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    MeshCAST User Manual

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    MeshCAST User ManualVersion 2009.1

    Revised version (July 2009) - CL/PRCA/09/03/00/A

    This help manual is organized to provide you with an overview of MeshCASTand allits various working environments. The manual also describes in detail thefunctionality of each command button.

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    1.1. Manual Organisation

    The manual is designed to follow the same systematic approach as is also requiredto produce a high quality tetragonal mesh. The details of each command button islocated according to its position in the working interface. This approach allows you toquickly find information about a specific MeshCASTfeature.

    The description of each command button generally follows the headings as describedbelow:

    Icon:Picture of the command icon when it exists.

    Description:Brief description of the functionality of the command button

    Syntax:Describes how the command button is used.

    Remarks:Describes various details relating to the command button.

    Examples:Gives a demonstration of the implementation of the command button.

    Related Topics:Lists other topics which are associated, or similar, to the specificcommand button.

    Each reference in a text is defined in capital letters.

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    2. What's New

    This section summarizes the different new features in the released versions :

    Version 2009.0

    Version 2008.0

    Version 2007.0

    Version 2006.1

    Version 2006.0

    Version 2004.1

    Version 2004.0

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    2.1. Version 2009.1

    The Release of MeshCAST 2009.1 corresponds to the first release of a totally newsurface mesh generator based upon STL files.

    The goal of this STL surface mesh generator is to offer the possibility (in most cases)to generate meshes of single volume or assemblies in a fully automatic way.

    For more details, please refer to the "STL Mesh Generator" chapter.

    Please note that this is the first release of this new mesh generator and furtherimprovements still need to be done. Work are currently in progress to further improvethis new tool. These improvements will be made available in the next releases.

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    2.2. Version 2009.0

    During this past year, all the Meshing development efforts have been dedicated totwo strategic projects which will be released in the next versions :

    1. VisualMesh, the new ESI integrated Meshing solution

    2. Direct meshing from STL files, including automatic assembly

    As a consequence, MeshCAST 2009.0 does not contain any specific new feature andthis version is the same as MeshCAST 2008.0.

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    2.3. Version 2008.0

    This section is describing the main new functionalities of MeshCAST 2008.0.

    It is now possible to import large Patran meshes into MeshCAST (meshes withmore than 10 milion elements).

    The "show feature" display is now remaining active during graphicalmanipulations.

    It is now possible to restart an Assembly with different parameters (i.e. differenttolerances, ...).

    The Assembly algorithm was further improved. The feature lines are better takeninto account.

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    2.4. Version 2007.0

    This section is describing the main new functionalities of MeshCAST 2007.0.

    True 64 bits executables of MeshCAST are now available for Windows and Linuxplatforms (See the ProCAST manual for the corresponding set-up in the Manager).

    The Assembly algorithm has been improved in order to be more automatic andpowerful (see the "Improvements in the Surface Mesh Assembly" section for moredetails) :

    the error detection has been greatly simplified with the introduction of a "Showcritical errors" button,

    the handling of the "*_feat.sm" files has been simplified

    the display of the Master/Slave has been improved, the Feature angle can be defined by the user.

    The reading of the Parasolid interface has been improved.

    A new option to locally refine the mesh (denser mesh) has been added (see the"Denser Mesh" section for more details).

    A tolerance was changed in the New Shell generation, in order to improve thequality of the shell.

    The actions of the "Check Mesh" button has been modified (see the "Check Mesh"section for more details).

    The "modulus calculation" is now only active in the presence of a volume mesh.

    A specific situation where volume meshing was failing has been corrected.

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    2.5. Version 2006.1

    This section is describing the main new functionalities of MeshCAST 2006.1.

    A new shell mesher has been designed in order to improve greatly the quality ofshell meshing (see the "New Shell Meshing" section for more details).

    The handling of symmetries with the shell mesher has been totally revisited (seethe "New Shell Meshing" section for more details).

    The algorithms of the Boolean operation has been improved and made morerobust. In particular, it now accommodates models with enclosures. Note thatenclosures should belong to the master part.

    The mesh smoothening following mesh assembly and Boolean operations hasbeen improved so as to better preserve geometry features.

    The logic of the "Check mesh" button (in the Surface mesh environment) has beenchanged. The right click checks for bad triangles only, whereas the left click checksfor cracks (red edges) and connectivity (yellow edges) (see the "Check Mesh"section for more details).

    In the Assembly, Master and Slave surfaces can be viewed with different colors(see the "Surface Mesh Assembly" section for more details).

    A new option has been added to calculate the geometrical modulus from a clipselection on the volume mesh (see the "Geometrical Modulus" section for moredetails).

    The export of a volume mesh in SYSWELD file format is now available.

    In GEOMESH, the saving of "tos" file (native GEOMESH file format) has beencorrected.

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    2.6. Version 2006.0

    This section is describing the main news of MeshCAST 2006.0.

    A link between GEOMESH and MeshCAST was created in order to speed-up therepair and surface meshing process (especially to account for the more efficientreaders of GEOMESH) (see the "GEOMESH-MeshCAST interface" section formore details).

    Surface Mesh Assembly (see the "Surface Mesh Assembly" section for moredetails).

    Boolean Assembly (see the "Boolean Assembly" section for more details).

    The Surface mesh algorithm was improved in order to have a better qualitysurface mesh. Especially, cylinders defined by only one surface can now bemeshed automatically. Thin cylinders (e.g. cooling chanels) are not collapsedanymore when the mesh size is coarse.

    The Autofix is now fully automatic (it is optionnal now to specify a "length").

    A "Write SM All" button was added in order to extract the surface mesh of avolume mesh including the interfaces (for all volumes and not only of the externalenvelope) (see the "Write SM / Write SM All" section for more details).

    A functionnality to remove automatically fillets was introduced (see the "DeleteFillets" section for more details).

    The Layered Shell mesher was re-introduced in MeshCAST (see the "LayeredShell Meshing" section for more details).

    New "Edge operations" have been added (see the "Edge Operations" section formore details).

    The format of the volume mesh has been adapted to allow the handling of fileswith more than 10 millions elements.

    When a Volume mesh is loaded, new buttons "Select All" and "Deselect All" wereintroduced in order to select/deselect automatically all the domains (see the"Material Editing Table" section for more details).

    The "Partial layer" option was corrected (it was giving the same results are theFull layer option).

    The "*.bstl" files can now be read on Linux.

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    2.7. Version 2004.1

    This section is describing the main news of MeshCAST 2004.1.

    The links are referring to the corresponding section of the manual for more details.Additional information can be found in the main ProCAST manual.

    On some platforms (mainly Windows), MeshCAST was not always able to use allthe available memory (e.g. it was crashing at 1.1 GB, whereas the computer had 2GB of RAM). This problem was due to the way "reallocation" of memory was donein the code and how the operating system was managing the memory allocation.The memory "reallocation" technique was modified in order to prevent suchproblems, allowing to use all (or most) of the available memory. In such situation,

    temporary files will be created in the working directory (see the "Large memoryproblems" section, as well as the "Software Manager/Module calls" section of themain ProCAST manual for more details).

    In the case of problems with Shell meshing with symmetry, some repair capabilitieswere added in order to cure the problem (see the "Shell troubleshooting" section formore details).

    The User definedicons can now be stored in a central location (or in a customizeduser defined location) (See the "Customized installation" section of the mainProCAST manual for more details about the settings of such installation).

    Some corrections when reading Parasolid files were made.

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    2.8. Version 2004.0

    New Icon based Tcl/Tk/OpenGL Interface

    New developments in the REPAIR ENVIRONMENTfor geometry repair andsurface meshing (*.gmrst):

    New Commands:

    ADDPLANECOMPLEMENT ARCMAKEONEEDGECHANGEUNITS

    AUTO FIX: UNMESHED SURFACES

    The REPAIR TOOLSoperations are grouped into 10 categories represented by 10icons, 5 on each side of the repair tool table. The Input Window that pops up foreach of the repairing operation contains the required input fields which the user hasto input for the operation to take place. This replaces the single command line thatthe user used to input in all the previous releases, following the exact syntax of thecommand which is determined usually with the On-Line Help.

    In the SETS TABLEthe total number of edges present in each edge-set is nowdisplayed in the middle column of the table. To provide proper identification for

    these sets, the edge-sets can now be renamed. To do so simply click on the firstcolumn and enter the user-desired name. Similarly this works the same way forsurface-sets as well.

