Simulation Helps Keep One of World’s Top Data Centers Cool

Mentor Graphics Corporation (NASDAQ: MENT) announced today it will supply Freescale Semiconductor (NYSE:FSL, FSL.B) with select electronic design automation (EDA) technologies designed to enhance the manufacturability and testability of semiconductors.

Schueco, one of the leading producers of photovoltaic panels, used Flomerics’ FloVENT computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software to redesign its products to improve their thermal performance so that 15% to 20% more panels can be used in a given space. Today’s photovoltaic panels present a major thermal design challenge since every degree Centigrade of temperature rise reduces the power produced by 0.5%.

Simclar Group used Flomerics’ FloTHERM thermal simulation software to develop a new platform that goes well beyond the Advanced Telecom Computing Architecture (ATCA) 3.0 specification. “Simulation gave me the freedom to consider a wide range of alternative designs by letting me evaluate their performance quickly and at very little cost,” said Dave Watson, Thermal Design Team Leader for Simclar Group. “We succeeded in developing a platform that goes well beyond the ATCA 3.0 specification by delivering 40 Gbps backplane bandwidth and 50 CFM airflow per slot with near-perfect airflow distribution.”

Flomerics, a world leader in the computer simulation of engineering design processes, today announced that APC (American Power Conversion) recently selected Flomerics’ FloVENT computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software to develop the world’s first real-time cooling calculator for data center design. The calculator computes a cooling performance metric called the capture index that assesses the local airflow around each rack and evaluates cooling performance and the scalability of cooling architecture.

Mentor Graphics announces that its consulting division has successfully completed an engagement at Dongbu HiTek, resulting in a 50 percent reduction in tape-to-mask turnaround time (TAT) while maintaining consistent manufacturing quality and yield. The improvements were achieved by optimizing Dongbu HiTek’s overall RET/MDP flow and taking advantage of the newest capabilities of the Calibre® OPC and Calibre OPCverify™ software solutions for lithography process simulation and correction.

AEG Electric Tools GmbH, one of the market-leading manufacturers of heavy-duty portable electric power tools for professionals, uses Flomerics FloEFD fluid flow and heat transfer simulation software for optimizing airflow and cooling effects in their power tools. “On a recent project we used FloEFD and we were able to get the engine running 20% cooler, and also we obtained this improvement much faster than before,” said Markus Wörner, design engineer at AEG.

Mentor announced that its third-generation Calibre® nmOPC product was honored with an Editors’ Choice Best Product award from Semiconductor International magazine.

C-MAC MicroTechnology used Flomerics’ FloTHERM thermal simulation software to determine that the thermal requirements of a stacked module could be met with a potting compound that cost only half the amount of the default choice. “Our engineer simulated the junction temperatures of the devices in the stacked modules while using three different potting compounds,” said Bob Hunt, Head of Engineering for C-MAC. “Simulation was much faster and less expensive than the alternative of building and testing prototypes.”

Voxdale, a Belgium based engineering consulting firm, used Flomerics’ FloEFD.Pro computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software to solve a power light emitting diode (LED) thermal management problem in just one day. The initial prototype of the LED system overheated to the point that the amount of light delivered by the device and its lifetime were both substantially reduced. Voxdale engineers used the CFD results to redesign the housing in just one day to improve airflow, which eliminated overheating and increased light output and life to the desired levels.

More than 95% of the users of Flomerics’ FloTHERM thermal simulation software said in a recent survey that they were satisfied with FloTHERM. Of the FloTHERM users, 36.6% said they were very satisfied and 58.8% said they were fairly satisfied with only 3.9% saying they were slightly dissatisfied and 0.7% very dissatisfied. An even higher percentage said they would recommend FloTHERM with 31.4% saying they would strongly recommend and 66.7% saying they would recommend FloTHERM to others.

Bronswerk Heat Transfer BV, a leading manufacturer of heat exchangers and fans, has expanded use of Flomerics FloEFD.Pro from strictly research and development to everyday engineering design. FloEFD.Pro is the world’s leading Pro/ENGINEER Wildfire-embedded Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) software tool and is used by design engineers interested in understanding flow and heat transfer in their products. “It is very important to us to use FloEFD.Pro on a more regular basis” said Johan van der Kamp, chief design engineer. “But we are not analysis specialists and we do not know the full potential of what the technology can do for us.” To facilitate a successful transfer of “CFD know-how” from one department to the next, the Bronswerk engineering team has recruited two college students.

Since Flomerics announced it’s EFD for Education Initiative a year ago there has been a four-fold increase in the number of sites using its popular Engineering Fluid Dynamics (EFD) software for teaching and research purposes. Flomerics aims to ensure that mechanical engineering students and researchers have access to the latest fluid dynamics software used in industry.

