Fast-analytical approach to motor design gets easier with software collaboration

Motor Design Limited Motor-CAD links with CD-adapco Star-CCM+ software to increase accuracy of a fast analytical approach to motor design while simplifying the modeling process of the CFD computation.

November 26, 2013

Motor Design Limited (MDL) has teamed up with CD-adapco to create a link between MDL’s Motor-CAD and CD-adapco’s world famous Star-CCM+ software. The collaboration aims to improve the accuracy of a fast analytical approach while simplifying the modeling process of computational fluid dynamics. This will result in a streamlined simulation process from Motor-CAD to Star-CCM+, the companies said.

Users will more easily integrate and combine Motor-CAD’s fast analytical airflow and heat transfer transient calculations with the impressive detail and accuracy of Star-CCM+ flow calculations. A simple interface (see photo) enables the user to transfer the Motor-CAD geometry into Star-CCM+ within seconds.

The geometry from a Motor-CAD model, as shown in the above example, can be transferred automatically to Star CCM+ as the second image shows.

A calculation of the airflow from the fan down the open fin channels (image 3) is used to calibrate the channel air leakage in Motor-CAD.

Markus Anders from CD-adapco said, “Coupling our software with Motor-CAD will speed up the design process, improve the customer’s knowledge, and reduce costs. This will help to increase the accuracy of the thermal calculations in Motor-CAD and, at the same time, will increase and ease the use of Star-CCM+ for thermal designs of electrical machines.”

Dave Staton from MDL said, “CFD models have complex geometries. This link allows the customer to build their model quickly and accurately while capturing all the information they need. It allows for more flexibility in the design process because the designer can work on a machine simulation.”

– Edited by Mark T. Hoske, content manager, CFE Media, Control Engineering and Plant Engineering, mhoske@cfemedia.com.

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