    Step interface has been improved significantly: SHIFT-Uand SHIFT-Vcommandsmay not be necessary at all as the program is modified to handle the impropersurface description at the time of reading the initial file itself. Most of the problemsthat are commonly associated with SHIFT-Uand SHIFT-Voperations are fixedautomatically in this release. The surface description now closely follows thesurface that it is representing, as the values of U and V for the surface net is varied

    according to the size of the surface. A couple of new entities were added to thestep interface.

    New developments in the MESHING ENVIRONMENTfor mesh editing and tetmeshing (*.sm):

    New Commands:

    AUTOFIX BAD TRIANGLESMESH PROPERTIESWRITESM

    CHECK INTERSECTION

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    DISPLAY INTERSECTIONSNODAL CO-ORDSNODAL DISTANCEAPPEND ELEM(S)

    ACTIVATE NODEDEL DUP. TRIANGLESAPPEND ADJ.SURFACE

    SHELLGeneration: The shell generated in MeshCASTis now more realistic tothose produced in investment casting shells. The input to the shell generator is asurface mesh and not a Tet mesh as before. The new shell layer is generated as asurface mesh layer over the existing surface mesh. Hence the surface mesh editingtools (EDIT MESH) can be applied to the shell layer to fix any problems unlike atthe tet mesh level. NoShell and Symmetry faces can be specified as before usingthe select-menu tools available under SHELLmenu. To generate multiple layers

    the shell generation process has to be repeated for each layer. The optionHOLES/GAPSwill try to preserve as many holes and gaps as possible for the givenshell thickness.

    AUTOFIX BAD TRIANGLES: This is one of the most time-saving operations madeavailable to the user in this release. It is true because all the bad triangle warningmessages generated during the surface mesh generation (*.gmrst) stage can befixed with just a click of a button. This operation re-adjusts the surface mesh so thatthe thin/long bad triangles are eliminated or replaced with better ones. The input isthe largest edge length permissible in the surface mesh and this will helpMeshCASTdetermine which triangle is bad and which one is good.

    WRITESM: Writes the surface mesh of the currently ACTIVE mesh.

    CHECK MESH:In addition to checking for cracks and multiple-sided edges, thisoperation now displays the bad triangles also in red colour.

    CHECK INTERSECTION: Checks for intersections in the surface mesh which canbe viewed with DISPLAY INTERSECTIONSbutton. This operation displays theintersections/overlappings in the surface mesh (and belonging to the current ActiveSet.

    sm->gmrst: This will write out a .gmrst file for the given surface mesh and thisoption is available under the SAVE ASwhen in theMESHING ENVIRONMENT.Note that the surfaces will not have any descriptions but the surface mesh iscompletely preserved without any changes to it. Since the surface mesh ispreserved, to remesh the whole geometry, what is needed is the surfacedescriptions at the region(s) where modifications are made. Hence it is the usersresponsibility to make sure that he generates the surface descriptions at thelocations where modifications are made. Also, the edges belonging to thosesurfaces that are going to be remeshed because of the modifications, have to bere-assigned to a new edge-set with appropriate length value assigned to it. This

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    function is very useful to make minor modifications to a large and complex surfacemesh.

    New developments in the QUALITY CHECKING ENVIRONEMENTfor checking

    and tet mesh editing (*.mesh):

    New Commands:

    ACTIVE VOLUMEBOUNDARY LAYERFLOW CHECK

    FLOW CHECK: This operation will display in red colour all the edges of the tetmesh directly connecting two boundary nodes. This will help determine if there areany regions in the volume mesh where there could be potential problems for fluid

    flow as these red lines indicate dead zones.

    BOUNDARY LAYER: This feature generates a layer(s) of wedge elements inside atet mesh volume along its walls and then fills up the rest of the volume with tets.The advantage is that this feature has the potential to generate multiple layers ofnodes within a thin walled casting and the "#layers" is directly under the user-control as it is an user defined input. The Boundary layer is generated one volumeat a time and so the three inputs to this operation are the materials "id#", number ofdesired layers and the total thickness of the boundary layer (which will be dividedequally to accommodate the number of layers).

    SMOOTH MESH: The Smooth Mesh operation on a tet mesh generated with full-layer option, will now preserve the full-layer property.

    Other new developments in MeshCAST:

    All the advanced commands have been shifted to PROPERTIES, ADVANCEDmain menu.

    Screen Printing function (*.gif) shifted to SAVE ASoption under FILEmenu as wellas the PRINTbutton

    Four-modes of model display: WIREFRAME, HIDE, SOLIDand SHADE

    Input and Message Windows displayed all the time.

    New KEY FUNCTIONS(Accelerators):

    Ctrl-s: SelectCtrl-S: Select AllCtrl-d: DeselectCtrl-D: Deselect All

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    3. Overview

    GENERAL DESCRIPTION

    CAPABILITIES

    GENERAL WORKFLOW

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    3.1. General Description

    MeshCAST generates a 3-D tetrahedral mesh using the Finite Element Method(FEM). A triangular surface mesh of the object is the prerequisite for MeshCAST's"tet mesh" generation. Based upon your IGES, PARASOLIDS, STEP, or STL model,MeshCAST

    can generate the triangular surface mesh. Alternatively, MeshCAST

    can use the surface mesh from your CAD or CAE package as input for tet meshgeneration.

    MeshCASTis a powerful engineering, design and analytical tool. Some of the

    features which contribute to the strength of

    MeshCASTinclude:

    Flexibility,

    Rapid mesh generation,

    Robust repair and manipulation tools,

    Extensive model checking, and

    The ability to process and produce a variety of input and output file formats.

    This manual will help you focusMeshCAST

    on your meshing requirements.

    OVERVIEW

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    3.2. Capabilities

    Producing high quality products at the optimum profitability is an iterative process.The capabilities provided by MeshCASTgive you extensive support for thisengineering and development process. Briefly, these capabilities include:

    Imports data directly from commercial CAD and CAE packages:MeshCAST will process geometries stored in the IGES, PARASOLIDS, STEP,or STL formats. MeshCASTcan also read surface and tet meshes from a widevariety of available third party and proprietary software packages.

    Provides multiple mesh density capabilities:You may choose critical areas of the model and specify higher mesh densities

    for those areas. This enables you to refine the model for accuracy and precisionand minimizing computer run times.

    Supports non coincident mesh generation:The density of the mesh for the mold and the casting contained in the samemodel may be independently specified. This affords the flexibility to describethe components of the model in a level of detail which best meets your needs.

    MeshCASTis very fast:Fast computational results are due to proprietary architectural and processingtechniques. Fast business results are due to MeshCAST's ability to support

    design changes, make repairs to a model, and perform mesh analysis andsmoothing on demand. This allows you to refine the model without incurring theincremental overhead associated with going all the way back to your originalCAD system for the modifications.

    Facilitates engineering redesign without redoing everything:You may use a MeshCASTfunction to import a component part for addition to amodel or you may develop the component in an existing model by usingMeshCASTtools. Either way, MeshCASTeliminates the need to redoeverything associated with the model. This enables you to add chills, risers,

    molds, or other components without rebuilding the entire model.

    Performs checking on demand:You can check the model's geometry, surface mesh or tet mesh with the click ofa button. Generation of the tet mesh is usually the most computer cycle-intensive part of the design process. MeshCAST's ability to check the model'ssurface mesh before beginning the tet mesh generation identifies flaws in themodel's surface sooner in the design process.

    Provides flexible material creation operations:You control the number and types of materials in the model. Ultimately, after

    successfully generating the tet mesh, every completely enclosed volume is

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    assigned a unique material identification. During the design process you maydefine as many or as few materials as may be appropriate to your needs.

    Generates alternative types of mesh:

    You may choose linear or quadratic mesh generation depending upon yourdesign needs and the intended use for the resulting tet mesh. For someapplications, such as stress analysis, the generation of quadratic nodes byMeshCASTmay enhance the accuracy of the analysis.

    Shell mesh generation:With this feature, investment casting simulation users can generate a shell-mold with various shell layers on their castings. This capability uses automaticblending in order to ensure a representative shell model.

    Boundary layer generation:

    This feature allows the user to create a thin layer of elements inside the volumeof a material in order to simulate the fluid conditions at the wall in a better, moreaccurate manner.

    MeshCAST's speed, flexibility, accuracy and precision can be harnessed to producehighly efficient finite element (FE) meshes which are required in your engineeringoperation. MeshCAST's use of the Finite Element Method and its proprietarytechniques offer, in many cases, the only way to achieve the accuracy and precisionyou demand.

