (or vice versa), the mesh on the entity is generated as though both
Capture Proximity and Capture Curvature are set locally.

• If the global sizing option is set to Capture Proximity, and the local sizing option is set to
Capture Curvature (or vice versa), the option that has the smallest size specified for it (either
Num Cells Across Gap for the Proximity sizing, or Curvature Normal Angle for the Curvature
sizing) takes precedence.

• The local Proximity sizing is not supported for sheet models. If both the local Proximity and
Curvature sizing is defined on a sheet model, only the Curvature sizing takes effect.

• Local proximity sizing is not supported for edge sizing controls. To set a local edge sizing
control, you must choose either Capture Curvature or Uniform (both Capture Curvature
and Capture Proximity set to No).

Growth Rate
You may specify a growth rate for the scoped soft size of an entity (body, face, or edge only). The de-
scription of the scoped Growth Rate is the same as that of the global growth rate (p. 85) that you
can set in the Details View when the Mesh object is selected in the Tree Outline. However, the growth
rate you specify for a scoped entity must always be smaller than or equal to the specified global growth
rate (p. 85). Growth Rate is not available for Sphere of Influence. Specifying a growth rate for a face
or body affects the growth on the face or on the boundary of the body, and its effect continues
outside of the scoped entity as well.

Local Min Size

You can set Local Min Size to specify a value that takes priority over the global Min Size when you
select a body, face, or edge. If Local Min Size is set to Default, the mesher uses either the global Min
Size or the local Element Size (if defined), whichever is smaller. This setting is available when Capture
Curvature is set to Yes, and is useful when you want to refine the mesh based on curvature. When
you set the Local Min Size, the mesher refines from the Element Size to the Local Min Size in curved
areas, but retains the Element Size for flat areas.

Note:

Local Min Size may not be respected by the Sweeping or MultiZone Methods due to
the interval assignment used to generate structured meshes. The min size is used on
source faces, but not necessarily on side faces.

Curvature Min Size Scale

Specify the scale factor for the curvature minimum size. The value that you specify is multiplied by
the global element size to determine the local curvature minimum size. The default is determined by
the Mechanical Min Size Factor or CFD Min Size Factor option (p. 279) in the Options dialog box,
depending on the physics preference.

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 Sizing Control

Curvature Normal Angle

You may specify Curvature Normal Angle for a scoped entity (body, face, or edge only). Curvature
Normal Angle is the maximum allowable angle that one element edge is allowed to span given a
particular geometry curvature. Available only when Capture Curvature is set to Yes. You can specify
a value from 0 to 180 degrees to override the global setting (where a value of 0 resets the option to
its default). The default for the global setting is calculated based on the Physics Preference (p. 73).

For more information, see Curvature Normal Angle (p. 88).

Proximity Min Size

This option allows you to specify a minimum size to be used in a local proximity sizing calculation,
in addition to the Local Min Size (p. 236). By default, Proximity Min Size is set equal to the default
of Local Min Size. You can accept the default or specify a value greater than 0. For more information,
see Proximity Min Size (p. 89).

Proximity Min Size Scale

Specify the scale factor for the proximity minimum size. The value that you specify is multiplied by
the global element size to determine the local proximity minimum size. The default is determined by
the Mechanical Min Size Factor or CFD Min Size Factor option (p. 279) in the Options dialog box,
depending on the physics preference.

Num Cells Across Gap

Specify the minimum number of layers of elements to be generated in gaps when Capture Proximity
is set to Yes.

Proximity Size Function Sources

This option is available if Capture Proximity is set to Yes. It determines whether regions of proximity
between faces and/or edges are considered when proximity sizing calculations are performed.

For more information, see Proximity Size Function Sources (p. 90).

Behavior
If the global option Use Adaptive Sizing is Yes, or the local sizing is Uniform (both Capture Curvature
and Capture Proximity set to No), the Behavior option is available for bodies, faces, and edges.

You can specify either Soft (default) or Hard, but the effect depends on the type of mesh being
generated. Typically, Hard results in a stricter size setting than Soft. For example, with a tri or tet
mesh, the Hard setting would not allow as much transition from one element size to another element
size due to influences of sizing on neighboring objects. With a Hard setting, the element size defined
would be maintained for the object to which the setting is scoped. With a Soft setting, the element
size defined may be modified in order to respect other size settings in the vicinity of the object to
which the setting is scoped.

You should take care when applying Hard sizes. With a mapped quad/tri or swept mesh, a Hard
setting forces the interval edge assignment on the object to be met, and if the mesher cannot achieve
the setting, the mesh could fail.

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Bias Type and Bias Option

For edges only, use Bias Type to adjust the spacing ratio of nodes on an edge. This feature is useful
for any engineering problem where nodes need to be clustered on an edge or group of edges, or if
there is a need to bias the mapped mesh of a face towards a specific direction with respect to the
edges of the face. Bias Type can be used with all meshers except the Patch Independent Tetrahedron
method and the assembly meshing algorithms (p. 325). To use Bias Type, choose one of the four pre-
determined patterned options depicted pictorially from the Bias Type drop-down menu:

Note:

The MultiZone meshing method respects all Bias Type options. The nodes generally follow
the distribution. However, some optimization can be done to improve transition with
other mesh, or to improve the quality. Setting the Behavior to Hard will give higher pri-
ority to the bias settings defined than the optimization.

Then specify a Bias Option. The drop-down menu enables you to choose No Bias, Bias Factor, or
Smooth Transition:

• Bias Factor is defined as the ratio of the largest edge to the smallest edge. To set the Bias Factor, choose
Bias Factor from Bias Option and enter a value into the field to define the ratio.

• Smooth Transition is defined as Growth Rate = Bias Factor^(1/(n-1)), where n is the number of divisions.
To define Smooth Transition, choose Smooth Transition from Bias Option, then enter a value for Growth
Rate.

Note:

If Behavior is set to Hard, then the number of divisions and the bias cannot be changed
by the mesher. If Behavior is set to Soft, then the edge divisions can be changed but the
edge will be initially meshed with the specified Bias Factor.

If you want to select multiple edges to apply sizing, but some of the edges do not have the same
orientation, you can use the Reverse Bias option to manually select all of the edges. Reverse Bias
is available when the control is applied to the edges, defined as an Element Size or Number of Di-
visions, and has a bias towards one of the vertices (“- -- --- ----” or “---- --- -- -”).

To apply Reverse Bias, select a group of edges, then choose Reverse Bias and click Apply. Only edges
that are part of the main scoping of the control are applied. All others are ignored.

To undo Reverse Bias, select an edge that is not part of the main scoping. Then choose Reverse
Bias and click Apply.

Contact Sizing Control

Contact Sizing creates elements of relatively the same size on bodies from the faces of a face to face
or face to edge contact region. This control generates spheres of influence (p. 232) internally with

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 Refinement Control

automatic determination of radius and size (if Relevance is selected for Type). You may want to apply
a method control (p. 174) on sweepable bodies to force the elements to be tetrahedron in the case
where the sweeper is not providing enough local sizing near your contact region. Your swept mesh
may be quite dense if the contact size is small on the source and target faces of the body. You may
also see very little effect on swept bodies in the case where a contact size is applied to a very small
region of a large source face. You can apply contact sizing using any of the following procedures:

• Choose Contact Sizing from the Mesh Control drop-down menu, or from the context menu when you
right-click a Mesh object (Insert> Contact Sizing). Select a specific contact region under Scope in the Details
View, then under Type, choose Relevance for a relative size (and enter a value or use the slider), or Element
Size (and enter a value) for an absolute size.

• Drag a Contact Region object onto the Mesh object, then in the Details View, under Type, choose Relevance
for a relative size (and enter a value or use the slider), or Element Size (and enter a value) for an absolute
size.

• Drag the Contacts folder onto the Mesh object, which creates a Contact Sizing control for each of the
contact regions in the folder. Then in the Details View for each contact region, under Type, choose Relevance
for a relative size (and enter a value or use the slider), or Element Size (and enter a value) for an absolute
size.

• Select the Contacts folder or an individual Contact Region in the Tree and use the RMB option Create >
Contact Sizing to create Contact Sizing controls for the selected contact regions. Then in the Details View
for each contact region, under Type, choose Relevance for a relative size (and enter a value or use the
slider), or Element Size (and enter a value) for an absolute size.

Note:

• You can select two bodies in the Geometry window and use the Go To > Contact Sizing Common
to Selected Bodies option to identify any contact sizing controls that exist between the two
bodies. This feature provides an easy way for you to delete the common controls.

• Because Contact Sizing objects cannot be duplicated, they cannot be used as template objects
for the Object Generator.

• Contact sizing works differently for assembly meshing algorithms. See Applying Contact Siz-
ing (p. 355) for details.

Refinement Control
Refinement controls specify the maximum number of times you want an initial mesh to be refined.
You can specify refinement controls for faces, edges, and vertices.

To insert a refinement control:

1. Click Mesh on the Tree Outline.

2. Do one of the following:

• Right-click and select Insert> Refinement from the context menu.

• Click Mesh Control on the Context Toolbar and select Refinement from the drop-down list.

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Local Mesh Controls

3. In the Details View, scope the geometry whose mesh you want to be refined.

4. Specify a Refinement value between 1 (minimum refinement) and 3 (maximum refinement). If you
attach several controls to the same entity, the last control applied takes precedence.

Some refinement controls can override or affect other refinement controls that have been applied to
connected topology. A face refinement control overrides a refinement control on any of the face's edges
or vertices. An edge refinement control overrides a refinement control on either of the edge's vertices.
Basically, a refinement control will lower the value of an overridden control by its own value.

For example, consider a face refinement control with a refinement value of 1, where one of the face's
edges has a refinement control with a value of 2, and one of the edge's vertices has a refinement control
with a value of 2. In this example, the face refinement control reduces the value of the edge refinement
control by 1, and it also reduces the value of the vertex refinement control by 1. The edge refinement
control now has a value of 1, so it reduces the vertex's refinement control by 1. Now the vertex refinement
control has a value of zero, which essentially means the refinement control has no effect.

Note:

• Refinement controls are not available for the MultiZone, Patch Independent Tetra, or MultiZone
Quad/Tri mesh methods, or for assembly (p. 325) meshing algorithms. If you are using the
Automatic Method (p. 177) and you have enabled the Use MultiZone for Sweepable Bodies (p. 277)
option, refinement controls on sweepable bodies behave similarly to how they behave when the
Sweep mesh method is used.

• In the following scenarios, refinement controls are automatically suppressed:

– When automatic inflation (p. 125) (either Program Controlled (p. 126) or All Faces in Chosen
Named Selection (p. 127)) is used with refinement in the same model.

– When local inflation (p. 265) is used with refinement in the same body or in the same part.

• If you apply a refinement control to a part that was either swept meshed (p. 201) or hex dominant
meshed (p. 200), and then you delete the refinement control, the intermediate tetrahedral mesh
will be retained unless you invalidate the state of the part (for example, by clearing the database).
An intermediate tetrahedral mesh is created when you try to refine non-tetrahedral solid elements.

• Refinement controls are not supported on shared faces between solid bodies and sheet bodies
in a multibody part.

• Refinement controls are not supported for Mixed Order Meshing (p. 378).

• Special processing of refinement operations occurs when you use the Mesh worksheet to create
a selective mesh history. Refer to Using the Mesh Worksheet to Create a Selective Meshing His-
tory (p. 365) for details.

Face Meshing Control

Face meshing controls enable you to generate a free or mapped mesh on selected faces. The Meshing
application determines a suitable number of divisions for the edges on the boundary face automatically.
If you specify the number of divisions on the edge with a Sizing control, the Meshing application at-
tempts to enforce those divisions.

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 Face Meshing Control

To set the Face Meshing controls, highlight Mesh in the Tree Outline, and right-click to view the menu.
Select Insert> Face Meshing. You can also click Mesh in the Tree Outline, and select the Mesh Control
Context Toolbar, then select Face Meshing from the drop-down menu.

Definition>Mapping is set to Yes by default, also exposing Constrain Boundary (p. 241) and Ad-
vanced (p. 242) settings. If Mapping is set to No, the Mesher will perform a free mesh and the Constrain
Boundary and Advanced settings are not available.

Note:

To assist you in defining face meshing controls, you can use the Show Mappable Faces (p. 444)
feature to select all mappable faces automatically and highlight them in the Geometry
window.

Mapped Face Meshing is supported for the following mesh methods:

Volume Meshing:

• Sweep (p. 201)

• Patch Conforming Tetrahedron (p. 178)

• Hex Dominant (p. 200)

• MultiZone (p. 205)

Surface Meshing:

• Quadrilateral Dominant (p. 221)

• Triangles (p. 222)

• MultiZone Quad/Tri (p. 222)

Face Meshing control topics include:

Setting Basic Face Meshing Controls for Mapped Meshing
Understanding Advanced Mapped Face Meshing Controls
Notes on Face Meshing Controls for Mapped Meshing

Note:

For general information about applying mapped Face Meshing controls in combination with
the various mesh method controls, refer to Meshing: Mesh Control Interaction Tables (p. 391).

Setting Basic Face Meshing Controls for Mapped Meshing

This section describes the steps for setting basic Face Meshing controls for mapped face meshing.

To set basic Face Meshing controls for mapped meshing:

1. Insert a mapped face meshing control by highlighting Mesh in the Tree and right-clicking to view the
menu. Select Insert> Face Meshing. Definition>Mapped Mesh is set to Yes by default.

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Local Mesh Controls

2. For the Definition> Method control, choose Quadrilaterals or Triangles: Best Split. (The Triangles:
Best Split option is available only for sheet models.)

3. For the Definition> Internal Number of Divisions control, specify the number of divisions across an-
nular regions or seamless cylinders. (The Internal Number of Divisions option is activated when the
Face Meshing control Definition is set to Mapped Mesh and the control is scoped to faces made up
of two loops.) The default value is 0.

4. For the Definition> Constrain Boundary control, specify whether you want to allow the mesher to
split the boundary of a mapped mesh region to aid in meshing of adjacent faces. You can choose Yes
(constrain boundary; no splitting is allowed) or No (do not constrain boundary; splitting is allowed).
The default is No. See Notes on Face Meshing Controls for Mapped Meshing (p. 249) for related inform-
ation.

5. Generate the mesh by right-clicking the Mesh object in the Tree and selecting Generate Mesh.

Understanding Advanced Mapped Face Meshing Controls

When you apply advanced mapped Face Meshing controls for mapped meshing to a face, the
Meshing application divides the face into one or more mappable regions and creates a mapped mesh
in each region. Advanced mapped face meshing controls are subject to restrictions related to vertex
types (p. 243) and restrictions related to edge mesh intervals (p. 244).

The advanced Face Meshing controls for mapped meshing are supported for the following mesh
methods only:

Volume Meshing:

• Sweep (p. 201)

• Patch Conforming Tetrahedron (p. 178)

• Hex Dominant (p. 200)

• MultiZone (p. 205)

Surface Meshing:

• Quadrilateral Dominant (p. 221)

• Triangles (p. 222)

• MultiZone Quad/Tri (p. 222)

Advanced mapped Face Meshing topics include:

Restrictions Related to Vertex Types
Restrictions Related to Edge Mesh Intervals
Selecting Faces and Vertices
Effect of Vertex Type on Face Meshes

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 Face Meshing Control

Setting Advanced Face Meshing Controls for Mapped Meshing

Note:

For general information on applying Face Meshing controls for mapped meshing in com-
bination with the various mesh method controls, refer to Meshing: Mesh Control Interaction
Tables (p. 391).

Restrictions Related to Vertex Types

To constitute a submappable face, a face must possess only End, Side, Corner, and Reversal vertices.
In addition, the total number of End vertices, NE, must satisfy the following equation:

NE = 4 + NC + 2NR

where NC and NR are the total numbers of Corner and Reversal type vertices, respectively, on the
face. That is, for every Corner type vertex, the face must possess an additional End vertex, and for
every Reversal vertex, the face must possess two additional End vertices.

Note:

You cannot specify Reversal vertices. Reversal vertices are used internally by the Meshing
application to determine whether the face is mappable.

The shape of the mesh generated by means of the advanced face meshing controls depends on
the type and arrangement of vertex types on the face. As an example of the effect of vertex types,
consider the face shown in Figure 110: Inside Corner Vertex (p. 243), which consists of a planar L-
shaped face, one corner of which is truncated at an angle.

Figure 110: Inside Corner Vertex

In Figure 110: Inside Corner Vertex (p. 243), the inside corner vertex (C) is designated as a Corner
vertex, therefore, in order to be submappable, the face must possess five End type vertices (A, B,

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Local Mesh Controls

D, E, and F). The advanced mapped Face Mesh control divides the face into the following two
mapped regions:

• A, B, C, H, F, G

• C, D, E, H

Note:

If you enforce an advanced mapped face mesh control on a face, the Meshing application
evaluates the face with respect to its vertex type designations. If the vertex types do not
meet the criteria outlined above, the Meshing application attempts to change the vertex
types so that the face is submappable.

For most submappable faces, there are multiple configurations of vertex types that sat-
isfy the vertex type criteria. Each vertex type configuration results in a unique node
pattern for the submapped mesh. When the Meshing application automatically changes
vertex types, it attempts to employ the configuration that minimizes distortion in the
mesh. To enforce a specific node pattern on a submapped mesh, manually select the
vertices such that they meet the advanced mapped mesh control vertex type criteria
outlined above. (See Selecting the Vertex Type and Picking Vertices (p. 244).)

Restrictions Related to Edge Mesh Intervals

If you specify a bias on the edge of a face before applying an advanced mapped Face Mesh control
to the face, you must specify the bias on all parallel edges of the face.

Selecting Faces and Vertices

To use advanced mapped Face Mesh controls on a face, you must do the following:

• Select the face upon which the vertex types are to be defined

• Select the vertex type (using the Specified Sides, Specified Corners, and Specified Ends con-
trols (p. 247))

• Pick the vertices to which the vertex type specification is to be applied

Selecting the Face

The Meshing application vertex types are specific to the faces upon which they are set. Therefore,
to specify the type designation of an individual vertex, you must first select a face to be associated
with that vertex. An individual vertex may possess as many vertex type designations as the number
of faces to which it is attached. For example, it is possible for a vertex to possess a Side type desig-
nation with respect to one face and an End type designation with respect to another, as long as
two separate mapped face meshing controls are defined for the two faces. For more information,
refer to Setting Advanced Face Meshing Controls for Mapped Meshing (p. 247).

Selecting the Vertex Type and Picking Vertices

The structure of any face mesh in the vicinity of an individual vertex on its boundary is a function
of the vertex type. There are three vertex types that you can specify.

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 Face Meshing Control

• End

• Side

• Corner

Figure 111: Face Vertex Types

An individual vertex may possess only one vertex type designation. For example, you cannot des-
ignate a vertex as type “side” and also designate that same vertex as type “end.” For more inform-
ation, refer to Setting Advanced Face Meshing Controls for Mapped Meshing (p. 247).

Each vertex type differs from the others in the following ways:

• The number of face mesh lines that intersect the vertex

• The angle between the edges immediately adjacent to the vertex

The following table summarizes the characteristics of the vertex types shown in Figure 111: Face
Vertex Types (p. 245).

Note:

If a face has only 4 vertices and 4 edges, the maximum for the range of the angle
of a Side vertex type is 179°, and the acceptable range shifts accordingly.

Vertex Intersecting Grid Range of Angle Between Edges

Type Lines
End 0 0° — 135°
Side 1 136° — 224°
Corner 2 225° — 314°
Reversal 3 315° — 360° (You cannot specify Reversal vertices. The range
for Reversal vertices is used internally by the Meshing application
to determine whether the face is mappable.)

The following sections describe the general effect of the End, Side, and Corner vertex types on the
shape of the face mesh in the vicinity of a specified vertex.

End Vertex Type

When you specify a vertex as the End vertex type (Specified Ends control (p. 247)), the Meshing applic-
ation creates the face mesh such that only two mesh element edges intersect at the vertex (see (a) in
Figure 111: Face Vertex Types (p. 245)). As a result, the mapped and submapped face mesh patterns

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Local Mesh Controls

on both sides of the End vertex terminate at the edges adjacent to the vertex. Assigning the End vertex
type to a vertex whose adjacent edges form an angle greater than 180° will likely result in mesh failure.

Side Vertex Type

When you specify a vertex as the Side vertex type (Specified Sides control (p. 247)), the Meshing ap-
plication creates the face mesh such that three mesh element edges intersect at the vertex (see (b) in
Figure 111: Face Vertex Types (p. 245)). The Meshing application treats the two topological edges that
are adjacent to the vertex as a single edge for the purposes of meshing.

Corner Vertex Type

When you specify a vertex as the Corner vertex type (Specified Corners control (p. 247)), the Meshing
application creates the face mesh such that four mesh element edges intersect at the vertex (see (c)
in Figure 111: Face Vertex Types (p. 245)). Assigning the Corner vertex type to a vertex whose adjacent
edges form an angle less than 180° will create an unnecessarily bad quality mesh (although the mesh
will be valid).

Effect of Vertex Type on Face Meshes

As an example of the general effects of vertex types on face meshes, consider the planar face shown
in Figure 112: Seven-sided Planar Face (p. 246). The following two examples illustrate the effects of
different vertex type specifications applied to vertices C, F, and G on the shape of the resulting
mesh.

Figure 112: Seven-sided Planar Face

In Figure 113: Example Face Mesh—Side Inside Corner Vertex (p. 247), vertices C, F, and G are specified
as Side vertices; therefore, the Meshing application treats sides BCD and EFGA as if each were a
single edge. As a result, the entire face represents a mappable region, and the Meshing application
creates a single checkerboard pattern for the mesh.

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 Face Meshing Control

Figure 113: Example Face Mesh—Side Inside Corner Vertex

In Figure 114: Example Face Mesh—Corner Inside Corner Vertex (p. 247), vertices C, F, and G are
specified as Corner, Side, and End type vertices, respectively. As a result, the face is submappable,
and the Meshing application creates two separate checkerboard patterns for the mesh. The upper-
left submapped region is defined by the polygon ABCHFG. The lower-right submapped region is
defined by CDEH. For both regions, the node at point H serves as an End type vertex for the purposes
of mesh creation.

Figure 114: Example Face Mesh—Corner Inside Corner Vertex

Setting Advanced Face Meshing Controls for Mapped Meshing

This section describes the basic steps for setting Face Meshing controls for mapped meshing.

To set advanced Face Meshing controls for mapped meshing:

1. Insert a Face Meshing control by highlighting Mesh in the Tree and right-clicking to view the menu.
Select Insert> Face Meshing. Definition>Mapped Mesh is set to Yes by default.

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Local Mesh Controls

2. Select the face upon which the vertex types are to be defined by scoping the face in the Mapped
Face Meshing Details View. (Refer to Selecting the Face (p. 244) for more information.)

3. For the Definition> Method control, choose Quadrilaterals or Triangles: Best Split.

4. Enter additional Definition settings, as desired, in the Details View.

5. Use the Specified Sides, Specified Corners, and Specified Ends controls in the Advanced section
of the Details View to select the desired vertices in the Geometry window and apply your selections.
To do so, pick the desired vertex/vertices in the Geometry window and then click the Specified
Sides, Specified Corners, or Specified Ends control to assign the vertex/vertices to the desired
vertex type. (Refer to Selecting the Vertex Type and Picking Vertices (p. 244) for more information.)

Note:

If you select a vertex by mistake and want to de-select it, click the control in question
in the Advanced section of the Details View, clear the selection by clicking in an
“empty” portion of the Geometry window, and then click Apply. For example, as-
sume that you mistakenly selected 1 vertex for the Specified Corners control. To
clear the selection:

• In the Specified Corners control in the Advanced section of the Details View, click
your selection (that is, the text “1 Vertex”).

The Apply/Cancel buttons will appear in the Specified Corners control and
the vertex will be highlighted in green in the Geometry window.

• Click in an empty portion of the Geometry window.

• Click Apply in the Specified Corners control.

Note:

An individual vertex may possess as many vertex type designations as the number
of faces to which it is attached. For example, it is possible for a vertex to possess a
Side type designation with respect to one face and an End type designation with
respect to another, as long as two separate mapped face meshing controls are
defined for the two faces. Conversely, a single mapped Face Meshing control cannot
specify the same vertex as more than one vertex type. That is, you cannot designate
a vertex as type Side and also designate that same vertex as type End in a single
mapped face meshing control. If you attempt to do so, the second and any sub-
sequent assignments for that vertex will result in the control being highlighted in
yellow in the Advanced section of the Details View, and you will not be able to
generate a mesh. If this occurs, use the procedure noted above to de-select the
unwanted vertex assignment(s).

6. Generate the mesh by right-clicking the Mesh object in the Tree and selecting Generate Mesh.

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 Face Meshing Control

Notes on Face Meshing Controls for Mapped Meshing

Remember the following notes when using the Face Meshing controls for mapped meshing:

• The blue status icon that may appear in the Tree Outline indicates that a mapped mesh cannot be provided
on the scoped topology. One of three scenarios triggers the icon:

1. The face cannot be map meshed.

2. The quality of the mapped mesh was not acceptable and a free mesh was generated.

3. If Constrain Boundary (p. 241) is set to Yes, the mesher will fail if the boundary of a mapped mesh
must be modified.

• For mixed/solid shell parts, a Face Meshing control cannot be scoped to a sheet face if the face is adjacent
to a solid body. In such cases, the meshing of the sheet face will fail.

• To assist you in working with mapped face meshing, you may want to use the Show Mappable
Faces (p. 444), Show Sweepable Bodies (p. 440), and/or Preview Surface Mesh (p. 435) features. The Show
Mappable Faces feature selects all mappable faces automatically and highlights them in the Geometry
window. By using the Show Sweepable Bodies feature, you can find out whether bodies are sweepable
(before and after modifying vertex types). By using the Preview Surface Mesh feature, you can verify that
your mesh settings are correct.

• When sweeping (p. 283):

– If the sweep method is applied to a body and mapped face meshing is defined for either the body's
source or target face, the sweep mesher will fail if a mapped mesh cannot be obtained for the face.

– When mapped face meshing is defined for a side face, the mapped mesher will loosen its tolerances
on determining whether a face is mappable.

– When sweeping and using advanced mapped meshing controls (p. 244), you must set vertex types for
both the source and target faces.

• When a face has only 4 vertices and 4 edges, and mapped Face Meshing controls are applied, the only
factor that will determine a successful mapped mesh is element quality.

Note:

It is often helpful to use the Show Vertices option to ensure edges are complete and
do not have unintended segmentation. If an edge is segmented, it could mean that a
face you think should be successfully mapped actually has 5 vertices and 5 edges. To
help resolve such issues, you can define a virtual edge (p. 446) or use advanced mapped
Face Meshing controls (p. 242).

• An effective technique for mapped meshing on surface bodies is to select all faces on the body and let
the mesher determine which faces should be map meshed and which faces should be free meshed.

• Mapped Face Meshing controls are not supported for assembly (p. 325) meshing algorithms.

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• If the mapped Face Meshing controls are attached to faces with exactly two boundary edges or two sets
of boundary edges, an additional option, Internal Number of Divisions, is available. This option allows
you to specify the number of layers of elements that will be generated between the two boundary edges.

– If there is a conflict between Internal Number of Divisions and a Face sizing control, the mapped
face control's Internal Number of Divisions value will take priority.

– If there is a conflict between Internal Number of Divisions and a parallel Edge sizing control, the
Sweep mesh method will respect the Internal Number of Divisions unless the size is hard, in which case
it will return an error notifying you of the conflict. The MultiZone mesh method will respect the Edge
sizing control.

– If there is a conflict between the Internal Number of Divisions and the number of divisions on a Sweep
mesh method, the Sweep mesh method will return an error notifying you of the conflict.

– See Face Characteristics for Annular faces in the table below for more information.

The table below provides an overview of types of faces and how various mesh methods handle when
mapped Face Meshing controls are applied to them.

Face Characteristic
Circular Triangle Annular Internal
Loops

Mesh Method

• Sweep (p. 201) Not supported. Not Supported. In Not

You must free supported. the Details supported.
• Thin mesh these faces. You must View, the In- You must
Sweep (p. 290) free mesh ternal Num- free mesh
these faces. ber of Divi- these faces,
• Hex As side faces, sions (p. 241) but note the
Dominant (p. 200) triangle faces option is following: If
can be activated so there is just
• Patch
mapped to you can one internal
Conforming
obtain a specify the loop, it is
Tetrahedron (p. 178)
wedge mesh number of treated as an
• Quadrilateral at one divisions annular case.
Dominant (p. 221) corner, across the For example,
depending annular if the model
• Triangles (p. 222) on source region. The above were
face option is set split in half,
selection. to 3 in the you would
example have a square
below: annulus
which would
mesh similar
to the
circular

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 Face Meshing Control

Face Characteristic
Circular Triangle Annular Internal
Loops

Mesh Method

annulus
model.

• MultiZone (p. 205) Supported, Supported. Supported. In Ignored for

but mesh Triangle faces the Details source faces.
• MultiZone quality is are View, the In- However,
Quad/Tri (p. 222) poor. submapped ternal Num- internal loops
to tri ber of Divi- are
primitives. sions (p. 241) supported for
option is side faces. If
activated so this example
you can is meshed
You can use specify the top to
inflation to number of bottom, and
obtain an divisions has mapped
O-Grid for across the faces defined
As side faces,
better quality annular on the sides,
triangle faces
in corners. region. The it meshes as
can be
option is set follows:
mapped to
to 3 in the
obtain a
example
wedge mesh
below:
at one
corner,
depending For more
on source information
face on using
selection. mapped Face
Meshing with
side faces,
see Side Face
Handling of
Imprinted
Regions (p. 315).

With fillets, chamfers, or large or small angles

• It is not always clear which vertex(es) should be used as the corner(s). Using virtual topology (p. 445) to
merge edges or split faces, or using mapped face meshing vertex controls may help.

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Local Mesh Controls

• When there are a large number of segments along a side. This situation may create difficulties in assigning
incremental edge assignments that lead to good quality mesh. In these cases, adding a face split is a good
way to ensure the interval edge assignment is done correctly.

Concerns over the mappability of faces may be different depending on whether the faces are
source/target faces or side faces. For sweeping to be successful (regardless of whether Sweep (p. 201),
Thin Sweep (p. 290), or MultiZone (p. 205) is used), all side faces (that is, all non-source/target faces)
must be mappable. Ensuring side face mappability is most critical to ensure a successful swept mesh.
Ensuring a source face can be mapped should be a lower priority, and your strategy for sweeping
should account for this difference. You can use the Show>Mappable Faces (p. 444) option to help
determine mappability of faces.

In addition to the mappability of each individual side face, the collective set of faces for a given side
may present a problem. For example, for a collective set of faces, all parallel edges need to have the
same number of divisions from the top to the bottom of the sweep. Ensuring all side faces of a swept
body are mappable does not always ensure the body is sweepable. For example, if parallel edges of
a mapped face change in direction, a source edge could become a side edge and make the body
impossible to sweep. Also, edge splits on one face need to propagate through the collective set of
faces while maintaining a reasonable quality mesh. Reducing the number of edge splits may simplify
the sweeping and lead to a better quality mesh. This effect is the result of the simplification in the
“interval edge assignment,” or the requirement for the mesher to have the same number of divisions
along the sweep path.

Extending splits through the set of side faces may also help the mesher with the incremental edge
assignments, as well as with constraining the grid lines along the sweep path to control the mesh
quality. The imprinting that occurs with MultiZone creates further complications. See Side Face
Handling of Imprinted Regions (p. 315) for more information.

Mesh Copy Control

The Mesh Copy control enables you copy mesh from one body to another. This option can be used to
reduce the mesh setup time for repetitive bodies/parts. Association to CAD is maintained after performing
mesh copy.

Mesh controls are scoped only to the source anchor body. When the mesh is generated, the source
anchor body is meshed and the mesh is then copied to targets.

You can scope the Mesh Copy control to either a geometry selection or a named selection as follows:

1. Insert a Mesh Copy control by right-clicking the Mesh object in the Tree Outline and selecting Insert >
Mesh Copy.

2. In the Details view, define the scope of the selection:

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 Mesh Copy Control

• To apply the mesh copy to a geometry selection, set the Scoping Method to Geometry Selection.
Select a face for the Source Anchor.

• To apply the mesh copy to a named selection, set the Scoping Method to Named Selection. Select
the appropriate Named Selection for the Source Anchor.

3. Define the scope for the target:

• To apply the mesh copy to a geometry selection, set the Target Scoping to Geometry Selection. Select
the appropriate faces for the Target Anchors.

• To apply the mesh copy to a named selection, set the Target Scoping to Named Selection. Select the
appropriate Named Selection for the Target Anchors.

Note:

While scoping the source and target anchors, note the following:

• The source and target face area should be the same.

• The associated source and target bodies should have the same volume.

• The source and target configuration should be identical (for example, a circle to rectangle mapping
is incorrect, even if the face area is the same).

• If the above is not true, the mesh may be copied, but the nodes may not be associated properly
to the target bodies, or the copied mesh transformation may be incorrect.

Figure 115: Mesh Copy Scope (p. 254) shows the set up of the Source face (blue) and Target Anchor
faces (red) for the Mesh Copy control. Figure 116: Generated Mesh (p. 254) shows the mesh that was
generated.

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Local Mesh Controls

Figure 115: Mesh Copy Scope

Figure 116: Generated Mesh

Note:

• The mesh copy control is supported only for solid bodies.

• The mesh copy control is not supported when previewing the surface mesh, or previewing infla-
tion.

• Mesh copy is supported for multibody parts with share topology. Bodies which are scoped to a
Mesh Copy control are meshed first, and then the remaining bodies are meshed.

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 Match Control

• Selective meshing (p. 361) is supported with mesh copy only if the source bodies are meshed
before the target bodies. If the target bodies are meshed first, the mesh will not be copied.

• The Mesh Copy target body is a reflection of the source. Element connectivities will be different.
This may cause the solver to fail. Choosing a different target anchor face might help in some
cases. True reflection is not supported.

• Mesh copy is not supported for Assembly meshing (p. 325).

• Mesh controls set up on the target bodies will be ignored when the mesh is generated.

• Sizing controls set up on the target bodies will not be copied to the source body.

Match Control
The Match Control matches the mesh on two or more faces or edges in a model. The Meshing applic-
ation provides two types of match controls—cyclic (p. 257) and arbitrary (p. 258).

The Match Control is supported for the following mesh methods:

Volume Meshing:

• Sweep (p. 201)

• Patch Conforming (p. 178)

• MultiZone (p. 205)

Surface Meshing:

• Quad Dominant (p. 221)

• All Triangles (p. 222)

Remember the following information when using the match control feature:

• Edge meshes are matched for sheet, 2D, and 3D bodies. Face meshes are matched across bodies.

• A single match control with one high face and one low face cannot be applied across multiple parts. If there
are multiple faces on the high side and multiple faces on the low side, the software does its best to match
the high and low sides on a part-by-part basis. For example, the match control will support situations in
which there are two parts, each having one face on the high side and one face on the low side (for a total
of two high faces and two low faces). However, for more complex situations, you must be careful to ensure
the proper matching is done.

• Matching will fail if the high and low faces are on two separate bodies that have other bodies (being meshed
with a method other than Sweep) or a space between them.

• The faces or edges that you select must be topologically and geometrically the same.

This means:

– They have the same number of vertices on the high and low sides.

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Local Mesh Controls

– They have similar surface area or length.

– The high and low sides have similar transformation.

The mesher will move nodes away from the geometry to meet the transformation.

• If the low and high sides of a geometry do not match, the high side geometry is meshed and the low side
will be meshed using the transformation from the match control. In this case, the low side geometry and
mesh might be slightly different, so a warning is displayed prompting you to check this deviation and decide
whether it is acceptable or that you should modify the geometry.

• Multiple match controls can be associated with a single entity, but multiple associations can result in conflicts
among match controls. If a conflict occurs, the Meshing application issues an error message, and matching
fails. For example, a match control conflict may occur if the two faces adjacent to an edge have two different
match controls applied to them. If the two match controls use two different sets of coordinate systems the
mesher may produce an error even if the transformation between the two match controls is the same.
However, for this case, if the two match controls refer to the same set of coordinate systems there won’t be
any conflict.

• A match control can only be assigned to one unique face pair. Assigning the same face as High/Low Geo-
metry in more than one match control is not supported. If multiple match controls assign the same face as
a High/Low Geometry entity, the match control that appears lowest in the Tree is honored.

• Match controls are not respected with refinement or adaptivity.

• When match is used with the Sizing Options (p. 80), the effect of a sizing on the high or low side will be
transferred bidirectionally from the high side to the low side and vice versa. This means that if the low side
has a sizing control and the high side does not, the Sizing control will use the low sizing control on the high
side.

• Match controls on faces are supported with Pre inflation (p. 134), regardless of whether inflation is set to
Program Controlled (p. 126) or has been set through any global or local inflation definition. In contrast, match
controls on edges are not supported with Pre inflation. Match controls (both faces and edges) are not sup-
ported with Post inflation (p. 136). For non-supported cases, ANSYS Workbench automatically suppresses/dis-
ables the Match Control feature.

• Match controls are not enforced when previewing inflation (p. 437).

• You cannot apply a match control to topology on which a face-edge pinch (p. 161), mesh connection, or
symmetry control has been applied. In any of these cases, an error will be issued when you generate the
mesh.

• Match controls are not supported for assembly (p. 325) meshing algorithms.

• Match controls on edges are not supported for the MultiZone (p. 205) mesh method. When match controls
on faces are used with MultiZone, only one periodic or cyclic transformation is supported (MultiZone can
support multiple match controls, as long as they use the same coordinate system and have the same
angle/translation). In addition, MultiZone does not support matching of free meshed regions (p. 206).

• Match controls can be used with thin sweeping (p. 290), as shown in the figures below. In the figure on the
left, a match control was applied to the top and bottom faces. In the figure on the right, a match control
was applied to the side faces.

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 Match Control

Figure 117: Match Controls Used with Thin Sweeping

Match control topics include:

Cyclic Match Control
Arbitrary Match Control

Note:

For general information on applying match controls in combination with the various mesh
method controls, refer to Meshing: Mesh Control Interaction Tables (p. 391).

Cyclic Match Control

The cyclic matching process involves copying the mesh of the first selected faces or edges in the
Match Control (the High Geometry Selection scoped in the Details View of the Match Control) to
the second selected faces or edges in the control (the scoped Low Geometry Selection).

You can scope a Cyclic Match Control to either a geometry selection or a named selection.

If you want to automatically generate solver constraints for periodic mesh in addition to matching
the mesh, you should use the Symmetry feature in the Mechanical application.

1. Insert a Match Control by right-clicking the Mesh object in the Tree Outline and selecting Insert >
Match Control.

2. In the Details view, define the scope of the selection:

To apply a match control to... Do this...

A geometry selection 1. Click Scoping Method and select Geometry
Selection.

2. Select one or more faces or edges, and then

in the High Geometry Selection field, click
Apply.

3. Select one or more faces or edges, and then

in the Low Geometry Selection field, click
Apply.

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Local Mesh Controls

To apply a match control to... Do this...

A named selection 1. Click Scoping Method and select Named
Selection.

2. In the High Boundary and Low Boundary

fields, select the appropriate named
selections.

3. In the Details View, select Cyclic as the Transformation type and a coordinate system with its z-axis
aligned to the axis of rotation for the geometry.

4. Generate the mesh by right-clicking the Mesh object and selecting Generate Mesh from the context
menu.

Note:

When a match is successful, the number of elements in the matched faces/edges will
be the same, and there will be a direct one-to-one mapping between their nodes. A
small blue status icon ( ) appears to the left of the Match Control object icon in the
Tree Outline if the Match Control fails on the face or edge pair.

When a cyclic Match Control is used together with Sizing (p. 224) controls, the controls on the high
side have the higher precedence. Whatever controls are on the high faces or edges will be honored
on the low faces or edges in the Match Control. Sizing controls applied to the low faces or edges
will be honored only if the high side does not have the same controls, and only if the sizing is applied
directly on the low topology (that is, applying the sizing on connected topologies will have no effect).

Note:

The Meshing application inserts match controls for periodic regions automatically. See the
Match Meshing and Symmetry (p. 379) section for more information.

Arbitrary Match Control

This feature lets you select multiple pairs of faces or edges in a model to create a match control that
will consequently generate exactly the same mesh on the high geometry as it does on the low geo-
metry. You can select a set of high faces belonging to different parts, and low faces belonging to
different parts, as long as the high and low pairs are on the same body. So, for example, you can
have a single match control consisting of multiple pairs of faces or edges across bodies.

However, unlike cyclic match controls (p. 257), which require you to select a coordinate system with
its z-axis of rotation aligned to the geometry's axis of rotation, for arbitrary match controls the faces
or edges to be matched can be arbitrarily located, and the match control is based on two coordinate
systems that you select.

You can scope an Arbitrary Match Control to either a geometry selection or a named selection.

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 Match Control

If you want to automatically generate solver constraints for periodic mesh in addition to matching
the mesh, you should use the Symmetry feature in the Mechanical application.

1. Insert a Match Control by right-clicking the Mesh object in the Tree Outline and selecting Insert >
Match Control.

2. In the Details view, define the scope of the selection:

To apply a match control Do this...

to...
A geometry selection 1. Click Scoping Method and select Geometry Selection.

2. Select one or more faces or edges, and then in the High Geometry
Selection field, click Apply.

3. Select one or more faces or edges, and then in the Low Geometry
Selection field, click Apply.

A named selection 1. Click Scoping Method and select Named Selection.

2. In the High Boundary and Low Boundary fields, select the

appropriate named selections.

3. Change the value of the Transformation control to Arbitrary.

4. Choose the coordinate systems for the selected high and low geometry entities. The applicable settings
in the Details View are:

• High Coordinate System: Choose the coordinate system for the faces/edges assigned by the High
Geometry Selection control.

• Low Coordinate System: Choose the coordinate system for the faces/edges assigned by the Low
Geometry Selection control.

Note:

All the coordinate systems currently defined for the model appear in the High Co-
ordinate System and Low Coordinate System drop-down menus. You may choose
coordinate systems from the list, or you may need to define additional coordinate
systems. In order for the match control to be honored, the coordinate systems that
you choose must be defined such that a valid transformation matrix can be calculated.
In other words, the two coordinate systems must be created such that when the co-
ordinates of every point of the Low Geometry Selection in the Low Coordinate
System are placed into the High Coordinate System, the high and low faces/edges
match exactly. Refer to the Coordinate Systems Overview in the Mechanical help for
information on coordinate systems and how to create them.

5. Generate the mesh by right-clicking on the Mesh object and selecting Generate Mesh from the context
menu.

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When a match is successful, the number of elements in the matched faces/edges will be the
same, and there will be a direct one-to-one mapping between their nodes. If the mesh is generated
but the match was unsuccessful, a small blue status icon ( ) displays to the left of the Match
Control object icon in the Tree Outline.

Example 5: Arbitrary Mesh Matching

The figures below show an example of arbitrary mesh matching. Figure 118: Coordinate Systems for
Arbitrary Mesh Matching (p. 260) shows the selected coordinate systems, and Figure 119: Matched
Mesh (p. 260) shows the resulting matched mesh. Edge and face sizings were also applied.

Figure 118: Coordinate Systems for Arbitrary Mesh Matching

Figure 119: Matched Mesh

Pinch Control
The Pinch control lets you remove small features (such as short edges and narrow regions) at the mesh
level in order to generate better quality elements around those features.

When Pinch controls are defined, the small features in the model that meet the criteria established by
the controls will be “pinched out,” thereby removing the features from the mesh. You can instruct the
Meshing application to automatically create pinch controls based on settings that you specify (as de-
scribed in Pinch Control Automation Overview (p. 164)), or you can manually designate the entities to
be pinched, as described below in Defining Pinch Controls Locally (p. 261).

Local pinch control topics include:

Defining Pinch Controls Locally
Changing Pinch Controls Locally

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 Pinch Control

For an overview of pinch controls and details on pinch control automation, refer to Pinch (p. 161). For
general information on applying pinch controls in combination with the various mesh method controls,
refer to Meshing: Mesh Control Interaction Tables (p. 391). For general information about pinch control
usage, see Usage Information for Pinch Controls (p. 169).

Defining Pinch Controls Locally

This section describes the steps for defining pinch controls locally.

To define pinch controls locally:

1. Click the Mesh folder in the Tree Outline. Right-click and select Insert > Pinch from the context menu.

Or

Click Mesh Control on the toolbar and choose Pinch from the menu.

A pinch control object is inserted into the Tree.

2. In the Geometry window, pick one or more faces, one or more edges, or one vertex that you want to
define as the master(s). (A master geometry is an entity that retains the profile of the original geometry.)
Refer to Pinch (p. 161) for a table that summarizes the valid entities you can pick for each type of pinch
control.

3. Use either of these methods to apply your selection:

• Right-click in the Geometry window to display the context menu and select Set As Pinch Master.

• Click in the Master Geometry field in the Details View.

The pinch region is flagged in the Geometry window. The color of each selected entity changes
to blue to identify it as master geometry. If you want to adjust your selections, you can re-pick
geometry and then apply the new selections to overwrite the existing master geometry. If using
the context menu method to apply selections, you can also pick additional geometry and select
Add To Pinch Master to add the geometry to the existing master geometry. Also see Changing
Pinch Controls Locally (p. 263).

4. In the Geometry window, pick one or more edges or vertices that you want to define as the slave(s).
(A slave geometry is an entity that changes in order to move towards the master geometry. Depending
on the tolerance, the pinch control will pinch out the entire slave entity or only a portion of the slave
entity into the master. Faces cannot be defined as slaves.)

5. Use either of these methods to apply your selection:

• Right-click in the Geometry window to display the context menu and select Set As Pinch Slave.

• Click in the Slave Geometry field in the Details View.

The color of each selected edge/vertex changes to red to identify it as slave geometry. If you
want to adjust your selections, you can re-pick geometry and then apply the new selections to
overwrite the existing slave geometry. If using the context menu method to apply selections,
you can also pick additional geometry and select Add To Pinch Slave to add the geometry to
the existing slave geometry. Also see Changing Pinch Controls Locally (p. 263).

6. Change the value of the Suppressed control if desired.

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By default, the value of Suppressed is No. If you change the value to Yes, this pinch control has
no effect on the mesh (that is, the small features you picked for this pinch control are not removed
and will affect the mesh). In addition, an Active control with a read-only setting of No, Suppressed
appears under the Suppressed control when Suppressed is set to Yes.

7. Change the value of the Tolerance control if desired.

By default, the value of Tolerance is based on the global pinch control tolerance (p. 166). If you
specify a different value here, it overrides the global value.

8. Change the value of the Snap to Boundary control if desired.

By default, the value of Snap to Boundary is Yes. Snap to Boundary is applicable only for pinch
controls in shell models for which a face has been defined as the master geometry and one or
more edges are defined as the slave(s). In such cases, when the value of Snap to Boundary is
Yes and the distance from a slave edge to the closest mesh boundary of the master face is
within the specified snap to boundary tolerance, nodes from the slave edge are projected onto
the boundary of the master face. The joined edge will be on the master face along with other
edges on the master face that fall within the defined pinch control tolerance. Refer to the figures
below to see the effect of the Snap to Boundary setting.

Note:

For edge-to-edge pinch controls in shell models, the snap tolerance is set equal to
the pinch tolerance internally and cannot be modified.

9. Change the value of the Snap Type control if desired. Snap Type appears only when the value of Snap
to Boundary is Yes.

• If Snap Type is set to Manual Tolerance (the default), a Snap Tolerance field appears where you
may enter a numerical value greater than 0. By default, the Snap Tolerance is set equal to the pinch
tolerance but it can be overridden here.

• If Snap Type is set to Element Size Factor, a Master Element Size Factor field appears where you
may enter a numerical value greater than 0. The value entered should be a factor of the local element
size of the master topology.

Note:

When you define a pinch control locally, the value of Scope Method is Manual (read-only).
If you make changes to a pinch control that was created through pinch control automa-
tion (p. 168), the value of the Scope Method field for that pinch control changes from
Automatic to Manual.

Figure 120: Snap to Boundary Set to Yes (p. 263) shows the mesh when Snap to Boundary is set to
Yes (default).

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 Pinch Control

Figure 120: Snap to Boundary Set to Yes

Figure 121: Snap to Boundary Set to No (p. 263) shows the mesh for the same model when Snap to
Boundary is set to No.

Figure 121: Snap to Boundary Set to No

Changing Pinch Controls Locally

This section describes the steps for changing pinch controls locally. You can make changes to pinch
controls regardless of whether they were created automatically or manually. You can select multiple
pinch controls to make the same changes to all selected pinch controls at one time.

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Local Mesh Controls

To change pinch controls locally:

1. In the Tree Outline, select the pinch control(s) that you want to change.

2. In the Geometry window, pick one or more faces, one or more edges, or one vertex that you want to
define as master(s). Refer to Pinch (p. 161) for a table that summarizes the valid entities you can pick for
each type of pinch control.

3. Use either of these methods to apply your selection:

• Right-click in the Geometry window to display the context menu and select Set As Pinch Master
or Add To Pinch Master.

• Click in the Master Geometry field in the Details View.

The pinch region is flagged in the Geometry window. The color of each selected entity changes
to blue to identify it as master geometry. If you want to further adjust your selections, you can
re-pick geometry and then apply the new selections to overwrite or add to the existing master
geometry. To add to the geometry, you must use Add To Pinch Master in the context menu.

4. In the Geometry window, pick one or more edges or vertices that you want to define as slave(s). (Faces
cannot be defined as slaves.)

5. Use either of these methods to apply your selection:

• Right-click in the Geometry window to display the context menu and select Set As Pinch Slave or
Add To Pinch Slave.

• Click in the Slave Geometry field in the Details View.

The color of each selected edge/vertex changes to red to identify it as slave geometry. If you
want to further adjust your selections, you can re-pick geometry and then apply the new selections
to overwrite or add to the existing slave geometry. To add to the geometry, you must use Add
To Pinch Slave in the context menu.

6. Change the value of the Suppressed control if desired.

By default, the value of Suppressed is No. If you change the value to Yes, this pinch control has
no effect on the mesh (that is, the small features you picked for this pinch control are not removed
and will affect the mesh). In addition, an Active control with a read-only setting of No, Suppressed
appears under the Suppressed control when Suppressed is set to Yes.

7. Change the value of the Tolerance control if desired.

By default, the value of Tolerance is based on the global pinch control tolerance (p. 166). If you
specify a different value here, it overrides the global value.