Flomerics and Matchstick Productions have released a short video, which for the first time reveals the complex 3D airflow around a wingsuit that enables human beings to glide through the air like a bird. The video combines actual footage of human flight in wingsuits with airflow simulations using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software. The actual wingsuit flight segments come from the film “Seven Sunny Days” by Matchstick Productions.

Flomerics has announced regular workshops on how to optimize the thermal performance of data centers using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation software. The workshops will explain how to simulate the thermal performance of an existing or planned data center configuration using templates and libraries that enable users to simply drag and drop building blocks into the model. The three-day seminar includes two days of training while the third day is devoted to helping attendees model their own data center. “This new workshop will help architects, engineers and facility owners optimize cooling performance and minimize energy costs for both new and existing data centers,” said Paul Rose, Principle Consultant Engineer with Flomerics. “Interested companies can contact us and we will schedule a workshop specially for them at their convenience.”

Crane Aerospace & Electronics used Flomerics’ FloTHERM thermal simulation software to develop an unusual heatsink that works in the vertical or horizontal orientation. The heatsink is for a DC power subsystem for a commercial airliner. Developing an entirely new heatsink geometry that would have met the performance requirements would have taken an enormous amount of time using conventional build and test methods.

An active chilled beam cooling system played a key role in delivering an expected 20% reduction in cooling and ventilation energy consumption at the new Genomic Science Building at the University of North Carolina (UNC) in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The system was developed by Affiliated Engineers, Inc. (AEI) in collaboration with the project architect, Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill LLP (SOM). Engineers at Affiliated Engineers, Inc. (AEI) used Flomerics’ FloVENT computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software to optimize the cooling system and maximize the energy savings.

Flomerics announced today that the Package Engineering Group from Applied Micro Circuits Corporation (NASDAQ: AMCC) is using FloTHERM thermal simulation software to significantly reduce the cost of packaging and the project resource cost for a new family of ICs. AMCC achieved these outstanding results by comparing flip-chip and wire bond thermal performance early in the design process.

Flomerics recently released a report describing the use of its FloVENT simulation software to optimize the cooling of a data center. The report describes a program of work designed to investigate the effect of a number of actions on the thermal performance of a typical data center. The simulations were based on a real data center run by Equinix at one of its centers located west of London. The work was carried out for Equinix.

Thermacore used Flomerics’ FloTHERM thermal simulation software to solve a challenging thermal management problem in a tower mounted amplifier (TMA) for a cellular base station. Thermal simulation showed that the heat from the 1 by 1.5 inch amplifier chips did not spread out sufficiently to utilize the full extent of the heat sink, causing the chips to overheat.

CFD-online, the popular online center for Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) has set up a dedicated User Forum for users of Flomerics EFD suite of simulation software. CFD-online is a highly respected CFD portal, providing high-quality web services including discussion forums, a jobs database, and links to CFD resources around the world. To support the growing number of users of CAD-embedded CFD, CFD-online has set up a dedicated discussion forum for users of FloEFD.Pro, FloEFD.V5, FloEFD and as well as SolidWorks-branded CosmosFloworks and FloXpress.

Flomerics has released a unique new software product, FloTHERM.PACKSIM, that revolutionizes the process of semiconductor thermal characterization and design. FloTHERM.PACKSIM provides a fast, simple, proven, automated process that reduces the number of distinct steps required to be performed by thermal experts, reducing the risk of modeling errors to enhance the quality, reliability, and availability of package thermal models.

Thales missile electronics facility in Basingstoke has chosen Flomerics’ FloEFD.Pro, the Pro/ENGINEER Wildfire-embedded engineering fluid dynamics software. FloEFD.Pro will be used to analyze complex defense electronics cooling problems at the front end of the design process. “As an engineer, I am concerned about solving problems in the shortest possible timeframe. Flomerics technology helps us in achieving this” said Mark Pashley, principal mechanical engineer.

CH2M HILL engineers used Flomerics’ FloVENT computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software to simulate predicted thermal loads that will be generated by the IBM Roadrunner machine. Roadrunner is projected to be in the top 10 on the HPC Top 500 list and will be installed at Los Alamos National Laboratory’s Nicholas Metropolis Center. By regularly modeling the facility, CH2M engineers have helped the DOE stay one step ahead of the continuously increasing thermal load while minimizing initial and operating costs of cooling equipment.

Dialight plc has selected Flomerics’ FloEFD.Pro engineering fluid dynamics software, embedded in Pro/ENGINEER Wildfire, for the design of advanced lighting systems based on light-emitting diode (LED) technology. “Although power LEDs are becoming more efficient, a significant amount of input power translates into heat” said Gordon Routledge, VP of illumination products, Dialight plc.

Mentor announced the Calibre® nmOPC and OPCverifyTM computational lithography tools accelerated with Cell Broadband EngineTM (Cell/B.E.) processor technology have been qualified for production at IBM for 45nm and smaller process nodes.

