Low cost solution for simulation

daniel_pers

What a low cost solution do you recommend for simulation with Onshape with my students?

brian_brady

SimSolid looks like it would be great (if running Windows, need to install client software) but you only get a 30 day free trial, then $200 per month (not low cost for students). I want to try it for my students, but am not ready to burn my 30 day trial yet.

I tried the Sim Scale and CONSELF (see the Onshape app store) and found both to be very lacking in ease of use (I am trying to be nice). I could not recommend either of them. I also gave Sim for Design a shot. You only get 15 minutes of compute time. I burned 2 minutes of compute time in about 15 seconds of real clock time for a very simple static analysis. They must have use 8 simultaneous processor cores to analyze a model that Creo Simulate completed in 3 seconds of processor time. You would not get much done in your 15 minutes.

Those are your only choices for Onshape linked simulation applications for mechanical stress/strain analysis in the app store. I am having my students use Onshape for modeling/design, but will still be using Creo Simulate for analysis work. Maybe next year SimSolid will have a student license or somebody else will enter the fray that is easy to use.

brian_brady

SimSolid looks like it would be great (if running Windows, need to install client software) but you only get a 30 day free trial, then $200 per month (not low cost for students). I want to try it for my students, but am not ready to burn my 30 day trial yet.

I tried the Sim Scale and CONSELF (see the Onshape app store) and found both to be very lacking in ease of use (I am trying to be nice). I could not recommend either of them. I also gave Sim for Design a shot. You only get 15 minutes of compute time. I burned 2 minutes of compute time in about 15 seconds of real clock time for a very simple static analysis. They must have use 8 simultaneous processor cores to analyze a model that Creo Simulate completed in 3 seconds of processor time. You would not get much done in your 15 minutes.

Those are your only choices for Onshape linked simulation applications for mechanical stress/strain analysis in the app store. I am having my students use Onshape for modeling/design, but will still be using Creo Simulate for analysis work. Maybe next year SimSolid will have a student license or somebody else will enter the fray that is easy to use.

michael3424

@brian_brady - have you ever looked at LISA or Mecway for FEA?  

brian_brady

michael3424 said:

@brian_brady - have you ever looked at LISA or Mecway for FEA?  

No I haven't. We have a Creo Simulate for our department that makes it free for our students. Unless an option is free and as easy to use (or easier) as Creo Simulate, I will likely stay with what we have. I will have to look though. 

michael3424

Mecway has a fee, but it is pretty low so far as FEA is concerned.  Lisa was free the last I heard but may not be very full featured.

brian_brady

I just looked at both, need to review them further. Mecway looks an awful lot like LISA or vice versa. Both only give you about 1000 nodes for free but have a fairly low cost for unlimited nodes if you are paying for it yourself (versus a company buying it for you). I will likely stick with Creo Simulate this semester, but will look for alternatives for next fall.

michael3424

Since you are teaching, have you considered Comsol?  It's very expensive ($20k+options) but they may have an educational program.  A co-worker used it and it seemed very powerful, especially when optioned up.

brian_brady

I have looked hard since Creo Simulate has been working well for us. The only reason I might look another direction in the near future is because I have switched to Onshape for modeling and it would be nice to find a simulation product that worked nicely with it natively but was as easy to use as Creo Simulate. 

I may take a peek at Comsol. Thanks.