Derived from "Ansys Additive simulation package," the .aasp file format is a proprietary file format that contains simulation inputs that can be imported into Additive. When imported, a new simulation form is populated under Draft Simulations. Note that this file does not contain the part geometry nor any simulation results.

An output file that contains the voxelized representation of the part with predicted displacements after cutoff has occurred (either part and support cutoff or support-only cutoff, depending on the Cutoff Mode option). Data on file include magnitude and x, y, and z components of displacement. Included in Output Files when a user has selected to output the displacement after cutoff.

When the properties of a material vary with different orientations, the material is said to be anisotropic. The mechanical and thermal properties of these materials differ in different directions. (Alternately, when the properties of a material are the same in all directions, the material is said to be isotropic.)

Coefficients used to represent anisotropic strain behavior on coordinate systems aligned with the local longitudinal, transverse, and Z (depth) scan directions. Positive values result in compressive base strain (contraction), whereas negative values result in tensile strain (expansion).

Multiplier on the predicted strain parallel to the direction that the laser is scanning for the major fill rasters. Defaults to 1.5.

Multiplier on the predicted strain orthogonal to the direction that the laser is scanning for the major fill rasters and in the plane of the surface of the build plate. Defaults to 0.5.

Multiplier on the predicted strain in the Z direction. Defaults to 1.

Materials in the Materials Library that are available for use and may not be edited directly. Ansys predefined materials are designed to capture the effect of a material’s chemical composition, powder-to-liquid and liquid-to-solid state transitions, and high cooling rates.

Ansys Viewer is an interactive 3D image viewer that is either embedded into your Ansys application or is available as an exportable file (on the Ansys Customer Portal here) to run in your web browser. Designed specifically for sharing and collaboration, Viewer enables you to visualize 3D models created in Ansys CAE software even if you do not have Ansys software installed. Viewer files have an .avz extension. Viewer is embedded in the Additive application for seamless 3D visualization.

A simulation method that assumes a constant, isotropic strain (inherent strain) occurs at every location within a part as it is being built. This is the fastest simulation method.

A file format used by Ansys Viewer for 3D visualization.

The surface of the 3D printing machine upon which the part is built. Also called the build plate.

The controlled temperature of the baseplate. Must be a real number between 20 and 500. Defaults to 80 °C.

The length of the laser scan in a Single Bead simulation. Must be a real number between 1 and 10. Defaults to 3 mm.

An indication of how the bead is deposited in a Single Bead simulation. This setting affects the calculation of material state, which in turn affects the material properties used in the solving process, as well as in the laser flux model. "Bead on powder layer" is a single bead deposited on top of a layer of powder of Layer Thickness. "Bead on baseplate" is a single bead deposited directly on solid material.

A scenario in which the recoater blade of the printing machine hits into the part already printed, most likely due to distortion of the part as a result of residual stress.

Build files are unique to each 3D printing machine and are required to be .zip files containing the part .stl file as well as files specifying machine scan vectors.

The repository for Build Files that you have imported into the program. Build Files are formatted .zip files written for specific 3D printing machines.

The machine type, such as Additive Industries, Renishaw, or SLM, corresponding to your build file. When importing a build file, selecting the build file type assures that the appropriate translator will be used.

An output file containing the distortion-compensated 3D surface representation (tessellated triangles) of the part while the part is still attached to the baseplate. The compensated geometry is placed flush with the baseplate surface and does not include the offset for supports between the baseplate and the part.

Simulations that have either completed or that have been canceled or failed due to error. These simulations are no longer running. Select a simulation in the Completed Simulations area of the dashboard to see simulation results along with input parameters and log files for that simulation.

From "comma separated values," this is a file that allows data to be saved in a table-structured format. Traditionally, a .csv file is in the form of a text file containing information separated by commas, hence the name.

Materials that have been edited from the original Ansys predefined materials are labeled as customized materials.

