Field Precision Develops FE BUILDER 3D

Finite-element methods have extensive applications in areas such as mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, physics research, fluid dynamics and bioengineering. In recent years, two factors have made it feasible for researchers to create their own finite-element programs:

* General availability of high-power personal computers.

* Growing numbers of textbooks and the introduction of finite-element methods in university curricula.

While the methods are straightforward to implement for a wide variety of physical problems, researchers and students face two obstacles to their implementation:

* Creation of quality conformal meshes for arbitrary application geometries (mesh generation).

* Efficient analysis of a large amount of numerical output data (post processing).

Creating user programs to accomplish these tasks could involve man-years of effort. Commercially-available mesh generators are expensive and are often inflexible and proprietary.

FE BUILDER 3D solves both problems, allowing developers to concentrate their attention on finite-element solutions. The efficient, low-cost package includes a solid-modeling graphical environment, an automatic conformal mesh generator, reference material documenting mathematical operations on hexahedrons and a fully-customizable postprocessor.

Package features include the following:

* Import capability for complex parts from SolidWorks and other 3D CAD programs.

* Option to run programs from the command prompt, allowing batch file or script control of complex calculations.

* Simple and well documented file formats (binary or text).

* Unique technology to generate conformal hexahedron elements on a structured mesh, decreasing the development time and increasing the speed of user programs.

* Dynamic memory allocation for huge meshes.

* Neutral mesh format that applies to any physical solution.

* Wide variety of 2D and 3D plots based on user-defined quantities.

* Interactive analysis features allow quick and accurate exploration of the solution space.

* Versions available for 32 and 64-bit Windows.

FE BUILDER 3D is a powerful tool for researchers building one-of-a-kind programs for advanced applications. It is also well-suited for the sale and distribution of packages over the Internet. The mesh generator and postprocessor executables may be included for a nominal license fee. They feature machine-specific copy protection to help developers control distribution of their work. FE BUILDER 3D is scheduled for release in October 2009. Free trial downloads will be available at that time.