8. Change the value of the Snap to Boundary control if desired.

By default, the value of Snap to Boundary is Yes. Snap to Boundary is applicable only for pinch
controls in shell models for which a face has been defined as the master geometry and one or
more edges are defined as the slave(s). In such cases, when the value of Snap to Boundary is
Yes and the distance from a slave edge to the closest mesh boundary of the master face is
within the specified snap to boundary tolerance, nodes from the slave edge are projected onto
the boundary of the master face. The joined edge will be on the master face along with other

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 Inflation Control

edges on the master face that fall within the defined pinch control tolerance. Refer to Fig-
ure 120: Snap to Boundary Set to Yes (p. 263) and Figure 121: Snap to Boundary Set to No (p. 263)
to see the effect of the setting.

Note:

For edge-to-edge pinch controls in shell models, the snap tolerance is set equal to
the pinch tolerance internally and cannot be modified.

9. Change the value of the Snap Type control if desired. Snap Type appears only when the value of Snap
to Boundary is Yes.

• If Snap Type is set to Manual Tolerance (the default), a Snap Tolerance field appears where you
may enter a numerical value greater than 0. By default, the Snap Tolerance is set equal to the pinch
tolerance but it can be overridden here.

• If Snap Type is set to Element Size Factor, a Master Element Size Factor field appears where you
may enter a numerical value greater than 0. The value entered should be a factor of the local element
size of the master topology.

Note:

If you make changes to a pinch control that was created through pinch control automa-
tion (p. 168), the value of the Scope Method field for that pinch control changes from
Automatic to Manual.

Inflation Control
Inflation is useful for CFD boundary layer resolution, electromagnetic air gap resolution or resolving
high stress concentrations for structures. It is supported for the mesh methods listed in the section In-
flation Group (p. 123). You can use local inflation mesh controls to apply inflation to specific boundaries.
When an inflation control is scoped to a solid model, every scoped geometry must have a boundary
defined for it. The settings of the local inflation controls will override global inflation control (p. 123)
settings.

You can define local inflation controls either by inflating a method or by inserting individual inflation
controls.

Note:

If you are using an assembly meshing algorithm (p. 325), refer to The Assembly Meshing
Workflow (p. 329) for inflation control procedures specific to those algorithms.

Inflating a Method
1. Insert a mesh method.

2. Associate (scope) the desired bodies with the method.

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3. Right-click the method and choose Inflate This Method from the menu.

Note:

For example, if you right-click a Tetrahedrons method control or a Sweep method control
and specify the source, then an Inflate This Method menu option is available. Choosing
this option inserts an inflation control on every body to which the Tetrahedrons meshing
method with the selected Algorithm is applied, or on every face to which the Sweep
method is applied. Similarly, an inflation control will be inserted into the Tree Outline for
each body/face. (Sweeping with inflation is the same as inflation with tetrahedrons except
that with sweeping you pick faces and edges instead of bodies and faces.)

4. Highlight one of the inflation controls that was inserted into the Tree Outline.

5. Change the value of the Suppressed control if desired.

By default, the value of Suppressed is No. If you change the value to Yes, this inflation control has
no effect on the mesh. In addition, an Active control with a read-only setting of No, Suppressed
appears under the Suppressed control when Suppressed is set to Yes.

6. Use either of these methods to specify the inflation boundaries:

• In the Details View, set Boundary Scoping Method to Geometry Selection, pick the entities in the
Geometry window, and click the Boundary field in the Details View to Apply.

• In the Details View, set Boundary Scoping Method to Named Selections, select a Named Selection
from the Boundary drop-down, and press Enter.

Note:

– To select multiple Named Selections to be used as inflation boundaries, press and hold the
Ctrl key while selecting the Named Selections from the Boundary drop-down, and then
press Enter.

– If none of the predefined Named Selections include the correct topology to be used as an
inflation boundary, no Named Selections will be available in the drop-down. For example,
if you scoped a surface body with the method in step 2, a Named Selection containing an
edge must exist. Otherwise, you cannot select anything from the drop-down.

7. Specify additional inflation options as desired. For details about options, refer to the notes below and to
Inflation Group (p. 123).

8. Repeat steps 4 through 7 for each inflation control in the Tree Outline.

Inserting Individual Inflation Controls

1. Optionally, select the desired bodies or faces in the Geometry window.

2. Use either of these methods to insert the inflation control:

• Click Mesh Control on the toolbar and choose Inflation from the menu.

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 Inflation Control

• Right-click in the Geometry window and choose Insert > Inflation from the menu.

3. If you selected the bodies or faces in step 1, go directly to step 4. If not, use either of these methods to
scope inflation to the desired bodies or faces:

• In the Details View, set Scoping Method to Geometry Selection, pick the entities in the Geometry
window, and click the Geometry field in the Details View to Apply.

• In the Details View, set Scoping Method to Named Selection, and select a Named Selection from the
Named Selection drop-down.

4. Change the value of the Suppressed control if desired.

By default, the value of Suppressed is No. If you change the value to Yes, this inflation control has
no effect on the mesh. In addition, an Active control with a read-only setting of No, Suppressed
appears under the Suppressed control when Suppressed is set to Yes.

5. Use either of these methods to specify the inflation boundaries:

• In the Details View, set Boundary Scoping Method to Geometry Selection, pick the entities in the
Geometry window, and click the Boundary field in the Details View to Apply.

• In the Details View, set Boundary Scoping Method to Named Selections, select a Named Selection
from the Boundary drop-down, and press Enter.

Note:

– To select multiple Named Selections to be used as inflation boundaries, press and hold the
Ctrl key while selecting the Named Selections from the Boundary drop-down, and then
press Enter.

– If none of the predefined Named Selections include the correct topology to be used as an
inflation boundary, no Named Selections will be available in the drop-down. For example,
if you selected a face in step 1, a Named Selection containing an edge must exist. Otherwise,
you cannot select anything from the drop-down.

6. Specify additional inflation options as desired. For details about options, refer to the notes below and to
Inflation Group (p. 123).

Notes on Defining Local Inflation Controls (2D Only)

In most cases, the controls in the global Inflation (p. 123) group apply to both 3D and 2D inflation, and
the values set globally will be populated to the local inflation controls. Changes that you make to the
local inflation settings will override the global settings. Exceptions and special considerations for defining
2D local inflation are described here.

• The ability to define 2D (face) inflation is not supported for assembly (p. 325) meshing algorithms.

• When defining 2D local inflation, the available options for the Inflation Option (p. 128) control are Smooth
Transition (default), First Layer Thickness, and Total Thickness. If the Inflation Option control is set to
First Aspect Ratio or Last Aspect Ratio globally, it will be set to Smooth Transition locally.

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Local Mesh Controls

– When Inflation Option is Smooth Transition, you can set values for Transition Ratio (p. 130), Maximum
Layers (p. 131), and Growth Rate (p. 131).

– If you select First Layer Thickness, you can set values for First Layer Height (p. 132), Maximum Layers (p. 131),
and Growth Rate (p. 131). The value of Growth Rate is used to calculate the heights of the successive
layers, as follows:

Growth Rate = hn+1 / hn

where hn = height of layer n

– If you select Total Thickness, you can set values for Number of Layers (p. 131), Growth Rate (p. 131), and
Maximum Thickness (p. 132). The first layer height is computed based on these three values. The heights
of the successive layers are computed using the same formula shown above under First Layer Thickness.
When 2D inflation is applied to a 3D model (that is, to the face of a 3D body), the local value of Maximum
Layers will be set equal to the global value by default. However, when it is applied to a 2D model (i.e, to
the face of a surface body), the local value of Maximum Layers will be set to 2.

• If you are using the Quadrilateral Dominant (p. 221) mesh method with inflation and the Size Function (p. 80)
is on, the mesh size of the last inflation layer will be used for the corresponding Quadrilateral Dominant
boundary mesh size.

Notes on Defining Local Inflation Controls (3D and 2D)

• To make inflation boundary selection easier, select Annotation Preferences from the Toolbar and then
deselect Body Scoping Annotations in the Annotation Preferences option box to toggle the visibility of
annotations in the Geometry window. For example, after scoping inflation to a body, the body will be dis-
played using a blue solid annotation. Turn off the body scoping annotations; then select the desired faces
as boundaries. For picking internal faces, the Hide Faces right-click option may help you to see inside a
body. For example, you can select external faces in the Geometry window and then use the Hide Faces
option to hide the selected faces (making it easier to select the internal faces).

• Multiple Inflation controls can be scoped to the same body or face with different inflation options on the
faces/edges.

• If the mesh method is Automatic, the Patch Conforming tetrahedron method will be used for inflation on
a body and the Sweep method will be used for inflation on a face.

• If the mesh method is Cartesian (3D only) and Physics Preference is set to CFD, then three boundary layers
are created with total thickness proportional to element size. If Cartesian and physics is not CFD, then a
single boundary layer is added with thickness proportional to element size.

• In the following scenarios, using inflation results in automatic suppression of the refinement (p. 239) control:

– When automatic inflation (p. 125) (either Program Controlled (p. 126) or All Faces in Chosen Named Selec-
tion (p. 127)) is used with refinement in the same model

– When local inflation (p. 265) is used with refinement in the same body or in the same part

• For information on setting global inflation controls and descriptions of all of the individual inflation controls,
refer to Inflation Group (p. 123). For steps to follow to assign inflation depending on the selected mesh
method, refer to Inflation Controls (p. 370). For general information on applying inflation controls in combin-
ation with the various mesh method controls, refer to Meshing: Mesh Control Interaction Tables (p. 391).

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 Sharp Angle Tool

Gasket Control
Available when Body object's Stiffness Behavior is set to Gasket. The control applies a sweep mesh
in a chosen direction and drops midside nodes on gasket elements that are parallel to the sweep direc-
tion. You can directly access Gasket from the Mesh tab.

Tree Dependencies:

• Valid Parent Tree Object: Body

• Valid Child Tree Objects: None.

Insertion Options: Appears automatically

when a Body object's Stiffness Behavior is
set to Gasket.

Additional Related Information:

• Gasket Bodies

• Gasket Meshing

Object Properties
The Details view properties for this object include the following.

Category Properties
Definition Free Face Mesh Type
Mesh Method
Element Order
Scope Src/Trg Selection
Source
Target

Sharp Angle Tool

Using the Sharp Angle Tool, you control the capture of features with sharp angles, such as the edge of
a knife or the region where a tire meets the road. It can also be used for improved feature capturing
in general, even if the faces that you pick to define a control do not form a sharp angle. The Sharp
Angle Tool is available only when assembly meshing (p. 325) algorithms are being used and ensures
that the desired features are captured in the assembly mesh.

Using the Sharp Angle Tool

The steps for using the Sharp Angle Tool are presented here.

1. Highlight the Mesh object in the Tree Outline and then do one of the following:

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Local Mesh Controls

• Right-click the object and select Insert > Sharp Angle from the context menu.

• Select Mesh Control> Sharp Angle on the Mesh context toolbar.

• Right-click the Geometry window and select Insert> Sharp Angle from the context menu.

These methods insert a sharp angle control beneath the Mesh object and activate the Face selection
filter.

2. Use either of these methods to scope the control to the desired faces:

• In the Details View, set Scoping Method to Geometry Selection, pick the faces in the Geometry window,
and click the Geometry field in the Details View to Apply.

• In the Details View, set Scoping Method to Named Selection, and select a Named Selection from the
Named Selection drop-down.

Note:

If none of the predefined Named Selections include faces, no Named Selections will
be available in the drop-down.

3. Change the value of the Suppressed control if desired.

By default, the value of Suppressed is No. If you change the value to Yes, this control has no effect
on the mesh (that is, the sharp angle features will not be captured). In addition, an Active control
with a read-only setting of No, Suppressed appears under the Suppressed control when Suppressed
is set to Yes.

Notes on the Sharp Angle Tool

• To suppress, unsuppress, or delete a sharp angle control, highlight it in the Tree Outline, right-click, and
select the appropriate option from the context menu. You cannot copy a sharp angle control.

• If any sharp angle controls are defined and you change from an assembly meshing algorithm to another
mesh method, the controls are suppressed automatically. In such cases, an Active control with a read-only
setting of No, Invalid Method will appear under the Suppressed control in the Details View, but the value
of the Suppressed control will still be set to No.

Repair Topology
Repair Topology is available only when Batch Connections is set to Yes.

To Access Repair Topology:

1. Right-click the Mesh folder in the Tree Outline.

2. Select Insert > Repair Topology.

The following options are available in the Details view for Repair Topology:

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 Weld

Merge Face Options

• Merge Faces: Merges the selected faces. The default value is No. When the value is set to Yes, the fol-
lowing option appears:

– Scoping: Allows you to select either Geometry Selection or Named Selection. You can select multiple
named selections from the list of available face named selections. After selecting, you must press
Enter to apply the selection. The default value is Geometry Selection. Based on the Scoping selected,
the number of faces used for the respective selection is displayed.

Supress Edge Options

• Supress Edges: Suppress the selected edges. The default value is No. When the default value is set to
Yes, the Scoping option appears which works same as in the Merge Faces option.

Repair Thin Faces Options

• Remove Thin Faces: Removes the thin faces by merging them with the neighboring faces. The default
value is No. When the value is set to Yes, the Thin Face Width and Use Local Geometry Scoping options
appear. The default value for Thin Face Width is same as the Connection Tolerance. When Use Local
Geometry Scoping is set to No, performs Remove Thin Faces operation on the entire model.

Repair Sharp Angle Options

• Remove Sharp Angle Faces: Removes the sharp angle faces. The default value is No. When the value
is set to Yes, the Sharp Angle and Use Local Geometry Scoping options appear. The default value
for Sharp Angle is 10 degrees. When Use Local Geometry Scoping is set to No, performs Remove
Sharp Angle Faces operation on the entire model.

Repair Pinch Faces Options

• Pinch Faces: The default value is No. When set to Yes, the Pinch Tolerance and Use Local Geometry
Scoping options appear. The default value of Pinch Tolerance is same as the Connection Tolerance.
The default value for Use Local Geometry Scoping is No. When the Use Local Geometry Scoping is
set to Yes, Scoping appears and allows you to select both Geometry Selection and Named Selection.
The default value is Geometry Selection. When Use Local Geometry Scoping is set to No, performs
Repair Pinch Faces operation on the entire model.

Remove Thin Faces, Remove Sharp Angle Faces and Pinch Faces allow you to define local scoping
using the Use Local Geometry Scoping option. The default value for Use Local Geometry Scoping is
No. When the Use Local Geometry Scoping is set to Yes, Scoping appears and allows you to select
either Geometry Selection or Named Selection. The default value is Geometry Selection.

RepairTopology provides options to find the unconnected edges and overlapping faces. You can right-
click on the Geometry window, select Diagnostics >Find Unconnected Edges to display the uncon-
nected edges. You can also access the overlapping faces by selecting Diagnostics >Find Overlapping
Faces.

Weld
Weld control allows you to generate one layer of quad elements on the weld faces (tent and extension
faces), in between the tent and extension faces and on the faces that are welded together along the
edges shared with the tent and extension faces. When the Source selected is Curves, Curves and
Bodies or Curves and Faces, tent and extension faces are created during meshing using defined Weld

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Local Mesh Controls

Curve. The faces are associated to a weld body that is created during meshing. The weld body is
available under the Geometry tree object. The weld body name is same as that of the Weld control.
One weld body gets created per Weld Curve.

Note:

Weld bodies created at the mesh level are deleted, when the following occurs:

• Mesh is cleared.

• Geometry is updated.

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Weld control is only available when Batch Connections is set to Yes. You must do the following before
using Weld control:

• Model weld entities in the CAD

• Define separate Named Selection for tent and extension faces

• Perform imprints on weld entities

You can access the weld control as follows:

1. Right-click the Mesh folder in the Tree Outline.

2. Select Insert > Weld.

The following options are available in the Details view for Weld:

Scope

• Scoping Method: Allows you to identify the tent and extension faces. You can use Geometry Selection
or Named Selections for scoping. The default value is Geometry Selection.

• Source: Allows you to select Geometry, Curves, Curves and Bodies or Curves and Faces for welding.

• Type: Allows you to select the type of weld control. The available types are Seam and Seam-tent. When
the Source is Curves, Curves and Bodies or Curves and Faces, the Type is Seam-tent by default.

– When the Source is Geometry and the Type is Seam, Bottom Faces and Top Faces fields are
available.

– When the Source is Geometry and the Type is Seam-tent, Extension Surfaces and Tent Surfaces
fields are available.

– When the Source is Curves, the Type is Seam-tent by default. The Weld Curve field is available.

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Local Mesh Controls

– When the Source is Curves and Bodies, the Type is Seam-tent by default. Bottom Bodies, Top
Bodies and Weld Curve fields are available.

– When the Source is Curves and Faces, the Type is Seam-tent by default. Bottom Faces, Top Faces
and Weld Curve fields are available.

When the Source is Curves, Curves and Bodies or Curves and Faces, you can scope a single
beam body as Weld Curve, only when Use Worksheet option is set to No.

• Use Worksheet: Allows you to use worksheet for weld controls. The default value is No. When Use
Worksheet is set to Yes, Scope with Worksheet appears in the Details view which is a read-only field.
The Worksheet opens and allows you to create weld controls for the Named Selections. Worksheet
provides different options based on the selected Source and Type. The options Edge Mesh Size, Offset
Layer Height and Number Of Layers are read only in the Details view. You can define these options
in the Worksheet.

Note:

Worksheet allows you to create weld controls for curved bodies using Body Selection.

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 Weld

• Curve Scoping: Available only when the Source is Curves, Curves and Bodies or Curves and Faces.
The available options are Geometry Selection and Body Selection. The default value is Geometry
Selection. Body Selection allows you to select the weld curve from the list of beam bodies.

Note:

When you use beam bodies as weld curve, Treatment is automatically set to
Construction Body.

Treatment does not reset automatically, when the beam body is removed from
the Weld Curve scope.

Definition

• Suppressed: The default value is No. When the value is set to Yes, the Active options appears with a read-
only setting No,Suppressed.

• Edge Mesh Size: Allows you to discretize the edges of tent and extension faces. The default value for Edge
Mesh Size is same as the global Element Size.

• Weld Angle: Allows you to define the angle between the extension and tent face. When the Source is
Geometry, Weld Angle is not available. The default value is 45 degrees. You can select any value from 30
to 60 degrees for Weld Angle.

• Offset Layer Height : Allows you to define the height for each quad layer. The default value is the Global
Element Size.

• Number Of Layers: Allows you to define the number of quad layers generated from the weld lines. When
the Type is Seam-tent, this field is read-only. The default value for Number Of Layers is 1 and the maximum
number of layers that can be generated is 3.

• Generate End-Caps: Allows you to generate triangular end-caps at the free ends of the welds. The default
value is Yes. When the downstream code check tool is nCode, use end-caps option. When the value is set
to No, the following options appear:

– Write Definition File: Allows you to write the FE-Safe weld definition files at the defined location. The
default value is Yes.

– File Location: Writes the Weld definition files in the project directory or at location specified by you. Weld
definition files allows you to import Weld information into FE-Safe.

Mechanical Properties

• Material: Allows you to define the material for the weld bodies created during meshing. You can only
select the defined materials for weld bodies from the drop-down menu. The default option is None.

• Thickness: Allows you to define thickness of the weld bodies created during meshing. The default
value is 0.0 mm.

Note:

The Mechanical Properties options are not available when the Source is Geometry.

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Advanced

• Sharp Angle: Available only when the Source is Curves, Curves and Bodies or Curves and Faces. The
default value is 30 degrees. The Sharp Angle allows you to provide any value from 0 to 90 degrees.
Sharp Angle allows you to automatically merge the bottom faces if the weld faces intersect them at
an angle less than the specified value.

The Weld control has the following limitations:

• Weld control does not support Connect and Mesh Selected Entities option.

• Combined length of all tent faces and combined length of all extension faces should be same.

• Weld control overrides all other sizing and local control settings.

• The selection option for Weld Curve does not support multiple bodies.

• Weld control does not support intersecting welds for all sources.

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Meshing: Options
You can control the behavior of functions in the Meshing application through the Options dialog box.
For more information, refer to:
Accessing the Options Dialog Box
Meshing Options on the Options Dialog Box

Accessing the Options Dialog Box

To access the Meshing application options (p. 277):

1. From the main menu, choose Tools> Options. An Options dialog box appears and the options are displayed
on the left.

2. Click on a specific option on the left (either Meshing or Export).

3. Change any of the option settings by clicking directly in the option field on the right. You will first see a
visual indication for the kind of interaction required in the field (examples are drop-down menus, secondary
dialog boxes, direct text entries).

4. Click OK.

Note:

• To cancel your changes and restore the default settings, click Reset on the Options dialog box.

• Option settings within a particular language are independent of option settings in another lan-
guage. If you change any options from their default settings, then start a new Workbench session
in a different language, the changes you made in the original language session are not reflected
in the new session. You are advised to make the same option changes in the new language session.

Meshing Options on the Options Dialog Box

The options that appear in the right pane of the Options dialog box depend on which category is se-
lected in the left pane:

• When Meshing is selected in the left pane, these subcategories appear:

– Meshing

– Virtual Topology

– Sizing

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Options

– Quality

– Inflation

• When Export is selected in the left pane, these subcategories appear:

– CGNS

– ANSYS Fluent

Meshing
• Highlight Topology Being Meshed if Possible: Controls the default for highlighting of topologies during
mesh processing. When Yes (default), the topology that is currently being processed by the mesher is
highlighted in the Geometry window, which may help with troubleshooting (p. 478). This highlighting is
not supported for the Patch Independent Tetra or MultiZone mesh methods, or when assembly meshing
is being used. Refer to Generating Mesh (p. 432) for details.

• Allow Selective Meshing: Allows/disallows selective meshing. Choices are Yes and No. The default value
is Yes. Refer to Selective Meshing (p. 361) for details.

• Number of CPUs for Meshing Methods: Specifies the number of processors to be used by the meshing
operation. There is no counterpart setting in the Details View. Specifying multiple processors will enhance
the performance of the MultiZone Quad/Tri, Patch Independent Tetra, and MultiZone mesh methods.
This option has no effect when other mesh methods are being used. You can specify a value from 0 to 256
or accept the default. The default is 0, which means the number of processors will be set automatically to
the maximum number of available CPUs. The Number of CPUs option is applicable to shared memory
parallel (SMP) meshing (multiple cores; not supported for clusters). Refer to Parallel Part Meshing (p. 388).

• Default Physics Preference: Sets the default option for the Physics Preference (p. 73) in the Details View
of a Mesh object. Choices are Mechanical, Nonlinear Mechanical, Electromagnetics, CFD, Explicit, and
Hydrodynamics.

• Default Method: Sets the default Method setting in the Details View of a Method (p. 174) control object.
This option only affects Method controls that are added manually. Choices are Automatic (Patch Conform-
ing/Sweeping), Patch Independent, and Patch Conforming. When the geometry is attached, the default
method of all options except Automatic will be scoped to all parts in the assembly. The Automatic option
has no effect.

Note:

Changing the Default Method changes the default mesh method for all future analyses,
regardless of analysis type.

• Use MultiZone for Sweepable Bodies: If set to On, the mesher uses the MultiZone (p. 303) method instead
of General Sweeping (p. 283) for sweepable bodies. The default setting is Off. See MultiZone for Sweepable
Bodies (p. 306) for more information.

• Topology Checking: Sets the default value for the Topology Checking (p. 158) control. The default value is
Yes.

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 Meshing Options on the Options Dialog Box

• Verbose Messages from Meshing: Controls the verbosity of messages returned to you. If set to On and
you are meshing a subset of bodies, the message “These bodies are going to be meshed” appears, and you
can click the right mouse button on the message to see the bodies. The default is Off. Regardless of the
setting, when meshing completes and any bodies failed to mesh, the message “These bodies failed to be
meshed” appears, and you can click the right mouse button to see them.

• Number of CPUs for Parallel Part Meshing: Sets the default number of processors to be used for parallel
part meshing. You can change this value in the Advanced (p. 73) group under the Details View. Using the
default for specifying multiple processors will enhance meshing performance on geometries with multiple
parts. For parallel part meshing, the default is set to Program Controlled or 0. This instructs the mesher to
use all available CPU cores. The Default setting inherently limits 2 GB memory per CPU core. An explicit value
can be specified between 0 and 256, where 0 is the default. Refer to Parallel Part Meshing (p. 388) for more
details.

Virtual Topology
Merge Edges Bounding Manually Created Faces: Sets the default value for the Merge Face Edges
setting in the Details View of a Virtual Topology object. Choices are Yes and No. The default value is
Yes.

Sizing
• Adaptive Resolution: Sets the resolution for mesh sizing when Use Adaptive Sizing is set to Yes. The default
setting is Program Controlled. The range of values that can be set is 0 to 7, with the mesh resolution
changing from coarse (0) to fine (7). See Resolution (p. 84) for more information.

• Mechanical Min Size Factor (Default: 0.01): Sets your preference for the scale factor that will be used to
calculate the default minimum size when the physics preference is Mechanical, Electromagnetics, or Ex-
plicit. The value that is specified here is multiplied by the global element size to determine the default
minimum size.

• CFD Min Size Factor (Default: 0.01): Sets your preference for the scale factor that will be used to calculate
the default minimum size when the physics preference is CFD. The value that is specified here is multiplied
by the global element size to determine the default minimum size.

• Mechanical Defeature Size Factor (Default: 0.005): Sets your preference for the scale factor that will be
used to calculate the default defeature size when the physics preference is Mechanical, Electromagnetics,
or Explicit. The value that is specified here is multiplied by the global element size to determine the default
defeature size.

• CFD Defeature Size Factor (Default: 0.005): Sets your preference for the scale factor that will be used to
calculate the default defeature size when the physics preference is CFD. The value that is specified here is
multiplied by the global element size to determine the default defeature size.

• Bounding Box Factor (Default: 0.05): Helps set the default Element size as follows: (Bounding Box Diagonal
* Bounding Box Factor = Default Element size). This is only used when Use Adaptive Sizing is set to No and
only solid parts are present in the model. Adaptive sizing uses its own default.

• Surface Area Factor (Default: 0.125): Helps set the default Element size as follows: (Average Surface Area
* Surface Area Factor = Default Element Size). This is only used when Use Adaptive Sizing is set to No and
sheet bodies are present in the model. Adaptive sizing uses its own default.

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Options

• MultiZone Sweep Sizing Behavior: If set to Use Size Function, then any applied sizing controls (curvature
and proximity refinement, and/or local sizing) are evaluated in all directions of the selected bodies. If set to
Ignore Size Function, curvature and proximity refinement and/or local sizing along the sweep path are
ignored and the spacing along the sweep path is determined either by the global sizes or local sizes that
are explicitly set on edges along the sweep direction.

You can also override the sizing by locally specifying hard edge sizes or using the Sweep Size Beha-
vior control in the MultiZone method control to locally adjust the sizing for the bodies the control
is scoped to. See MultiZone Method Control (p. 205) for more information.

Quality
• Check Mesh Quality: Sets the default quality behavior (p. 97) with respect to how the mesher responds to
error and warning limits. Choices are:

– Default - With this setting, the behavior changes as appropriate when you change the setting of Physics
Preference.

– Yes, Errors - If the meshing algorithm cannot generate a mesh that passes all error limits, an error message
is printed and meshing fails.

– Yes, Errors and Warnings - If the meshing algorithm cannot generate a mesh that passes all error limits,
an error message is printed and meshing fails. In addition, if the meshing algorithm cannot generate a
mesh that passes all warning (target) limits, a warning message is printed.

– No - Mesh quality checks are done at various stages of the meshing process (for example, after surface
meshing prior to volume meshing). The No setting turns off most quality checks, but some minimal
checking is still done. In addition, even with the No setting, the target quality metrics are still used to
improve the mesh. The No setting is intended for troubleshooting (p. 477) and should be used with caution
as it could lead to solver failures or incorrect solution results.

• Mechanical Error Limit: Sets the default error limit (p. 97) when Physics Preference is set to Mechanical.
Choices are Standard Mechanical and Aggressive Mechanical.

• Target Quality (0 = Program Default): Sets the default target element quality (p. 107). When you modify
this value, the value you enter becomes the new default for the Target Quality (p. 100) in the Details View.
You can enter 0 on the Options panel to revert to the program default.

• Target Skewness (0 = Program Default): Sets the default target skewness (p. 118). When you modify this
value, the value you enter becomes the new default for the Target Skewness (p. 101) in the Details View. You
can enter 0 on the Options panel to revert to the program default. For a tetrahedral mesh, you should not
set Target Skewness to a value < 0.8.

• Target Jacobian Ratio (Corner Nodes) (0 = Program Default): Sets the default target Jacobian ratio (p. 109).
When you modify this value, the value you enter becomes the new default Target Jacobian Ratio (Corner
Nodes) (p. 101) in the Details View. You can enter 0 on the Options panel to revert to the program default.

Inflation
Inflation-related options that can be set on the Options dialog box include:

• Maximum Height over Base (p. 139)

• Gap Factor (p. 139)

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 Meshing Options on the Options Dialog Box

• Growth Rate Type (p. 140)

• Maximum Angle (Degrees) (p. 140)

• Fillet Ratio (p. 141)

• Use Post Smoothing (p. 142)

• Smoothing Iterations (p. 142)

CGNS
• File Format: Sets the file format to be used for CGNS Export (p. 44) operations. There is no counterpart
setting in the Details View. Choices are:

– ADF (default) - Exports the mesh in ADF (Advanced Data Format).

– HDF5 - Exports the mesh in HDF5 (Hierarchical Data Format version 5).

• CGNS Version: Sets the CGNS library version to be used for CGNS Export (p. 44) operations. There is no
counterpart setting in the Details View. Choices are 3.1 (the default), 3.0, 2.5, 2.4, 2.3, 2.2, and 2.1.

• Export Unit: Defines the unit of measurement for the mesh when exported to CGNS. The default is Use
Project Unit, which means the mesh is not scaled. If you change this to another value (centimeter, millimeter,
micrometer, inch, or foot), the mesh is scaled according to the export unit you select.

ANSYS Fluent
• Format of Input File (*.msh): Sets the file format to be used for Fluent Mesh Export (p. 24) operations.
There is no counterpart setting in the Details View. Choices are Binary (the default) and ASCII.

• Auto Zone Type Assignment: When set to On (the default), zone types are automatically assigned, as de-
scribed in Fluent Mesh Export (p. 24). When set to Off, assigns all boundary zones as the default WALL, en-
abling you to assign your own zone type assignments for Fluent Mesh Export (p. 24) operations.

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Meshing: Specialized Meshing
You can use the meshing features in ANSYS Workbench to perform various types of specialized meshing.
For more information, refer to:
Mesh Sweeping
MultiZone Meshing
Assembly Meshing
Selective Meshing
Inflation Controls
Mesh Refinement
Mixed Order Meshing
Contact Meshing
Winding Body Meshing
Wire Body Meshing
Pyramid Transitions
Match Meshing and Symmetry
Rigid Body Meshing
Thin Solid Meshing
CAD Instance Meshing
Meshing and Hard Entities
Baffle Meshing
Parallel Part Meshing

Mesh Sweeping
This method of meshing complements the free mesher. If a body's topology is recognized as sweepable,
the body can be meshed very efficiently with hexahedral and wedge elements using this technique.
The number of nodes and elements for a swept body is usually much smaller than ones meshed with
the free mesher. In addition, the time to create these elements is much smaller.

Workbench will automatically check to see if the body fulfills the topological requirements for sweeping.
It will then choose two faces that are topologically on the opposite sides of the body. These faces are
called the source and target faces. Workbench will mesh the source face with quadrilateral and triangular

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Specialized Meshing

elements and then copy that mesh onto the target face. It then generates either hexahedral or wedge
elements connecting the two faces and following the exterior topology of the body.

Note:

• This information applies to general sweeping. For requirements and usage information specific
to thin model sweeping, see Thin Model Sweeping (p. 290).

• For descriptions of the sweep option settings, see Sweep Method Control (p. 201).

Requirements for General Sweeping

A body cannot be swept if any of these conditions exist:

• There is a completely contained internal void in the body.

• A source and target pair cannot be found. That is, the sweeper cannot find at least one path from a source
surface to a target surface connected by edges or closed surfaces.

• If a Sizing control (p. 224) is used on a body with hard edge sizing and the source and target faces contain
hard divisions which are not the same for each respective edge.

When sweeping it is only necessary to apply hard divisions to one leg of the sweep path. If the path
has multiple edges, you should apply your controls to that path.

If the sweep path is shared by another body and that path lies on the body's source or target face then
more hard divisions may be needed to constrain the sweeper.

When using Virtual Topology with sweeping, avoid creating virtual cells that result in a fully closed
surface. Fully closed surfaces cause difficulties for the swept mesher and may result in poor meshes.
When selecting adjacent faces for inclusion in a virtual cell, it is best to use Virtual Topology to merge
some (but not all) of the faces. A good approach is to use Virtual Topology for the smaller faces, but
omit any larger faces from the virtual cell.

To preview any bodies that can be swept meshed, click Mesh on the Tree Outline and right-click the
mouse. Select Show> Sweepable Bodies from the context menu to display bodies that fulfill the re-
quirements of a sweepable body. However, even if these requirements are met, the shape of the body
may at times still result in poorly shaped elements. In these cases, the tetrahedron mesher is used to
mesh the body.

The Show Sweepable Bodies feature only displays bodies that can be swept in terms of topology
where the source and target are not adjacent on an axis. It cannot automatically determine axis-
sweepable bodies. However, these bodies can be meshed if a Sweep mesh method is applied and source
and target faces are defined. A sweepable body may not be Sweep meshed if the body geometry is
not suitable.

Show Mappable Faces is a good tool to diagnose side faces. All side faces should be mappable, but
if they are not found to be mappable, it indicates there may be a problem with the topology. For help
in diagnosing problems when using the Sweep method, refer to the description of the Edge group in
the Mechanical help. This toolbar provides access to features that are intended to improve your ability
to distinguish edge and mesh connectivity.

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 Mesh Sweeping

Other Characteristics of General Sweeping

Other characteristics of sweeping include the following:

• The general sweeper ignores the Num Cells Across Gap (p. 89) setting, which is used to help define the
proximity-based sizing (p. 82).

• Hard entities (p. 384) are not supported for the general sweeper.

• If the sweep method is applied to a body and a mapped Face Meshing (p. 240) control is defined for either
the body's source or target face, the sweep mesher will fail if a mapped mesh cannot be obtained for the
face. See Notes on Face Meshing Controls for Mapped Meshing (p. 249) for related information.

• The source and target faces do not have to be flat or parallel.

• If the topology of the source and target face is the same, the sweeping operation will often succeed even
if the shape of the source face is different from the shape of the target face. However, drastically different
shapes can cause element shape failures.

• Sweeping does not require your model to have a constant cross section. However, the best results are obtained
for constant or linearly varying cross sections.

• For swept meshes with inflation (p. 370) and match control (p. 255), inflation is performed ahead of the match
mesh and sweeping. This can affect the sizings on the match controls, which can in turn lead to meshing
failure. Therefore, when using both match controls and inflation with sweeping, it might improve meshing
robustness if you assign hard edge sizings (p. 228) to the high and low edges of the source face for the sweep.

Figure 122: Axis Sweep Representation

Figure 123: Edge Only Sweep Path

Figure 124: Edge Plus Closed Surface Sweep Path

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Specialized Meshing

Rules Followed By the General Sweeper

In deciding which area should be designated as the source area for general sweeping, the program
uses the following rules, in the order as listed below. The sweeper will check all the rules until it finds
a rule to use. Once a higher order rule is used, all the lower rules will not be considered. For example,
if none of the first five rules apply, it will check against rule 6. In this case, if a face is a plane (flat) and
the other face is not a plane (not flat), the flat face will be picked as the source and the test will be
terminated.

1. Manually set control - specify both source and target: The source and target for sweeping will be exactly
as you specify. This is the fastest way of meshing. It will eliminate searching for a possible source and target.
For axis-sweeping, this method must be used. If a face is a source of another body and is not picked as a
source of the current body, the aforementioned face will be used as a source.

2. Manually set control - specify source: Once the user specifies a source area, the program will try to find
the target suitable to the source. The source will be exactly as specified.

3. Face Mesh control: The program finds the face with a mapped Face Mesh control applied to it.

4. Number of loops: The face with the largest number of loops will be picked as source face.

5. Number of lines: The face with the largest number of lines will be picked as source face.

6. Flat face: A flat face has higher priority for being a source face.

7. Less sharing: In most cases, a face might be used by one or a maximum of two bodies. If every one is flat
(plane), the one used by the least number of bodies (that is, used by just one body) will be picked as source
face.

8. Larger area: The largest area will be picked as the source.

Topological Requirements of the General Sweeper

The general sweeper must have at least one path between the source face and target face. The side
faces of the sweep do not need to be singular but they must all be submappable and have single loops.
The source face cannot be a closed analytic such as a full cylinder, torus or sphere. However, partial
analytics are acceptable as source and target faces.

Note:

Creo Parametric creates unique topological models that no other CAD system creates. In all
other CAD systems, non-periodic faces can have only one exterior topological loop. On the
other hand, models in Creo Parametric can have non-periodic faces with multiple exterior
loops. This type of topology does not pose a problem for the free meshers in the Meshing
application. However, it does pose a problem for the general sweeper. As noted above, side
faces of the sweep must have single loops. They cannot have multiple exterior loops because
if they do, a single path from the source to the target cannot be determined.

Importing the model into the DesignModeler application breaks the face with multiple exter-
ior loops into multiple faces with single loops because the DesignModeler kernel does not
support the Creo Parametric topology. Exporting the model from Creo Parametric to IGES
or STEP format will also resolve this issue.

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 Mesh Sweeping

Figure 125: Example (a) Showing Invalid Closed Cylindrical Face as Source Face

Figure 126: Example (b) Valid Open Cylindrical Face as Source Face

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Specialized Meshing

Figure 127: Example (c) Multiple Connected Side Faces

Using General Sweep to Mesh a Narrow Channel Body

The series of images below illustrates the use of general sweep, along with mapped face meshing (p. 240)
and hard edge sizing (p. 228) controls, to mesh a narrow channel body. Figure 128: Axial Sweep Mod-
el (p. 288) shows the source, target, and side areas of the axial sweep model used in this example.

Figure 128: Axial Sweep Model

Because the source and target areas to be meshed are a narrow channel and you want them to be
meshed with map mesh, it may present difficulties to the mesher. In Figure 129: Axial Sweep Model:
Face Meshing Control (p. 289), a mapped Face Meshing control is defined on the source face. Four
vertices (two on each side area) have been selected for the Specified Sides control.

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 Mesh Sweeping

Figure 129: Axial Sweep Model: Face Meshing Control

In cases similar to this example, the key to obtaining a successful mesh is the definition of a hard edge
sizing control to make the two paired parallel edges. As shown in Figure 130: Axial Sweep Model: Hard
Edge Sizing Control (p. 290), set the Type to Number of Divisions and enter a value in the Number of
Divisions field (in this case, 50). The Hard option ensures the number of divisions are the same on the
pair of edges.

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Specialized Meshing

Figure 130: Axial Sweep Model: Hard Edge Sizing Control

Finally, Figure 131: Axial Sweep Model: Meshed (p. 290) shows the mesh obtained using the settings
described above.

Figure 131: Axial Sweep Model: Meshed

Thin Model Sweeping

Similar to the behavior of the general sweeper (p. 283), the thin model sweeper creates a structured
hexahedral/wedge mesh, but for a thin model. It meshes one side of the thin solid (the source), and
then sweeps the mesh to the other side (the target). Unlike the general sweeper, the thin model
sweeper does not require a topological one-to-one match of source to target; the model may have

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 Mesh Sweeping

multiple source and/or target surfaces. (Refer to Topological Requirements of the Thin Model
Sweeper (p. 292) for examples.) In addition, the thin model sweeper can perform some edge defeaturing
and allowing it to mesh models that have reasonably small features.

Requirements and usage information specific to the thin model sweeper include the following:

• The model must be thin—if the model is too thick, the thin model sweeper algorithm may fail.

• The source(s) and target(s) cannot touch each other.

• The model must have an obvious “side” that is perpendicular to the source and target; all of the side areas
must connect directly from source to target.

• Mesh controls defined on the target may not be respected.

• Multibody parts are supported.

• For multibody parts, only one division through the thickness is possible. For single body parts, you can
define multiple elements through the thickness using the Sweep Num Divs control in the Details View
of the Sweep Method. (See steps below.)

• The thin model sweeper ignores the Num Cells Across Gap (p. 89) setting, which is used to help define
the proximity-based sizing (p. 82). Using the proximity-based sizing in combination with the thin model
sweeper may lead to an unnecessarily long computation time.

• If two bodies intersect to make a “T” connection, the thin model sweeper does not require that a mapped
mesh control be defined at the junction of the two bodies.

• The Preview Source and Target Mesh and Preview Surface Mesh features do not support the thin
model sweeper.

• See Notes on Face Meshing Controls for Mapped Meshing (p. 249) for information about using mapped
Face Meshing controls with the thin model sweeper.

Considerations for Selecting Source Faces for the Thin Model Sweeper
The thin model sweeper meshes one side of a thin solid (the source), and then sweeps the mesh to
the other side (the target). You can control which side the mesher uses as the source by selecting
source faces manually. (To do so, set the Src/Trg Selection control to Manual Thin as described below.)

For most geometries, you can select just 1 of the faces in the complete set of faces that you want to
be used as the source set, and the mesher will properly identify the other faces that are a part of that
source set. However, for more complicated models (such as those containing multibody parts), you
need to select all source faces in the source set in order for the mesher to be successful in finding
the complete set of source faces.

A general rule of thumb is if you can select a single face and then extend the selection to its limits,
the mesher can also identify the proper complete set of source faces. (For details about extending
selections, refer to the description of the Extend Selection command in the Mechanical help.) If the
geometry contains sharp angles that make the limit extension selection difficult, it will also be difficult
for the mesher to use a single face for the source face definition, and you should select the complete
set of source faces.

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Specialized Meshing

Topological Requirements of the Thin Model Sweeper

If a thin model mesh fails, turn on the Edge Coloring > By Connection option to see if the edge
connectivity is unusual. In some cases, the geometry connectivity may not be as expected, and this
may create problems during meshing. These problems can be fixed in the DesignModeler application,
the CAD package, or possibly through the use of virtual topologies (p. 445)

The thin model sweeper supports M source faces to N target faces, where M and N can be any positive
whole numbers. Between source faces and target faces, there must be "side faces." The angles between
side faces and either source faces or target faces must be sharp enough that the faces are NOT con-
sidered to be smoothly connected. Therefore, a knife with a thin blade would not be appropriate for
thin model sweeping because the cutting edge (blade) does not form a "side face." During the thin
model sweeping meshing process, the features (vertices, edges, and faces) on the target may not be
preserved and therefore, you should avoid applying boundary conditions to the target. The side faces
must connect to both source and target. No edges or vertices are allowed on side faces. In this sense,
no hard edges (p. 384) on side faces are allowed. Side edges must connect directly from source to
target. You can use virtual topology to eliminate some features.

Figure 132: Example (a) N Source to 1 Target or 1 Target to N Source Topology

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 Mesh Sweeping

Figure 133: Example (b) N Source to N Target Topology

Figure 134: Example (c) 1 Source to N Target Mesh

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Specialized Meshing

Figure 135: Example (d) N Source to 1 Target Mesh

Figure 136: Example (e) N Source to N Target Mesh

Use Virtual Topology to create a single edge between source and target faces.

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 Mesh Sweeping

Figure 137: Using Virtual Topology to Create Single Edge Between Source/Target Faces

Mesh Controls and the Thin Model Sweeper

Mesh Controls applied on the target faces/edges are ignored. Only mesh controls applied to the
source faces/edges are respected.

In example (a) below, the Mapped Face Control is ignored because it is applied to the target face.

Figure 138: Example (a) Mapped Face Control Applied to Target Is Ignored

In example (b) below, the Mapped Face Control is respected because it is applied to the source face.

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Specialized Meshing

Figure 139: Example (b) Mapped Face Control Applied to Source Is Respected

Thin Model Sweeping for Single Body Parts

This section provides the basic steps for using thin model sweeping to mesh a single body part.

To use the Thin Model Sweeper to mesh a single body part:

1. Click the Mesh object in the Tree and select Insert> Method from the context menu.

2. Scope the Method control to the thin body.

3. In Details> Definition, set Method to Sweep.

4. Set Src/Trg Selection to Manual Thin or Automatic Thin.

Although Automatic Thin may work for simple cases, you may need to select Manual Thin de-
pending on the complexity of the model.

5. If you selected Manual Thin, scope the source face(s), remembering the recommendations provided
in Considerations for Selecting Source Faces for the Thin Model Sweeper (p. 291).

6. Enter additional sweep option settings, as desired, in the Details View. These may include Free Face
Mesh Type, Sweep Num Divs, and Element Option. For descriptions of these options, see Sweep
Method Control (p. 201).

7. Define other mesh controls, as desired.

8. Generate the mesh.

Figure 140: Thin Solid Sweeper Used to Mesh a Single Body Part (p. 297) shows a model of a timing
cover that consists of a single body. The thin solid sweeper was used to mesh the body. To obtain
this mesh, Free Face Mesh Type was set to Quad/Tri, Sweep Num Divs was set to 2, and Element
Option was set to Solid Shell.

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 Mesh Sweeping

Figure 140: Thin Solid Sweeper Used to Mesh a Single Body Part

Figure 141: Thin Solid Sweeper Used to Mesh a Single Body Part: Detail (p. 297) shows detail of the
timing cover. The Sweep Num Divs setting of 2 is apparent in this view.

Figure 141: Thin Solid Sweeper Used to Mesh a Single Body Part: Detail

Thin Model Sweeping for Multibody Parts

This section provides the basic steps for using thin model sweeping to mesh multibody parts. You
can define thin sweep for each thin body in the multibody part.

To use the Thin Model Sweeper to mesh a multibody part:

1. Select a thin body in the Geometry window, right-click, and select Insert> Method.

2. Set Method to Sweep.

3. Set Src/Trg Selection to Manual Thin or Automatic Thin.

Although Automatic Thin may work for simple cases, you may need to select Manual Thin de-
pending on the complexity of the model.

4. If you selected Manual Thin, scope the source face(s) of the thin body, remembering the recommend-
ations provided in Considerations for Selecting Source Faces for the Thin Model Sweeper (p. 291).

5. Enter additional sweep option settings for the thin body, as desired, in the Details View. These may in-
clude Free Face Mesh Type and Element Option. For descriptions of these options, see Sweep Method
Control (p. 201).

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6. If the part contains multiple thin bodies, repeat step 1 through step 5 for each.

7. If the part contains any thick sweepable bodies, repeat step 1 through step 5 for each, but set Src/Trg
Selection to Automatic, Manual Source, or Manual Source and Target (depending on complexity
of the model).

8. If the part contains any non-sweepable bodies, define mesh methods for each, if desired. If the mesh
methods are left undefined, the Meshing application will determine the most appropriate methods to
use for the non-sweepable bodies.

9. Define other mesh controls, as desired.

10. Generate the mesh.

Figure 142: Thin Solid Sweeper Used to Mesh a Multibody Part (p. 298) shows a model of a bracket
that consists of four bodies. The thin solid sweeper was used to mesh the bodies. To obtain this mesh,
Free Face Mesh Type was set to Quad/Tri and Element Option was set to Solid.

Figure 142: Thin Solid Sweeper Used to Mesh a Multibody Part

Additional Considerations for Using the Thin Model Sweeper

This section describes several models and scenarios to consider before using the thin model sweeper.

The first example involves a multibody part that models a laminated composite material, as shown
below. Defining source faces for such models may be confusing.

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Figure 143: Thin Solid Sweeper and Laminated Composite Models

The part contains nine bodies. Assume that the Manual Thin option for Src/Trg Selection will be
applied to each of them. With the Manual Thin option, source faces must be defined for each selected
body (each body must have at least one face selected as its source face). There are different ways
that you can select faces to meet this requirement, and it is logical to assume that defining nine
source faces (one for each body) is one way that will work. However, in cases of laminated composites,
we recommend that you specify every other face as a source face.

Consider the figure below, in which nine faces (indicated by arrows) are defined as source faces for
the nine bodies. As illustrated by the figure, Body 1 has two faces defined as source faces, and the
same is true for bodies 2 through 8. This source face definition causes ambiguity for the thin sweep
mesher, which will have trouble determining a target face in bodies 1 through 8 and may fail.

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Figure 144: Ambiguous Source Face Definition for Laminated Composite Model

Now look at the figure below. Here every other face has been selected as a source face, for a total of
five. With this source face definition, each body still has one face selected to be its source face, so
the requirement for Manual Thin source face selection has been met. With this source face definition,
the thin sweep mesher will have no problem determining target faces for each of the bodies.

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 Mesh Sweeping

Figure 145: Recommended Source Face Definition for Laminated Composite Model

Note:

For cases in which the Automatic Thin option can be used, an alternative method to
consider is to apply the Manual Thin option to only one body, define its source face, and
apply the Automatic Thin option to the remaining bodies.

Before using thin solid sweeping, remember that the mesher meshes one side of faces and then
sweeps the mesh to the second side of faces. Consider Figure 146: Thin Solid Sweeper Limitation (p. 302),
which shows a model containing three plates. In the thin sweep operation, the edges that are common
to two source faces are present on the source side. If the edges are different on the opposite side,
the mesher will use the nodes from the source side in the mesh on the opposite side anyway. Thus,
if there are features on the non-source side that are unique and need to be captured, you should not
use the thin solid sweeping approach, as the mesher will ignore these features.

In Figure 146: Thin Solid Sweeper Limitation (p. 302), there is no valid way to mesh the middle plate
with the thin solid sweep method, as there is an imprint coming from both the plate above and the
plate below the middle plate, unless:

1. The plate is decomposed (sliced) to ensure all target face(s) have a corresponding source face.

2. The multibody part is broken into single parts (non-conformal mesh at common interfaces).

3. Some other mesh method is used. (In Figure 146: Thin Solid Sweeper Limitation (p. 302), a tet mesh
method is used.)

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4. The source and target faces have similar pairs, and the source faces are selected properly (described
below).

Figure 146: Thin Solid Sweeper Limitation

Figure 147: Adding Face Projections (Splits) in the DesignModeler Application (p. 302) illustrates an
alternative approach to meshing the model above. In the DesignModeler application, the Projection
feature allows face(s) to be split so that the source and target pairs will align. (For this model, the
Edges on Face type of projection was used.)

Figure 147: Adding Face Projections (Splits) in the DesignModeler Application

With the addition of the face splits, the model can be meshed successfully with the thin solid sweep
method by applying the Manual Thin option for Src/Trg Selection to all three bodies, and defining
the top surface of each body as its source faces, as shown below. In this example, two faces are selected
as source faces for the body on the left, three for the middle body, and two for the body on the right.
Defining the source faces in this way ensures that everything is meshed from one side of the multibody
part to the other.

