Complex products? Systems Engineering!

Today’s products are becoming more and more complex. Often they are a mix of mechanical, electrical, pneumatic and hydraulic components in addition to sensors and microprocessors with varying degrees of interactions. 1D simulation is used to simulate systems, helping engineers understand the interaction of the different components within the system. Simulations like these provide information for new innovative designs in a very broad range of industries e.g. aerospace, automotive, construction, shipbuilding, off-shore and many others. Are you new to 1D-simulation-engineering, would you like to know more about it and why it could benefit your design cycle? Keep reading to find out!

Steps in 1D Simulation

1D simulations aim to increase system efficiency, by helping engineers understand the interaction of the different components within the system. The process of building a model for a system consists of a few steps:

• Input the correct components and link them together
• Assign the correct physical models to the different components (e.g. stiffness, acceleration etc.)
• Enter the correct parameters for the physical models
• Run the simulation

Each component is simulated separately with its own input and parameters. This means that the model gives an accurate display of the performance of the system, because it also takes the interactions of the different components with each other into account.

Benefits and differences with regards to 2D/3D simulation

So what makes 1D simulation different from 2D or 3D simulation and why should you consider it? The main difference here is that 2D/3D simulations show the interaction of individual components with their surroundings whereas 1D simulations show the entire design of a system and the interactions of the different components of this system. This makes a 1D simulation excellent for optimising the design of an entire system, while 3D simulation is great for determining the optimum design characteristics of individual components. The image below gives a nice overview. 3D and 1D simulation can work in unison, since 3D data can be used as input for system simulation.

System-level simulation is a tool that can be used across the entire development cycle, from initial design to testing to optimisation. This means that information can be transferred across one platform and the risk of miscommunication is reduced. Simulation allows you to thoroughly prototype your product digitally, reducing the extent and costs of physical testing without compromising quality. These are just some of the benefits that make 1D-simulation a great tool for engineers.

Tools

Femto Engineers use Simcenter Amesim from the simulation software portfolio of Siemens PLM Software. Amesim provides calibrated, scalable, multi-domain physical systems modeling and analysis. The software is developed by industry experts with user efficiency and cost effectiveness in mind. This makes it a very widely applicable software. Examples of projects succesfully acomplished using Amesim include analyzing and predicting the system performance of an excavator, the optimization of emergency braking for grape harvesters, and the assessment of the climate control systems of an aircraft cabin. Amesim is able to combine all the different areas of these systems and provide an accurate analysis.

Do you have any more questions or are you interested in discussing how 1D-simulation could benefit your project? Don’t hesitate to contact us to learn more about our software portfolio and consulting services!

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