Mesh: Difference between revisions
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(File:Shape_and_mesh.svg Left: parametric shape defined by properties. Right: mesh, defined by points and triangular surfaces.) |
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See [[Mesh_MeshObject|Mesh MeshObject]] for more information about this type of object, and see [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polygon_mesh Polygon mesh] for generic information in computer systems. |
See [[Mesh_MeshObject|Mesh MeshObject]] for more information about this type of object, and see [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polygon_mesh Polygon mesh] for generic information in computer systems. |
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[[File:Shape_and_mesh.svg]] |
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{{Caption|Left: parametric [[Shape|shape]] defined by properties. Right: [[Mesh|mesh]], defined by points and triangular surfaces.}} |
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==Usage== <!--T:6--> |
==Usage== <!--T:6--> |
Revision as of 06:07, 18 March 2020
Introduction
In FreeCAD the word "Mesh" is normally used to refer to a Mesh MeshObject (Mesh::MeshObject
class), a type of object that defines 3D data but is not a solid "Shape".
Meshes are very simple objects, containing only vertices (points), edges and triangular faces. In general, they are easy to create, modify, subdivide, and stretch, and can be passed from one application to another without any loss of detail. In addition, since meshes contain very simple data, 3D applications like animation software and video games can manage very large quantities of them without using a lot of computing resources.
However, in the field of engineering meshes present one big limitation: they are only made of surfaces, and have no "mass" information, so they don't behave like "solids". This means that solid-based operations, like boolean addition or subtraction, are difficult to perform on meshes. Also, since they are defined by individual points, they are hard to describe in a parametric fashion.
See Mesh MeshObject for more information about this type of object, and see Polygon mesh for generic information in computer systems.
Left: parametric shape defined by properties. Right: mesh, defined by points and triangular surfaces.
Usage
Meshes are normally created by internal functions of the Mesh Workbench, or by importing mesh format files, like STL and OBJ.
Essentially, every object derived from a Mesh Feature (Mesh::Feature
class) is expected to hold and manipulate a Mesh.
Since FreeCAD is designed to be a solid modeller primarily, it is better suited to deal with solid Shapes. It can import and display Meshes in the 3D view, but to transform them or create new geometry, the Mesh first needs to be converted to a Shape (see Part ShapeFromMesh). In many cases, this conversion is not automatic, and requires re-creating the geometry using solid modelling techniques, making use of Part and PartDesign tools.
Finite element meshes
In FreeCAD the word "Mesh" may also refer to a specific object that will be used in finite element analysis (FEA).
When an object with a solid Shape is used in the FEM Workbench it will be discretized into a triangular mesh. In this case, the resulting object is a Fem FemMeshObject (Fem::FemMeshObject
class), and is not derived from a Mesh Feature (Mesh::Feature
class).
For more information see FEM Workbench and FEM Mesh.
- Miscellaneous: Import mesh, Export mesh, Create mesh from shape, Regular solid, Unwrap Mesh, Unwrap Face
- Modifying: Harmonize normals, Flip normals, Fill holes, Close hole, Add triangle, Remove components, Remove components by hand, Smooth, Refinement, Decimation, Scale
- Boolean: Union, Intersection, Difference
- Cutting: Cut mesh, Trim mesh, Trim mesh with a plane, Create section from mesh and plane, Cross-sections
- Components and segments: Merge, Split by components, Create mesh segments, Create mesh segments from best-fit surfaces
- Materials: Solid, Fluid, Nonlinear mechanical, Reinforced (concrete); Material editor
- Element geometry: Beam (1D), Beam rotation (1D), Shell (2D), Fluid flow (1D)
Constraints
- Electromagnetic: Electrostatic potential, Current density, Magnetization
- Geometrical: Plane rotation, Section print, Transform
- Mechanical: Fixed, Displacement, Contact, Tie, Spring, Force, Pressure, Centrif, Self weight
- Thermal: Initial temperature, Heat flux, Temperature, Body heat source
- Overwrite Constants: Constant vacuum permittivity
- Solve: CalculiX Standard, Elmer, Mystran, Z88; Equations: Deformation, Elasticity, Electrostatic, Electricforce, Magnetodynamic, Magnetodynamic 2D, Flow, Flux, Heat; Solver: Solver control, Solver run
- Results: Purge, Show; Postprocessing: Apply changes, Pipeline from result, Warp filter, Scalar clip filter, Function cut filter, Region clip filter, Contours filter, Line clip filter, Stress linearization plot, Data at point clip filter, Filter function plane, Filter function sphere, Filter function cylinder, Filter function box
- Additional: Preferences; FEM Install, FEM Mesh, FEM Solver, FEM CalculiX, FEM Concrete; FEM Element Types
- Core: App DocumentObject
- Basic: App FeaturePython, App GeoFeature, Part Feature, Mesh Feature, Fem FemMeshObject
- Internal shapes: Part TopoShape, Mesh MeshObject, Fem FemMesh
- Structure: App DocumentObjectGroup (Std Group), App Part (Std Part), App Link (Std LinkMake)
- Derived: Part Part2DObject, Sketcher SketchObject, PartDesign Body, PartDesign Feature
![](/images/thumb/9/94/User_hub.png/24px-User_hub.png)
- Getting started
- Installation: Download, Windows, Linux, Mac, Additional components, Docker, AppImage, Ubuntu Snap
- Basics: About FreeCAD, Interface, Mouse navigation, Selection methods, Object name, Preferences, Workbenches, Document structure, Properties, Help FreeCAD, Donate
- Help: Tutorials, Video tutorials
- Workbenches: Std Base, Assembly, BIM, CAM, Draft, FEM, Inspection, Mesh, OpenSCAD, Part, PartDesign, Points, Reverse Engineering, Robot, Sketcher, Spreadsheet, Surface, TechDraw, Test Framework
- Hubs: User hub, Power users hub, Developer hub