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 MultiZone Meshing

Figure 148: Defining Source Faces when Face Splits Are Present

Figure 149: Three Plates Model Meshed with Thin Solid Sweeper (p. 303) shows the meshed model.

Figure 149: Three Plates Model Meshed with Thin Solid Sweeper

MultiZone Meshing
The MultiZone mesh method provides automatic decomposition of geometry into mapped (struc-
tured/sweepable) regions and free (unstructured) regions. It automatically generates a pure hexahedral
mesh where possible and then fills the more difficult to capture regions with unstructured mesh. The
MultiZone mesh method and the Sweep mesh method operate similarly; however, MultiZone has
capabilities that make it more suitable for a class of problems for which the Sweep method would not
work without extensive geometry decomposition.

MultiZone meshing topics include:

• MultiZone Method Control (p. 205)

• MultiZone Algorithms (p. 304)

• Using MultiZone (p. 307)

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• MultiZone Support for Inflation (p. 322)

• MultiZone Limitations and Hints (p. 324)

MultiZone Algorithms
The MultiZone mesh method, which is based on the blocking approach used in ANSYS ICEM CFD
Hexa, starts by automatically blocking out surfaces. If the surface blocking can form a closed volume,
then the volume may be filled automatically with a number of structured, swept, or unstructured
blocks. The structured blocks can be filled with Hexa, Hexa/Prism, or Prism elements and the un-
structured blocks can be filled with Tetra, Hexa Dominant, or Hexa Core elements depending on
your settings, as described in MultiZone Method Control (p. 205).

The blocking algorithm and the meshing algorithm used to generate a MultiZone mesh are detailed
below.

MultiZone Blocking Algorithm

The blocking algorithm used to generate a MultiZone mesh can be described as follows. The series
of figures illustrates the process, assuming the geometry shown in Figure 150: Blocking Al-
gorithm—Sample Geometry (p. 304).

Figure 150: Blocking Algorithm—Sample Geometry

1. Creates automatic surface blocking (2D) by performing a surface analysis. In this step the algorithm:

• Uses the MultiZone Quad/Tri mesh method to generate 2D blocking.

• Uses mapped controls to try to force mapping. In general, surfaces with four sides are mapped
(structured) and other surface patches are free (unstructured).

• Uses source face selection to try to imprint faces into the source/target faces. (MultiZone treats
all sources/targets as sources, as imprinting can occur from either side. For additional details,
refer to MultiZone Source Face Selection Tips (p. 309).)

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Figure 151: Blocking Algorithm—Step 1: 2D Blocking

2. Creates a MultiZone (3D) structure. In this step the algorithm:

• Processes surface blocks to match swept sections.

• Connects surface blocks to create volume blocking (3D) using unique heuristic approaches to
avoid some of the traditional limitations of sweeping algorithms.

• Resolves the volume region with structured, swept, and unstructured blocks. Mapped faces become
structured blocks and free faces become unstructured blocks.

Figure 152: Blocking Algorithm—Step 2: 3D Blocking

3. O-Grid creates boundary blocks automatically, and the algorithm extrudes O-Grid to create inflation.

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Figure 153: Blocking Algorithm—Step 3: Inflation

Note:

Inflation can be performed on a combination of side and/or source faces.

MultiZone Meshing Algorithm

The meshing algorithm used to generate a MultiZone mesh can be described as follows:

• Assigns intervals by transferring sizing from the topology to blocking.

• Meshes structured faces (those that can be mapped meshed) using transfinite interpolation and un-
structured (free) faces with all quadrilateral or a combination of quadrilateral/triangle elements.

• Interpolates, sweeps, and fills the volume mesh for the structured, swept, and unstructured blocks
respectively. The structured blocks can be filled with Hexa, Hexa/Prism, or Prism elements and the
unstructured blocks can be filled with Tetra, Hexa Dominant, or Hexa Core elements depending
on your settings, as described in MultiZone Method Control (p. 205).

MultiZone for Sweepable Bodies

If using Use MultiZone for Sweepable bodies (p. 277), you can use the Show Sweepable Bodies (p. 440)
setting to identify bodies that will be meshed using the MultiZone method. Although MultiZone
can mesh other, more complex bodies, it does not attempt this unless you manually insert MultiZone
mesh method controls.

Other notes about the behavior of MultiZone when meshed in this way:

1. When meshing using Automatic approach, MultiZone uses Preserve Boundaries = All (Note this is
different than the default when scoping a body to a MultiZone mesh method) and no defeaturing is
done.

2. If MultiZone fails to generate a valid mesh due to errors in the mesh quality or topology, the body will
be meshed with Free Mesh Type = Tetra.

3. Bodies scoped to an Automatic Mesh Method will also be meshed in the same way.

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Using MultiZone
To help you to determine whether the MultiZone mesh method is the most appropriate method for
your problem and to ensure blocking is constructed properly, you must consider the following char-
acteristics of the problem:

• Sources

• Sweep paths (side faces)

• Intersections (levels)

To classify a MultiZone problem, consider which faces will be sources and in turn, which sources will
cause imprinting. (Note that imprinting, which is described in MultiZone Source Face Imprinting
Guidelines (p. 310), has its own classifications that further define the problem.)

In Figure 154: Classifying the Problem: Sources (p. 307), four faces have been selected as sources.

Figure 154: Classifying the Problem: Sources

You must also consider the sweep path, or sides, of the mesh. This includes how many potential
sweep directions exist in the problem and if there is more than one, how imprints should be handled.
See Figure 155: Classifying the Problem: Handling of Paths and Imprints (p. 307).

Figure 155: Classifying the Problem: Handling of Paths and Imprints

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Specialized Meshing

A collective set of attached faces in a body is used for imprinting. For example, if one of the faces in
this model has a split in it as shown in Figure 156: Collective Source Faces (p. 308), the number of
source faces increases by one. However, the set of source faces remains the same.

Figure 156: Collective Source Faces

Thus, there are still four levels of source faces. However, now there are additional considerations ne-
cessary for imprinting, and handling of side faces.

All faces that are not sources are side faces, and they make up the path. In a simple box example,
the box could be swept in any one of three directions, but it is the source selection that determines
the path. If no source is selected, MultiZone determines the path arbitrarily.

The model shown in Figure 157: Classifying the Problem: Sweep Path (p. 308) shows one clear sweep
direction. The green faces are the side faces.

Figure 157: Classifying the Problem: Sweep Path

By default in MultiZone, the mesher is set to automatically determine the sweep path. Since 2D regions
and 3D regions are decomposed automatically, this allows the mesher the freedom to choose paths
that may not be possible without first subdividing the model. For example, in cases like the valve
body shown below, with a traditional sweep meshing approach you would either need to split this
body into three regions (center region with path along the axis, and two half cylinders with path top
to bottom), or mesh the whole body from top to bottom.

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 MultiZone Meshing

Figure 158: Valve Body: Traditional Approach

With MultiZone, the mesher determines that certain portions of the cylindrical region face need to
be mapped as a side face, and other portions of it that need to be considered as source faces, and
therefore it can decompose the sweep paths automatically.

Figure 159: Valve Body: Automatic Source Faces with MultiZone

In general, you should allow MultiZone to define its own sweep path. However, if the path is obvious
and there are clear source and side faces, or if MultiZone is not able to determine the sweep path
on its own, you can guide the mesher by setting manual source faces and ensuring side faces are
mappable.

For more information, refer to:

MultiZone Source Face Selection Tips
MultiZone Source Face Imprinting Guidelines
MultiZone Face Mappability Guidelines
Using Virtual Topology to Handle Fillets in MultiZone Problems

MultiZone Source Face Selection Tips

When you choose the MultiZone mesh method, the Details View expands to expose various set-
tings (p. 205), one of which is Src/Trg Selection. Src/Trg Selection, which defines the source and
target selection type for the MultiZone mesh method, can be set to either Automatic (the default)
or Manual Source. Remember these points when selecting faces:

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• Select both source and target faces. MultiZone internally decides which faces to take as sources and
which to take as targets.

• To do imprinting of face loops, all swept section faces (that is, those that are perpendicular to the sweep
direction) should be selected.

• Source faces will generally be meshed with a free mesh. Depending on the geometry, you can add
mapped face meshing controls (p. 240) to these faces to get mapped meshing.

• At an interface in a multibody part (in which two bodies share the same face), there is not always a
distinction of which body the face belongs to. When using MultiZone in such cases, setting the face to
be inflated may affect both bodies because both bodies are meshed with MultiZone at the same time.

• To make source face selection easier, select Annotation Preferences from the Toolbar and then deselect
Body Scoping Annotations in the Annotation Preferences option box to toggle the visibility of an-
notations in the Geometry window. For example, after scoping MultiZone to a body, the body will be
displayed using a blue solid annotation. Turn off the body scoping annotations; then select the source
faces. For picking internal faces, the Hide Faces right-click option may help you to see inside a body.
For example, you can select external faces in the Geometry window and then use the Hide Faces option
to hide the selected faces (making it easier to select the internal faces).

Refer to Figure 106: Source Face Selection for MultiZone (p. 212) for more information.

MultiZone Source Face Imprinting Guidelines

Imprinting has its own classifications that further define the problem. Models often exhibit combin-
ations of these different situations when trying to sort out the sweep paths between pairs of source
face(s).

When selecting source faces, it is important to recognize that the pairs of source faces need to have
proper matches (that is, each level must be resolved with other levels). If source faces cannot be
paired, imprinting must be done by the software to create proper pairs. The software supports only
certain types of imprinting, so it is important to understand these cases.

Imprinting classifications include:

Internal Loops
Boundary Loops
Multiple Internal Loops
Multiple Connected Internal Loops
Parallel Loops
Intersecting Loops

It is also important to note that if you set the Free Mesh Type (p. 205) to anything other than Not
Allowed, some of the imprinting will not be done, as this can lead to some problems in the creation
of the free blocks. For example, on some models you could get a pure hex mesh if you set Free
Mesh Type to Not Allowed, but not get a pure hex mesh if you set Free Mesh Type to some
other value.

Internal Loops
Internal loops are internal regions that imprint to other faces, such as the fins in the rotor model
shown below.

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 MultiZone Meshing

Figure 160: Source Imprinting Classifications: Internal Loops

Boundary Loops
Boundary loops are splits in a face that extend to the boundary, such as those shown in the
model below.

Figure 161: Source Imprinting Classifications: Boundary Loops

Multiple Internal Loops

Some models exhibit multiple internal loops, such as those in the model below.

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Figure 162: Source Imprinting Classifications: Multiple Internal Loops

Multiple Connected Internal Loops

Some models exhibit multiple connected internal loops, such as those in the model of the circuit
board below. The MultiZone method has been applied to the underlying board, which is high-
lighted in blue. The Edge Coloring>By Connection feature is on in this view.

Figure 163: Source Imprinting Classifications: Multiple Connected Internal Loops View 1

In the figure below, the body corresponding to the underlying board was selected and meshed.
In this view, both the Edge Coloring>By Connection and Show Vertices features are on.

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 MultiZone Meshing

Figure 164: Source Imprinting Classifications: Multiple Connected Internal Loops View 2

Parallel Loops
Some models exhibit parallel loops, such as those in the model below. If the software can match
all pairs these models should work; however, the angle between pairs can cause problems (due
to difficulties finding the pairs), and if there are non-matched pairs they will cause problems. For
non-matched pairs, virtual topologies may solve the problem. For these kinds of examples, using
automatic source face selection is often more robust than manual source face selection.

Figure 165: Source Imprinting Classifications: Parallel Loops

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Intersecting Loops
Two views of a model with intersecting loops are shown below. Notice that the sources on the
top and bottom would intersect when being imprinted. These types of cases are not supported
yet. You can use geometry decomposition as a workaround.

Figure 166: Source Imprinting Classifications: Intersecting Loops View 1

Figure 167: Source Imprinting Classifications: Intersecting Loops View 2

MultiZone Face Mappability Guidelines

To construct a swept or all hex mesh on typical geometries, side faces generally have to be able
to be mapped or submapped. In most cases, if manual source faces are selected with MultiZone,
all other faces are treated as side faces and are mapped/submapped if possible. However, certain
model characteristics can lead to problems in mapping/submapping side faces, and ultimately lead
to meshing failure. You can use virtual topologies to correct most issues and obtain successful side
face handling and mesh generation. In some cases, you may also want source faces to be
mapped/submapped, but that should be a lower priority.

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 MultiZone Meshing

In addition, imprinted regions must have a clear path of connecting side faces and handling inter-
sections throughout the path.

Note:

If all faces of a body have a face meshing control set to Mapped, MultiZone will perform
additional steps to ensure an all-mapped hex mesh is created. This can be important
for cases where source faces of one body are side faces of an adjacent body so the entire
body must be meshed with mapped faces in order to mesh the full model.

For guidelines that explain some common situations and steps you can take to resolve faces into
mappable regions, see:

• Face Meshing Control (p. 240)

• Side Face Handling of Imprinted Regions (p. 315)

Side Face Handling of Imprinted Regions

When an imprint is made to connect two sets of source faces, side faces are constructed in the
process. (See Figure 155: Classifying the Problem: Handling of Paths and Imprints (p. 307).) Generally,
the pairs of imprints create a natural set of side faces that are mappable; however, if there are
several sets of side faces along the sweep path, the interval edge assignment of the internal
mapped faces can become tricky. Because there are not physical faces or edges to help define
the interval edge assignment, you are sometimes better off adding more decomposition to help
control this (either by splitting some of the external faces, or by slicing the geometry).

The simple cutout case shown below illustrates this.

Figure 168: Simple Cutout Case

In the case above, there is a set of source faces at top, center, and bottom. Internal side faces
are constructed from the center to the bottom and the interval edge assignment for these internal
edges is found by subtracting the number of divisions for the top to center region of sweep path
from the entire sweep path.

However, in cases in which the internal cutouts are at multiple levels or the sides do not provide
a clear connected path, MultiZone could have difficulties constructing side faces with appropriate

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interval edge assignment unless you set the Free Mesh Type (p. 205) to something other than
Not Allowed, or you perform manual geometry decomposition. Refer to the figure below for an
example showing cutouts at multiple levels.

Figure 169: Cutouts at Multiple Levels

In the figure above, notice that cutouts at different levels are meshed at the same level with regard
to the grid lines.

When there are intersections between the imprints and the side faces along the sweep path,
some complications may arise. For example, the case shown in Figure 170: Intersections Between
Levels and Sides (p. 316) has one clear sweep path (top to bottom), six levels (sets of sources),
and a need for imprints.

The legend below explains the symbols and display options used in Figure 170: Intersections
Between Levels and Sides (p. 316).

Figure 170: Intersections Between Levels and Sides

To construct a swept mesh on this model, MultiZone needs to resolve the intersections between
the cylinders, and the side rib. In this case, meshing is successful because the sources are well-
defined, and the side face handling is clear (side faces can be submapped appropriately).

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 MultiZone Meshing

Figure 171: Meshed Model

However, if the sources are not well-defined (or incomplete), or the side faces cannot be mapped,
MultiZone will have difficulties. To fix such problems, add extra decomposition or mesh with the
Free Mesh Type option.

Cylindrical Side Faces

Cylinders have a start and end point which, at times, can affect the quality of the meshing. When
you add a first virtual edge to split a circle (the side face of a cylinder), you create two vertices:
one where you split the circle and one at the end point, as shown below.

Figure 172: Vertices in a Split Circle

If MultiZone fails to mesh a cylindrical surface with cut-outs folded at greater than 180 degrees,
splitting the cylinder along the seam to get a sub-mapped face mesh may help. If you use this
method, check to ensure that the split does not hamper mesh quality.

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Figure 173: 360 ˚ Cutout

For more information about virtual split edges, see Creating and Managing Virtual Split
Edges (p. 460).

Internal Loop Side Faces

When internal loops exist along the side faces of the sweep path, as shown in Figure 174: Internal
Loops along Side Faces of the Sweep Path (p. 319) below, the following tips might help:

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 MultiZone Meshing

Figure 174: Internal Loops along Side Faces of the Sweep Path

1. Assign a mapped face control to the side face(s) with the internal cutouts to help ensure those faces
are mapped.

Figure 175: Map Face Control Assigned to Side Faces

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2. Assign front/back of connecting faces as source faces for MultiZone.

Figure 176: Connecting Faces Assigned as Source Faces

3. If side faces are cylindrical, use inflation to get reasonable quality mesh.

Figure 177: Using Inflation on Cylindrical Side Faces

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 MultiZone Meshing

Figure 178: Using Inflation on Cylindrical Side Faces

Using Virtual Topology to Handle Fillets in MultiZone Problems

The presence of fillets in a model can cause problems for MultiZone, since arguably a fillet could
be either a side face or a source face and the mesh quality in the corner could be problematic.
Ideally, a fillet should be split in half, with one half going to the source face and the other half going
to the side face.

Figure 179: Fillets and MultiZone

In addition, inflation is generally recommended to improve the high angled elements that would
be formed along the edge that is shared between the source and side faces. Inflation allows the
mesh to transition away from the boundary and reduce the angle. See Figure 180: Fillets and Infla-
tion (p. 322).

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Figure 180: Fillets and Inflation

Alternatively, the fillet could be removed by assigning the fillet to the side face through a virtual
topology operation.

Figure 181: Fillets as Side Faces

Refer to Meshing: Virtual Topology (p. 445) for more information.

MultiZone Support for Inflation

The Inflation Option (p. 128) setting determines the heights of the inflation layers. For the MultiZone
mesh method, you can set Inflation Option to Smooth Transition, Total Thickness, or First Layer
Thickness. First Aspect Ratio and Last Aspect Ratio are not supported.

The Inflation Option for MultiZone is set to Smooth Transition by default. The approach Smooth
Transition uses for computing each local initial height for MultiZone differs from the approach used
for tet mesh methods. This is because an inflated tet mesh contains different types of volume elements
(tets and prisms where the ratio takes into consideration the difference in volume based on element
shape), while in an inflated MultiZone mesh the elements generally will be the same type.

Inflation in MultiZone is done by offsetting the topology to construct inflation regions called an O-
Grid. In the O-Grid creation, only the faces that are being inflated will be offset. For example, in a
simple box (or sphere) like the following:

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If all faces are inflated, you would get a complete O-Grid.

If you only select some faces of the box, the faces that are not inflated do not get an O-Grid region,
and the inflation layers attach to that face. In the following image, all faces are inflated except the
left face.

Inflation controls define:

• How thick the O-Grid region is.

• The sizing along the O-Grid.

When the Smooth Transition option is used with MultiZone, the O-Grid edge length varies based
on the number of elements, and the local last inflation height is computed as Transition Ratio (p. 130)
* local_mesh_size. As with other mesh methods when Smooth Transition is used, the inflation layers
are created using the values of the Transition Ratio (p. 130), Maximum Layers (p. 131), and Growth
Rate (p. 131) controls.

Note:

• Because the MultiZone mesh method uses an O-Grid technique for inflation, it cannot stairstep
or peel back layers if there is insufficient room for all layers. Because of this, the default values
for Smooth Transition inflation could be aggressive, depending on the model. Reducing the

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number of layers or switching to a different type of inflation definition may be more suitable
for some models.

• MultiZone supports Program Controlled (p. 126) inflation.

• The Collision Avoidance (p. 136) option is not used for MultiZone as the inflation layers are
created within the blocking approach.

MultiZone Limitations and Hints

Be aware of the following limitations and hints when using MultiZone:

• Pinch controls (p. 161) are not supported.

• Only three-dimensional bodies can be used as Bodies of Influence (BOIs) (p. 233).

• The hard-sizing behavior of Sphere of influence (SOI) (p. 232) controls is not supported; you can define
a refinement with an SOI control but not a coarsening. The SOI element size is only applicable in the
mesh if it is smaller than the local mesh size without SOI.

• BOI controls are interpreted as an agglomerate of SOI controls that fill the body of influence. Therefore,
on the boundaries of that body, the size might be a little larger because the location is not in one of
the spheres.

• The scope is not used for the SOI/BOI definition. The SOI/BOI does not act only on the scoped topology,
but on all topologies within the region of the SOI/BOI.

• In MultiZone, size controls (p. 232) are first applied on the edges. For structured blocks, the mapped
mesh of structured blocks is completely determined by the mesh on the attached edges; you cannot
apply refinement or coarsening to the faces as you can for unstructured blocks. Therefore, to see the
impact of the SOI on a mapped face, you must increase the radius of the SOI or lower the Growth
Rate (p. 85) to influence the mesh size on the edges.

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Figure 182: Sphere of Influence on Face that Doesn't Intersect Edges

• In MultiZone, a closed edge is represented by more than one blocking topological edges. Therefore,
user-specified edge node distribution size may not be respected. However, the number of intervals
will still be respected,

• For split curves in rotated edge association, only interval count, not distribution, will be respected.

• Some inflation cases are not supported; for example, when the inflation does not form a closed loop
(which would lead to non-conformal mesh that is not allowed). In these cases the inflation will be
skipped. Also see MultiZone Support for Inflation (p. 322).

• The Show Sweepable Bodies (p. 440) feature is a good tool to detect bodies that should mesh with
MultiZone.

• There is no access to underlying blocks except by writing out the ANSYS ICEM CFD files (p. 64).

• For help in diagnosing problems when using the MultiZone method, refer to the description of the
Edge group in the Mechanical help. This toolbar provides access to features that are intended to
improve your ability to distinguish edge and mesh connectivity.

• See Handling General MultiZone Meshing Failures (p. 488) for more information.

For additional information, refer to Interactions Between Mesh Methods and Mesh Controls (p. 394)
(Patch Independent Mesh Methods table).

Assembly Meshing
Two algorithms are available for assembly meshing (p. 142):

• CutCell

• Tetrahedrons

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CutCell Cartesian meshing is a general purpose meshing method designed for ANSYS Fluent. The Tet-
rahedrons assembly meshing algorithm is a derivative of the CutCell algorithm, with strengths and
weaknesses similar to those of CutCell. The Tetrahedrons method starts from the CutCell mesh and
through various mesh manipulations creates a high quality unstructured tet mesh.

The CutCell method uses a top down volume meshing approach (surface mesh automatically created
from boundary of volume mesh) without the need for manual geometry cleanup or decomposition,
thereby reducing the turnaround time required for meshing. The CutCell method is useful for meshing
fluid bodies in single body parts and multibody parts and assemblies of unconnected solids; it cannot
be used to mesh a collection of loosely closed surface patches.

The CutCell algorithm is suitable for a large range of applications, and due to the large fraction of hex
cells in the mesh, often produces better results than tetrahedral methods.

CutCell is supported in the Meshing application only. The Tetrahedrons algorithm is available in both
the Meshing application and the Mechanical application; however, meshes generated using assembly
meshing are not supported for Mechanical solvers. Refer to Method (p. 143) for details.

Note:

Assembly meshing or Fluent mesh export (p. 24) may fail if you are using shared licensing,
no licenses are available, and ANSYS Fluent is running already. In such cases, the error is due
to shared licensing restrictions, but the error message that is issued does not identify licensing
as the cause.

Note:

Assembly Meshing is being deprecated and will be removed in future releases.

Assembly meshing topics include:

The Assembly Meshing Process
The Assembly Meshing Workflow

The Assembly Meshing Process

The assembly meshing process involves the following approach:

1. Sizing controls and virtual bodies (optional) are defined.

Note:

You can define virtual bodies to represent flow volumes if your model does not
contain a “solid” that represents the fluid region. In this way, virtual bodies allow
you to mesh fluid regions without having to use the DesignModeler application
or another solid modeler to model them. The Fluid/Solid material property (p. 336)
for virtual bodies is always set to Fluid (read-only).

2. The initial size of the Cartesian grid is computed based on the minimum and maximum size set for
the sizing controls.

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3. A uniform Cartesian grid is created within the bounding box for the geometry.

4. The sizing values are computed and the grid is then adaptively refined based on the local sizing
values.

Figure 183: Mesh After Refinement (p. 327) shows the mesh after refining the initial grid based
on sizing controls.

Figure 183: Mesh After Refinement

5. The cells intersected by the geometry are marked. Only nodes on marked cells are considered for
projection. The nodes are projected to the geometry (corner, edge, and face in order of reducing
priority).

Figure 184: Mesh After Projection (p. 327) shows the mesh after node projection.

Figure 184: Mesh After Projection

6. The edges intersected by the geometry are identified. Mesh edges to be preserved/recovered are
determined, and are used to construct mesh faces. Once the mesh faces are identified, cells are
decomposed to recover these faces. The cells are decomposed based on a number of templates.

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7. The mesh outside the fluid bodies is removed. The mesh inside the solid bodies may also be removed
for assembly meshing, depending on the setting of the Keep Solid Mesh (p. 145) control.

8. Therefore, the quality of the cells generated is improved.

9. Cells are separated into cell zones based on the respective virtual bodies. A cell included in multiple
virtual bodies will be included with the body having the highest priority. The smallest body, based
on the size of the bounding box enclosing it, has the highest priority to guarantee that any voids
are recovered properly.

Figure 185: Cells Separated After Decomposition (p. 328) shows the cells separated into respect-
ive cell zones after decomposition.

Figure 185: Cells Separated After Decomposition

10. The boundary mesh is recovered and separated based on the underlying geometry.

• Faces whose adjacent neighboring cells are in different cell zones automatically constitute the
boundary mesh.

• The neighboring cells of a face on an internal baffle are in the same cell zone. In such cases, faces
close to and nearly parallel to the baffle surface are recovered to represent the baffle surface.

• As each cell zone is a closed region, the mesh boundary is conformal.

The boundary zone types are assigned based on the Named Selections defined on the (underlying)
geometry faces.

Note:

Named Selection names for internal face zones are not interpreted. In cases where
two enclosed voids share a face, the face zone is assigned type WALL automatically
regardless of whether a Named Selection has been defined for the face. In these
cases, the mesh generation cannot cross any boundary so you must define a virtual
body with material point for each flow volume void in order for the volumes to
be meshed.

Figure 186: CutCell Mesh After Boundary Recovery (p. 329) shows the CutCell mesh after the
boundary mesh is recovered.

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Figure 186: CutCell Mesh After Boundary Recovery

When the mesh is exported to ANSYS Fluent, a cell zone type of either FLUID or SOLID is as-
signed to each body based on its material properties. Refer to Fluent Mesh Export (p. 24) for
details.

For information about material properties and which faces are selected to be inflation
boundaries when Program Controlled inflation is defined for assembly meshing, refer to
Program Controlled (p. 126).

11. If the Tetrahedrons assembly meshing algorithm was selected, tet meshing extensions are applied.
The Tetrahedrons algorithm starts with the CutCell mesh and transforms it into an unstructured
tet mesh.

The Assembly Meshing Workflow

This section describes the workflow for using assembly meshing, which is different from the workflow
for the other Meshing application mesh methods. Rather than being applied locally through insertion
of a mesh method control, assembly meshing is a global operation as implied by its name and cannot
be used in combination with other meshing methods.

The general workflow for assembly meshing is as follows:

1. Set prerequisites (p. 331).

2. Select an assembly mesh method (CutCell or Tetrahedrons) (p. 332).

3. Change Fluid/Solid material property settings (optional) (p. 336).

4. Define virtual bodies (optional) (p. 337).

5. Define mesh groups (optional) (p. 345).

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6. Set global assembly meshing options (p. 346) (Feature Capture, Tessellation Refinement, and Keep
Solid Mesh).

7. Define sharp angle controls (optional) (p. 347).

8. Set sizing options (p. 347).

9. Find thin sections (optional) (p. 349).

10. Find contacts (optional) (p. 351).

11. Generate the mesh (p. 353).

12. Apply contact sizing (p. 355).

13. Set global inflation controls (p. 356).

14. Generate the inflation mesh (p. 357).

15. Apply local (scoped) inflation controls and regenerate the inflation mesh (optional) (p. 358).

16. Export the mesh (p. 360).

You may modify the workflow to handle your specific assembly meshing problem. Some examples
are presented below.

Sample Assembly Meshing Workflow for Oil Drill Bit or Valve

Assume the case involves a model of an oil drill bit or valve with these characteristics:

• The model consists of a single or multibody part.

• Shared topology is working, and there are only single interior faces in the model.

• You already know that there are no unresolved gaps or thin sections in the model.

• You know that the model has sections with acute angles.

The following workflow is appropriate for this case:

1. Set prerequisites (p. 331).

2. Select an assembly mesh method (CutCell or Tetrahedrons) (p. 332).

3. Change Fluid/Solid material property settings (optional) (p. 336).

4. Set global assembly meshing options (p. 346) (Feature Capture and Tessellation Refinement).

5. Define sharp angle controls (p. 347).

6. Set sizing options (p. 347).

7. Generate the mesh (p. 353).

8. Set global inflation controls (p. 356).

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9. Generate the inflation mesh (p. 357).

10. Apply local (scoped) inflation controls and regenerate the inflation mesh (optional) (p. 358).

11. Export the mesh (p. 360).

Sample Assembly Meshing Workflow for an Automotive Assembly

Assume the case involves a model of an automotive assembly with these characteristics:

• You do not know all of the details of the model.

• You need to mesh the flow volume, and you may also need to mesh the assembly.

The following workflow is appropriate for this case:

1. Set prerequisites (p. 331).

2. Select an assembly mesh method (CutCell or Tetrahedrons) (p. 332).

3. Change Fluid/Solid material property settings (optional) (p. 336).

4. Define virtual bodies (p. 337).

5. Define mesh groups (optional) (p. 345).

6. Set global assembly meshing options (p. 346) (Feature Capture, Tessellation Refinement, and Keep
Solid Mesh).

7. Define sharp angle controls (optional) (p. 347).

8. Set sizing options (p. 347).

9. Find thin sections (optional) (p. 349).

10. Find contacts (p. 351).

11. Generate the mesh (p. 353).

12. Apply contact sizing (p. 355).

13. Set global inflation controls (p. 356).

14. Generate the inflation mesh (p. 357).

15. Apply local (scoped) inflation controls and regenerate the inflation mesh (optional) (p. 358).

16. Export the mesh (p. 360).

Setting Prerequisites
To expose the Assembly Meshing group of controls, you must set the following prerequisites:

1. Set Physics Preference (p. 73) to CFD.

2. Set Solver Preference (p. 75) to either Fluent or Polyflow.

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As a result, the Assembly Meshing group of global controls appears in the Details View with None,
CutCell, and Tetrahedrons as options for Method. Refer to Method (p. 143) for details.

Note:

• When Physics Preference is set to CFD and assembly meshing is active, a shape checking
algorithm based on orthogonal quality (p. 120) is used. Orthogonal quality, which is the re-
commended quality criterion for CFD simulations, can be used for all types of meshes includ-
ing CutCell and polyhedral. Note that the skewness quality criterion is not recommended
for CutCell meshes.

• Orthogonal quality (p. 120) in the Meshing application is equivalent to Inverse Orthogonal
Quality in ANSYS Fluent Meshing, except that the scale is reversed:

Inverse Orthogonal Quality = 1 – Orthogonal Quality

The orthogonal quality values may not correspond exactly with the inverse orthogonal
quality values in ANSYS Fluent because the computation depends on boundary con-
ditions on internal surfaces (WALL vs. INTERIOR/FAN/RADIATOR/POROUS-JUMP). ANSYS
Fluent may return different results which reflect the modified mesh topology on which
CFD simulations are performed. Also, for CutCell meshes, the elements in the Meshing
application are “traditional” (hex/tet/wedge/pyramid) elements. When a CutCell mesh
is exported from the Meshing application to ANSYS Fluent, elements that are connected
to parent faces are exported in polyhedral format, while all others retain their type.
Note that this behavior is only true for CutCell; the Tetrahedrons algorithm uses only
traditional element types.

Selecting an Assembly Mesh Method

Selecting an assembly meshing algorithm will expose the assembly meshing controls and hide
controls that are not applicable to assembly meshing:

1. In the Assembly Meshing group of global controls in the Details View, set Method (p. 143) to CutCell
or Tetrahedrons.

After selecting a method, you will continue to have access to the following mesh controls with the
noted exceptions and additions that are unique to assembly meshing algorithms. Controls are dis-
cussed in more detail in the appropriate workflow steps.

Sizing Controls
Most Sizing controls (p. 80) are supported.

• Adaptive Sizing (p. 70) is not supported.

• Uniform Sizing (p. 83) is not supported.

Local (Scoped) Size Controls

Some local (scoped) size (p. 224) controls are supported.

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• The Element Size (p. 230) option for Type is supported for local body, face, and edge sizing. For edge
sizing, the Number of Divisions option for Type is not supported. Any bias options (p. 238) applied
with edge sizing are ignored.

• The Body of Influence (p. 233) option for Type is supported for local body (p. 224) sizing, but the body
of influence cannot be scoped to a line body.

• If you want to use a body of influence with a virtual body (p. 337), you can scope the body of influence
to any body in the geometry. The body of influence does not have to be inside or even in contact with
the scoped body.

• The Sphere of Influence (p. 232) and Number of Divisions (p. 234) options for Type are not supported.

• No local vertex sizing (p. 228) is supported.

• Contact Sizing (p. 238) is supported. However, if contact sizing is applied to entities on a body that is
scoped to a body of influence, the contact sizing is ignored.

If any unsupported local size controls are defined prior to selection of an assembly meshing al-
gorithm, they are suppressed when an assembly meshing algorithm is selected.

Inflation Controls
3D inflation controls are supported. This includes global (p. 123) (automatic Program Controlled)
and local (p. 265) (scoped) controls.

• A mixture of global and local inflation is not supported for assembly meshing algorithms. Consider the
following when determining whether to use global or local inflation:

– For inflation on virtual bodies, you must use automatic Program Controlled inflation; you cannot
use local controls to inflate virtual bodies. Thus in general, if you are using virtual bodies to represent
flow volumes in your model, plan to use automatic inflation. Automatic inflation is specified globally
by setting Use Automatic Inflation (p. 125) to Program Controlled (p. 126). With Program Controlled
inflation, faces on real solid bodies will inflate into the virtual bodies. The Fluid/Solid designation on
real bodies will be respected (that is, faces on real fluid bodies will inflate into the fluid region, but
the solid region will not be inflated).

– Alternatively, you can set Use Automatic Inflation to None (p. 125) and define local inflation controls.
This approach is appropriate if your model contains real bodies that represent the fluid regions.

The restriction from mixing global and local inflation results in the following behaviors:

– If Program Controlled inflation and local inflation are both defined and you select an assembly
meshing algorithm, Program Controlled inflation overrides the local inflation controls. The local in-
flation controls become inactive.

– If an assembly meshing algorithm is selected and local inflation is defined, the local inflation controls
become inactive if you select Program Controlled inflation.

– If an assembly meshing algorithm is selected and Program Controlled inflation is defined, the option
to insert local inflation will be grayed out (unavailable). You must set Use Automatic Inflation to
None to be able to insert local inflation.

• By default, Inflation Option (p. 128) is set to Smooth Transition and Transition Ratio (p. 130) is set to
0.272. If you set Transition Ratio prior to selecting assembly meshing, your setting will be ignored for

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assembly meshing but will be restored if you subsequently deselect assembly meshing and return to
another mesh method.

• The Inflation Algorithm (p. 132) control, which is used to select either the Pre or Post inflation algorithm
for other mesh methods, is hidden when an assembly meshing algorithm is selected.

For the CutCell algorithm, inflation is neither Pre nor Post. Rather, it may be considered a hybrid
of the two, in that the technology used is like that of the Pre algorithm, but inflation occurs Post
mesh generation. For the Tetrahedrons algorithm, Pre inflation is used, with inflation behaviors
and limitations very similar to those of the Patch Conforming Tetrahedron (p. 178) mesh method.

If you set Inflation Algorithm prior to selecting an assembly meshing algorithm, your setting
will be ignored for assembly meshing but will be restored if you subsequently deselect assembly
meshing and return to another mesh method.

• Collision Avoidance (p. 136) is set to Layer Compression and is read-only. Note, however, that layer
compression is used in areas of proximity and bad normals. In other problematic scenarios (for example,
non-manifold nodes, bad surface mesh, and so on), local stair stepping is performed. As a result of local
stair stepping, poor quality cells may be introduced into the mesh. Because of this possibility, a warning
message will appear whenever stair stepping occurs. The message will not identify the location of the
stair stepping; however, it often coincides with the location of the worst quality cells. For this reason,
using the Mesh Metric (p. 102) feature to locate the worst quality cells is also likely to locate the areas
where stair stepping occurred. To avoid stair stepping, make sure that the correct faces have been
picked for inflation and that small features are properly resolved, as stair stepping also may be related
to bad resolution of acute angles.

• Inflation on baffles is supported for the Tetrahedrons algorithm only. Inflation can be applied to baffles
using global (automatic Program Controlled (p. 126) inflation) or local controls. When Program Controlled
inflation is used, baffles are automatically selected to be inflation boundaries unless they are part of a
Named Selection (with the Program Controlled Inflation option set to Exclude). Only two-sided growth
cases for inflation are supported. Inflation layers will stair step at free boundary edges of the baffles.

• By default, Gap Factor (p. 139) is set to 1.5 for the CutCell algorithm. For the Tetrahedrons algorithm,
Gap Factor is set equal to the value that is specified for non-assembly mesh methods (0.5 by default).
The Gap Factor settings for the Tetrahedrons algorithm and the non-assembly mesh methods are
synchronized such that if one is changed, the other is updated accordingly. However, changing the
value specified for the CutCell algorithm has no effect on the value being used by the Tetrahedrons
algorithm and non-assembly mesh methods, and vice versa.

Gap Factor for the Tetrahedrons algorithm follows the same logic that is used by the Patch
Conforming Tetrahedrons (p. 178) mesh method.

When you are using an assembly meshing algorithm, if the aspect ratio of cells in the inflation
layer reaches 50, a warning message is issued. The warning message will suggest that you reduce
the gap factor, as doing so may improve the aspect ratio of these cells. Although reducing the
gap factor (to 0.5, for example) may improve the quality, it may also have a negative impact on
robustness. A higher value (1.5, for example) is generally more robust, but may not result in the
best mesh quality.

• If you make changes to inflation settings after generating the mesh using an assembly meshing algorithm,
each subsequent re-mesh begins with the initial (cached) mesh and inflates from there.

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Statistics Controls
Statistics (p. 172) controls are supported.

Virtual Topology
The use of virtual topology (p. 445) with assembly meshing is generally not recommended as it can
lead to poor faceting, resulting in poor feature capturing and/or mesh quality in assembly meshes.
For these reasons, a warning message is issued when virtual topologies are invoked with assembly
meshing.

Unsupported Controls
Controls and features that are inaccessible when an assembly meshing algorithm is selected include
those listed below.

• The global Triangle Surface Mesher (p. 156) control

• The global Advanced (p. 154) group of controls

• The following global Defeaturing controls:

– Automatic Mesh Based Defeaturing (p. 85)

– Pinch (p. 161)

– Loop Removal (p. 171)

• The following local (scoped) controls:

– Method (p. 174)

– Refinement (p. 239)

– Mapped Face Meshing (p. 240)

– Match (p. 255)

– Pinch (p. 260)

– 2D (face) Inflation (p. 265)

• Rigid bodies (p. 380)

• Symmetry—In the case of the Symmetry feature, it is accessible when an assembly meshing algorithm
is selected but it will not be respected. If you attempt to use Symmetry with an assembly meshing al-
gorithm, a warning message is issued.

• The following RMB menu options:

– Preview> Inflation (p. 437)

– Preview> Source and Target Mesh (p. 437)

– Preview> Surface Mesh (p. 435)

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– Show> Mappable Faces (p. 444)

– Show> Program Controlled Inflation Surfaces (p. 439)

– Show> Removable Loops (p. 441)

– Show> Sweepable Bodies (p. 440)

Note:

For supported mesh methods, the Preview Surface Mesh feature helps you to verify
that your mesh settings are correct by allowing you to visualize and examine the surface
mesh prior to generating the full mesh. The inaccessibility of Preview Surface Mesh for
assembly meshing does not present an obstacle for internal flow problems, as you can
easily see the mesh. However, since external flow problems involve a void, the following
alternatives are recommended:

• Use a Section Plane to look at the surface from the inside. This may be sufficient for
simple models.

• For more complex models, define a Named Selection that includes all of the internal
boundaries of the model, except those for which a Named Selection already exists. You
can then view the surface mesh by viewing the Named Selection.

Changing Fluid/Solid Material Property Settings

You can use the Fluid/Solid material property setting to control the physics that will occur on a
model:

1. Select a prototype (Body object) in the Tree Outline.

2. In the Details View, select the appropriate option for Fluid/Solid. Valid options are Fluid, Solid, and
Defined By Geometry.

When set to Defined By Geometry, the value is based on the Fluid/Solid material property
that was assigned to the body in the DesignModeler application.

Note:

• Fluid/Solid also appears in the Details View if you select a Virtual Body object in the Tree
Outline, but in such cases it is always set to Fluid (read-only).

• Refer to Fluent Mesh Export (p. 24) for information about this setting and how material
properties are translated for use in ANSYS Fluent.

• Fluid/Solid is available in the Meshing application only; it is not available if you are using
the meshing capabilities from within the Mechanical application.

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Defining Virtual Bodies

Virtual bodies are supported for assembly meshing algorithms (p. 325) only. If your model does not
contain a “solid” to represent a flow region, a virtual body can be defined so that you can mesh
the flow region without having to use the DesignModeler application or another solid modeler to
model it. Virtual bodies are extremely beneficial in cases where it is not practical to extract flow
volumes in a modeler. They can be defined by material point only, or by material point and a group
of fluid surfaces.

As defined by a material point, the virtual body is an object that is defined by a coordinate system
representing the origin of a material, and which extends from the origin until it reaches the face
of another solid (such as when a ray is traced from the origin to the closest solid).

The two main reasons for using a group of fluid surfaces to help define a virtual body are perform-
ance and mesh quality.

For example, consider a case involving a large assembly for which you want to analyze a small flow
volume but have no interest in the solid mesh. If you define the virtual body by material point only,
assembly meshing refines and resolves every solid in the assembly, and finally, using mesh separation
and the material point, identifies the flow volume and discards the solid mesh. However, if you
select a group of fluid surfaces to help define the virtual body, assembly meshing resolves only the
boundaries of the fluid surfaces in the group; essentially, it ignores all other boundaries. This ap-
proach typically speeds up mesh generation by a factor of two or more.

With respect to mesh quality, using a group of fluid surfaces to help define a virtual body is a good
idea if you have a fluids-only problem (Keep Solid Mesh (p. 145) is set to No) where within the
solids there are 3D details and/or bodies that are smaller than the minimum size and hence would
be problematic to resolve.

If fluid surface creation using the Extend to Connection option “leaks” to the outside of the domain,
the leak must be closed. This approach provides an alternative way of detecting leaks. Extend to
Connection is discussed in more detail below.

Note:

• Virtual bodies and fluid surface objects are not supported when Meshing application capab-
ilities are accessed from within the Mechanical application.

• A virtual body and the optional group of fluid surfaces that is used to help define it are rep-
resented in the Tree Outline by Virtual Body objects and Fluid Surface objects respectively.
A material point must be specified when a Fluid Surface object is being used to help define
a virtual body. Both the Fluid Surface object and the Virtual Body object will remain under-
defined until the material point is specified.

• The Fluid/Solid material property for a virtual body is always set to Fluid (read-only).

Defining a Virtual Body

The steps for defining a virtual body are presented here.

1. Select the Geometry object in the Tree Outline.

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2. Insert a Virtual Body object into the Tree using either of these methods:

• Right-click the Geometry object and select Insert > Virtual Body from the context menu.

• Choose Virtual Body on the Geometry context toolbar.

Note:

If this is the first Virtual Body object to be inserted, a Virtual Body Group object
will be inserted into the Tree along with the Virtual Body object as its child object.

3. In the Details View, specify a value for Visible. The default is Yes. If set to No, the resultant mesh of
the virtual body will not appear in the Geometry window.

4. Specify a value for Suppressed. The default is No. If set to Yes, the virtual body will be suppressed
and will not be meshed, nor will it be sent to the solver if it is already meshed.

5. In the Details View, Used By Fluid Surface specifies whether the virtual body is being used by a group
of fluid surfaces. The default is No. If the virtual body will be used by a group of fluid surfaces, insert
a Fluid Surface object into the Tree by right-clicking on the Virtual Body object and selecting Insert
> Fluid Surface from the context menu.

• Alternatively, you can change the setting to Yes in the Details View, and a new Fluid Surface object
will be inserted under the Virtual Body object.

• Only one Fluid Surface object can be associated to any one Virtual Body object.

• If you switch the value of Used By Fluid Surface from Yes to No, the Fluid Surface object will be
hidden.

6. Click the Virtual Body object in the Tree to continue defining it. For Material Point, specify the co-
ordinate system to be used for the virtual body, and the faces will be oriented accordingly. The default
is Please Define.

• The Fluid Surface object and Virtual Body object will remain underdefined until a material point
is specified.

• You can either select the default coordinate system or define a local coordinate system. In either
case, the setting will be retained, even if the Used By Fluid Surface setting is changed later.

The remaining fields for the virtual body are read-only:

• Fluid/Solid - Always set to Fluid for virtual bodies.

• Nodes, Elements, Mesh Metric - Data associated with the virtual body when meshed.

7. If Used By Fluid Surface is No, the definition of the virtual body is now complete. If the virtual body
will be used by a group of fluid surfaces (that is, Used By Fluid Surface is Yes), expand the Virtual
Body object in the Tree Outline to expose the Fluid Surface object.

8. To define and make adjustments to the group of fluid surfaces, click the Fluid Surface object and use
the following controls. These controls appear in the Details View of the Fluid Surface object.

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• Faces To Group: In the Geometry window, select the faces that should be members of the group.
Refer to the example of the aero valve assembly below for information about automating face selec-
tion.

• Master Virtual Body: Read-only name of the master virtual body.

• Priority: Determines which group will claim cells in cases where groups overlap. The priority is initially
based on the rule: the smaller the volume, the higher the priority.

• Suppressed: Read-only setting that is inherited from the virtual body.

Notes on Virtual Bodies

Remember the following information when defining virtual bodies:

• Connections are not supported.

• Statistics are supported.

• When coordinate systems are created they are represented in the Tree as objects named Coordinate
System, Coordinate System 2, Coordinate System 3, and so on.

• Toggling the value of Used By Fluid Surface from Yes to No will result in the following behaviors:

– If you switch from Yes to No, the Fluid Surface object will be hidden.

– If you switch from No to Yes, the Fluid Surface object will be inserted into the Tree Outline, and the
virtual body will become the master body.

• If a group of fluid surfaces is being used to help define a virtual body, its suppression status is inherited
from the virtual body and is read-only.

• You should not use a group of fluid surfaces to help define a virtual body if one or more internal baffles
(Surface Body with free edges) is located inside the flow volume void where you specified the material
point. These baffles do not resolve properly in ANSYS Fluent.

• For flow volume extraction, make sure that capping faces have been created in your CAD package.
Capping faces must be selected manually when defining virtual bodies. See Using the Extend to Con-
nection Option with Fluid Surface Grouping (p. 343) for an example.

• Using one surface body to cap multiple inlets/outlets is not supported. Make sure that each opening is
capped with at least one face.

• The mesh around the edges of a capping surface must be properly resolved both by size and feature
to ensure that no leakage occurs.

• Contact sizing might be used to close gaps smaller than 1/4 of the minimum size. Note that contact
sizing will not properly recover features around the gap, therefore you should exclude inflation in this
area.

• It is not recommended to use contact sizing to close a gap if faces in the connection are already included
in the sharp angle control.

• Contact sizing tools are not supported on baffle surfaces or capping surfaces.

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• If you create a fluid body using Boolean operations from solid volumes, but shared topology fails, the
recommended action is to not use this geometry configuration in assembly meshing. Instead remove
the fluid volumes and add a material point to extract the fluid volume inside meshing. Also see Handling
of Interfaces Between Bodies in Assembly Meshing (p. 341).

• The Mesh cell state will go out-of-date and will require updating if:

– You suppress/unsuppress a virtual body.

– You delete a virtual body.

– You change the location of the material point that you selected for a virtual body.

– You select a different material point for a virtual body.

• Named Selection names for internal face zones are not interpreted. In cases where two enclosed voids
share a face, the face zone is assigned type WALL automatically regardless of whether a Named Selection
has been defined for the face. In these cases, the mesh generation cannot cross any boundary so you
must define a virtual body with material point for each flow volume void in order for the volumes to
be meshed.

• When an assembly mesh is exported to ANSYS Fluent, Virtual Body Group names and Virtual Body
names are handled the same as part names and body names respectively. The zone naming rules that
are applied to real part and body names are also applied to Virtual Body Group names and Virtual
Body names. For example, part “part” and body “solid body” will result in a zone name of “part-sol-
id_body.” Similarly, Virtual Body Group "virtual_body_group" and Virtual Body "virtual_body" will
result in a zone name of "virtual_body_group-virtual_body." Refer to Fluent Mesh Export (p. 24) for
details.

For fluids of different properties (for example, air, water, etc.), it is recommended that you create
virtual bodies within different virtual body groups to make sure the fluid zones are separated
inside ANSYS Fluent.

• As described in Define Connections the Mechanical help, connections can be contact regions, joints,
mesh connections, and so on. To aid in picking faces related to flow volumes, you can use the Extend
to Connection option on the Extend Selection drop-down menu. Extend to Connection searches for
faces that are adjacent to the current selection as well as all faces that are adjacent to each of the addi-
tional selections within the part, up to and including all connections on the selected part. For example,
if you are using a group of fluid surfaces to help define a virtual body, you can generate connections,
pick one face on each body of the flow volume, and then select Extend to Connection. As a result, the
faces related to the flow volume are picked. See Using the Extend to Connection Option with Fluid
Surface Grouping (p. 343) for an example.

The extent of the faces that will be included when Extend to Connection is used depends greatly
on the current set of connections, as defined by the specified connections criteria (for example,
Connection Type, Tolerance Value, and so on). By modifying the criteria and regenerating the
connections, a different set of faces may be included. Refer to Common Connections Folder Op-
erations for Auto Generated Connections in the Mechanical help for more information.

• Extend to Connection is also helpful in cases where you want to scope a size locally to the faces of a
virtual body. For example, consider a case in which you want to assign a smaller curvature angle to a
fluid region and you want to keep the solid mesh (Keep Solid Mesh (p. 145) is set to Yes). When Physics
Preference is CFD, the default curvature angle of 18 degrees has been determined to be suitable for
use in flow simulations. For solids, the angle can probably be as large as 30-40 degrees. Hence, by setting

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the global Curvature Normal Angle (p. 88) to 30 degrees and scoping a curvature normal angle (p. 237)
of 18 degrees locally to the faces of the virtual body (after roughly picking the faces and using Extend
to Connection to find adjacent faces), you can avoid unnecessary mesh refinement in the solid parts.

