Add-Ons Extend Design Exploration and Optimization

By Anthony J. Lockwood

CD-adapco  (London, UK, and Melville, NY) and Red Cedar Technology (East Lansing, MI) have partnered to offer Optimate and Optimate+, add-on modules for CD-adapco’s STAR-CCM+ integrated engineering physics simulation system. The Optimate solutions directly employ process automation and design optimization technology from Red Cedar and are said to provide engineers with “affordable HPC (high-performance computing) licensing for CAE/CFD simulation design exploration and optimization.”

Optimate and Optimate+.

Optimate allows engineering designers to set up, execute, and post-process design exploration studies such as parameter sweeps and/or DOEs (design of experiments). According to CD-adaco, Optimate can work on the optimization of a design automatically and without ever leaving STAR-CCM+. Optimate can submit jobs to run automatically while it searches for a solution and collects simulation data. Once the user sets parameters, the process is fully automatic and can be left unattended, enabling users to focus their attention on other tasks.

Optimate,  says the company, also eliminates the need for scripting when creating optimization and boundary condition problems, which removes the need for Java experience or training when running those types of problems. This, notes the company, reduces the complexity and time required for CAE work, and allows engineers to focus more on the design aspect instead of programming. The company adds that at “no point will a user be required to write scripts for any of the work”  done through Optimate.

Optimate+  adds the capability to perform automated design optimization studies using the SHERPA (Simultaneous Hybrid Exploration that is Robust, Progressive, and Adaptive)  optimization/search algorithm from Red Cedar. This reportedly provides the required efficiency for optimization with complex CFD simulations. In addition to DOE methods and the SHERPA algorithm, the Optimate add-ons also leverage Red Cedar’s post-processing methods, which allow users to analyze and explore results of design studies.

Optimate and Optimate+.

The Optimate plugins for STAR-CCM+ use HEEDS optimization software from Red Cedar to do all of its background work. HEEDS is available directly from CD-adapco and is included with licenses for Optimate. HEEDS uses its own post-processor specifically designed for it.

CD-adapco also announced a new Power Token licensing scheme along with the Optimate solution. Power Tokens can be used to mix and match the number of simultaneous simulations and the number of parallel processes within each simulation.

Optimate and Optimate+.

“Software licensing costs have historically been the most prohibitive bottleneck in implementing simulation driven design in many engineering organizations,” said CD-adapco Senior VP Bill Clark in a press statement. “CD-adapco prides itself on our history of working together with our customers to define innovation not only in engineering simulation technology, but also CAE licensing models. We believe the Optimate solution with Power Tokens provides unprecedented access to cost-effective simulation driven design using advanced CFD methods.”

For more information on Optimate and Optimate+, visit Red Cedar Technology and CD-adapco.

Watch a recorded webinar of Optimate.

Learn more about STAR-CCM+.

Learn more about HEEDS.

See why DE’s Editors selected NI’s New PXI Products as their Pick of the Week.

Sources:  Press materials received from the company and additional information gleaned from the company’s website.