Water draining around a rear view mirror simulated by the CFD capabilities of ESI’s Virtual Performance Solution. (Image courtesy of ESI Group.)
These CFD capabilities will let engineers assess how water drains around a vehicle. This will help design teams ensure that a car has adequate sealing to prevent leaks, for example. Additionally, the CFD capabilities can be coupled with a crash simulation to assess things like the sloshing of gasoline in the gas tanks during a collision.
The release also focuses on the high performance computing (HPC) scalability of noise vibration and harshness (NVH) simulations. This will allow engineers to assess the sound and vibrational fatigue of larger and more detailed designs.
The next big improvement to VPS will let users organize their CAE models with modular feature inputs. ESI reports that this will allow the models to be organized “in a more flexible way.” Engineers will be able to refine their models more regularly in order to streamline iterations as more information becomes available. The aim is to improve the end-to-end virtual prototyping, or single-core models, using increased granularity.
Single-core models simplify the simulation process as they are optimized for engineers in various disciplines to use the same model for different simulations. The idea is to create a more comprehensive digital prototype which is usable in multiple situations.
“HONDA R&D has been using ESI’s Virtual Performance Solution for over 20 years. Today, we are leveraging the capacities of Virtual Performance Solution’s single-core model on a full car for our latest vehicle platform development,” said Mr Eisei Higuchi, chief engineer at HONDA R&D Co.
“The consistent chaining of virtual manufacturing results and virtual performance — not only for crash and safety domains but also for NVH and durability — is a definite technological breakthrough,” Higuchi continued. “Virtual Performance Solution enables us to ensure the right levels of product performance for lightweight design and to face challenges related to evolving regulations.”
This release of VPS appears to focus more on incremental improvements than revolutionary changes in the software. This could be due in part to the company’s focus on making fit-for-purpose simulation software. For instance, ESI Group has various tools for stamping, welding and seat simulation.
Focusing development on these targeted tools can certainly create leaders in niche markets. However, as the company aims to produce leading software for each individual discipline, development teams could find themselves challenged by the scope of comprehensive software like VPS.
This is why many other simulation software providers have opted for a more consolidated approach when it comes to the future of simulation. Though these companies won’t have the advantage of becoming a targeted leader, they can focus time on larger CAE trends like simulation democratization, linking systems engineering to simulation and nano FEA.
Would you use ESI’s new CFD capabilities for VPS? Should ESI focus on consolidation or stick with a fit-for-purpose approach? Comment below.