A setting under the Displacement-after-cutoff output option in strain-based simulations designating how cutoff occurs—either Instantaneous, Directional (baseplate only), or Legacy (if Legacy options are turned on).

A setting under the Displacement-after-cutoff output option in strain-based simulations designating what gets cut off—either Part and Support Cutoff (from the baseplate) or Support-only Cutoff. In Support-only Cutoff, the support voxels are cut at the part-support boundaries, separating the part from the support, but not the part from the baseplate.

The main area, or “home,” of the Additive user interface that shows an overview of Draft Simulations, Running Simulations, and Completed Simulations.

The layer of metal powder spread over the baseplate or melted material. Simulations begin at a deposit layer of 1 and layers are numbered sequentially thereafter as each successive layer is added.

An output option that activates the blade crash detection feature of Additive. If this box is checked, there will be a check to determine if the +Z displacement at every point in each new layer falls within certain criteria for potential blade crash. Locations of potential blade crash and associated displacement values are provided in a .csv output file, as well as in the On-Plate Residual Stress/Distortion and Layerwise .vtk files.

The deformation that occurs as a result of residual stress in a part.

An output option that activates the distortion compensation feature of Additive, which predicts the location and magnitude of displacement and then reverse distorts the original .stl file. When you build your part using the compensated geometry, the result will be closer to the original design.

One of the functions within the simulation workflow responsible for reverse distorting the original .stl file to compensate for the effects of predicted distortion. Shown with a status indicator in the Activity Status area of Running and Completed Simulations.

The entirety of the voxels in the simulation as defined by the bounding dimensions of the part plus the support voxels (if any). Some voxels are part material, some are support material and some are powder.

An option with J2-plasticity stress mode dictating how the total load will be applied to each layer. The full load will be applied initially, and the solver will iterate until equilibrium is achieved. If not achieved with the initial load, it will be halved and repeated. If equilibrium is achieved, the next incremental step is applied at the current load fraction until applying the full load, otherwise, it is halved again. A lower limit of 1/(200) load fraction is enforced, after which the solution will terminate.

A material property that is a measure of the material's stiffness. Elastic Modulus, or Young’s Modulus (E), describes tensile elasticity, or the tendency of an object to deform along an axis when opposing forces are applied along that axis; it is defined as the ratio of tensile stress to tensile strain.

For the Additive desktop application, an estimate of the memory required to run the simulation based on the dimensions of the part and Voxel Size. This estimate is provided in the Geometry Selection section of the simulation form as soon as you add a part. The estimate is calculated without considering support generation.

A label applied to any new feature that has not been fully validated, but that we feel is stable and useful for users.

Laser scans associated with the interior regions of the part.

An option with J2-plasticity stress mode dictating how the total load will be applied to each layer. Fixed load stepping divides the load into a user-defined number of load steps, Number of Load Steps.

The Generic machine selection in the Machine Configuration section of the simulation form applies default input parameters that we have determined to be appropriate through initial testing. The default machine parameters most closely approximate an EOS machine, but may be similar to most commonly used metal laser powder bed fusion machines.

The height of the cuboid, in millimeters, for the thermal solution in a Microstructure simulation. Geometry Height must be at least Sensor Dimension plus 1 mm (for a buffer above the sensor).

The length of the cuboid, in millimeters, for the thermal solution in a Microstructure simulation. Geometry Length must be at least Sensor Dimension plus 0.5 mm (for a 0.25 mm buffer on each side).

This section of the simulation form where you select a part (or a build file) for simulation. Parts (or build files) must first have been imported to the Parts (or Build File) Library.

The width of the cuboid, in millimeters, for the thermal solution in a Microstructure simulation. Geometry Width must be at least Sensor Dimension plus 0.5 mm (for a 0.25 mm buffer on each side).

An output file containing the 3D surface representation (tessellated triangles) of the original, undistorted part with predicted displacements at the end of the build while part is still attached to the baseplate. The geometry does not include the offset for supports between the baseplate and the part.