    OVERVIEW

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    3.3. General Workflow

    There are six major steps in MeshCAST which arerequired in order to produce ahigh quality tetrahedral mesh. The work steps which you follow when usingMeshCASTdepend upon the following: the nature of your project, the intended use ofthe meshes generated by MeshCASTand the type and quality of CAD model youuse as the initial input. The general workflow, outlined below, illustrates the sixgeneral steps typically followed to process a geometry from an initial CAD input file tocompleting the tetragonal volume mesh.

    Step One: OPENan input file:

    Every MeshCASTsession will begin with the designation and opening of an input file.

    Step Two:Repair the geometry in the REPAIR ENVIRONMENTas necessary:

    MeshCASTautomatically checks the input file geometry and attempts to resolveflaws as it is loaded. Warning and informational messages are displayed to describethe results of these automatic functions.

    Once a geometry is opened, you may evaluate the quality of the geometry file usingCHECK GEOMETRY. This automatic and "on request" checking of the geometry willallow you to identify flaws in the model so that they can be systematically repaired.

    The REPAIR ENVIRONMENTof MeshCASTprovides you with an extensive numberof tools which enable you to repair or modify the geometry.

    Step Three:Generate the surface mesh in the REPAIR ENVIRONMENT:

    MeshCAST can generate surface meshes which have different densities on specificedges and surfaces in the model.

    In this step the MeshCAST is used to group in sets specific edges and/or surfacesand specify unique length values for each set. MeshCASTuses these unique lengthvalues to generate the surface mesh.

    Step Four: Edit the surface mesh in the MESHING ENVIRONMENT:

    Once the surface mesh is generated, the surface mesh may be viewed, evaluatedand checked. Some advanced operations are also available which allow the user tomanually edit, create a shell mesh or merge surface meshes together.

    Step Five:Generate the Tetragonal Volume Mesh in the MESHINGENVIRONMENT:

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    In this step MeshCASTactually generates the 3-D tetrahedral mesh of the solidmodel. Various options are available to control the amount of volume elementsadded on the inside of the material.

    Step Six: View the mesh and enhance its quality in the QUALITY CHECKINGENVIROMENT.

    MeshCASTprovides tools which enable you to examine the tet mesh, evaluate itsquality, isolate bad mesh elements, smooth, create boundary layers and optimise themesh.

    Product design and development is an iterative process. Computer simulation andmodelling provide valuable support to this iterative process. MeshCASTis animportant tool in this process because it produces high quality meshes which may beused as input to a wide variety of other analytical software packages. MeshCAST

    supports this iterative process by allowing the designer and engineer to modify orenhance original designs, improve the quality of the mesh for critical parts of themodel, and specify unique mesh densities for each part of the model. All of this canbe accomplished before committing to costly prototype development and pilot projectoperations.

    The typical workflow described above begins with an IGES, PARASOLIDS, STEP orSTL geometry and proceeds to the generation of a tet mesh. In addition, MeshCASTmay also be used to:

    i) Generate tet meshes by processing surface meshes generated by third partysoftware packages;ii) Evaluate and refine tet meshes generated by third party software packages.

    In these cases the overall process to produce a tet mesh follows the same basic worksteps. However, based upon the type of input file which was loaded, you perform onlythe steps required to continue the development process.

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    It is important to note that working with MeshCASTalways begins by opening a file.After the file has been loaded, you begin working at the corresponding work step inthe process. From this entry point to the final generation of the tet mesh, the stepsyou follow and the MeshCASTtools you use will be the same regardless of the typeof input file used.

    OVERVIEW

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    4. Software Description

    Description

    MeshCASTuses an icon based Tcl/Tk OpenGL Interface which gives it the look andfeel of a Windows based program. The icon functions facilitate the user withgeometry repair and mesh generation.

    Related Topics

    GETTING STARTED, STARTING ENVIRONMENT, REPAIR ENVIRONMENT,MESHING ENVIRONMENT, QUALITY CHECKING ENVIRONMENT, DISPLAYTOOLS, MOUSE BUTTONS, KEY FUNCTIONS

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    4.1. Getting Started

    Description

    MeshCAST runs in a Linux or DOS session window by typing "meshcast" at thesession window prompt.

    Syntax

    OnceMeshCAST2009.1 has been successfully installed it can be launched bysimply typing in "meshcast" in the DOS or Linux session window prompt. MeshCASTwill immediately launch the STARTING ENVIRONMENTwhere a file can beOPENed. The following two options are available when launching MeshCAST:

    MeshCASTcan be started using the following command at the session windowprompt:

    meshcast [ width height] [-m] ENTERWidth height, and -m are optional parameters.

    Width and height:These integer parameters control the width and height of the screen to be used byMeshCAST. While these parameters are optional, you must specify both of them orneither of them.

    -m:This optional parameter will display the memory being used by MeshCAST. Theusage is updated continuously and is displayed in the MeshCASTTitle Bar at the topof the screen. These parameters may be in any order in the command line followingthe MeshCAST program name.

    Remarks

    Operational procedures and standards at your installation may specify additionalstart-up requirements. Consult your installation or network manager for theseguidelines. Please refer to the ProCASTinstallation documents for details oninstalling MeshCAST.

    Related Topics

    SOFTWARE DESCRIPTION,STARTING ENVIRONMENT

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    4.2. Starting Environment

    Description

    When the software is launched the STARTING ENVIRONMENT is activated allowingthe user to start various MeshCASTactivities.

    Syntax

    After successful installation,MeshCAST2009.1 is launched when the user simply

    types in "meshcast" in the Dos or Linux Window. When launchingMeshCAST

    the

    graphical interface as shown in the figure below is displayed with the possibilities to

    open a file or create a new geometry file. Other user possibilities are listed in FILE,PROPERTIESand HELP sections. You can select an icon or component inMeshCASTby positioning the cursor over the push button and clicking with the leftmouse button. This generally applies to all push button commands. There are a fewexceptions where the right or middle button may be used to perform specificfunctions.

    The main component of the STARING ENVIRONMENTis the Top Menu containing

    the command buttons FILE, PROPERTIESand HELP.

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    Related Topics

    SOFTWARE DESCRIPTION, FILE, PROPERTIES, HELP

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    4.2.1. File

    Description

    The File menu allows one to perform various file related tasks.

    Syntax

    When clicking on the FILEbutton a drop down menu appears and there is thepossibility to perform various file related tasks.

    Related Topics

    STARTING ENVIRONMENT, OPEN, NEW, SAVE, SAVE AS, MERGE FILES,EQUIVALENT MESH, PRINT, EXIT

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    4.2.1.1. Open

    Description

    This command opens up geometric, surface mesh or volume mesh files of various filetypes.

    Syntax

    When clicking on the OPENbutton the software activates a File Manager Window.The file to be opened can then be located using the File Manager. File types withextensions gmrst, sm, mesh, iges, step, xmt.txt, stl, unv, patran.mesh andideas.mesh are supported by MeshCAST.

    Related Topics

    FILE

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    4.2.1.2. New

    Description

    This command enables one to create a new geometry file.

    Syntax

    When clicking on the NEWbutton a Command Window is activated which allows youto possibility to define a new file name with a specified tolerance.

    There are two possibilities:

    You can define a file name and give it a starting tolerance and then create the file

    from scratch, or

    You can use the Browse button in the Command Window to search for an existingrestart file and make this the newly generated file.

    Related Topics

    FILE

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    4.2.1.3. Save

    Description

    This command saves a geometry, surface mesh or volume mesh file.

    Syntax

    By clicking on the SAVEbutton the file is immediately saved. The type of file savedwill depend on the file presently being worked on. If its the geometry then the"prefix.gmrst" will be saved, if its the surface mesh then the "prefix.sm" will be savedor if its a volume mesh then the "prefix.mesh" file will be saved. Other mesh file typesmay be saved using the SAVE AScommand.

    Related Topics

    FILE, SAVE AS

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    4.2.1.4. Save As

    Description

    This command saves a new geometry, surface mesh or volume mesh file.

    Syntax

    By clicking on the SAVE ASbutton a File Manager Window is activated which allowsyou to define the new file name, the file directory and the file type.

    Files types such as gmrst (MeshCAST), sm (MeshCAST), out (Patran), unv (Ideas),stl (Stereolithography) , mesh (MeshCAST), patran.mesh (Patran), ideas.mesh(Ideas), ansys.mesh (Ansys), nastran.mesh (Nastran) and .gif (image file) can be

    saved using the SAVE AScommand.

    Related Topics

    FILE,SAVE

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    4.2.1.5. Merge Files

    Description

    This command merges surfaces or volume meshes.

