The COSMOS Companion

Understanding COSMOS Accuracy – Meshing and

Convergence

Volume 103
Sponsored by:
What is the COSMOS Companion?

• The COSMOS Companion is a series of short subjects to

help design engineers build better products with
SolidWorks Analysis
• Video presentations and accompanying exercises
• A tool for Continuous Learning on your schedule
• Pre-recorded videos are accompanied by a more detailed
webcast with Q & A
– Download videos and review webcast schedule at:
http://www.cosmosm.com/pages/news/COSMOS_Companion.html

• It is not an alternative to instructor-led introductory training

– We highly recommend you take a course with your local reseller to build a
solid knowledge base
Mesh Basics - Solids

• Solid models are filled (Meshed) with Solid Elements with

a Tetrahedron shape
• A basic (draft) tetrahedron has four (4) corner Nodes
Mesh Basics - Surfaces

• Shell elements model thin structures

more efficiently
• Shell elements are Triangles
• A basic (draft) triangle has three (3)
corner nodes
Mesh Basics – Nodes & Elements

• A Finite Element solution calculates the displacement of

the nodes first and the resulting strain in the attached
elements second
• Calculating the deformed mesh when a structure is in
equilibrium is the key to an accurate FEA solution
• Mesh quality in a nutshell – The initial mesh must
represent the initial shape of the model and be ‘flexible’
enough to capture the deformed shape at equilibrium
• The deformed shape at small features where stresses can
be expected to change greatly must be captured even
more accurately to calculate these stresses.
Mesh Basics – Nodes & Elements

Draft vs. High Quality Elements

High Quality
Draft Quality Parabolic Edges
Linear Edges 6 Nodes
3 Nodes

Draft Quality High Quality

Linear Edges Parabolic Edges
4 Nodes 10 Nodes
Mesh Basics – Nodes & Elements

• The calculated shape of an F

element edge is limited by it’s F
order
l1
– Draft = Linear =1stOrder
– High = Parabolic = 2nd Order l0
• Therefore, curvature, either
initial or calculated, must be
approximated with straight
facets in a draft mesh and 2nd
order segments in a high
quality mesh
• The difference between the
ideal curvature and the
modeled curvature is called
Discretization Error
Does Size Matter?

• Generally speaking, with more elements in a

mesh, the solution is more precise:
– There are more nodes that are available for calculating
response and thus the solution is more precise
– More elements means smaller elements so
discretization error is minimized

• The practical limit where further mesh size

reductions add no benefit to the solution can be
found in the Convergence process
• A converged mesh for a given geometry is
dependent upon the applied loads and restraints
 Does Size Matter?

• Same Part and Load Magnitude

• Different Converged Mesh

Load magnitude is not a factor in convergence for a linear study

Convergence in COSMOSWorks

• COSMOSWorks provides 3 techniques for

converging a model
– Automatic h-adaptive
– Automatic p-adaptive
– Manual h-adaptive (None)
• These can accessed in the Study Properties
under the Adaptive tab
 Convergence in COSMOSWorks

Automatic h-Adaptive
– Only available for single part static studies
– Reduces mesh size in areas where calculated
strain energy error (More on this later) is high
– Can coarsen (increase mesh size) in regions
where strain energy error is low
– Target Accuracy defines the error threshold that
causes a refinement loop – Default of 98% is still
fast
– Accuracy Bias
• Set to Local if your response is dominated by
localized stress hot spots
• Set to Global if you are more interested in overall part
stiffness, not stress
• If you aren’t sure, leave at Default
– Works with Draft or High Quality meshes…
• Does it matter if you are assured an accurate
solution?
• Who said you are assured an accurate solution?
Convergence in COSMOSWorks

H-adaptive convergence using Draft Quality elements:

13.6mm 3.4mm

75.6 MPa

44.0 MPa

Δ = 42%
Convergence in COSMOSWorks

H-adaptive convergence using High Quality elements:

