Error Message—Errors when launching from Pro/Engineer

Issue

Launching from Pro/Engineer is halted, and one of the following error messages is issued:

Invalid Model Detected

Error: Model file could not be read

Error: Assembly model could not be generated

Solution

Something in the geometry prevented Autodesk® Simulation CFD from successfully displaying the model. A part of the opening process is to convert it into a "non-manifold" representation for meshing. This process depends on the interfaces of components. If contacting components have very different accuracy values or if their interface has an error (such as an interference), this error will be issued.

To resolve this issue:

1. For Pro/Engineer, use AutoPrep to prepare the model. (AutoPrep is the launching tool that opens when the launch is initiated):

• Ensure that all components have the same units system.
• Set the accuracy value.
1. For most models, a consistent value of absolute accuracy on all components (including assemblies) works best.
2. Experiment with the value of accuracy. Try launching with a lower or higher value
3. Sometimes, despite best efforts, resetting all components to Relative accuracy will solve the problem.
• Remove all interferences.
1. If none are reported, and the model still will not launch, try using the tools in Pro/Engineer to check for interferences.
• Change the launch method
1. Sometimes a model that will not launch using Mechanica will launch using Granite, or the other way around.

2. In Pro/Engineer, it is good practice to assign absolute accuracy values as components are constructed. This ensures that errors in construction or assembly constraints are found and resolved early in the process.

3. Multi-body parts are not supported when launching with the Granite method, and are not supported well when launching with the Mechanica method. It is better to separate and include them as separate parts.

4. If your site uses a Pro/Mesh license, make sure it's checked out before attempting to launch Autodesk® Simulation CFD.

5. If these techniques do not fix the issue, examine the CAD model closely. There may be a problem where two or more parts meet. In particular, inspect areas such as lofted features, small interferences, and gaps.

A helpful technique for locating problems is to successively suppress features (or parts) to isolate the problem:

• Begin by selecting a feature (or part) about halfway down the feature tree, and suppress everything after it
• Attempt to launch.
1. If the launch was not successful, then suppress half of the remaining features and try again
2. If the launch was successful, select a feature halfway down the suppressed list, and resume all features before it
• Repeat until the offending feature or part is located

6. Unicode Path:

If working in a two-byte language environment such as Japanese or Chinese, launching from Pro/E using the Mechanica method will result in this message if the working directory contains two-byte characters. Exit the CAD tool, and move the model to a path containing only single-byte characters. Open the CAD model and launch again.