An output file containing the 3D surface representation (tessellated triangles) of the original, undistorted part with predicted displacements after cutoff has occurred (either part and support cutoff or support-only cutoff, depending on the Cutoff Mode option). The geometry does not include the offset for supports between the baseplate and the part.

Also known as strain hardening coefficient, a material-specific factor used to calculate the slope of a material’s stress-strain curve (Ep) above the material’s Yield stress.

The distance between adjacent scan vectors when rastering back and forth with the laser. Hatch spacing should allow for a slight overlap of scan vector tracks such that some of the material re-melts to ensure full coverage of solid material.

An output option that allows you to identify regions of the part that may be prone to forming cracks during or after the build process by highlighting critical strain values.

An output file containing a list of high strain warning areas during the build with their associated strain values.

The residual, irrecoverable strain caused by a heat source melting or partially melting a material in a very localized spot such that the thermal contraction of cooling solidified material is constrained by the surrounding material. Typically associated with a welding process.

Isotropic materials have identical properties in all directions. For an isotropic medium, the stiffness tensor has no preferred direction: an applied force will give the same displacements (relative to the direction of the force) regardless of the direction in which the force is applied.

One of the options for stress mode in Additive's strain-based simulations. J2-plasticity is a part of plasticity theory that applies best to ductile materials, such as some metals. Ductility is a measure of a material's ability to undergo significant plastic deformation before rupture. J2-plasticity uses Von Mises stresses to reduce the stress levels when strain values exceed elastic strain with strain hardening algorithms included. Simulations run longer with the J-2 plasticity option but stress and strain results will be more accurate.

The width of the laser on the powder or substrate surface defined using the D4σ beam diameter definition. Usually this value is provided by the machine manufacturer. Sometimes called laser spot diameter.

In Additive Manufacturing, a method of Powder Bed Fusion (PBF) that involves spreading a layer of metal powder and then using a laser to melt or fuse metal powder material together to build a part. This is the method being simulated in Additive.

The power setting for the laser in the machine.

The angle at which the major scan vector orientation changes from layer to layer. This is commonly 67 degrees.

The thickness of the powder layer coating that is applied with every pass of the recoater blade. We recommend that you use the actual thickness used for your machine and build material.

A series of .vtk files that show voxel representation of the part layer by layer during the build. Use these files to "animate" the build process and to view locations throughout the part of potential blade crashes and high strain areas that may indicate cracks. You will have one .vtk file for every voxel layer in your part, as layerwise files are not written for support-only layers. The .vtk files are compressed into a .zip file. Since the disk space used can become very large, especially for models with many layers, you can control the maximum disk space used for the cumulative layerwise .vtk files with the "Maximum storage used for layer by layer VTK files" option. Once this limit is reached, subsequent .vtk layer files will not be written, however the simulation will continue and output files for other selected outputs will be written, as needed. The default is 20 GB.

An assumption that a material will undergo strain linearly proportional to the magnitude of applied stress and that the material will return to its original shape when the loads are removed. (A simple straight line on a stress strain curve.) One of the options for stress mode in Additive's strain-based simulations. Using this option can result in a higher maximum stress value for a given strain beyond the yield point for the material. This over-prediction may not be realistic for parts with larger distortions. Stresses and strains may be unrealistically high. Distortion values will generally be accurate, however, so the linear elastic option may be useful for analyzing distortion trends while the part is still on the baseplate. The simulation runs faster with the linear elastic option and is a good choice if you are just beginning with Additive and you want to run practice simulations with default options.

An input option if you choose J2-plasticity stress mode specifying how the total load for each layer will be applied. Options include Dynamic Load Stepping (default) and Fixed Load Stepping.

The section of results where the time-stamped log entries are collected. Reading log messages is useful for following the progress of a simulation.