13.6mm 3.4mm

82.1 MPa
79.3 MPa

Δ = 3%
Convergence in COSMOSWorks

Automatic p-Adaptive
– Only available for static studies but does work with bonded
assemblies – No contact
– Default convergence criteria tracks
changes in Total Strain Energy – RMS
Displacement and Von Mises Stress
criterion don’t typically improve
solution
– Default settings usually sufficient and
Max P-Order and # of Loops rarely
needed
– Must use High Quality starting mesh
– Mostly insensitive to starting mesh
size
– Jacobian (Distortion) errors frequent –
No feedback on location
Convergence in COSMOSWorks

P-adaptive convergence using High Quality elements:

Local 1.0mm
13.6mm 3.4mm Global 5.0 mm

102 MPa
83.8 MPa 80.0 MPa
 Convergence in COSMOSWorks

What is a P-element?
P-Elements: Y = A + BX +CX2 + DX3 + … + ZXn
H-Elements: Yn = AnX + Bn

Draft Quality Elements – 1st Order (Linear) Edges

High Quality Elements – 2nd Order Edges
P-Elements – Up to 5th Order Edges

Can capture more deformation with larger elements but are

more computationally intensive than h-elements
Convergence in COSMOSWorks

• Recommendations:
– For single parts:
• Use h-adaptivity, high quality elements and the default mesh
size
– For bonded assemblies:
• Use p-adaptivity, high quality elements and default mesh size.
• If a Jacobian error occurs, a second run with a different initial
mesh size is warranted to avoid erroneous high stresses
– For assemblies with connectors and/or contact:
• Use traditional Manual h-element convergence
• Mesh with default element size – high quality
• Apply initial mesh control to ensure conformity to undeformed
geometry
• Use local mesh control to achieve convergence where required
Manual Convergence Checking

• Relative Convergence
– How much does stress change with successive studies having
incrementally refined meshes
– Use refinements of 2:1 with each pass so change is meaningful
– Watch for distortion if local mesh size << global mesh size

5 mm 5 / 2 mm 3 / 1 mm 3 / .5 mm
10 mm
68 MPa 71 MPa 80 MPa 80 MPa
66 MPa

Δ=3% Δ=4% Δ=12% Δ=0%

Von Mises Stress (MPa)

80

Δ=21%
70

60

10 5 5/2 3/1 3 / 0.5

Manual Convergence Checking

• Contour Quality
– Stress contours in continuous geometry should be continuous
– Use Discrete Fringe Option (Plot Settings) to better see discontinuity or
“jaggies”
– Not an absolute test of convergence but can show areas to check
– Plotting element edges with results can show how they impact
results…they shouldn’t.
Manual Convergence Checking

• Error Estimates
– Energy Error Norm plots indicate the difference in stress between adjacent
elements. Ideally…no difference
– Not an absolute test of convergence but high error in areas of concern
should be investigated
– Excellent way to compare the convergence level between design
iterations. If the error estimate in a region being optimized is kept
consistent, results comparison should be valid

Edit Definition
10 mm Global Mesh 3 / 0.5 mm Global / Local Mesh
Manual Convergence Checking

• Nodal vs. Elemental Results

– Nodal results show the averaged result at each node based on the stress
from the adjacent elements
– Elemental results show the nominal stress calculated for each element
– Ideally, there should be very little difference.

Elemental Results Nodal Results

COSMOSWorks Options - Mesh

• Mesh Quality
– Use Draft on large models only when doing Trend Studies.
Otherwise, use High Quality when stress magnitudes are
important
• Mesher Type
– Only use Alternate Mesher if Standard fails and other
techniques for correction fail – No impact on accuracy
• Jacobian Check
– More points = more stringent quality checks
– No good data to support tightening this
• Mesh Control
– Automatic Transition – mesher automatically applies mesh
controls to small features, holes, fillets, and other fine details
of your model
• Can create larger models but a good option if you aren’t diligent
about convergence checking
– Smooth Surface – mesher slightly relocates the boundary
nodes to improve the initial mesh
• Automatic Looping
– Meant to aid meshing problems – If this kicks in, mesh is
probably doomed and requires manual interaction
– No impact on quality
COSMOSWorks Options - Mesh

Added Elements

Automatic Transition Off Automatic Transition On

Mesh Creation – Global Parameters

• Mesh Property Manager

– Default size selected by program, based on the
model volume and surface area
– Global Size – average element size
– Tolerance – defaults to 5% of the global element
size

• Global mesh size needs to be small enough

to provide a good overall stiffness solution
– If the global stiffness is incorrect, local results
have no chance
 Mesh Creation – Mesh Control

Mesh Control
– Control vertices, edges, faces, and components
– Parameters
1. Element Size for the selected components
• Important when stress on one part is critical
2. Local Mesh Size on selected entities 1.

