Getting Started with Simmodeler

Goal of using SimModeler

In this section you will learn how to create a mesh and apply boundary conditions to your translated-model.smd model file from the previous step. You will save both the model and mesh containing the boundary conditions under new file names, which we will later prepare to be passed into Chef.

Launching the Software

First, tunnel to viz002 or viz003 using vglconnect -s viz00x.

Then, set your environment as shown in the convert step video.

Finally, run vglrun simmodeler in your terminal to launch simmodeler.

Accessing the User Manual

When launching simmodeler, there is a blue question mark at the top right of the GUI. Click it and then click "launch manual" to open the user manual associated with the version of simmodeler you are using. This gives detailed descriptions of the various attributes and how they are defined to generate the desired mesh.

Surface Meshing

2D and 1D Boundary Layers

To generate a proper surface mesh, it is important that both 2D and 1D boundary layers are implemented. Note that a 2D Boundary layer is defined on a surface and a 1D Boundary layer is defined on a line. The linked video shows both 2D and 1D boundary layers being applied to an airfoil and the mesh that results from these applied attributes.

Mesh Size and Face Extrusions

Two more useful attributes when generating proper surface meshes are defining Mesh Sizes and Face Extrusions on your desired surfaces. Face Extrusions are useful when adding refinement over curved surfaces. This process is well covered in this video.

Volume Meshing

3D Boundary Layers

One of the most important aspects of volume mesh development is generating proper 3D boundary layers. This process is well outlined here from around 8:30 to 16:00. Note that all mesh attributes are set up under the "Meshing" tab.

Mesh Refinement Zones

Mesh refinement zones are useful for increasing the grid density within certain volumes of your simulation domain. The linked mesh refinement tutorial will briefly walk you through how these are implemented.

Saving Out the Mesh

Once you are satisfied with your mesh refinement, you are ready to generate and save out the mesh. In the meshing tab, you will want to click Generate Mesh. The default settings will suffice for proper mesh generation. If your grid is large, this step can take some time. Once the grid is finished generating, you will want to save out this file as you will need it later.

Applying Boundary and Initial Conditions

A nice description of each of the common BCs used in both the Compressible and Incompressible builds of PHASTA is provided here. The video linked in this section shows how the BCs are applied for an incompressible case. Note that the case needs to be called geom as is done in the tutorial video. Once the BCs are successfully implemented, you have saved out a model file with these BCs (.smd), and have generated your grid (.sms file), your are ready to prepare the grid for Chef. To get started on this step, head over to Prepping the Grid for Chef.