MESHGEN Plus
MESHGEN Plus is a Windows software package for the generation of two- and three-dimensional FE-meshes, and rapid development of finite-element and finite-volume applications. The program consists of two standard modules, the Geometry Modeler and the FE-mesh Generator, and several other customizable modules for pre- and post-processing data. MESHGEN Plus is an open, user-friendly environment for FEM-based calculations and the development of custom applications for numerical modeling and engineering.
Important notice: If you are looking for a mesh generator for HYDRUS, please visit the HYDRUS 2D/3D web page. The new HYDRUS includes a built-in FE-mesh generator (MESHGEN), which is available in editions 2D-Standard, 3D-Standard and 3D-Professional.
A simple FE-mesh (click to enlarge)
Introduction
Dear customers,
Welcome to the MESHGEN Plus software package website, which is a major upgrade and extension of the Meshgen-2D module distributed in 1997-2005 with Hydrus-2D or as a stand-alone application. This program has a completely new graphical environment for both two- and three-dimensional applications, and should provide users with much greater comfort than the original Meshgen-2D. The most important new feature is the option to customize MESHGEN GUI for integration with the user’s modules. Although this product is still in development, the main parts of the program are already fully functional and you may be interested in using the MESHGEN Plus Beta-version in your projects. If so, please contact us to receive more information or order the software.
Best regards
MESHGEN Plus developers
Program Description
What is MESHGEN Plus ?
MESHGEN Plus is not only a FE-mesh generator, it is a customizable modeling environment for 2D and 3D Finite-Element and Finite-Volume applications. It has been designed for integration with the user's modules (special solvers, etc.) and its challenge is to serve as a framework for the rapid development of custom FEM applications. The concept for this software package came from our experience with the development of large FE-programs, such as RFEM and HYDRUS (2D/3D), which are currently being used by thousands of engineers and scientists around the world.
Target Group of Users
MESHGEN Plus is intended for software developers, researchers, scientists, students, universities, engineering companies and anyone else who develops or uses custom numerical solvers based on Finite-Element or Finite-Volume methods and needs to integrate this solver into a user-friendly environment for graphical pre- and post-processing of input and output data. The final product (MESHGEN Plus integrated with a solver) can then be used in two different ways:
- Internal utilization within customer’s company or institution.
- Commercial distribution of the final product. In this case, a special agreement is required and the software may not represent a competition for our programs RFEM, RSTAB and/or HYDRUS (2D/3D).
Do you have to be a programmer to be able to use MESHGEN Plus?
You need not be an expert in programming; however, some knowledge is required. As mentioned above, MESHGEN Plus is intended for integration with your custom modules, and this assumes that you are the author of these modules or, at the least, you are able to modify the source code for reading (resp. writing) input data (resp. output data) so that your module could exchange data with MESHGEN Plus. This task is usually very simple and all changes can be done in the same programming language used in the development of your module. In more complex cases, you can order our services and we will then help you with integration of your modules into MESHGEN Plus.
Reasons for using MESHGEN Plus
- Get results quickly. MESHGEN Plus can speed up development of programs like HYDRUS by several orders. The same programs, which took years of programming in the past, can be finished with MESHGEN Plus within a couple of days/weeks/months (depending on their complexity).
- Make Science, not GUI. With MESHGEN Plus you can focus on your scientific work, i.e., on the numerical solver and theoretical background of the model. You do not need to care about the development of GUI (Graphical User Interface), which is a complex and very difficult task itself.
- Share your results. If your numerical model gives valuable results that can be useful to other people, MESHGEN Plus is a way to offer them to the public. By integrating with MESHGEN Plus, you will get a compact and modern software package which is ready to be shared with other people.
- Customization is simple. You can customize your model in a very simple way. The application template with user-defined properties can be changed in two dialogs within a couple of seconds. Your calculation module reads FE-mesh and other properties from files - demo examples including source codes are available. Programming of more complex cases can be ordered as a paid service.
- Invest in the future. MESHGEN Plus concentrates fourteen years of experience in developing and delivering programs for numerical modeling and engineering. However, as a product that is constantly extended and improved, MESHGEN Plus is actually a solution for the future, which will keep your numerical models in touch with all new technologies for Windows.
How does it work?
- Without any customization, MESHGEN can be used as a Geometry Modeler and FE-mesh Generator. The FE-mesh can be exported to a text or binary file for further use.
- MESHGEN customization: users can define the quantities that they want to display and edit within the MESHGEN graphical interface. Parameters of these quantities (their names, types, etc.) are saved as an “Application Template”, which can then be used for any number of projects.