Handling of Interfaces Between Bodies in Assembly Meshing

In cases where fluid extraction is successful in the DesignModeler application (or any other CAD
package) but Shared Topology fails, and you plan to solve a conjugate heat transfer problem and
hence keep the solid mesh (p. 145), two problems may occur because you now have two boundaries
all along the surface of the fluid domain:

• The Shared Topology failure indicates that the fluid domain does not match the original boundaries
very well, which may lead to bad quality cells.

• Any Named Selection created on the solid bodies may be lost in cases where the corresponding fluid
wall is present. Due to the conformal mesh that will be generated by assembly meshing, only one of
the geometry faces in contact will get surface mesh elements associated to it. Alternatively, the Named
Selection may be added to the fluid wall as well.

To avoid these problems, you can suppress the fluid volume and use material point-based extraction
inside assembly meshing.

For the example shown below, in the case of a Shared Topology failure, you could:

1. Keep the Boolean subtraction operation but suppress the solid body and use a virtual body instead.

2. Remove the Boolean subtraction operation in the DesignModeler application or CAD package so that
the solid overlaps the same volume as the fluid (the meshing will do the volume extraction).

Alternatively, if the solids/fluids only partially touch as in the case shown below, mesh at the interface
between Body 1 and Body 2 may get associated to either Face A or Face B. If you need to define
a Named Selection for Face B, it should include both Face A and Face B to ensure proper association.

Note:

You must use a similar approach when applying inflation to shared faces between a
solid body and a fluid body in cases involving multiple parts. That is, select both sets of
overlapping faces when defining the local inflation control. See Applying Local (Scoped)
Inflation Controls and Regenerating the Inflation Mesh (p. 358) for related information.

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Because this approach may result in the Named Selection including the larger area (all of Face A),
you may need to split out Face A with imprints to get the proper topology.

Using a Virtual Body to Separate a Fluid Region for Meshing

In cases where a solid spatially divides a fluid into multiple regions and you want to recover the
mesh in only one region, you can use a virtual body and material point to define the region to be
meshed.

For example, in Figure 187: Solid Bodies Dividing a Fluid Body (p. 342), the image on the left shows
a mesh group (p. 345) that consists of two solid bodies, and which divides a fluid body into multiple
regions. The image on the right shows the corresponding mesh that is obtained using the CutCell
algorithm.

Figure 187: Solid Bodies Dividing a Fluid Body

Figure 188: Virtual Body Defined to Separate Fluid Region (p. 343) shows the same model, but in
this case a virtual body and material point have been defined to further separate the fluid region.
The image on the right shows the corresponding mesh that is obtained using the CutCell algorithm.

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Figure 188: Virtual Body Defined to Separate Fluid Region

Using the Extend to Connection Option with Fluid Surface Grouping

This example illustrates how you can use the Extend to Connection option and fluid surface
grouping together to solve assembly meshing problems.

The first figure shows a model of an aero valve, for which a virtual body is being used to represent
the flow volume. Notice the Material Point that is inside the virtual body.

Automatic connections were generated for the model and are highlighted in the figure below.

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As described in the procedure above, to use a group of fluid surfaces to help define a virtual body,
all of the faces that should be members of the group must be selected and assigned as the Faces
To Group in the Details View. Using the face picker to select all of the faces manually in the Geo-
metry window may be difficult. However, by using the Extend to Connection option, you need
to select only one face on each body of the flow volume (that is, one face on each of the domains
that will be “closed” by the connections). In the figure below, five faces have been picked.

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After you select one face on each body of the flow volume, select the Extend to Connection option.
In this example, the figure below shows the faces that are selected automatically after the Extend
to Connection option is chosen. The option captures all faces that will “touch” the flow volume,
except for any capping faces. The capping faces, such as the inlet face, must be picked manually.
After all capping faces are picked, you can click the Faces To Group field in the Details View to
apply your selection and then proceed with generating the mesh.

The figure below shows a view of the resulting mesh, with the inlet on the right.

Defining Mesh Groups

You can use mesh grouping to identify bodies that should be grouped together for assembly
meshing algorithms.

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Mesh Group objects appear in the Tree Outline under the Mesh object. The purpose of a Mesh
Group object is to unite bodies that have the same properties and do not have gaps between
them. For example, this approach may be useful if you decomposed a fluid volume into multiple
volumes for hybrid meshing but now want to use the CutCell approach to mesh the same model.
With CutCell, decomposed volumes are no longer needed. Grouping tells the mesher to treat certain
solid parts as one part. You can define a mesh group to merge volumes, and the mesh generated
on the combined parts (the group) will be associated with the mesh of the selected master body.

Note:

Only solid (3D) bodies can be selected for grouping. Surface bodies cannot be selected.

Defining a Mesh Group

The steps for defining a mesh group are presented here.

1. To insert a Mesh Group object into the Tree, highlight the Mesh object (or its Mesh Grouping or
Mesh Group child object if any exist) and then do one of the following:

• Select Mesh Control> Mesh Group on the Mesh context toolbar.

• Click the right mouse button on the object you highlighted and select Insert> Mesh Group from
the context menu.

These methods insert a Mesh Group object beneath the Mesh Grouping object. The Mesh
Grouping object is inserted automatically when the first Mesh Group object is inserted.

2. To define and make adjustments to an individual group, click a Mesh Group object and use the following
controls. These controls appear in the Details View of the Mesh Group object.

• Bodies To Group: In the Geometry window, select the bodies that should be members of the group.

– All bodies within a group, including the Master Body, should be of the same type (Fluid or Solid,
as defined by the Fluid/Solid material property (p. 336)). Otherwise, unexpected results may occur.

– Surface bodies cannot be selected for grouping.

• Master Body: In the Geometry window, select the body that should act as the master of the group.
The master body is the body to which all mesh of the group members will be associated. By default,
the first body that is selected for Bodies To Group is the Master Body.

• Priority: Determines which group will claim cells in cases where groups overlap. The priority is initially
based on the rule: the smaller the volume, the higher the priority.

• Suppressed: Toggles suppression of the selected group. The default is No. If set to Yes, the group
will be suppressed.

Setting Global Assembly Meshing Options

The next step in the assembly meshing workflow is to define global assembly meshing options:

1. Select the appropriate option for Feature Capture (p. 143).

2. Select the appropriate option for Tessellation Refinement (p. 144).

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3. Select the appropriate option for Keep Solid Mesh (p. 145).

Defining Sharp Angle Controls

To ensure that the desired features are captured in the assembly mesh, you can use the Sharp
Angle Tool to control the capture of features with sharp angles, such as the edge of a knife or the
region where a tire meets the road. It can also be used for improved feature capturing in general.
Refer to Sharp Angle Tool (p. 269) for details.

Setting Sizing Options

The next step in the assembly meshing workflow is to set sizing options.

Of great importance to assembly meshing are the values of the Curvature Min Size (p. 88) and
Proximity Min Size (p. 89) options. Make sure that the values of these options truly represent the
smallest size that you want the curvature and proximity size functions to capture and that they are
set appropriately before invoking the Find Thin Sections (p. 349) or Find Contacts (p. 351) features.
By default, these features operate based on the smaller of these two minimum size values.

When either the CutCell method is selected, or the Tetrahedrons method is selected and Physics
Preference is set to CFD, Capture Curvature (p. 82) is set to Yes by default. If you set Capture
Proximity (p. 82) to Yes, the Proximity Size Function Sources (p. 90) control appears. Its value
determines whether regions of proximity between faces, edges, or both are considered when
proximity-based sizing calculations are performed.

The remainder of this section describes points to remember when setting sizing options specifically
for assembly meshing algorithms. Refer to Sizing Options (p. 80) for details about setting additional
sizing options. Also refer to Handling Assembly Meshing Failures Due to Min Size (p. 490).

Effect of the Smoothing Option:

The setting of the Smoothing (p. 102) option controls the quality threshold at which the assembly
meshing algorithm will start smoothing. The table below presents the Smoothing options that are
available in the Meshing application (Low, Medium, and High) and their corresponding quality
limits. All cells below the specified quality limit will be considered for improvement.

Note:

Orthogonal quality in the Meshing application is equivalent to Inverse Orthogonal

Quality in ANSYS Fluent Meshing, except that the scale is reversed:

Inverse Orthogonal Quality = 1 – Orthogonal Quality

Smoothing Orthogonal Quality Limit Orthogonal Quality Limit (with

Option (without Inflation) Inflation)
Low 0.1 0.01
Medium 0.15 0.05
High 0.2 0.1

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Refer to Orthogonal Quality (p. 120) for more information.

Note:

When the Tetrahedrons algorithm is being used and Smoothing is set to Low, only
minimal surface mesh improvement occurs, which provides a faster turnaround for large
cases having many faces. Thus, you can choose between higher quality mesh vs. faster
turnaround.

Rules for Computing Min Size and Max Size:

Assembly meshing algorithms use the following rules for computing Min Size and Max Size values,
where the value of Min Size is the smaller of the two minimum size values (Curvature Min
Size (p. 88) or Proximity Min Size (p. 89)). In general, the Max Size is set based on the Element
Size defined prior to turning on Assembly meshing. If sheets exist in the model, the default Max
Size will be equal to the default Element size. If sheets do not exist in the model, the default Max
Size will be equal to 2 times the default Element Size. The Max Size and Min Size values will be
set such that a 2^n ratio is maintained because assembly meshing techniques use Octree subdivision.
Therefore:

1. Default Min Size = Default Max Size / 128.

Note:

Assembly meshing does not use the CFD Min Size Factor.

2. The ratio between Min Size and Max Size can be any one of the powers of two from 0 to 13 (shown
in the table below). Thus, 14 levels of difference between Min Size and Max Size are allowed:

2^0 = 1 2^7 = 128

2^1 = 2 2^8 = 256
2^2 = 4 2^9 = 512
2^3 = 8 2^10 = 1024
2^4 = 16 2^11 = 2048
2^5 = 32 2^12 = 4096
2^6 = 64 2^13 = 8192

Note:

The value of Max Size cannot be greater than (2^13 * Min Size). If the value you set
for Max Size is too high, Max Size is set to its maximum limit (2^13 * Min Size)
automatically.

3. Max Size may be converted to the power of two that is nearest to the intended value of Max Size,
where the intended value of Max Size is either the default value or the user input value of Max Size.

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Consider this example, which shows the Min Size and Max Size values at each step in the given
sequence:

1. Select an assembly meshing algorithm. Default Min Size = 5, so default Max Size = 5 * 128 = 640.

Min Size, Max Size = Default(5.0), Default(640.0)

2. If you set Min Size to any one of {0.0625, 0.125, 0.25, 0.5, 1, 2, 4, ... 512, ... 2^n}, then Max Size = 512
(not default). For example, if you set Min Size = 1, (Min Size, Max Size) = (1, 512).

3. Set Max Size = 40,000, Max Size = 8192 based on the maximum limit rule described above.

Min Size, Max Size = 1, 8192

4. Set Max Size = 48.5, Max Size is converted to the nearest power of two, so Max Size = 64.

Min Size, Max Size = 1, 64

5. Set Max Size = 47.5, Max Size is converted to the nearest power of two, so Max Size = 32.

Min Size, Max Size = 1, 32

6. Set Min Size = 0.25, Max Size = 32.

Min Size, Max Size = 0.25, 32

7. Set Min Size = 0, Min Size = Default(5.0) and Max Size = 40.

Min Size, Max Size = Default(5.0), 40

8. Deselect assembly meshing, user input values for Min Size and Max Size are 0, 47.5 respectively.

Min Size, Max Size = Default(0.0123), 47.5

Finding Thin Sections

You can use the Find Thin Sections option as a diagnostics tool to locate thin sections in an as-
sembly. By default, Find Thin Sections looks for all sections with a size equal to or less than the
current Curvature Min Size (p. 88)/Proximity Min Size (p. 89) (whichever is smaller).

Find Thin Sections uses the Mechanical application's technology for automatic connection detection
to provide these diagnostics for assembly meshing. The technology generates diagnostics data in
the form of contact regions for the thin sections automatically. Each contact region is named ap-
propriately based on the names of the items in the Geometry branch of the tree that make up
that contact region (for example, Bonded - Solid_3 To Solid_3).

Be aware that from the perspective of the Mechanical application, the connection detection tech-
nology is dependent on physics properties. When the technology is used for assembly meshing
diagnostics, physics properties are not considered.

Connection detection options that are of particular importance to finding thin sections for assembly
meshing are mentioned below. They are set optimally by default to provide assembly meshing
diagnostics and should not be changed.

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If you are interested in learning more about connection detection settings and how they are used
by the Mechanical application, refer to Common Connections Folder Operations for Auto Generated
Connections in the Mechanical help.

The Find Thin Sections option is available only when assembly meshing (p. 325) algorithms are
being used. Use of the Find Thin Sections option is an optional step in the assembly meshing
workflow.

The steps for using the Find Thin Sections option are presented here.

1. Make sure that Curvature Min Size (p. 88)/Proximity Min Size (p. 89) is set appropriately.

2. Highlight the Mesh object or Connections object in the Tree Outline.

3. Do one of the following:

• Click the right mouse button on the object and select Find Thin Sections from the context menu.

• Click the right mouse button on the Geometry window and select Find Thin Sections from the
context menu.

Either of these methods inserts an Assembly Meshing Thin Sections folder beneath the Con-
nections object and populates the folder with appropriately named contact regions.

Note:

If Find Thin Sections does not find any thin sections that meet the tolerance criteria,
the folder is inserted but it will be empty.

The figure below shows the default settings that appear in the Details View when the folder is
selected. The defaults should not be changed.

• The Tolerance Value is based on the value of Curvature Min Size (p. 88)/Proximity Min
Size (p. 89), which was set to 0.250 mm for this example.

• Face/Face is set to Yes to detect thin sections between faces.

• Group By is set to Parts, meaning connection faces that lie on the same parts will be included
in a single connection object.

• Search Across is set to Anywhere, enabling automatic connection detection regardless of

where the geometry lies. Contacts that occur across bodies are deleted automatically (see
note below).

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Note:

• If you change Min Size/Proximity Min Size, you must rerun the option to regenerate the
data. Each time you rerun the option an additional folder is added to the Tree Outline (As-
sembly Meshing Thin Sections 2, Assembly Meshing Thin Sections 3, and so on). The
lowest folder in the tree contains the most recent data.

• The Find Thin Sections option automatically deletes contacts that occur across bodies (for
example, from Body_A to Body_B).

Finding Contacts
You can use the Find Contacts option as a diagnostics tool to locate contacts in an assembly. By
default, Find Contacts detects face-edge contacts using a tolerance based on the current Curvature
Min Size (p. 88)/Proximity Min Size (p. 89) (whichever is smaller) as follows:

• Contacts between 10% of Curvature Min Size/Proximity Min Size and 0

The search for contacts passes feature information down to the meshing algorithm to ensure that
desired features are preserved. In addition to the edges that are determined to be feature edges
based on the assembly meshing angle criterion, edges referenced in contact regions are also con-
sidered as feature edges in assembly meshing. Find Contacts is particularly useful for assemblies
in which fillets of bodies are adjacent to other bodies, forming a sharp angle, as it will preserve the
edges of these fillets independent of the feature angle settings.

Find Contacts uses the Mechanical application's technology for automatic connection detection
to provide these diagnostics for assembly meshing. The technology generates diagnostics data in
the form of contact regions for the contacts automatically. Each contact region is named appropri-
ately based on the names of the items in the Geometry branch of the tree that make up that
contact region (for example, Bonded - Solid_2 To Solid_4).

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Be aware that from the perspective of the Mechanical application, the connection detection tech-
nology is dependent on physics properties. When the technology is used for assembly meshing
diagnostics, physics properties are not considered.

Connection detection options that are of particular importance to finding contacts for assembly
meshing are mentioned below. They are set optimally by default to provide assembly meshing
diagnostics and should not be changed.

If you are interested in learning more about connection detection settings and how they are used
by the Mechanical application, refer to Common Connections Folder Operations for Auto Generated
Connections in the Mechanical help.

The Find Contacts option is available only when assembly meshing (p. 325) algorithms are being
used.

The steps for using the Find Contacts option are presented here.

1. Make sure that Curvature Min Size (p. 88)/Proximity Min Size (p. 89) is set appropriately.

2. Highlight the Mesh object or Connections object in the Tree Outline.

3. Do one of the following:

• Click the right mouse button on the object and select Find Contacts from the context menu.

• Click the right mouse button on the Geometry window and select Find Contacts from the context
menu.

Either of these methods inserts an Assembly Meshing Contacts folder beneath the Connections
object and populates it with appropriately named contact regions.

Note:

If Find Contacts does not find any contacts that meet the tolerance criteria, the
folder is inserted but it will be empty.

The figure below shows the default settings that appear in the Details View when the Assembly
Meshing Contacts folder is selected. The defaults should not be changed.

• The Tolerance Value is set to 10% of the value of Curvature Min Size (p. 88)/Proximity
Min Size (p. 89) which for this example was set to 0.250 mm.

• Face/Edge is set to Yes to detect contacts between faces and edges.

• Group By is set to Bodies, meaning connection faces and edges that lie on the same bodies
will be included in a single connection object.

• Search Across is set to Bodies, enabling automatic connection detection between bodies.

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 Assembly Meshing

Note:

If you change Min Size/Proximity Min Size, you must rerun the option to regenerate
the data. Each time you rerun the option an additional folder is added to the Tree Outline
(Assembly Meshing Contacts 2, Assembly Meshing Contacts 3, and so on). The lowest
folder in the tree contains the most recent data.

Generating the Mesh

The next step in the assembly meshing workflow is to generate the base mesh:

1. Select the Mesh object or any mesh control object.

2. Right-click to display the context menu, or choose the Mesh drop-down menu from the toolbar.

3. Select Generate Mesh (p. 432) in the menu. The part is meshed. The mesh is displayed when you select
the Mesh object.

4. Examine the mesh to determine whether it is acceptable. If it is acceptable, you can proceed to the
next section. If it is unacceptable, try adjusting the settings you specified above and then regenerate
the mesh.

Note:

• Although Generate Mesh (p. 432) is valid, its options to generate the mesh on selected
bodies or parts are invalid and therefore inaccessible.

• If you make changes to inflation settings after generating the mesh using an assembly
meshing algorithm, each subsequent re-mesh begins with the initial (cached) mesh and in-
flates from there.

As assembly meshing algorithms are patch independent, the generated mesh goes through the
following validation checks to confirm the mesh is valid and is not missing mesh at any location.

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During validation the assembly meshing algorithms consider factors such as number of ele-
ments/faces/nodes associated to the mesh (including initial mesh vs. inflated mesh), number of
elements/faces/nodes associated to entities contained in Named Selections, orthogonal quality
measures, and number of inflation layers:

• The following conditions must be met, or the returned mesh is considered to be invalid (p. 480) and an
error is issued:

– Orthogonal quality must be > 0 for all volume elements.

– No leaks (p. 491) were detected during flow volume extraction.

– No failures related to user-defined objects (such as Virtual Body, Fluid Surface, or Mesh Group
objects) occurred.

• If any of the following conditions exist, the returned mesh is considered to be valid but a warning is is-
sued:

– The initial mesh is returned but inflation failed.

– Orthogonal quality for one or more volume elements is <=0.05.

– A Named Selection does not contain any elements or exterior faces.

Note:

• A body that does not contain any elements may result in a warning or an error, depending
on the circumstances:

– When the initial mesh is returned but a body has no mesh associated to it, a warning is
issued for the failed body. In such cases, the state of the body in the Tree Outline may in-
dicate that the body is meshed.

– When generation of the inflation mesh results in deletion of mesh from the initial (cached)
mesh, an error is issued.

• The assembly meshing algorithms may not be able to support cases where surfaces form a
cross. For example, the four bodies in the image below form a cross as depicted by the thick
lines. In such cases, the feature recovery/surface recovery along the center line (shown as
the center point in the 2D image below) may be poor.

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 Assembly Meshing

• Using a different facet quality in the DesignModeler application could have an impact on
the performance and quality of assembly meshing. Increasing the facet quality could improve
feature capturing, reduce leakage, and improve quality (refer to Avoiding Bad Feature Cap-
turing in Assembly Meshing (p. 490)), but at the same time it could increase the assembly
meshing time, particularly for tetrahedron.

• Refer to Meshing: Troubleshooting (p. 477) for additional tips and strategies for handling
problems that may occur during assembly meshing.

Applying Contact Sizing

When used with assembly meshing, contact sizing provides a method for closing leaks discovered
during meshing. Typically, leakage occurs if any contact is larger than 1/10 of the local minimum
size. If a leak is discovered during meshing and the gap is up to 1/3 of the local mesh size, you can
close the gap at the location of contact by using a two-step process. First, scope a new contact to
the existing Find Contacts (p. 351) list by picking all of the faces on one side and all of the faces
(or edges) on the other side of the leak. Second, scope a contact sizing control to this new contact.

For assembly meshing, the default Element Size used by contact sizing controls is minimum_size/5,
where minimum_size is the value of Curvature Min Size (p. 88) or Proximity Min Size (p. 89),
whichever is smaller. This Element Size is appropriate for the vast majority of cases. However, you
may need to adjust the value of Element Size in these situations:

• If hard sizing that is smaller than Curvature Min Size/Proximity Min Size is applied in the vicinity of
the contact region, you may need to reduce the Element Size used by contact.

• If local sizing that is significantly larger than Curvature Min Size/Proximity Min Size is applied in the
vicinity of the contact region, you may need to increase the Element Size used by contact.

Note:

• Each face-edge contact region in a contact sizing control consists of one or more faces and
one or more edges. That is, in some cases a contact region may consist of one face to one
edge in contact, while in others it may consist of many faces to many edges.

• Use care in specifying Element Size for contact sizing. A value that is too large may lead to
inaccurate geometry, while a value that is too small may fail to close the leak. A good guideline
is to specify an Element Size that is 1/5 of the local element size.

• In some cases the gap at the location of contact is closed but the mesh in that location will
not be well resolved. This occurs because there are no features to be captured at the location
of the gap, which in turn causes the edges to become jagged.

You can apply contact sizing using either of the following methods:

Method 1

1. In the Tree Outline, select the Mesh object or any mesh control object.

2. Do one of the following:

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a. Choose Contact Sizing from the Mesh Control drop-down menu.

b. Right-click the selected object and select Insert> Contact Sizing from the context menu.

A new Contact Sizing control is added to the Tree Outline.

3. In the Details View, select a specific Contact Region to scope it to the sizing control.

4. Enter a value for Element Size. By default, Element Size is set equal to the value of minimum_size/5.

Method 2

1. In the Tree Outline, drag a contact region from the Assembly Meshing Contacts (p. 351) folder onto
the Mesh object.

A new Contact Sizing control is added to the Tree Outline.

2. In the Tree Outline, highlight the new Contact Sizing control.

3. Enter a value for Element Size. By default, Element Size is set equal to the value of minimum_size/5.

Note:

• The Element Size option for Type specifies an absolute size for the contact sizing. The Rel-
evance option for Type, which is sometimes used to specify a relative size in contact sizing
controls (p. 238), is not supported for assembly meshing algorithms.

• If contact sizing is applied to entities on a body that is scoped to a body of influence, the
contact sizing is ignored.

• If you apply contact sizing and a sharp angle control (p. 269) to the same face, the sharp angle
features may not be captured accurately.

Setting Global Inflation Controls

After you determine the base mesh is acceptable, the next step in the assembly meshing workflow
is to set global inflation controls:

Note:

When an assembly meshing algorithm is being used, a mixture of global (automatic

Program Controlled) and local (scoped) inflation is not supported. See Selecting an As-
sembly Mesh Method (p. 332) for details about behaviors resulting from this restriction
and guidelines for using global vs. local inflation.

1. Set Use Automatic Inflation (p. 125) to Program Controlled (p. 126).

The All Faces in Chosen Named Selection option is not supported for assembly meshing al-
gorithms. If this option is specified and you select an assembly meshing algorithm, the option
will be changed automatically to Program Controlled and a warning will be issued.

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 Assembly Meshing

2. Set additional global inflation controls as desired. Refer to Inflation Group (p. 123) for descriptions.

Note:

• The Fluid/Solid material property for virtual bodies is always set to Fluid (read-only). With
Program Controlled inflation, faces on real solid bodies will inflate into the virtual bodies.
The Fluid/Solid designation on real bodies (p. 336) will be respected (that is, faces on real
fluid bodies will inflate into the fluid region, but the solid region will not be inflated).

• Attempting to grow thicker prism layers in areas where the aspect ratio of the base to the
prism cap is very large may result in an invalid (p. 477) mesh. In such cases (for example, ex-
ternal flow problems), you should use aspect ratio based growth to avoid problems with in-
valid meshes.

Generating the Inflation Mesh

The next step in the assembly meshing workflow is to generate the inflation mesh:

1. Select the Mesh object or any mesh control object.

2. Right-click to display the context menu, or choose the Mesh drop-down menu from the toolbar.

3. Select Generate Mesh (p. 432) in the menu. The inflation mesh is generated and is displayed when you
select the Mesh object.

4. Examine the inflation mesh, which was obtained using automatic Program Controlled inflation. If it
is acceptable, you can proceed directly to Exporting the Mesh (p. 360). If it is unacceptable, you can
either adjust the global inflation controls described above or proceed to the next section to set local
inflation controls, and then regenerate the inflation mesh.

Note:

• For assembly meshing algorithms, inflation is a post process for the mesher after it has created
the hexahedron or tetrahedron elements. A benefit of this approach is that the hexahed-
ral/tetrahedral mesh does not have to be generated each time inflation options are changed.
You can add/delete/modify/suppress your inflation settings, and the meshing process will
begin with the initial (cached) mesh and inflate from there. This is important in case you
need to make adjustments to obtain the desired results.

• In cases in which Smoothing (p. 102) is set to High and CutCell meshing is being used, addi-
tional smoothing of inflation layers occurs. This may slow down the prism generation process.

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Applying Local (Scoped) Inflation Controls and Regenerating the Inflation Mesh
If the inflation mesh that was generated using global (automatic Program Controlled) inflation is
acceptable, you can proceed directly to Exporting the Mesh (p. 360). If it is unacceptable, you can
apply local inflation controls to try to improve the mesh.

Note:

• When an assembly meshing algorithm is being used, a mixture of global and local inflation
is not supported. See Selecting an Assembly Mesh Method (p. 332) for details about behaviors
resulting from this restriction and guidelines for using global vs. local inflation.

• If mesh groups (p. 345) are present, you must scope local inflation controls to either the
master body or to all bodies in the mesh group. Otherwise, mesh generation fails. Alternatively,
you can set the Fluid/Solid material property (p. 336) settings for the bodies to Fluid and
use global (Program Controlled) inflation instead. Refer to Program Controlled (p. 126) for
more information.

To add boundary layers to a face for assembly meshing:

1. In the global inflation controls, set Use Automatic Inflation (p. 125) to None (p. 125). Otherwise, you will
not be able to insert local inflation.

2. Optionally, select the desired bodies in the Geometry window. These are the bodies that you want to
scope inflation to.

3. Use either of these methods to insert the inflation control:

• Click Mesh Control on the toolbar and choose Inflation from the menu.

• Right-click in the Geometry window and choose Insert > Inflation from the menu.

4. If you selected the bodies in step 2, go directly to step 5. If not, use either of these methods to scope
inflation to the desired bodies:

• In the Details View, set Scoping Method to Geometry Selection, pick the bodies in the Geometry
window, and click the Geometry field in the Details View to Apply.

• In the Details View, set Scoping Method to Named Selection, and select a Named Selection from
the Named Selection drop-down.

5. Change the value of the Suppressed control if desired.

By default, the value of Suppressed is No. If you change the value to Yes, this inflation control
has no effect on the mesh. In addition, an Active control with a read-only setting of No, Sup-
pressed appears under the Suppressed control when Suppressed is set to Yes.

6. Use either of these methods to specify the inflation boundaries (that is, select the faces that you want
the inflation layers to grow away from):

• In the Details View, set Boundary Scoping Method to Geometry Selection, pick the faces in the
Geometry window, and click the Boundary field in the Details View to Apply.

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 Assembly Meshing

• In the Details View, set Boundary Scoping Method to Named Selections, select a Named Selection
from the Boundary drop-down, and press Enter.

Note:

– To select multiple Named Selections to be used as inflation boundaries, press and hold
the Ctrl key while selecting the Named Selections from the Boundary drop-down, and
then press Enter.

– If none of the predefined Named Selections include the correct topology to be used
as an inflation boundary, no Named Selections will be available in the drop-down. For
assembly meshing algorithms, the correct topology is always a face because 2D inflation
is not supported (see notes below). If any 2D inflation controls are defined prior to se-
lection of an assembly meshing algorithm, they are suppressed when an assembly
meshing algorithm is selected.

– For assembly meshing algorithms only, the scoped body and the face that you select
to be the inflation boundary do not have to be on the same part. In other words, the
face does not have to be attached to the body. Such controls are invalid for part/body
level meshing, and will be flagged as invalid if any have been defined and you sub-
sequently deselect assembly meshing. The scoped body will be retained but you will
have to select a new inflation boundary.

– To apply inflation to shared faces between a solid body and a fluid body in cases in-
volving multiple parts, you must select both sets of overlapping faces when defining
the local inflation control.

7. Specify additional inflation options, as desired, in the Details View. For descriptions of additional options,
refer to Inflation Group (p. 123).

8. Select the Mesh object or any mesh control object.

9. Right-click to display the context menu, or choose the Mesh drop-down menu from the toolbar.

10. Select Generate Mesh (p. 432) in the menu. The inflation layers are regenerated, and the mesh is dis-
played when you select the Mesh object.

11. Continue making adjustments and experimenting with automatic Program Controlled inflation vs.
local inflation until your results are satisfactory.

Note:

• For inflation on virtual bodies, you must specify automatic Program Controlled inflation.
You cannot specify local controls to inflate virtual bodies.

• Assembly meshing algorithms do not support 2D inflation (inflation scoped to faces with
edges selected as boundaries).

• Assembly meshing algorithms do not support inflation on both sides of a face zone. If you
apply inflation to a face zone that is shared by two cell zones of type fluid, the desired inflation
will not occur.

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• Inflation on both sides of a baffle is supported for the Tetrahedrons algorithm only. Refer
to the discussion of inflation controls in Selecting an Assembly Mesh Method (p. 332) for more
information.

• If multiple inflation controls are defined and different numbers of layers are defined in them,
the smallest defined number of layers will be respected for assembly meshing algorithms.

• If multiple inflation controls are defined, each with different values for Aspect Ratio
(Base/Height) (p. 132), the last value is the one that will be taken (the value specified for the
inflation control that appears lowest in the Tree Outline is honored) and will be used for all
inflation controls for which Inflation Option (p. 128) is set to Last Aspect Ratio.

Exporting the Mesh

After you determine the inflation mesh is acceptable, the mesh is ready for export.

Points to remember when exporting an assembly mesh:

• Names of parts, bodies, and Named Selections should be limited to 64 characters.

• If you encounter a problem when using assembly meshing algorithms in the Meshing application,
you can export the faceted geometry (p. 54) to Fluent Meshing where you can display, interrogate,
and repair the faceted data.

• When a CutCell mesh is exported from the Meshing application to ANSYS Fluent (p. 24), elements
that are connected to parent faces are exported in polyhedral format, while all others retain their
type. Note that this behavior is only true for CutCell; the Tetrahedrons algorithm uses only tradi-
tional element types.

• When the mesh is exported to ANSYS Fluent, a cell zone type of either FLUID or SOLID is assigned
to each body based on its material properties. Refer to Fluent Mesh Export (p. 24) for details.

• Due to the 3D nature of the underlying meshing approach, mesh is not re-associated to any Named
Selection applied on vertices or edges. Hence, these Named Selections are not transferred to ANSYS
Fluent.

• When assembly meshing algorithms are used, mesh is associated to surface bodies in the Meshing
application. The association is required in the Meshing application to ensure proper handling of
the mesh topology during internal processes. This requirement means that if your model contains
surface bodies, the element count reported in the Meshing application will differ from the cell
count reported in ANSYS Fluent for the same case.

• You cannot use assembly meshing in the Meshing application if you need to maintain the original
boundaries of overlapping surfaces and plan to use a non-conformal mesh interface in ANSYS
Fluent. If non-conformal mesh is needed, for example for sliding mesh problems, another mesh
method must be used.

• Refer to Defining Virtual Bodies (p. 337) for information about export of virtual bodies to ANSYS
Fluent.

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 Selective Meshing

Selective Meshing
Using selective meshing, you can selectively pick bodies and mesh them incrementally. After meshing
a body, you can mesh the entire part or assembly or continue meshing individual bodies. To generate
the rest of the mesh in the model, use the Generate Mesh (p. 432) feature.

The following mesh methods are supported:

• For solid meshing:

– Patch Conforming Tetrahedron (p. 178)

– Patch Independent Tetrahedron (p. 178)

– MultiZone (p. 205)

– Sweep (p. 201)

– Hex Dominant (p. 200)

• For surface meshing:

– Quad Dominant (p. 221)

– All Triangles (p. 222)

– MultiZone Quad/Tri (p. 222)

Remember the following information when using selective meshing:

• Selective meshing is enabled by default. You can use the Allow Selective Meshing (p. 277) option to disable
it. See Disabling Selective Meshing (p. 365) for information about Meshing application behaviors when se-
lective meshing is disabled.

• Selective meshing is not persistent for a geometry update or re-mesh operation. However, you can use the
Mesh worksheet to create a selective meshing history so that your meshing steps can be repeated in the
desired sequence. Otherwise, you must manually re-mesh bodies in the desired sequence. Refer to Using
the Mesh Worksheet to Create a Selective Meshing History (p. 365) for details.

• When using the Preview Surface Mesh (p. 435), Preview Source and Target Mesh (p. 437), or Preview In-
flation (p. 437) feature during selective meshing, the previewed mesh will be discarded when you perform
a subsequent preview or full mesh operation. The previewed mesh will not be used to seed the subsequent
mesh operation.

• After meshing, the meshed status icon (p. 477) appears in the Tree Outline for a meshed body within the
Geometry folder, or for a multibody part whose child bodies are all meshed. If you make changes after
meshing that invalidate (p. 477) the mesh for an individual body (such as adding sizing to the body), you will
need to re-mesh that body only.

• In a multibody part, if any child bodies have been meshed and refined, another child body is unmeshed,
and you subsequently mesh the unmeshed body, the mesh state of all refined bodies in the part will be in-
validated and re-meshed during mesh generation. Similarly, if one body is unmeshed and refinement is
needed on another, generating the mesh will result in meshing and refinement of the entire part. In addition
to cases involving refinement, this behavior applies in cases where post inflation is used.

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Specialized Meshing

• When meshing a body that is part of a symmetry object, match control (p. 255), or pinch control (p. 161), all
bodies to which the control is applied need to be meshed at the same time. Also, if a body that is part of a
symmetry object, mesh connection object, contact match object, match control, or pinch control fails to
mesh, the body will have an invalid mesh state (p. 477) that will propagate to all other bodies that are part
of the respective object/control.

• Mesh connections (p. 399), contact matches (p. 410), post inflation (p. 132), and refinement (p. 239) are not
performed until all body meshes have been generated. These operations will either be performed when the
last body is meshed through selective meshing, or in the last step of the Generate Mesh (p. 432) operation.

• Selective meshing is boundary constrained. That is, if you add a size control to a face that is adjacent to an
up-to-date body, the edges of that face will be recovered from the existing mesh. Due to the boundary
constraints, the mesher cannot split the edges to aid in meshing and will fail if it attempts to do so.

• When you mix mesh methods in multibody parts, the manner in which topology shared by multiple bodies
is protected depends on whether adjacent bodies are being meshed with Patch Independent methods
(Patch Independent Tetrahedron (p. 178), MultiZone (p. 205), or MultiZone Quad/Tri (p. 222)) and/or Patch
Conforming methods (Patch Conforming Tetrahedron (p. 178), Sweep (p. 201) [general or thin], or Hex Dom-
inant (p. 200)):

– The interface between a Patch Conforming method and a Patch Conforming method is not protected.

– The interface between a Patch Conforming method and a Patch Independent method is completely
protected.

– Only the boundary is protected at the interface between a Patch Independent method and a Patch Inde-
pendent method.

• You can use the Verbose Messages from Meshing (p. 277) option to control the verbosity of messages re-
turned to you. Depending on the setting, before meshing a message reports the subset of bodies that is
going to be meshed and/or after meshing a message reports the subset of bodies that failed to mesh.

• Size controls on neighboring bodies are not considered if you are performing selective meshing. This limit-
ation is applicable to all mesh methods that support selective meshing; however, its impact may differ de-
pending on the methods being used.

For example, consider the simple model below, which consists of two boxes to which the Patch Inde-
pendent Tetra mesh method has been applied. A local size control that defines a much smaller Element
Size than the global size has been scoped to the top face of the box on the left.

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 Selective Meshing

Figure 189: Two Boxes with Sizing on One Face

When the mesh is generated in one step (for the entire part rather than body by body), there is a
smooth transition from the fine element size to the coarse element size, as shown in Figure 190: Mesh
Generated for Entire Part (p. 363).

Figure 190: Mesh Generated for Entire Part

However, the mesh will differ if selective (body by body) meshing is performed. Figure 191: Selective
Meshing: Left Body First (p. 364) shows the mesh when the body on the left is meshed first, and the
body on the right is meshed second. In this case although the results are different than those in the
figure above, the mesh may still be acceptable because the impact of the local size control on the
left body has influenced the boundary mesh of the right body.

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Specialized Meshing

Figure 191: Selective Meshing: Left Body First

In Figure 192: Selective Meshing: Right Body First (p. 364), the body on the right was meshed first, and
the body on the left was meshed second. When this meshing sequence is used, the mesh on the
right body does not recognize the size control that is scoped to the body on the left. This results in
a coarse mesh on the right body with the transition region occurring on the left body.

Figure 192: Selective Meshing: Right Body First

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 Selective Meshing

Disabling Selective Meshing

Set the Allow Selective Meshing (p. 277) option to No to disable selective meshing. The Meshing ap-
plication behaves as follows when selective meshing is disabled:

• If you make changes after meshing that invalidate (p. 477) the mesh for an individual body in a multibody
part (such as adding sizing to the body), the mesh for all bodies in the part is invalidated and you will
need to re-mesh all bodies.

• If one body in a multibody part is suppressed and you mesh all the other bodies, unsuppressing the
suppressed body invalidates (p. 477) the mesh for all the bodies within that part. When you regenerate
the mesh, all the bodies within that part will be re-meshed. If the model contains multiple parts, bodies
in the other parts will not be affected and will not be re-meshed.

• The Generate Mesh (p. 432), Preview Surface Mesh (p. 435), and Clear Generated Data (p. 442) RMB
menu options are unavailable for individual bodies in multibody parts in the Tree Outline. To use these
features for a multibody part, you must right-click at the part level in the Tree Outline.

• There is no Parts> flyout menu for the Generate Mesh (p. 432), Preview Surface Mesh (p. 435), and
Clear Generated Data (p. 442) RMB menu options in the Geometry window. If you select one of these
options, the action is performed on the entire part.

Note:

In some cases, the mesh may be generated in a selective fashion (body by body) even if se-
lective meshing is currently disabled. For example, if you use selective meshing to mesh
some of the bodies in a part, then disable selective meshing, and then generate the mesh
and the mesh process does not invalidate any bodies, the mesh is generated using selective
meshing processes. To avoid this behavior, you can use the Clear Generated Data (p. 442)
feature or force a change of the mesh state on the part. Non-selective meshing will be used
for all subsequent meshing.

Using the Mesh Worksheet to Create a Selective Meshing History

When you perform selective meshing, you control the sequence in which bodies are meshed. You can
use the Mesh worksheet to create a selective meshing history, so that your meshing steps can be re-
peated in the desired sequence for any geometry update or re-mesh operation. Figure 193: Mesh
Worksheet (p. 366) shows a sample Mesh worksheet. Each row in the worksheet corresponds to a step
in the meshing sequence. When you generate the mesh, the software processes the steps one by one.
For each step, the software selects the bodies identified by the specified Named Selection and meshes
those bodies using the meshing controls that are applied to them.

Note:

The Mesh worksheet is a helpful meshing tool, but it does not manage mesh state. State
management is handled at the prototype (Body object) and mesh levels. Mesh state is visible
in the Tree Outline in the Geometry folder and in the Mesh folder. See Understanding
States (p. 480) for more information.

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Specialized Meshing

Figure 193: Mesh Worksheet

There are two ways to create a selective meshing history:

• By recording meshing steps as you perform them

• By adding meshing steps to the worksheet manually

To create a selective meshing history by recording your steps:

1. Click the Mesh object in the Tree Outline.

2. Do one of the following:

Right-click the Mesh object and select Start Recording from the context menu. As a result, the
worksheet opens in recording mode automatically.
-or-
Click the Worksheet button on the toolbar and click the Start Recording button on the work-
sheet.

3. Move the worksheet to the desired location to dock it. The location will persist whenever the Mesh object
or one of its child objects is highlighted in the Tree Outline. For example, you may want to dock the
worksheet alongside the Geometry window, allowing you to view both at once.

Note:

The worksheet is not dockable on Linux platforms. On Linux, you can drag the worksheet
off the Meshing application interface, and it will then appear in its own separate window.

4. Do one of the following:

Select one or more bodies or parts in the Geometry window, right-click, and select Generate
Mesh on Selected Bodies. If you did not dock the worksheet, you may need to click the
Worksheet button on the toolbar or the Graphics tab at the bottom of the worksheet to return
to the Geometry window first.
-or-
Select one or more bodies or parts in the Tree Outline, right-click, and select Generate Mesh.

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 Selective Meshing

As a result, a Named Selection for the selected set is generated (named Meshing_1, Meshing_2,
Meshing_3, and so on) and is added to the worksheet automatically.

During recording, other steps in the worksheet are ignored while the mesh for the selected set is
being generated. See below for additional notes on recording and playback behaviors.

5. Repeat step 4 for each meshing step in the desired sequence.

6. When you are done meshing bodies/parts, do one of the following:

Right-click the Mesh object and select Stop Recording from the context menu.
-or-
Click the Stop Recording button on the worksheet.

Note:

You do not have to record the meshing for all bodies, only those for which you want to
record the meshing order. See Mesh Worksheet Recording and Playback Behaviors (p. 367)
for details.

To create a selective meshing history manually:

1. Click the Mesh object in the Tree Outline.

2. Click the Worksheet button on the toolbar.

3. Move the worksheet to the desired location to dock it. The location will persist whenever the Mesh object
or one of its child objects is highlighted in the Tree Outline. For example, you may want to dock the
worksheet alongside the Geometry window, allowing you to view both at once.

Note:

The worksheet is not dockable on Linux platforms. On Linux, you can drag the worksheet
off the Meshing application interface, and it will then appear in its own separate window.

4. Add a row to the worksheet by right-clicking on the table and selecting Add from the context menu.

5. In the new row, click the Named Selection column and select a Named Selection from the Named Selection
drop-down.

6. Repeat steps 4 and 5 for each meshing step in the desired sequence.

Mesh Worksheet Recording and Playback Behaviors

Remember the following information regarding recording and playback behaviors:

• During recording, the button in the upper-right corner of the worksheet is red. When recording is stopped,
the button is green.

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• When you start recording, the software checks for meshed bodies and verifies that each meshed body is
accounted for in the worksheet. If any extraneous meshed bodies are found, recording does not occur and
an error message is issued. You must clear the mesh entirely (or at least clear the mesh from the bodies that
are not being used by the worksheet) before you can begin recording. To do so, use the Clear Generated
Data (p. 442) option or click the Clear Generated Mesh button on the worksheet.

• When you start recording, the states of the bodies being used by the worksheet are checked. If any body is
not in a meshed state, recording does not occur and an error message is issued. You must bring the mesh
up-to-date before you can begin recording. To do so, right-click the last step in the worksheet and select
Generate Mesh Through This Step from the context menu. See below for more information about using
this option.

• As steps are being recorded, they are appended to the existing steps in the worksheet.

• Other steps in the worksheet are ignored while the mesh for the selected set is being generated.

• After you have entered recording mode, recording stops when the mesh is up-to-date. An exception to this
behavior occurs if you record one or more steps but then suppress all remaining unmeshed bodies. In such
cases, the mesh will be up-to-date but recording will not stop automatically. You must click Stop Recording.

• During recording/playback, post mesh operations (including mesh connections (p. 399), contact
matches (p. 410), post inflation (p. 132), and refinement (p. 239)) do not occur until the last step in the worksheet,
after all meshing is complete.

• If you select the Preview Surface Mesh (p. 435), Preview Source and Target Mesh (p. 437), or Preview Infla-
tion (p. 437) feature, recording stops and a warning message is issued.

• The Generate Mesh (p. 432) option is context sensitive. It behaves differently depending on where you invoke
it. If you invoke it from the Mesh object in the Tree Outline (RMB on Mesh folder > Generate Mesh), it behaves
similar to the Preview options in that recording stops. If you invoke it from the Geometry object (RMB on
Geometry folder > Generate Mesh) or from the Geometry window (RMB > Generate Mesh On Selected
Bodies), the operation is treated as a selective meshing step and is recorded.

• If you insert a step manually, recording stops and a warning message is issued.

• If you delete a step manually, recording stops and a warning message is issued.

• If the mesh fails, recording stops and a warning message is issued.

• To replay steps incrementally, right-click in the row of interest and select Generate Mesh Through This
Step from the context menu. As a result, recording stops, any existing mesh is cleared, and all meshing steps
prior to and including the selected step are replayed in the Geometry window.

Mesh Worksheet Named Selection Behaviors

Remember the following information regarding Named Selection behaviors:

• Only Named Selections that consist of bodies are selectable from the worksheet's Named Selection drop-
down.

• If the model contains bodies that are not included in any Named Selection, these bodies are meshed last.

• If a Named Selection is used by the worksheet, the Used by Mesh Worksheet field in the Details View for
that Named Selection is set to Yes, even if the corresponding worksheet step is inactive.

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 Selective Meshing

• For Named Selections that are generated automatically by the worksheet, the Send to Solver (p. 58) option
in the Details View is set to No by default. The default is Yes for Named Selections that you create. The
worksheet respects the user-defined settings. That is, if you create a Named Selection, retain the Send to
Solver setting of Yes, and subsequently use that Named Selection in the worksheet, the Named Selection
will be passed to the solver as expected.

• If a change to a Named Selection being used by the worksheet causes the Named Selection to become un-
derdefined or invalid, the corresponding worksheet step will be deactivated without invalidating the
worksheet. Reasons a Named Selection may become underdefined or invalid include:

– You change the scope of a Named Selection from body to face/edge

– A geometry update changes the scope of a Named Selection, or causes the software to try to delete the
Named Selection

• If you delete a named selection manually, recording stops and a warning message is issued.

• From the Tree Outline, you can suppress/unsuppress Named Selections or bodies included in Named Selec-
tions that are being used by the worksheet, and the corresponding worksheet step will be deactivated/ac-
tivated accordingly without invalidating the worksheet.

You also can activate/deactivate steps directly on the worksheet. By default, a check mark ( ) appears
on the worksheet, meaning steps that correspond to all unsuppressed bodies/Named Selections are
active. To deactivate a single step, clear the corresponding check box. To deactivate all active steps,
click and it is replaced by . Toggling between and activates/deactivates the steps
corresponding to all unsuppressed bodies/Named Selections. Toggling step activation on the worksheet
has no effect on the suppressed status of the corresponding bodies/Named Selections in the Tree
Outline.

When a step is inactive, its row in the worksheet is grayed out. Inactive steps are skipped during
mesh generation and other worksheet operations.

To obtain the example shown in Figure 194: Mesh Worksheet Step Deactivation (p. 369), the Converter
Named Selection was suppressed in the Tree Outline.

Figure 194: Mesh Worksheet Step Deactivation

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Specialized Meshing

Miscellaneous Points to Remember

• To delete a row from the worksheet, right-click in the row of interest and select Delete from the context
menu. The worksheet, including the meshing sequence, will be updated automatically.

• Click the Delete All Steps button to clear all data from the worksheet.

• If the mesh fails at any point in the process, the process terminates but returns as much of the mesh as
possible.

• If you change the worksheet after you mesh, those changes will not be reflected in your meshing state as
the worksheet does not affect meshing state. The changes will take effect the next time you generate a
mesh.

• If you select bodies to mesh individually (by using the Generate Mesh On Selected Bodies (p. 432) option in
the Geometry window; the Generate Mesh (p. 432) option in the Geometry folder; or by using the Preview
Surface Mesh (p. 435), Preview Source and Target Mesh (p. 437), or Preview Inflation (p. 437) feature), the
Meshing application ignores the worksheet and generates the mesh for the selected bodies.

• If you select Part or Body objects in the Geometry folder in the Tree Outline, right-click, and then select
Generate Mesh (p. 432) from the context menu, the Meshing application ignores the worksheet and generates
the mesh for the selected parts/bodies.

• This feature is not available when assembly meshing algorithms (p. 325) are being used.

Inflation Controls
Inflation is useful for CFD boundary layer resolution, electromagnetic air gap resolution or resolving
high stress concentrations for structures.

The following sections provide the high-level steps to follow to assign inflation depending on the selected
mesh method.

For information on setting global inflation controls and descriptions of all of the individual inflation
controls, refer to Inflation Group (p. 123). Alternatively, you can use local inflation mesh controls to apply
inflation to specific boundaries. For details, refer to Inflation Control (p. 265). For general information
on applying inflation controls in combination with the various mesh method controls, refer to Meshing:
Mesh Control Interaction Tables (p. 391).

Inflation Controls With Sweeper

Inflation is a pre process for the sweeper (p. 201). The source face is meshed and then inflated before
sweeping with the sweeper.

Note:

• Inflation is supported only on the source face(s) of the sweep (that is, inflation on the side faces).
Inflation away from the source face(s) is not supported.

• You do not have to select a source face for sweeping with inflation. You can simply pick faces
for inflation and the Meshing application will internally place a Sweep method on the adjacent
bodies using the inflated faces as the sources (unless another method already exists).

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 Inflation Controls

To add boundary layers to a source face for sweeping:

1. Apply a Method control to a body.

2. Set Method to Sweep.

3. Set Src/Trg Selection to Manual Source or to Manual Source and Target.

4. Scope the source (and target if Manual Source and Target was selected).

5. Set Free Face Mesh Type to All Quad, All Tri, or Quad/Tri. Your selection determines the shape of the
elements used to fill the swept body (pure hex, pure wedge, or a combination of hex/wedge respectively).
The boundary region of the source/target faces will always be meshed with quad layers. Refer to Fig-
ure 195: Sweep Method With Inflation: Hex Fill (p. 372) and Figure 196: Sweep Method With Inflation:
Wedge Fill (p. 372).

