Product Features
In the early stage of product prototype testing, engineers can use the module to quickly compare and verify thermal design solutions, reduce the number of tests, and shorten the product design cycle.
Rapid Modeling
With plenty of flex parts, users can build models with parameterized editing functions as well as user-friendly CAD modeling operations such as drag-and-drop, automatic adhesion, and auto-alignment which can make building models simple and convenient.
Full-Scale Thermal Simulation
Full-scale modeling can be achieved throughout the package level, PCB board level, to the system level. Besides, the cross-scale orthogonal mesh generation, which covers heat conduction, natural convection heat transfer, forced air cooling, forced liquid cooling, radiation heat transfer, phase transformation of solid-liquid cooling, thermoelectric cooling, Joule heat scenario, etc., can also be supported by the module.
Efficient Solution Solving
The module has an efficient CFD solving algorithm with superior convergent capability. It can automatically calculate the initial field, set the solution control parameters, and convergence conditions, as well as compute components' fluid flow and heat transfer data. The results can help engineers to quickly locate heat transfer bottlenecks of a model.
Application Scenarios
Chip and Package-Level Thermal Design and Analysis
Optimization of Thermal Design for PCBs and Modules
Full-Scale Thermal Simulation Analysis for Mobile Phones, Tablet PC, Chassis, and Cabinets
Ventilation and Thermal Simulation for Large Data Centers and System Environments
Core Functionality
Rapid Modeling
A large number of parametric modeling macros for specific components of electronic devices are embedded within the module, which can quickly and accurately model various cooling scenarios.
- Basic Geometric Shapes: Provide cube, plane, cylinder, prism, pipe, sloped block, and other basic geometry models.
- Common Electronic Components: Provide parametric models of common components in electronic devices, such as Chassis, grille, PCB, chips, heatsinks, fans, thermoelectric cooler, bare dies, etc. These models are physically simplified based on the fluid flow and heat transfer characteristics of the devices.
- Physical Condition Settings: Support adding physical properties directly to geometric models, including flow and thermal boundaries, to achieve fluid flow heat transfer analysis in complex equipment.
- Abundant Data Interfaces: Able to import complex geometric models generated by mainstream CAD software (in STP and IGS formats), as well as models from other thermal analysis software like FloTHERM and Icepak (in ECXML files). It can also import PCB layout files (in IDF and ODB++ formats) and heat source distribution files, created by ECAD software, etc.
Meshing
The module has the ability of cross-scale orthogonal hexahedral mesh generation, featuring rapid and stable mesh generation of tens of thousands of self-built models and imported models. It also supports the generation and display of the number of hundred million mesh units.
- Local Mesh Control: Support local mesh refinement and boundary layer mesh settings to optimize both computational efficiency and accuracy.
- Automatic Meshing: Automatically handle the overlaps between models, recognizes fluid flow and heat transfer boundaries, and significantly reduces preprocessing time.
- Mesh Quality Check: Users can view mesh distributions on any cross-section and calculate mesh quality metrics such as skewness and aspect ratio.
- Planar Mesh Projection: The mesh generation algorithm based on the region method can quickly generate the mesh projection in X/Y/Z direction and improve the efficiency of optimizing the mesh quality.
Solution Method
The module uses a finite volume method to perform fluid-heat coupling simulation, providing a high-precision discretizing method of CFD. In addition, the module includes relevant industry experience in electronic cooling, which offers accurate results of CFD simulation.
- Fluid simulation: Provide segregated and coupled pressure-velocity coupling methods. It solves laminar and turbulence flow model and analyzes the fluid flow & heat transfer of steady and transient scenario.
- Scenario analysis: Support solid heat conduction, natural convection, radiation heat transfer, forced air cooling, forced liquid cooling, phase change, thermoelectric cooling, Joule heat scenario, etc.
- Reduced order calculation: Generate the BCI-ROM model (a reduced order model independent of boundary conditions) for complicated heat conduction problems, assisting in rapid thermal analysis within system simulations.
- Parallel computing: Support parallel computing with more than 100 cores to quickly solve CFD models with a large number of mesh cells.
Postprocessing
According to the heat cooling characteristics of electronic equipment, the module provides a statistical analysis function of CFD simulation to help users make a quick judgment of the CFD results. This function helps the users to improve the structure of electronic devices.
- Dynamic Rendering: Support contour plots, vector plots, streamline plots, animation, and other visualization functions.
- Automatic Statistics: Automatically calculate average temperature, heat flow flux, mass flow, volume flow for CFD model, and many other heat flow data. The results can help engineers quickly locate heat transfer bottlenecks of the model.
- Result Comparison: Show the difference of simulation results in different cases and provides convenient guidance for model structure optimization.