.MED File Upload Issues

Using SimScale CAD & Meshing
1

Good day,

I am working on an linear structural analysis of a steel shaft. Here is the model from onshape with faces partitioned:

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image1967×1168 95.1 KB

This project quickly turned into how to get Simscale to accept a .med file. I have read the following 6 forums and the documentation page:

I chose to mesh in Salome instead of SimScale because it can do extruded 3D meshes from a 2D face through a partitioned body (face cut up). The SimScale extruded mesher could not (at least I could not get it to). In hindsight, I probably should have spent more time trying that out. But a lot of people seem to struggle with getting .med files into SimScale, so I am hoping my struggles can help someone else. This was also supposed to be a bit of a test project to see if Salome was a viable external mesher to Simscale.

Here is my Salome mesh:

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image2879×1391 159 KB

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image2876×1249 167 KB

**Note, I am aware that it says Glue_2 under mesh 3. Even when I click NointernatFaces_1, it selects Glue_2. I think it because there were no internal faces, so it is the same.

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image624×879 36.5 KB

I get this error (among others that I have since resolved):

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image1343×508 44.4 KB

What I have tried :

  • I have used the Salome tool called “Remove extra edges”
  • I have used the Salome tool called “Remove internal faces”
  • I have put all the boundary condition faces I need into groups
  • I have put all volumes into a single group
  • i have tried also including the nodes associated with the elements.
    • I get an error saying mixed units (weird one)
  • None of my groups have names that contains spaces or numbers
  • I have exported the .med in version 3.2 (and tried 3.3)
  • I believe I have valid elements for SimScale. From what I have read, prisms are valid
  • I have no elements that are in two different groups (an element can only be in one group)
  • I have a singular mesh, not a compound mesh
  • I have tried messing with these export options:
  • I have reimported the .med file back in to Salome to make sure the groups exported properly. They are.
  • I was able to export a .unv file and open it in other FEA software without any issues.

I am open to any other suggestions on what to try. I have been at this for a while, so I may be missing something basic or something I had forgotten about earlier on. Also, the upload function does not allow for file uploads other than images. Here is a google drive with the step file, .hdf file, and .med file. Note that I am posting this on my personal account; however, I am performing this project on a paid account.

Simscale+Salome – Google Drive

Thank you,

Adam

1 Like
2

Hi,

Thanks for the detailed post! From a quick look, the thing that stood out to the most was:

You are correct that groups of faces and groups of volumes are needed. Further to that, all faces and all volumes have to be added to groups. If you want specific faces to receive a boundary condition/contact, you would need a specific group for that face (or set of faces).

However, the faces that wouldn’t receive any boundary conditions/contacts still have to be declared into a group of faces.

Perhaps here is a suggestion: instead of starting with the more complex geometry right away, try to upload a single section of a cylindrical tube (i.e. cylinder with 3 faces in total) and then use the same approach for the more complex tube.