SOLIDWORKS Simulation

SOLIDWORKS Simulation is fully integrated into the SOLIDWORKS 3D CAD environment leveraging common features like configurations to allow for testing of different design iterations.

SOLIDWORKS Simulation come stocked with a multitude of examples to familiarize yourself with the common features and to ensure confidence that it can provide valid results.

There are 3 mesh element types: solids, shells, and beams. Each is used to ensure accuracy in your results but also to help solve the analysis with its greatest efficiency. Mesh controls are also available to help narrow down the scope in areas of concern for added accuracy.

There are a variety of different body interactions available that include:

• Bonded
• Contact (formally known as “no penetration”)
• Free (formally known as “allow penetration”)
• Shrink fit
• Virtual wall
• Self contact

To decrease solve time, manual creation of virtual connectors to replace physical bodies include:

• Bolt
• Pin
• Spring
• Bearing
• Elastic support
• Self contact

A variety of fixture options to control the degrees of freedom of every body to reflect most accurately how the real-life scenario is restrained.

Load options include:

• Force
• Pressure
• Torque
• Gravity
• Virtual remote loads
• Temperature
• Prescribed displacements
• Import of pressures and temperatures from SOLIDWORKS Flow Simulation
• Import of thermal study temperatures from Simulation Professional

SOLIDWORKS Simulation has embedded templates to output analysis reports that include details of the study setup and images of the results. Analysis results can also be shared using eDrawings.

Check for stress, strain, displacement, and factor of safety (FOS) under linear assumptions. These include:

• Small displacements
• Load is applied slowly and gradually
• Response is proportional to the load
• Material behaves linear elastically
• No permanent deformation

Check for irregular stress gradients to pinpoint stress singularities.

By referencing the baseline structural analysis, this study assumes high-cycle fatigue and uses S/N material data to output life cycles and cumulative damage.

Intended for moving mechanisms, this rigid body kinematic and dynamic motion tool allows you to gain insight on velocities, accelerations, torque, and overall movement under different load and motor conditions.

Track your study design iterations of a static study and view the trend of desired result outputs.

Calculate the buckling load factor on tall and slender bodies to determine how much more load your structure can take before buckling.

Determine the stress and displacement effects of your design upon impact on a rigid or flexible virtual surface.

Automate the process to find the optimal design combination by varying dimensional and FEA based parameters while adhering to design constraints and reducing the overall mass. Topology optimization determines a unique shape alternative to help reduce the mass while following design and manufacturing constraints.

Using the methodologies of ASME International Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code ASME BPVC-VIII-2, this study combines baseline static studies using linear combination or the square root of the sum of squares (SRSS).

Similar to time-based motion, this replaces the control of different sequences based on time with event-triggered motion controls by incorporating different combinations of sensors.

This study uses an FEA approach to determine the temperature of bodies excluding the effects of moving air. Options include steady-state and transient effects.

Increase the resolution of results in a subset of parts that references and transfers the boundary conditions from a top-level assembly.

View the effects of different load combinations on your designs.

Reduce the size of the problem and calculation times by converting the 3D shape to a 2D plane stress, plane strain, or axi-symmetric condition.

SOLIDWORKS Simulation includes Toolbox integration features to automatically convert physical hardware to virtual components.

With active subscription on a Simulation Professional or Premium license, you gain access to the materiality database for more downloadable material options.

Building upon the frequency study, calculate the stresses and displacements due to forcing vibrations and calculate the response of dynamic and shock loading for linear elastic materials. These study types include:

• Modal time history analysis
• Harmonic analysis
• Random vibration analysis
• Response spectrum analysis

Nonlinear analysis lets you analyze complex material behavior, such as post-yield metals, rubbers, and plastics, as well as to account for large deflections and sliding contact-in components.

A nonlinear static study assumes static loads with loads that can be sequenced so that the dynamic effects of the varying load do not affect the study. The complex material models in nonlinear static studies can be used to calculate permanent deformation and residual stresses due to excessive loads, as well as predicting performance for components, such as springs and clip fasteners.

A nonlinear dynamic study accounts for the effect of real-time varying loads that are included in calculations and results. In addition to solving nonlinear static problems, nonlinear dynamic studies can also solve impact problems.

Define the material properties and orientation of composite laminates.