Flomerics has reacted to the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile’s (FIA’s) recent announcement of restrictions on the use of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis software by suggesting that these restrictions might actually increase the use of more efficient CFD tools that automate most of the modeling process. “We believe that the FIA’s limitation on CFD and wind tunnel testing will accelerate the trend towards use of CFD tools that accomplish more in less time by integrating simulation with the design process,” said John Parry, Research Manager for Flomerics.

AnJen Solutions recently used Flomerics’ FloTHERM computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software to assist MagneMotion, Inc. in their design of a vertical lift elevator made of linear synchronous motors (LSM). AnJen Solutions performed a weight versus thermal performance analysis of the LSM rail heatsink. “FloTHERM provided a detailed understanding of the conductive heat transfer between the heatsink and the LSM rail support structure and convective heat transfer to the surrounding environment,” said Michael Rigby of AnJen Solutions.

Antares Advanced Test Technologies used Flomerics’ FloTHERM thermal simulation software to develop a new burn-in test system for electronic components in one-third the amount of time that would have been required using conventional design methods. The design of the test system was challenging because of the need to maintain low thermal resistance between the heating and cooling systems and the device under test while compensating for variations in device height.

Marenco AG used FloEFD engineering fluid dynamics software from Flomerics to design a new extractor hood for one of their clients. The combined design and analysis time required only half the time it would have required in comparison to traditional engineering methods. Placed over a cooking range, extractor hoods remove grease, smoke and odors from the kitchen. They rely on a combination of a fan and a filtration system to extract and or clean the air.

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Amphenol Total Connection Solutions (TCS) used Flomerics’ FloTHERM software to overcome the thermal management challenges of a 14 rack unit (U) chassis dissipating 1700 watts. Amphenol engineer Chris Heard simulated the product, which includes a total of fourteen 100-watt and two 150-watt printed circuit boards (PCBs). “This project demonstrates how thermal simulation can be used in the early stages of the design process to minimize expensive late-stage changes and reduce time to market,” Heard said.

To help promote best practice in the use of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) during the design phase, Flomerics has joined the NAFEMS CFD Working Group. Founded in 1995, the group provides guidance and information for the safe and reliable use of CFD within the engineering community. “Flomerics has been a member of NAFEMS for a number of years, and I am sure that their experience and knowledge will be beneficial to the CFD Working Group and the NAFEMS community in general” said David Quinn, head of marketing and communications at NAFEMS Ltd. “Getting involved in the group demonstrates Flomerics commitment to the technology and the theory behind it, and that can only be a good thing for the industry.”

Engineers at Environmental Systems Design, Inc. (ESD) used Flomerics’ FloVENT computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software to verify the design of the first university residence hall in Illinois to obtain a Certified Gold Level rating under the Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design® (LEED) green building system. ESD used the relatively new displacement ventilation approach in their mechanical design of Saint Xavier University’s new $9 million, 37,000 square foot Arthur Rubloff Hall in order to reduce energy consumption.

Saipem UK has selected Flomerics’ FloEFD engineering fluid dynamics software for the analyses of transportation barges, construction and drilling vessels, and deck structures. “We have been using traditional Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) software to analyze our Autodesk Inventor solid models for the last couple of years. But we found the analysis process too time consuming because our software was unable to meet the rigorous demands of our development timescale. FloEFD on the other hand matches our needs for shortened design time and ease-of-use” said Dr. Zafer Ayaz, Naval Architect.

Flomerics recently commissioned a survey that shows that 95% of the users of its EFD family of fluid flow simulation software recommend EFD software to others. Of the users that responded to the survey, 28.5% said they would strongly recommend, 66.4% said they would recommend, and only 5.2% said they would not recommend EFD. The users listed the following as the most important benefit that EFD software brings to their company as reduced prototyping and testing costs (30.4%)

Sharp Laboratories Europe has selected Flomerics’ FloEFD.V5 engineering fluid dynamics software, embedded in CATIA V5, for the design and virtual prototype testing of Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) modules for various applications in Europe. “FloEFD.V5 will be used by mechanical design engineers with varying levels of CFD experience – from novice to expert.” said Scott Boham, mechanical design engineer.

Flomerics is providing its FloEFD.Pro™ computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software free-of-charge to schools in Canada. The aim is to help students involved in the F1 in Schools™ CAD/CAM Design Challenge by improving the aerodynamics of their designs in a competition where a small fraction of a second separates the winner from the other participants.

VENTREX Automotive GmbH, Graz, Austria, saved four months in the design of an automotive valve by taking advantage of FloEFD.V5 CATIA V5-embedded computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation software. “In the past, we would have had to build and test at least 50 valves in order to get the design right,” said Peter Pfaffenwimmer, Project Manager for VENTREX Automotive GmbH, Graz, Austria. Daniel Gaisbacher, also a Project Manager for VENTREX, added that: “CAD-embedded CFD made it possible to determine simulation results nearly as fast as we changed the design. The result is that we were able to improve the flow rate of our new valve by 15% while eliminating about 50 prototypes and reducing time to market by 4 months.”