The section of the simulation form where you identify machine and process parameters. You will see this section for Scan Pattern and Thermal Strain simulations only. Assumed Strain simulations do not require inputs related to the 3D print machine.

An output file containing the two files required to view the cutoff results in the Ansys Mechanical Application.

The section of the simulation form where you identify the material. When you select a material, properties associated with that material are automatically populated and any related background information is tied to the simulation.

The repository for saved materials, including Ansys predefined materials and user customized materials.

An input parameter required when you choose the Layer by Layer Stress/Distortion output option. The cumulative maximum storage for layer by layer .vtk files (before zipping). Once this limit is reached, subsequent .vtk layer files will not be written, however the simulation will continue and output files for other selected outputs will be written, as needed.

A parameter used for the optimized volumeless supports. It is the allowed maximum distance between two neighboring support walls. Regardless of the predicted stress level in the support structure, the walls in supported regions will be spaced not more than this value. Too large of a wall distance might result in failures such as the part breaking away from the support, the development of cracks at the bottom of the part, or drooping between support hatches. When a laser scans a relatively large area of powder where the support wall distance is too wide, cracking might happen since powder has no strength to hold the solidified part in place. The excessive distortion might cause blade and part collision. We recommended that Maximum Wall Distance should not exceed 2 mm when a single bead support wall is used.

A parameter used for the optimized solid supports. Support wall thicknesses will not exceed Maximum Wall Thickness even in areas of high stress.

One of the functions within the simulation workflow responsible for calculating displacements and stresses. Shown with a status indicator in the Activity Status area of Running and Completed Simulations.

A parameter that partially controls the mesh size. Recommendation: Use the default value of 5.

The overhang angle is measured from the powder bed surface (horizontal = 0) up to the surface of the part. Any point on the surface of the part having an angle less than the Minimum Overhang Angle will be supported. Recommendation: Avoid using a value that is the same as the angle of the geometry of your part, as it can cause asymmetric support structures due to finite rounding errors.

The height that the part will be elevated off the baseplate. If you set a value of 3 mm then the part will be elevated such that the lowest point on the part is at least 3 mm above the baseplate. This value should be set with consideration of approximating a realistic support height along with care about how many voxels must be created to add additional support height. It is recommended that this value be set as low as is realistic for each simulation.

A parameter used for the optimized solid supports. Minimum Wall Thickness is the thinnest possible support wall that a machine will build under certain process parameters. It is usually the thickness of a single bead scan.

Number of processor cores to be used in the simulation (that is, parallel processing). Depending on your Additive license, you may have up to 12 cores to use.

The number of increments that a given load will be divided into for J2-plasticity stress mode if fixed load stepping is chosen. A larger number of load steps will require more loading calculations, but total time may or may not increase due to potential improvements in convergence.

A result file that contains residual stresses and displacements (and optionally, strains) of the part prior to its removal from the baseplate. Both end-state stresses and maximum stress during the build are contained in this file, as well as potential blade crash locations and high strain areas if those output options are selected.

An output file of the optimized support structure as defined by the solid support input parameters when automatic supports are used. The solid supports are uniformly spaced, but wall thickness is varied based on the residual stress levels predicted. (Optimized supports are generated by default when automatic supports are used but can be disabled to shorten simulation run time.)

An output file of the optimized support structure as defined by the volumeless support input parameters when automatic supports are used. The thin-walled supports are of a uniform wall thickness, but wall spacing is varied based on the residual stress levels predicted in the part. (Optimized supports are generated by default when automatic supports are used but can be disabled to shorten simulation run time.)

Angle measured from the horizontal baseplate (0 degrees) to the surface of the part. Any surface measuring less than the Minimum Overhang Angle will be supported.

A section of the simulation results where you can quickly see a summary status of the simulation.

The geometry for the simulation as defined by an .stl file that must be imported to the Parts Library. This is the most common method for defining geometry.

