Capabilities
CUBIT is an full-featured software toolkit for robust generation of two- and three-dimensional finite element meshes (grids) and geometry preparation. Its main goal is to reduce the time to generate meshes, particularly large hex meshes of complicated, interlocking assemblies. It is a solid-modeler based preprocessor that meshes volumes and surfaces for finite element analysis. Mesh generation algorithms include quadrilateral and triangular paving, 2D and 3D mapping, hex sweeping and multi-sweeping, tet meshing, and various special purpose primitives. CUBIT contains many algorithms for controlling and automating much of the meshing process, such as automatic scheme selection, interval matching, sweep grouping and sweep verification, and also includes state-of-the-art smoothing algorithms.
List of CUBIT Features...
CUBIT 10.2 Documentation...
CUBIT 10.2 Release Notes...
See Cubit Licensing for information on obtaining the Cubit Geometry and Mesh Generation Toolkit. Licensed users may download the current release from this website.
Several of CUBIT's mesh generation algorithms have become production quality codes, heavily used within the Laboratories. As a result of the demand for these codes to be used within other applications as either stand-alone mesh generators or for adaptive remeshing within an analysis code, the CAMAL module has been developed. CAMAL currently provides a convenient API to some of its most used algorithms, including, triangle, tet and quad meshing. Work is underway for sweeping and mapping algorithms as well as local conformal refinement and coarsening algorithms.
CAMAL is now available for licensing and distribution. A password to download CAMAL binary libraries may be obtained by following the directions on the CUBIT Licensing page.
One of CUBIT's strengths is its ability to import and mesh geometry from a variety of CAD packages. The CGM component currently integrates ACIS and Pro/E geometry kernels directly within its code base, allowing direct manipulation of the native CAD geometry format within CUBIT. This reduces the errors and anomalies so often associated with geometry translation. CGM also boasts a facet-based geometry kernel developed at Sandia that can be used for remeshing or editing old mesh files or models defined by triangle facets. In addition, CUBIT has developed a comprehensive virtual geometry capability that permits local composites and partitions to geometry without modifying the underlying native geometry representation. This permits the user to ignore, clean-up or add features to the model allowing greater flexibility to meshing algorithms to generate better quality elements. Making CGM available as a third party library has allowed several applications at the laboratories access to its extensive suite of geometry operations. Work is ongoing to make CGM more accessible to users through a simplified Application Programmer's Interface (API).
CGM is now available under LGPL license. Browse the 1400 downloads page and select CGM from the pull-down menu to get access to the source code. If you want to run CGM with ACIS underneath, you also need a license for the ACIS solid modeling engine; see Spatial's web site for details.
The question of "what makes a good mesh" is a fundamental aspect of the CUBIT mesh generation toolkit. As a result, significant research has gone into defining quality metrics for which elements may be judged. Element quality criteria are generally agreed upon standards for acceptance of a mesh for simulation purposes. VERDICT, a separate module providing these quality criteria, has been developed to help standardize these quality metrics. In addition to providing VERDICT as a linkable software library, a small application known as VERDE has been developed to wrap the VERDICT library. It provides a convenient cross-platform graphical user interface with VTK graphics for visualizing element quality criteria in a mesh.
VERDE is available under a GPL software license. You may download the latest version of VERDE from this website. VERDE documentation (Postscript File) (PDF File) is also available.
The mesh verification library VERDICT is available as LGPL open source. It can be downloaded here, along with other open source code developed at Sandia.
CLARO was designed as a flexible environment upon which a custom user interface may be easily developed and modified to suite the needs of an application. The CLARO framework, utilizing VTK graphics, although developed independently of CUBIT, has been optimized for applications that require mesh and geometry manipulation and visualization. It loads the intended application at startup and communicates with it via the Python scripting language. The graphical user interface layout is specified in terms of a series of XML files and built with TrollTech's QT® GUI Builder. While CUBIT is currently the major application supported by CLARO, plans are underway to use CLARO in a number of other applications.
CLARO is now available for licensing and distribution. A password to download CLARO libraries may be obtained by following the directions on the CUBIT Licensing page.
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