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LiveLink™ for AutoCAD®

Run COMSOL® Simulations with AutoCAD® Designs

The LiveLink™ for AutoCAD® add-on product delivers connectivity between the COMSOL Multiphysics® software and the AutoCAD® software to efficiently integrate simulation into the design workflow. AutoCAD® is a premier CAD solution for 3D design and product data management. When used together with multiphysics simulation, it provides a powerful solution for product design, evaluation, and optimization. Using LiveLink™ for AutoCAD®, the functionality of COMSOL Multiphysics® can be leveraged to better understand how an AutoCAD® design performs in its intended operating environment and evaluate the impact of essentially any physical effect and its interactions.

There are multiple ways to use LiveLink™ for AutoCAD® to match a design workflow, starting with simply running both programs at once, side by side. Alternatively, if a team has a design engineer using AutoCAD® and a simulation engineer using COMSOL Multiphysics®, they can work together using the Offline Synchronization feature.

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The COMSOL Multiphysics UI overlaid on an AutoCAD UI with a tuning fork model in both Graphics windows.

Features and Functionality in LiveLink™ for AutoCAD®

The link between AutoCAD® and COMSOL Multiphysics® provides flexibility for modeling and design workflow needs.

A close-up view of the Model Builder with the LiveLink for AutoCAD node highlighted and a busbar model in the Graphics window.

Synchronize CAD Geometries in AutoCAD® and COMSOL Multiphysics®

LiveLink™ for AutoCAD® enables synchronization between a COMSOL® model's geometry and the corresponding AutoCAD® file. LiveLink™ for AutoCAD® ensures that design changes are propagated automatically, eliminating the need to import and export designs each time they are updated. When synchronizing the geometry between the two programs, material and physics definitions as well as boundary conditions remain associated with their respective CAD entities, even when a design has changed. LiveLink™ for AutoCAD® also keeps track of the synchronized file's name and path, as well as the layer state, to prevent synchronizing an incorrect document.

The LiveLink™ for AutoCAD® functionality includes several options for importing geometry into COMSOL Multiphysics® from AutoCAD®. The length unit can be taken from the CAD document (the default option) or from COMSOL®. The object that's imported from AutoCAD® will include solids, surfaces, curves, and points, but the user can choose to exclude any of these if it is not applicable to the simulation. 

A close-up view of the LiveLink for AutoCAD settings and a pacemaker model in the Graphics window.

Offline Synchronization

Syncing files between the two programs is possible even when the programs are installed on different computers. Using the LiveLink™ add-in included in LiveLink™ for AutoCAD®, a synchronization file that may contain one or several versions of a geometry can be saved. It can then be loaded into a COMSOL Multiphysics® model to compute parametric sweeps. This is especially useful in organizations where the two different software packages are used by different individuals.

In addition to being installed by the COMSOL Multiphysics® installer, the LiveLink™ add-in can be installed with the COMSOL Client installer for running simulation apps. The COMSOL Client installation option enables the same process for apps: preparing designs, saving offline synchronization files, and loading the files into simulation apps for analysis.

A close-up view of the LiveLink for AutoCAD settings and a busbar model in the Graphics window.

Synchronize Parameters and Selections

The LiveLink™ for AutoCAD® synchronization capabilities include design parameters and selections generated from the material or layer assignments in AutoCAD®. The COMSOL Multiphysics tab installed into the AutoCAD® user interface provides the tools for choosing which parameters to synchronize over and configuring which type of selections to create. The user interface in COMSOL Multiphysics® provides an informative settings window to keep track of the names of the synchronized parameters and selections, which then become available for use when setting up the simulation in COMSOL Multiphysics®.

AutoCAD® design parameters can be iteratively accessed and updated via COMSOL Multiphysics®, facilitating design parameter optimization studies and parametric sweeps to evaluate the effects of properties such as the diameter of a hole or thickness of a component in your design. Design parameters that are controlled by relations in the AutoCAD® design can still be accessed in a read-only way and used when setting up a simulation, such as when defining boundary conditions or mesh element size settings.

