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    SimScale DocumentationSimulation SetupBoundary ConditionsBoundary Condition Visualization

    Boundary Condition Visualization

    The boundary condition visualization tool (Beta) provides a visual representation of the simulation set up to the user. As such, it is useful for creating reports and visually evaluating the setup of a simulation.

    The user can toggle the boundary condition visualization on or off by clicking on the following icon within the Workbench:

    boundary condition visualization toggle
    Figure 1: This icon allows the user to enable or disable the visualization of boundary conditions in the viewer.

    Each boundary condition is represented by a different icon. For example, in the image above, a force condition presses the small cylinder on the top, while the bottom boundary condition is a fixed support. Find below a couple of examples.

    Example: Electronics Box Tutorial

    In the electronics box tutorial, a housing containing electronic equipment undergoes a conjugate heat transfer simulation. Figure 2 shows the outlet (to the left) consists of a fan boundary condition while the inlet (to the right) receives a natural convection inlet/outlet configuration. Finally, the external walls of the housing receive a wall condition to account for convective heat fluxes:

    boundary condition visualization CFD
    Figure 2: The boundary condition icons are linked to faces assigned to them.

    By clicking on each of the icons, you can open the configuration window of the boundary condition associated with it. For example, by clicking on the wall icon, the following window opens up:

    boundary condition visualization accessing settings
    Figure 3: By clicking on the icons, you can quickly access and change the settings of a boundary condition.

    With this workflow, users can access and adjust their boundary condition settings more naturally.

    Boundary Condition Icons

    Each boundary condition has its icon. Find an overview of CFD boundary conditions in the table below:

    Boundary Condition (CFD)Icon
    Velocity Inletvelocity inlet condition visualization icon
    Velocity Outletvelocity outlet condition visualization icon
    Pressure Inletpressure inlet condition visualization icon
    Pressure Outletpressure outlet condition visualization icon
    Wallwall condition visualization icon
    Fanfan boundary condition visualization icon
    Periodicperiodic condition visualization icon
    Symmetrysymmetry condition visualization icon
    Wedgewedge condition visualization icon
    Customcustom boundary condition visualization icon
    Empty 2Dempty 2d boundary condition visualization icon
    Natural Convection Inlet/Outletnatural convection inlet/outlet boundary condition icon
    Table 1: Boundary condition visualization icons for CFD simulations

    Likewise, solid mechanics boundary conditions are also supported:

    Boundary Condition (FEA)Icon
    Pressurepressure condition visualization icon
    Follower Pressurefollower pressure boundary condition visualization icon
    Forceforce boundary condition visualization icon
    Fixed Valuefixed value boundary condition visualization icon
    Surface Loadsurface load condition visualization icon
    Volume Loadvolume load condition visualization icon
    Centrifugal Forcecentrifugal force boundary condition visualization icon
    Remote Forceremote force condition visualization icon
    Symmetry Planesymmetry plane condition visualization icon
    Remote Displacementremote displacement condition visualization icon
    Fixed Supportfixed support boundary condition visualization icon
    Rotating Motionrotating motion condition visualization icon
    Elastic Supportelastic support boundary condition visualization icon
    Bolt Preloadbolt preload boundary condition visualization icon
    Point Masspoint mass condition visualization icon
    Cylindrical Hinge Constraintcylindrical hinge boundary condition visualization icon
    Table 2: Boundary condition visualization icons for solid mechanics analyses

    Lastly, thermal boundary conditions are also contemplated:

    Boundary Condition (Thermal)Icon
    Fixed Value Temperaturefixed temperature boundary condition visualization icon
    Convective Heat Fluxconvective heat flux boundary condition visualization icon
    Surface Heat Fluxsurface heat flux condition visualization icon
    Volume Heat Fluxvolume heat flux condition visualization icon
    Table 3: Boundary condition visualization icons for thermal (FEA) simulations

    Important

    Base excitation and cyclic symmetry conditions are not represented in the viewer by any icon.

    Last updated: April 27th, 2023

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