Synchrotron Visit and New FEA Capabilities

In September Bayly headed out to the Australian Synchrotron for a seminar on the newest ANSYS AIM and SpaceClaim simulation environment and to tour the Synchrotron facilities.

As the demand for FEA, Finite Element Analysis, and Virtual Prototyping increases, Bayly have found a way to further increase our simulation capability to complement the product design process. An upgrade to ANSYS AIM and SpaceClaim allows us to attack multiphysics problems quickly and more easily, and produce more accurate simulations.

Our capabilities now include:

1. Integrated geometry modelling

When studying designs provided by clients, generally the files we receive require simplification or optimisation for the simulation process. We can now take your 3D files and optimise them directly within ANSYS. This will reduce time and therefore budget needed in the preparation stages of an analysis and doesn’t require native CAD files to make adjustments.

2. Multiphysics Simulations

Previously Bayly could only simulate your design as a single physics situation (mechanical, fluid, electrical etc). We can now combine them into a single process! This allows us to couple multiple physics tools for a more accurate multiphysics analysis rather than separate analyses.  Are you interested in how heat flow affects the strength of your mechanical part? We now have the improved product design analysis tools to help you.

3. Simulation Automation and Customisation

We can now set up input variables with a degree of automation. What was previously a manual process that involved time spent changing variables individually can now be achieved quickly and systematically. This allows us to test a product with different dimensions, material properties, loads and part interfaces more efficiently.

4. Product Design Optimisation

In the same way that multiple input variables can be changed systematically, we can use ANSYS to optimise designs to find the best outcome.

As an example, think of a complicated part fixed at both ends with a force applied in the middle. In this scenario, the load applied to the part, the strength of the part material, and safety factors are defined and you would like to reduce the weight of the structure to save material and cost. We can analyse the part to see which areas are working the most and reduce material volume in areas of low stress.

This is process is perfect for optimising weights of parts or assemblies and for avoiding over-engineering a product.

5. Integrated Material Library

Bayly uses the MatWeb library, giving us a comprehensive database of materials and their properties. This allows us to have quick access to an extensive range of material data sheets that is formatted to work directly into ANSYS.

The Australian Synchrotron uses ANSYS too

The Australian Synchrotron is a particle accelerator that uses the radiation produced when electrons are forced to travel close to the speed of light as they travel around a football field sized ring.

Michelle and Rachel from the Bayly Engineering team took a tour of the Australian Synchrotron and learnt that they also use ANSYS for designing their beam lines. The end of these beamlines is where the electron radiation is used for various experiments. The accurate design of this part of the facility is critical, as vibration of any sort can affect the results or create a dangerous situation with stray radiation.

Bayly are proud to say that we are one of 40,000 ANSYS customers worldwide in industries such as automotive, aerospace, consumer products, healthcare and sports. We have used ANSYS to give our clients assurance that their products will be designed to meet requirements quickly and more accurately before physical prototypes are required. We have been able to use this design tool to reduce time to market on their product design projects and to offer validation of designs early in the design process.

To learn more about Virtual Prototyping please read our recent article here.

If you would like to know more about our virtual prototyping and simulation capabilities, contact our Melbourne Product Design team today at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or give us a call on +61 3 9413 9000. We’d love to chat!

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