An input parameter required when you choose the High Strain Areas output option. Defined as the percentage strain in the part above which strain will be considered critical. (Critical regions are shown in the On-plate stress/displacements, Layerwise .vtk, and High Strain Regions output files.)

The repository for all parts (as .stl files) that have been imported into the system. Individual .stl files must be smaller than 100MB.

A material property that is the ratio of transverse contraction strain to longitudinal extension strain in the direction of stretching force. Tensile deformation is considered positive and compressive deformation is considered negative.

An output file of input geometry (non-compensated) positioned into its start location and orientation, that is, offset to account for supports between the baseplate and the part.

An output file that contains locations of all potential and likely blade crashes and the magnitude of the +Z displacement at those points.

An optional input parameter to be used as a starting point for the nucleation pattern in a Microstructure simulation. Specifying a number here allows you to generate the same output for the same inputs to check for repeatability.

Residual stress is the internal stress distribution locked into a material after all external loading forces have been removed. Stresses are a result of the material obtaining equilibrium after it has undergone elastoplastic deformation. In additive manufacturing processes, a part undergoes repeated expansion and contraction from the heating and cooling of the build process. This repeated heating and cooling can lead to residual stress—a result that shows up as cracks, warpage, and other forms of deformation in an object.

Predicted distortion of a part is automatically passed to a distortion compensation function providing you with an .stl file that is pre-distorted, or reverse distorted, to compensate for process generated distortion.

A simulation that is either actively running or has been queued to begin as soon as resources are available. Select a simulation in the Running Simulations list on the dashboard to see input parameters, activity status, and log files for that simulation.

An input parameter required when you choose the Distortion Compensated .stl File output option. The Scale Factor will change the magnitude of the displacement applied to the original .stl file. A Scale Factor of 1 (default) will create an .stl file with displacement compensated by the same magnitude as the simulated results. A Scale Factor < 1 will compensate less than the simulation-predicted magnitude and a value > 1 will compensate more than the simulation-predicted magnitude.

This simulation type uses the same average strain magnitude as in the Assumed Strain simulation but it subdivides that strain into anisotropic components based on the local orientation of scan vectors within the part. This strain mode requires the creation of scan vectors using user-provided scan settings or by reading scan vectors from a supported machine's build file. This extra step results in a small, increased amount of simulation time compared to Assumed Strain simulation. For parts where the scan pattern is randomized, scan pattern and assumed strain should give a similar answer. For parts where the scan patterns are aligned, scan pattern strain will result in a more accurate prediction.

The speed at which the laser spot moves across the powder bed along a scan vector to melt material, excluding jump speeds and ramp up and down speeds.

Direction and velocity of one laser scan across the part. Multiple scan vectors make up a layer’s scan pattern.

The dimension (width and length, in millimeters) of the 2D planes for the microstructure solution in a Microstructure simulation. The sensor point is the intersection of all three planes and is always 1 mm deep into the cuboid. Sensor Dimension must not exceed Geometry Width plus the 0.5 mm buffer (0.25 mm on each side) and must not exceed Geometry Length plus the 0.5 mm buffer (0.25 mm on each side). Sensor Dimension must be between 0.1 and 1.0.

A check box (on/off) option in the Supports section of the simulation form that controls whether supports are automatically generated in the simulation.

All simulations are initiated from a simulation form. It holds the inputs and selections for your simulation. Saved simulation forms are shown under Draft Simulations in the dashboard. Once you start a simulation, it is removed from Draft Simulations (that is, it is no longer a “draft”) but all your input options are shown for Running Simulations and Completed Simulations.

A unique identifier for each simulation. When reporting a problem or looking for clarification on a specific simulation, this is the number that needs to be included with a support request. You will see the simulation ID in the Overview section of Running and Completed Simulations.

One of the functions within the simulation workflow responsible for “slicing” the domain into scan vectors according to the scan pattern input parameters. Shown with a status indicator in the Activity Status area of Running and Completed Simulations.