6. Enter additional sweep settings, as desired, in the Details View.

7. Select the source face and insert an Inflation control.

8. Select the outer boundary edges of the source face for inflation (p. 266) (the edges that you want inflation
to grow away from).

9. Enter additional inflation settings, as desired, in the Details View.

10. Mesh the body.

Note:

If the target face has a different number of edges than the source face, the bias of the
boundary layer may not be transferred correctly.

To obtain the mesh shown in Figure 195: Sweep Method With Inflation: Hex Fill (p. 372), Free Face Mesh
Type was set to All Quad. Notice the boundary region is meshed with quad layers.

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Specialized Meshing

Figure 195: Sweep Method With Inflation: Hex Fill

To obtain the mesh shown in Figure 196: Sweep Method With Inflation: Wedge Fill (p. 372), Free Face
Mesh Type was set to All Tri. Notice the boundary region is meshed with quad layers.

Figure 196: Sweep Method With Inflation: Wedge Fill

Inflation Controls With Patch Conforming Mesher

Inflation can be either a pre process or a post process for the patch conforming (p. 178) mesher.

To add boundary layers to a face using the Patch Conforming Mesher:

1. Apply a Method control to a body.

2. Set Method to Tetrahedrons.

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 Inflation Controls

3. Set the tetrahedrons Algorithm to Patch Conforming.

4. Select the body and insert an Inflation control.

5. Select the faces to be inflated (p. 266) (the faces that you want the inflation layers to grow away from).

6. Enter additional settings, as desired, in the Details View.

7. Mesh the body.

Inflation Controls With Patch Independent Mesher

Inflation is a post process for the patch independent (p. 178) mesher after it has created the tetrahedron
elements.

To add boundary layers to a face using the Patch Independent Mesher:

1. Apply a Method control to a body.

2. Set Method to Tetrahedrons.

3. Set the tetrahedrons Algorithm to Patch Independent.

4. Set the Min Size Limit.

5. Select the body and insert an Inflation control.

6. Select the faces to be inflated (p. 266) (the faces that you want the inflation layers to grow away from).

7. Enter additional settings, as desired, in the Details View.

8. Mesh the body.

Inflation Controls With MultiZone

To add boundary layers to a face using the MultiZone (p. 205) Mesher:

1. Apply a Method control to a body.

2. Set Method to MultiZone.

3. Select the body and insert an Inflation control.

4. Select the faces to be inflated (p. 266) (the faces that you want the inflation layers to grow away from).

5. Enter additional settings, as desired, in the Details View.

6. Mesh the body.

For more information, see MultiZone Support for Inflation (p. 322).

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Specialized Meshing

Inflation Controls With MultiZone Quad/Tri Mesher

To add boundary layers to a face using the MultiZone Quad/Tri (p. 222) Mesher:

1. Apply a Method control to a body.

2. Set Method to MultiZone Quad/Tri.

3. Select a body or face and insert an Inflation control.

4. Select the edges to be inflated (p. 266) (the edges that you want inflation to grow away from).

5. Enter additional settings, as desired, in the Details View.

6. Mesh the body.

Note:

Base mesh caching is not supported for MultiZone Quad/Tri, so a change to inflation controls
requires remeshing.

Inflation Controls With Quadrilateral Dominant or All Triangles Mesher

Inflation is a pre process for the quadrilateral dominant (p. 221) mesher or all triangles (p. 222) mesher.

To add boundary layers to a face using the Quadrilateral Dominant or All Triangles Mesher:

1. Apply a Method control to a body.

2. Set Method to Quadrilateral Dominant or Triangles.

3. Select a body or face and insert an Inflation control.

4. Select the edges to be inflated (p. 266) (the edges that you want inflation to grow away from).

5. Enter additional settings, as desired, in the Details View.

6. Mesh the body.

Inflation Controls With Cartesian Mesher

Inflation is a Pre process only for the Body Fitted Cartesian (p. 213) mesher. For CFD physics only, three
layers are created with total thickness proportional to Element Size; for other physics preferences, only
only layer is created.

To add boundary layers to a body using the Cartesian Mesher:

1. Apply a Method control to a body.

2. Set Method to Cartesian.

3. Select the Method and add an Inflation (p. 265) control.

4. Enter additional settings, as desired, in the Details View.

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 Inflation Controls

5. Mesh the body.

Inflation Handling Between Bodies With Different Methods

The inflation handling between bodies where one body is meshed with the sweep method and one
body is meshed with the patch conforming tetrahedral method requires some special consideration to
ensure inflation layers propagate through the common interface. There are two such cases to consider:

• The case in which the common interface of two bodies is also a source/target face of the swept body

• The case in which the common interface of two bodies is also a side face of the swept body

The model below will be used to explain the first case, in which the common interface of two bodies
is also a source/target face of the swept body.

Figure 197: Swept Body Shares Source/Target Face With Tet Body

In this case, inflation on the patch conforming tetrahedral method must be defined off the faces of the
wall (not common interface), or by using Program Controlled (p. 126) inflation (which ignores faces in
Named Selections and common interfaces between bodies). The swept body needs the source face to
be selected, and 2D inflation must be defined on the source face. Since 2D inflation does not support
the Smooth Transition (p. 128) option, it is best to use another option so that the inflation between
bodies will properly align.

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Specialized Meshing

Figure 198: Defining Inflation for a Swept Body Sharing Source/Target Face With Tet Body

After properly setting up the model and ensuring the inflation of the tet body and the swept body have
similar near-wall spacings, a mesh can be generated where the inflation layers will pass from one body
to the next with proper connections on the common interface, as shown below.

Figure 199: Detail of Proper Connections on the Common Interface

The model below will be used to explain the second case, in which the common interface of two bodies
is also a side face of the swept body.

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 Inflation Controls

Figure 200: Tet Body Surrounds Swept Body

In this case, inflation on the patch conforming tetrahedral method must be defined off the faces of the
wall (not common interface), or by using Program Controlled (p. 126) inflation (which ignores faces in
Named Selections and common interfaces between bodies). To properly align the inflated tet mesh to
the side faces of the swept body, a biasing must be used along the sweep direction. Since the biasing
along the sweep direction uses a different formulation than the inflation biasing, the following notes
may be helpful.

The sweep bias ratio is the ratio of largest edge to smallest edge along sweep path, the growth ratio
for inflation is a factor of the growth from the first element to the second element, etc. These relate as
described below. The equation to get the inflation growth rate to align to the swept body is:

(1/N-1)
Ir = Sb

where

Sb = Sweep Bias

N = Number of Divisions along sweep

Ir = Inflation Growth Rate

Also, to get proper alignment between the first layer of inflation and sweep, you need to use the first
layer height of the swept mesh as first layer height for sweep.

Because the first layer height is computed by the software from the length of the sweep path, the
sweep bias, and the number of divisions along the sweep—and there is no easy way to get the length
of the sweep path—you should mesh the swept body first, measure the first layer height, and use this
value as input for the First Layer Height (p. 132) option when defining inflation controls. The inflation
growth rate can then be calculated using the formula above. This leads to well-aligned layers between
the sweep and tet regions, as shown below.

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Specialized Meshing

Figure 201: Detail of Well-aligned Layers Between the Swept and Tet Regions

Inflation and Baffles

The Meshing application provides support for meshing 0–thickness walls, or baffles, as non-manifold
faces of a solid body. Inflation is supported. See Baffle Meshing (p. 386) for more information.

Mesh Refinement
Mesh refinement is a postprocess in the mesh generation process in which the elements on the selected
topology are split. This is useful for local mesh sizing control. See the Refinement Control (p. 239) section
for more information.

Mixed Order Meshing

The Method Controls and Element Order Settings allow you to specify whether the mesh to be
generated for a given body is Quadratic (high order) or Linear (low order). Mixed Order Meshing
refers to meshing a multibody part having shared topology with some bodies as Quadratic and some
bodies as Linear. In such situations, "transitional elements" are required to connect the mesh at any
linear-to-quadratic interface. These "transitional elements" are treated as quadratic elements with
dropped midside nodes, and the side of the interface on which they appear is determined by your
meshing process. See Method Controls and Element Order Settings (p. 174) for more information.

Contact Meshing
Enhancing convergence or quality of results for structural contact analysis may require the use of contact
sizing to create similarly sized meshes where faces and bodies are coming in contact. See the Contact
Sizing Control (p. 238) section for more information.

For information about using contact meshing for rigid bodies, refer to Rigid Body Meshing (p. 380).

Winding Body Meshing

Winding body meshing creates special element types depending on the attributes given to bodies in
the DesignModeler application. No mesh controls are supported for winding bodies because of the
nature of the required mesh.

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 Match Meshing and Symmetry

Wire Body Meshing

Wire body meshing meshes the wire bodies in an assembly, respecting any mesh controls applied to
the edges of the wire body.

Note:

Wires and beams are both considered to be line bodies and are handled in the same way
by the mesher.

Pyramid Transitions
Pyramid transitions occur when a swept or hex dominant body abuts, that is, shares faces with, a body
meshed with tetrahedrons. The mesher will try to insert the pyramids into the body meshed with tetra-
hedrons. If that is not possible, the hexahedron at the boundary will be split into pyramids and tetra-
hedrons to create a conformal mesh between the two bodies. Pyramids will also be formed at the inter-
face of an end cap of inflation on quad surface mesh and a tet body.

Match Meshing and Symmetry

For parts that are symmetric about a cylindrical axis, you can match the mesh by using either cyclic
mesh matching or the Symmetry feature in the Mechanical application. The following table describes
when to use each method:

Table 2: Mesh Matching for Symmetrical Parts

If you want to... Do this...

Match the mesh, but you do not want to Apply a Cyclic Mesh Match control (p. 257).
automatically generate solver constraints for
periodic mesh
Match the mesh, and automatically generate Define the symmetry in the model by applying
solver constraints for periodic mesh the necessary Symmetry regions, Periodic re-
gions, or Cyclic regions.

When Periodic Region or Cyclic Region objects exist in the Symmetry folder, match face mesh controls
will be created internal to the mesher. If the mesher cannot match the mesh on the objects in the
Symmetry folder, it will return a failure or informational message.

Related topics include:

• For a description of the Symmetry folder and its support of Periodic Region and Cyclic Region objects,
see Defining Symmetry in the Mechanical help.

• For an overview of the match control and its limitations, see Match Control (p. 255).

• For general information on applying match controls in combination with the various mesh method controls,
see Meshing: Mesh Control Interaction Tables (p. 391).

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Specialized Meshing

Rigid Body Meshing

Rigid body meshing simplifies the representation of a model by reducing it to the contact regions and
the centroid of the model. In other words, when a part is defined as a rigid body, the mesher knows
to mesh only the contact regions, and to create a single mass element at the centroid of the model.
(The centroid is represented by an Inertial Coordinate System. Refer to the discussion of Rigid Bodies
in the Mechanical help for more information.)

Rigid body meshing can be used for both 2D and 3D contact. For 2D models, only the edges of the rigid
surface in contact are meshed because the surface mesh is not needed for the analysis. Similarly, for
3D models, only the faces of the rigid body in contact are meshed because the volume mesh is not
needed. The elements used to mesh the contact surfaces can be quadrilateral or triangular in shape,
with or without midside nodes.

The following surface mesh methods can be applied to rigid bodies:

• Quadrilateral Dominant (p. 221)

• Triangles (p. 222)

Rigid body contact meshing respects mapped face controls (p. 240) and sizing (p. 224) controls. If 2D in-
flation (p. 123) is applied, inflation layers are generated for the surfaces in contact.

If a method control is scoped to a rigid body, the Method control is set to Quadrilateral Dominant
by default, but you can change the value to Triangles. When Method is set to Quadrilateral Dominant,
an additional option called the Free Face Mesh Type control is available for most analyses and can be
set to either Quad/Tri (default) or All Quad.

For Transient Structural, Rigid Dynamics, and Explicit Dynamics analyses, certain default behaviors related
to rigid body meshing differ depending on analysis type and solver. Additionally, the Free Face Mesh
Type option is replaced by the Rigid Face Mesh Type option to determine the default element shape
for rigid body face meshing. The table below provides information you should be aware of when selecting
one of these analysis types from the Toolbox and adding it to a Workbench project.

Table 3: Rigid Body Meshing: Default Behaviors for Rigid Dynamics, Transient Structural, and
Explicit Dynamics Analyses

Standard Solver Element Straight Rigid Body Rigid Face

Analysis Type Order (p. 76) Sided Behavior (p. 156) Mesh Type
Elements (p. 155)
Rigid Rigid Body - Not applicable Full Mesh Quad/Tri
Dynamics Dynamics
Transient Mechanical Program No Dimensionally Quad/Tri
Structural APDL Controlled Reduced
Explicit Autodyn Linear Not applicable Full Mesh Quad/Tri
Dynamics
Explicit LS-DYNA Linear Not applicable Full Mesh Quad/Tri
Dynamics
(LS-DYNA
Export)

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 Rigid Body Meshing

For information about generating a full mesh on rigid bodies instead of a surface mesh, refer to the
description of the Rigid Body Behavior (p. 156) control.

Using 2D Rigid Body Contact Meshing

This section describes the basic steps for using 2D rigid body contact meshing.

To define a 2D rigid body for contact meshing:

1. Open the model in the Mechanical application.

2. In the Tree, expand the Geometry object so that the body objects are visible.

3. Click the body that you want to define as the rigid body.

4. In the Details> Definition view for the body, change the value of the Stiffness Behavior control to Rigid.

Note:

When you change the Stiffness Behavior to Rigid, an Inertial Coordinate System
object is added to the Tree automatically. This Inertial Coordinate System represents
the centroid of the body.

5. If desired, change the value of the Element Order (p. 76) control.

6. Generate the mesh by right-clicking on the Mesh object in the Tree and selecting Generate Mesh.

Note:

The mesh for the 2D rigid body is created only in the contact region (edges in contact).
See the figure below for an example.

In the figure below, which shows a model of a slab and a cylinder, the cylinder has been defined as a
rigid body. When the mesh is generated, the cylinder is meshed with line elements as shown.

Figure 202: 2D Rigid Body Contact Meshing

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Specialized Meshing

Using 3D Rigid Body Contact Meshing

This section describes the basic steps for using 3D rigid body contact meshing.

To define a 3D rigid body for contact meshing:

1. Open the model in the Mechanical application.

2. In the Tree, expand the Geometry object so that the body objects are visible.

3. Click the body that you want to define as a rigid body.

4. In the Details> Definition view for the body, change the value of the Stiffness Behavior control to Rigid.

Note:

When you change the Stiffness Behavior to Rigid, an Inertial Coordinate System
object is added to the Tree automatically. This Inertial Coordinate System represents
the centroid of the body.

5. If you wish to control the mesh method, insert a mesh method by right-clicking on the Mesh object in
the Tree and selecting Insert> Method.

Note:

The Automatic method appears in the Details View.

6. In the Details View, scope the mesh method to the rigid body.

Note:

By default, the Method control is set to Quadrilateral Dominant for rigid bodies, but
you can change the value to Triangles. When Method is set to Quadrilateral Dominant,
an additional option called the Free Face Mesh Type control is available and can be
set to either Quad/Tri (default) or All Quad.

7. If desired, change the value of the Element Order (p. 76) control.

8. Generate the mesh by right-clicking on the Mesh object in the Tree and selecting Generate Mesh.

Note:

The mesh for the 3D rigid body is created only in the contact region (faces in contact).

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 CAD Instance Meshing

Thin Solid Meshing

Thin solid meshing is useful for thin solid bodies where one element through the thickness is desired.
This meshing also takes advantage of the Mechanical APDL application's SOLSH190 element or the LS-
DYNA thick shell element .

• It may be advantageous to use a Sizing control on the faces/body along with mapped Face Meshing controls
to give a uniform mesh.

• Virtual Topology (p. 445) may be necessary to satisfy the topological criterion for thin solid meshing.

CAD Instance Meshing

The Meshing application supports pattern instances that have been defined for part features or assembly
components in a CAD system, such as Creo Parametric, Parasolid, or Solid Edge. These instance definitions
remain in the CAD system. When a model with instances is read in to Workbench, the geometry is read
once and then copied for each instance. Similarly, when meshing, the Meshing application generates
the mesh once and then copies it for each instance. Support for pattern instances provides these benefits:

• Improved geometry import speed because only one instance of a part is read in

• Improved meshing speed because only one instance of a part is meshed; copies of the first instance's
mesh are used for the remaining instances

Remember the following information when working with instances:

• Instances of bodies are not supported. Single body part instancing is supported, as well as certain variations
of instancing of multibody parts (for example, multibody parts can be instanced, but a body cannot be in-
stanced within a single part). For more information, refer to the discussion of feature modeling's effect on
instance data in the DesignModeler help.

• If you apply a mesh control to a part that is instanced, each instance must have the same control applied
to it or the part will be meshed individually. For example, if your model consists of four parts that are instanced
but only one part has an edge sizing control applied to it, that part will be meshed individually and the
other three parts will be meshed once and instanced.

• Instancing is not supported for the following controls. Each part that has any of these controls applied to it
will be meshed individually, regardless of whether the control in question is applied to all instances:

– Sphere of influence (p. 232) sizing

– Body of influence (p. 233) sizing

– Contact sizing (p. 238)

– Rigid body meshing (p. 380) (presence of any rigid bodies in the part)

• You can use the Extend Selection command to select a set of instances, which can be useful for performing
tasks such as applying loads or creating a Named Selection. To select a set of instances, first select one in-
stance, then click the Extend Selection drop-down menu and choose Extend to Instances. Extend to In-
stances searches for all remaining instances that are defined for the currently selected instance. The Extend
to Instances menu option is enabled only when pattern instances are defined in the current model.

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Specialized Meshing

• When using mesh methods or controls that require both body scoping and face scoping (such as Sweep (p. 201)
with source face selection; or inflation (p. 265)), you can use the Object Generator to set up the model for
instancing. For details, refer to Generating Multiple Objects from a Template Object in the Mechanical help.

• Because the mesh is copied from the first instance to the remaining instance, it follows that each instance
will be meshed with the same number of nodes and elements. To confirm this, after CAD instances are
successfully meshed, click the Geometry object in the Tree Outline. Then click the Worksheet toolbar button.
When the Worksheet appears, click the Nodes heading, which sorts the data on that column and allows
you to view the matching numbers of nodes and elements for each instance.

• Error handling for instances is also copied. For example, if the mesher fails on one instance, all instances will
fail; however, you will receive a warning message for each instance. Refer to Figure 203: Error Handling for
Instances (p. 384), which shows a model containing eight identical pistons.

Figure 203: Error Handling for Instances

Meshing and Hard Entities

The two types of hard entities are hard edges and hard points. Hard entities are usually defined in the
DesignModeler application or a CAD system.

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 Meshing and Hard Entities

A hard point is an embedded point in a face or edge. Hard points are captured by nodes during the
meshing process. Hard points are not supported for the following mesh methods or controls:

• General sweeping (p. 283)

• 3D inflation (p. 123)

A hard edge is an embedded edge in a face. There are two main types of embedded edges:

• An edge in which one vertex of the edge touches the face boundary, but the other vertex does not
touch a face boundary

• An edge in which neither of the vertices touches the face boundary

Hard edges are not supported for the following mesh methods or controls:

• General sweeping (p. 283)

• 2D or 3D inflation (p. 123)

Note:

• If the methods and controls listed above are required in your mesh, insert a Virtual Topology and
use the Simplify Faces (p. 452) option to remove the hard entities.

• Other mesh methods have certain limitations in how hard points and hard edges are handled.
For more information, refer to Limitations of Using Hard Entities with Other Mesh Controls (p. 385).

Spot Welds
Spot welds are used to connect individual surface body parts together to form surface body model as-
semblies, just as contact is used for solid body part assemblies. Spot welds are usually defined as hard
points in the DesignModeler application or a CAD system:

• When a model is imported into the Meshing application, the mesher simply treats the hard points as
embedded points.

• Upon import to the Mechanical application, spot welds are automatically generated where hard points
are defined in the model.

For related information, refer to Point in the DesignModeler help and Spot Welds in the Mechanical
help.

Limitations of Using Hard Entities with Other Mesh Controls

Limitations of hard entities include the following:

• 3D inflation (p. 123) does not support hard entities of either type. If inflation is applied, a warning message
is issued to indicate the hard entities were ignored.

• 2D inflation (p. 123) supports hard points only.

• General Sweeping (p. 283) does not support hard points.

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Specialized Meshing

• The MultiZone Quad/Tri (p. 222) and MultiZone (p. 205) mesh methods do not respect hard entities unless
their topology is protected (p. 159).

• For the MultiZone (p. 205) mesh method only, the faces that contain the hard entities must be selected
as source faces for the hard entities to be respected.

• Hard edges may exist accidentally in a CAD model due to Boolean operations with tight tolerances or
other such operations. These accidental hard edges may be undesired, in which case you should remove
them by using the Virtual Topology: Face Simplify feature or defeaturing them within the Design-
Modeler application or a CAD system.

Baffle Meshing
The Meshing application provides support for meshing 0-thickness walls, or baffles, as non-manifold
faces of a solid body. For such models, you do not have to adjust the mesh size to capture the thin re-
gions.

Characteristics and limitations of baffle meshing include:

• For part/body level meshing, baffle meshing is supported by the Patch Conforming Tetra (p. 178), Patch
Independent Tetra (p. 178), and MultiZone (p. 205) mesh methods only. If you apply any other mesh
method to a body containing baffles, the mesh method will be suppressed, and the reason (not suppor-
ted) will be reported in the Active read-only field in the Details View. In such cases, the body will be
meshed with the Patch Conforming Tetra mesh method.

Baffle meshing is also supported for assembly meshing algorithms. See Assembly Meshing (p. 325).

• When the MultiZone mesh method is used, the body with a baffle must be meshed with a free mesh
of tetrahedral elements. For this reason, you must set the Free Mesh Type to Tetra for bodies with
baffles.

• The Patch Conforming Tetra and Patch Independent Tetra mesh methods support inflation of baffles.
The MultiZone mesh method does not support inflation of baffles.

• When the Patch Conforming Tetra mesh method is used, inflation layers will stair step (p. 136) at free
boundary edges of the baffles.

• When the Patch Independent Tetra mesh method is used and Collision Avoidance (p. 136) is set to Stair
Stepping, inflation layers will stair step at free boundary edges of the baffles. However, if Collision
Avoidance is set to Layer Compression, full prism columns appear at the free boundary edges.

• Program Controlled (p. 126) inflation is supported (that is, if you select Program Controlled inflation,
baffles are automatically selected to be inflation boundaries unless they are in a Named Selection).

• Only two-sided growth cases for inflation are supported.

• Pyramid transitions are supported.

• Prism/pyramid elements are not supported for meshing crossed/intersecting baffles.

• There is a single set of nodes on the internal face.

Figure 204: Cylinder Containing Baffles (p. 387) shows a model of a cylinder that contains a series of
baffles.

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 Baffle Meshing

Figure 204: Cylinder Containing Baffles

In Figure 205: Section Cut Showing Baffle Meshing (p. 387), the model was meshed using Program
Controlled inflation. Since the baffles were not in a Named Selection, they were automatically selected
to be inflation boundaries. A section plane was activated to view a section cut through the model, and
the baffle faces were selected in the Geometry window.

Figure 205: Section Cut Showing Baffle Meshing

Figure 206: Detail of Inflation on Baffles (p. 388) shows a detailed view of the inflation layers on the
baffles.

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Specialized Meshing

Figure 206: Detail of Inflation on Baffles

Parallel Part Meshing

You can control three mechanisms in ANSYS Workbench that operate in a parallelized manner:

• Remote Solve Manager Design Point updates. Refer to RSM Configuration.

• Parallel Part meshing: Tools> Options> Number of CPUs for Parallel Part Meshing

• Individual mesh methods (MultiZone Quad/Tri, Patch Independent Tetra, and MultiZone only):
Tools> Options> Number of CPUs for Meshing Methods

For the most efficient use of machine resources, it is important that the running processes do not over-
saturate the processing cores or the available memory. You must allocate processing cores to each of
these mechanisms in a way that provides the most benefit for your workflow. When parallel part
meshing is invoked with the default number of CPUs, it automatically uses the cores of all available
CPUs with the inherent limitation of 2 gigabytes per CPU core.

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 Parallel Part Meshing

Parallel Part Meshing Best Practices

Best practices include:

• Know how many physical processing cores are available.

• If you are using Remote Solve Manager (RSM), meshing is done serially. This option cannot be overridden.

• For non-RSM Design Point updates, meshing is done serially by default. You can override this option
by setting the option Number of CPUs for Parallel Part Meshing explicitly under Meshing>Advanced
Options.

• If you are using more than one processor for individual meshing methods, be sure to set a balance
between the two meshing options if you are using methods that support the Number of CPUs for
Meshing Methods option (MultiZone Quad/Tri, Patch Independent Tetra, and MultiZone). They
should be set to an explicit value greater than 0.

For example, if you are using an 8 core system, setting Number of CPUs for Parallel Part
Meshing to 3 and Number of CPUs for Mesh Methods to 3 will provide a good balance. If the
mesh methods that you typically use support the Number of CPUs for Meshing Methods option,
setting the Number of CPUs for Parallel Part Meshing to 2 and the Number of CPUs for
Meshing Methods to 4 or 5 may potentially provide more benefit.

• If you are using parallel part meshing only, you can set the Number of CPUs for Parallel Part Meshing
to 0. In such cases, the software uses as many cores as possible.

• For Parallel Part meshing we recommend turning off hyper-threading as this may lead to degradation
of parallel performance.

• Note that Parallel Part meshing does not support the following mesh controls:

– Assembly meshing

– Contact Sizing

– Fracture

– Mesh Match via Symmetry

– Morph Service/Morphing

– Pinch

– Post Connection

– Post-Inflation

– Preview Surface Mesh/Preview Inflation

– Retry

– Refinement

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Meshing: Mesh Control Interaction Tables
This section presents the effects of applying combinations of mesh controls on the same part or body.
Topics include the meshing implication when one mesh method is applied in combination with another
mesh method, and the effects of applying various mesh controls in combination with the various mesh
methods.
Interactions Between Mesh Methods
Interactions Between Mesh Methods and Mesh Controls

Interactions Between Mesh Methods

The tables below present the effects of meshing two or more bodies in a multibody part using a com-
bination of different mesh methods:

• Using combinations of surface mesh methods

• Using combinations of solid mesh methods

• Applying a single 3D inflation control on more than one solid body when a combination of mesh
methods has been scoped to the bodies

• Applying a 3D inflation control on a solid body when more than one mesh method has been scoped
to the body

Note:

• Assembly meshing algorithms (p. 325) cannot be used in combination with any other mesh
method.

• The Cartesian (p. 213) mesh method operates at the part level, and does not support interactions
with other mesh methods. If one body in a multibody part is scoped to be meshed with the
Cartesian mesh method, all bodies will be added to the scoping.

• Refer to Conformal and Non-Conformal Meshing (p. 3) for information about conformal meshing.

The table below describes the automatic sequencing of surface mesh methods when two mesh methods
are being used. If all three methods are being used, the automatic sequence is:

1. All Triangles (p. 222)

2. Quad Dominant (p. 221)

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Mesh Control Interaction Tables

3. MultiZone Quad/Tri (p. 222)

Note:

If you are performing selective meshing, you control the sequence. Refer to Selective Mesh-
ing (p. 361) for usage notes.

Surface Mesh Method

Surface Mesh Method MultiZone
All Triangles (p. 222) Quad Dominant (p. 221)
Quad/Tri (p. 222)
All Triangles (p. 222) N/A All Triangles first All Triangles first
Quad Dominant (p. 221) All Triangles first N/A Quad Dominant first
MultiZone
All Triangles first Quad Dominant first N/A
Quad/Tri (p. 222)

The table below describes the automatic sequencing of solid mesh methods when two methods are
being used. If more than two methods are being used, the automatic sequence is:

1. MultiZone (p. 205)

2. General Sweep (p. 283)

3. Thin Sweep (p. 290)

4. Hex Dominant (p. 200)

5. Patch Conforming Tetra (p. 178)

6. Patch Independent Tetra (p. 178)

Note:

• If you are performing selective meshing, you control the sequence. Refer to Selective Mesh-
ing (p. 361) for additional usage notes.

• During automatic sequencing of solid mesh methods when inflation has been applied, Post in-
flation is always applied last and uses as its input mesh the complete currently existing part mesh.

Solid Mesh Method

Solid Mesh Patch Patch
Method Hex General Thin
Conforming Independent MultiZone (p. 205)
Dominant (p. 200)Sweep (p. 283)Sweep (p. 290)
Tetra (p. 178)Tetra (p. 178)
Hex Domin- General Thin Sweep Hex Dom- Hex Domin-
N/A MultiZone first
ant (p. 200) Sweep first first inant first ant first
General General Sweep General General General
N/A MultiZone first1
Sweep (p. 283) first Sweep first Sweep first Sweep first
Thin Thin Sweep General Thin Thin
N/A MultiZone first
Sweep (p. 290) first Sweep first Sweep first Sweep first

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 Interactions Between Mesh Methods

Solid Mesh Method

Solid Mesh Patch Patch
Method Hex General Thin
Conforming Independent MultiZone (p. 205)
Dominant (p. 200)Sweep (p. 283)Sweep (p. 290)
Tetra (p. 178)Tetra (p. 178)
Patch Con- Patch Con-
Hex Dominant General Thin Sweep
forming N/A forming MultiZone first
first Sweep first first
Tetra (p. 178) Tetra first
Patch Inde- Patch Con-
Hex Dominant General Thin Sweep
pendent forming N/A MultiZone first
first Sweep first first
Tetra (p. 178) Tetra first
Mul- MultiZone MultiZone MultiZone MultiZone
MultiZone first N/A
tiZone (p. 205) first1 first first first

1–While mixing Sweep and MultiZone mesh methods, pre-meshed faces may be used in these ways:

• Mapped faces can be supported as side faces when MultiZone or Sweep is used to mesh subsequent
bodies. The pre-meshed faces may have been generated using either General Sweep or MultiZone.
There are limitations on how the face is mapped. Simple mapped faces (that is, 4-sided) are supported;
however, more complicated submapped cases may cause problems.

• Mapped faces can be supported as source faces.

• Free faces (where mesh does not have a quad mapped pattern) can be supported as source faces only.

The table below describes how inflation is handled if you apply a single 3D inflation control on more
than one solid body when a combination of mesh methods has been scoped to the bodies.

Method 1 Method 2 Supported Inflation Algorithm

Patch Conforming Tetra (p. 178) Patch Independent Post (p. 136) inflation only
Tetra (p. 178)
Patch Conforming Tetra (p. 178) MultiZone (p. 205) Pre (p. 134) inflation only1
Patch Independent MultiZone (p. 205) No inflation allowed; inflation is
Tetra (p. 178) suppressed
Patch Conforming Tetra (p. 178) Patch Independent No inflation allowed; inflation is
Tetra (p. 178) (+ Method 3 of suppressed
MultiZone (p. 205))
General Sweep (p. 283) Any other method No inflation allowed; inflation is
suppressed
Thin Sweep (p. 290) Any other method No inflation allowed; inflation is
suppressed
Hex Dominant (p. 200) Any other method No inflation allowed; inflation is
suppressed

1– In such cases involving MultiZone, the value of the Inflation Algorithm control displays as Pre but
an O-grid-based algorithm specific to MultiZone is used. As with the Pre inflation algorithm, the mesh
is inflated during the meshing process.

The table below describes how inflation is handled if you apply a 3D inflation control on a solid body
when more than one mesh method has been scoped to the body. In such cases, the method control

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Mesh Control Interaction Tables

that appears lowest in the Tree is respected and therefore inflation is handled as it would normally be
handled for that method.

Lowest Method in Tree Supported Inflation Algorithm(s)

Patch Conforming Tetra (p. 178) Post (p. 136) or Pre (p. 134) inflation
Patch Independent Post (p. 136) inflation only
Tetra (p. 178)
MultiZone (p. 205) Pre (p. 134) inflation only1
General Sweep (p. 283) No inflation allowed; inflation is
suppressed
Thin Sweep (p. 290) No inflation allowed; inflation is
suppressed
Hex Dominant (p. 200) No inflation allowed; inflation is
suppressed

1– In such cases involving MultiZone, the value of the Inflation Algorithm control displays as Pre but
an O-grid-based algorithm specific to MultiZone is used. As with the Pre inflation algorithm, the surface
mesh is inflated first and then the rest of the volume mesh is generated.

Interactions Between Mesh Methods and Mesh Controls

The tables in this section present the effects of applying various mesh controls in combination with the
various mesh methods, and include:

• Using mesh controls with the solid meshing methods

• Using mesh controls with the surface meshing methods

• Using mesh controls with the assembly meshing methods

The table below describes the effects of applying the mesh control on the left with each of the solid
meshing methods.

Solid Meshing Methods

Mesh Patch Patch
Control General Thin Hex
Conforming Independent MultiZone (p. 205) Cartesian (p. 213)
Sweep (p. Sweep
283) (p. Dominant
290) (p. 200)
Tetra (p. 178)
Tetra (p. 178)
Body
Sizing Supported Supported Supported Supported SupportedSupported Supported
Control (p. 224)
Face
Sizing Supported Supported Supported Supported SupportedSupported Supported
Control (p. 224)
Edge
Sizing Supported Supported Supported Supported SupportedSupported Supported
Control (p. 224)

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 Interactions Between Mesh Methods and Mesh Controls

Solid Meshing Methods

Mesh Patch Patch
Control General Thin Hex
Conforming Independent MultiZone (p. 205) Cartesian (p. 213)
Sweep (p. Sweep
283) (p. Dominant
290) (p. 200)
Tetra (p. 178)
Tetra (p. 178)
Supported,Supported,
but but
Sphere of Supported, but
only only
Influence Supported Supported only influences Supported Not supported
influences influences
Control (p. 232) source face(s).
source source
face. face(s).
Supported,Supported,
but but
Body of Supported, but
only only
Influence Supported Supported only influences Supported Not supported
influences influences
Control (p. 233) source face(s).
source source
face. face(s).
Contact
Sizing Supported Supported Supported Supported SupportedSupported Not supported
Control (p. 238)
Refinement Not
Supported Not supported Supported SupportedSupported Not supported
Control (p. 239) supported
Mapped N/A. All faces
Not
Face Supported Supported Supported SupportedSupported are essentially
supported
Control (p. 240) mapped.
Match Not Supported, with Not
Supported Supported Supported Not supported
Control (p. 255) supported limitations (p. 255). supported
Supported
on
Pinch Not Not
Supported Not supported sources Supported Not supported
Control (p. 260) supported supported
and
targets.
Supported
on
Inflation Not Not
Supported Supported Supported source Supported
Control (p. 265) supported supported
via 2D
inflation.

The table below describes the effects of applying the mesh control on the left with each of the surface
meshing methods.

Surface Mesh Methods

Mesh Control Quad MultiZone
All Triangles (p. 222)
Dominant (p. 221) Quad/Tri (p. 222)
Size control affects elements on body and lower
Body Sizing Control (p. 224) Supported
topological entities.
Size control affects elements on face and lower
Face Sizing Control (p. 224) Supported
topological entities.

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Mesh Control Interaction Tables

Surface Mesh Methods

Mesh Control Quad MultiZone
All Triangles (p. 222)
Dominant (p. 221) Quad/Tri (p. 222)
Size control affects element edge lengths on
Edge Sizing Control (p. 224) Supported
edge.
Sphere of Influence
Inserts elements of specified size within sphere. Not supported
Control (p. 232)
Body of Influence Inserts elements of specified size within body.
Not supported
Control (p. 233) Only available when Size Function is on.
Contact Sizing Inserts spheres of influence on contact faces in
Not supported
Control (p. 238) regions within contact tolerance.
Refinement Control (p. 239) Refines elements as post-process. Not supported
Mapped faces are meshed before any other faces. Interval assignment may
Mapped Face Control (p. 240) affect edge divisions. No sphere of influence support. No mesh based
defeaturing or pinch support.
Edge meshes are matched for sheet, 2D, and 3D
bodies. Face meshes are matched across bodies.
Match Control (p. 255) Not supported
Match controls cannot be applied across multiple
parts. Additional restrictions (p. 255) apply.
Pinch Control (p. 260) Supported Not supported
Inflation Control (p. 265) Supported

The table below describes the effects of applying the mesh control on the left with the assembly
meshing methods.

Mesh Control Assembly Meshing Algorithms (p. 325)

Body Sizing Control (p. 224) Supported
Face Sizing Control (p. 224) Supported
Edge Sizing Control (p. 224) Supported
Sphere of Influence Control (p. 232) Not supported
Body of Influence Control (p. 233) Supported
Contact Sizing Control (p. 238) Supported
Refinement Control (p. 239) Not supported
Mapped Face Control (p. 240) Not supported
Match Control (p. 255) Not supported
Pinch Control (p. 260) Not supported
Inflation Control (p. 265) Supported

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Meshing: Miscellaneous Tools
The miscellaneous meshing tools described in the following sections include:
Generation of Contact Elements
Renaming Mesh Control Tools
Mesh Numbering
Mesh Editing
Common Display Features

Generation of Contact Elements

When you load a model into the Meshing or Mechanical application, by default, connections are found
between parts that have faces in proximity of each other. Depending on the application, you may want
the boundaries common to two parts to be similar, so that contact definitions or non-conformal interface
definitions may be more accurate. To get common boundaries between parts in an assembly, you should
first imprint all the parts with each other in SpaceClaim or DesignModeler (p. 3). Then, when you edit
the model in the Meshing or Mechanical application, you should define specific contact conditions.

One of those conditions is tolerance, which controls the extent of contact between parts in an assembly.
Tolerance is set as a percentage of the bounding box of the assembly. The bounding box is the smallest
volume that the assembly will fit in. You can change the tolerance (between -100 and 100) in the Options
dialog box under the Mechanical application's Connections category.

The higher the number, the tighter the tolerance. A loose tolerance generally increases the number of
contact faces and areas of contact between parts, while a tight tolerance will decrease the number of
contact faces.

Each face of a part is checked against the faces of other parts in the assembly. A connection is generated
between any faces within the tolerance. You can use overlap tolerances to further limit which faces are
in contact if you want only the faces that fully overlap to be found in contact.

When solving in the Mechanical solver, the elements for the two sets of faces that make up a contact
pair are compared. Contact elements are generated for element pairs that are within the tolerance, but
element pairs outside the tolerance are ignored.

Note:

This discussion is applicable to part-based meshing. The concept of an assembly of parts

should not be confused with assembly meshing (p. 2). For assembly meshing, contact
provides feature capturing (p. 351) and contact sizing (p. 355) to close gaps; no contact elements
or special interface handling are involved.

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Miscellaneous Tools

Recommendations for Defining Contact for CFD Analyses

CFD users should be aware of the following recommendations:

• The Auto Detect Contact On Attach option controls whether contact detection is computed upon
geometry import. If you do not want contact detection to be computed, make sure that it is disabled
by selecting Tools> Options from the ANSYS Workbench main menu, and then selecting either the
Mechanical or Meshing category as appropriate. The option is enabled by default in both applications.

• If you are an ANSYS Fluent user, you generally want to imprint all the parts with each other in SpaceClaim
or DesignModeler (p. 3) as mentioned above. Failing to imprint parts may lead to connections that
have cyclic redundancy and may fail to output to the solver.

• For ANSYS Fluent users, a boundary zone type of INTERFACE is assigned automatically to the contact
source and contact target entities that compose contact regions at the time of mesh export. See Special
Cases (p. 34) for details.

Renaming Mesh Control Tools

You can rename any of the mesh control tool objects to include the name assigned to the part or body.
To do this, use a right mouse button click on the object and choose Rename Based on Definition from
the context menu. For example, if you scope a Refinement tool to a body named Tube and choose
Rename Based on Definition, the mesh control tool name changes from Refinement to Refinement
on Tube. The name change is reflected both in the tree and as a label on the body.

Mesh Numbering
The Mesh Numbering feature allows you to renumber the node and/or element numbers of a generated
meshed model consisting of flexible parts. The feature is useful when exchanging or assembling models
and could isolate the impact of using special elements such as superelements. For details, refer to Mesh
Numbering in the Mechanical help.

Mesh Editing
Mesh Editing enables you to improve or refine the quality of a mesh and more efficiently create con-
tinuous, conformal meshes for large models with multiple parts. You can move individual nodes, merge
nodes together, match nodes, or use mesh connections to join the meshes of topologically disconnected
surface bodies and solids.

If the nodes on two different parts are coincident (there are duplicate nodes at the same location), it
is faster to merge the nodes to join them. If the nodes are at different locations, you should use mesh
connections or contact matches.

Mesh Connections work only for sheet bodies, and Contact Matches work only for solid bodies. You
can use Node Move and Node Merge for solid, sheet, and line bodies.

Note:

ANSYS DesignSpace licenses do not support the Mesh Editing feature.

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 Mesh Editing

The Mesh Editing feature is described in the following sections:

Inserting a Mesh Edit Object
Mesh Connections
Contact Matches
Node Merge
Node Move

Inserting a Mesh Edit Object

Mesh Editing tools, such as Mesh Connections (p. 399), Contact Matches (p. 410), Node Merge (p. 421),
and Node Move (p. 425) are listed in the tree hierarchy as children of the Mesh Edit object.

To insert a Mesh Edit object:

• Right-click the Model object and choose Insert > Mesh Edit.

If you have already created a Mesh Edit object, the option will not be available from the Insert
menu.

• Right-click the Mesh object and choose Insert, then choose any of the following:

– Mesh Connection Group

– Manual Mesh Connection (for manual mesh connections)

– Contact Match Group

– Contact Match (for manual mesh contact match)

– Node Merge Group

– Node Merge

– Node Move

A parent Mesh Edit object is created automatically.

• On the Mesh Edit toolbar, select Mesh Edit, and then select an option.

A parent Mesh Edit object is created automatically.

When you add a Manual Mesh Connection, Contact Match, or Node Merge object, the corresponding
group object is created as well.

Mesh Connections
Mesh connections enable you to join the meshes of topologically disconnected surface bodies that
may reside in different parts. They are an alternate option to connecting the geometry (for example,
by using the DesignModeler application to repair small gaps). However, geometry tolerances are
tighter than the tolerances used by mesh connections and often lead to problems in obtaining con-
formal mesh.

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Scoping
With mesh connections, the connections are made at the mesh level and tolerance is based locally
on mesh size. Connections are made edge-to-face or vertex-to-face; they connect edge(s) or vertices
on face(s) to another face to pinch out the gap and create conformal mesh between the edge(s) and
face(s).

Since mesh connections are a post mesh process–the mesh is pinched in a separate step after
meshing is complete–the base mesh is stored to allow for quicker updates. That is, if you change a
mesh connection or meshing control, only local re-meshing is required to clean up the neighboring
mesh.

Note:

With ANSYS Workbench Release 16.0, post pinch behaviors are migrated into Mesh Con-
nections. When you regenerate a mesh that was created using Pinch Behavior settings,
the new mesh might report different results than the previous mesh.

Surface Bodies With No Shared Topology:

Same Surface Bodies With Edge-To-Edge Mesh Connection Established:

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Treatment of Legacy Databases

Resuming a legacy database (prior to v16), the application moves Mesh Connection objects and the
associated Connection Group folders that contain them to the new Model-level Mesh Edit parent
folder.

Application
To apply mesh connections:

1. Insert Mesh Connection objects automatically or manually.

• Mesh connections can be automatically generated using the Detect Mesh Connections option
available from the right-click context menu of the Mesh Connections or Mesh Connection Group
folder. The Tolerance Value, pairing type, and other properties used for auto detection can be set in
the Details view of the Mesh Connection Group folder under the Auto Detection category. Sheet
thickness can also be used as a Tolerance Value.

The automatic mesh connections feature is very helpful, but it can only detect edge-to-face
connections. If you need to define edge-to-edge connections, you will need to define them
manually. The feature can also find and create connections that you may not want. Always review
the connections, or at least be aware that if problems arise, they may be due to automatically
generated mesh connections.

• For more control, or to control the engineering design, you may want to insert Mesh Connection
objects manually.

Highlight the Mesh Connection Group folder and select the Manual Mesh Connection option
on the Mesh Edit context tab, or right-click the object and select Insert > Manual Mesh Con-
nection.

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The Manual Mesh Connection option is also available when the top-level Mesh/Mesh Edit
folder is selected. Selecting the option at this level adds a Mesh Connection Group object in
addition to a Mesh Connection object.

You can also select one or more Contact Regions or the Contacts folder, right-click, and select
Create>Mesh Contact(s) or Connection(s). This option enables you to create Mesh Connection
objects from Contact Regions. The application scopes the new Mesh Connection objects to the
geometries of the Contact Region(s) and sets the tolerance to be equal to the trim tolerance
of the contact region. The Mesh connections are added into a new Mesh Connection Group
folder.

2. In the Details view specify Master Geometry and Slave Geometry.

• “Master” indicates the topology that will be captured after the operation is complete. In other words,
it is the topology to which the slave topologies in the connection are projected.

• “Slave” indicates the topology that will be pinched out during the operation. In other words, it is the
topology that is projected and merged with the master.

The master geometry can be one or more faces or edges. The slave geometry can only be one or
more edges or vertices. When specifying faces, the annotation is displayed on both sides of the
faces.

Note:

Mesh connections support common imprints, which involve multiple slaves connected
at the same location to a common master. See Common Imprints and Mesh Connec-
tions (p. 405).

3. In the Details view specify Tolerance. The Tolerance here has a similar meaning to the Tolerance Value
global connection setting, and is represented as a transparent sphere. See Tolerances Used in Mesh
Connections (p. 403) for details about Tolerance and how it relates to the Snap Tolerance described
below.

4. For edge-to-face mesh connections only, in the Details view specify Snap to Boundary and Snap Type.
When Snap to Boundary is Yes (the default) and the distance from a slave edge to the closest mesh
boundary of the master face is within the specified snap to boundary tolerance, nodes from the slave
edge are projected onto the boundary of the master face. The joined edge will be on the master face
along with other edges on the master face that fall within the defined pinch control tolerance. See Pinch
Control (p. 260) for details.

Snap Type appears only when the value of Snap to Boundary is Yes.

• If Snap Type is set to Manual Tolerance (the default), a Snap Tolerance field appears where
you may enter a numerical value greater than 0. By default, the Snap Tolerance is set equal to
the pinch tolerance but it can be overridden here. See Tolerances Used in Mesh Connec-
tions (p. 403) for details about Snap Tolerance and how it relates to the Tolerance described
above.

• If Snap Type is set to Element Size Factor, a Master Element Size Factor field appears where
you may enter a numerical value greater than 0. The value entered should be a factor of the
local element size of the master topology.

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5. Highlight the Mesh Edit folder and choose Generate (right-click and choose from context menu). The
surface bodies are displayed and show the mesh connections.

6. If necessary, review the mesh connections:

a. Select one or more Mesh Connection or Mesh Connection Group objects, right-click, and select
Create Named Selections.

A named selection is created for each mesh connection you selected. If you selected a mesh
connection group, a named selection is created for each mesh connection within the group.
Each named selection is automatically given the same name as the mesh connection from
which you created it.

b. Click a named selection to view the mesh for the mesh connection.

Tolerances Used in Mesh Connections

You can set two separate tolerances to define mesh connections. Setting appropriate tolerances is
often critical to obtaining high quality mesh that adequately represents the geometry you want to
capture.

• Tolerance – Projection tolerance to close gaps between bodies.

• Snap Tolerance – Snap to boundary tolerance to sew up mesh at the connection (applicable to edge-to-
face mesh connections only).

The Tolerance value is used to find which bodies should be connected to which other bodies. Setting
a larger Tolerance connects more bodies together, while setting it smaller may cause some connections
to be missed. For this reason, you might want to set this to a larger value than needed. Setting a
smaller value can avoid problems in automatic mesh connection creation, but can also result in other
problems because the tolerance used in meshing is inherited from automatic mesh connection detec-
tion settings.

Using a Large Tolerance Value

For a large assembly for which you do not want to define mesh connections manually, automatic
mesh connection detection provides many benefits. Setting a large Tolerance value to find connections
yields more connections, which provides a higher level of comfort that the model is fully constrained.
However, larger values can be problematic for the following reasons:

• When more automatic mesh connections are created, more duplicates can be created and the mesher
decides ultimately which connections to create. In general, making these decisions yourself is a better
approach.

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• The Snap Tolerance defaults to the same value as the Tolerance. If the value of Tolerance is too large
for Snap Tolerance, the mesher may be too aggressive in pinching out mesh at the connection, and
hence the mesh quality and feature capturing may suffer.

Using a Small Tolerance Value

When mesh connections are generated automatically, the Tolerance is used on the geometry edges
and faces to determine which entities should be connected. However, the connections themselves
are not generated until meshing occurs. Because the connections are performed on nodes and elements
of the mesh rather than on the geometry, the tolerances do not translate exactly.

For example, in the case below, you would want to set a Tolerance that is slightly larger than the
gap in the geometry. If the gap is defined as x and the tolerance is set to x, automatic mesh connection
detection could find the connection, but the meshing process may result in mesh that is only partially
connected.

Tips for Setting Tolerances

As detailed above, setting the correct tolerance can be very important, and in some cases may require
some speculation and/or experimentation. The following tips may help:

• You can adjust the Tolerance used to generate automatic mesh connections after the connections are
found. Sometimes it is a good idea to use one Tolerance value to find the mesh connections, select all
the mesh connections, and then reduce or increase the Tolerance later.

• Having Snap to Boundary turned on and using a Snap Tolerance are not always advisable. It depends
on the model and the features you want to capture.

Mesh Sizing and Mesh Connections

Mesh size has an effect on the quality and feature capture of a mesh connection as follows:

• Mesh size always affects the base mesh, as features are only captured relative to mesh size.

• During mesh connection processing, the base mesh is adjusted according to the common imprint/location.
In cases where there is a large projection or a large difference in mesh sizes between the master entity
and the slave entity, the common edge between bodies can become jagged. Also, as local smoothing
takes place, there can be some problems in transition of element sizes. You can often use one of the fol-
lowing strategies to fix the problem:

– Use more similar sizes between source and target.

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– Improve the tolerance used by mesh connections (either for projection, or for snapping to boundary).

– Adjust the geometry's topology so that the base mesh is more accommodating to the mesh connection.

See Common Imprints and Mesh Connections (p. 405).

Common Imprints and Mesh Connections

The tolerance for common imprints comes from the minimum element size in the footprint mesh,
which is the horizontal plate in the example below. Common imprints are made if the gap between
imprints is smaller than or equal to 5 percent of the element size in the connection region. For this
reason, setting the mesh size appropriately is important to control whether the imprints will be
common or not.

