EDEM Creator

The EDEM Creator is the pre-processor for creating an EDEM simulation model.

Use the EDEM Creator to:

Setup simulations quickly and logically using EDEM's intuitive and user-friendly interface
Import equipment geometry from various CAD files (IGES, STL, STEP, and more)
Assign motion to equipment (linear, rotational, sinusoidal, force and torque driven motions, and more)
Model particle shape using the highly validated and computationally efficient Multi-Sphere method
Automatically create complex shapes using the Sphere Fitting tool
Easily create flexible materials and fibers using the Meta Particle feature

About the EDEM Creator

The EDEM Creator allows you to set up and initialize your model. It is where you import particles and geometries and define the other model parameters.

Creator Tree
Viewer
Creator Toolbar and Menu Bar
Data Browser (Creator)
Tree Filter

Creator Tree

The Creator Tree is displayed on the left side of the EDEM window. It contains information about the Project, Bulk Material, Equipment Material, Geometries, Physics, and Environment.

Viewer

The Viewer displays 3D representations of your particles, geometry, and fields (if applicable). You can control the rotation, position, and zoom factor of the Viewer using a mouse.

Creator Toolbar and Menu Bar

Icon	Name	Description
	Creator	Click to switch to the Creator
	Simulator	Click to switch to the Simulator
	Analyst	Click to switch to the Analyst
	New	Click to create a new model
	Open	Click to open an existing model
	Save	Click to save your model
	Help	Click to view the online help
	Change Time Step Back	Move to the first Time Step in the simulation
	Change Time Step Forward	Move to the last Time Step in the simulation
	Start Coupling Server	Click to start the Coupling Server
	Coupling Server Disabled	Indicates that the Server is not running
	Server Awaiting Connection	Indicates that the Server is started but not connected
	Server Connected	Indicates that the Server is connected
	Stop Server	Click to stop the Coupling Server
	Filled Display Mode	Click to display geometry filled
	Mesh Display Mode	Click to display geometry
	Points Display Mode	Click to display geometry
	Display Particles	Click to display or hide all particles
	Display Cylindrical Periodic Boundary Conditions	Click to visualize cylindrical periodic boundary
	Add Bulk Material	Click to add a Bulk Material to the simulation
	Add Equipment Material	Click to add Equipment material to the simulation
	Save Material Block	Click to save block of material for material bed
	Transfer Material from Database Materials	Click to transfer materials to and from the Material Database.
	Rename Material	Click to rename the selected material
	Copy Material	Click to copy the selected material
	Delete Material	Click to delete the selected material
	Open GEMM Wizard	Click to open the GEMM Wizard
	Add Particle	Click to add a particle to the Bulk Material
	Import Particle	Click to import a particle to a Bulk Material.
	Export Particle	Click to export a particle.
	Rename Particle	Click to rename a particle.
	Copy Particle	Click to copy a particle.
	Delete Particle	Click to delete a particle.
	Add Sphere	Click to add a Sphere to a particle.
	Copy Sphere	Click to copy a particle Sphere.
	Delete Sphere	Click to delete a particle Sphere.
	Add a Geometry	Click to add geometry
	Add a Box	Click to add a box from the geometry drop down list
	Add a Cylinder	Click to add a cylinder from geometry drop down list
	Add a Polygon	Click to add a polygon from geometry drop down list
	Import a Geometry	Click to import a geometry from a 3D CAD file
	Rename a Geometry	Click to rename a geometry sections
	Copy a Geometry	Click to copy a geometry sections
	Delete a Geometry	Click to delete a geometry section.
	Merge a Geometry	Click to merge geometry sections
	Replace a Geometry Part	Click to replace geometry with an alternative one
	Add a Motion	Click to add a motion from the drop down list
	Add Linear Translation	Click to add linear translation to geometry
	Add Linear Rotation	Click to add linear rotation to geometry
	Add Sinusoidal Translation	Click to add sinusoidal translation to geometry
	Add Sinusoidal Rotation	Click to add sinusoidal rotation to geometry
	Add Conveyor Translation	Click to add conveyor translation to geometry
	Add Conveyor Rotation	Click to add conveyor rotation to geometry
	Rename a Motion	Click to rename a Motion
	Copy a Motion	Click to copy a Motion and apply to the current geometry or an alternative one
	Delete a Motion	Click to delete a Motion
	Move Motion Up	Click to reorder Motion
	Move Motion Down	Click to reorder Motion
	Add Force	Click to add force to geometry
	Add Torque	Click to add torque to geometry
	Add Factory	Click to add a material factory to the simulation
	Import Factory	Click to import a factory
	Rename Factory	Click to rename factory.
	Copy Factory	Click to copy factory.
	Delete Factory	Click to delete factory.
	Change Factory	Click to change from static to dynamic factory
	Add Material Block	Click to add a material block to a geometry
	Delete Material Block	Click to delete a defined Material Block
	Show Scale Grid	Show/hide grid while displaying particle shapes
	Show Origin	Show origin and particles as a mesh when displaying particle shapes
	Highlight Surface/Meta-Particle	Highlights selected surface of particle shape/selected Meta-Particle
	Add Meta-Particle	Click to add a Meta-Particle
	Rename Meta-Particle	Click to rename a Meta-Particle
	Copy Meta-Particle	Click to copy a Meta-Particle
	Delete Meta-Particle	Click to delete a Meta-Particle