    Syntax

    By clicking on the MERGE FILESbutton a Command Window is activated whichallows you to define the two input files (Input File-1, Input File-2) to be merged as wellas the new merged file (Output File) to be created, as shown in the figure below.

    The Browse buttons in the Command Window may be used to activate a FileManager in order to search for the file.

    Remarks

    The MERGE FILES command can be used for merging enclosure meshes to volumemeshes or merging volume meshes together for creating non-coincident volumes.

    Related Topics

    FILE

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    4.2.1.6. Equivalent Mesh

    Description

    This command removes common coincident interface nodes between two meshregions in contact.

    Syntax

    By clicking on the EQUIVALENT MESHbutton a Command Window is activatedwhich allows you to define the "Input File", the "Output File" and the EquivalentTolerance, "Equiv. Toler".

    Remarks

    Equivalence mesh is the reverse of creating a coincident interfaces. That means, ifthere are any coincident nodes in-between 2 regions in contact, it will remove them.

    Related Topics

    FILE

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    4.2.1.7. Print

    Description

    This command creates a print file (mesh.print) which can be directed to a postscriptprinter.

    Syntax

    By clicking on the PRINTbutton the file is immediately Written and a message isdisplayed in the Message Window.

    This PRINTaction can be directed to a Postscript printer if the appropriate printercommand is pasted in the last sentence of the file 'print.db', located in the ProPATH

    directory. The last sentence in this 'print.db' file has the following sentence by default:

    Printer_Command: NONE

    Now, say that the printer command to print a file is 'lpr -Plw filename', then this lastsentence in the 'print.db' file should look like:

    Printer_Command: lpr -Plw

    Note that the 'filename' is ignored and it should not be part of the printer command. Ifthe user does not intend to direct the output of the PRINTcommand to a printer thenhe should simply replace the printer command with 'NONE' as shown above.

    Related Topics

    FILE

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    4.2.1.8. Exit

    Description

    This command ends a MeshCAST session.

    Syntax

    When clicking on the EXITbutton a Confirmation Window is activated which allowsyou to verify if you are sure you want to exit.

    Remarks

    EXITdoes not automatically save files which you may have modified during thesession.

    Related Topics

    FILE

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    4.2.2. Properties

    Description

    Under the menu PROPERTIES, the submenu UNITSis available for setting theworking units of measurement, and the submenu ADVANCEDis available for settingthe tolerance, the environment and the geometric preferences. The tolerance andgeometry settings should be set before opening a file.

    Syntax

    When clicking on the PROPERTIESbutton a drop down menu appears.

    Related Topics

    STARTING ENVIRONMENT, UNITS, ADVANCED

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    4.2.2.1. Units

    Description

    After opening a file, before starting any geometric repair work units should bespecified.

    Syntax

    By clicking on the UNITSbutton a list of possible unit options are displayed (m, cm,mm, Feet, Inches). By selecting one of these options all geometric measurementsthereafter will be according to this setting.

    Related Topics

    PROPERTIES, CHANGE UNITS

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    4.2.2.2. Advanced

    Description

    The advanced button allows one to specify various parameter settings beforeimporting geometries

    Syntax

    When clicking on the ADVANCEDbutton a drop down menu of toggle switchesappears with the possibility to tick off various toggle settings. When activating thetoggle button the details of each function is described in the text space provided inthe Advanced Menu. The list of available toggle switches depends on the activeworking environment.

    The functions of the advanced toggle menu buttons, when ticked off, are listed below:

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    Tolerance:tolerance to be applied before reading in a geometry;

    NoBeep:stops beeping;

    GifBgWhite:produces a white background in the gif image;

    SurfaceOnly:strips off the surface mesh from the "gmrst" file in order to reduce itssize;

    ParNoSplit: used for parasolid models to prevent the time-consuming splitting ofperiodic surfaces during importation;

    ParSurfIncrDesc:used for parasolid models to increase the surface description bya specified factor so that the surface description can closely match the surface;

    ParNoMultBody:used for parasolid models to prevent the merging of commoninterfaces between materials;

    ParMLE:used for parasolid models to merge multiple edges of a line into a singlelong edge;

    NoWait: willnot wait for users response during suface meshing;

    NoDelPeriodic: will prevent resolving problems associated with Periodic SurfaceDescriptions.

    DelStfCorner: deletes any small rectangles/quads present near the boundaries ofthe surface description net.

    NoThinSurface: will keep the surface description intact during surface meshing fora specified surface# (only).

    Maximum # of Iterations:used to control the number of interior nodes inGENERATE TET MESH;

    Maximum Nodes/Iteration:used to control the number of interior nodes inGENERATE TET MESH;

    UnrecWriteddat: Outputs the tet-mesh whose nodes and elements differ from thatof the input. Useful to debug meshes with many material volumes;

    Related Topics

    PROPERTIES, GENERATE TET MESH

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    4.2.3. Help

    Description

    This activates the HELPfor more information about MeshCASTand each commandfunction.

    Syntax

    Simply click on the HELPcommand button and the HELPis activated.

    Related Topics

    STARTING ENVIRONMENT, REPAIR ENVIRONMENT,MESHING ENVIRONMENT,QUALITY CHECKING ENVIRONMENT

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    4.3. Repair Environment

    Description

    When MeshCASTis launched and a geometry file is OPENed, or a NEWgeometry iscreated, the REPAIR ENVIRONMENTis activated allowing the user to start variousrepair and surface meshing activities.

    Syntax

    When creating a new geometry, or loading a geometry from Iges, STEP orParasolids, the software will launch the REPAIR ENVIRONMENTas shown in thefigure below. The possibility now exists to repair the geometry, create a new

    geometry, check the geometry or create the surface mesh, as described earlier in theGENERAL WORKFLOWsection.

    The REPAIR ENVIRONMENTconsists of various regions including Top Menu,REPAIR TOOLS, SETS TABLE, REPAIR TOOLS, REPAIR FACILITATION TOOLS,

    DISPLAY TOOLS, Input Window, Message Window and the Working Window.

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    Remarks

    The REPAIR ENVIRONMENTis automatically activated when opening a geometry

    file such as IGES, PARASOLIDS or STEP files, or when creating a new geometryfrom scratch. This environment allows you to repair, modify and enhance thegeometry in order to produce a high quality surface mesh which will be used in thevolume mesh generation.

    1) Geometry repair

    During the repairing operation, various tools are available for editing edges andsurfaces in the geometry and to facilitate the editing process, various imagemanipulation tools are available for isolating specific parts of the geometry.

    The extent to which you will use these repair tools will vary from one project toanother and is largely dependent on the following conditions:

    i) The format of the translated geometry, i.e. IGES, PARASOLIDS or STEP;ii) The CAD software package used to create the geometry file;iii) The settings used to generate the translated geometry;iv) The manor in which the CAD geometry was initially constructed in the CAD

    software.

    Immediately after opening a geometry, the quality of the geometry should be checkedusing the check geometry icon. During this operation problem edges and surfaces

    will be identified, and if necessary, geometry repairing and modification work cancommence. It is important to note that MeshCASTidentifies flaws in the geometry inthe context of their potential impact upon the generation of surface and tet meshes.Early identification and correction of these flaws save time in the developmentprocess and results in a higher quality mesh.

    2) Surface mesh generation

    In the same repair environment, surface mesh generation usually goes hand-in-handwith the geometry repair process. Once all the displayed geometric errors have beenrepaired there could still remain some errors, or flaws in the geometry, which will onlybe recognized during the surface mesh generation. These flaws may result in thefollowing:

    i) Unmeshed surfaces;ii) Meshed surfaces containing bad elements;iii) Surface mesh with gaps;iv) Surface mesh which does not respect the material boundaries.

    This means that there will be an iterative process of surface meshing, meshchecking, geometry isolation and geometry repairing until all the surfaces in the

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    geometry have been meshed and there exists a satisfactory enclosed surface meshfor all materials.

    During surface meshing process

    MeshCASTenables you to designate different

    mesh densities to various specified sections of the geometry. Surface meshing toolsare available and used to define, modify and save sets of edges and sets of surfaces.To each of these sets there may be assigned a unique edge or surface length value.

    Related Topics

    SOFTWARE DESCRIPTION, REPAIR TOOLS, SETS TABLE, REPAIR TOOLS,REPAIR FACILITATION TOOLS

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    4.3.1. Repair Tools

    Description

    The command buttons under the REPAIR TOOLSfolders allows you to repair,modify and enhance the geometry in order to produce a high quality surface meshwhich will be used in the volume mesh generation.

    Syntax

    The REPAIR TOOLS are grouped into various folder sub-menus which appear whenclicking on the specific folder icon button. All of the folder icon buttons are shown inthe figures below.