For example, in the case shown below, if you want a common imprint, the minimum element size is
set to Yes) should be >x.

In this case, you could scope local face mesh sizing on the horizontal plate to control the sizing.

Mesh Connections for Selected Bodies

You can select a geometric entity and lookup the mesh connection object in the tree outline. To find
the relevant mesh connection object:

• Right-click a geometric entity, and then click Go To > Mesh Connections for Selected Bodies.

Mesh Connections Common to Selected Bodies

You can select a pair of geometric entities and lookup the shared Mesh Connection object in the
tree outline. To find a relevant mesh connection object:

• Select the appropriate pair, and then click Go To > Mesh Connections Common to Selected Bodies.

This option can be helpful for finding spurious mesh connections, in which case duplicates can be
removed.

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Displaying Multiple Views of Mesh Connections

Use the Body Views button on the Mesh Edit Context tab to display parts in separate auxiliary win-
dows.

For closer inspection of mesh connections, you can use the Show Mesh option on the Display Context
tab along with Body Views and the Sync Views toggle button. When the Body Views button is en-
gaged, any manipulation of the model in the Geometry window will also be reflected in both auxiliary
windows. The Body Views toggle button enables you to display parts in separate windows and the
Sync Views toggle button, when activated, causes any change in the Geometry window to also be
reflected in the auxiliary windows.

Merging Mesh Connections

Mesh connections can be merged by selecting the desired objects, right-clicking, and selecting the
Merge Selected Mesh Connections option. During the process, the application deletes the original
objects and creates a new Mesh Connection object with a combined scoping.

Mesh Connections can only be merged under the following criteria:

• The mesh connections are not already connected.

• The master and slave geometry must have similar topology for the connections being merged. For
example, if you are merging two connections and the first has a face for the master geometry and
the second has an edge for the master geometry, the connections cannot be merged. If both masters
are faces and both slaves are edges, the connections can be merged.

When mesh connections are merged, the new mesh connections contain the merged set of entities
as masters and slaves.

Note:

Be aware that the merge operation process can create undesired connections. This can
create a connection that is not appropriate for mesh generation.

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Diagnosing Failed Mesh Connections

The state of each mesh connection is displayed in the Tree Outline. For a description of the various
states, see Understanding Mesh Connection and Contact Match States (p. 481).

General Failures
In the event of a general mesh connection failure, the following approach is recommended:

1. Select an ignored or failed mesh connection shown in the tree and look at Control Messages in
the Details View.

Note:

You can use the Filter to identify Mesh Connection objects that are State>Ignored.
However, if a mesh connection is in an “error” state, it cannot be filtered in the tree.

2. Click Yes, Click to Display to display related error messages.

3. Right-click on the error messages:

a. If a message provides “Problematic Geometry” information:

i. Select the message, right-click, and select Show Problematic Geometry from the context
menu.

This action highlights the geometry in the Geometry window that is responsible for the
message.

Note:

Any error message that is related to a specific mesh connection will be asso-
ciated with the slave geometry in the connection.

ii. Select the problematic bodies, right-click, and select Go To > Mesh Connections for Selected
Bodies.

This action highlights all mesh connections attached to the problematic geometry.

iii. Review the tolerances and mesh sizes associated with the highlighted connections.

b. If a message provides “Go to Body” information:

i. Select the message, right-click, and select Go to Body from the context menu.

This action highlights the object in the Details view that is responsible for the message.

ii. Review the tolerances and mesh sizes associated with the highlighted body or bodies.

This action highlights all mesh connections attached to the problematic geometry.

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Mesh Connection Failure

If you receive an error or warning message about one or more mesh connections:

1. Highlight and review the message.

2. Right-click the message and select the option Go To Object. The corresponding Mesh Connection
object that is at issue becomes active in the tree.

3. Verify that all of the associated properties are properly defined.

4. Right-click the message and select the option Show Problematic Geometry. The corresponding
Master/Slave geometry that is at issue becomes highlighted in the Graphics window.

5. Verify that the all of the associated geometries are properly defined.

Failures Due to Defeaturing from MultiZone Quad/Tri Meshing and/or Pinch Controls

Due to the patch independent nature of the MultiZone Quad/Tri (p. 222) mesh method, a connection
may fail because the mesh is associated with some face of the body but not with the face that is in-
volved in the connection. This type of mesh connection failure, which may also occur when pinch
controls are defined, is the result of the part mesh being significantly defeatured prior to mesh con-
nection generation. To avoid mesh connection failures when using MultiZone Quad/Tri and/or pinch
controls, use one of the following approaches:

• Use virtual topology (p. 445) to merge the faces of interest with the adjacent faces to create large patches,
and then apply mesh connections to the patches.

• Protect small faces in mesh connections by defining Named Selections.

The software does not automatically extend the connection region because doing so may lose the
engineering intent of the model.

For example, consider the two parts shown below.

If you are using the MultiZone Quad/Tri mesh method or pinch controls, the part mesh may look
like the one shown below. Notice that one face has been defeatured out.

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In this case:

• If the defeatured face is the one defined in the mesh connection, the connection will fail.

• If the other face is the one defined in the mesh connection, the connection will succeed.

• If you include both faces in the mesh connection, the connection will succeed.

Since you cannot always control which face is defeatured, the most robust and recommended approach
is to include both faces in the mesh connection.

Points to Remember
• After model assembly, you cannot generate new mesh connections in a mesh that already has mesh
connections. Mesh connections only work with a model assembly if the mesh is unconnected in the up-
stream systems. Because the base meshes from the upstream systems are not available to the assembled
model, you must regenerate the mesh to use mesh connections.

• The mesh must be up-to-date before you can generate mesh connections.

If the mesh is not up-to-date, then the base mesh will be regenerated when you generate the mesh
connections.

• Although the tolerance used for finding mesh connections and for generating mesh connections may be
the same value, the tolerance itself has slightly different meanings in the two operations. When finding
mesh connections, the tolerance is used to identify pairs of geometry edges or face(s)/edge(s). When
generating mesh connections, the tolerance is used in pinching together the edge mesh or edge/face
mesh. Since the geometry consists of NURBS, and the mesh consists of linear edges, the same tolerance
may mean something slightly different in the two operations.

For example, consider a geometry that consists of two cylindrical sheet parts that share an interface
constructed from the same circle. Also consider that you are finding mesh connections with a tol-
erance of 0.0. In this case, the mesh connection is easily found because the two edges are exactly
the same. However, when the mesh connection is being formed, some segments of the edge may
fail to be pinched together if the mesh spacing of the two parts is different and thus the tolerance
of the edge mesh is different. Also see Tolerances Used in Mesh Connections (p. 403).

• For a higher order element, a midside node along the connection between a slave and a master is located
at the midpoint between its end nodes, instead of being projected onto the geometry.

• Although mesh connections do not alter the geometry, their effects can be previewed and toggled using
the Display Context tab.

• For Error Limits (p. 97), mesh connections support the Standard Mechanical option only.

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• If you define a mesh connection on topology to which a match control (p. 255), Face Meshing control (p. 240),
or inflation control (global (p. 123) or local (p. 265)) is already applied, the mesh connection may alter the
mesh, which in turn may eliminate or disable the match, mapped face meshing, or inflation control.

• Mesh connections cannot be mixed with refinement (p. 239) or post inflation (p. 132) controls.

• A mesh connection scoped to geometries (for the master and the slave) that lie on the same face are ignored
by the mesher, and, as a result, no mesh connection is generated.

• Refer to Clearing Generated Data (p. 442) for information about using the Clear Generated Data option
on parts and bodies that have been joined by mesh connections.

• Refer to Using the Mesh Worksheet to Create a Selective Meshing History (p. 365) for information about
how mesh connection operations are processed by the Mesh worksheet.

• Mesh connections are not supported for external mesh models.

• Mesh connections are not supported between solid bodies and sheet bodies in a multibody part, or
between sheet bodies and line bodies in a multibody part.

Contact Matches
Contact matches enable you to match mesh nodes between topologically disconnected solids within
a specified tolerance. They are an alternate option to imprinting faces (for example, by using the
DesignModeler application). Geometry tolerances are typically tighter than the tolerances used by
contact matches, which can lead to problems in obtaining conformal mesh. In these scenarios, contact
matches provide a more robust option.

Similar to mesh connections, contact matches are performed on mesh nodes. Contact matches can
only be face-to-face between solid bodies.

Contact matches are a post-mesh operation, performed after the base mesh has been generated. The
base mesh is then stored so that if you change a contact match, only local re-meshing is required to
clean up the neighboring mesh. Likewise, if you make any changes to the base mesh, the contact
matches must be re-generated.
Considerations for Contact Matches
How Mesh Size Affects Contact Matches
How Tolerances Affect Contact Matches
Applying Contact Matches
Displaying Multiple Views of Contact Matches
Troubleshooting Failed Contact Matches

Considerations for Contact Matches

You should be aware of the following points regarding contact matches:

• After model assembly, you cannot generate new contact matches in a mesh that already has contact
matches.

Contact matches only work with a model assembly if the mesh is unconnected in the upstream
systems. Because the base meshes from the upstream systems are not available to the assembled
model, you must regenerate the mesh to use contact matches.

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• The mesh must be up-to-date before you can generate contact matches.

• Contact matches are only supported for the patch conforming mesh method.

Contact matches are not supported for the following mesh methods:

– Assembly meshing (p. 325)

– Mixed order meshing (p. 174)

• For a higher order element, a midside node along the connection between a slave and a master is located
at the midpoint between its end nodes, instead of being projected onto the geometry.

• For Error Limits (p. 97), contact matches support the Standard Mechanical option only.

• If you define a contact match on a topology to which a match control (p. 255), Face Meshing con-
trol (p. 240), or inflation control (global (p. 123) or local (p. 265)) is already applied, the contact match may
alter the mesh, which in turn may eliminate or disable the match, mapped face meshing, or inflation
control.

• Contact matches cannot be mixed with refinement (p. 239) or post inflation (p. 132) controls.

• A contact match scoped to geometries (for the master and the slave) that lie on the same face are ignored
by the mesher, and, as a result, no contact match is generated.

• Contact matches are not supported for external mesh models.

How Mesh Size Affects Contact Matches

Mesh size affects the quality and feature capture of a contact match as follows:

• Mesh size always affects the base mesh, as features are only captured relative to mesh size.

• During mesh contact match processing, the base mesh is adjusted according to the common imprint
and location.

In cases where there is a large projection or a large difference in mesh sizes between the master
entity and the slave entity, there could be problems in the transition of the mesh away from the
contact match area. If the mesh size difference is too great, the contact match will not be gener-
ated. You can often use one of the following strategies to fix the problem:

– Use more similar sizes between source and target.

– Improve the tolerance used by contact matches.

– Adjust the geometry's topology so that the base mesh is more accommodating to the contact match.

• The Tolerance also affects how the mesh is matched for these types of bodies. For more information,
see How the Tolerance Affects Gaps and Boundaries (p. 412).

How Tolerances Affect Contact Matches

Setting appropriate tolerances is critical to obtaining high quality mesh that adequately represents
the geometry you want to capture.

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The Tolerance value is used to find which mesh nodes on a body should be matched to mesh
nodes on another body. Setting a larger Tolerance matches more nodes, while setting it smaller
may cause some nodes not to be matched. For this reason, you might want to set this to a larger
value than needed. Setting a smaller value can avoid problems in automatic contact matching, but
can also result in other problems because the tolerance used in meshing is inherited from automatic
contact match detection settings.

Considerations for Using a Large Tolerance Value

For a large assembly for which you do not want to define contact matches manually, automatic
mesh contact match detection provides many benefits. Setting a large Tolerance value to find
contact matches yields more matches.

However, larger values can be problematic. When more automatic contact matches are created,
more duplicates can be created, which can cause problems when attempting to match the mesh.
In general, making these decisions yourself is a better approach.

Considerations for Using a Small Tolerance Value

When contact matches are generated automatically, the Tolerance is used on the geometry edges
and faces to determine which entities should be matched. However, the contact matches themselves
are not generated until after the mesh has been generated. Because the contact matches are per-
formed on nodes and elements of the mesh rather than on the geometry, the tolerances do not
translate exactly.

For example, in the case below, you would want to set a Tolerance that is slightly larger than the
gap in the geometry. If the gap is defined as x, and the tolerance is set to x, automatic mesh contact
match detection could find the connection, but the meshing process may result in mesh that is
only partially matched.

Figure 207: Setting the Contact Match Tolerance

How the Tolerance Affects Gaps and Boundaries

The tolerance also controls how the mesh nodes are matched when there is a gap between the
boundary edges of the "Master" and "Slave" bodies, or a gap between the bodies themselves, or
both.

The following figure shows how the tolerance can be used to match mesh nodes between two
solid bodies. In this example, there is a gap between the bodies, as well as a gap between the
boundary edges.

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Figure 208: Contact Match with Gaps Between "Master" and "Slave" Bodies

Assuming that the mesh size is not too large, the following table describes how the mesh will be
matched when there are gaps between bodies and boundaries:

Table 4: Mesh Matching for Gaps

If... Then...
There is a gap between the bodies only The mesh is matched between the bodies as long
as the gap between surfaces is within the
specified tolerance. The gap will remain, but the
mesh nodes will be matched.
There is a gap between the boundary edges, but This mesh is generated first, and the parts
not between the bodies are meshed separately. The gap may be
meshed depending on the mesh sizes being
used and whether there is an imprint in the
geometry.

Note:

If there is an imprint in the

geometry and you want to
remove the gap, you can remove
it by inserting a pinch control
prior to meshing.

For more information, see Pinch

Control (p. 260).

There is a gap between both the bodies and the The mesh is matched along the boundaries as
boundary edges long as the gap is within the specified tolerance,
and the mesh size is less than or equal to the size
of the gap. If the gap is not within the tolerance,
or if the mesh size is too large, then the mesh is
matched from the edge to the interior.

The mesh size also affects how the mesh is matched for these types of bodies. For more information,
see How Mesh Size Affects Contact Matches (p. 411).

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Applying Contact Matches

You can apply contact matches by using any of the following methods:

• Apply contact match controls from contact regions (p. 414)

• Automatically apply contact matches (p. 415)

• Manually apply contact matches (p. 416)

Applying Contact Match Controls from Contact Regions

1. In the Tree view, click the Contacts object and verify that, in the Auto Detection category, the Tol-
erance Value is set appropriately.

This value controls the relative distance that the application will use to search for contact
between parts. However, if the tolerance is set too high, then extraneous contact matches
might be generated.

For more information about auto detection tolerance, see Connection Group Folder.

2. Select the contact regions for which you want to create contact matches by doing one of the following:

• To create contact matches for one or more contact regions, select the Contact Regions, right-click,
and select Create > Mesh Contact(s) or Connection(s)

• Or, to create contact matches for all of the contact regions, right-click the Contacts folder and select
Create > Mesh Contact(s) or Connection(s)

The application scopes the new Contact Match objects to the contact region(s), and sets the
tolerance to be equal to the trim tolerance of the contact region. The Contact Match objects
are added into a new Contact Match Group folder.

3. In the Details view, specify the tolerance by setting the Tolerance Type and Tolerance Value.

The tolerance here has a similar meaning to the Tolerance Value global connection setting,
and is represented as a transparent sphere.

Setting the correct tolerance can be very important, and in some cases may require some
speculation and experimentation. You can adjust the tolerance after the contact matches are
generated by selecting the contact matches and then changing the Tolerance Value.

For details on setting the tolerance, see How Tolerances Affect Contact Matches (p. 411)

4. Generate the contact matches by doing one of the following:

To... Do this...
Generate all contact matches Right-click the Mesh Edit folder and select Generate.
Generate contact matches for Right-click the Contact Match Group object and select
a contact match group Generate.

If the base mesh is out-of-date, it is regenerated. The nodes are matched between the master
and slave geometries, and a message appears displaying the number of node pairs that were
matched.

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If the normals between the master and slave faces are misaligned, some contact matches may
not be generated.

5. If necessary, review the contact matches:

a. Select one or more Contact Match or Contact Match Group objects, right-click, and select
Create Named Selections.

A named selection is created for each contact match you selected. If you selected a contact
match group, a named selection is created for each contact match within the group. Each
named selection is automatically given the same name as the contact match from which
you created it.

b. Click a named selection to view the mesh for the contact match.

To better view the mesh on the contact region, click the Wireframe button on the
Graphics toolbar.

6. If desired, merge the nodes by dragging the contact matches into a Node Merge Group.

The mesh nodes are matched during the contact match operation, but they are not merged.
If you want conformal mesh, you should merge the nodes.

For more information about merging nodes, see Node Merge (p. 421).

7. To convert the contact matches to geometry selections, select the contact regions, right-click, and
select Convert To > Geometry Selection.

Converting the contact matches is helpful if you want to delete the contact regions, but wish
to retain the contact matches.

Automatically Applying Contact Matches

1. If necessary, insert a Contact Match Group folder (p. 399).

2. Select the Contact Match Group folder and, in the Details view, set the Auto Detection properties
as needed.

3. Right-click the Contact Match Group folder, and then select Detect Connections.

4. In the Details view, verify the properties.

Master Geometry, Slave Geometry

"Master" indicates the topology that will be captured after the operation is complete. In other
words, it is the topology to which the nodes in the slave topologies are matched. The master
geometry can be one or more faces.

"Slave" indicates the topology that will be matched to the master during the operation.
The slave geometry can be one or more faces.

Tolerance
The Tolerance here has a similar meaning to the Tolerance Value global connection setting,
and is represented as a transparent sphere.

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Setting the correct tolerance can be very important, and in some cases may require some
speculation and experimentation. You can adjust the tolerance after the contact matches
are generated by selecting the contact matches and then changing the Tolerance Value.

For details on setting the tolerance, see How Tolerances Affect Contact Matches (p. 411)

5. Generate the contact matches by doing one of the following:

To... Do this...
Generate all contact matches Right-click the Mesh Edit folder and select Generate.
Generate contact matches for Right-click the Contact Match Group object and select
a contact match group Generate.

If the base mesh is out-of-date, it is regenerated. The nodes are matched between the master
and slave geometries, and a message appears displaying the number of node pairs that were
matched.

The automatic contact match detection might detect contact matches that are undesirable.
Therefore, if any contact matches fail, you should verify that the contact match is necessary
before attempting to correct the error (p. 419).

If the normals between the master and slave faces are misaligned, some contact matches may
not be generated.

6. If necessary, review the contact matches:

a. Select one or more Contact Match or Contact Match Group objects, right-click, and select
Create Named Selections.

A named selection is created for each contact match you selected. If you selected a contact
match group, a named selection is created for each contact match within the group. Each
named selection is automatically given the same name as the contact match from which
you created it.

b. Click a named selection to view the mesh for the contact match.

To better view the mesh on the contact region, click the Wireframe button on the
Graphics toolbar.

7. If desired, merge the nodes by dragging the contact matches into a Node Merge Group.

The mesh nodes are matched during the contact match operation, but they are not merged.
If you want conformal mesh, you should merge the nodes.

For more information about merging nodes, see Node Merge (p. 421).

Manually Applying Contact Matches

1. If necessary, insert a Contact Match Group folder (p. 399).

2. Do one of the following:

• Right-click the Contact Match Group folder and select Insert > Contact Match.

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 Mesh Editing

• Highlight the Contact Match Group folder, and then click the Contact Match option on the
Mesh Edit toolbar.

3. In the Details view, verify the properties.

Master Geometry, Slave Geometry

"Master" indicates the topology that will be captured after the operation is complete. In other
words, it is the topology to which the nodes in the slave topologies are matched. The master
geometry can be one or more faces.

"Slave" indicates the topology that will be matched to the master during the operation.
The slave geometry can be one or more faces.

Tolerance
The Tolerance here has a similar meaning to the Tolerance Value global connection setting,
and is represented as a transparent sphere.

Setting the correct tolerance can be very important, and in some cases may require some
speculation and experimentation. You can adjust the tolerance after the contact matches
are generated by selecting the contact matches and then changing the Tolerance Value.

For details on setting the tolerance, see How Tolerances Affect Contact Matches (p. 411)

4. Generate the contact matches by doing one of the following:

To... Do this...
Generate all contact matches Right-click the Mesh Edit folder and select Generate.
Generate contact matches for Right-click the Contact Match Group object and select
a contact match group Generate.

If the base mesh is out-of-date, it is regenerated. The nodes are matched between the master
and slave geometries, and a message appears displaying the number of node pairs that were
matched.

If the normals between the master and slave faces are misaligned, some contact matches may
not be generated.

5. If necessary, review the contact matches:

a. Select one or more Contact Match or Contact Match Group objects, right-click, and select
Create Named Selections.

A named selection is created for each contact match you selected. If you selected a contact
match group, a named selection is created for each contact match within the group. Each
named selection is automatically given the same name as the contact match from which
you created it.

b. Click a named selection to view the mesh for the contact match.

To better view the mesh on the contact region, click the Wireframe button on the
Graphics toolbar.

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6. If desired, merge the nodes by dragging the contact matches into a Node Merge Group.

The mesh nodes are matched during the contact match operation, but they are not merged.
If you want conformal mesh, you should merge the nodes.

For more information about merging nodes, see Node Merge (p. 421).

Displaying Multiple Views of Contact Matches

To more closely inspect a contact match, you can display the "Master" and "Slave" bodies in auxiliary
windows next to the Geometry window.

Figure 209: Viewing the "Master" and "Slave" Bodies in Auxiliary Windows

1. Select a contact match.

2. On the Mesh Edit toolbar, click the Body Views button.

The "Master" and "Slave" bodies are displayed in auxiliary windows.

3. For closer inspection of contact matches, click the Show Mesh button on the Graphics Options
toolbar.

4. If desired, synchronize the views between the Geometry window and the auxiliary windows by
clicking the Sync Views button on the Mesh Edit toolbar.

By synchronizing the views, any change in the Geometry window will be reflected in the aux-
iliary windows.

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Troubleshooting Failed Contact Matches

Diagnosing Failed Contact Matches
If a contact match fails, the Contact Match object may be in the "Ignored" state in the Tree Outline
( ), or a warning or error message might be displayed.

For a description of the various contact match states, see Understanding Mesh Connection and
Contact Match States (p. 481).

To diagnose a failed contact match:

1. If necessary, use the Filter to identify any contact matches that are in the "Ignored" state.

a. In the Outline, click the Filter drop-down menu and select State.

b. In the adjacent drop-down menu, select Ignored.

2. If the contact match is in the "Ignored" state, then display the associated error message:

a. In the Tree Outline, select the Contact Match object.

b. In the Details view, click Click to Display to display the associated error message.

You can use the Filter to identify contact matches that are in the "Ignored" state. However, if
a contact match is in an error state, it cannot be filtered in the tree.

3. For each error message, take corrective action:

If the error message... Do this...

Provides "Problematic Geometry" information 1. Right-click the error message and select
Show Problematic Geometry.

The geometry that is responsible for

the message is highlighted in the
Geometry window.

Any error message that is related to a

specific contact match will be
associated with the slave geometry.

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If the error message... Do this...

2. Right-click the problematic bodies and select
Go To > Contact Matches for Selected
Bodies.

All contact matches that are attached

to the problematic geometry are
highlighted.

3. Review the tolerances and mesh sizes

associated with the highlighted contact
matches.

For more information, see Correcting

Contact Match Errors (p. 420).

Provides "Go to Body "information 1. Right-click the error message and select Go
to Body.

The object that is responsible for the

message is highlighted in the Details
view.

2. Review the tolerances and mesh sizes

associated with the highlighted body or
bodies.

For more information, see Correcting

Contact Match Errors (p. 420).

This action highlights all contact

matches attached to the problematic
geometry.

Provides "Go to Object" information 1. Right-click the message and select Go To

Object.

The corresponding Contact Match

object that is at issue becomes active
in the tree.

2. Verify that all of the associated properties

are properly defined.

Correcting Contact Match Errors

Contact match errors may occur due to tolerance issues or mesh size differences. Automatic contact
match detection (p. 415) can result in undesirable contact matches. Therefore, if you used this
method to apply the contact matches, you should verify that the failed contact match is necessary
before correcting the error.

1. If there is a tolerance error, verify that the Tolerance Value is correct.

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If the distance between the "Master" and "Slave" bodies is greater than the Tolerance Value,
then increase the tolerance.

2. Create a named selection for the failed contact matches that should have the same mesh size:

a. Select all of the failed contact matches, right-click, and select Create Named Selection.

A named selection is created for each failed contact match.

b. Select the named selections that should have similar mesh size, right-click, and select Merge
Selected Named Selections.

When choosing named selections, you should consider the location of the contact matches
in the assembly, and the mesh size in the regions surrounding those contact matches.

3. Define the mesh size for the faces in the named selection:

a. Right-click the Mesh object and select Insert > Sizing.

b. In the Details view, set the Scoping Method to Named Selection, and then select the named
selection that you created.

c. Define the mesh sizing by modifying the settings in the Definition group as needed.

For more information about the face sizing settings, see Descriptions of Local Sizing
Control Options (p. 229).

4. Right-click the Mesh object and select Generate.

The base mesh is regenerated with the face sizing control.

5. Right-click the Mesh Edit object and select Generate.

The contact matches are regenerated.

Node Merge
Node Merge is a mesh editing tool that enables you to merge mesh nodes within a specified tolerance,
making the mesh conformal across bodies, parts, and assemblies. Node merge can be used in con-
junction with Node Move (p. 425) to remove large gaps in meshes without degrading mesh quality
significantly. Node Merge can be performed on solid, sheet, and line bodies.

Scoping
Similar to Mesh Connections, Node merges are performed on mesh nodes. You must, however, explicitly
specify the tolerance for node merges. Node merges can be face-to-face, face-to-edge, or edge-to-
edge. Node Merge is a post-mesh operation, performed after the base mesh is generated. The base
mesh is then stored so that if you change a node merge, only local re-meshing is required to clean
up the neighboring mesh.

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Requirements
For a Node merge to be successful, the mesh needs to be of similar size, and the number of mesh
nodes to be merged on both topology entities need to be equal. If nodes on the master and slave
do not have a 1–1 correspondence, then the resulting mesh after node merge can have holes.

Note:

Mesh Connections take priority over Node Merge operations. If nodes are connected by
mesh connections, then the Node Merge operation will ignore the connection.

Application
Node merge operation supports two methods for connecting the mesh: Automatic and Manual. They
both work similarly, with the exception that in manual node merge the node merge objects are ex-
plicitly populated in the tree, but are hidden in automatic mode. Automatic node merge is very useful
when working on very large assemblies, as large number of node merge objects can slow down
performance. Manual node merge, however, allows you to review individual node merge objects in
detail.

A node merge operation is executed as a single operation on the base mesh of the whole model. If
you have multiple node merge groups, executing Generate on a single group will merge only the
nodes in that group, and will return the mesh to the state prior to the node merge operations on
the other groups. To connect all of the node merge groups, execute Generate at the Mesh Edit
folder level.

If you have applied any mesh connections or contact matches, you should generate them before
applying node merges.

To automatically apply node merges:

1. Right-click on a Model object in the Tree and choose Mesh Edit, or select the Model object and choose
Mesh Edit from the Model toolbar.

2. Right-click on a Mesh Edit object and choose Insert>Node Merge Group, or choose Node Merge Group
from the Mesh Edit toolbar.

3. Select the Node Merge Group and set the Method to Automatic Node Merge in the Details view (this
is the default setting).

4. Set the Scoping Method to Geometry Selection (the default) or to Named Selection and choose the
body or bodies to search for node merges.

5. Modify the Tolerance settings in the Details view. The Tolerance value is used to find which bodies
should be connected to which other bodies. For a discussion of Tolerance settings, see Tolerances Used
in Mesh Connections (p. 403), although Snap Boundaries are not available for Node Merges.

• Tolerance Type: Options include Slider, Value, and Use Sheet Thickness. Bodies in an assembly that
were created in a CAD system may not have been placed precisely, resulting in small overlaps or gaps
along the connections between bodies. You can account for any imprecision by specifying connection
detection tolerance. This tolerance can be specified by value when the type is set to Slider and Value,
or sheet thickness of surface bodies when the type is set to Use Sheet Thickness.

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• Tolerance Slider: Appears if Tolerance Type is set to Slider. To tighten the connection detection,
move the slider bar closer to +100 and to loosen the connection detection, move the slider bar closer
to -100. A tighter tolerance means that the bodies have to be within a smaller region (of either gap or
overlap) to be considered in connection; a looser tolerance will have the opposite effect. Be aware
that as you adjust the tolerance, the number of connection pairs could increase or decrease.

• Tolerance Value: Appears if Tolerance Type is set to Slider or Value. This field will be read-only if
the Tolerance Type is set to Slider showing the actual tolerance value based on the slider setting.
When the Tolerance Type is set to Value, you will be able to provide an exact distance for the detection
tolerance.

After you provide a greater than zero value for the Tolerance Value, a circle appears around
the current cursor location. The radius of the circle is a graphical indication of the current Tol-
erance Value. The circle moves with the cursor, and its radius will change when you change
the Tolerance Value or the Tolerance Slider. The circle appropriately adjusts when the model
is zoomed in or out.

• Use Range: Appears when the Tolerance Type property is set to Slider or Value. Options include
Yes and No (default). If set to Yes, you will have the connection detection searches within a range
from Tolerance Value to Min Distance Value inclusive.

• Min Distance Percentage: Appears if Use Range is set to Yes. This is the percentage of the Tolerance
Value to determine the Min Distance Value. The default is 10 percent. You can move the slider to adjust
the percentage between 1 and 100.

• Min Distance Value: Appears if Use Range is set to Yes. This is a read-only field that displays the value
derived from: Min Distance Value = Min Distance Percentage * Tolerance Value/100.

• Face/Face: Options include Yes and No (default). Detects connection between the faces of different
bodies. The maximum allowable difference in the normals for which contact is detected is 15 degrees.

• Face/Edge: Options include Yes and No (default). Detects connection between faces and edges of
different bodies. Faces are designated as targets and edges are designated as contacts. Saying Yes
exposes Face Angle Tolerance and Edge Overlap Tolerance.

• Edge/Edge: Options include Yes (default) and No. Detects connection between edges of different
bodies.

• Search Across: This property enables automatic connection detection through the following options:

– Bodies (default)

– Parts: Between bodies of different parts, that is, not between bodies within the same multibody
part.

– Anywhere: Detects any connections regardless of where the geometry lies, including different parts.
However, if the connections are within the same body, this option finds only Face/Face connections,
even if the Face/Edge setting is turned On.

• Face Angle Tolerance: Available only if Face/Edge is set to Yes. For faces that will be excluded from
the proximity detection pair, this property defines the minimum angle between the master face and
slave edge entity, above which the two face pairs will be ignored from proximity detection. The default
value is 70°.

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• Edge Overlap Tolerance: Available only when Face/Edge is set to Yes. This tolerance value is the
minimum percentage that an edge may overlap the face and is included as a valid proximity detection
pair. The default value is 25%.

6. Generate the node merge by doing one of the following:

To... Do this...
Generate all node merges Right-click Mesh Edit and choose Generate.
Generate node merges for a. For each Node Merge Group that should not be generated,
a Node Merge Group right-click the Node Merge Group and choose Suppress.

b. Right-click the Node Merge Group and choose Generate.

To manually apply Node Merges using the Node Merge Group:

1. Right-click on a Model object in the Tree and choose Mesh Edit, or select the Model object and choose
Mesh Edit from the Model toolbar.

2. Right-click on a Mesh Edit object and choose Insert>Node Merge Group, or choose Node Merge Group
from the Mesh Edit toolbar.

3. Select the Node Merge Group and set the Method to Manual Node Merge in the Details view.

An additional control, Group By is exposed in the Details view. Options for Group By include
None, Bodies, and Parts, and Faces. This property allows you to group the automatically generated
connections objects. Setting Group By to Bodies (default) or to Parts means that connection
faces and edges that lie on the same bodies or same parts will be included into a single connection
object. The Faces option is only available if the Face/Face or Face/Edge controls are set to Yes.

Setting Group By to None means that the grouping of geometries that lie on the same bodies
or same parts will not occur. Any connection objects generated will have only one entity scoped
to each side (that is, one face or one edge). If there are a large number of source/target faces in
a single region. Choosing None avoids excessive contact search times in the solver.

4. Right-click the Node Merge Group and select Detect Connections. The states of the Node Merge
connection are denoted using the same symbols as are used for Mesh Connections (p. 481).

5. Generate the node merge by doing one of the following:

To... Do this...
Generate all node merges Right-click Mesh Edit and choose Generate.
Generate node merges for a. For each Node Merge Group that should not be generated,
a Node Merge Group right-click the Node Merge Group and choose Suppress.

b. Right-click the Node Merge Group and choose Generate.

Generate individual node Select each node merge that you want to generate, right-click, and
merges choose Generate.

To manually apply Node Merges individually:

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 Mesh Editing

1. Right-click on a Model object in the Tree and choose Mesh Edit, or select the Model object and choose
Mesh Edit from the Model toolbar.

2. Right-click on a Mesh Edit object and choose Insert>Node Merge, or choose Node Merge from the
Mesh Edit toolbar.

The object is added as a child of a new Node Merge Group.

Alternatively, you can select a Node Merge Group and set the Method to Manual Node Merge
in the Details view. Then right-click on the Node Merge Group and choose Insert>Node Merge.

3. Set the Scoping Method to Geometry Selection (the default) or to Named Selection to determine how
you will select the Master Geometry and Slave Geometry.

4. Select the Node Merge object and choose the Master and Slave Geometries:

• “Master” indicates the topology that will be captured after the operation is complete.

• “Slave” indicates the topology that will be pinched out during the operation.

5. Set the controls under Definition as desired.

6. Generate the node merge by doing one of the following:

To... Do this...
Generate all node merges Right-click Mesh Edit and choose Generate.
Generate the individual node Right-click the node merge and choose Generate.
merge

Note:

The mesher does not check the quality of the mesh after a Node Merge is performed.
Therefore, you should perform a manual quality check any time you insert a Node Merge.

Node Move
The Node Move feature enables you to select and then manually move a specific node on the mesh
to improve the local mesh quality.

Requirements
This feature has the following topological requirements:

• Node movement is restricted to the target part. That is, nodes cannot be moved outside of the part.

• Face/Edge nodes can be moved along the corresponding face/edge only.

• The application locks corner nodes to the underlying vertex.

• Moving a node on a solved analysis causes the solution data to become obsolete. However, the state
does not become obsolete for other objects that depend on the mesh (for example, imported loading

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conditions, Element Orientations). If your node movement changes affect other objects, you will need
to manually clear and refresh these objects to apply the new changes.

• The Node Move feature is disabled if you are working with Section Planes.

Application
The Node Move object is a child object of Mesh Edit. It is inserted into the tree by selecting the
Node Move button on the Mesh Edit toolbar or by selecting the Mesh Edit object, right-clicking,
and selecting Insert>Node Move.

To use this feature, you need to generate the mesh on your model. This can be done before or after
you have inserted the object into the tree. Once generated, the node selection options are assigned
automatically. The Select Type is set to Select Mesh and Vertex is the required picking tool. Moving
the cursor across the mesh of your model displays the available mesh nodes. You may then select
and move nodes.

In addition, once the object is placed in the tree, the Node Move toolbar displays.

Node Move toolbar options include the following:

Undo Last
Cancels the last node movement performed on the mesh. Operations that change the original mesh
may make this option unavailable.

Undo All
Cancels all of the node movements that you have made to the mesh. Operations that change the original
mesh may make this option unavailable.

Probe, Max, and Min

These are annotation options. Selecting the Max and/or Min buttons displays the maximum and minimum
values for mesh criteria (Element Quality, Jacobian Ratio, etc.) that you have selected. The Probe feature
is also criteria-based. You place a Probe on a point on the model to display an annotation on that point.
Probe annotations show the mesh criterion-based value at the location of the cursor. When created,
probe annotations do not trigger the database to be marked for the file needing to be saved (that is,
you will not be prompted to save). Be sure to issue a save if you wish to retain these newly created probe
annotations in the database. These options are not visible if the Mesh object Display Style property is
set to the default setting, Body Color.

Edges Options
This drop-down menu provides options to change the display of your model, including:

• No Wireframe: displays a basic picture of the body.

• Show Elements: displays element outlines.

These options are the same options that are available on the Meshing Context Toolbar.

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Free Mode
You can depress the F4 key while you are moving a node to remove certain movement restrictions.
This mode enables you to move an edge, vertex, or face node anywhere on a given face.

Note:

If moving nodes on an assembly mesh, only face nodes are available.

Direct Node Movement

You can also move a node by manually selecting the desired node, right-clicking, and then selecting
the option Node Move By Direct Input.

This option displays an entry window where you can manually change the X, Y, Z location of the
node.

Element Quality Display

To enhance the presentation of your selections and movements, make sure that you set the Display
Style property of the Mesh to Element Quality. An example of this setting is provided below. The
exact display is provided on the Node Move object (and the legend title is also Mesh).

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Worksheet
The Worksheet works in combination with the Node Move feature. The Worksheet records all of
the node movements performed. In addition, and as illustrated below, the Worksheet provides in-
formation about the selection order of node movements, node numbers, coordinate-based location
information (previous and new), as well as the options to undo the last movement or all of the
movements that were made.

Note:

If you update your mesh (Mesh object>Update), the application maintains your movements
in the Worksheet until the mesh is cleared (zero nodes) using the RMB option Clear
Generated Data or you refresh data from the CAD source.

The illustration above also shows the Worksheet docked in the lower portion of the screen so that
you can easily see all of your node movement information while also being able to see the model.
Docking is possible with the docking tool shown here. This tool displays when you drag a window's
title bar. Hovering the window over one of the blue arrows highlights the arrow. Releasing the mouse
button docks the window in that screen location. It may also be useful to display the node numbers
on your model using the display option Node Number available through Annotation Preferences.

Note:

Node move operations are not persistent. The Worksheet view gives a history of what
has been done based on the current Node IDs, but new Node IDs are created when the

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model is re-meshed. Therefore, the history recorded in the Worksheet is rendered out-of-
date after re-meshing. For this reason, Node Move operations should be used sparingly,
and only to fix small issues.

See the Windows Management Help section for additional information.

Example
The following is an animated example of the use of the feature in tandem with the Element Quality
display. View online if you are reading the PDF version of the help. Interface names and other com-
ponents shown in the demos may differ from those in the released product.

Common Display Features

This section describes some common display features:
Hiding or Suppressing Bodies
Hiding or Showing Faces
Creating Section Planes

Hiding or Suppressing Bodies

For a quick way to hide bodies (that is, turn body viewing off ) or suppress bodies (that is, turn body
viewing off and remove the bodies from further treatment in the analysis), select the bodies in the
tree or in the Geometry window (choose the Body select mode, either from the toolbar or by a right-
click in the Geometry window). Then right-click and choose Hide Body or Suppress Body from the
context menu. Choose Show Body, Show All Bodies, Unsuppress Body, or Unsuppress All Bodies
to reverse the states.

The following options are also available:

• Hide All Other Bodies: show only selected bodies.

• Hide or Show: contains menu options to hide specific body types. Based on the body types of your
model, options include: Solid Bodies, Surface Bodies, and Line Bodies.

• Invert Visibility: inverts the visibility of hidden bodies versus those that are visible. When selected, all
hidden bodies become visible and all visible bodies become hidden.

• Suppress All Other Bodies: enables you to unsuppress only selected bodies.

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• Invert Suppressed Body Set: enables you to reverse the suppression state of all bodies (unsuppressed
bodies become suppressed and suppressed bodies become unsuppressed).

Note:

• If another model level object, such as a Remote Point, Joint, or Contact Region, is scoped to a
Body that becomes Suppressed, that object also becomes suppressed until it is re-scoped or
the body is Unsuppressed.

• Results from hidden bodies are used in the formulation of the maximum and minimum values
in the contour legend and in the Details View.

Results from suppressed bodies are suppressed and are not used in the formulation of
maximum and minimum values.

Hiding or Showing Faces

You can hide selected faces on a model such that you are able to see inside the model. This feature
is especially useful for bodies with interior cavities, such as engine blocks. To use the feature, first
select faces on the model that you want to hide, then right-click anywhere in the Geometry window
and choose Hide Face(s) in the context menu. This menu choice is only available if you have already
selected faces.

Choose Show Hidden Face(s) from the context menu to restore the visibility of faces previously
hidden using Hide Face(s). The Show Hidden Face(s) menu choice is only available if there are hidden
faces from choosing Hide Face(s). It cannot be used to restore the visibility of faces previously hidden
by setting Visible to No in the Details view of a Named Selection object.

Note:

The selected faces will appear hidden only when you view the geometry. The feature is
not applicable to mesh displays or result displays.

Creating Section Planes

For viewing purposes, you can use the Create Section Plane option to slice the graphical image of
your model based on a predefined coordinate system. For details, refer to Creating Coordinate-Based
Section Planes in the Mechanical help.

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Meshing: Ease of Use Features
The features described in this section are intended to assist you in meshing.
Updating the Mesh Cell State
Generating Mesh
Previewing Surface Mesh
Previewing Source and Target Mesh
Previewing Inflation
Showing Program Controlled Inflation Surfaces
Showing Sweepable Bodies
Showing Problematic Geometry
Show Problematic Location
Showing Elements that Do Not Meet the Target Metric
Showing Removable Loops
Inspecting Large Meshes Using Named Selections
Generating Multiple Mesh Controls from a Template
Clearing Generated Data
Showing Missing Tessellations
Showing Mappable Faces
Grouping Mesh Objects By Type

Updating the Mesh Cell State

In contrast to the Generate Mesh (p. 432) feature (which only produces the mesh), the Update feature
determines whether the geometry needs to be updated, refreshes the geometry if necessary, generates
the mesh if necessary, and also writes the output data for any connected cells:

• The Generate Mesh feature is useful when you are investigating the impact of different settings on
the mesh but you are not ready to export the mesh files.

• The Update feature is useful if you make a connection in the ANSYS Workbench Project Schematic
from a Mesh cell to a system that requires a new type of output data (for example, if you make a con-
nection from the Mesh cell to a Fluid Flow (CFX) or Fluid Flow (Fluent) analysis system). In such cases,
the Mesh cell will go out-of-date. To bring the Mesh cell up-to-date, you can perform an Update on
the Mesh cell from within the Project Schematic, or follow the procedure below from within the
Meshing application.

• If you connect a Mesh component system to an analysis system and the mesh file contains an assembly
mesh, the mesh file must be an ANSYS Fluent mesh file (*.msh) for it to be consumed by the downstream
system's solver. If the mesh file is of any other type, the Update fails and an error message is issued.

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Ease of Use Features

• CFX does not support Assembly Mesh.

To update the Mesh cell:

1. Select the Mesh object or any mesh control object.

2. Right-click to display the context menu.

3. Select Update in the menu.

Note:

As an alternative to steps 2 and 3, you can click the Update button on the Mesh toolbar.

Generating Mesh
The Generate Mesh operation uses all defined meshing controls as input to generate a mesh. Generate
Mesh operates only on active objects, meaning that if bodies or controls are suppressed, they are ignored
by the meshing operation. You can generate mesh on the entire (active) model, or selectively on (active)
parts and/or bodies. This includes single body parts, multibody parts, individual bodies, or multiple se-
lected bodies across different parts or within the same part.

Note:

• Selecting Generate Mesh generates a mesh based on the current mesh settings. It does not
write the output data for any connected cells (downstream systems). Generate Mesh is useful
when you are investigating the impact of different settings on the mesh but you are not ready
to export the mesh files. Refer to Updating the Mesh Cell State (p. 431) for related information.

• Using selective meshing, you can selectively pick bodies and mesh them incrementally. After
meshing a body, you can mesh the whole part or assembly or continue meshing individual
bodies. Refer to Selective Meshing (p. 361) for additional information.

Monitoring the Meshing Process

The ANSYS Workbench Mesh Status dialog box contains a Highlight check box that you can use to
control whether the topology that is currently being processed by the mesher is highlighted in the
Geometry window, which may help with troubleshooting (p. 478).

You can enable and disable the Highlight check box during the meshing process. Meshing performance
should be similar regardless of whether topology highlighting is enabled, but it may be less distracting
to disable it. If topology highlighting is enabled and you stop the meshing process, the highlighted
topology is selected for you automatically.

This topology highlighting is not supported for the Patch Independent Tetra or MultiZone mesh
methods, or when assembly meshing is being used. For information about how to set the default for
topology highlighting, refer to Meshing Options on the Options Dialog Box (p. 277).

Suppressing and Unsuppressing Bodies in a Model

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 Generating Mesh

When there is a combination of suppressed and unsuppressed (active) bodies in a model, the Meshing
application meshes only the active bodies. This is true regardless of mesh method. In addition, all influ-
ence of the suppressed bodies on neighboring bodies and their meshes is suppressed. For example, if
a size control is applied to a suppressed body, the size control will not affect that body, nor will it influ-
ence neighboring bodies (in general, if a size control is assigned to a suppressed body, that control is
also suppressed unless it is also attached to other active bodies). Refer to Selective Meshing (p. 361) for
additional information.

To generate the mesh for all active bodies:

1. Select the Mesh object or any mesh control object.

2. Right-click to display the context menu, or choose the Mesh drop-down menu from the toolbar.

3. Select Generate Mesh in the menu.

All active bodies are meshed. If the model includes multiple parts, they are meshed in parallel. The
ANSYS Workbench Mesh Status dialog box appears, displaying the meshing progress and high-
lighting each entity as it is meshed.

After the mesh has been generated, it is displayed when you select the Mesh object or the Show
Mesh display option.

4. If necessary, stop the meshing process:

a. In the ANSYS Workbench Mesh Status dialog box, click Stop.

To see which parts have been meshed, expand the Geometry object in the Tree Outline. A
green status icon ( ) indicates that the part has been meshed.

b. To restart the meshing process, right-click the Mesh object or any mesh control object and select
Update.

The meshing process resumes and meshes only the parts that have not yet been meshed.

To generate the mesh for individual active bodies:

1. Select the bodies by doing one of the following:

• In the Tree Outline, select one or more Body objects.

• Select one or more bodies in the Geometry window.

2. Right-click to display the context menu.

3. Select Generate Mesh in the menu.

The bodies that you selected are meshed. If you selected multiple parts, they are meshed in parallel.
The ANSYS Workbench Mesh Status dialog box appears, displaying the meshing progress and
highlighting each entity as it is meshed.

After the mesh has been generated, it is displayed when you select the Mesh object or the Show
Mesh display option.

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Ease of Use Features

4. If necessary, stop the meshing process:

a. In the ANSYS Workbench Mesh Status dialog box, click Stop.

To see which parts have been meshed, expand the Geometry object in the Tree Outline. A
green status icon ( ) indicates that the part has been meshed.

b. To restart the meshing process, right-click the Mesh object or any mesh control object and select
Update.

The meshing process resumes and meshes only the parts that have not yet been meshed.

To generate the mesh for individual active parts:

1. Select the parts by doing one of the following:

• In the Tree Outline, select one or more Part objects.

• In the Geometry window, select one or more parts.

2. Right-click to display the context menu.

3. Select Generate Mesh in the menu.

The parts that you selected are meshed. If you selected multiple parts, they are meshed in parallel.
The ANSYS Workbench Mesh Status dialog box appears, displaying the meshing progress and
highlighting each entity as it is meshed.

After the mesh has been generated, it is displayed when you select the Mesh object or the Show
Mesh display option.

4. If necessary, stop the meshing process:

a. In the ANSYS Workbench Mesh Status dialog box, click Stop.

To see which parts have been meshed, expand the Geometry object in the Tree Outline. A
green status icon ( ) indicates that the part has been meshed.

b. To restart the meshing process, right-click the Mesh object or any mesh control object and select
Update.

The meshing process resumes and meshes only the parts that have not yet been meshed.

After successfully generating a mesh, you can view mesh statistics and mesh metric information that
you can use to evaluate the mesh quality. For more information, see Statistics Group (p. 172) and Quality
Group (p. 96).

To re-mesh:

1. Select the Mesh object.

2. Right-click to display the context menu and select Clear Generated Data in the menu.

3. Confirm that you want to clear the mesh by clicking the Yes button.

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 Previewing Surface Mesh

4. Right-click the Mesh object to display the context menu again and select Generate Mesh in the menu.

Note:

• The order of topological entities is not guaranteed during a CAD source refresh. In cases in which
you mesh, refresh, and re-mesh, the mesher may not produce exactly the same mesh if the refresh
caused the topological entities to be reordered. As a result of this reordering, the mesher meshes
the entities in a different order as well, producing a slightly different result.

• When selected from the Geometry object in the Tree Outline, the Generate Mesh RMB menu
option behaves slightly differently than when it is selected from the Mesh object in the Tree
Outline. Refer to Selective Meshing (p. 361) for details.

• Refer to Meshing: Troubleshooting (p. 477) for tips and strategies for handling problems that may
occur during meshing.

Previewing Surface Mesh

You can preview the surface mesh for all unsuppressed parts, individual unsuppressed parts, or individual
unsuppressed bodies. This includes single body parts, multibody parts, individual bodies, or multiple
selected bodies across different parts or within the same part. You can also export the previewed surface
mesh file in Fluent format, as described in Exporting a Previewed Surface Mesh in Fluent Format (p. 436).

Note:

• This feature is not supported for the Patch Independent and MultiZone mesh method controls.
It is also not supported for thin model sweeping (that is, use of the Sweep mesh method control
with Src/Trg Selection set to Manual Thin or Automatic Thin) or for assembly meshing al-
gorithms. (Refer to The Assembly Meshing Workflow (p. 329) for alternative approaches when
using assembly meshing algorithms.)

• When previewing surface mesh on bodies that are being meshed with Sweep, not all sizing in-
formation is used in the calculation. Previewing surface mesh on such bodies is a crude check to
get a general idea whether the surface mesh is appropriate, but the full mesh may look different
due to differences in sizing calculations when taking all meshing constraints into account.

• Refer to Selective Meshing (p. 361) for general information about selective meshing and limitations
related to using the Preview Surface Mesh feature with selective meshing.

To preview the surface mesh for all unsuppressed parts:

1. Select the Mesh object or any mesh control object.

2. Right-click to display the context menu, or choose the Mesh drop-down menu from the toolbar.

3. Select Preview> Surface Mesh in the context menu or Preview Surface Mesh in the drop-down menu.
The surface mesh is displayed for the model when you select the Mesh object.

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Ease of Use Features

To preview the surface mesh for individual unsuppressed parts - from the object tree:

1. Select the Part objects.

2. Right-click to display the context menu.

3. Select Preview> Surface Mesh in the menu. The surface mesh is displayed for the parts when you select
the Mesh object.

To preview the surface mesh for individual unsuppressed parts - from the Geometry window:

1. Select the Mesh object.

2. Select the parts in the Geometry window.

3. Right-click to display the context menu.

4. Select Parts> Preview Surface Mesh in the menu. The surface mesh is displayed for the parts when you
select the Mesh object in the tree.