A recent Flomerics survey investigating the opinions of mechanical design engineers on Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analysis revealed that the vast majority (75%) of mechanical designers have heard of CFD. The same survey revealed that 80% of mechanical design engineers are not currently using CFD. The most common reason cited in the survey as to why relatively few mechanical design engineers are using CFD was that “most mechanical design engineers don’t have the necessary expertise and knowledge to use a CFD code.”

Aerospace valve manufacturer Shaw Aero Devices, Inc., Naples, Florida, saved at least $9000 and three months in prototyping costs by using Flomerics’ FloEFD computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software to iterate to an optimized design. The CFD results for each iteration provided insights into how the design could be improved. Rob Preble, Project Engineer for Shaw, created a design that provided the required pressure drop without the need to build a single hardware prototype. “CFD simulation dramatically reduced the time needed to meet our customer’s demanding specifications,” Preble concluded. “We moved from the beginning of the project to the development of an acceptable software prototype in only one day.”

Flomerics has announced that it has received an unprecedented response to its offer of providing its popular Engineering Fluid Dynamics (EFD) simulation software for teaching and research purposes. The Asian universities now using EFD include: Koichi University of Technology (Japan), Keio University (Japan), Kogakuin University (Japan); and KongJu University (South Korea). The European universities now using EFD include University of Greenwich (UK); University of Liverpool (UK); three of the leading German Fachhochschuler (technical colleges) in Berlin, Karlsruhe and Trier; and Institut Universitaire de Technologie de Poitiers, France. Also using EFD is the University of Cape Town (South Africa).

Flomerics’ consultants used their FloVENT software to evaluate design alternatives which helped Eichleay Engineers Inc. of California design an air handling system that keeps temperatures in a pharmaceutical warehouse within +/- 1º F. Flomerics’ consultants evaluated design alternatives and identified a fan configuration that met the pharmaceutical company’s requirements for both temperature variation and air velocity. “The HVAC system has been in operation for over a year and the temperatures in the warehouse have never been outside the customer’s specified range,” said Michael Simpson, Mechanical Engineer for Eichleay Engineers.

Bronswerk Heat Transfer BV (www.bronswerk.nl) uses FloEFD.Pro, an easy-to-use general purpose engineering fluid dynamics software from Flomerics Ltd. to develop new air-cooled coolers and innovative fans with the potential to make an enormous impact in industries requiring a “greener” solution. While traditionally such apparatus has a thermodynamic efficiency of up to 60%, their new designs based on the new fan achieve up to 80% efficiency. The potential energy savings worldwide can be staggering as their product can save 15% of the electricity it uses.

Flomerics has added thermal models of Sunon’s “Mighty Mini” fans and blowers to its SmartParts3D website (www.smartparts3d.com). Engineers can streamline the thermal design process by downloading these new models and incorporating them into thermal simulations. This approach is more accurate than making rough estimates from a paper chart because SmartParts3D models have the exact point-by-point values of the fan curve.

Ingersoll Rand Energy Systems has improved the plenum manufacturing process of the MT250 microturbine engine by using the EFD family of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software from Flomerics to develop a simple design that outperforms the earlier more complex design. In the past, evaluating new designs required expensive rig testing which made it impractical to evaluate a wide range of alternatives. "With EFD software, on the other hand, we were able to evaluate 15 different alternatives very quickly and without cutting any metal," said Toni Stamenov, Design Engineer for Ingersoll Rand Energy Systems.

Many cities in Malaya are developing rapidly now. The demand for studio type apartments has increased and there is growing interest among building services engineers and building developers in the analyses of internal airflows and thermal comfort. The factors influencing the built environment include air temperature, air humidity, air velocity, turbulence intensity and cleanliness of the air. There is a constant heat exchange occurring between human bodies and both the indoor and outdoor environments.

Eclipse Combustion used FloEFD, a general purpose engineering fluid dynamics software from Flomerics Ltd., to quickly design and optimize a large industrial air heater with burner in record time. "FloEFD helped us design a better air heater. Based on the analysis results, we even took out some of the parts we normally used as extra reserves to cover any eventuality," said Ad Heijmans, development manager at Eclipse.

Flomerics’ EFD for Education Initiative aims to ensure that mechanical engineering students and researchers have access to the latest fluid dynamics software used in industry. Unlike traditional Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulation software, EFD operates inside the mechanical CAD tools that engineers are familiar with – without any transfer of data.

Flomerics has released the results of a recent survey investigating the opinions of mechanical design engineers regarding Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analysis. The survey was promoted through a global Internet forum for mechanical designers that is independent of any particular software vendor. The survey shows that although the vast majority (75%) of mechanical designers have heard of CFD, an even bigger majority (80%) do not use CFD today.

CEEMO Engineering used FloEFD, an easy-to-use general purpose engineering fluid dynamics software from Flomerics Ltd. to test and optimize a new concept car. The entire design optimization process for the 2-seater chassis took about eight weeks despite the design engineer being a novice in the use of fluid analysis software. “I am an aerospace engineer by background but I had never used CFD software so we did an exhaustive search to find the right tool for the design engineer” said Evan van Wolfswinkel, an Engineer at Ceemo.

Hybricon Inc. Senior Simulation Engineer Michael Palis was given the challenge by a defense contractor customer of cooling an ATR form-factor chassis that dissipates almost 200 watts and operates at altitudes up to 50,000 feet. Palis used thermal simulation to evaluate a wide range of possible design configurations, focusing on heat sink design and fan performance at high altitudes. The simulation helped identify several alternative designs that would meet the customer's demanding requirements. Based on Palis' recommendations, the defense contractor built the system, which performed almost exactly as predicted by the simulation.

JAZO Zevenaar B.V. used a combination of PTC Pro/ENGINEER from PTC and FloEFD.Pro from Flomerics to cut 20 days from their design cycle for four new weatherproof, outdoor transformer housings. “The combination of Pro/ENGINEER for solid modeling and FloEFD.Pro for airflow analysis allows us to test our louvers for form, fit and function effortlessly” said Henry Aaldering, technical director at JAZO.

Flomerics has announced the availability of six new web macros for its FloVENT software that save time and improve accuracy in simulating the performance of diffusers. In the past, modeling diffusers has required detailed information from manufacturers about physical tests, building a room model to simulate the tests, and adjusting the model to match the test results. The models produced by the new web macros on the other hand, can simply be dropped into a FloVENT model and require only commonly available data for the diffuser such as outside dimensions, flow rate and temperature data.

Flomerics Ltd. has announced that FloEFD.Pro, its popular Engineering Fluid Dynamics (EFD) analysis software, now supports Wildfire 3 as well as an integrated interface with Pro/ENGINEER Mechanica for structural analysis. FloEFD.Pro which is embedded in Pro/ENGINEER is used by best-in-class manufacturers to design and optimize products within aerospace, automotive, HVAC, valves, medical device as well as fire protection industries.

Watts Industries Netherlands BV used FloEFD, the popular Engineering Fluid Dynamics (EFD) software to develop a range of water backflow prevention devices while drastically reducing their design test period. “By using FloEFD we have been able to develop a complete range of products instead of just one or two products” explained René Aarntzen, R&D / Engineering Manager. “Testing, which used to take 2 weeks, now takes only one day; therefore, our design test schedule has shortened dramatically.”

The International Engineering Consortium (IEC) has announced that FloTHERM.PCB thermal design software from Flomerics is one of only three finalists in the PCB Design Tools category of their prestigious 2007 DesignVision Awards. Finalists were chosen from among a record number of competing products by a panel of judges selected from DesignCon’s Technical Program Committee.

Fico, member of the Besi Group, used engineering fluid dynamics analysis software FloEFD.Pro to obtain an amazing 40x performance enhancement in their new laser cutting system. The company successfully optimized airflow in their new equipment to deal with the dust created as a result of the cutting process. As a result, system maintenance intervals increased from 15 minutes to 11 hours in record time. “In the past this process would have consisted of trial and error and would certainly have taken a lot longer than 90 days” explained Peter Venema, engineer.

The new System-in-Package (SiP) paradigm in electronics product implementation allows the mixing of optimum active and passive device technologies in bare die format within a single package outline for cost effective, high performance, short time-to-market functionality well matched to a wide range of low, medium and high volume electronics product applications. The novel addition of embedded passive component technology within such SiP modules also promises further performance, size, weight and cost benefits.

How do dolphins maintain a swimming speed of up to 10 meters per second? Standard engineering calculations predict that the dolphin’s muscles would have to be seven times more powerful than they actually are to achieve that speed. An alternative explanation is that the dolphin somehow reduces the frictional drag on its skin through the water to a much lower level than experienced by other bodies in water. This might be possible if the dolphin were able to maintain laminar flow as opposed to turbulent flow which would be expected at the speeds at which it travels. Laminar flow generates much less drag and so could account for the dolphin’s extraordinary speed.

With each successive generation of Cisco products, increases in functionality and speed have increased thermal design challenges. In response, Cisco Systems has defined a temperature aware design flow that significantly improves co-design between electrical and mechanical engineers. “The new concurrent electronic/thermal engineering approach has reduced the time required to identify and solve thermal problems, making it practical to address thermal issues at an earlier stage in the design process,” said Herman Chu, Technical Leader for Cisco Systems, San Jose, California.

Flomerics has released the results of a new online survey highlighting engineers’ views on integration between mechanical computer aided design (MCAD) and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software. When asked how important MCAD integration is for typical CFD users, 46% say it is “very important today” and an overwhelming 68% say it will be “very important in the future”.

