Closing the Simulation Process Chain using a Solver Independent Data Exchange Platform: The Digital Prototype

Since about three years, DigitPro, a sub-project of the government funded research project Active Research Environment for the Next generation of Automobile (ARENA2036) works on the development of a Digital Protoype, a closed simulation process chain which not only covers different simulation disciplines such as crushing or process analysis, but also various material modeling approaches on the micro-, meso-, and macro level. Various software tools are being used by the project partners, namely the German Aerospace Center (DLR), the Institute of Textile Technology and Process Engineering (ITV), and the Institute of Aircraft Design (IFB) at the University of Stuttgart. Core of the digital prototype is a mapping tool and data exchange platform being developed by the DYNAmore GmbH. This tool shall bridge the gap between the different simulation disciplines and length scales as well as the different software tools being used within the research group. It offers the capability to document the steps being taken along the development of a carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) component and to link to simulation data being generated along the manufacturing process. For data storage and sharing, a HDF5 data container is used in a customized way, allowing the project partners to submit their simulation results and to access simulation data from the other disciplines being used within the project. Besides data storage, the users can perform a mapping and homogenization procedure in order to cover the needs for their further simulations, for example the direction of beam elements can be transferred as directions within an infiltration- or crushing simulation. Further homogenization procedures would consider thicknesses and width of rovings in order to estimate porosities or stiffness’s at certain positions within a component. Results gained by the simulation of representative volume elements (RVEs) and stored within the database can be used to generate material models being coupled to the further analysis and to locally consider varying material properties. This mapping and homogenization procedure always has to take different discretization methods and element sizes into account, which are being used for the different simulation techniques and therefore, it is crucial to fully understand the different modeling approaches. This presentation will give an overview on the newly developed techniques for the build-up of a digital prototype and will introduce the mapping techniques being implemented within the introduced software solution. An in-depth view into ongoing developments and research will be given, helping to understand the need for a closed simulation process chain for CFRP components and how this need can be targeted with the proposed solution in an active research- and industrial environment. Acknowledgements This research and development project is funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), Germany under the supervision of Project Management Agency (PTKA) in Karlsruhe. The author is responsible for the contents of this presentation.