SolidWorks Corp., a leader in 3D CAD technology, and COMSOL, a worldwide leader in multiphysics simulation software, have strengthened their ties: SolidWorks has named COMSOL as one of its select Solution Partners.
This program provides SolidWorks users with access to integrated products and services that can further boost productivity. In this case, COMSOL Multiphysics® includes a feature in the CAD Import Module called the SolidWorks Live Connection, an easy-to-use bidirectional link that allows users to modify a geometry in the CAD environment and automatically transfer these changes to a linked multiphysics model based on that geometry.
Just one user who enjoys great productivity gains from this link is Mark Fowler, senior engineer at Digital Fusion in Huntsville, AL. That firm's Advanced Technology Division provides a variety of engineering services to a broad base of customers in the defense and aerospace industries.
"Our designs are extremely sensitive to their thermal and structural operating environments," explains Fowler. "COMSOL provides a finite element analysis tool that allows us to study how our designs react to simulated conditions to which the hardware will be exposed.
We use the SolidWorks Live Connection to interactively iterate our CAD designs based on the simulation results. This combination has allowed us to conduct studies in a short time, which helps increase our iteration rate for hardware designs."