Moldflow Plastics Insight 6.2

Moldflow Plastics Insight (MPI) 6.2 introduces significant user interface enhancements and several new solver technologies to respond to customer requests and increase user productivity.

User Interface Enhancements

Synergy Graphical User Interface Updated

The Synergy GUI has undergone a significant facelift in the MPI 6.2 release, with newly designed icons and a new background, terminology changes, and new commands. These changes follow similar changes implemented in MPA to enhance compatibility across product lines.

In particular, new icons used to indicate analysis status eliminate English language-dependent symbols used previously, making product localization more straightforward and enhancing usability in the global community.

Terminology changes have been implemented to create more consistency between the MPI GUI and Help system and among all Moldflow products. The most notable changes are made to analysis sequence names (for instance, Fill+Pack replaces Flow in the list of available analysis sequences for most molding processes), result names, and analysis technology (Dual Domain technology is referenced instead of using the Fusion product name).

New commands include a Close All Documents command available from the Window menu, as well as a new results Scaling toolbar available from the View menu, which allows dynamic adjustment of the minimum and maximum scale of the displayed result.

Configurable Workspace Options

MPI 6.2 introduces a Workspace tool, a key feature aimed at improving user productivity as well as reducing product complexity to broaden the use of MPI throughout the entire enterprise.

On a typical project, a majority of the user’s time is spent in interacting with the user interface. A customized user interface that conforms to an optimal workflow for specific tasks has great potential to improve user productivity. MPI, with its ever-increasing product breadth, can pose daunting training and usability challenges, especially to novice users.

People in different roles in the product development process all would use MPI differently. For example, an industrial designer might want to perform a manufacturing feasibility study, a plastics engineer might want to evaluate material selection options, a structural engineer might be interested in analysis results such as weld line locations, fiber orientation and predicted displacement, while a molder might focus on machine selection and process setup parameters. The Workspace tool allows the user interface to be customized to fit a user’s job function, knowledge, skill set and experience.

The following aspects of MPI can be customized and saved to a workspace file:

• Molding processes
• Analysis sequences
• Mesh types
• Databases (Thermoplastic/Thermoset materials, Coolants, Mold materials, and Molding machines)
• Analysis results
• Menu toolbars
• Meshing options

Several preconfigured workspace files are distributed with MPI 6.2 (identified as Moldflow workspaces). Besides these, you can set up personal (User) or shared (Company) workspaces.

New Interfaces with Development Partners

• Export to Altair® Engineering’s H3D Data Format
  MPI 6.2 offers the capability to export the meshed model and results to Altair Engineering's H3D data format. Through this option, the MPI model and results can be visualized in Altair HyperView 9.0 and other Altair products that support the H3D format.
• Interface to Code V® Optical Design Software
  MPI 6.2 features an interface to CODE V, optical design software from Optical Research Associates®. Through this interface, it is possible to export the optical properties predicted by a Birefringence analysis and use this information to investigate how the molding process affects the optical properties of lenses.

MPI Enterprise Edition Enhancement Offers Increased Accessibility

For users of the MPI Enterprise Edition (MPI-e), new in MPI 6.2 is the ability to install the Moldflow Plastics Advisers (MPA) software and access its suite of products using MPI-e tasks.

MPI-e users can leverage this increased accessibility to MPA and MPI products to allow more users throughout the enterprise to realize the benefits of injection molding simulation. In particular, part and mold designers as well as novice simulation users now can take advantage of MPA’s guided user interface, model-specific design advice, and wizard-driven runner and cooling channel modeling tools.

Solver Technology Enhancements

3D Flow Solver Speed Improvements

The Coupled 3D Flow solver offers a new AMG matrix solver option, and the code has undergone rigorous review and optimization to perform more efficiently. The average 3D Fill+Pack analysis sequence using the Coupled 3D Flow solver now runs in less than half the time required to perform the same analysis in MPI 6.1, without affecting the analysis results.

• New AMG Matrix Solver Option for Coupled 3D Flow Solver
  An optional AMG solution method is available for 3D Fill+Pack analysis sequences using the Coupled 3D Flow solver. When this option is enabled, the average expected analysis time speed-up factor is 2.0 or more (where the speed-up factor is defined as the ratio of analysis time in MPI 6.1 to the analysis time in MPI 6.2). The speed-up factor is model-dependent.
  
  By default, the AMG matrix solver selection option is set to Automatic. This setting allows the 3D Flow solver to examine the model and determine whether or not the AMG matrix solution is advantageous. Various parameters influence the outcome of this setting, including the model size (number of elements in the mesh), the operating system, and the selected analysis sequence and analysis parameters.
  
  The AMG matrix solver does not provide a clear advantage for small models (fewer than 200,000 tetrahedral elements). The AMG matrix solver also uses more memory (up to 50% more). As a result of these two factors, on a 32-bit operating system, the AMG matrix solver will not be used when the solver selection option is set to Automatic.

• Coupled 3D Flow Solver Optimization
  An additional average speed-up of 30% is achieved through code optimization and algorithmic improvements. The speed improvement depends upon several factors; key among these are the model size, selected molding process, selected analysis sequence (Fill or Fill+Pack), and the hardware configuration.