    Related Topics

    REPAIR ENVIRONMENT, EDGE OPERATIONS, SURFACE OPERATIONS, BUILDOPERATIONS, TOOLS, IMPORT/EXPORT, USER DEFINED

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    4.3.1.1. Edge Operations

    Icon

    Description

    The command buttons in the EDGE OPERATIONSfolder are used to repair andmodify geometry edges.

    Syntax

    Click on the EDGE OPERATIONSfolder icon to display the group of edge commandbuttons.

    Related Topics

    REPAIR TOOLS, ADD LINE POINTS, ADD LINE, ADD CIRCLE, SWEEP EDGES,SWEEP CURVE, CONNECT, STRAIGHTEN, MAKE LONG EDGES, MAKE ONEEDGE, PROJECT EDGE, SPLIT LINE, SPLIT TWO, SPLIT EDGE, REVERSE ARC,COMPLEMENT ARC, DELETE EDGES, DEL/MERGE EDGE, MERGE EDGES,AUTO MERGE, MERGE POINTS, AUTO INCR MERGE, IDENTIFY CRACKS,IDENTIFY MULTIPLE EDGES

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    4.3.1.1.1. Add Line Points

    Icon

    Description

    This command creates a straight line between two specified co-ordinates.

    Syntax

    By clicking on the ADD LINE POINTS icon a Command Windowis activated,whichallows you to define the co-ordinates of two points, X1, Y1, Z1 and X2, Y2, Z2.

    Related Topics

    EDGE OPERATIONS, ADD LINE

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    4.3.1.1.2. Add Line

    Icon

    Description

    This command creates a straight line between the end-points of two selected edges(and these two edges have to be SELECTed prior to the execution of this command).

    Syntax

    Because four possibilities exist for joining the end-points of one selected edge withthe end-points of the other selected edge, the "Next Line" button in the confirmationCommand Window should be used to toggle between the four possible combinationsuntil the desired straight line appears in green colour on the screen, in which case the"Execute" option should be activated. Clicking on the "Quit" command will cancel thegeometric operation.

    Related Topics

    EDGE OPERATIONS, ADD LINE POINTS

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    4.3.1.1.3. Add Circle

    Icon

    Description

    This command creates a circle based on a specified plane, centre position andradius.

    Syntax

    By clicking on the ADD CIRCLE icon the Command Window, ADD CIRCLE, isactivated,which allows you to define a plane with co-ordinates ( X1 Y1 Z1 ), ( X2 Y2Z2 ), ( X3 Y3 Z3 ), a centre position with co-ordinates ( CX CY CZ ) and a radius.

    Remarks

    Arcs can be generated by first creating the appropriate circle and then using theSPLIT-LINE/ SPLIT-TWOoperations. After creating the circle/arc, it is the user'sresponsibility to associate itwith surfaces using ADD EDGE(S) button.

    Related Topics

    EDGE OPERATIONS, CYLINDER

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    4.3.1.1.4. Sweep Edges

    Icon

    Description

    This command sweeps a set of selected edges by a specified angle and along aspecified axis.

    Syntax

    By clicking on the SWEEP EDGES icon a Command Windowis activatedwhichallows you to define two points of an axis, X1, Y1, Z1 and X2, Y2, Z2, and an angle ofrotation. On Execution, this command sweeps a set of selected edges by thespecified angle and along the specified axis.

    Remarks

    While sweeping, this command will not disturb the existing selected edges in any

    way, but instead creates a new edge for each of the selected edges after rotatingthem by angle 'theta' along the specified axis.

    Related Topics

    EDGE OPERATIONS, SELECT, SWEEP CURVE

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    4.3.1.1.5. Sweep Curve

    Icon

    Description

    This command creates a new edge by sweeping an existing specified edge.

    Syntax

    To use this command, (first) select the edge along which sweeping will occur, then(second) select the edge to be swept. By clicking on the SWEEP CURVE icon aCommand Windowis activatedwhich allows you to define two parameters whichcontrols the sweeping distance. The first selected edge is swept till the 'n'th pointposition, assuming the edge is sub-divided into a total number of 't' points.

    Parameter-1: Defines the 'n'th point position on the first select edge (the 'n'th pointof 't' points).

    Parameter-2: Defines the total number of points ('t' points)

    See illustrated example below:

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    Remarks

    After successful execution of this command, a new edge is created by sweeping thesecond edge along the first selected edge at exactly the 'n'th location point (out of 't'points) on the first edge.

    Related Topics

    EDGE OPERATIONS, SELECT, SWEEP EDGES

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    4.3.1.1.6. Connect

    Icon

    Description

    Use this command to join the endpoint of a selected edge to the closest possiblelocation in the geometry or to change the join point of an edge to a desired location.

    Syntax

    After selecting the edge or edges, activate CONNECTby clicking the left mousebutton when the cursor is over the CONNECTicon.

    CONNECToperates in one of two ways depending upon your selection and needs.In either case, you use the cursor to select the edge to be connected.

    Case One: To connect a dangling edge, whose endpoint(s) are not connected toany other edges in the geometry: use the cursor to select this edge and thenactivate CONNECT. As shown in Example 1 below, the dangling endpoint of thisedge will be connected to the closest endpoint of another edge in the geometry.

    Case Two: To change the join point of an edge use the cursor to first select theedge to be connected and then select the edge to which it is to be connected to.After selecting the two edges activate CONNECT. As shown in Example 2 below,the closest endpoint of the first selected edge will be attached to the closestendpoint of the second selected edge.

    Remarks

    CONNECT is useful for attaching dangling edges to appropriate points in the

    geometry and for changing the join point of an edge to another desired location.

    Any surface meshes associated with the first selected edge will be deleted.

    Examples

    Example 1: This example illustrates the use of CONNECTto connect a danglingedge. In the model on the left, the dangling edge will be connected to the closestendpoint in the square shown at the top of this model. The gap will be closed. Theremaining edges will not be changed. The model on the right illustrates the result ofthis operation.

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    4.3.1.1.7. Straighten

    Icon

    Description

    Use this command to join the end points of a selected edge into a straight line withoutaltering the rest of the geometry.

    Syntax

    First SELECTthe edge to be straightened and then click on the STRAIGHTENiconwith the left mouse button.

    Remarks

    STRAIGHTENwill join the end points and make it a straight line. It will redraw thestraightened edge in the Working Window. All surface meshes associated with thestraightened edge will be deleted.

    Examples

    In the figure below the use of the STRAIGHTEN command is illustrated. In themodel on the left, the selected curved edge is straightened. The remaining edgesremain unchanged.

    Related Topics

    EDGE OPERATIONS, SELECT, DESELECT

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    4.3.1.1.8. Make Long Edges

    Icon

    Description

    This command substitutes a new LONG edge for every connected set of edgeswhere the end-points are common to exactly two edges (see figure below). The newedge closely follows the path of the connected set of edges that it replaces. But theconnected set of edges have to have the same surface associativity i.e. they all

    should be connected to the same surface numbers, thus making it easy for thereplacing new edge to assume the same surface associativity. There is no need toselect any edges before executing this command. MeshCASTautomatically identifiesall such connected sets of edges in the whole geometry (and not just in the currentActive Set) and replaces them with long edges.

    Related Topics

    EDGE OPERATIONS, MAKE ONE EDGE

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    4.3.1.1.9. Make One Edge

    Icon

    Description

    This command simply replaces the SELECTed set of connected edges with a singlelong edge and also assumes the same surface associativity as the replaced set ofedges. The new edge closely follows the path of the connected set of selected edgesthat it replaces. But the selected connected set of edges have to have the same

    surface associativity i.e. they all should be connected to the same surface numbers(up to a max of 2); thus making it easy for the replacing new edge to assume thesame surface associativity.

    Related Topics

    EDGE OPERATIONS

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    4.3.1.1.10. Project Edge

    Icon

    Description

    This command projects an edge onto a specified surface.

    Syntax

    To use this command, first select the Edge to be projected. Then by clicking on thePROJECT EDGE a Command Windowis activatedwhich allows you to enter thenumber of the surface on which projection will occur as well as the direction of theprojection vector (VX, VY, VZ). After successful execution of this command, theselected edge is projected onto the specified surface and this newlycreated/projected edge also becomes part of the surface 'srf'. The following figuresillustrates this:

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    Related Topics

    EDGE OPERATIONS, SELECT

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    4.3.1.1.11. Split Line

    Icon

    Description

    Use this command split one edge into two edges. You may designate the point atwhich the split will occur. Any edge, curved or straight line the geometry may be splitusing this function.

