In Rocky, Modules refer to separate pieces of code that when explicitly turned on (or enabled) prior to processing your simulation, add in discrete features or functionality within your project. This enables you to include-or even develop yourself-custom or specialized functionality into your Rocky projects without having to acquire a new version of the Rocky product itself.
There are several ways in which you can acquire Modules, and several ways Module functionality can affect how you set up your Rocky projects. See below sections for details.
In this version of Rocky, several features are provided via Modules, including Collision and Particle Statistics. Because these Modules are provided by default with your Rocky installation, these are sometimes referred to as embedded Modules.
Conversely, you may also have access to external Modules, which are custom Modules installed separately from the Rocky product.
The embedded Modules included by default with Rocky (Figure 1) include the following:
Boundary Collision Statistics. which enables the collection of boundary-related collision data, such as collision frequency, intensities, and impact velocities.
CFD Coupling Particle Statistics, which enables the collection of fluid-particle interaction data.
Contact Energy Spectra, which enables the collection of collision-based energy values during the simulation and the resulting data is categorized by the contact pair (particle group and/or geometry).
Contacts Overlap Monitor, which checks each contact pair (particle-particle or particle-boundary) for the amount that they overlapped-the percentage of which is determined by the size of the smallest particle in the contact pair-and raises a message in the Simulation Log panel if an overlap exceeds any of the three warning levels you define.
Inter-group Collision Statistics, which enables the collection of energy dissipation data for each particle-particle and particle-boundary pair.
Inter-particle Collision Statistics, which enables the collection of particle-related collision data between all particles in the simulation.
Intra-particle Collision Statistics, which enables the particle-related collision data affecting the surfaces of a particular particle set.
Joint Statistics, which enables the collection of joint-related statistical data.
Multibody Dynamics FMU Coupling, which enables FMU files to be imported into Rocky without needing an external module for each compatible software.
Particle Instantaneous Energies, which enables the calculation of the kinetic and potential energies of each individual particle in the simulation. These energies are useful when performing global or partial energy balances in a simulation.
Particles Energy Spectra, which enables the collection of energy values during the simulation that are related only to particles, and the resulting data is classified by size and particle group.
SPH Boundary Interaction Statistics, which enables SPH boundary-related data, generating properties of the forces that the fluid is exerting on the walls. Also, curves may be generated for the resultant forces, torques and power.
SPH Density Monitor, which enables the monitoring of density values of the
SPH HTC Calculator, which calculates the heat transfer coefficient (HTC) through forced convection for each wall triangle.
SPH elements during a simulation. - SPH Mass Flow Rate, which enables to measure the mass flow rate in the chosen surface.
Because these Modules are included with the Rocky product, they will be documented as usual in the User and Technical Manuals.
You may have access to other external Modules not included by default in Rocky. These might have been custom Modules created by you using the Solver SDK or modules created by Ansys Rocky team of specialists.
Tips: To learn more about making your own custom Modules, do one or more of the following:
Access the Rocky Solver SDK Manual. (From the Help menu, point to Manuals, and then click Solver SDK Manual.)
Rocky for Developers:https://developer.ansys.com/docs/rocky
External Modules are typically installed via ZIP file (see also Install an External Module). After installation, they will appear in Rocky under Modules in the Data panel.
Because these Modules are installed separately from the Rocky product, their documentation can be found in the Rocky Module Manual.
Learn more about Rocky Simulation Entities that can be Affected by Modules
Learn more About Modules Parameters
Many more additional models and functionality are available as external Modules that can be downloaded from the Ansys Customer Portal.
Note: Even though this install procedure is similar on both Windows and Linux machines, be aware that Module ZIP files are specific to both the operating system and the version of Rocky for which the Module was created.
Locate or download the ZIP file for the external Module you want to install. Tips:
Ensure that the ZIP file you download is appropriate for both the operating system and the Rocky version you are using.
Into your user folder's
..RockyModulesfolder, extract the contents of the ZIP file. For example:In Windows, this might be your
%USERPROFILE%DocumentsRockyModulesfolder.In Linux, this might be your
~/.Rocky/Modulesfolder.
Once extracted, the ZIP file will automatically create a build folder in the
Modulesfolder and the Module contents will be installed there.If the Rocky program is open, close it and open it again to refresh the Modules list. The external Module should be listed in the Modules entity. (From the Data panel, select Modules and then from the Data Editors panel, review the Modules list.)