Actaris used FloEFD computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software from Flomerics to design innovative gas meters. Actaris fluidic meters work on a unique principle of putting an obstacle in the flow stream and using a sensor to measure the resulting oscillations to determine the flow rate. “FloEFD enabled Actaris engineers to quickly and accurately simulate the flow velocity, direction and pressure, making it possible to evaluate new design concepts without the expense and leadtime required to build multiple prototypes,” said Ibne Soreefan, Project Manager for Actaris. “FloEFD also provided far more diagnostic information than can be obtained by testing a prototype, enabling engineers to move more directly to an optimized design.”

Miniature Precision Components, Inc., Walworth, Wisconsin, optimized the design of a new hydrocarbon trap by simulating it with FloEFD.V5, a design-oriented flow simulation software package. Mark Van de Bogert, Product Design Manager for Miniature Precision Components, evaluated the performance of 12 different design alternatives in order to minimize backpressure across the trap while achieving the required level of hydrocarbon absorption. “FloEFD.V5 makes it easy and inexpensive for design engineers to perform computational fluid dynamics simulations that in the past would have required the service of analysts with advanced degrees and software packages that lease for tens of thousands of dollars per year,” Van de Bogert said.

FloEFD CAD-integrated computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software saved time in the design of an innovative flush valve by enabling Johnson Design engineers to solve design problems utilizing software rather than hardware prototypes. A unique feature in Johnson Design’s Denali Flushometer flush valve is that it delivers a fixed volume of water independent of the position of the restriction on the rolling diaphragm which is randomly installed at various positions during the valve assembly.

Flomerics has released the latest version of its Flo/PCB thermal simulation software which helps solve thermal problems in solder reflow processing associated with the use of lead-free solders. Perhaps the greatest challenge of lead-free manufacturing is that temperature variations over the printed circuit board (PCB) during the reflow process must be maintained at much smaller levels in order to achieve the higher melt temperatures required by lead-free solders without damaging sensitive components.

ANCIS Incorporated, a San Francisco based consultancy, recently helped a major telecom firm develop a greatly improved heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning (HVAC) design standard for its central offices (COs) using Flomerics' FloVENT computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software to predict air intake temperatures for sensitive electronic equipment. Based on these intake temperatures, the Rack Cooling Index (RCI) algorithm developed by ANCIS was used to calculate the compliance of alternative designs with industry temperature specifications. "FloVENT's robust and predictable performance helped us to optimize equipment reliability in our client's COs," said Dr. Magnus K. Herrlin, Founder and President of ANCIS.

Anritsu Company has reduced the time required to develop communications test solutions 4 to 6 weeks, eliminating a printed circuit board (PCB) re-spin by modeling thermal management at the board and systems level during the early design process. In the past, Anritsu engineers were not able to address thermal issues at the board level until the prototype stage when physical testing was performed. “Now we use Flomerics’ FloTHERM.PCB software to optimize component placement before prototyping,” said Teresa Whiting, Mechanical Design Engineer for Anritsu. “The result is that no additional prototypes have been required for thermal reasons since this method has been used.”

A paper written by two Flomerics executives, Márta Rencz and András Poppe, as well as Ern? Kollar, Sándor Ress, and Vladimir Székely of the Budapest University of Technology and Economics (BUTE), has been selected as the best of 2005 by the editors of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. (IEEE) Transactions on Components and Packaging Technologies. The paper, entitled “Increasing the Accuracy of Structure Function Based Thermal Material Parameter Measurements” was selected from among nearly 100 manuscripts published in the past year’s volume of the Transactions. The paper appeared in the March 2005 issue (volume 28, issue 1, page 51-57). The Award will be presented on June 1, 2006 at the 56th Electronic Components and Technology Conference in San Diego, California.

Flomerics has announced that its FloVENT software for airflow prediction in buildings has been awarded the Expert’s Choice Award for Software from Controlled Environments Magazine. FloVENT software was selected by an independent panel of judges as the best software package in the contamination protection and controlled environment industry. The award stated that: “No matter how complex the airflow application is, this modeling software enables the user to understand it more comprehensively through the medium of virtual reality and computer 3-D animation.” Dr. Andy Manning, Director of Engineering for Flomerics, Inc. said that: “We are extremely pleased that Controlled Environments Magazine has recognized the industry-leading capabilities of FloVENT software through their Expert’s Choice Award.”

Imbera engineers used FloTHERM thermal simulation software from Flomerics to optimize early in the design phase the thermal management of a series of Integrated Module Boards (IMBs) that utilize a unique production process. The thermal properties of the new technology were difficult to determine since there is no standard for defining the thermal resistance of a printed circuit board (PCB) in which an integrated circuit (IC) is embedded. Simulations provided fundamental information about the thermal behavior of the structure, such as the heat flow path. This made it possible for several thermal enhancement methods to be evaluated with relatively little expenditure of time or money.