    Syntax

    To use the SPLIT LINEfunction you must complete the following four steps:

    Step One: Select the edge you want to split. Use the cursor to select the edge to besplit.

    Step Two: Click on the SPLIT LINEicon. This toggle switch enables you to use thecursor to draw the split point on the selected edge.

    Step Three: Designate the point at which the split will occur. Keep the left mousebutton depressed and drag the cursor to draw a line which intersects the selectededge at the point where you want the split to occur. When you have created theintersecting line at the desired point, release the mouse button. The point ofintersection will be displayed on the selected edge as a plus sign (+) and aConfirmation Window will be opened.

    Step Four: Confirm the desired split. The Confirmation window gives you theopportunity to verify that you want to split the selected edge at the designated point.When you are satisfied that the edge will be split at the desired point, click on theYes button in the Confirmation Window. This causes the immediate execution of

    the operation upon the specified edge.

    Remarks

    When SPLIT LINEis used, both of the resulting edges will contain the sameinformation (e.g., edge density, surface associativity, etc.) as the original or parentedge. Any surface meshes associated with the parent edge will be deleted.

    Example

    In the figure below, on the left the selected curve (Red) is the edge which will be split.

    The vertical line (Yellow) represents the line drawn by dragging the cursor across the

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    edge to be split. The split will occur at the intersection of these two points. The modelon the right illustrates the result of this operation.

    Related Topics

    EDGE OPERATIONS, SELECT, DESELECT, CONNECT

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    4.3.1.1.12. Split Two

    Icon

    Description

    Use this command to split two edges in the geometry that intersect. The split willoccur at the closest intersection point between the two edges. Any edge, curved orstraight edge in the geometry may be split using this function.

    Syntax

    To use theSPLIT TWOfunction you must complete three steps as follows:

    Step One: Select the edges you want to split. SELECTtwo edges to be split. Theorder in which you select two edges is not important.

    Step Two: Activate the SPLIT TWOfunction. Click the left mouse button when thecursor is over the SPLIT TWObutton in the toolbox. The closest point ofintersection will be displayed on the selected edges as a plus sign (+) and aConfirmation Window will be opened.

    Step Three: Confirm the desired split. The confirmation window gives you theopportunity to verify that you want to split the selected edges at the intersectionpoint identified by MeshCAST. When you are satisfied that the edge will be split atthe desired intersection point, click on the Yes button in the confirmation window.This causes the immediate execution of the operation upon the specified edges.

    Remarks

    The geometry resulting from a SPLIT TWOoperation depends upon the nature of the

    two edges you initially selected. If the edges are arc-like and near-coincident, theresult will be four edges with a common intersection point. If the edges are moreperpendicular in their orientation to each other or if they are near the end point of oneof the edges, only one of the selected edges will be split and the result will be threeedges with a common intersection point.

    If the SPLIT TWOoperation results in four edges, the resulting edges will contain thesame information (e.g., edge density, surface associativity, etc.) as their respectiveoriginal or parent edge.

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    If the SPLIT TWOoperation succeeds in splitting any edge the newly created edgeswill contain the same information (e.g., edge density, surface associativity, etc.) asthe respective parent edge.

    Any surface meshes associated with the split parent edges will be deleted.

    Examples

    Example 1: The figure below illustrates the use of SPLIT TWOto divide two arc-likeand near-coincident edges into four edges with a common intersection point. Theselected edges on the left are split into four edges with the split point positionbetween the closest intersection point between the two edges.

    Example 2: The figure below illustrates the use of SPLIT TWOto divide two edgeswhich are more perpendicular in their orientation to each other. Of two selectededges on the left, one of them will be split in two (vertical edge) and the other edgewill be connected to the intersection point (horizontal edge).

    Related Topics

    EDGE OPERATIONS, SELECT, DESELECT, CONNECT

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    4.3.1.1.13. Split Edge

    Icon

    Description

    This command splits a selected edge at a specified position.

    Syntax

    By clicking on the SPLIT EDGE icon a Command Window is activated which allowsyou to define two parameters which control the splitting position. The selected edgeis split at the 'n'th point, assuming the edge is sub-divided into 't' number of points.

    Parameter-1: Defines the 'n'th point position (the 'n'th point of 't' points).

    Parameter-2: Defines the total number of points ('t' points).

    See illustrated example below:

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    Remarks

    To determine 'n' and 't' (to get the exact split location) the user is advised to use the'PRINT CO-ORDS' command. To use this operation, first select the Edge to be split &use the 'PRINT CO-ORDS' command to determine the exact split location. Out of 't'number of points, if the splitting location falls near the 'n' th point, then execute this(SE) command with 'n' and 't' as operands. After successful execution of thiscommand, the edge is split into two, exactly at the 'n'th point location and theassociativity of all the surfaces with these two edges is preserved.

    Related Topics

    EDGE OPERATIONS, SPLIT LINE, SPLIT TWO, PRINT CO-ORDS

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    4.3.1.1.14. Reverse Arc

    Icon

    Description

    This command reverses the shape of an arc edge.

    Syntax

    REVERSE ARCis a push button icon which causes the immediate execution of theoperation. It is activated by first SELECTting the arc edge to be reversed thenclicking the left mouse button on the REVERSE ARC icon button.

    Related Topics

    EDGE OPERATIONS, ADD CIRCLE, CYLINDER

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    4.3.1.1.15. Complement Arc

    Icon

    Description

    This command extends the arc to the opposite side.

    Syntax

    COMPLEMENT ARCis a push button icon which causes the immediate execution ofthe operation. It is activated by first SELECTting the arc edge to be reversed thenclicking the left mouse button on the COMPLEMENT ARC icon button.

    Related Topics

    EDGE OPERATIONS, ADD CIRCLE, CYLINDER

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    4.3.1.1.16. Delete Edges

    Icon

    Description

    This command is used to delete SELECTed edge(s) from the geometry withoutdisturbing the rest of the geometry.

    Syntax

    First select the edges to be deleted then by clicking on the DELELETE EDGES icona Confirmation Window is activated which allows you to confirm before deletion willoccur.

    When you are satisfied that the correct edges will be deleted, click on the Yes buttonin the confirmation window. This causes the immediate execution of the operationupon the selected edge(s). Clicking on the No button will cancel the operation

    Remarks

    DELETE EDGESperforms two tasks. The first task is to delete the selected edge oredges. The second task identifies the surfaces with which the deleted edges wereassociated and updates those surfaces to reflect the deletion. Both of these tasks willbe completed as one operation when you click on the Yes push button in theConfirmation Window. If you DELETE all the edges associated with a surface in thegeometry, that surface will also be deleted.

    Any surface meshes associated with the deleted edges will also be deleted.Therefore, it will be necessary for you to regenerate the surface mesh with theGENERATE SURFACE MESHcommand.

    MeshCASTwill display messages in the Message Window to acknowledge the actiontaken. In the example below, "Deleted 4 Edges and 1 Surfaces from the geometry...", indicates that the four edges selected were deleted and that the surfaceassociated with these edges was also deleted. The meshes of five surfaces (0, 2, 3,4 and 14) were also deleted.

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    Related Topics

    EDGE OPERATIONS, SELECT, DESELECT, GENERATE SURFACE MESH

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    4.3.1.1.17. Del/Merge Edge

    Icon

    Description

    This command deletes an edge by merging the two end points of a selected edgeinto one single point whilst positioning the point at a predefined position.

    Syntax

    First select the edge to be deleted then by clicking on the DEL/MERGE EDGE icon aConfirmation Window is activated which allows you to confirm the position of the finalmerged point.

    Three possibilities exist for you to choose as the merging point. You may chooseeither endpoint of the edge or the edge's midpoint. The merging point is displayed asa blue plus sign (+) and the default merging point is the midpoint of the edge. Youmay use the Next Merge Point push button in the Confirmation Window to toggleamong the three possible merging point positions. When the desired position appearson the screen, click on the Yes to confirm merger.

    Remarks

    DEL/MERGE EDGEperforms two tasks. The first task is to delete the selected edge.As part of this task, MeshCASTidentifies the surfaces with which the deleted edgewas associated and updates those surfaces to reflect the deletion. The second taskis to merge all edges connected to the deleted edge's end points. Both of these taskswill be completed as one operation. Any surface meshes associated with the affected(deleted or merged) edges will be deleted. Therefore, it will be necessary for you toregenerate the surface mesh with GENERATE SURFACE MESH.