To preview the surface mesh for individual unsuppressed bodies - from the object tree:

1. Select the Body objects.

2. Right-click to display the context menu.

3. Select Preview> Surface Mesh in the menu. The surface mesh is displayed for the bodies when you select
the Mesh object.

To preview the surface mesh for individual unsuppressed bodies - from the Geometry window:

1. Select the Mesh object.

2. Select the bodies in the Geometry window.

3. Right-click to display the context menu.

4. Select Preview Surface Mesh On Selected Bodies in the menu. The surface mesh is displayed for the
bodies when you select the Mesh object in the tree.

After successfully previewing the surface mesh, you can view statistics about it. These statistics include
mesh metric information that you can use to evaluate the mesh quality. For more information, see
Statistics Group (p. 172).

Exporting a Previewed Surface Mesh in Fluent Format

Follow the steps below to export a previewed surface mesh in Fluent format:

To export a previewed surface mesh in Fluent format:

1. Follow the procedure to preview a surface mesh (p. 435).

2. Select File> Export from the main menu to export the surface mesh.

3. In the Save As dialog box, choose a directory and specify a file name for the file. Then choose Fluent
Input Files from the Save as type drop-down menu and click Save.

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 Previewing Inflation

A .msh file suitable for import into Fluent will be created in the requested directory.

Previewing Source and Target Mesh

This feature allows you to preview the source and target meshes for scoped bodies. You can preview
the source and target mesh on individual bodies or multiple selected bodies across different parts or
within the same part. This feature applies only to a Method (p. 174) control set to the Sweep option.

Note:

• This feature is not supported for thin model sweeping (that is, use of the Sweep mesh method
control with Src/Trg Selection set to Manual Thin or Automatic Thin).

• Refer to Selective Meshing (p. 361) for general information about selective meshing and limitations
related to using the Preview Source and Target Mesh feature with selective meshing.

To preview the source and target mesh:

1. Scope the body or bodies of interest.

2. Right-click on the Mesh object and insert a Method (p. 174) control.

3. In the Details View, set Method to the Sweep option.

4. Right-click on the Sweep Method option in the tree to display the context menu, or choose the Mesh
drop-down menu from the toolbar.

5. Select Preview> Source and Target Mesh in the context menu or Preview Source and Target Mesh in
the drop-down menu. The source and target meshes are displayed when you select the Mesh object.

Previewing Inflation
The Preview Inflation feature helps you identify possible problems with inflation before you generate
the mesh. You can preview inflation on single body parts, multibody parts, individual bodies, or multiple
selected bodies across different parts or within the same part. You can also export the previewed inflation
mesh file in Fluent format, as described in Exporting a Previewed Inflation Mesh in Fluent Format (p. 439).

Remember the following information when using the Preview Inflation feature:

• This feature is not supported for the Patch Independent Tetra and MultiZone mesh method controls. It
is also not supported for assembly (p. 325) meshing algorithms.

• Match controls (p. 255) are not enforced when previewing inflation.

• In certain cases, Preview Inflation may return an invalid (p. 477) mesh. Generate Mesh (p. 432) may return
a valid mesh with inflation, a valid mesh without inflation (because inflation failed), or result in a mesh failure
(because tet meshing failed). For these reasons if Generate Mesh fails, using either the Preview Surface
Mesh (p. 435) or Preview Inflation feature to locate the worst quality element is also likely to locate the
cause of the mesh failure.

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Ease of Use Features

• When previewing inflation on bodies that are being meshed with Sweep, not all sizing information is used
in the calculation. Previewing inflation on such bodies is a crude check to get a general idea whether inflation
will work and/or if there will be problems with inflation prior to generating the full mesh, but the full mesh
may look different due to differences in sizing calculations when taking all meshing constraints into account.

• This feature applies only when the Inflation Algorithm control is set to Pre (p. 134).

• After successfully previewing inflation, you can view statistics about it. These statistics include mesh metric
information that you can use to evaluate the mesh quality. For more information, see Statistics Group (p. 172).

• Refer to Selective Meshing (p. 361) for general information about selective meshing and limitations related
to using the Preview Inflation feature with selective meshing.

To preview inflation:

1. Apply inflation to the desired boundaries.

2. Select an object in the Tree Outline (the Mesh object, a mesh Method object, or an Inflation object) and
right-click to display the context menu.

3. Select Preview> Inflation in the menu. In response, Workbench generates the inflation layers only and
displays them in the Geometry window. You may need to click the Mesh object in the Tree Outline before
you can view the inflation layers.

Figure 210: Previewed Inflation Mesh (p. 438) shows a model of an auto manifold to which inflation was
applied. The Preview Inflation feature was selected, and the inflation layers were generated and dis-
played in the Geometry window.

Figure 210: Previewed Inflation Mesh

Figure 211: Section Plane View of Previewed Inflation Mesh (p. 439) shows a different view of the auto
manifold model. For this view, a Section Plane was defined so that the inflation layers could be viewed
internally.

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 Showing Program Controlled Inflation Surfaces

Figure 211: Section Plane View of Previewed Inflation Mesh

Exporting a Previewed Inflation Mesh in Fluent Format

Follow the steps below to export a previewed inflation mesh in Fluent format:

To export a previewed inflation mesh in Fluent format:

1. Follow the procedure to preview inflation (p. 437).

2. Select File> Export from the main menu to export the inflation mesh.

3. In the Save As dialog box, choose a directory and specify a file name for the file. Then choose Fluent
Input Files from the Save as type drop-down menu and click Save.

A .msh file suitable for import into Fluent will be created in the requested directory.

Showing Program Controlled Inflation Surfaces

If you select Program Controlled as the value for the Use Automatic Inflation (p. 125) control, all surfaces
in the model are selected to be inflation boundaries, except:

• Surfaces that are members of Named Selections groups

• Faces on non-enclosure bodies if an enclosure body is present

• Faces on bodies that have manual inflations on them

• Interfaces between bodies in a multibody part

• Faces used in contact

• Faces used in symmetry

• Faces on bodies being meshed with Hex Dominant or manual Sweep controls

To view the faces that have been selected for inflation:

1. Select the Mesh object in the Tree Outline.

2. Right-click to display the context menu.

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Ease of Use Features

3. Select Show> Program Controlled Inflation Surfaces in the context menu.

Note:

This feature is not supported for assembly (p. 325) meshing algorithms.

Showing Sweepable Bodies

You can display bodies that are “sweepable” according to the criteria detailed under Mesh Sweep-
ing (p. 283).

To display sweepable bodies:

1. Select the Mesh object or any mesh control object.

2. Right-click to display the context menu.

3. Select Show> Sweepable Bodies in the menu. All sweepable bodies are displayed.

Note:

This feature is not supported for assembly (p. 325) meshing algorithms.

Showing Problematic Geometry

If problematic geometry causes meshing to fail, Workbench alerts you by:

• Displaying a Problematic Geometry message annotation in the Geometry window

• Displaying messages in the Messages window to describe the problem

For related information on viewing problematic geometry, refer to:

• Show Problematic Geometry in the DesignModeler help

• Meshing: Troubleshooting (p. 477)

Show Problematic Location

If problematic location causes meshing to fail, Workbench alerts you by:

• Displaying a Show Problematic Location message annotation in the Geometry window

• Displaying messages in the Messages window to describe the problem

Note:

When the problematic location is inside the body, you can use wire frame mode to visualize
that particular location.

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 Inspecting Large Meshes Using Named Selections

For related information on viewing problematic location, refer to:

• Show Problematic Geometry in the DesignModeler help

• Meshing: Troubleshooting (p. 477)

Showing Elements that Do Not Meet the Target Metric

If Check Mesh Quality (p. 97) is set to Yes, Errors and Warnings, and the generated mesh contains
elements that do not meet the specified target metric, a warning message is displayed in the Messages
window to indicate the problem.

You can create a Named Selection for these elements by right-clicking the Messages field and selecting
Show Elements in the context menu. A Named Selection named Warning Elements will be created.
You can optionally choose to add the attached elements as well.

Refer to Quality Group (p. 96) for related information.

Showing Removable Loops

You can use the Show Removable Loops feature prior to meshing to view loops that will be removed
according to the criteria defined by the global Sheet Loop Removal (p. 171) and Loop Removal Toler-
ance (p. 172) controls.

This feature applies only to sheet models, and it responds only to the settings of the global loop removal
controls. For example, if you set loop removal controls locally and your model contains loops that will
be removed according to your local criteria, the Show Removable Loops feature will return nothing
if the global Sheet Loop Removal control is off (set to No).

To view removable loops:

1. Select the Mesh object in the Tree Outline.

2. Right-click to display the context menu.

3. Select Show> Removable Loops in the context menu.

Note:

This feature is not supported for the MultiZone Quad/Tri (p. 222) mesh method or as-
sembly (p. 325) meshing algorithms.

Inspecting Large Meshes Using Named Selections

You can use Named Selections to inspect only a portion of the total mesh. Although this feature is
available regardless of mesh size, it is most beneficial when working with a large mesh (greater than 5
- 10 million nodes). For details, refer to Displaying Named Selections in the Mechanical help.

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Ease of Use Features

Generating Multiple Mesh Controls from a Template

The Object Generator enables you to make one or more copies of a template object, scoping each to
a different piece of geometry. When defining mesh controls, you can use the Object Generator to make
copies of a template mesh control, which may reduce the necessity to manually define multiple related
mesh controls. For details, refer to Generating Multiple Objects from a Template Object in the Mechan-
ical help.

Clearing Generated Data

You can clear generated data from the database using a right-mouse click menu item. You can either
clear all mesh and results data (if applicable) from a model, or clear the mesh data on a selected part
or body.

Note:

• When you clear the mesh, the status of the part or body will indicate that it is not meshed.

• When used on parts and bodies that have been joined by mesh connections (p. 399), the Clear
Generated Data option works as follows, where the "base" mesh, which is stored in a temporary
file, is the mesh in its unsewn (pre-joined) state:

– If a base mesh is available, the mesh is reverted to the base mesh and the requested
parts/bodies are cleared.

– If no base mesh is available, the entire mesh is cleared and a warning message is issued.
Reasons the base mesh may not be available include situations in which you have deleted
your temporary files, exported a .mechdat file for someone else to use, or moved your project
database to a different computer.

– All mesh connections in the model, including those not associated with the selected body or
part, are cleared.

– Because a Node Move cannot be undone, Clear Generated Data is not available from the
Mesh Edit context menu when the Mesh Edit object has only Node Move objects as children.

To clear all mesh and results data from a model - from the object tree:

1. Select the Mesh object in the Tree Outline.

2. Right-click to display the context menu.

3. Select Clear Generated Data in the context menu.

4. When asked whether you want to clear the data, click Yes.

To clear the mesh data from the selected part or body - from the object tree:

1. Select the part or body in the Tree Outline.

2. Right-click to display the context menu.

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 Showing Missing Tessellations

3. Select Clear Generated Data in the context menu.

4. When asked whether you want to clear the mesh, click Yes.

To clear the mesh data from the selected body - from the Geometry window:

1. Select the Mesh object.

2. Select the bodies in the Geometry window.

3. Right-click to display the context menu.

4. Select Clear Generated Data On Selected Bodies in the context menu.

5. When asked whether you want to clear the mesh, click Yes.

To clear the mesh data from the selected part - from the Geometry window:

1. Select the Mesh object.

2. Select the part in the Geometry window.

3. Right-click to display the context menu.

4. Select Parts> Clear Generated Data in the context menu.

5. When asked whether you want to clear the mesh, click Yes.

Showing Missing Tessellations

Geometry with missing facets can lead to incorrect geometry representation by the mesher. Using the
Show Missing Tessellations feature, you can highlight geometry with missing facets, which will allow
you to detect and resolve problems prior to mesh generation.

Note:

This feature is available only for the Patch Independent Tetra (p. 178) mesh method and
assembly (p. 325) meshing algorithms (both the CutCell and Tetrahedrons algorithms).

To highlight missing tessellations:

1. Select the Geometry object in the Tree Outline.

2. Right-click on the Geometry object or in the Geometry window to display the context menu.

3. Select Show Missing Tessellations in the context menu.

If a face without tessellations is found:

• The boundary of the face will be highlighted in the Geometry window.

• A warning message will be displayed in the Messages window advising you to use the Show Problem-
atic Geometry (p. 440) context menu option to locate the problem areas.

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Ease of Use Features

Showing Mappable Faces

You can display faces that are “mappable” according to the criteria detailed under Face Meshing Con-
trol (p. 240).

To display mappable faces:

1. Select the Mesh object or any mesh control object.

2. Right-click to display the context menu.

3. Select Show> Mappable Faces in the menu. All mappable faces are highlighted in the Geometry window.

4. Right-click on the Mesh object or mesh control object and select Insert> Face Meshing. In the Details
View, the Geometry field shows the number of faces that are mappable and therefore were selected.

By default, Definition>Mapped Mesh is set to Yes, which means the faces in the Face Meshing control
are mapped by default.

To edit the selected set of faces, click the Geometry field in the Details View to activate it. Then in the
Geometry window, select the mappable faces that you want to use in the Face Meshing control. Click
Apply in the Details View to complete your selection. Then proceed with the procedure described in
Face Meshing Control (p. 240).

Note:

This feature is not supported for assembly (p. 325) meshing algorithms.

Grouping Mesh Objects By Type

If you have many different types of mesh objects, you can use the Group All Similar Children option
to organize the objects into folders based on their type. In the following figure, the mesh methods, in-
flation control, and refinement have been grouped into separate folders.

Figure 212: Mesh Objects Grouped By Type

For more information, see Group Tree Objects.

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Meshing: Virtual Topology
The following sections cover these topics:
Introduction
Creating and Managing Virtual Cells
Creating and Managing Virtual Split Edges
Creating and Managing Virtual Split Faces
Creating and Managing Virtual Hard Vertices
Common Virtual Topology Operations
Common Virtual Topology Features

Introduction
Uses of virtual topology include:

• Before performing analysis of a CAD model, you may want to group faces/edges together to form virtual
cells. In such cases, virtual topology can aid you in reducing the number of elements in the model, simplifying
small features out of the model, and simplifying load abstraction.

• You can split a face to create two virtual faces, or split an edge to create two virtual edges. For example, in
the case of a rectangular face in which a single edge on one side of the face corresponds to two edges on
the opposite side of the face, you can split the single edge so that node alignment across the face can have
similar spacing.

• When needed, you can create virtual hard vertices to facilitate split face operations.

• Virtual topology can be helpful for handling fillets for MultiZone and sweep meshing. See Using Virtual
Topology to Handle Fillets in MultiZone Problems (p. 321).

A CAD Model has two parts:

1. Topology: The connectivity of a CAD model, meaning: vertices are connected to edges, which are
connected to faces, which are connected to volumes. Each one of these entities is referred to as a cell.

2. Geometry: The geometry of the CAD model is the underlying mathematical definition of the afore-
mentioned cells.

A virtual cell in the Mechanical application or the Meshing application modifies the topology of only
the local copy in the Mechanical application or Meshing application. Your original CAD model remains
unchanged. New faceted geometry is also created with virtual topology. However, the mesher may
project the nodes back to the original geometry where applicable.

You can use Virtual Topology to simplify the geometry to aid in meshing. There are several ways to
simplify the topology using either automatic, manual, or a combination of automatic and manual ap-

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proaches. The best approach to use is generally based on the meshing objectives (number of elements
desired) and the cleanliness of the CAD model.

Virtual cells are often created to:

• Reduce the element count (increase the mesh size).

• Fix the topology of bodies that are not sweepable, to have mappable faces so that the bodies are now
sweepable.

• Fix meshing problems.

To reduce the element count, it is often a good idea to first use Automatic or Repair operations to
reduce the number of faces/edges, and then use Manual virtual topology operations to ensure important
topology is respected and/or features that could create mesh quality problems are removed.

To fix the topology of bodies make them sweepable. Automatic and/or Repair operations might be
helpful, but it is often very dependent on the geometry. Manual virtual topology operations give you
more control and are often the better approach.

Meshing problems sometimes occur because of the topology. When a meshing failure occurs it generally
points to the offending topology. Using Manual virtual topologies is a good way to fix such problems.

For more information about the Automatic and Manual approaches to creating virtual cells, see:

• Creating Virtual Cells Manually (p. 449)

• Creating Virtual Cells Automatically Using Automatic Mode (p. 452)

• Creating Virtual Cells Automatically Using Repair Mode (p. 456)

Note:

• There are geometric limitations to creating virtual cells, including those related to cells that would
have too much curvature, or other limitations in trying to represent a group of faces by a single
face.

• The tesselation of models from CATIA4 may not be appropriate for virtual topology, which could
prevent the creation of virtual cells for these models.

Creating and Managing Virtual Cells

Notes on Virtual Cell Creation

• Scoped objects except other virtual cells may need to be relinked to the new virtual cells when that virtual
cell is composed of entities in the scoped object. When the virtual cell is deleted the object may need to be
rescoped to the original entities.

• All scoped objects except for mesh controls and other virtual cells will be protected during automatic virtual
cell generation. This will allow users to load their models and run auto virtual topology without deleting
loads. All faces within a protected object may be merged with faces in the same protected object and not
in any other protected object.

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• If Generate on Update is set to Yes and you update the geometry, all Virtual Cell objects that were created
automatically will be deleted and recreated based on the new geometry. Any loads that were attached to
geometry within the deleted Virtual Cell objects will need to be reattached to the new geometry.

• If Generate on Update is set to No and you update the geometry, all Virtual Cell objects that were created
automatically should remain persistent barring major topology changes of the model being updated. Re-
application of loads may not be necessary.

• For any virtual cells that were generated, you can choose whether the nodes will be projected back to the
underlying geometry (in contrast to the virtual cell’s faceted geometry). To do so, select the desired virtual
cell and use the Virtual Topology Properties dialog (p. 472) to set the Project to Underlying Geometry
option to Yes or No. The default is Yes for analytical geometry; otherwise, the default is No. Computational
expense increases when the option is set to Yes. Use these guidelines:

– Yes is recommended if:

→ You are using virtual topology to fine tune the topology of your mesh and need precise control from
the Size Function (p. 80).

→ Your geometry is valid and you want the mesh to capture it accurately. In this case there may be a slight
impact on performance.

– No is recommended if:

→ You are using virtual topology to simplify bad/corrupt geometry or topology.

→ You are trying to grossly defeature a model (for example, remove bosses, serial numbers, etc.).

Virtual Cell Logic and Usage

The Virtual Topology feature is a cell dependency operation where existing virtual cells can be used to
create new virtual cells both manually and automatically. Within the cell hierarchy, a virtual cell depends
on another virtual cell if the latter is used to create the former.

Virtual Face Dependency

A virtual face depends on a virtual edge if during the face creation the virtual edge is used to create
virtual face loops. A virtual face depends on another virtual face if the latter was used to create the
former.

The following image represents the Merge Face Edges in the off position.

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Virtual Topology

Figure 213: Merge Face Edges Off

The following image represents the Merge Face Edges in the on position.

Figure 214: Merge Face Edges On

Virtual Edge Dependency

A virtual edge depends on a virtual face if during the edge creation an owner loop belongs to the said
face. A virtual edge depends on another virtual edge if the latter was used to create the former.

Note:

• If a virtual edge was created from a virtual split edge, you cannot delete the virtual split edge
without first deleting the virtual edge. Conversely, if a virtual split edge was created from a virtual
edge, you cannot delete the virtual edge without first deleting the virtual split edge.

A warning message appears in the Messages window for each failed deletion. To highlight
the geometry that is responsible for a message, select the message, right-click, and select
Show Problematic Geometry from the context menu.

• In addition, if the virtual edge belongs to a virtual face, the virtual face will not be deleted either.

A warning message appears in the Messages window for the virtual face, and you can
use the Show Problematic Geometry option to highlight the face.

You can manually designate faces and edges for inclusion into a virtual cell, or you can have the
Mechanical application or the Meshing application automatically create virtual cells based on settings
that you specify. You can use the Automatic mode to globally reduce the number of faces and edges

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 Creating and Managing Virtual Cells

where possible, or use Repair to focus more closely on problematic faces and edges. The geometry
under a virtual cell is represented by the underlying cell's graphic resolution.

Note:

• There are geometric limitations to creating virtual cells, including those related to cells that would
have too much curvature, or other limitations in trying to represent a group of cells by a single
cell.

• The tessellation of models from CATIA4 may not be appropriate for virtual topology, which could
prevent the creation of virtual cells for these models.

Creating Virtual Cells Manually

1. Insert a Virtual Topology object in the tree.

2. Choose the face (Ctrl+F) or edge (Ctrl+E) selection filter, and then pick one or more faces or one or more
edges that you want to include in the virtual cell(s).

You can use the Close Vertices button to identify tightly clustered vertices that might need to be
merged.

3. Create the Virtual Cell object(s) by doing one of the following:

• Choose Merge Cells on the Virtual Topology context toolbar. You can also use CTRL+M to merge either
the faces after selecting them, or the common edge between faces.

• Click the right mouse button on the Virtual Topology object and select Insert> Virtual Cell from the
context menu.

• Click the right mouse button in the Geometry window and select Insert> Virtual Cell from the context
menu.

From the selected set of faces or edges, the software creates the virtual cell(s). During this process,
adjacent selected entities are grouped appropriately to form virtual cell(s), while any single selected
entity (that is, one that is selected but is not adjacent to any other selected entity) forms its own
virtual cell. An error message appears in the Messages window for each subset of failed topologies.
To highlight the geometry that is responsible for a message, select the message, right-click, and
select Show Problematic Geometry from the context menu. Refer to the examples below.

Note:

• A virtual cell cannot be created on a single edge that is straight or enclosed with no vertices.

• A virtual cell cannot be created on a single face that is cylindrical or planar. For example, if you
select either the top face or middle face in the figure below and try to create a virtual cell, no
virtual cell will be created. However, selecting the bottom face will result in creation of a virtual
cell.

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Virtual Topology

Figure 215: Single Face Virtual Cell Limitations

Examples of Virtual Cell Formation

In the example shown in Figure 216: Formation of Virtual Faces (p. 451), suppose that you select faces
A, B, E, and F and then select Insert> Virtual Cell. As a result, virtual faces AB and EF will be formed,
as shown in Figure 217: Virtual Faces After Operation (p. 451).

The edges would be handled according to the Merge Face Edges setting. For example, if Merge Face
Edges is set to Yes, virtual edges ac and km also will be formed.

As another example, using the same starting point, if you select faces A, E, and F and then select Insert>
Virtual Cell, virtual faces A and EF will be formed. In this case, if Merge Face Edges is set to Yes, vir-
tual edge km also will be formed.

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 Creating and Managing Virtual Cells

Figure 216: Formation of Virtual Faces

Figure 217: Virtual Faces After Operation

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Virtual Topology

In the example shown in Figure 218: Formation of Virtual Edges (p. 452), suppose that you select all
edges and then select Insert> Virtual Cell. In this case, only virtual edge eg will be formed because
only those virtual edges that can be formed without forcing face merges will be created.

Figure 218: Formation of Virtual Edges

Creating Virtual Cells Automatically Using Automatic Mode

1. Insert a Virtual Topology object in the tree.

2. In the Details View, ensure that Method is set to Automatic.

3. Make adjustments as needed to any of the following settings in the Details View:

• Behavior – Determines how aggressively the face(s) and edge(s) are merged. The choices are Low,
Medium, High, Edges Only, and Custom. The Edges Only setting will merge only edges. The Custom
setting exposes Custom properties (Curvature and Feature Angles) and Advanced Custom properties
(Aspect Ratio, Contact Angle, Edge Angle, and Shared Boundary Ratio). These properties enable you
to set parameters that control the creation of automatic Virtual Topologies.

Note:

Setting any of the Custom or Advanced Custom Properties to -1 resets the value of
that property back to its default.

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 Creating and Managing Virtual Cells

• Gauss Curvature Angle – Represents the flatness of the resultant face. If Angle is greater than the
Gauss Curvature Angle, the faces will stay separate. Increasing the Curvature Angle causes a greater
number of faces to be grouped into fewer, larger faces, which might mean that there are fewer resulting
Virtual Topologies.

Figure 219: Gauss Curvature Angle

The Gauss Curvature Angle can range from 0-180 degrees. The default setting is 60 degrees.
The following figure shows the results of setting the Gauss Curvature Angle to 25, 60, and 120
degrees respectively.

Figure 220: Curvature Angle at 25, 60, and 120 degrees

Note:

For best results, set the angle between 20 and 120 degrees. If the angle is set below
this range, few faces will be merged. Setting the value above this range could result
in problems with the mesh. Setting the value above this range could also result in large
clusters of faces that ultimately fail to merge into a virtual face.

• Feature Angle – Sets the minimum angle between faces at a common edge. If Angle , as shown in
the following figure, is greater than the Feature Angle, the faces will stay separate. Faces are merged
as the Feature Angle increases.

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Virtual Topology

Figure 221: Feature Angle

The Feature Angle can range from 0 to 180 degrees. The default setting is 40 degrees. The fol-
lowing figure shows the results of setting the Feature Angle to 20, 40, and 80 degrees respectively.

Figure 222: Feature Angle at 20, 40, and 80 Degrees

Note:

For best results, set the angle between 30 and 90 degrees. If the angle is set below
this range, few faces will be merged. If the value is set above this range, it could result
in large clusters of faces that ultimately fail to merge into a virtual face.

• Aspect Ratio – The ratio between the area of the face group to the square of the shared boundary length
between the face and the Face Group. This setting controls how faces are grouped; increasing the Aspect
Ratio causes a greater number of faces to be grouped into fewer, larger faces. The Aspect Ratio can range
from 0 to 1. The default setting is 1. The following figure shows the results of setting the Aspect Ratio
to 0.2, 0.5, and 0.9, respectively.

Figure 223: Aspect Ratio at 0.2, 0.5, and 0.9

• Contact Angle – The angle introduced at common vertices between faces. This setting prevents com-
plicated boundaries when grouping faces (for example, angles introduced at contact points between

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 Creating and Managing Virtual Cells

faces). Increasing the Contact Angle causes a greater number of faces to be grouped into fewer, larger
faces. The angle can range from 0 to 360 degrees. The default setting is 360 degrees. The following figure
shows the results of setting the Contact Angle to 270 degrees, 330 degrees, and 355 degrees, respectively.

Figure 224: Contact Angle at 270, 330, and 355 degrees

• Edge Angle – The feature angle between edges at their common vertex. Increasing the Edge Angle
causes a greater number of edges to be grouped together. The angle can range from 0 to 180 degrees.
The default setting for the Edge Angle is 80 degrees. The following figure shows the results of setting
the Edge Angle to 80 degrees, 100 degrees, and 150 degrees, respectively.

Figure 225: Edge Angle at 80, 100, and 150 degrees

• Shared Boundary Ratio – The ratio of the length of the common boundary to the length of the smallest
perimeter. Increasing the Shared Boundary Ratio causes the number of grouped faces decreases. The
ratio can range from 0 to 0.5. The default setting for the ratio is 0. The following figure shows the results
of setting the Shared Boundary Ratio to 0.2, 0.3, and 0.4, respectively.

Figure 226: Shared Boundary Ratio at 0.2, 0.3, and 0.4

4. Make adjustments to the Advanced (p. 471) settings in the Details view.

5. Do one of the following:

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Virtual Topology

• Click right mouse button on the Virtual Topology object and choose Generate Virtual Cells from the
context menu. Virtual cells are automatically created for each region that meets the criteria established
by the settings in step 2.

These virtual cells remain valid after a geometry update.

• Choose the face (Ctrl+F) or body selection filter and pick two or more faces or two or more bodies. Click
right mouse button on the Virtual Topology object and choose Generate Virtual Cells on Selected
Entities from the context menu. From the selected set of faces or bodies, the software groups adjacent
entities appropriately and automatically creates virtual cells for each region that meets the criteria estab-
lished by the settings in step 3.

These virtual cells become invalid after a geometry update.

Creating Virtual Cells Automatically Using Repair Mode

1. Insert a Virtual Topology object in the tree.

2. In the Details View change the Method to Repair.

3. Make adjustments as needed to any of the following settings in the Details View:

• Behavior – Determines the type of repair to be performed. The choices are Repair All, Repair Small
Edges, Repair Slivers, and Repair Small Faces.

– The Repair Small Edges setting tries to remove all the small edges, satisfying the Repair Settings
criteria displayed in the Details View. The small edges are removed either by merging their attached
faces or by merging the small edge with an adjacent edge. The Repair Small Edges setting exposes the
Max Edge Length and Min Edge Length settings. The edges with lengths between Max Edge Length
and Min Edge Length are repaired.

The following example, the first figure shows small edges between faces.

Figure 227: Small Edges Between Faces

After Small Edge Repair (as shown in the following figure) with Max Edge Length set to 0.5
mm and Min Edge Length set to 0 mm, the small edges are removed by the faces being
merged.

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 Creating and Managing Virtual Cells

Figure 228: Small Edges Removed

In the following figure, small edges are attached to the same faces.

Figure 229: Small Edges Attached to the Same Faces

After Small Edge Repair with Max Edge Length set to 0.9 mm and Min Edge Length set to
0 mm, the small edges are merged.

Figure 230: Small Edge Repair with Edge Merge

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Virtual Topology

– The Repair Slivers option tries to remove all the slivers, satisfying the Repair Settings criteria shown
in the Details View. The slivers are removed by merging the sliver face with another adjacent face. The
Repair Slivers option exposes the Max Sliver Width and Min Sliver Width options. The sliver faces
with width between Max Sliver Width and Min Sliver Width are repaired.

The following figure shows a geometry with a sliver face.

Figure 231: Sliver Face

After Sliver Repair with Max Sliver Length set to 2 mm and Min Sliver Length to 0 mm, the
sliver face is merged with an adjacent face.

Figure 232: Sliver Repair

– The Repair Small Faces option tries to remove all the small faces satisfying the Repair Settings cri-
teria shown in the Details View. The small faces are removed by merging the small face with another
adjacent face.

The Repair Small Faces option exposes the Max Face Area and Min Face Area options. The
faces with area between Max Face Area and Min Face Area are repaired.

The following figure shows a small face.

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 Creating and Managing Virtual Cells

Figure 233: Small Face

After small face repair with Max Face Area set to 0.04 mm2 and Min Face Area set to 0 mm2,
the small face is merged with an adjacent face.

Figure 234: Small Face Repair

– The Repair All setting tries to remove all of the small edges, sliver faces, and small faces that satisfy
the Repair Settings criteria shown in the Details View.

Repair Settings– Exposes settings like Max Edge Length and Min Edge Length, depending
on the Behavior settings. The default values for different Repair Settings are:

→ Max Edge Length: Default is set to ½ Min Size (available under Sizing in mesh when Size
Function is turned ON)

→ Min Edge Length: Default is 0, or no lower limit

→ Max Face Area: Default is set to (½ Min Size)2.

→ Min Face Area: Default is 0, or no lower limit

→ Max Sliver Width: Default is set to ½ Min Size

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Virtual Topology

→ Min Sliver Width: Default is 0, or no lower limit

Note:

Setting any of the Repair Settings to -1 resets the value of that setting back to its default.

4. Make adjustments to the Advanced (p. 471) settings in the Details view.

5. Do one of the following:

• Click right mouse button on the Virtual Topology object and choose Generate Virtual Cells from the
context menu. Virtual cells are automatically created for each region that meets the criteria established
by the settings in step 2.

These virtual cells remain valid after a geometry update.

• Choose the face (Ctrl+F) or body selection filter and pick two or more faces or two or more bodies. Click
right mouse button on the Virtual Topology object and choose Generate Virtual Cells on Selected
Entities from the context menu. From the selected set of faces or bodies, the software groups adjacent
entities appropriately and automatically creates virtual cells for each region that meets the criteria estab-
lished by the settings in step 3.

These virtual cells become invalid after a geometry update.

Creating and Managing Virtual Split Edges

When preparing geometry for meshing, it may be advantageous to split an edge into two virtual edges
separated by a vertex. For example, in the case of a rectangular face in which a single edge on one side
of the face corresponds to two edges on the opposite side, you can split the single edge so that node
alignment across the face can have similar spacing. This can be achieved by creating Virtual Split Edge
objects. You can also modify the split interactively by dragging the newly created vertex along the
length of the original edge thus altering the split location.

Splitting an Edge
1. Insert a Virtual Topology object in the tree.

2. Choose the edge selection filter (Ctrl+E) and then in the Geometry window, pick the edge that you want
to split. The selected edge can be either a “real” edge or a previously-defined virtual edge.

Note:

To simplify specification of the split location, when picking the edge to split you should
position your cursor at the point on the edge where you want the split to occur. Then
select Virtual Split Edge at + as described in step 3.

3. Create the Virtual Split Edge using either of these methods:

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 Creating and Managing Virtual Split Edges

• To define the split location according to your cursor location on the edge, right-click in the Geometry
window and select Insert> Virtual Split Edge at + from the context menu, or choose Split Edge at +
on the Virtual Topology context toolbar.

• To define the split without specifying the location, select the edge you want to split, right-click in the
Geometry window, and select Insert> Virtual Split Edge from the context menu, or choose Split Edge
on the Virtual Topology context toolbar. By default the split ratio will be set to 0.5, but you can change
it later by using the Virtual Topology Properties dialog (p. 472).

Note:

If the software cannot create the split, the error message “Unable to split the edge at
selected location or with given split ratio” will appear and the split will not be created.

4. In step 3, if you created the Virtual Split Edge object by selecting Virtual Split Edge at +, the split ratio
is determined automatically by the software. If you created it by selecting Virtual Split Edge, you can
either accept the default of 0.5 or specify a different split ratio by right-clicking and selecting Edit Selected
Virtual Entity Properties.... Then edit the Split Ratio field on the Virtual Topology Properties dialog.

The split ratio defines the location of the split by specifying the ratio between the distance from
the start point of the edge to the split location and the overall length of the edge. Specify a value
from 0 to 1. For example, a value of 0.5 will split the edge into two edges of equal length. A value
of 0.75 will split the edge into two edges where the first edge is three quarters of the length of the
original edge, and the second edge is only one quarter of the length of the original edge. A value
of 0 or 1 is valid only if the selected edge is a closed edge. In the case of a closed edge, such as a
circle, the edge will be split into two edges, and the new vertex will be placed along one of the
new edges.

You can change the location of the split at any time by accessing the Virtual Topology Proper-
ties (p. 472) dialog and editing the Split Ratio field, or by modifying the edge split interactively.

To modify an edge split interactively, select any portion of the original edge or its vertex split location
in the Geometry view. Then, while pressing F4 on the keyboard, drag the mouse along the length
of the edge to redistribute the split ratio. The display indicates the initial 3-D location of the split,
together with a preview of its new location and split ratio.

When you change the split ratio of an edge split that is attached to a face split, both the edge split
and the face split are adjusted accordingly.

Virtual Split Edge Dependency

Existing virtual edges and/or existing virtual split edges can be used to create new virtual split edges.
Within the split edge hierarchy, a virtual split edge depends on a virtual edge if the latter is used to
create the former. Similarly, a virtual split edge depends on another virtual split edge if the latter is
used to create the former.

Note:

If a virtual edge was created from a virtual split edge, you cannot delete the virtual split edge
without first deleting the virtual edge. Conversely, if a virtual split edge was created from a
virtual edge, you cannot delete the virtual edge without first deleting the virtual split edge.

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A warning message appears in the Messages window for each failed deletion. To highlight
the geometry that is responsible for a message, select the message, right-click, and select
Show Problematic Geometry from the context menu.

Locking Locations of Dependent Virtual Split Edges

In cases involving virtual split edge dependency, you can choose whether the locations of dependent
splits are locked or unlocked when the location of the parent split is modified. If unlocked, the location
of the dependent split moves to maintain its defined split ratio when the parent is modified. If locked,
the location of the dependent split persists when the parent is modified. Regardless of the setting, the
location of the dependent split will move if preserving its location would invalidate the split (see Fig-
ure 238: Overridden Locked Dependent Splits (p. 463) for an example).

Note:

For parametric updates, all virtual split edges are treated as unlocked.

1. Highlight the Virtual Topology object in the tree.

Note:

Locking must be set globally on the Virtual Topology object. It cannot be set locally for
individual Virtual Split Edge objects.

2. In the Details View, set the Lock position of dependent edge splits option to Yes (default) or No.

The following figures illustrate locking. Figure 235: Original Virtual Split Edge with Dependent Virtual
Split Edge (p. 462) shows an example in which a split at .5 was defined on original edge ab, creating
two new edges—ac and cb. A second split at .5 was then defined on edge cb, creating two new
edges—cd and db.

Figure 235: Original Virtual Split Edge with Dependent Virtual Split Edge

Figure 236: Unlocked Dependent Splits (p. 463) shows the expected behavior when Lock position of
dependent edge splits is set to No, and the split located at point c is changed from .5 to .1. Notice
that point d has moved to maintain its defined split ratio at .5 of cb.

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 Creating and Managing Virtual Split Edges

Figure 236: Unlocked Dependent Splits

Figure 237: Locked Dependent Splits (p. 463) shows the expected behavior when Lock position of de-
pendent edge splits is set to Yes, and the split located at point c is changed from .5 to .1. Notice that
in this case point d has not moved, and the split ratio is now .72222 of cb.

Figure 237: Locked Dependent Splits

In Figure 238: Overridden Locked Dependent Splits (p. 463), the split located at point c was changed
from .5 to .9. Even with locking set to Yes, in this case point d was moved because preserving its location
would have invalidated the split (i.e., if its original location had been preserved, point d would no longer
be located on edge cb).

Figure 238: Overridden Locked Dependent Splits

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Notes on Virtual Split Edges

• When the Sweep mesh method (p. 201) is used, the guiding edges must have consistent lengths to obtain
a regular mesh in the sweep direction. You can define virtual split edges to achieve consistent lengths for
these edges.

• If your Geometry view is configured to display Shaded Exterior and Edges, you can conveniently review
virtual split edges by clicking the Virtual Topology group in the Tree Outline. In this mode, split edges will
be highlighted in two different colors (automatically assigned) to draw attention to the splits.

• You cannot use the virtual split edge feature to split edges belonging to line bodies.

Creating and Managing Virtual Split Faces

When preparing geometry for meshing, it may be advantageous to split a face. This can be achieved
by creating Virtual Split Face objects, which allow you to split a face along two vertices to create 1 to
N virtual faces. The selected vertices must be located on the face that you want to split.

Splitting a Face
1. Insert a Virtual Topology object in the tree.

2. Choose the vertex selection filter and then in the Geometry window, pick two vertices on the face that
you want to split.

Note:

• The vertices must be attached to the same face and in the same part.

• Optionally, you can create one or more Virtual Hard Vertex objects to facilitate the split face
operation. Virtual Hard Vertex objects allow you to define a hard point according to your
cursor location on a face, and then use that hard point in the split face operation. Refer to
Creating and Managing Virtual Hard Vertices (p. 467).

• To see all vertices in the Geometry window, including any virtual hard vertices, make sure
that the Show Vertices option is enabled.

3. Create the Virtual Split Face by doing one of the following:

• Choose Split Face at Vertices on the Virtual Topology context toolbar.

• Click right mouse button on the Virtual Topology object and select Insert> Virtual Split Face at Vertices
from the context menu.

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 Creating and Managing Virtual Split Faces

• Click right mouse button in the Geometry window and select Insert> Virtual Split Face at Vertices
from the context menu.

Note:

• If the software cannot create the split, the error message “Unable to split face at selected
vertices, please ensure vertices are attached to the same face and in the same part” will appear
and the split will not be created.

• To change the location of a virtual hard vertex interactively, select it in the Geometry view.
Then, while pressing F4 on the keyboard, drag the mouse to move the vertex to the desired
location. You cannot move the vertex beyond the face on which it was created. The display
indicates the initial 3-D location of the vertex, together with a preview of its new location.

When you change the location of a virtual hard vertex, the corresponding face split is
adjusted accordingly.

You cannot use the Virtual Topology Properties dialog to change the location of a
virtual hard vertex.

Special Considerations for Virtual Split Faces

Certain types of faces cannot be split by a single split operation; they require two splits. For example,
refer to the cylindrical face in the figure below. As a result of the first split, a seam edge is created and
the face is no longer a periodic face. To actually split the cylindrical face, you then must select two
more vertices and split the face a second time.

Figure 239: Types of Faces Requiring Two Virtual Split Face Operations

To split a face along more than two vertices you must perform a series of split face operations using
two vertices at a time. For example, refer to the figure below, where V1, V2, V3, and V4 are vertices,
and HV1 and HV2 are virtual hard vertices. Splitting the face through V1, HV1, HV2, and V4 would require
three split operations:

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Virtual Topology

1. Select V1 and HV1 and split the face.

2. Select HV1 and HV2 and split the face.

3. Select HV2 and V4 and split the face.

Figure 240: Splits Requiring a Series of Virtual Split Face Operations

Virtual Split Face Dependency

Existing virtual faces and/or existing virtual split faces can be used to create new virtual split faces.
Within the split face hierarchy, a virtual split face depends on a virtual face if the latter is used to create
the former. Similarly, a virtual split face depends on another virtual split face if the latter is used to
create the former.

Faces can be split by selecting vertices of virtual split edges, providing the vertices meet the requirements
described in the procedure above.

Note:

If a virtual face was created from a virtual split face, you cannot delete the virtual split face
without first deleting the virtual face. Conversely, if a virtual split face was created from a
virtual face, you cannot delete the virtual face without first deleting the virtual split face.

If a virtual split face was created from vertices of virtual split edges, you cannot delete the
virtual split edges without first deleting the virtual split face.

If a virtual split face was created from virtual hard vertices, you cannot delete the virtual hard
vertices without first deleting the virtual split face.

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 Common Virtual Topology Operations

A warning message appears in the Messages window for each failed deletion. To highlight
the geometry that is responsible for a message, select the message, right-click, and select
Show Problematic Geometry from the context menu.

Creating and Managing Virtual Hard Vertices

You can create one or more Virtual Hard Vertex objects to facilitate a split face operation (p. 464).
Virtual Hard Vertex objects allow you to define a hard point according to your cursor location on a
face, and then use that hard point in the split face operation.

Creating a Virtual Hard Vertex

1. To create a virtual hard vertex (hard point), choose the face selection filter (Ctrl+F) and then in the Geometry
window, pick the face that you want to split. Position your cursor on the face where you want the hard
point to be located, left-click, and do one of the following:

• Right-click in the Geometry window and select Insert> Virtual Hard Vertex at + from the context menu.

• Choose Hard Vertex at + on the Virtual Topology context toolbar.

Hanging Edges Resulting From Split Faces

It is important to understand the effect hard vertices and hanging edges can have on meshing. If a face
is not completely split, the partial face split is treated as a hanging edge and can create constraints on
the mesher. If a virtual hard vertex is created but is not used for a split (or it comes in from the geometry),
it can also create constraints on the mesher.

Common Virtual Topology Operations

This section describes common virtual topology operations.

Importing Legacy Models

Upon import of a legacy model into release 2020 R1, suppressed virtual topology entities will be deleted.
This includes any virtual topology entities that were suppressed manually (for example, by right-clicking
on the virtual topology entity in the Tree Outline and selecting Suppress from the context menu), but
it does not include virtual topology entities that are suppressed because the body containing them is
suppressed. If entities are deleted, a warning message will be issued advising you to import the model
into an earlier release, unsuppress the affected entities, and save the model for use in release 2020 R1.

Handling of Geometry Changes That Result in Incomplete Virtual Entities

The Virtual Topology object that appears in the Tree Outline represents all definitions of virtual face or
virtual edge groups, and all definitions of virtual split edges, virtual split faces, and virtual hard vertices
within a model. Individual objects for these virtual entities do not appear in the Tree. If a geometry
operation invalidates a virtual entity, refreshing the geometry does not cause the Virtual Topology
object in the Tree Outline to become underdefined. For example, if you include a fillet and one neigh-
boring face in the creation of a virtual cell, but later remove the fillet from the CAD model and refresh
the geometry, that individual virtual cell will become underdefined (as it only includes the one neigh-

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Virtual Topology

boring face), but it will not be deleted, and there will be no change in the Tree Outline. If in a later
operation, the fillet is re-added to the CAD model and refreshed, the virtual cell will be restored. When
a virtual entity becomes underdefined due to a geometry operation, a message is issued. You might
be able to view partial Virtual Entities by right-clicking on the Show Problematic Geometry message.

Underdefined Virtual Topologies are not displayed in Virtual Topology graphics, nor are they included
in Virtual Topology statistics.

Note:

If you suppress a part or all bodies in a multibody part in the DesignModeler application,
and refresh the geometry in the Meshing application, any virtual topology that had been
defined on those bodies will be removed. The virtual topology will not be removed if only
some bodies within a multibody part are suppressed in DesignModeler.

Using Named Selections with Virtual Topology

If you are using Named Selections with virtual topology and you subsequently modify the virtual topology,
you must manually update the Named Selections. For example, if you create a Named Selection to
define local inflation and then define virtual topology on that Named Selection, you must update the
Named Selection before generating the mesh or the inflation will not be defined correctly. This limitation
does not always occur if you perform a similar operation using the DesignModeler application. For ex-
ample, after you perform a merge operation in DesignModeler, the software may be able to relink the
Named Selection to the topology automatically when the geometry is refreshed.

Cycling Through Virtual Entities in the Geometry Window

You can use the and buttons on the Virtual Topology context toolbar to cycle through virtual
topology entities in the sequence in which they were created and display them in the Geometry window.

1. In the Geometry window, select a virtual entity.

2. On the Virtual Topology context toolbar, click or .

Remember the following information when using and :

• and are grayed out until at least one virtual entity has been defined.

• If no virtual entities are selected, clicking displays the first virtual entity in the sequence and clicking
displays the last virtual entity in the sequence.

• If the currently selected virtual entity is the last in the sequence, clicking displays the first virtual entity in
the sequence. If the currently selected virtual entity is the first in the sequence, clicking displays the last
virtual entity in the sequence.

• If using when multiple virtual entities are selected, the entity that has the highest ID (based on the order
in which the entities were created) is considered to be the current selection, and clicking displays the
entity that follows it.

• If using when multiple virtual entities are selected, the entity that has the lowest ID (based on the order
in which the entities were created) is considered to be the current selection, and clicking displays the
entity that precedes it.

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 Common Virtual Topology Operations

• If the current multiple selection contains no virtual entities, and work as though there are no selections
(That is, clicking displays the first virtual entity in the sequence and clicking displays the last virtual
entity in the sequence). If the current multiple selection contains a mixture of virtual entities and non-virtual
entities, the non-virtual entities are ignored.

• If a split is selected, both edges or all faces of the split are displayed.

• If any virtual entities are deleted or merged, the sequence is adjusted automatically. For example, the fol-
lowing behaviors occur if you create 14 virtual entities and then perform these actions in order:

1. If you select the fifth virtual entity and click , the sixth virtual entity is displayed.

2. Click , and the fifth virtual entity is displayed.

3. Delete the sixth virtual entity, select the fifth virtual entity, and click . The seventh virtual entity is dis-
played. This occurs because the sixth virtual entity was deleted.

4. Merge the seventh and eighth virtual entities, which creates a fifteenth virtual entity.

5. Select the fifth virtual entity and click . The ninth virtual entity is displayed. This occurs because the
sixth virtual entity was deleted and the seventh and eighth were merged to form a new entity.

Deleting All Virtual Entities

You can use the Delete All Virtual Entities option to delete all virtual topology entities from a model
at one time, regardless of type.

1. Highlight the Virtual Topology object in the Tree Outline or select any virtual topology entity in the
Geometry window.

2. Right-click and select Delete All Virtual Entities.

3. Answer Yes at the prompt.

Deleting All Virtual Cells

You can use the Delete All Virtual Cells option to delete all virtual topology cells (the virtual topology
group itself, including any virtual split edges, virtual split faces, or virtual hard vertices, will not be de-
leted). This option is available only when the Virtual Topology object in the Tree Outline is highlighted
and virtual cells, as well as virtual split edges, virtual split faces, and/or virtual hard vertices exist. Oth-
erwise, use the Delete All Virtual Entities option.

1. Highlight the Virtual Topology object in the Tree Outline.

2. Right-click on either the Virtual Topology object in the Tree Outline, or in the Geometry window. Select
Delete All Virtual Cells.

3. Answer Yes at the prompt.

Deleting All Virtual Split Edges

You can use the Delete All Virtual Split Edges option to delete all virtual split edges (the virtual topology
group itself, including any virtual cells, virtual split faces, or virtual hard vertices, will not be deleted).

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Virtual Topology

This option is available only when the Virtual Topology object in the Tree Outline is highlighted and
virtual split edges, as well as virtual split faces and/or virtual hard vertices exist. Otherwise, use the
Delete All Virtual Entities option.

1. Highlight the Virtual Topology object in the Tree Outline.

2. Right-click on either the Virtual Topology object in the Tree Outline, or in the Geometry window. Select
Delete All Virtual Split Edges.

3. Answer Yes at the prompt.

Deleting All Virtual Split Faces

You can use the Delete All Virtual Split Faces option to delete all virtual split faces (the virtual topology
group itself, including any virtual cells, virtual split edges, or virtual hard vertices, will not be deleted).
This option is available only when the Virtual Topology object in the Tree Outline is highlighted and
virtual split faces, as well as virtual split edges and/or virtual hard vertices exist. Otherwise, use the
Delete All Virtual Entities option.

1. Highlight the Virtual Topology object in the Tree Outline.

2. Right-click on either the Virtual Topology object in the Tree Outline, or in the Geometry window. Select
Delete All Virtual Split Faces.

3. Answer Yes at the prompt.

Deleting All Virtual Hard Vertices

You can use the Delete All Virtual Hard Vertices option to delete all virtual hard vertices (the virtual
topology group itself, including any virtual cells, virtual split faces, or virtual split edges, will not be
deleted). This option is available only when the Virtual Topology object in the Tree Outline is highlighted
and virtual hard vertices, as well as virtual split faces and/or virtual split edges exist. Otherwise, use the
Delete All Virtual Entities option.

1. Highlight the Virtual Topology object in the Tree Outline.

2. Right-click on either the Virtual Topology object in the Tree Outline, or in the Geometry window. Select
Delete All Virtual Hard Vertices.

3. Answer Yes at the prompt.

Deleting Selected Virtual Entities

You can use the Delete Selected Virtual Entities (And Dependents) option to delete selected virtual
topology entities, along with any dependents if applicable.

