47.2.2 An overview of the methods for repairing faces

When you choose Face from the Geometry Repair Toolset dialog box, the Tool list displays the following methods for repairing faces:

Repair small faces

You can repair selected small faces. ABAQUS/CAE removes the small faces and repairs the adjoining faces to create a closed geometry. Figure 47–4 illustrates the effect of repairing small faces.

Figure 47–4 Repairing small faces.

Create face

You can create a face on a three-dimensional part by selecting one or more edges of the new face. ABAQUS/CAE loops through the adjacent edges and calculates the location of the new face. ABAQUS/CAE creates the new face as a shell. If the new shell forms a closed part, you can use the solid-from-shell tool to convert the part to a solid.

Replace faces

In some cases ABAQUS/CAE may not be able to accurately recreate some of the faces when you import a part. For example, a planar face may appear wavy or distorted, or ABAQUS/CAE might create small faces that have a large impact on the mesh density. You can select connected faces, and ABAQUS/CAE replaces them with a single face. The new face has minimal faceting and will be smoother than the original faces. Figure 47–5 illustrates the effect of replacing selected faces.

Figure 47–5 The effect of replacing selected faces.

Alternatively, you can replace the selected faces with a single face that is formed by extending neighboring faces. You can use this tool to remove bosses and small details from imported parts, as shown in Figure 47–6.

Figure 47–6 The effect of replacing selected faces and extending neighboring faces.

Repair sliver

A sliver can be thought of as a small, sharp piece of extra material. You can remove an unwanted sliver from a face of a three-dimensional solid or shell or from a two-dimensional planar part. You must select the face containing the sliver to remove and two points from the face. ABAQUS/CAE draws a line between the two points that divides the selected face into two regions. The first region is the face that will remain; the second region is the sliver that will be removed. Figure 47–7 illustrates the effect of removing a sliver.

Figure 47–7 Removing a sliver.

Remove faces

You can remove selected faces (including chamfers, fillets, and holes) from a three-dimensional solid or shell or from a two-dimensional planar part. After you have selected the faces to remove, ABAQUS/CAE looks for adjacent faces that define a feature. You can remove the entire feature, or you can remove only the selected faces. When you remove one or more faces from a three-dimensional solid part, ABAQUS/CAE converts the part to a shell.