Configurable safety relays help prevent injuries and damage in factory automation systems by cutting off electrical power in response to data received from sensors. When a safety relay fails, the production line must be halted until the relay can be repaired or replaced, resulting in expensive downtime. Phoenix Contact Electronics engineers use ANSYS software to develop a digital twin of its safety relays that will integrate real-time sensor data with simulation results to predict failures in advance. The relay can then be replaced or repaired while the line is not operating.

A roundup of news items featuring simulation

Engineering student teams in universities around the world compete in the Formula SAE (FSAE) competition to build a race car, giving them an opportunity to apply their engineering knowledge, in a practical and fun way. The E-AGLE Trento racing team takes advantage of ANSYS additive manufacturing solutions and topology optimization in ANSYS Mechanical to design a car that is lighter, has stronger joints and is easier to build than a typical FSAE car.

Vibrations from large power generators can steadily weaken their own supporting structures over time. By themselves, pure analytical models of the strain history on the metal frame are not nearly accurate enough without good experimental correlation. Cummins developed a new spin on a decades-old challenge of generator set durability modeling by integrating True-Load’s strain correlation models with its overall structural analysis in ANSYS Mechanical to rev up its simulation workflow.

By moving solar panels to follow the sun across the sky, solar trackers can generate more power. These solar power plants can be damaged at high wind speeds. CPP Wind Engineering used simulation to determine the cause of failure and to identify operating procedures and design changes that can prevent them.

Countries around the world increasingly rely on renewable energy technologies for electricity. Brazilian company WEG is a leader in design and production of electric machines including those for renewable energy which requires overcoming a wide range of engineering challenges. WEG Energy leverages the broad portfolio of ANSYS solutions across all aspects of product design, throughout the design process and even during product operation.

The market for electric power generation equipment is growing more competitive every day, with customers demanding more reliable, eco-friendly products at lower cost. Marelli Motori meets these demands using ANSYS Maxwell, ANSYS Mechanical and ANSYS CFD in multiphysics simulations to deliver the tailor-made solutions their customers have come to rely on. More recently, they have begun using ANSYS Discovery Live to obtain instantaneous simulation results with every on-the-fly change to a product’s geometry or operating conditions, greatly reducing design time.