To use a right mouse button click:

1. Highlight any object in the Tree Outline (for example, the Geometry or Mesh object).

2. In the Geometry window, select the virtual entities that you want to delete.

3. Right-click and select Delete Selected Virtual Entities (And Dependents).

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 Common Virtual Topology Features

4. Answer Yes at the prompt.

To use the Virtual Topology context toolbar:

1. Highlight the Virtual Topology object in the Tree Outline.

2. In the Geometry window, select the virtual entities that you want to delete.

3. Choose Delete on the Virtual Topology context toolbar.

4. Answer Yes at the prompt.

Also see:

• Creating and Managing Virtual Cells (p. 446)

• Creating and Managing Virtual Split Edges (p. 460)

• Creating and Managing Virtual Split Faces (p. 464)

• Creating and Managing Virtual Hard Vertices (p. 467)

Common Virtual Topology Features

This section describes features that are common to all types of virtual topology.

Setting Advanced Properties

The following Advanced settings are available in the Details View for Automatic and Repair modes.

• Generate on Update – Sets whether you want to include the settings in this Details View when you update
the geometry.

• Simplify Faces – Removes hard edges and hard vertices from the selection.

– Yes: If the Simplify Faces property is turned on, the program removes hard edges and hard vertices.

– No: If the Simplify Faces property is turned off, faces are not simplified.

• Merge Face Edges – The property is relevant only during the virtual face creation process. It applies only
to manually-created virtual faces and can be modified at any time, but the modification will have no effect
on previously-created virtual faces.

– Yes: If the Merge Face Edges property is turned on, the program will attempt to merge bounding edges
of a newly manually-created virtual face and create virtual edges. The criterion used to merge edges is
based on the Behavior setting.

– No: If the Merge Face Edges property is turned off, only a virtual face will be created out of selected
faces.

• Lock position of dependent edge splits – See Locking Locations of Dependent Virtual Split Edges (p. 462).

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Virtual Topology

• Virtual Faces, Virtual Edges, Virtual Split Edges, Virtual Split Faces, Virtual Hard Vertices, Total Virtual
Entities – Read-only indications of corresponding counts in the model. See Viewing Virtual Topology Stat-
istics (p. 475).

Using the Virtual Topology Properties Dialog to Edit Properties

You can use the Virtual Topology Properties dialog to edit the properties of selected virtual topology
entities.

To use a right mouse button click:

1. Highlight any object in the Tree Outline (for example, the Geometry or Mesh object).

2. In the Geometry window, select the virtual entities whose properties you want to edit.

3. Right-click and select Edit Selected Virtual Entity Properties....

4. Make the desired changes in the Virtual Topology Properties dialog.

5. To apply any changes and/or exit, press Enter on your keyboard or click X on the dialog.

To use the Virtual Topology context toolbar:

1. Highlight the Virtual Topology object in the Tree Outline.

2. In the Geometry window, select the virtual entities whose properties you want to edit.

3. Choose Edit on the Virtual Topology context toolbar.

4. Make the desired changes in the Virtual Topology Properties dialog.

5. To apply any changes and/or exit, press Enter on your keyboard or click X on the dialog.

Remember the following information when using the Virtual Topology Properties dialog:

• If all selected virtual entities have the same value for a particular property, that value appears in the Virtual
Topology Properties dialog. Otherwise, the value for that property is blank.

• Fields that are grayed out are read-only.

• The changes you make in the Virtual Topology Properties dialog will be applied to all selected virtual en-
tities.

• If you change a split location, the graphic in the Geometry window will be redrawn.

Consider the examples below. For the first example, two virtual faces were selected. One virtual face
was composed of five faces, and its Project to Underlying Geometry option was set to No. The other
virtual face was composed of three faces, and its Project to Underlying Geometry option was set to
Yes.

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 Common Virtual Topology Features

Figure 241: Virtual Topology Properties Dialog: Example 1

In the example below, two virtual faces were selected. In this case each virtual face was composed of
three faces, and Project to Underlying Geometry was set to Yes for both virtual faces.

Figure 242: Virtual Topology Properties Dialog: Example 2

In the example below, two virtual edges and one virtual split edge were selected. Both virtual edges
were composed of two edges, but Project to Underlying Geometry was set to Yes for one virtual
edge and to No for the other.

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Virtual Topology

Figure 243: Virtual Topology Properties Dialog: Example 3

In the example below, one virtual face and one virtual split face were selected. The virtual face was
composed of five faces, and its Project to Underlying Geometry option was set to No.

Figure 244: Virtual Topology Properties Dialog: Example 4

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 Common Virtual Topology Features

In the example below, one virtual hard vertex was selected.

Note:

Although you cannot use the dialog to modify the Virtual Hard Vertex Location, you can
do so interactively using the F4 key. See Creating and Managing Virtual Split Faces (p. 464)
for details.

Figure 245: Virtual Topology Properties Dialog: Example 5

Viewing Virtual Topology Statistics

The Details View of the Virtual Topology object provides counts of the following:

• Virtual faces

• Virtual edges

• Virtual split edges

• Virtual split faces

• Virtual hard vertices

• Total virtual entities

Remember the following information when viewing virtual topology statistics:

• Statistics are updated whenever a geometry or virtual topology change occurs.

• If any body is suppressed, the virtual topology entities on that body are not counted.

• If you create a virtual topology entity and then use it to create another virtual topology entity, the former
exists in the background in a suppressed state and is not counted.

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Meshing: Troubleshooting
This section is intended to provide you with tips and strategies for avoiding and handling problems
that may occur when using the Meshing application. Topics include:

• Meshing Process (p. 478)

• Identifying Poor Quality Mesh (p. 478)

• Recommended First Course of Action for Meshing Failures (p. 478)

• Understanding Messaging (p. 480)

• Understanding States (p. 480)

• Shape Checks and Meshing Failures (p. 481)

• Handling Selective Meshing Failures (p. 482)

• Handling Failures due to Protected Topology (p. 482)

• Handling Patch Independent Tet Meshing Failures (p. 485)

• Handling Patch Conforming Tetrahedral, Hex Dominant, Quad Dominant, and All Triangle Meshing Fail-
ures (p. 486)

• Handling General Sweep Meshing Failures (p. 486)

• Handling Thin Sweep Meshing Failures (p. 487)

• Handling General MultiZone Meshing Failures (p. 488)

• Handling Failed Mesh Connections (p. 490)

• Handling Failed Contact Matches (p. 490)

• Avoiding Bad Feature Capturing in Assembly Meshing (p. 490)

• Handling Assembly Meshing Failures Due to Min Size (p. 490)

• Handling Assembly Meshing Failures Due to Flow Volume Leaks (p. 491)

• Handling Assembly Meshing Inflation Problems (p. 493)

• Tips for Using Virtual Topology (p. 493)

• Meshing Complicated Models (p. 493)

• Using a Localized Operating System on Linux (p. 495)

• Using Lustre Parallel File Systems on Linux (p. 495)

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Troubleshooting

Meshing Process
When you generate mesh, the mesh is generated as a separate process per part (unless using assembly
meshing where all parts are meshed in one process). If there are multiple parts, each part can be meshed
in parallel. While meshing, the status window provides details on what is happening in the meshing
process. Other information, such as the amount of memory used can be found by using a task manager.

While the mesher is working at certain points it will highlight topology (edges, faces, bodies). If the
mesher gets stuck for a long time on a particular topology, you should inspect the highlighted topology
and possibly merge it with another topology using virtual cells, or adjust the mesh sizes in that area.

For details about topology highlighting during the meshing process, refer to Generating Mesh (p. 432).
For information about how to set the default for topology highlighting, refer to Meshing Options on
the Options Dialog Box (p. 277).

Identifying Poor Quality Mesh

The following approaches are recommended to improve the mesh quality and obtain a valid mesh:

• Set the Display Style to identify quality by color.

• Use the Mesh Metric (p. 102) option to view information about a number of quality statistics and set Min/Max
values to find poor quality elements.

• Use the Worksheet as your Scoping Method and use worksheet data to define criterion-based measurements.

Recommended First Course of Action for Meshing Failures

If your mesh generation fails, it may be a partial or complete meshing failure. Your first course of action
should be to examine any messages that the mesher returns to the Messages window. The messages
include hints that explain why the meshing completely or partially failed. In some cases, you can right-
click the message and select Show Problematic Geometry to highlight any entities associated with
the message in the Geometry window and see what the failed mesh looks like.

The mesher also provides visual cues to identify obsolete and/or failed meshes. As shown in the figures
below, failed meshes are shaded in maroon and obsolete meshes are colored yellow. The approximate
location of the cause of the meshing failure is identified by a convergence of white lines.

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Figure 246: Obsolete Mesh

Figure 247: Failed Mesh

If the entities are very small, you can refer to the status bar at the bottom of the window to view stat-
istics related to the entities. Then create a Named Selection to retain information about the problematic
entities. Continue reading below for more information about messaging.

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Troubleshooting

Understanding Messaging
The Messages window prompts you with feedback concerning meshing operations. Every message
returned from the mesher is not necessarily an error. Messages come in three forms:

• Error: Requires action from you to obtain a mesh.

• Warning: Guides you in best practices or alternative courses of action. A warning does not require you to
fix any problems, but may give an indication of a subsequent related error.

• Information: Helps you make better decisions related to meshing your model or provides you with inform-
ation about the approach the mesher used to mesh your model.

Once messages are displayed, you can:

• Double-click a message to display its contents in a pop-up dialog box.

• Highlight a message and then press the key combination CTRL+C to copy its contents to the clipboard.

• Press the Delete key to remove a selected message from the window.

• Select one or more messages and then use the right mouse button click to display the following context
menu options:

– Go To Object - Selects the object in the Tree Outline that is responsible for the message.

– Show Problematic Geometry - Highlights the geometry in the Geometry window that is responsible
for the message. This option is not always available.

– Show Message - Displays the selected message in a pop-up dialog box.

– Copy - Copies the selected messages to the clipboard.

– Delete - Removes the selected messages.

– Refresh - Refreshes the contents of the Messages window as you edit objects in the Tree Outline.

Understanding States
Sometimes the mesher returns an invalid mesh. Refer to the state of the body in the Tree Outline to
determine whether a body was meshed:

• A check mark denotes a body in a fully defined but unmeshed state.

• A check mark with a hash denotes a meshed body.

• A question mark denotes a body that needs more information before it can be sent to the solver.

When your model contains an active unmeshed body, the Mesh object in the Tree Outline is preceded
by a lightning bolt to indicate a body is out-of-date and requires action:

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When your model is fully meshed (all bodies are in a meshed state), the Mesh object is preceded by a
check mark to indicate that the meshing data is fully defined and ready for the next stage of your
analysis (that is, an update in the Meshing application or a solve in the Mechanical application):

Understanding Mesh Connection and Contact Match States

Mesh connections and contact matches use the following symbols to denote mesh state:

• A check mark denotes a connection or match that is fully defined and ready to be connected or
matched.

• A check mark with a hash denotes a successful connection or match.

• A question mark denotes a connection or match that is invalid that needs more information before it
can be connected or matched.

• A circle with a bar in it denotes a connection or match that is ignored. Check the Details view of the
mesh connection or contact match for the reason.

• A lightning bolt indicates that the connection or match is out-of-date and requires action.

• An ‘X’ denotes a suppressed connection or match. Unsuppressing the connection or match requires it
to be reconnected or rematched even if it was previously connected or matched.

Shape Checks and Meshing Failures

Meshing may fail if the mesh quality does not meet the criterion of the defined shape checks (p. 97).
The following approaches are recommended to improve the mesh quality and obtain a valid mesh:

1. To identify faces that do not meet the shape checking criteria, right-click the warning message and select
Show Problematic Geometry.

2. Use a different shape check setting.

Some shape checks (p. 97) have a stricter set of criterion than others. By using a different shape
check setting a mesh might be generated, and the mesh metrics bar graph (p. 102) can be used to
find the mesh violating the stricter shape checks. In this way, locating the problem is the first step
to fixing it.

Note:

You can turn off most shape checks altogether by setting Check Mesh Quality (p. 97) to
No.

3. Use the methods described in Identifying Poor Quality Mesh (p. 478) to determine the quality of the mesh.

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Troubleshooting

4. Use the Preview Surface Mesh (p. 435) and/or Preview Inflation (p. 437) features.

With this approach the boundary mesh is generated even if the mesh would violate the defined
shape checks. Once the previewed mesh is generated, use the mesh metrics bar graph (p. 102) to
determine the location of bad quality elements. Generally, fixing the bad quality surface mesh is
the best way to fix the volume mesh because bad quality mesh is usually a result of the geometry
over-constraining the mesh topology. Using defeaturing controls (such as Loop Removal (p. 171) and
Mesh Defeaturing (p. 85)), pinch (p. 161) controls, and virtual topologies (p. 445) are all good strategies
to remove geometry features that may cause problems for the meshing algorithms.

Note:

Not all mesh methods support the use of Preview Surface Mesh (p. 435) and Preview
Inflation (p. 437).

For additional information about the shape checking acceptance criterion used by ANSYS Workbench,
refer to ANSYS Workbench and Mechanical APDL Application Meshing Differences (p. 67).

Handling Selective Meshing Failures

Selective meshing (p. 361) may lead to unexpected results in cases where a mesh control change affects
only one body. This may in turn lead to sweep mesh failure because the source and target meshes no
longer align or the resultant change makes a body unsweepable. If desired, you can set the Allow Se-
lective Meshing (p. 277) option to No to disable selective meshing and allow the mesh control changes
to ripple through the entire part.

Selective meshing is not persistent for a geometry update or re-mesh operation. However, you can use
the Mesh worksheet to create a selective meshing history so that your meshing steps can be repeated
in the desired sequence. Otherwise, you may need to go through your body meshing steps manually
if the single mesh update does not satisfy your meshing requirements. Refer to Using the Mesh Worksheet
to Create a Selective Meshing History (p. 365) for details.

Handling Failures due to Protected Topology

Improper set up of hard protected topology (p. 159) may result in meshing failures if the mesher cannot
return a reasonable mesh while also respecting the topology.

In the example, a sliver face is missing from the Named Selection defined. The Protected option is set
to Yes.

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Figure 248: Example with Missing Face

The missing face could lead to problems during meshing since boundaries of hard protected topologies
receive special treatment to ensure the mesh is properly associated. The special protection ensures the
outer boundary is captured accurately, however, it could have a negative impact on meshing since the
mesher is forced to capture the sliver surface. With the Highlight option enabled, the problematic face
is highlighted during the meshing process (Figure 249: Problematic Topology Highlighted During
Meshing (p. 484)). If a face is highlighted for a long period of time it can indicate a problem meshing
the face. In this case, the problem comes from the protected topology.

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Troubleshooting

Figure 249: Problematic Topology Highlighted During Meshing

The missing face could also lead to other meshing failures. For example, the sizing applied may be such
that the mesher cannot return a reasonable mesh while also respecting the topology. In this case, the
mesher may fail in face meshing while trying to protect the boundaries of the Named Selection. The
faces that fail to mesh are indicated in the message window (use the right mouse button to select the
error message to show the problematic geometry).

Figure 250: Failed Surface Mesh Due to Protected Topology

Examine the model to locate objects scoped to either the sliver face or the neighboring faces of the
sliver face (Named Selection). By including the sliver face in the Named Selection definition, the mesh
can be generated while respecting the sizing and the topology.

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Figure 251: Mesh Respecting Protected Topology

Handling Patch Independent Tet Meshing Failures

If there are gaps in your geometry and Patch Independent tet meshing fails, the mesh size may be set
smaller than the size of the gaps in the geometry. In such cases, try adjusting the size of the mesh in
those regions so they are larger than the geometry gap size.

Figure 252: Patch Independent Tet Mesh Failure Due to Geometry Gap

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Troubleshooting

Figure 253: Patch Independent Tet Mesh Failure Corrected with Larger Mesh

Handling Patch Conforming Tetrahedral, Hex Dominant, Quad Dominant, and

All Triangle Meshing Failures
Some mesh failures are due to an inappropriate defeature size (either default or user input) or dirty
geometry. Use the following guidelines to determine which issue is the cause of the failure:

With Sizing Options (p. 80) turned off:

1. Determine whether the model is a multiple part assembly, a multibody part, or a single body part.

2. If a message provides “Problematic Geometry” information, use it to determine which portions of the
model fail. Quite often, one or more faces fail to mesh.

3. If a face fails to mesh, check whether the face is “regular”; that is, make sure that it is not too skinny or has
skinny sections with misaligned edge spacings which would make it difficult to get a good mesh. Use of
virtual topologies (p. 445), pinch (p. 161) controls, etc. may help in these situations.

4. If a face fails to mesh, check to see if the edges attached to that face may be problematic. For example:

• Turn on the Show Vertices and Close Vertices options to see if any edge is significantly faceted (that
is, it has many edge splits in comparison to mesh size), or if there are any unexpected clusters of vertices.
The mesher will try to place a node on each vertex, so unnecessary vertices can lead to complications
in meshing that may be avoidable. Use of virtual topologies (p. 445), pinch (p. 161) controls, and so on
may help in these situations.

• Turn on the Edge Coloring > By Connection option to see if the edge connectivity is unusual. In some
cases, the geometry connectivity may not be as expected, and this may create problems during meshing.
These problems could be fixed in the DesignModeler application, the CAD package, or possibly through
the use of virtual topologies (p. 445) or pinch (p. 161) controls.

• For a multibody part, turn on the Edge Coloring > By Body Connection option to see if the edge con-
nectivity is unusual between bodies.

Handling General Sweep Meshing Failures

In the event of a sweep mesh failure, the following approaches are recommended:

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1. Check for contradicting edge sizings.

2. For Src/Trg Selection, use a manual setting instead of automatic.

3. Check side faces to see if they are mappable. Use of virtual topologies (p. 445) can help make bodies
sweepable:

• Turn on the Show Vertices and Close Vertices options to see if any edges have unnecessary splits. Extra
edge splits can make faces that appear to be mappable more difficult to map. Virtual edges (p. 446) can
help in these cases.

• Use of virtual face splits (p. 464) can help make faces more mappable, as can use of the mapped face
mesh control (p. 240) and its advanced options.

4. Turn on the Edge Coloring > By Connection option to see if the edge connectivity is unusual. In some
cases, the geometry connectivity may not be as expected, and this may create problems during meshing.
These problems could be fixed in the DesignModeler application, the CAD package, or possibly through
the use of virtual topologies (p. 445).

5. For a multibody part, turn on the Edge Coloring > By Body Connection option to see if the edge con-
nectivity is unusual between bodies.

For detailed information about the requirements and characteristics of sweep meshing, refer to Mesh
Sweeping (p. 283).

For additional information, refer to Figure : Strategies for Avoiding Stretched Elements in the Mechanical
APDL help.

Handling Thin Sweep Meshing Failures

In the event of a thin sweep mesh failure, first refer to Thin Model Sweeping (p. 290) for detailed inform-
ation about the requirements and characteristics of thin sweep meshing.

The Preview Source and Target Mesh and Preview Surface Mesh features do not support the thin
model sweeper. Thus, if a failure occurs, you must use the feedback in the Messages window to determ-
ine the problem:

• If Src/Trg Selection is set to Automatic Thin, determine whether the correct source/target faces are being
used. You can review the source/target faces by right-clicking the appropriate message. If incorrect
source/target faces are being used, select the Manual Thin option on the sweep method and pick the correct
faces manually.

• In many cases, the messages tell you to use virtual topology (p. 445) to merge an edge/face. Thin sweeping
requires one division through the thickness. Side edges must connect directly from source to target to
comply with this rule.

• If a message tells you the target faces are not meshed, try swapping the source/target faces.

• In cases where a thin sweep body and a general sweep body are neighbors, the general sweep body has
higher priority and is meshed first. The general sweep operation may place nodes on the side area/edge of
the thin sweep body. If you receive a message describing this situation, you must apply additional mesh
controls to prevent it.

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Troubleshooting

• If both source and target areas are meshed, thin sweep will fail. In this case, you must find some way to
eliminate the situation.

• Thin sweep may issue warning messages telling you that the source you picked was swapped with the target,
and that some controls on the target faces were ignored as a result. These types of warning messages are
for your reference only.

Handling General MultiZone Meshing Failures

In the event of a MultiZone mesh failure, the following approaches are recommended:

1. If using automatic source face selection, try using manual source face selection (or vice versa). For manual
source face selection, ensure that all sources and targets are selected. Refer to Using MultiZone (p. 307) for
more information.

2. Ensure that all side faces are mappable. Refer to MultiZone Face Mappability Guidelines (p. 314) for more
information. Use of virtual topologies can help make bodies sweepable:

• Turn on the Show Vertices and Close Vertices options to see if any edges have unnecessary splits. Extra
edge splits can make faces that appear to be mappable more difficult to map. Virtual edges (p. 446) can
help in these cases.

• Use of virtual face splits (p. 464) can help make faces more mappable, as can use of the mapped face
mesh control (p. 240).

3. If MultiZone doesn’t respect edge biasing, as shown in Figure 254: Edge Biasing Not Respected by Mul-
tiZone (p. 489) below, it may be because the opposite edge is split. To work around this, perform the edge
biasing on the opposite edges to get a better edge distribution, as shown in Figure 255: Edge Biasing Re-
spected by MultiZone (p. 489).

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Figure 254: Edge Biasing Not Respected by MultiZone

Figure 255: Edge Biasing Respected by MultiZone

Note:

When a curve with bigeometric distribution is split, the curve is split into GEO1 and GEO2
starting at the split point.

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Troubleshooting

4. Turn on the Edge Coloring > By Connection option to see if the edge connectivity is unusual. In some
cases, the geometry connectivity may not be as expected, and this may create problems during meshing.
These problems could be fixed in the DesignModeler application, the CAD package, or possibly through
the use of virtual topologies (p. 445).

5. For a multibody part, turn on the Edge Coloring > By Body Connection option to see if the edge con-
nectivity is unusual between bodies.

For detailed information about the requirements and characteristics of MultiZone, refer to MultiZone
Meshing (p. 303).

Handling Failed Mesh Connections

In the event of a mesh connection failure, refer to Diagnosing Failed Mesh Connections (p. 407).

Handling Failed Contact Matches

In the event of a contact match failure, refer to Troubleshooting Failed Contact Matches (p. 419).

Avoiding Bad Feature Capturing in Assembly Meshing

In some cases, you may encounter bad feature capturing when using assembly (p. 325) meshing in the
Meshing application, even though the faceting of the same model looks fine in ANSYS Fluent. The bad
faceting may be apparent in ANSYS Fluent only if you turn off the viewing of edges and view surfaces
only. The following approaches are recommended to avoid bad feature capture:

• If you are experiencing bad feature capture, increasing facet quality can help. If you are using the Design-
Modeler application, increasing the value of the Facet Quality option (Tools > Options > DesignModeler
> Graphics > Facet Quality) from 5 (the default) to 10 can lead to significant improvements. This Facet
Quality option affects models entering the Meshing application via DesignModeler only; CAD packages
have their own separate faceting controls. In particular, you should increase facet quality in DesignModeler
or your CAD package if your model contains high order NURBS surfaces and/or your applications require
the highest fidelity to your input CAD (such as aerospace applications, external aero applications, etc.).
However, be aware that higher settings create large numbers of facets, which may slow down processing
or possibly lead to failures in facet generation due to insufficient memory. Refer to Facet Quality for details
about this setting in DesignModeler.

• In cases of tolerant models, the Tessellation Refinement (p. 144) control tries to avoid re-projections to the
underlying curves and surfaces at locations where the CAD tolerance exceeds the desired refinement toler-
ance. In cases of significant tolerances, you may want to relax the Tessellation Refinement tolerance or
even set it to None to avoid re-projections that may contribute to problems with faceting. In cases of accurate
models, the default settings typically work well.

• The Sharp Angle Tool (p. 269) can be used to control the capture of features with sharp angles, as well as to
improve feature capture in general.

Handling Assembly Meshing Failures Due to Min Size

Failure in the assembly (p. 325) meshing algorithms is almost always related to faceting issues in relation
to minimum size. Make sure that the values of the Curvature Min Size (p. 88) and Proximity Min
Size (p. 89) options truly represent the smallest sizes that you want the curvature and proximity size

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functions to capture. By default, many meshing features operate based on the smaller of these two
minimum size values. Consider the following:

1. It is strongly recommended that you ALWAYS adjust the value of Curvature Min Size/Proximity Min Size
as appropriate for your problem. Make sure that the minimum size is 1/2 of any small feature or gap that
you need to capture. Similarly, the minimum size should be about 1/10 of the diameter of the smallest
pipe. For very simple cases, make sure to increase the minimum size appropriately. Failure to do so may
result in an over-refined mesh with a huge number of facets.

2. Use local (scoped) size controls (p. 228) to ensure two layers of elements in any gap/thickness. If the scoped
sizing is smaller than the minimum size, you must adjust the Tessellation Refinement (p. 144) accordingly.
If you add a hard size that is smaller than the minimum size, make sure that the tolerance specified by the
Tessellation Refinement control is now 10 times smaller than the specified hard size.

3. If you receive a warning about missing tessellations, it may help to lower the tessellation tolerance by 50%.

4. In some cases, small defects in the faceting may lead to bad quality meshes. In many of these cases, a minor
modification of the minimum size or tessellation tolerance can rectify the problem.

Handling Assembly Meshing Failures Due to Flow Volume Leaks

Virtual bodies are used with assembly meshing to represent flow volumes in a model so that you can
mesh flow regions without having to model geometry to represent them. These flow volumes are ex-
tracted during meshing; however, an extraction failure may occur if there are gaps between bodies
and/or faces such that the extracted flow volume would not be watertight and therefore would leak.
If a leak is present, the flow volume mesh will contain only elements from the leak path (that is, surface
and line elements will be returned but volume elements will not). As a result, assembly mesh generation
will be unsuccessful and an error message will be issued. In such cases, the assembly meshing algorithms
detect and trace the leaks and display their leak paths graphically as follows:

• Any time there is an exterior leak (that is, the mesh leaks to the outside of the model), it will be detected by
the Meshing application. However, the leak path will be displayed only if you have defined a virtual
body (p. 337) and specified a material point in the flow volume void. For exterior leaks, tracing occurs from
the bounding box to all defined material points.

When a material point is inside a virtual body, you must also set Used By Fluid Surface to Yes when
defining the virtual body, and then define the appropriate set of fluid surfaces by selecting the faces
of the virtual body and assigning them to the group.

• Interior leaks involve leak tracing between material points. Thus, for an interior leak to be identified, you
must define two or more virtual bodies and specify a material point in each flow volume void.

If a leak is detected, the leak path should clearly indicate its location, in which case you should return
the model to the DesignModeler application or your CAD system to close the gap that is causing the
leak (for example, by adding a face or moving a body).

Note:

• If you suppress a virtual body, any leak path associated with it will be hidden from view in the
Geometry window.

• In some assembly meshing cases, contact sizing can also be used for closing leaks discovered
during meshing. Refer to Applying Contact Sizing (p. 355) for details.

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Troubleshooting

The figure below shows the leak path for a failed assembly mesh.

Figure 256: Leak Path for a Failed Assembly Mesh

The figure below shows a closer view of the leak.

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Figure 257: Closer View of Leak Path

Handling Assembly Meshing Inflation Problems

If a high aspect ratio is obtained for cells in the inflation layer when an assembly meshing al-
gorithm (p. 325) is being used, reducing the value of Gap Factor (p. 139) may help. Refer to the discussion
of inflation controls in Selecting an Assembly Mesh Method (p. 332) for more information about specifying
Gap Factor for assembly meshing algorithms.

The CutCell algorithm does not support very thick inflation layers, so instead of using an Inflation Op-
tion (p. 128) of First Layer Thickness or Total Thickness, use aspect ratio-based inflation.

Tips for Using Virtual Topology

Virtual topology (p. 445) surfaces made up of two loops are not automatically mappable. For a faceted
surface made up of two loops to be map meshed, a mapped Face Meshing control must be scoped
to it or it must be a side area of a general sweep body.

Meshing Complicated Models

Meshing a complicated model may require special attention and experimentation. In such cases, the
following strategies and guidelines are recommended for obtaining a successful mesh:

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Troubleshooting

1. Analyze the model to determine its complexity:

• Identify the small features that you do (and do not) want to retain.

• Consider the model's size and its relationship to the element size transitions that are appropriate for the
mesh. A smoother transition from the fine element size to the coarse element size will result in a larger
number of elements, which should be considered (especially if the model is quite large). Coarser transitions
will result in a smaller number of elements. You must determine what is acceptable.

• Refer to the value in the Minimum Edge Length (p. 96) field. This field provides a read-only indication
of the minimum edge length in the model.

• Think about the element size that you expect to obtain, especially the desired minimum element size.
To help you determine the desired size, in the Geometry window, select the edges of small features
that you want to retain and refer to the status bar for feedback about the selections.

2. Perform a low-effort mesh evaluation by using appropriate sizes as determined from #1, but without controls
such as inflation, match mesh controls, etc. that add constraints to the mesher. Also, try to start with a
coarser mesh size and refinement in later steps.

• If the mesh is successful, examine it to see whether the mesh size and transition rates are acceptable. In
most cases, you will need to make some adjustments to obtain the desired results.

• If the mesh fails, examine any messages that the mesher returned to the Messages window, as described
elsewhere in this Troubleshooting (p. 477) section.

3. Adjust settings to retain desired small features:

• In many cases, small features are either small holes or channels in the model and are associated with
high curvature. For this reason, using the Curvature-based sizing (p. 82) is a good strategy for retaining
these features.

• Be careful when using Proximity-based sizing (p. 82). If the value of Minimum Edge Length (p. 96) is
too small, using Proximity-based sizing may lead to meshing problems.

4. Adjust settings to defeature (remove) unimportant small features:

• The Meshing application automatically defeatures small features according to the specified Defeature
Size (p. 86). Refer to the Minimum Edge Length (p. 96) value to help determine which small features
will be defeatured automatically.

• For solid models, Defeature Size is set to 50% of the value of Curvature Min Size (p. 88) by default. If
you set a larger Defeature Size, you must also set a larger Curvature Min Size because the defeature
size cannot be as large as the minimum element size.

5. Adjust the mesh settings to achieve the desired quality.

Continue making adjustments until your results are satisfactory. Try adjusting controls such as face
sizing (p. 228), edge sizing (p. 228), transition rate (p. 87), and smoothing (p. 102). You may also want
to experiment with virtual topology (p. 445).

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Using a Localized Operating System on Linux
If you are using a localized operating system (such as French or German) on Linux, you must perform
additional steps in order for the Meshing application to recognize the correct numerical format. Refer
to the platform details section of the ANSYS, Inc. Linux Installation Guide for details.

Using Lustre Parallel File Systems on Linux

Meshing application projects created prior to Release 16.0 need to be updated before they can be used
on Lustre parallel file systems on Linux. To do this:

1. Load the project into Release 16 software on a system that does not use a Lustre parallel file system.

2. Perform an operation that changes each model in the Meshing application (for example, hide and
then show a part). If systems share the same model, the change needs to be done for only one of the
systems.

3. Save the project.

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 automatic inflation - inflation global meshing control,
Index 125
automatic meshing, 69
Symbols automatic method - in method control, 177
0-thickness walls, 386 automatic virtual topology, 446
auxiliary meshing tools - listed and described, 397
average surface area - sizing global meshing control ,
A 96
accessing Meshing functionality, 16
axis sweeping, 201
activation of Mesh worksheet steps, 365
ADF file format, 277
advanced global meshing controls, 154
B
algorithms - tetrahedral meshing algorithms , 178 baffle meshing, 386
allow nodes to be moved off boundary - sizing global batch mode, 64
meshing control, 93 bias (sweeping) - in method control , 201
Allow Selective Meshing, 277 bias factor - in local sizing control, 229
ANSYS Fluent bias type - in local sizing control, 229
input file format, 277 binary file format
ANSYS Fluent Meshing Fluent input file format, 277
exporting faceted geometry to, 23 bodies
arbitrary match control grouping for meshing, 224, 345
description, 258 body of influence - local mesh sizing tool option, 229
ASCII file format bounding box diagonal - sizing global meshing control
Fluent input file format, 277 , 95
aspect ratio (base/height) - inflation global meshing
control, 132 C
aspect ratio for quadrilaterals CAD instances, 383
mesh metric, 109 Cartesian
aspect ratio for triangles Additive Manufacturing, 213
mesh metric, 108 Body Fitted, 213
assemblies of parts vs. multibody parts, 3 Cartesian option - in method control, 213
assembly - initial size seed meshing control option, 87 CFD/fluids meshing strategies, 15
assembly meshing, 325 CFD/fluids meshing with tetrahedrons, 265
capturing sharp angles, 269 CFL condition, 122
contacts, finding, 351 CFX-Mesh method
CutCell, 142 replacing, 21
Extend to Connection, 337 CGNS
Feature Capture, 142 file format, 277
finding contacts, 351 version, 277
finding thin sections, 349 CGNS format export, 23
Fluid Surface object, 337 CGNS Version, 277
global meshing controls, 142 characteristic length
Intersection Feature Creation, 142 mesh metric, 122
Keep Solid Mesh, 142 check mesh quality global meshing control, 97
leak path, 491 checking overlapping contact regions - procedure, 59
mesh grouping, 224, 345 clearing generated data, 442
Method, 142 collision avoidance - inflation global meshing controls,
Morphing Frequency, 142 136
sharp angles, capturing, 269 component system
Tessellation Refinement, 142 Mesh, 16
Tetrahedrons, 142 conformal meshing, 3
thin sections, finding, 349 mesh method interoperability, 3
virtual bodies, 337 contact

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Index

sizing - mesh control tool, 238 element shape

contact meshing, 378 meshing according to, 2
contact sizing element size - default global meshing control, 78
description, 238 element size - local mesh sizing tool option, 229
contacts elements - statistics global meshing control, 172
finding for assembly meshing, 351 elements that do not meet target metric, 441
coordinate system enable washers - sizing global meshing control, 92
creating section planes, 430 error limits global meshing control , 97
Courant-Friedrichs-Lewy condition, 122 exporting - procedure
Create Section Plane, 430 previewed inflation mesh, 439
curvature min size - sizing global meshing control, 88 previewed surface mesh, 436
curvature normal angle - local mesh sizing tool option, exporting faceted geometry
229 to ANSYS Fluent Meshing, 23
curvature normal angle - sizing global meshing control, exporting meshes
88 ANSYS Fluent mesh format, 23
CutCell Cartesian meshing ANSYS ICEM CFD format, 23
assemblies, 142 CGNS format, 23
missing tessellations, 443 checking overlapping contact regions, 59
orthogonal quality, 120 Mesh Application File format, 23
CutCell Cartesian meshing and assemblies, 325 overlapping contact regions, 59
Fluid/Solid material property, 336 overlapping Named Selections, 58
cyclic match control Polyflow format, 23
description, 257 Pmeshes, 43
resolving overlapping contact regions, 59
D Extend to Connection, 337
Default Method, 277 extended ICEM CFD meshing, 63
Default Physics Preference, 277 Extra Retries For Assembly, 277
defaults global meshing controls, 73
Defeature Size, 222 F
defeaturing, 85 F4
mesh, 85 modifying virtual topology splits, 460, 464
determination of physics, analysis, and solver settings, face meshing
20 description, 240
dockable worksheet, 365 face splits
dynamic defaults - sizing, 79 using F4 to modify, 464
virtual, 464
E File Format, 277
ease of use meshing features - listed, 431 Fill Small Holes, 222
edge behavior - in local sizing control , 229 fillet ratio - inflation global meshing controls , 141
edge bias - in local sizing control, 229 Find Contacts
edge splits description, 351
using F4 to modify, 460 Find Thin Sections
virtual, 460 description, 349
element option first aspect ratio - inflation global meshing control, 132
in sweep method mesh control, 201 first layer height - inflation global meshing control, 132
element order Fluent
default global control setting, 76 input file format, 277
method control setting, 174 fluent export format global meshing control, 76
element order - default global meshing control, 76 fluent export preview surface mesh global meshing
element quality control, 76
finding worst quality elements, 102 Fluent mesh export, 23
mesh metric, 107 Fluid Surface object, 337

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Fluid/Solid material property ANSYS ICEM CFD, 21
assembly meshing, 336 ANSYS Polyflow, 21
fluids meshing strategies, 15 imprinting
fluids meshing with tetrahedrons, 265 classifications for MultiZone, 310
Format of Input File (*.msh), 277 effects on meshing, 3
Free Mesh Type, MultiZone matched vs. non-matched, 3
Hexa Core, 205 incremental meshing, 361
Hexa Dominant, 205 incremental meshing of bodies, 432
Not Allowed, 205 inflation advanced options - inflation global meshing
Tetra, 205 controls, 136
inflation algorithm - inflation global meshing control,
G 132
gasket mesh control inflation controls
object reference, 269 with all triangles mesher, 370
gasket mesh control object reference, 269 with MultiZone, 370
generating mesh - procedure, 432 with patch conforming mesher, 370
generating mesh controls from a template, 173, 442 with patch independent mesher, 370
generation of contact elements, 397 with quadrilateral dominant mesher, 370
Geometry window, 18 with sweeper, 370
global meshing settings - listed and defined, 73 inflation global meshing controls, 123
Graphics window, 18 inflation mesh control tool, 265
grouping inflation option - inflation global meshing control , 128
bodies for meshing, 224, 345 Inflation options on the Options dialog box, 277
growth rate - inflation global meshing control , 131 initial size seed - sizing global meshing control , 87
growth rate - local mesh sizing tool option, 229 inspecting large meshes, 441
growth rate - sizing global meshing control, 85 instances, 383
growth rate type - inflation global meshing controls , interactions - mesh control, 391
140 interactive ICEM CFD meshing, 63
interactive mode, 64
H interoperability
hard divisions - in local sizing control, 229 mesh method, 3
hard entities, 384
hard points J
using in virtual face splits, 464, 467 Jacobian ratio
HDF5 file format, 277 mesh metric, 109
height of washer - sizing global meshing control, 93
hex dominant option - in method control, 200 L
histogram of mesh metrics, 102 launching the Meshing application, 16
history layer compression - inflation global meshing controls,
meshing steps, 365 136
leak path, 491
I legacy data, 21
ICEM CFD linear elements, 76
batch mode, 64 local meshing settings - listed and defined, 173
extended meshing, 63 loop removal global meshing controls, 171
interactive meshing, 63 loop removal tolerance - loop removal global meshing
interactive mode, 64 control, 172
writing ICEM CFD files, 64 loops
ICEM CFD mesh export, 23 removing, 441
importing meshes showing removable loops, 441
ANSYS CFX, 21
ANSYS Fluent, 21

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Index

M orthogonality quality, 120

manual creation of virtual cells, 446 parallel deviation, 116
Mapped Mesh Type, MultiZone skewness, 118
Hexa, 205 warping factor, 114
Hexa/Prism, 205 mesh metric - statistics global meshing control , 102
Prism, 205 Mesh Metrics bar graph, 102
master body, 345 mesh numbering, 398
match control mesh objects
arbitrary, 258 grouping by type, 444
cyclic, 257 mesh quality workflow, 96
description, 255 mesh refinement, 378
match meshing - and symmetry, 379 mesh sweeping
matched vs. non-matched imprinting, 3 general sweeping, 283
max size - sizing global meshing control, 85 thin model sweeping, 290
maximum angle - inflation global meshing controls , Mesh system, 16
140 meshing
maximum corner angle algorithms - tetrahedral, 178
mesh metric, 117 assembly level vs. part/body level, 2
maximum layers - inflation global meshing control ,131 automatic, 69
maximum thickness - inflation global meshing control auxiliary tools, 397
, 132 by element shape, 2
Merge Edges Bounding Manually Created Faces, 277 capabilities in Workbench, 1
merge face edges - automatic virtual topology, 446 CFD/fluids, 265
Mesh Application File format export, 23 checking overlapping contact regions - procedure,
mesh connection, 398 59
mesh control interaction tables, 391 clearing generated data, 442
mesh control tools conformal meshing, 3
description, 173 control interactions, 391
instances, 383 controls, 69
patterns, 383 determination of physics, analysis, and solver set-
precedence, 173 tings, 20
renaming, 398 ease of use features - listed, 431
mesh copy exporting - procedure
description, 252 previewed inflation mesh, 439
mesh data previewed surface mesh, 436
clearing, 442 fluids, 265
mesh defeaturing global meshing controls, 85 generating mesh - procedure, 432
mesh edit, 398, 421, 425 generating mesh controls from a template, 173, 442
snap to boundary, 398 global controls - listed and defined, 73
mesh grouping control grouping meshing objects, 444
description, 224, 345 implementation in Workbench, 1
mesh match, 398 importing meshes, 21
mesh method interoperability, 3 inspecting large meshes, 441
mesh metric local mesh controls, 173
histogram, 102 loop removal, 441
mesh metric - quality global meshing control mesh sweeping
aspect ratio for quadrilaterals, 109 general sweeping, 283
aspect ratio for triangles, 108 thin model sweeping, 290
characteristic length, 122 Meshing application - basic workflow, 9
element quality, 107 Meshing application - basic workflow for CFD, 10
Jacobian ratio, 109 Meshing application - basic workflow for combining
maximum corner angle, 117 CFD/fluids and structural meshing, 13

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Meshing application - basic workflow for Fluids, 10 specialized - mesh refinement, 378
Meshing application - description, 9 specialized - mixed order meshing, 378
Meshing application - exporting meshes, 23 specialized - MultiZone, 303
Meshing application - launching, 16 specialized - non-manifold faces, 386
Meshing application - working with legacy mesh specialized - pyramid transitions, 379
data, 21 specialized - rigid body contact meshing, 380
Meshing application interface, 18 specialized - rigid body meshing, 380
Named Selections, 57 specialized - spot weld, 384
non-conformal meshing, 3 specialized - sweeping, 283
options specialized - thin solid meshing, 383
export, 277 specialized - winding body meshing, 378
inflation, 277 specialized - wire body meshing, 379
meshing, 277 stopping the mesher, 432
overview, 277 troubleshooting, 477
sizing, 277 types - listed, 2
virtual topology, 277 updating the Mesh cell state - procedure, 431
overlapping contact regions, 59 Workbench vs. Mechanical APDL, 67
overlapping Named Selections, 58 workflow, 1
overview, 1 workflow - basic meshing, 9
parameters, 67 workflow - CFD meshing, 10
previewing inflation - procedure, 437 workflow - combining CFD/fluids and structural
previewing source and target mesh - procedure,437 meshing, 13
previewing surface mesh - procedure, 435 workflow - Fluids meshing, 10
repairing geometry in overlapping Named Selections, Meshing application
58 basic meshing workflow, 9
replacing a Mesh system with a Mechanical Model basic workflow, 9
system, 18 basic workflow for CFD, 10
resolving overlapping contact regions - procedure, basic workflow for fluids, 10
59 combining CFD/fluids meshing and structural
restarting the mesher, 432 meshing, 13
selective, 361, 432 description, 9
showing elements that do not meet target metric - determination of physics, analysis, and solver set-
procedure, 441 tings, 20
showing geometry in overlapping Named Selections interface overview, 18
- procedure, 58 strategies for CFD/fluids meshing, 15
showing inflation surfaces - procedure, 439 meshing support for hard entities, 384
showing mappable faces - procedure, 444 meshing support for pattern instances, 383
showing missing tessellations, 443 meshing support for spot welds, 384
showing problematic geometry - procedure, 440 method mesh control tool
showing removable loops, 441 description, 174
showing sweepable bodies - procedure, 440 interactions - MultiZone quad/tri, 391
sizing options, 69 midside nodes
specialized - 0-thickness walls, 386 mixed order meshing, 175
specialized - assembly, 325 minimum edge length - sizing global meshing control
specialized - baffle meshing, 386 , 96
specialized - CAD instance, 383 mixed order meshing, 175, 378
specialized - contact meshing, 378 multibody parts vs. assemblies of parts, 3
specialized - hard entities, 384 MultiZone, 303
specialized - inflation controls, 370 Free Mesh Type
specialized - listed, 283 Hexa Core, 205
specialized - match meshing and the symmetry Hexa Dominant, 205
folder, 379 Not Allowed, 205

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of ANSYS, Inc. and its subsidiaries and affiliates. 501
Index

Tetra, 205 part - initial size seed meshing control option, 87

imprinting classifications, 310 patch conforming tetrahedral meshing algorithm , 178
Mapped Mesh Type patch independent tetrahedral meshing algorithm ,
Hexa, 205 178
Hexa/Prism, 205 missing tessellations, 443
Prism, 205 patterns, 383
MultiZone option - in method control, 205 persistence
MultiZone quad/tri mesh control interactions, 391 meshing steps, 365
MultiZone quad/tri option - in method control, 222 physics preference default global meshing control , 73
MultiZone Sweep Sizing Behavior pinch control
options, 277 defining pinch control automation, 161
defining pinch controls locally, 260
N defining pinch controls manually, 260
Named Selections generate pinch on refresh - pinch global meshing
and regions for CFX applications, 57 control , 167
exporting faceted geometry to Fluent Meshing, 23 pre, 161, 260
inspecting large meshes, 441 snap to boundary, 260
program controlled inflation and, 126 pinch controls
sending to solver, 58 post, 398
node merge, 421 pinch global meshing controls, 161
node move, 425 pinch tolerance - pinch global meshing control , 166
nodes - statistics global meshing control, 172 Pmeshes, 43
non-conformal meshing, 3 polyflow export unit global meshing control, 76
non-manifold faces, 386 Polyflow format export, 23
num cells across gap - sizing global meshing control , Pmeshes, 43
89 Polyflow import, 21
Number of CPUs for Meshing Methods, 277 post inflation - inflation global meshing control, 132
Number of CPUs for Parallel Part Meshing, 277 post pinch controls, 398
number of layers - inflation global meshing control , pre inflation - inflation global meshing control, 132
131 precedence of mesh control tools, 173
previewing inflation - procedure, 437
O previewing source and target mesh - procedure, 437
Object Generator previewing surface mesh - procedure, 435
using to generate mesh controls, 173, 442 problematic geometry, 440
Options dialog box program controlled inflation, 126
export, 277 projecting nodes to underlying geometry, 446
inflation, 277 proximity min size - sizing global meshing control, 89
meshing, 277 proximity size function sources - sizing global meshing
overview, 277 control, 90
sizing, 277 pyramid transitions, 379
virtual topology, 277
orthogonal quality Q
mesh metric, 120 quadratic elements, 76
overriding of mesh control tools, 173 quadrilateral dominant option - in method control ,221
quality global meshing controls, 96
P quality metrics, 102
parallel deviation
mesh metric, 116 R
Parameter Workspace recording
Meshing application and, 67 selective meshing steps, 365
parameters refinement, 378
Meshing application and, 67 description, 239

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502 of ANSYS, Inc. and its subsidiaries and affiliates.
removing loops, 441 Snap Type, 260
renaming mesh control tool, 398 soft divisions - in local sizing control , 229
repairing overlapping Named Selections, 58 solver preference default global meshing control , 75
replacing a Mesh system with a Mechanical Model sys- span angle center - sizing global meshing control , 87
tem, 18 specialized meshing, 283
replacing CFX-Mesh method, 21 sphere of influence - local mesh sizing tool option, 229
resolving overlapping contact regions - procedure, 59 splitting
rigid body behavior - advanced global meshing control, edges, 460
156 faces, 464
rigid body contact meshing, 380 spot welds, 384
rigid body meshing, 380 stair stepping - inflation global meshing controls, 136
statistics
S quality, 102
section planes virtual topology, 475
creating, 430 statistics global meshing controls, 172
selective meshing, 361, 432 straight sided elements - advanced global meshing
adding steps manually, 365 control, 155
history, 365 strategies
Mesh worksheet, 365 assembly meshing, 325
recording steps, 365 strategies for CFD/fluids meshing, 15
Send to Solver, 58 Sweep Element Size, MultiZone, 205
Sharp Angle Tool sweep option - in method control, 201
description, 269 sweeping - mesh
sharp angles general sweeping, 283
capturing for assembly meshing, 269 thin model sweeping, 290
sheet loop removal - loop removal global meshing symmetry - and match meshing, 379
control, 171 system
showing elements - procedure, 441 Mesh, 16
showing geometry in overlapping Named Selections -
procedure, 58 T
showing inflation surfaces - procedure, 439 target Jacobian ratio - default global meshing control,
showing mappable faces - procedure, 444 101
showing missing tessellations, 443 target quality - default global meshing control, 100
showing problematic geometry - procedure, 440 target skewness - default global meshing control, 101
showing removable loops, 441 template
showing sweepable bodies - procedure, 440 using to generate mesh controls, 173, 442
sizing tessellations
description, 224 missing, 443
specifying options, 83 tetrahedral meshing algorithms, 178
sizing global meshing control, 80 Tetrahedrons meshing
capture curvature, 82 assemblies, 142
capture proximity, 82 missing tessellations, 443
influence of, 69 orthogonal quality, 120
uniform, 83 Tetrahedrons meshing and assemblies, 325
sizing global meshing controls, 78 Fluid/Solid material property, 336
skewness thin model sweeping, 201
mesh metric, 118 thin sections
smoothing - sizing global meshing control, 102 finding for assembly meshing, 349
smoothing iterations - inflation global meshing controls, thin solid meshing, 383
142 topology checking control, 158
Snap to Boundary, 260 tracing
snap to boundary, 398 flow volume leaks, 491

Release 2020 R1 - © ANSYS, Inc. All rights reserved. - Contains proprietary and confidential information
of ANSYS, Inc. and its subsidiaries and affiliates. 503
Index

transition - sizing global meshing control, 87 worksheet

transition ratio - inflation global meshing control , 130 selective meshing, 365
triangle option - in method control , 222 step activation and deactivation, 365
troubleshooting, 477 worst quality elements, 102
Write ICEM CFD Files, 222
U writing ICEM CFD files, 64
Unmeshable Areas, 277
updating the Mesh cell state - procedure, 431
use automatic inflation - inflation global meshing con-
trol, 125
use post smoothing - inflation global meshing controls,
142
use sheet thickness for pinch - pinch global meshing
control , 166

V
Verbose Messages from Meshing, 277
virtual body
creation, 337
Extend to Connection, 337
virtual cell
creation, 446
projecting to underlying geometry, 446
virtual hard vertex
creation, 464, 467
using F4 to modify, 464, 467
virtual split edge
creation, 460
using F4 to modify, 460
virtual split face
creation, 464
using F4 to modify, 464
virtual topology
automatic mode, 446
common features, 471
common operations, 467
overview, 445
repair mode, 446
statistics, 475
Virtual Topology Properties dialog, 472
Virtual Topology Properties dialog, 472

W
warning limits global meshing control , 97
warping factor
mesh metric, 114
winding body meshing, 378
wire body meshing, 379
Workbench
meshing capabilities, 1
Workbench meshing vs. Mechanical APDL meshing, 67
workflows , 9

Release 2020 R1 - © ANSYS, Inc. All rights reserved. - Contains proprietary and confidential information
504 of ANSYS, Inc. and its subsidiaries and affiliates.