Cubit 15.4 User Documentation
Welcome to CUBIT, the Sandia National Laboratory automated mesh generation toolkit. CUBIT is a full-featured software toolkit for robust generation of two- and three-dimensional finite element meshes (grids) and geometry preparation. Its main goal is to reduce the time to generate meshes, particularly large hex meshes of complicated, interlocking assemblies. It is a solid-modeler based preprocessor that meshes volumes and surfaces for finite element analysis. Mesh generation algorithms include quadrilateral and triangular paving, 2D and 3D mapping, hex sweeping and multi-sweeping, tetrahedral meshing, and various special purpose primitives. CUBIT contains many algorithms for controlling and automating much of the meshing process, such as automatic scheme selection, interval matching, sweep grouping, and also includes state-of-the-art smoothing algorithms
The CUBIT environment is designed to provide the user with a powerful toolkit of meshing algorithms that require varying degrees of input to produce a complete finite element model. Many CUBIT users want to experiment with capabilities as soon as possible. Hence, CUBIT releases often contain algorithms which are not quite ready for production use. These features are listed in the Appendix, and are accessible to the user by specifying a developer flag.
The overall goal of the CUBIT project is to reduce the time it takes a person to generate an analysis model. Generating meshes for complex, solid model-based geometries requires a variety of tools. Many CUBIT tools are completely automatic, while others require user input. Usually, the automatic choices can be over-ridden by the user if necessary. Most meshing capabilities are integrated into the common CUBIT framework; there are also stand-alone tools like Verde. The user is encouraged to become familiar with all of the available tools, so that he can choose the right one for the job.