- Each project is linked with an Application Template (there is the so called “Empty Template” for projects with no custom quantities). Users can display and edit quantities defined in the template, for example materials, boundary conditions, initial conditions, etc.
- Values of these quantities at FE-mesh nodes or elements can be exported to files located in the so called “working directory” (see the figure below).
- MESHGEN can start a custom calculation module and give it the path to the working directory. The calculation module reads input data from files in the working directory, calculates results, and saves them to output files aslo located in the working directory.
- MESHGEN can read results from the working directory and display them graphically.
- The above points only describe the basic scenario, which is very simple. However, MESHGEN Plus can be used for much more complex cases.
MESHGEN Standard
MESHGEN Standard is a basic edition of the software package, which is intended for customers who only need a Geometry Modeler and an FE-Mesh generator. This edition can be used to construct a 2D/3D computational domain, generate FE-mesh, and export the mesh to a text or binary file. It does not allow users to modify the MESHGEN user interface (e.g., create custom quantities), as does the full version of MESHGEN Plus.
MESHGEN Plus
In addition to all of the options available in MESHGEN Standard, MESHGEN Plus offers customization of GUI (graphical user interface) for work with various user-defined quantities – so called custom properties. For example, if you have a calculation module (executable file) based on the Finite Element or Finite Volume method, you can use MESHGEN Plus to prepare input data (domain properties, initial and boundary conditions, etc.), run the calculation and display results saved in output files. Customization of MESHGEN is simple – adding a new custom property is easy and fast (just several mouse clicks in two dialogs), as is modification of your module to exchange input/output data with MESHGEN.
Quick Tour - Selected Video Tutorials
Here you can find two basic video-tutorials demonstrating the work with MESHGEN Standard and MESHGEN Plus. You can find more videos at MESHGEN Standard video tutorials and MESHGEN Plus video tutorials.
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1.01 - MESHGEN Standard
A simple FE-mesh
Video (1.2 MB)
Play
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2.01 - MESHGEN Plus
Application Template and Custom properties
Video (2.5 MB)
Play - Download
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Pricing
MESHGEN Plus is available in several versions called Levels, which provide users with a great deal of flexibility in acquiring only that segment of the software which is most appropriate for their particular application. Table 1 contains a description and pricing of the four available MESHGEN Plus Levels. Users can select software limited to two-dimensional problems, or for both two- and three-dimensional applications, and can also opt for only the standard modules (the Geometry Modeler and FE-mesh Generator) or they can purchase the Plus version containing all features, including customizable modules. Users will also be able to upgrade to higher Levels simply by paying the difference between prices.
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MESHGEN Level
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2D Projects
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3D Projects
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Geometry + Mesh
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Customizable GUI
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Price (EUR)
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2D-Standard
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Yes
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No
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Yes
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No
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600,-
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2D-Plus
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Yes
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No
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Yes
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Yes
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900,-
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3D-Standard
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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No
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1200,-
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3D-Plus
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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1500,-
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Table 1 - Pricing for Single license.
The Single License enables activation of MESHGEN Plus on 2 computers, for example on a desktop and a laptop. Please note that although we will allow you to activate MESHGEN on two computers, the single license is intended for one user, i.e. MESHGEN should be running on only one of these computers at a time. The license is transferable from one computer to another, and the activation process is the same as that for HYDRUS (see the detailed description).
Multiple user licenses (Site Licenses) for up to 20 PCs are double the price of a single license (options are the same as for HYDRUS pricing).
Commercial distribution of the final product (MESHGEN Plus integrated with your modules) is possible; however, a special agreement is required and the software may not represent a competition for our programs RFEM, RSTAB, and HYDRUS (2D/3D).
Ordering and Downloads
As already mentioned, the software package is not yet completely finished and is currently available for selected customers as a Beta version. You can find more details about the current state in the following table:
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Program Part
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Status
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Program MESHGEN 2D-Standard
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Fully functional
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Program MESHGEN 2D-Plus
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Almost fully functional (90%)
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Program MESHGEN 3D-Standard and 3D-Plus
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Under development
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Documentation for MESHGEN 2D-Standard
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Copied from HYDRUS, waiting for revision and cleaning
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Documentation for MESHGEN 2D-Plus
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In progress. A brief introduction is available on this web site.
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We believe that the program will be finished and officially released by the end of this year. If you find MESHGEN Plus useful for your work and would like to start using it now, please contact us and we will provide you with the latest Beta version (see the pricing above). All customers who have purchased a Beta version of MESHGEN Plus will be eligible to get free upgrade to version MESHGEN Plus 1.x.