Selections, which are defined on the CAD design inside AutoCAD®, can greatly reduce the time it takes to set up a simulation. For example, all domains with the same material properties can automatically be collected into one easily accessible selection.

Streamline Geometries for Simulation

A COMSOL® model geometry created from an imported CAD geometry often requires some manipulation to reduce the complexity of the mesh and improve the efficiency of the simulation in COMSOL Multiphysics®. To ensure that the CAD geometry can be reliably modified and combined with geometry created in COMSOL Multiphysics® after import, LiveLink™ for AutoCAD® provides the Parasolid® geometry engine with functionality for geometry simplification, including automatic repair and defeaturing. Its full functionality is detailed on the CAD Import Module page. 

Virtual geometry operations are also available with COMSOL Multiphysics® to provide yet another method to prevent fine design details from creating regions with unnecessarily dense meshes. With this functionality, a virtual geometry for meshing is created that excludes selected features of the CAD design. A distinct advantage is that the original curvature of the design is maintained, which may improve simulation accuracy for certain applications, such as analyzing stresses in structural contact.

A close-up view of a sliver CAD geometry showing the results of the mesh before and after repairing it.
A close-up view of a CAD geometry shown in a side-by-side comparison with and without a groove and hole.
A close-up view of a CAD geometry shown in a side-by-side comparison with and without fillets.
A close-up view of a CAD geometry shown in a side-by-side comparison with and without capped faces.
An infographic showing the connection between four different networks.

Simulation Applications

The functionality of the Application Builder that is included with the COMSOL Multiphysics® core platform can be combined with LiveLink™ for AutoCAD® tools to create simulations apps that analyze AutoCAD® designs. These apps can then be shared with AutoCAD® design teams either as standalone, compiled applications or in a managed fashion, deployed on the COMSOL Server™ application management product. All that is needed to run simulation apps is the COMSOL Client for Windows® that you can download for free and install. This also installs the COMSOL Multiphysics tab in the AutoCAD® user interface, from where you can either launch compiled apps directly or connect to COMSOL Server™ to launch apps from there.

Supported Formats for File Import and Export

Note that not all file formats are supported on all operating systems; for details, see the system requirements. The STL, PLY, and 3MP surface mesh formats are supported by COMSOL Multiphysics® without add-on products.

File Format Extension Version Import Export
ACIS® .sat, .sab, .asat, .asab Up to 2024 1.0 (import),
R4, R7, 2016 1.0 (export)
AutoCAD® .dwg 2.5–2024
AutoCAD® DXF™ .dxf 2.5–2024
IGES .igs, .iges Up to 5.3
Inventor® assemblies .iam 11–2024
Inventor® parts .ipt 6–2024
NX™ .prt Up to 2306
Parasolid® .x_t, .xmt_txt, .x_b, .xmt_bin Up to V36.0
PTC Creo Parametric™ .prt, .asm 1.0–10.0
PTC Pro/ENGINEER® .prt, .asm 16 to Wildfire® 5.0
SOLIDWORKS® .sldprt, .sldasm 98–2024
STEP .step AP203, AP214, AP242 (import),
AP203 (export)

Autodesk and AutoCAD are registered trademarks of Autodesk, Inc., and/or its subsidiaries and/or affiliates in the USA and/or other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. For a list of such trademark owners, see the Trademarks page. COMSOL AB and its subsidiaries and products are not affiliated with, endorsed by, sponsored by, or supported by these trademark owners.

Every business and every simulation need is different.

In order to fully evaluate whether or not the COMSOL Multiphysics® software will meet your requirements, you need to contact us. By talking to one of our sales representatives, you will get personalized recommendations and fully documented examples to help you get the most out of your evaluation and guide you to choose the best license option to suit your needs.

Just click on the "Contact COMSOL" button, fill in your contact details and any specific comments or questions, and submit. You will receive a response from a sales representative within one business day.

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