    Related Topics

    EDGE OPERATIONS, SELECT, DESELECT, GENERATE SURFACE MESH

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    The first selected edge connected to Surface X will be the edge remaining after themerging operation. The second selected edge connected to Surface Y will be theedge which is deleted. The remaining edge takes on the identity of the deleted edgeand is therefore associated with Surface X and Surface Y after the execution.

    Related Topics

    EDGE OPERATIONS, DEL/MERGE EDGE, ADD EDGE(S)

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    4.3.1.1.19. Auto Merge

    Icon

    Description

    This command is used to merge edges which form cracks between surfaces and alsoto merge edges belonging to coincident faces. This command works only on the setof edges which are selected/highlighted in Red colour and so all the edges upon

    which the user wants to execute 'automerge' have to be selected before thiscommand can be executed. After successful edge-merge operations, the mergededges will change from Red to White colour on the screen (Hence, it is advisable toactivate these selected edges before executing this command). After merging edges,the Surface-Edge associativity information is updated appropriately to reflect thechanges.

    Syntax

    By clicking on the AURO MERGE icon a Command Window is activated which allowsyou to define two tolerance values. Two selected edges (Red coloured) will be

    merged into a single-edge if the maximum distance between any two closest pointson these two edges is within 'Tolerance1' and also the closest end-points of the twoedges are within 'tolerance2' as shown in the figure below. Once the two edgessatisfy this criteria, they are merged into a single (White coloured) edge and theappropriate surfaces are updated to reflect this change.

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    Remarks

    Note: This command should be executed immediately after reading in the geometry(and definitely not after meshing some surfaces).

    Related Topics

    EDGE OPERATIONS, SELECT, MERGE EDGES, DEL/MERGE EDGE, MERGEPOINTS

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    4.3.1.1.20. Merge Points

    Icon

    Description

    Use this command to merge the closest end points of two selected edges into asingle point.

    Syntax

    First select two edges with the end points to be merged then by clicking on theMERGE POINTS icon a Confirmation Window is activated which allows you toconfirm the merge.

    Remarks

    The sequence in which you select the edges is not important. The two closest endpoints will be merged into a single point. Surface meshes, if any, associated with theaffected edges will be deleted.

    Examples

    This example illustrates the use of MERGE POINTS. In the model on the left closestend points of the selected edges (Red) will be merged into a single point. In thiscase, all four edges will be merged into a single point.

    Related Topics

    EDGE OPERATIONS, SELECT, DESELECT

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    4.3.1.1.21. Auto Incr Merge

    Icon

    Description

    This button allows to automatically merge cracks in the current active set. Thetolerance for the merge should be specified by the user. It advised to increment thetolerance until the crack disappears, rather than using a large tolerance since thebeginning.

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    4.3.1.1.22. Identify Cracks

    Icon

    Description

    This button is equivalent to the manual operation: "edge:surf < 2" followed by the"Identify" button.

    It allows to select automatically the cracks (i.e. the "blue edges" which appears whena "Check mesh" is performed).

    A "Crack" is an edge which belongs to one (or zero) surface.

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    4.3.1.1.23. Identify Multiple Edges

    Icon

    Description

    This button is equivalent to the manual operation: "edge:surf > 2" followed by the"Identify" button.

    It allows to select automatically the Multiple edges (i.e. the "yellow edges" whichappears when a "Check mesh" is performed).

    A "Multiple edge" is an edge which belongs to more than two surfaces. It shouldcorresponds to the common edges to more than one domain.

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    4.3.1.2. Surface Operations

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    Description

    The command buttons in the SURFACE OPERATIONSfolder are used to repair andmodify geometry surfaces.

    Syntax

    Click on the SURFACE OPERATIONSfolder icon to display the group of surfacecommand buttons.

    Related Topics

    REPAIR TOOLS, ADD PLANE, ADD SURFACE, DELETE SURFACES, REM COINFACES, MERGE SURFACES, ADD EDGE(S), REMOVE EDGE(S), SPLITCYLINDER, PLANE SPLIT, DELDESCU, INCRDESCU, -INCRDESCU,INCRDESCV, -INCRDESCV, DELDESCV, PLANE DESCRIPTION, CONTRUCTSURFACE, CONTRUCT SWEEP DESCR, SHIFT-U, SHIFT-V

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    4.3.1.2.1. Add Plane

    Icon

    Description

    This command simply creates a new planar surface for a set of SELECTed edges.The newly created surface number is displayed in the Message Window.

    Syntax

    First select the edges you wish to use for the surface creation and then click on theADD PLANEicon.

    Related Topics

    SURFACE OPERATIONS, SELECT, PLANE DESCRIPTION

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    4.3.1.2.2. Add Surface

    Icon

    Description

    This command will create a new surface and the surface number of this newlycreated surface is displayed in the Message Window.

    Syntax

    By clicking on the ADD RECTANGLE icon a Command Windowis activatedwhichallows you the option to define a surface number, "Surface #".

    When defining a surface number, "Surface #", in the Command Window, the surfacedescription of the specified surface number is copied into a newly created surfacewithout any associated edges.

    Note that every surface requires a set of edges and a surface description thatcompletely covers the surface. So, it is the user's responsibility to ADD EDGE(S)tothis surface once it is created and also to create a surface description if not alreadypresent.

    Related Topics

    SURFACE OPERATIONS, ADD PLANE, ADD RECTANGLE

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    4.3.1.2.3. Delete Surfaces

    Icon

    Description

    This command deletes a specified surface from the geometry without deleting theedges present in that surface from the geometry.

    Syntax

    Before clicking on the icon first specify the number of the surface to be deleted in theInput Window. By clicking on the DELETE SURFACE icon a Confirmation Windowisactivatedwhich allows you to verify whether the specified surfaces should be deleted.

    Remarks

    After the specified surface is deleted, all surface numbers above the one deleted willbe decremented by one.MeshCASTwill display a message in the Message Window to acknowledge theaction taken.

    Related Topics

    SURFACE OPERATIONS, SELECT, DESELECT, ADD SURFACE

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    4.3.1.2.4. Rem Coin Faces

    Icon

    Description

    This command deletes all the duplicate faces having the same edges from thegeometry which could have been created as a result of 'automerge' operation.

    Syntax

    By clicking on the REM COIN FACES icon the command is executed on thegeometry as a whole looking for faces with exactly the same edges. A message willthen appear in the Message Window indicating the number of surfaces deleted.

    Remarks

    For every pair of surfaces having the same edges one of the surfaces is deleted andthe surface numbers of the rest of the surfaces (which are greater than the surfacenumber of the deleted surface) are decremented by one.

    Related Topics

    SURFACE OPERATIONS

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    4.3.1.2.5. Merge Surfaces

    Icon

    Description

    This command merges a smaller surface into an adjacent larger surface.

    Syntax

    Before clicking on the icon first specify two surface numbers to be merged in theInput Window. By clicking on the MERGE SURFACES icon a Confirmation Windowisactivatedwhich allows you to verify the merge.

    Remarks

    The sequence in which you specify the surfaces is not important. The larger surfacewill be displayed in blue. The common edges between the larger and smallersurfaces will be displayed in red and will be deleted as a result of the mergeoperation.

    MeshCASTwill display a message in the Message Window to acknowledge theaction taken. After the executing this command, you should display the surface andcheck to see that the surface description completely covers the surface. If necessary,you may need to redefine the surface by using PLANE DESCRIPTION,CONSTRUCT SWEEP DESC, or CONSTRUCT SURFACEcommands to recreatethe description in order to completely cover the newly formed surface.

    Related Topics

    SURFACE OPERATIONS, DELETE SURFACE, PLANE DESCRIPTION,CONSTRUCT SWEEP DESC, CONSTRUCT SURFACE

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    4.3.1.2.6. Add Edge(s)

    Icon

    Description

    This command adds selected edges to a specified surface.

    Syntax

    Before clicking on the icon first SELECTthe edges to be added then specify thenumber of the surface in the Input Window. By clicking on the ADD EDGE(S) icon thecommand is immediately executed.

    Remarks

    This operation will add all the selected edges to the list of edges already associatedwith the specified surface. Adding edges to a surface does not change the geometry.After execution MeshCASTprovides an acknowledgment in the Message Window.

    Related Topics

    SURFACE OPERATIONS, SELECT, REMOVE EDGE(S)

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    4.3.1.2.7. Remove Edge(s)

    Icon

    Description

    This command removes selected edges from a specified surface.

    Syntax

    Before clicking on the icon first SELECTthe edges to be removed then specify thenumber of the surface in the Input Window. By clicking on the REMOVE EDGE(S)icon the command is immediately executed.

