You have to simulate to innovateJune 2006Struggling with a particular product development? A bit of mathematical modelling and subsequent simulation can go a long way to reducing those numerous, tedious design iterations - not to mention soaring prototyping costs Before I embark on this brief review of the latest mathematical modelling/simulation offerings, I would suggest that anyone currently using, or contemplating using software of this kind take a look at NAFEMS' web site (www.nafems.org). This organisation, originally set up to promote best practice in finite element analysis, but now covering all related engineering and scientific analysis fields, offers a one-stop shop for independent information on all aspects of the subject. But, back to my review:
Electronic and electromechanical systems engineers will be interested in news about the latest version of Ansoft's Simplorer (www.simplorer.com) simulation software (V7), which is widely used in the design of large-scale, multi-domain schemes such as industrial automation systems. Simplorer V7 Service Pack 5 allows larger analogue systems to be simulated and is fully compliant with the IEEE-endorsed standard modelling language, VHDL-AMS, for analogue mixed signal designs. It also provides a link to Ansoft's electromagnetic simulation software, Maxwell, to assist in the modelling of mechatronic components.
New from Wolfram Research (www.wolfram.com) is a package of design software for Mathematica aimed at designers of optical systems. LensLab and Rayica 2 are third-party Mathematica add-ons that considerably enhance the design and analysis of 3D optical systems. Rayica, for example, offers more than 6,800 predefined commercial optical parts to assist in the modelling of optical instruments, while LensLab offers an entry-level ray-tracing module that will be of considerable interest to both educators and professionals alike.
If you have a complex non-linear dynamic system to model and simulate, then you should be taking a look at the latest version (V6) of Visual Solutions' VisSim (http://vissim.adeptscience.co.uk). Claimed to be between four and ten times faster than competitive simulators, VisSim products are available for evaluation in trial versions on CD-ROM. The CD, which can be ordered from the Adept Scientific site, also contains application packs, movie tutorials and hundreds of sample simulations across many engineering disciplines.
Adept is currently offering a new Maplesoft product called BlockBuilder
(http://blockbuilder.adeptscience.co.uk), which provides a 'first principles' physical modelling environment for Simulink. This lets you develop mathematical models of dynamic systems (using the full copy of Maple bundled in with the package) and then implement them in Simulink as a subsystem block.
While on the subject of Simulink (www.mathworks.com), there are new tools available that extend this popular simulation environment into the field of hydraulic power and control systems. SimHydraulics 1.0 lets you describe multi-domain systems containing hydraulic and mechanical components as physical networks. There are around 75 hydraulic and mechanical components described in the package, including pumps, valves and accumulators, plus a foundation library of hydraulic building blocks and fundamental mechanical and mathematical elements. There's even a customisable library of common hydraulic fluids.
Soft Analytics (www.softanalytics.com) is offering a 30-day trial version of its DASE (Data, Analysis and Simulation Environment) product, which can be downloaded from its site. DASE provides a sophisticated block-diagram modelling environment and supports simulation construction via a graphical block-diagram editor. Meanwhile, MathCore Engineering (www.mathcore.com), supplier of the MathModelica virtual model building and simulation tool, has released MathCode C++ 1.3 for Windows. A key feature is the generation of code for the Complex data type, making MathCode suitable for rapid prototyping and faster execution in areas where Complex arithmetic is extensively used, such as image and signal processing.
Close collaboration between designers and modellers requires good tools for handling geometries. The latest version (V3.2) of Comsol's Multiphysics environment introduces an important new add-on - the CAD Import Module. This utility greatly simplifies the transition from geometric designs that engineers create in CAD, to mathematical modelling in Multiphysics. In addition to native Parasolid and SAT formats, the CAD Import Module also supports STEP and IGES file formats, and it works with optional add-ons dedicated to a variety of CAD environments, including: Pro/Engineer, Catia V4 and V5, VDA-FS, and Autodesk Inventor.
Dr Know's recommended download is the BlockBuilder for Simulink Technical Evaluation Suite. Download yours today:
http://www.adeptscience.co.uk/download/dlddsp/9124/0/All/BlockBuilder+for+Simulink+Technical+Evaluation+Suite.html
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