Note

In addition to the icon system, a series of keyboard shortcuts in the Creator Tree help you perform the same tasks. You can use the Delete key for single and multiple selections.

File Menu

Open opens an existing model.
New creates a new model.
Save saves the current model.
Save As saves the current model with a specific name, or to a specific location.
Geometry Transforms exports geometry transforms.
Import Config imports a config (*.dfg) file.
Export Config exports a config (*.dfg) file.
Creator starts the EDEM Creator.
Simulator starts the EDEM Simulator.
Analyst starts the EDEM Analyst.
Recent Files displays a list of recently opened files. Select a file to open it.
Quit exits EDEM.

Tools > Options

The Options dialog box comprises settings for the following items:

Additional Components
1. RecurDyn Coupling
  When this checkbox is enabled, a new option called Import Geometry from RecurDyn is displayed after you right click Geometries in the Creator Tree. This allows you to read a *.wall file produced by RecurDyn allowing you to import a geometry from RecurDyn.
  Once the geometry is imported and the coupling interface is enabled, RecurDyn can control the geometry motion in EDEM. The forces experienced by these geometries are passed back to RecurDyn, which then calculates any motions resulting from these forces.
2. Abaqus Coupling
  When this checkbox is enabled, the EDEM Analyst displays a new option called Abaqus Co-Simulation under the Tools Menu allowing you to couple EDEM with Abaqus FEA.
Data Browser
Used to configure the color of the data browser text and background.
Display Options
1. Background Color
  Used to change the fill color of the Viewer background. The background can be colored with a solid or gradient fill. The color change will affect the Creator, Simulator, and Analyst.
2. User Logo
  Used to apply a custom logo to the Viewer window. The logo can be positioned, scaled, faded as required.
File Locations
Used to determine the location of the following:
1. Materials Database
  Displays the location of the users materials database, used to store and transfer materials to and from simulations.
2. GEMM Database
  Displays the location of the Generic EDEM Material Model database, used to set the location of the database to import to EDEM.
3. Contact Models
  Displays the location of custom (user-defined) contact models, see the EDEM Programming Guide for more information on user defined models.
4. Particle Body Force
  Displays the location of custom (user-defined) particle body force models.
5. Particles
  Displays the location of particles saved independently of the model for reuse in other projects.
6. Factories
  Displays the location of any user-defined factories.
Mouse Configuration
Used to configure how the mouse can be used to alter the display in the Viewer.
1. Camera Actions
  Changes the mouse button and modifier key used to pan, track, zoom, and rotate the camera. Modifier keys assign keys to perform the specified camera action. Select any unique combination of three mouse buttons and three keys for each motion.
2. Rotate on Axis
  Changes the mouse button and modifier key used to rotate on an axis. You can also set rotation on the model axis or screen axis for both horizontal and vertical rotations.
3. Bin Control
  Bin tools and Sensor tools in the Analyst can be moved through mouse selection. First select the bin to change the color from blue to green. Using the Bin Control Modifier (default Ctrl), move the bin through the Pan, Track, Axis Locked Rotation, and Free Rotation options. The Bin Control Modifier can be set to any of the options available in the dropdown.
4. Mouse Sensitivity
  The mouse sensitivity can be altered independently for tracking and zooming. You can also specify modifier keys for each sensitivity setting.
Rendering Options
1. Use legacy particle display
  Select this option if EDEM cannot use the Computer Graphics Card and applies when using Remote Desktop or EDEM on computers with out-of-date graphics card drivers.
2. Display Templates
  3D CAD files can be used as particle templates. Templates can be used as a guide (outline) to help define the shape of your particle in the Creator as well as providing, if required, the shape for calculation of the center of gravity and mass moments of inertia, or as a display option in the Analyst.
  When a model containing a particle template is saved, an extra file (.ptf) is created. If this file is deleted, the template information will no longer be stored within the model.
Section Options
1. Creator
  - Timestep on Switch
    Switching to the Creator automatically loads the last Time Step.
  - Hide Electrostatics
    This option should be selected unless using the electrostatics contact model as it enables a series of options in the interface which are electrostatic contact model-specific.
2. Simulator
  1. Compress Save Data
    When selected, EDEM will compress the simulation data as it is saved to minimize file size. Unselecting this option will reduce the time taken to save but increase the file size.
  2. Timestep on Switch
    When selected, the last Time Step will be displayed when switching to the Simulator, otherwise the current Time Step will be displayed.
3. Analyst
  - Timestep on File Load
    Models can be loaded into the Analyst with the first or last Time Step appearing first.
  - Display
    - Auto Update Display
      Toggles whether the display is automatically updated when changing display properties, or whether an Apply button is present and must be pressed first.
    - Axis Key
      Turns the display of the Axis key in the Viewer on or off.
    - Domain Box
      Turns the display of the boundary box (marking the domain edges) in the Viewer on or off.
    - Timestamp
      Turn the display of the time stamp in the Viewer on or off.
4. Data Export Defaults
  - Notation
    Specifies the default format when exporting data via the data export tool. Options are Smart, Fixed-Point, and Scientific.
  - Precision
    Specifies the corresponding default precision when exporting data via the data export tool.
Simulator Engine
Select the standard or GPU simulator engine. On creating a new simulation, the Simulator Engine will default to the one set in the Tools Menu. In the Simulator, you can change the engine used and this information is stored for every simulation in the simulation_name.dfg file. While opening existing simulations, the displayed engine will have the last saved setting for the simulation.
When starting a new simulation, EDEM defaults to the Maximum Cores available on the local PC. You can set the default number of cores using the Simulator Engine > Default Number of Cores menu. This can be set once for every user and then EDEM will default to the selected setting.
Units Configuration
1. Used to define the measurement units used throughout EDEM.

