LMS Virtual.Lab Motion - Process Overview

Developing optimized mechanical systems before building and testing expensive physical prototypes requires accurate dynamic motion results. Kinematic modules in today’s CAD packages are unable to fulfill these needs because they are limited to motion range prediction and collision detection. LMS Virtual.Lab Motion, on the contrary, simulates dynamic system behavior by including masses, inertia, stiffness, friction, … and therefore has the capacity to deliver much more valuable engineering insights throughout the entire product development process. Fast iterative simulations that accurately predict dynamic motion and internal loads empower engineers to assess the real-life performance of multiple design alternatives.

Easy mechanism modeling

LMS Virtual.Lab allows engineering teams to quickly create and refine virtual prototype models. With LMS Virtual.Lab Motion, users can build up concept models from scratch, import CAD parts and assemblies or re-use existing multibody models. High-performance design capabilities speed up the modeling and assembly of parts. When creating a joint, the parts to be connected automatically snap together. And when modifying the dimensions of one part, LMS Virtual.Lab Motion automatically updates the entire system.

Design of individual parts based on CATIA V5 solid modeler
Mass data, connections and boundary conditions are fully associative with geometry
Interfaces with CATIA, I-DEAS, Pro/ENGINEER, Unigraphics and other leading CAD packages
Easy import of LMS DADS and MSC.ADAMS models

Simulate real-life performance

LMS Virtual.Lab Motion offers everything to accurately simulate system performance under real-life loading conditions. Users can easily pick elements from the mechanism modeling library to accurately model friction, gravity, spring stiffness, intermittent contacts, component flexibility and other physical phenomena. Motion and internal loads predicted by LMS Virtual.Lab Motion are essential in guiding the design of parts, connections, motors and actuators. Stable and high-performance solvers guarantee the accurate and timely handling of even the most complex dynamic problems.

Based on LMS DADS solver, which is widely renowned for its accuracy and stability
Kinematic, dynamic, quasi-static and pre-load analyses are available
Calculates forces, displacements, velocities and accelerations

Visualize and interpret results

Simulation results visualized on different types of displays allow colleagues and customers to literally step into the design and take the right engineering decisions. Synchronized graphing and animation directly associate force and acceleration extrema with mechanism positions. Dedicated post-processing features help engineers to easily identify and effectively solve the root causes of an engineering problem.

Collision detection based on detailed CAD models
Motion envelopes and force vector animations
Combined animation of displacements and stresses

Effective design space exploration

LMS Virtual.Lab Motion is capable of executing the complete motion simulation process, for multiple design options and different scenarios, in a highly automated fashion. LMS Virtual.Lab Motion eliminates administrative tasks, avoids errors and enables the automatic execution of consecutive analyses. Different parameter settings seamlessly flow through the complete motion simulation process. These automated parametric analyses enable engineers to quickly explore the design space.