    Remarks

    This operation will remove all the selected edges from the group of edges alreadyassociated with the specified surface. Removing edges from a surface does notchange the geometry or delete the edge. After execution MeshCASTprovides anacknowledgment in the Message Window.

    Related Topics

    SURFACE OPERATIONS, SELECT, REMOVE EDGE(S)

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    4.3.1.2.8. Split Cylinder

    Icon

    Description

    This operation splits all cylindrical-like periodic surfaces into two surfaces fit formeshing by MeshCAST.

    Syntax

    By clicking on the SPLIT CYLINDER icon the command is executed and the periodicsurfaces to be split by this command should have exactly one edge connecting thetop and bottom edges and this edge must be selected before execution of thiscommand. This command operates on all the surfaces that are active in the screenand so the user has to activate all the cylindrical-like periodic (one edge selected foreach) surfaces that needs to be split, into a new Active Set (using ACTIVE) beforeexecuting this command. For every pair of surfaces having the same edges one ofthe surfaces is deleted and the surface numbers of the rest of the surfaces (which aregreater than the surface number of the deleted surface) are decremented by one.

    Remarks

    One sequence that accomplishes this task is:

    Type in "edge:surf = 1" in the Input Window and click on IDENTIFY. This will highlightall the edges that are connected to exactly one surface which will be the case with

    the vertical edges connecting the top and bottom edges of our periodic surfaces.

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    Now, click on the APPEND ADJ. SURFACEicon. This will activate all the surfacesassociated with the highlighted edges into a new active set, and in this case thesenewly activated surfaces will be our desired periodic surfaces. Note that sometimesother non-periodic surfaces also get activated by this method and if so, it is the user's

    responsibility to de-activate them before executing this command.

    Related Topics

    SURFACE OPERATIONS, SPLIT GEOM, PLANE SPLIT

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    4.3.1.2.9. Plane Split

    Icon

    Description

    This command splits the geometry in the Current Active Set at the intersection withthe plane specified by three co-ordinates.

    Syntax

    By clicking on the PLANE SPLIT icon a Command Windowis activatedwhich allowsyou to define the plane by specifying three co-ordinates (X1, Y1, Z1), (X2, Y2, Z2),(X3, Y3, Z3).

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    Remarks

    On execution, MeshCASTsplits the whole geometry in the current active set at theintersection of the geometry with the plane. This plane-splitting just splits the edges

    of the geometry (in the current active set) that intersects with the plane and doesnothing else. This means that as a result of this split, the shape of the geometry andthe surfaces of the geometry will remain the same and only the edges that intersectwith the plane will be split into two at the point of intersection with the plane. Thenewly formed edges will have the same properties as the parent edge (that was splitinto two), namely the associativity with surfaces, Length values associated with it inthe edge-set etc. As a result of this operation, surface meshes if any, associated withthe edges that are split will be deleted.

    Related Topics

    SURFACE OPERATIONS, ACTIVE

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    4.3.1.2.11. Incrdescu

    Icon

    Description

    This command will extend an existing surface description to include any uncoveredarea of the surface formed as a result of some MERGEoperation.

    Syntax

    By clicking on the INCRDESCU icon a Command Windowis activatedwhich allowsyou to define the surface number, "Surface #".

    As illustrated in the figure below, the Surface description in MeshCASTcan bevisualised as an 'U x V' net where the blue line at one corner represents the 'U' linewith U number of points and the pink line at another corner represents the 'V' line with'V' number of points (this surface description net appears when you click on theDISPLAYbutton).

    If the uncovered area is somewhat parallel to the Blue 'U' line then one of thecommands INCRDESCUor -INCRDESCUhave to be considered. If the uncovered

    area is closer to the first segment adjacent to the Blue line then -INCRDESCUis theappropriate command. Instead if it is closer to the last segment (see figure below)farthest away from the Blue line then INCRDESCUis the appropriate one. Thedirection of extension of the surface is parallel to the segment being affected and thenew area of this segment will be 1.5 times its existing area. Multiple executions of thiscommand also can be considered in order to cover the entire surface.

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    Remarks

    The only difference between the two commands is that the last segment is extendedin the INCRDESCUcommand instead of the first segment, as in the -INCRDESCUcommand.

    Related Topics

    SURFACE OPERATIONS, -INCRDESCU

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    4.3.1.2.12. -Incrdescu

    Icon

    Description

    This command will extend an existing surface description to include any uncoveredarea of the surface formed as a result of some MERGEoperation.

    Syntax

    By clicking on the -INCRDESCU icon a Command Windowis activatedwhich allowsyou to define the surface number, "Surface #".

    As illustrated in the figure below, the Surface description in MeshCASTcan bevisualised as an 'U x V' net where the Blue line at one corner represents the 'U' linewith U number of points and the Pink line at another corner represents the 'V' linewith 'V' number of points (this surface description net appears when you click on theDISPLAYbutton).

    If the uncovered area is somewhat parallel to the Blue 'U' line then one of thecommands -INCRDESCUor INCRDESCUhave to be considered. If the uncovered

    area is closer to the first segment (see figure below) adjacent to the Blue line then -INCRDESCUis the appropriate command. Instead if it is closer to the last segment(see figure below) farthest away from the Blue line then INCRDESCUis theappropriate one. The direction of extension of the surface is parallel to the segmentbeing affected and the new area of this segment will be 1.5 times its existing area.Multiple executions of this command also can be considered in order to cover theentire surface.

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    4.3.1.2.13. Incrdescv

    Icon

    Description

    This command will extend an existing surface description to include any uncoveredarea of the surface formed as a result of some MERGEoperation.

    Syntax

    By clicking on the INCRDESCV icon a Command Windowis activatedwhich allowsyou to define the surface number, "Surface #".

    As illustrated in the figure below, the Surface description in MeshCASTcan bevisualised as an 'U x V' net where the blue line at one corner represents the 'U' linewith U number of points and the pink line at another corner represents the 'V' line with'V' number of points (this surface description net appears when you click on theDISPLAYbutton).

    If the uncovered area is somewhat parallel to the pink 'V' line then one of thecommands INCRDESCVor -INCRDESCVhave to be considered. If the uncovered

    area is closer to the first segment adjacent to the pink line then -INCRDESCVis theappropriate command. Instead if it is closer to the last segment (see figure below)farthest away from the pink line then INCRDESCVis the appropriate one. Thedirection of extension of the surface is parallel to the segment being affected and thenew area of this segment will be 1.5 times its existing area. Multiple executions of thiscommand also can be considered in order to cover the entire surface.

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    Remarks

    The only difference between the two commands is that the last segment is extendedin the INCRDESCVcommand instead of the first segment, as in the -INCRDESCVcommand.

    Related Topics

    SURFACE OPERATIONS, -INCRDESCV

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    4.3.1.2.14. -Incrdescv

    Icon

    Description

    This command will extend an existing surface description to include any uncoveredarea of the surface formed as a result of some MERGEoperation.

    Syntax

    By clicking on the -INCRDESCV icon a Command Windowis activatedwhich allowsyou to define the surface number, "Surface #".

    As illustrated in the figure below, the surface description in MeshCASTcan bevisualised as an 'U x V' net where the Blue line at one corner represents the 'U' linewith U number of points and the Pink line at another corner represents the 'V' linewith 'V' number of points (this surface description net appears when you click on theDISPLAYbutton).

    If the uncovered area is somewhat parallel to the pink 'V' line then one of thecommands -INCRDESCVor INCRDESCVhave to be considered. If the uncovered

    area is closer to the first segment (see figure below) adjacent to the pink line then -INCRDESCVis the appropriate command. Instead if it is closer to the last segment(see figure below) farthest away from the pink line then INCRDESCVis theappropriate one. The direction of extension of the surface is parallel to the segmentbeing affected and the new area of this segment will be 1.5 times its existing area.Multiple executions of this command also can be considered in order to cover theentire surface.

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    Remarks

    The only difference between the two commands is that the first segment is extendedin the -INCRDESCVcommand instead of the last segment, as in INCRDESCV.

    Related Topics

    SURFACE OPERATIONS, INCRDESCV

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    4.3.1.2.15. Deldescv

    Icon

    Description

    This command will delete the surface description of a specified surface.

    Syntax

    By clicking on the DELDESCV icon a Command Windowis activatedwhich allowsyou to define the surface number, "Surface #" as well as a "Parameter" which definesthe position of the deleted line.

    As illustrated in the figure below, the description of the surface will decrease by oneline by removing the line at the position specified by the "Parameter" value.

    Related Topics

    SURFACE OPERATIONS, -INCRDESCU, INCRDESCU, DELDESCU

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