Mentor Blogs

Any simulation technology based on an approach of subdividing a 3D model into many tessellated control volumes (e.g. the finite volume method) will be affected by the shape and size of those ‘mesh cells’ or ‘grid’. How fine should the mesh be to resolve the physics of the model being simulated? Good question. I used to ask my art teacher how to draw curtains. You don’t have to be a comic to figure out … Read More

modelling, Electronics Cooling, CFD, Model, Modeling, Grid, Mesh

The ability of FloTHERM to resolve a massive disparity in geometric length scale in a single model is for me its greatest strength. By not having to make simplifying assumptions to ignore either extremely small or truncate extremely large geometric parts and features, simulation accuracy can be better assured. The ‘die in a city’ model in the previous blog resolved a length scale of 1,000,000,000:1. … Read More

Electronics Cooling, CFD, Grid, Mesh

When budgets are tight most managers think about the same thing before they sign on the dotted line:  is this new tool going to help us get more done faster/better/smarter? If the answer is no then like most managers I don’t make the investment. Instead I focus on an activity that’s going to give me the best return on investment (ROI). That’s why last week I talked about time compression being … Read More

Time Compression, CFD, CAD-Embedded, Process Compression, ROI, Design Engineer, Mesh

From time to time I lurk around CFD related forums – just to see what people are talking about. A couple of weeks ago I found a posting on the subtleties of meshing and its relation to accuracy. The discussion rapidly became quite heated – there were some folks who believed that unless simulation gives you 100% accuracy then it is useless while others didn’t believe that accuracy is the only factor … Read More

Mesh, FloVENT, CFD, Design Engineer, Accuracy, FloEFD

So, all models are wrong, to some extent, due to various reasons. For electronic thermal simulation the main suspect is power as described in Part I. Weighing in at anything up to +/- 20% (on a good day) it is the main reason for model inaccuracy. Unlike power, the next in line is much more under your control as a CFD modeller. It is grid. Sometimes referred to a 'mesh', a grid is a subdivision of … Read More

Accuracy, Electronics Cooling, Grid, Mesh