New Advanced Gate Locator

MPI 6.2 introduces a new Advanced Gate Locator algorithm for Midplane, Dual Domain, and 3D meshes, which can help with making important gating decisions. The Advanced Gate Locator offers significant improvement over the previous gate location algorithm with two new capabilities:

• Simultaneously search for and recommend up to 10 gate locations.
• Account for specific regions of the part geometry that have been prohibited from gating considerations.

The Advanced Gate Locator aims to identify gate locations that will produce the lowest injection pressure. Regions that should not be used for gating because of aesthetic, tooling or other reasons, can be excluded before starting the analysis by selecting specific nodes on the model that are designated as prohibited gate nodes. The Advanced Gate Locator will not consider prohibited nodes in searching for recommended gate locations.

The new Advanced Gate Location analysis can simultaneously search for up to 10 gate locations and allows specified areas of the part to be prohibited from the analysis.

A Gate Location analysis sequence in MPI 6.2 uses the new Advanced Gate Locator algorithm by default. The previous gate location analysis algorithm has been renamed to Gate Region Locator.

Expanded Scope of 3D Warp Analysis

• 3D Warp Analysis Handles More Overmolding Configurations
  Complex overmolded parts may have numerous configurations in which the various components are positioned. Previously, only a limited subset of these configurations could be properly simulated for warpage using 3D meshes. An improved algorithm in 3D Warp now establishes contacts between all components in single-shot and 2-shot overmolding applications, including part inserts.
  
  The improved algorithm also is better able to tolerate small gaps between the meshes on different overmolding components. This is particularly important when working with components that have curved contact surfaces between them, where it can be challenging to ensure perfect contact between the meshes.

• 3D Warp Analysis for Gas-assisted Injection Molding Applications
  Product designers can now evaluate the effect of hollowed-out gas channels on the overall part deflection. The 3D Warp analysis can be run in parallel on a multi-processor system. The Isolate cause of warpage option is also available, which can help to identify the source of warpage.

• Exclude 3D Cold Runner Elements from Analysis
  MPI 6.2 now offers the ability to assign a new Cold runner (3D) element property to tetrahedral elements. This allows the 3D Warp solver to identify which elements belong to the part and which to the cold runner system and to exclude the cold runners from the warpage analysis. This improves the accuracy of the part warpage predictions and reduces the analysis time. The new element property does not change the Coupled 3D Flow or Cool solvers.

Other Enhancements

• New Micro-mechanics Model
  A new micro-mechanics model, the Mori-Tanaka model, has been implemented to provide more accurate shrinkage and warpage predictions of fiber-filled liquid crystalline polymer (LCP) materials. The Mori-Tanaka micro mechanics model is much better able to capture the anisotropic nature of LCPs, and this significantly improves the calculation of mechanical properties for this special class of materials, which are often used in the connector industry.
  
  The Mori-Tanaka model can be used with Midplane, Dual Domain and 3D analysis technologies. The model is used automatically if the selected material contains the appropriate material properties data.

• Simulate Rapid Heating and Cooling Processes
  In the conventional injection molding process, the mold is maintained at a near-constant temperature throughout the molding cycle. However, newer molding techniques have been developed which use a variable mold temperature. The mold is maintained at a hotter temperature during the filling phase to facilitate filling and achieve smooth surface appearance. During the packing and cooling phases, the mold is switched to a much cooler temperature to assist in freezing the part and decrease the cycle time.
  
  MPI 6.2 allows variable mold surface temperature profiles to be set up for use in Fill and Pack analyses. Variable temperature profiles can be specified on all element types (cavity, cold runners, cold sprue, cold gates and part beam) except hot runner elements.

• Venting Analysis for 3D Reactive Molding and Microchip Encapsulation Processes
  Because the injection pressures are often very low in reactive injection and microchip encapsulation molding processes, the build-up of air pressure in the unfilled cavity due to inadequate venting can influence the material flow during filling.
  
  MPI 6.2 offers the capability to specify venting analysis locations and vent sizes, which are then considered in the flow analysis when the option to perform venting analysis is enabled. The venting analysis calculates the air pressure build-up in the unfilled cavity, based on the venting locations and sizes, and accounts for the influence of the air pressure on the filling pattern. This feature is supported for 3D Reactive Molding and 3D Microchip Encapsulation molding processes only.

• User-specified Gate Size for 3D Meshes
  The new Gate contact diameter setting allows the gate size to be specified at a single injection point on 3D meshes that do not have a runner system and gate(s) explicitly modeled.

• New Annular Beam Element Formulation
  A new formulation to represent annular hot runners explicitly improves analysis accuracy using Midplane and Dual Domain analysis technologies.

• Pack and Warp Analysis of Thermoset Materials Extended to All Mesh Types
  In MPI 6.2, it is now possible to simulate the packing, shrinkage and warpage characteristics of thermoset materials for Reactive Molding and Microchip Encapsulation processes using Midplane and Dual Domain analysis technologies.