When using the stripe pattern for scan strategy, the geometry can be broken up into sections, which are called stripes. The stripes are scanned sequentially to break up what would otherwise be very long continuous scan vectors. Slicing Stripe Width is commonly set to 10 mm wide. Memory requirements for the thermal solution will expand significantly as you increase the Slicing Stripe Width much beyond the default.

An output file with a voxelized representation of the part and supports showing voxel densities. This file is output early in the simulation, after voxelization but before solution begins. If you specified automatic supports, the supports in this file are simply a generalized density, not specifically one of the optimized supports. If you imported support .stl files, this file shows your imported supports. You can see how well the part and support geometries are represented by the voxel mesh and to confirm that your supports are aligned correctly to the part.

Starts a simulation from the simulation form. All your input options are stored when you run a simulation so that you may see your options at any time when you click on a simulation in the Running Simulations and Completed Simulation areas of the dashboard.

The orientation of fill rasters on the first layer of the part. This is currently measured from the X axis, such that 0 degrees results in scan lines parallel to the X axis. The starting layer angle is commonly set to 57 degrees.

The status of a part indicates the readiness of the part for running a simulation. When you first import a part it will show as "processing", but there are some basic pre-processing steps that are completed at this time, so the part is not available for a simulation until "Available" appears in the status. (As a common practice, you can import a part and then go to a simulation template and by the time the template is ready to run the part will usually be available. When importing particularly large parts then there is a chance that you may need to wait for import to complete.)

From “stereolithography,” this is a 3D rendering file that approximates the surfaces of a solid model with triangles. .stl files describe only the surface geometry of a three-dimensional object without any representation of color, texture or other common CAD model attributes. The .stl format specifies both ASCII and binary representations. Binary files are more common, since they are more compact.

Strain mode refers to the simulation type (Assumed Strain, Scan Pattern, or Thermal Strain).

The Strain Scaling Factor (SSF) is a calibration factor used to account for differences in machines and materials that you may use to improve the accuracy of your simulations. This value is a direct multiplier to the predicted strain values. Using a value of 1 will result in strain magnitudes as calculated by the solver. Some material and geometry combinations result in bulging/expansion rather than shrinkage and so a negative SSF is possible. Values between -1 and 1 will reduce displacement and stress while values outside of that range will amplify them. Using a value of 0 will result in no strain and the final displacement will match the input geometry. The default Strain Scaling Factor is 1.

An input parameter required when you choose the High Strain Areas output option. This factor is multiplied by both the Support Strain Threshold and the Part Strain Threshold to define limits where strain is labeled as a warning (that is, approaching critical range).

An input option that allows you to choose between linear elastic or elastoplastic (using the J2-plasticity model) material behavior in calculations of stress.

Support structures act as fixtures to anchor a part to a baseplate during part fabrication. In an ideal scenario, the support density should be as low as possible so that less material is consumed and supports can be easily removed. However, if the support density is too low, supports can fail due to the intense strain resulting from thermal stress accumulation in the part. The Additive application uses predicted residual stress accumulation as criteria for support generation.

An input parameter that drives the strength of the automatically generated optimized support structures. If you would like the supports to withstand 2x the expected load, then you would enter a 2 in this field and the predicted strength of the auto-generated support structure would be double the predicted stress. The strength of the support structure is driven by the number and thickness of support walls that are generated.

A designated group of support .stl files associated with a part that allows you to use multiple supports in one simulation. You can mix support .stl types, that is, volumeless supports and solid supports, in a support group.

One of the functions within the simulation workflow responsible for automatically generating supports. Shown with a status indicator in the Activity Status area of Running and Completed Simulations.

An input parameter required when you choose the High Strain Areas output option. Defined as the percentage strain in the supports above which strain will be considered critical. (Critical regions are shown in the Supports stress/displacement and High Strain Regions output files.)