View Menu

Show Particles
Turns the particle display in the Creator on or off.
Themes
Displays the EDEM interface with the Legacy (default) or Dark Theme.

Displays Menu

Splits the EDEM view window into multiple displays, allowing multiple viewer windows to review different view-points of the model within each window.

Help Menu

Help
Provides relevant information regarding the EDEM interface.
About EDEM
Provides information about the current version of EDEM . The EDEM Version and Revision number are useful for EDEM technical support when discussing support cases.
About Altair Simulations Products
Provides access to the Copyright notices, Altair website, License Agreements, and Customer Support.

Data Browser (Creator)

The Data Browser is an .html page that displays detailed information about your model. The information displayed differs between the Creator, Simulator, and Analyst. Right-click in the Data Browser and select Save to save the information in an .html file.

The Data Browser (Creator) comprises the following sections:

Description

The description is provided in the Project section of the Creator Tree.

General

Gravity
Displays details of the gravity acting in your model as specified in the Creator Tree.
Materials
Lists all materials used in the model and their properties, as specified in the Materials Editor.
Energy
Displays the total energy in the model at the current time, which is the sum total of the kinetic energy, potential energy, and the energy in any contacts taking place.

Geometry

Domain
Lists the dimensions of the domain as specified in the Creator Tree.
Sections
Lists each section(model) and its properties.
Geometry Totals
Totals the details of the number of elements that make up each section of the geometry.

Particles

Particles
Lists each particle type used in the model and their properties. This contains either sphere data for Multi-Sphere, and Sphero-Cylinder data or mesh data for polyhedral particles.
Factories
Lists the details of each factory used in the model and their properties as specified in the Creator Tree. The total number of particles created by each factory is also listed.
Particle Totals
Lists the total number of particles in the model at the current time and for each particle type are also listed.

Contacts

Interactions
Lists the interaction types taking place in the model as specified in the Materials Editor.
Contact Totals
Lists the total number of contacts in progress at the current time. The contacts are broken down into contact types: For example, the number of particle A - particle B contacts or number of particle B - surface A contacts. The total number of collisions that have taken place during the Time Step are also listed.

Bonds

Bond Totals
Lists the total number of bonds, total number of intact and broken bonds, and the number of bonds intact/broken between particle pairs.