Editor’s Pick: Adams 2014 Unites Multibody Dynamics and Nonlinear FEA

Dear Desktop Engineering Reader:

MSC recently released the 2014 edition of its Adams multibody dynamics simulation solution suite. The Adams family is made up of the main Adams application plus optional extension modules for control and mechatronics integration, flexible body integration, durability and vibration. Adams is also available in tailored versions for virtually prototyping and analyzing machinery and vehicles. Adams 2014 offers a whole bunch of good stuff, and it’s an especially intriguing release for you engineers relying on Adams/Car and Adams/Machinery environments in your work. Here’s a quick rundown of the goodies in the Adams 2014 release.

Perhaps the most interesting feature in Adams 2014 is a new functionality for co-simulation between Adams and MSC’s Marc nonlinear finite element analysis (FEA) solution. The idea here is to make everything that goes into designing and testing mechanical systems more efficient by providing a smooth integration between system dynamics and finite element analysis (FEA) software.

What does that mean for you? Well, for those of you using Adams for multibody dynamics, this means that you can boost model accuracy by including geometrically and materially nonlinear structural behaviors. And for people beating on FEA, you can now study components with realistic boundary conditions. This co-simulation also means that users running nonlinear FE analyses can now simulate some rigid moving parts in Adams rather than in the FEA environment. Altogether, this should save you a lot of time and effort.

Adams 2014 introduces native nonlinear part modeling and analysis functionality in the form of a new Adams-native modeling object for very large deformation use cases called FE Part. This is about providing engineers a way to more accurately calculate dynamic loads for geometrically nonlinear parts within a multibody dynamic system. FE Part offers a basic 2D option and a 3D Beam formulation option. The 3D Beam formulation is a fully geometrically nonlinear representation that you can use for beam-like structures. Complementing this is a new FE Load feature that gives the Adams/View pre-processor the ability to support the creation, visualization and modification of FE Parts as well as the application of distributed loads.

A new Cam Module for modeling cam-follower systems has been introduced in the Adams/Machinery 2014 version. This module has functionality that will let you handle cam-follower systems made up of combinations of cam shapes as well as follower motions, arrangements and geometry. This should make creating cam models faster and mechanism motion and cam profile design changes easier to deal with.

The updated Adams/Car system sees a lot of vehicle modeling improvements. For one, the 2014 version now has three new rollover stability test events: Embankment, Corkscrew and Sand Bed. Two, you can now animate Adams/Car 2014’s FTire contact forces and tire deformation forces with Adams/PostProcessor, which should give higher-fidelity analysis and visualization of vehicle ride events. Finally, there are SmartDriver enhancements. These include improved backwards driving for open loop events with support for both simple and automatic powertrains, additional speed profile spline interpolation improvements, continuous target acceleration and smoother throttle and brake signals.

You can learn more about the 2014 release of Adams from today’s Pick of the Week write-up. After the main write-up, look for the link to the on-demand webinar introducing Adams 2014. It’s registration free, runs about 35 minutes and shows you the primary enhancements in this version in action.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t say something about the main Adams web page linked at the end of today’s write-up. It provides an absolute wealth of data on Adams from case studies to on-demand webinars and from user videos to application stories. It’s a good place to hang out. In the meantime, hit today’s Pick of the Week to begin exploring what’s new in Adams 2014.

Thanks, Pal. — Lockwood

Anthony J. Lockwood

Editor at Large, Desktop Engineering

Read today’s pick of the week write-up.

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