FreeCAD FEM in conjunction with other FOSS simulation tools

[mviljamaa_]

Given the problem of "lack of a 'centralized' platform for open source multiphysics simulation" as described in this short forum post: http://www.researchgate.net/post/Where_ ... Simulation

How does FreeCAD FEM integrate with other (free) open source tools? FreeCAD being "fairly" central in the open source CAD world, would it be ideal for FreeCAD to be developed in order to work flexibly with other simulation tools? Does this already happen?

[jriegel]

FreeCAD was designed right from the start to integrate different CEA projects.

For FEM we have integrated the SALOME and Netgen pre-processing (meshers) and some basic post-processing stuff. We will focus first of using it for basic mechanical simulation cases mainly with Calculix. But the platform is open toward any kind of solver and problem...

Actually I believe we need something like FreeCAD to collect all the bits and pieces of FOSS CEA software. It makes really no sense that every PhD again and again implement some kind of Gui or a Application. The researcher should concentrate on algorithms and methods, and leave the rest to a integration project like ours..

[giorgoss]

FreeCAD was designed right from the start to integrate different CEA projects.

For FEM we have integrated the SALOME and Netgen pre-processing (meshers) and some basic post-processing stuff. We will focus first of using it for basic mechanical simulation cases mainly with Calculix. But the platform is open toward any kind of solver and problem...

Can you please elaborate on this because it is very interesting.
I have downloaded v 0.13 but I didn't find any integration with Netgen.
Is it under development and will be released in a next version or I just missed it?

[jriegel]

FEM integration is part of the upcoming 0.14 release. At the beginning it will be very small, but easy to extend with python to wide variety of solver and problems...

[giorgoss]

Do you have any rough idea when this is going to be ready?
(BTW I've downloaded the latest unstable 0.14 (Windows) but I didn't notice such capability.)

So, are you are going to integrate all NetGen's functionality (meshing parameters etc) or just a few basic features?

[wmayer]

So, are you are going to integrate all NetGen's functionality (meshing parameters etc) or just a few basic features?

We do not use the Netgen API directly but via the Salome Mesh interface. There are parameters available like maximum size, second order (I guess to bisect), optimizing topology, growth rate, number of elements per edge and radius. I think this is pretty much the same what Netgen offers.

https://github.com/FreeCAD/FreeCAD_sf_m ... is.hxx#L41

[jriegel]

The most work is done, integrating the salome and netgen mesher. Using the different parameters the algorithems offer is a matter of making a Gui/Dialog for it. For the beginning I will concentrade to get a tool chain for Tet (4/10) up and running with preprocessing and postprocessing. The it should be easy to add additional meshing features and/or post-processing features.
Actually there is no constant build for Windows, so if you want the latest def there you have to compile on your own...