3. Element Growth Ratio – value multiplied by control

element size each subsequent layer 2.
4. Number of Layers of Elements – number of 3.
element layers suggested for growth of element size
from control size to global size, if the mesher needs 4.
more layers for a smooth transition to grow the
element size to the global size it will automatically
use more
Mesh Creation – Mesh Control

0.2 Global
Mesh Creation – Mesh Control

Recommendations:
• Use Mesh Control to place a refined mesh
strategically in your model to improve accuracy
without making your mesh overly large
• Choose a local mesh size 1/3 to 1/2 the global
mesh size (or that of the surrounding surfaces)
• Use the defaults for Ratio and Layers unless there
is a compelling reason to change them
 Impact of Geometry on Accuracy

• Element shape can impact the accuracy of the element and resultant
stresses
– Recall the Jacobian error in an earlier example
• The more an element deviates from the ideal shape, the more error is
introduced – the element calculates more stiff than it should
• Element distortion results from placing too large an element into tight
curvature or a rapid transition from one size to another
• The features on your SolidWorks model can affect this

Jacobian >> 1
Ideal Triangle or Tri Face
Equilateral Triangle Jacobian = 1 or Negative b

Aspect Ratio = a/b

Impact of Geometry on Accuracy

• Sliver Surfaces & Short Edges are most common cause of

meshing problems
• Mesher must respect all edges so surface dimensions
much smaller than nominal element size may cause
distorted elements
Impact of Geometry on Accuracy

InOther
assembly
Problems…
modeling, the placement of
parts with respect to each other may
cause element distortion

Where possible, use the “Incompatible

Mesh” option in Contact Options
Shell Meshing vs. Solids

• Shell Elements are a more efficient way to model

thin walled structures
• How thin is thin?
– “Thin” is not an absolute description
– If the wall thickness << smallest feature size, shells
might be an option
– Put another way, the area smallest face should be
much larger that the area of the feature edge
– Rule of thumb: If you can model your part with a mid-
surface and it looks the same as the solid, shells are
probably valid
• Accuracy local to joints is lost using shells
 Shell Meshing vs. Solids

Half Wall Thickness

Gap Must be
Corrected for Mesh T/2
Continuity
Shell Meshing vs. Solids

This part is a good candidate for a shell model.

Would shells be more accurate than solids?

106”

0.12”
Shell Meshing vs. Solids
Mode Solid Shell
Frequency & Static Study Results:
1 1.06 1.33
2 1.64 1.72
3 2.02 2.02
4 4.34 4.34
5 5.13 5.10
6 6.57 6.59

• Both Models used 1.0 Global Mesh Size

• Frequency Studies are good for comparing model
Solids stiffness
Mode 5 • A static bending study shows that the stress
response can vary greatly.

Shells
Mode 5
Presentation Summary

• In this COSMOS Companion unit, we explored the impact of the

meshing decisions you make on the accuracy of the solution. In this
context, we discussed:
– Basic meshing concepts
– Controlling mesh sizing with local and global controls
– Convergence and automatic adaptivity options
– Means to evaluate mesh quality
– The impact geometry has on mesh quality
– The choice between shell and solid elements
• Examples were presented that showed how important mesh quality
and convergence is to making correct interpretations of the results
• Some recommendations on mesh control and other mesh settings
were made.
• Finally, we emphasized the importance of user involvement in
ensuring reliable results. The wrong answers can look a lot like the
right answers so your diligence is always required.
Conclusion

• For more information…

– Contact your local reseller for more in-depth training or
support on mesh and solution accuracy.
– Review the on-line help for a more detailed description
of the features discussed
– Attend, or better yet, present at a local COSMOS or
SolidWorks user group.
• See http://www.swugn.org/ for a user group near you