Hexagon software

Generative Design tool ‘thinks like an engineer’ enabling designers to explore ideas

July 2, 2020 By Leslie Langnau Leave a Comment

MSC Software Corporation (MSC), a global leader in Computer-Aided Engineering (CAE) simulation software and services and part of Hexagon’s Manufacturing Intelligence division, released MSC Apex Generative Design 2020, a tool that enables engineers to explore new approaches and optimize any part of their design in one step to develop innovative products up to 80% faster than conventional approaches.

MSC Apex Generative Design generates lightweight and smoothed preliminary component concepts based on just the engineering goals. It does away with the iterative process of eliminating unsuitable candidates, freeing up the engineer’s time to explore the design space and find more optimal and novel solutions by fine tuning pre-vetted, manufacturing-ready designs.

With MSC Apex Generative Design:

–A surgeon can create a smarter, latticed implant design that’s pre-validated for additive manufacturing and the same weight as the bone it replaced, improving biocompatibility to encourage muscle attachment and patient comfort.

–The aerospace engineer can redesign a product part-by-part for lightweighting, confident in maintaining the same performance and safety while improving efficiency.

–An automotive designer can build a motorcycle chassis that is 56% lighter than previous iterations, improving range while saving on fuel consumption.

–Manufacturers can exploit the capabilities of additive manufacturing and optimize their designs to enable first-time-right part production for entirely new products.

MSC Apex Generative Design can run on a normal laptop to generate initial candidates within an hour, and produce a final design within a matter of hours. Adding to its accessibility, the tool is also now equipped with an intuitive interface, opening its capabilities up to designers and engineers without specialized knowledge of computer aided engineering. Design goals can be set up directly, or set against an existing design from Computer Aided Design (CAD) or directly from CAE models.

MSC Apex Generative Design performs topology optimization and intelligent smoothing in a single step, producing parts with low distortion risk and ‘bionic’ printable geometries. The resulting parts are automatically designed for performance, balancing the material use with strength requirements and stress distribution.

Users can link MSC Apex Generative Design with industry-leading manufacturing simulation tools Simufact Additive for metals and Digimat AM for polymers to reduce build failures and make optimal use of materials at every step.

The new tool was first announced in November 2019. This first major release introduces new controls that make it easier for designers to adjust the complexity of the generated designs and how much the fixation points can be reduced. It also exploits many productivity benefits of the underlying MSC Apex platform, for example direct export of engineered models (mesh) to Computer Aided Design (CAD) formats so that generative design optimisation can be used within common CAD/CAM manufacturing workflows.

Hexagon | MSC Software
www.mscsoftware.com/product/msc-apex-generative-design

Additive manufacturing used for local PPE solution in Belgium

May 14, 2020 By Leslie Langnau Leave a Comment

Bruce Jenkins | Ora Research

“Over the last month or so, the Coronavirus or COVID-19 pandemic has captured our collective consciousness across the globe and forced us to rethink every aspect of our professional and personal lives,” says Kaustubh Nande, Global Marketing Director at Hexagon’s| MSC Software. “Hexagon too has taken some concrete steps to protect our workforce and to minimize risk to the supply of our products and our services to our customers. For instance, we put in place a work from home program to use our smart manufacturing software packages and put together additional online learning options for manufacturing professionals.

“One interesting project undertaken by our team in Belgium was about using in-house knowledge and available material and tools to solve a specific issue posed by the COVID-19 outbreak. Across the globe, there have been several reports of hospital workers suffering from shortages in Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), due to the unprecedented demand across the world.”

The Hexagon | e-Xstream team at Belgium “heard about a requirement for PPE, specifically face shield holders, in a nearby hospital. The team decided to chip in and do its bit by conceptualizing an additive manufacturing solution to the problem. The team had access to a 3D printer and suitable material within the office. The team first found an open CAD model that was available online and plugged it into the 3D printer and used the design to 3D print some face shield holders right at the Hexagon office.”

The company says that, “backed by a thorough understanding of additive manufacturing techniques and knowledge about the use of Digimat and e-Xstream in plastic printing, the team was able to think smart and deliver on what the doctors required. In the coming weeks we will also be increasing the production count. The finished product met the need for equipment that could protect hospital staff. The key thing is these plastic PPE liners can be disinfected easily and reused by the hospital. Depending on material available you can print in various colors for easy identification.”

MSC concludes, “This gesture by our Belgium team stands out as a great example of how the right hardware and software tools combined with the proper knowledge can bring in quick, practical solutions to solve real-life issues quickly and effectively.”

Work-from-home information

MSC adds: “Our customers, employees, and partners are at the heart of what we do. Our concerns and well wishes go out to all those directly and indirectly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. We are taking the threat very seriously by protecting our workforce and minimizing the risk to the supply of our products and services to you during this time. Across the globe, the measures being put in place to reduce the spread of COVID-19 means that many companies are asking their employees to work from home.

“Our goal is to offer the level of responsiveness and support that you have come to expect from MSC. If there is anything we can help you with, please do not hesitate to contact us. Please visit mscsoftware.com/work-from-home/assistance-programs for complete details on our current assistance programs, as well as check back for additional announcements in the coming days.”

Kaustubh Nande

Hexagon’s COVID-19 information page

Predict how materials and manufacturing methods affect design

April 20, 2020 By Leslie Langnau Leave a Comment

e-Xstream engineering, part of Hexagon’s Manufacturing Intelligence division, unveiled a new 10X Integrated Computational Material Engineering (ICME) Solution that applies academic research with leading software and inspection solutions to accelerate innovation by enabling manufacturers to design, engineer and test components virtually through simulation.