See Also:
Once you enable a Module (see also About Modules Parameters), there can be other places in the Rocky UI affected by that particular Module. How and what *simulation entities* can be affected depends upon the Module and how it was built.
MODULE-RELATED EFFECTS TO THE ROCKY UI
Typically, enabling a Module can affect the Rocky UI in one or more of the following ways:
The Module overrides Rocky's default models or settings. Models or settings that can be overwritten by a Module are considered to be exclusive. An exclusive model or setting allows a Module to disable its default options and replace them with the name of the Module.
The Module adds additional models or settings. Models or settings that are added to the Rocky UI as a result of enabling a Module are considered to be non-exclusive. A non-exclusive model or setting allows a Module to add new options to its default set of options, but does not allow the Module to override any default options.
See the below sections for more detail about each of these two Module-related UI conditions. In addition, refer to Table 1 below to learn what areas of the Rocky UI might be affected by a Module.
Rocky UI settings that are considered to be exclusive have the effect of disabling Rocky's default options for a particular model or setting, and then replacing them with the name of the Module. In these cases, you must use the model or setting defined in the enabled Module, and only one enabled Module can override any particular model or setting at one time. This means that if you happen to have more than one Module defining the same exclusive model or setting in different ways, you must enable only one of those Modules in your simulation setup.
Rocky UI settings that are considered to be non-exclusive have the effect of adding in additional models or settings for the Module, but do not override any default models or settings. Sometimes the additional models or settings appear on a separate Modules tab within the affected simulation entity, and sometimes new options are added to existing entities or lists.
No matter how these appear to you in the UI, if you have enabled a Module that includes additional models or settings, you must make use of those Module-related models or settings at least once in your simulation setup. This means that, for example, if you have two enabled Modules that define the same non-exclusive model for individual Particle sets in two different ways, you must define at least two different Particle sets to make use of the two different models that were added by their respective Modules.
SIMULATION ENTITIES THAT CAN BE AFFECTED BY MODULES
The table below lists the areas of the Rocky UI that are able to have their settings and options modified by a Module that is enabled.
Tip: Refer to the Module's documentation for further details about Module-specific parameters. Specifically:
For embedded Modules, this documentation can be found in the Rocky User Manual (the document you are reading now).
For external Modules, this documentation (if provided) can be found by clicking the Open this Module's Help File icon (?) on the Module's main tab in the Data Editors panel.
Table 1: Simulation Entities that can be affected by Modules, and how they can be affected
|
Simulation Entity |
Setting or Area Affected |
How Affected |
See Also |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Physics | Momentum tab |
Normal Force; Tangential Force; Adhesive Force; Impact Energy |
Built-in model override (exclusive settings) | |
|
Physics | Thermal tab |
Heat Conduction Model; Thermal Integration Model |
Built-in model override (exclusive settings) | |
|
Individual imported Geometries |
New Modules sub-tab |
Additional settings added | |
|
Individual imported Geometries |
Wear | Wear Law |
Additional models added (non-exclusive settings) | |
|
Individual Feed Conveyor Geometries |
New Modules sub-tab |
Additional settings added |
About Feed Conveyor Parameters |
|
Individual Receiving Conveyor Geometries |
New Modules sub-tab |
Additional settings added |
About Receiving Conveyor Parameters |
|
Individual Materials |
For each Material defined under Materials, a new group box labeled with the Module's name |
Additional settings added | |
|
Materials Interactions |
For each pair of materials interactions, a new group box labeled with the Module's name |
Additional settings added | |
|
Individual Particle set |
Composition | Joint Model; Breakage | Model; Breakage| Fragment distribution | Distribution model |
Additional models added (non-exclusive settings) | |
|
Individual Particle set |
New Modules sub-tab |
Additional settings added | |
|
Inputs |
New Modules sub-tab |
Additional settings added | |
|
CFD Coupling | 1-Way Fluent tab; CFD Coupling | 2-Way Fluent tab; CFD Coupling | 1-Way Constant tab |
Interactions | Drag Law; Interactions | Lift Law; Interactions | Torque Law; Interactions | Virtual Mass Law; Interactions | Convective Heat Transfer Law |
Additional models added (non-exclusive settings) |
About Using the 1-Way Fluent Method; About Using the 2-Way Fluent Method; About Using the 1-Way Constant Method |
See Also: