Free (Unstructured) Meshing

The free mesher is available in all space dimensions, and you can use it for all types of geometries regardless of the topology or shape. If you have not defined or generated a mesh, the free mesher automatically creates an unstructured mesh and adds a corresponding node to the Model Builder when a study is computed.

When the free mesher is used:

•	The number of mesh elements is determined by the shape of the geometry and various mesh parameters.

•	The mesh parameters for the free mesher are controlled by Size and Distribution nodes in the meshing sequences.

•	You can also control the size of the mesh elements generated by a specific Free Triangular, Free Quad, or Free Tetrahedral node by adding Size or Distribution subnodes (see Figure 8-1 for the settings in a Size subnode).

Figure 8-1: An example of custom element mesh sizes. You can also select Predefined element sizes.

You can define mesh parameters using numerical values, globally defined parameters, and built-in mathematical and physical constants.

2D Model Unstructured Meshes

Free meshing generates an unstructured mesh with triangular or quadrilateral elements. Use the free mesher in 2D to create an unstructured mesh with triangular or quadrilateral elements. You can combine triangular and quadrilateral meshes by adding domains to the Domain list in the corresponding mesh operation’s settings. From here, you can define specific meshing operations to each domain in your model.

3D Unstructured Meshes

Free meshing generates an unstructured mesh with tetrahedral elements.