Alexandra Francois-Saint-Cyr, an application engineer for Flomerics, made a presentation at the DesignCon 2006 conference to encourage electrical engineers to be more proactive about thermal management. The presentation pointed out that power dissipation of electronic devices has been rising steadily to the point that thermal management must be considered as an integral part of the design process for most products. Further, Francois-Saint-Cyr noted that PCB component layout, which using current design methods is often decided long before cooling issues are addressed, has a major effect on junction temperature and failure rate. The presentation showed how electrical engineers can use simulation to identify potential thermal problems during the board design process. Once identified, these problems can often be solved at this early stage of the process with inexpensive layout changes.

Engineers at Zibell Willner & Partners (ZWP) were able to substantially improve the ventilation of an exhibition pavilion in order to ensure comfort during summer months without having to provide air conditioning. They used FloVENT software from Flomerics Inc. to model the flow of air through the pavilion, and modified the model to solve problems that the simulation identified in the original design.

Flomerics, the leader in thermal simulation of electronics systems and components, has announced that it will be offering the T3Ster (pronounced Trister) thermal testing system and other testing products gained through its acquisition of MicReD. The T3Ster tester is unique in its ability to test components through up to eight measurement channels at one time and analyze the results as the test is being performed so the results are immediately available. Flomerics is also establishing a physical testing laboratory in Silicon Valley and will be providing physical testing services on a project basis.

Flomerics Inc. has announced that chipmakers and systems builders are making extensive use of its thermal simulation technology to expedite the movement of personal computers with the new quieter, smaller BTX form factor to market. Engineers used Flomerics FloTHERM thermal simulation software to develop specifications for the new form factor that could be certain to maintain junction temperatures for critical components at safe levels.

Flomerics is proud to announce that Prof. Marta Rencz has been elected to the Board of Management of the EU-funded Network of Excellence, PATENT-DfMMas manager of the Modelling and Simulation work package. In this capacity she will serve as liaison between the Board and the sixteen University and industrial partners participating in the simulation activities of the PATENT project.

Solectron saved a considerable amount of time and money in prototyping and testing expenses by using computer simulation to model the cooling design of an outdoor WiFi antenna. “We used Flomerics' FloTHERM cooling simulation software to optimize and validate the design from a cooling standpoint prior to building the first prototype,” said Robert Raos, Mechanical Engineering Manager for Solectron. “The result was that the initial prototype met all of our customer’s performance specifications, saving at least 3 months and $40,000 that would have otherwise been required to identify and correct problems in the initial design concept.”

American Power Conversion (APC) helped diagnose and solve a potential overheating problem in a customer’s new data center by using simulation to evaluate alternative designs prior to installing the equipment. The simulation showed that the customer’s original design would result in overheating if a single computer room air conditioner (CRAC) failed for even a short period of time. “We used Flomerics’ FloVENT computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software to identify the problem, evaluate its root cause, and develop a new design that can withstand loss of any one single piece of equipment,” said Ben Steinberg, senior applications engineer for APC.

Galileo Avionica has selected FloTHERM and Flo/PCB software from Flomerics as its standard thermal modeling software across all of its seven design centers and five business units. “Our evaluation showed that FloTHERM and FloTHERM.PCB thermal simulation software can save time in modeling while integrating the design process to a higher degree than other tools,” said Fabio Vitale, Manager of Galileo Avionica’s Design Centers Project. “This $300,000 order for perpetual licenses is a strong statement of faith in Flomerics’ integrated analysis environment for physical design of electronic systems,” said Dr. Michael Reynell, Director of Marketing for Flomerics Inc.

Liebherr-Aerospace Toulouse, an aircraft equipment manufacturer of on-board ventilation systems, would like to develop expertise and provide its customers with the guarantees and precision of simulation techniques in design projects. With this in mind, following a European research project in co-operation with CERFACS, Liebherr-Aerospace approached Flomerics. The aim is to study the performance of the FloVENT software for modelling the air flows in the cabin. As experimental results were already available, the choice was made in favour of equipment already in service.The modelling was carried out “blind” by Flomerics’ team in France.

NVIDIA® took advantage of the speed and time savings provided by compact thermal models to reduce the time required to optimize package design and develop thermal design guidelines for their new NVIDIA nForceTM4 media and communications processor. NVIDIA optimizes the package design of its products in order to improve thermal performance and minimize real estate and also provides its customers with detailed thermal guidelines that simplify system design.

Texas Instruments (TI) engineers helped a disk drive manufacturer get their product to market six months early by using thermal simulation to solve problems prior to the prototyping phase. The potential thermal problems centered on a disk brake integrated circuit (IC) that consumed 9 watts. The challenge was optimizing the package design to move this heat out to the PCB and then moving as much as possible of this heat to the chassis.

As today’s leading high performance computing companies continue to pack many more processors into smaller boxes, it becomes critical to get the heat they generate out of the box as quickly as possible. Otherwise, critical integrated circuits will be fried in nanoseconds. Furthermore, it’s important to identify and solve these kinds of thermal problems early in the design process in order to avoid any delays that might allow a competitor win the race to market.

