HWCFD-T: 0001 Introduction to HyperWorks CFD User Interface



Figure 1.

The tools and entities displayed in the HyperWorks CFD graphical user interface can be divided into six general categories as shown in the figure above.

  1. The menu bar (1) contains the drop-down menus for File input-output, Edit, and View operations.
  2. Ribbons (2) contain various functionalities and tools available in HW-CFD. Navigate between various ribbons by clicking the ribbon tabs to the right of the menu bar. After selecting a ribbon, the corresponding tool icons are displayed on the screen. The functionalities of various ribbons and corresponding tools are briefly explained in this section.
    Geometry ribbon
    The Geometry ribbon consists of tools for converting, repairing, creating, editing, and validating the geometry. The tools available under the FE Geometry sub-section can be used to convert a geometry model to an FE model, cap the openings automatically, define local or proximity-based wrap controls, wrap the model, remesh the wrapped results, and fix the mesh quality.


    Figure 2.
    When a geometry file is imported, the Repair tools can be used to detect any defects present in the CAD model like intersections, free edges, duplicates, sliver surfaces, etc. and fix those errors.


    Figure 3.
    The tools available under the Create sub-section can be used to create geometric entities like points, lines, surfaces, etc.


    Figure 4.
    The tools required for performing operations like plugging cavities, stitching surfaces, etc. are available under the Edit sub-section.


    Figure 5.
    The Defeature tool can be used to resolve these defects or model a new geometry, while the Validate tool can be used to detect any defects present in the CAD model. This process is usually known as CAD cleanup.


    Figure 6.
    Flow ribbon
    The Flow ribbon contains tools for setting up simulation parameters, solver settings, and reference properties such as material properties, heat sources, porous media, etc. The Setup sub-section is where you set up the physics equations and solver settings as well as create material models, multiplier functions, and parameters.


    Figure 7.
    The Domain sub-section contains tools for assigning reference properties such as materials, heat and momentum sources, reference frames, etc. to volumes.


    Figure 8.
    Surface boundary conditions such as inlets, outlets, far fields, etc. can be assigned using the tools under the Boundaries sub-section. By default, all the surfaces are assigned a boundary condition of type ‘auto_wall’ and are placed under Default wall. Please refer to the AcuSolve Surface Processing manual for more information about auto_wall. As you assign boundary conditions to the surfaces, they are moved into the respective group.


    Figure 9.
    Radiation ribbon
    The Radiation ribbon is where you define radiation physics, create thermal, solar, and participating media models, and apply radiation parameters.


    Figure 10.
    Motion ribbon
    Mesh boundary conditions and mesh-motion-related parameters can be defined using the tools available in the Motion ribbon. Parameters such as mesh motion type and mesh displacement constraints can be defined here. In addition to the mesh boundary conditions, code coupling with external codes such as OptiStruct and MotionSolve can be defined here


    Figure 11.
    Mesh ribbon
    Meshing parameters such as surface mesh controls, boundary layer parameters, volume mesh parameters, and zone meshing parameters can be defined here. This ribbon also has tools for local remeshing. Once all the mesh controls are defined, you can generate the mesh using the Volume tool.


    Figure 12.
    Solution ribbon
    The Solution ribbon is used to set up monitors for any individual point, surface, or volume set output. The Field tool is used to set the nodal output frequency for the entire model. The Initialize tools are used to set the nodal initial conditions for variables like pressure, velocity, and variables specific to each turbulence model.


    Figure 13.

    Once the complete set up is done, the Run tool is used to launch AcuSolve. Once the AcuSolve run parameters are set, the simulation can be started, and you can monitor the status of the run using the run manager.

    Post ribbon
    The Post ribbon is where you can post-process the results. The Visualize tools under the Post ribbon can be used to create things like plots, streamlines, iso surfaces, and section cuts. The Measures tools can be used to probe variables at desired locations.


    Figure 14.
  3. The modeling window (3) is where the model is displayed. The model display can be manipulated using the view controls shown in the table below. Clicking on the model will highlight the entity being selected and right-clicking on an entity will give you additional options for the operations that can be done based on the context. Some of the functions available using right-click are Show, Hide, Isolate, Select, Advanced select, Create groups, and so on.
    Button Operation
    Middle mouse scroll Zoom in and out
    Right-click hold and drag Pan the model
    Middle mouse click hold and drag Rotate the model
    Left-click Select entity
    Ctrl + Left-click Select multiple entities
    Left-click hold and drag Window select
    Shift + Left-click Deselect entities
  4. The entity selector (4) enables you to control what entities can be selected using the left-mouse button. The selector can be set to any of the entities shown in the figure below. When you open any tool, the selector is automatically set to the entity (entities) which are appropriate for that command.


    Figure 15.
  5. The visualization of the model can be controlled using the tools available in View Controls toolbar (5). The display of mesh, model coloring, section cuts, standard views, and so on can be controlled using these tools.


    Figure 16.
  6. The Browsers (6) show the entities and setup parameters in the model and list them in a tree structure. They can be turned on or off from the View menu. Some common functions that can be performed in all browsers are show, hide, and isolate. The Part Browser can be used to manage the model's parts, surface bodies, and solid bodies The Setup Browser can be used to create and edit instances of model setup parameters such as boundary conditions, domains, mesh controls, and so on. Neither the Part Browser nor the Setup Browser are available when working in the Post ribbon. The Post Browser can be used to control the view and edit various post-processing visualizations. The Post Browser is only available when working in the Post ribbon.