# preCICE Workshop: training session on FSI, Mesh generation for CalculiX **URL:** \ **Category:** Non-preCICE\ **Tags:** configuration, calculix, fsi, workshop2024\ **Created:** [July 16, 2024, 9:48am UTC](https://precice.discourse.group/t/precice-workshop-training-session-on-fsi-mesh-generation-for-calculix/2020 "2024-07-16T09:48:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 3\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Claudio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7cd45c/32.png) [@Claudio](https://precice.discourse.group/u/Claudio)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2024, 9:48am UTC](https://precice.discourse.group/t/precice-workshop-training-session-on-fsi-mesh-generation-for-calculix/2020/1 "2024-07-16T09:48:00Z")
Hi everybody, we are organizing a training session during the next [preCICE workshop](https://precice.org/precice-workshop-2024) where we’d like to offer an engineering-focused module concerning fluid-structure interaction, where one would set up a non-trivial simulation from scratch, using day-to-day tools (I’m citing @Makis here… ). We are currently setting things up: the ecosystem is composed of CalculiX-preCICE.OpenFOAM. This is not yet written in stone, but we believe that the list above allows us to show the most interesting features. My current question, to all who are potentially interested and to whom might have experience, concerns solid meshing with CalculiX. I haven’t found yet a straightforward way to go from a shape drawn with whichever tool and exported in some portable format (STEP, STL, IGES…) to CalculiX. I have some notion of some possible procedures: 1. some of them convert an externally generated mesh, exported in **UNV** format and converted in Abaqus/CalculiX file format with some other tools such as: 2. [PrePoMax](https://prepomax.fs.um.si/): it should do anything needed for preprocessing. Nevertheless, it runs only on Windows (afaik) and we only need to generate a mesh with some node groups for boundary conditions 3. [FreeCAD](https://wiki.freecad.org/FEM_Workbench): in particular the FEM module, which allows to generate a mesh and export it in CalculiX format. 4. [gmsh](https://gmsh.info/): it appears that we need a [converter](https://github.com/calculix/gmsh2ccx) here too. I don’t have much experience here. Many of the tools above are pretty complete. I have a quite strong preference for [Salome](https://www.salome-platform.org/) in generating meshes, as it looks to me that it is more versatile and allows me to have more control on mesh features, but probably it is due to larger use and experience. In this case I would choose case **1** above. So, summarizing this loooong post: do you have notion of other tools? Which one would you prefer? Our goal is not to spend too much time in solid meshing, as the goal of the training concerns FSI. Nevertheless, we’d like to address each phase of the workflow with reasonable detail. Please comment on this post or send me a direct message if you have other questions regarding the training session. Kind regards Claudio ---
**Author:** ![Makis](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/precice.discourse.group/makis/32/25_2.png) [@Makis](https://precice.discourse.group/u/Makis)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2024, 8:21am UTC](https://precice.discourse.group/t/precice-workshop-training-session-on-fsi-mesh-generation-for-calculix/2020/2 "2024-07-17T08:21:12Z")
I asked the same question in the CalculiX forum: [Mesh generation for preCICE FSI training session - CalculiX (official versions are on www.calculix.de, the official GitHub repository is at https://github.com/Dhondtguido/CalculiX).](https://calculix.discourse.group/t/mesh-generation-for-precice-fsi-training-session/2339) Related thread here: > [@How can I create a CalculiX mesh and configuration?](https://precice.discourse.group/t/how-can-i-create-a-calculix-mesh-and-configuration/827): > > This is a common question we often face, as many of our tutorials use CalculiX as the structure solver. I am barely familiar with CalculiX and I just wanted to collect here some resources, together with you. Reading the CalculiX documentation (PDF on the [website](http://www.dhondt.de/)) and manually setting up a case is one option. Another option that some people have had good experiences with is using the [FEM Workbench of FreeCAD](https://wiki.freecadweb.org/FEM_tutorial). What other options do you know? What are common tips and tricks you can offer to the… ---
**Author:** ![NorbertH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/74df32/32.png) [@NorbertH](https://precice.discourse.group/u/NorbertH)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2024, 5:57pm UTC](https://precice.discourse.group/t/precice-workshop-training-session-on-fsi-mesh-generation-for-calculix/2020/3 "2024-07-17T17:57:47Z")
Cubit runs on Linux and Windows. > **[Coreform - Corform Cubit](https://coreform.com/coreform-cubit/)** > > \[et\_pb\_section fb\_built=”1″ custom\_padding\_last\_edited=”on|tablet” \_builder\_version=”4.25.2″ \_module\_preset=”default” background\_color=”#000000″ custom\_padding=”||7em||false|false” custom\_padding\_tablet=”0px||0em||false|false”... You can directly export the mesh in abquas .inp You could also download the calculix component and do the whole preprocessing for calculix in cubit. That’s also available for Linux and Windows. > **[GitHub - calculix/Cubit-CalculiX: Pre- and Postprocessing for CalculiX can be...](https://github.com/calculix/Cubit-CalculiX)** > > Pre- and Postprocessing for CalculiX can be done with this component in coreform cubit. The results will be converted to Paraview (.frd and .dat: nodal, element and integration points results). - c... Every command can be journaled so the whole preprocessing can be scripted.