The Support Yield Strength Ratio (SYSR) is a factor that is used in the simulation assumptions to assign a strength to the support material as compared to the solid material. It is used as a knockdown factor to modify the strength of the support material. It affects both yield strength and elastic modulus of the support material. For example, a value of 1.0 results in a support strength equal to the solid material while 0.5 is half the strength of the solid material. The default SYSR value for supports is 0.4375. This default was determined by studies where the support strength for default supports built on an EOS M270 machine were tested and compared to solid material built on the same machine.

A result file containing the voxelized representation of the support structure with predicted displacements and stresses at the end of the build (that is, end state) while the part is still attached to the baseplate.

Tags are used throughout the Additive application to provide optional input for reference and searching criteria.

This is the method for calculating the thermal interaction of the laser and the material at every point in a part throughout the entire build. This method takes much longer than either of the other simulation methods, but is a much higher fidelity result.

One of the functions within the simulation workflow responsible for calculating inherent strain fields dependent upon scan patterns (Scan Pattern simulation), or scan patterns and thermal history (Thermal Strain simulation). Shown with a status indicator in the Activity Status area of Running and Completed Simulations.

An input parameter required when you choose the Detect potential blade crash due to distortion output option. This factor is used to modify blade crash calculations so that you can allow for flexibility in the recoater blade. (Potential blade crash locations are shown in the On-plate stress/displacements, Layerwise .vtk, and Potential blade crash locations output files.)

The name used for a simulation. Required input on a simulation form.

The number of triangular tessellation elements that define the outer surfaces of your imported .stl geometry, making up the 3D representation of the part. You will see the triangle count for a part on the detailed description of each part in the Parts Library.

An output file of the geometry-based auto-generated support structure. The uniform thin-walled supports use a uniform wall thickness and spacing and are created based solely on geometry using the Minimum Overhang Angle parameter. These supports are not to be used as stress optimized supports and are not recommended to use in building parts (use the optimized supports instead).

Unique identifier of the release of the Additive application. You can find the version number under Help > About.

The volume of the part is calculated based upon a rough estimation of the part.

A hexahedral (six-sided) element used in the finite element method in the Mechanics Solver. A regular hexahedron is a cube with all its faces square. Skewed, or elongated, sides are acceptable up to a certain amount in the solver. When combined, voxels define the domain of the geometry.

One of the functions within the simulation workflow responsible for creating the voxelized geometry, that is, dividing the domain into voxels for simulation in the Mechanics Solver. Shown with a status indicator in the Activity Status area of Running and Completed Simulations.

The number of divisions on each side of a voxel used in determining Voxel Density. The input value is cubed, for example, a sample rate of 2 means 2 by 2 by 2 = 8 samples (that is, a voxel is divided into 8 sampling regions called subvoxels). A sample rate of 5 = 5 x 5 x 5 = 125 samples (125 subvoxels). Sample rate affects the accuracy of voxel density. A higher number yields a more accurate Voxel Density approximation resulting in preserved edges of a geometry.

The length of any side of the voxel (hexahedral element).

From "Visualization Toolkit," the .vtk file format is an open source specification for storing 3D computer graphics, images, and visualization data. A right-handed Cartesian coordinate system is used.

One of the functions within the simulation workflow responsible for converting generic-format results files to a format appropriate for Ansys Viewer. Shown with a status indicator in the Activity Status area of Running and Completed Simulations.

A parameter used for the optimized solid supports. It is the distance between support walls.

A parameter used for the optimized volumeless supports. It is the wall thickness of the generated support walls.

The material property defined as the stress, in MPa, at which a material begins to deform plastically. Prior to the yield point the material will deform elastically and will return to its original shape when the applied stress is removed. Once the yield point is passed, some fraction of the deformation will be permanent and non-reversible.

Also known as the elastic modulus, Young's modulus is a mechanical property of linear, elastic solid materials and is a measure of their stiffness. It defines the relationship between stress (force per unit area) and strain (proportional deformation) in a material.