Vishay Intertechnology has substantially reduced thermal design time for its customers by providing thermal models of its optoelectronic couplers via the “SmartParts3D” web site. Mechanical engineers can now download compact models of Vishay optoelectronic couplers and incorporate them directly into thermal simulations using the FloTHERM software from Flomerics. This approach is much faster and more accurate than the alternative of modeling the couplers from scratch.

Computer simulation helped engineers at Transmode Systems AB, Stockholm, Sweden quickly design a metropolitan area networking system that easily meets all of the company’s demanding thermal requirements. At the beginning of the design process, Transmode Engineer Tommy Lindblad wanted to make sure that the larger components in the Transmode coarse wavelength division multiplexing (CWDM) System TS-1100 did not generate recirculation zones that could prevent cool air from reaching smaller, heat-sensitive components. Lindblad’s first board-level simulation with Flomerics’ FloTHERM thermal simulation software confirmed that in the original design concept some components blocked others.

Flomerics has incorporated thermal models of Sunon fans into its SmartParts3D website. This means engineers using or considering Sunon fans can streamline the thermal design process by downloading fan models and incorporating them into thermal simulations. This approach reduces modeling time and also increases accuracy because the SmartParts3D model has the exact point-by-point values of the fan curve, eliminating the need to make rough estimates from a paper chart.

Computer simulation was used to solve a difficult problem in a plastics plant that had threatened to damage expensive equipment and materials. The plant includes 52 molding machines that are supposed to be maintained at temperatures no higher than 78 degrees in order avoid damage to the control systems. The computer controls on the machines must be maintained at relatively cool temperatures in order to avoid damage to delicate semiconductors.

In a presentation at the MicroElectronics Packaging and Test Engineering Council, Sarang Shidore of Flomerics, Incorporated showcased emerging boundary-condition-independent thermal modeling standards in the electronics industry. The new proposed standards are designed to provide a more efficient division of labor between component suppliers and system integrators by governing thermal model generation, documentation, data exchange and validation.

A major Asian engineering consulting organization used thermal simulation to optimize the design of a heat sink used in a parallel optical transmitter, dramatically reducing engineering time and costs. The goal of the consulting project was to maintain the case temperature at or below 70C by natural convection cooling(i.e. without using a fan). The greatest design challenge was creating a heat sink for the driver integrated circuit (IC), which has a very high heat flux. Engineers modeled and simulated six different heat sink designs using FloTHERM cooling simulation software from Flomerics.

A recent printed circuit board (PCB) design application demonstrates how heat-dissipating components can preheat the air passing over downstream components, causing thermal problems that would otherwise not exist. Although some rules of thumb can be employed in regards to the required volume and drafting effects, they often compete and do not provide accurate enough information for tradeoffs to be considered. By optimizing the component placement before design for manufacturing begins, the risk and cost of potential redesigns are significantly reduced.

The Stokes Research Institute (SRI) at the University of Limerick, Limerick, Ireland, has released a guide to evaluating thermal analysis software that can be downloaded at www.stokes.ie/pdf/questionnaire.pdf. The guide is designed for engineers and managers with responsibility for thermal design of electronic hardware. It highlights a wide range of technical issues that should be considered in purchasing thermal analysis software, including the modeling methodology, the definition of the system for analysis, the creation of a computational grid, the solution and control features, and the presentation of the results. It also highlights the vendor’s ability to provide customer support, training, and documentation for their product.

Engineers at Technicon Engineering Inc. and Flomerics Inc. worked together to solve a challenging airflow problem in a paint booth at Robins Air Force Base, Warner-Robins, Georgia. The air is supposed to flow smoothly across the 40x85x70 feet paint booth in order to move the fumes out of the painters’ faces. Instead, the air swirled around the room. Flomerics used FloVENT computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software to analyze the airflow conditions in the air supply ductwork and plenum and paint booth.

Staktek, a leading supplier of high-density memory stacking solutions, is using FloTHERM thermal simulation software to ensure that innovative new products meet thermal management requirements. Thermal performance is critical to the design of Staktek’s products, which double, triple or quadruple memory in the same physical footprint as the underlying packaged component. One of the company’s most important design challenges is ensuring that the stacked packages have superior thermal performance.

Thermal simulation played a key role in helping Hybricon design an 8U chassis that dissipates 30% more power than competitive offerings. With 6U high vertical cards, 8U chassis design is challenging because only 1 U is available above and below the card cage for airflow. The typical approach utilizes 1 U tall blower boxes located directly over the card cages.

UbiNetics has turned to Flomerics to help overcome thermal design challenges in the design of the TM500 Test Mobile for testing evolving 3G mobile communications networks. The TM500 emulates all the capabilities of a HSDPA W-CDMA* mobile terminal, with download speeds of up to 14Mbps and advanced test interfaces, making it an ideal tool for network infrastructure equipment developers.