With ICME, designers can work with materials such as carbon fibre composites and use them to their full potential through material simulations with better data and modelling. 10X ICME leverages the full potential of ICME. Using 10X ICME, it is possible to predict how combinations of materials such as composites and manufacturing methods from injection molding to 3D printing will affect everything from the speed to the sustainability of future designs, such as aircraft and cars. It reduces the amount of materials testing required and correlates measurement with simulation so manufacturers can more easily validate simulations. In addition, because materials data are made readily available, engineers can apply accurate values to make optimal designs rather than relying on approximations.

The digital integration of end-to-end supply chains will also cut material waste by reducing dependence on extensive real-world prototyping and over-design. A single material-centric ‘digital twin’ of the entire manufacturing line from material development to final part performance helps organizations predict the performance of end products at concept stage. It also presents opportunities for data-driven customization of materials for specific purposes such as recyclability or energy-efficiency.

10X ICME helps new technologies such as lightweight blended wing airliners or ultra-quiet electric vehicles be developed faster. The solution is already being used by a major aerospace and automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to accelerate the rate at which new designs can be brought from concept to reality. Initial customer projects using this new approach are being completed in half the time and at a third of the cost.

There are 10 pillars within the 10X ICME solution, which combine the different ICME technologies from the ecosystem to address specific use cases. Manufacturers can choose the pillars most pertinent to them today and mold their solution to their needs as the disciplines and processes evolve.

10X ICME draws on cutting-edge material science research, Hexagon’s metrology, software and e-Xstream engineering material simulation technologies. It integrates the supply chain of materials suppliers, software tools, manufacturing equipment and metrology.

Hexagon | e-Xstream engineering
e-Xstream.com
hexagon.com

MSC pivots business model so engineers can continue innovating anytime and anywhere during COVID-19

April 7, 2020 By Leslie Langnau Leave a Comment

MSC Software Corporation (MSC), a global leader in Computer-Aided Engineering (CAE) simulation software and services and part of Hexagon’s Manufacturing Intelligence division, has announced that it will provide its customers with free offline licensing and remote access options to help them remain productive while working from home as COVID-19 closes customers offices globally.

In the past, remote working has posed a challenge for the manufacturing industry, with many of its tools and processes being rooted in old-fashioned workflows. The COVID-19 mitigation measures, which have led to vast swaths of the engineering workforce forced out of the factories and offices, have driven the need for a more flexible, distributed mode of operations.

Computer-Aided Engineering and simulation tools can support this evolution, and MSC’s customer-centric move to flip their licensing model to allow for use in the home is proof in point.
Roger Assaker, Chief Customer Engagement Officer of MSC Software, said: “We are adapting to the needs of our customers, and are also adding a helping hand to support their business continuity so they can continue to design, engineer and perform virtual testing outside their place of work. We are facilitating the access to our software, knowledge base and support to enable the creation of even more value with our tools, helping companies to maintain productivity and innovation when many manufacturing lines are down.

“We appreciate that these are very challenging times for many of our customers, and we can guarantee that we will be supporting them to the best of our ability, every step of the way.”

The offering from MSC Software includes:
• Extension of licences for work-from-home support or alternative access options for MSC Software CAE solutions
• Free access to online learning for MSC Software solutions

Hexagon | MSC Software
mscsoftware.com

Better analysis of mixed fluid-particle interactions

November 23, 2019 By Leslie Langnau Leave a Comment

Cradle Software, part of Hexagon’s Manufacturing Intelligence division, announced advanced co-simulation and post-processing capabilities that make it easier for engineers to analyze multi-physics problems and mixed fluid-particle interactions.

The Cradle CFD v2020 suite comprises scSTREAM (structured mesh) and scFLOW (next-generation unstructured mesh) Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) technology. Cradle combines open cosimulation with the scPOST postprocessor.

New aero-acoustics simulation in Cradle CFD v2020 analyzes flow-induced noise in scFLOW by seamlessly connecting to the Actran acoustics simulation software through a dedicated plugin. It enables users to simulate aeroacoustics such as the noise from a car door mirror in a single software environment without learning to use acoustics software or spend time coupling systems.

Another development adds Discrete Element Method (DEM) to CFD and thermal dynamics within the scFLOW environment, reducing the complexity and manual work required to simulate fluids with particles. For example, optimizing the energy and water usage of a washing machine. Using the DEM feature, it is possible to evaluate heat transfer and filtering in isolation, or combine it with CFD analysis and other physics types.

Integration with system modeling software is also enhanced. Building on the open Functional Mockup Interface (FMI) integration already provided, Cradle now connects directly with more 1-D simulation tools. This enables customers to model complete products including electrical and mechanical subsystems in conjunction with the software’s built-in thermodynamics. Customers can easily map the heat transfer between electrical components using Cradle’s HeatPathView tool to visualize these multi-physics interactions. For example, providing optimization of heat routes in consumer electrical goods to enable system-level decision making with Maplesim or other 1-D simulation tools.

Cosimulation with MSC Software simulation solutions including MSC Nastran, Marc and Adams have also been enhanced to rapidly generate high quality static and dynamic visualizations in scPOST. Cradle, and all MSC Software products including Actran can be accessed through the MSC One token-based licensing system so it is easy for anyone to access and use any tool to produce more realistic multi-physics simulations.

scPOST also makes product and engineering design reviews more accessible for designers, customers or business management. Any simulation through video export, virtual reality or interactive 3D models.

Cradle v2020 is available from today.

Hexagon | Cradle Software
www.mscsoftware.com/product/software-cradle
www.cradle-cfd.com