# Geometry Refinement

Geometry refinement allows for controlling the resolution of the surface mesh by defining the smallest geometric features to be captured. It ensures that the mesh accurately represents the geometry down to a specified length scale. Geometry AI needs to be enabled to use this feature.

# Available Options

Option Description
Geometry accuracy The smallest length scale to be accurately resolved by the surface mesher.
Preserve thin geometry Specifies whether to accurately resolve thin geometry features.
Assigned surfaces The surfaces to which the refinement is applied.

# Detailed Descriptions

# Geometry accuracy

Specifies the minimum length scale that the surface meshing process will accurately resolve.

  • Required
  • Example: 0.01 m

Notes:

  • A smaller Geometry accuracy value will result in a finer mesh and consequently a larger cell count and longer computation time.
  • Start with a larger value and decrease it iteratively to find the optimal balance between accuracy and computational cost.

# Preserve thin geometry

Specifies whether thin geometry features should be accurately resolved during surface meshing.

  • Default: false

Notes:

  • Resolves features with thickness roughly equal to geometry_accuracy.

# Assigned surfaces

The list of surfaces where the geometry refinement will be applied.

  • Required

Notes:

  • Must reference valid surface entities in the geometry.
  • Surfaces can be assigned from the list using the + button or by graphical selection in the viewer.

💡 Tips
  • Use this refinement to ensure small but important geometric features (e.g., sharp corners, small fillets) are not lost during meshing.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

  • What is a typical value for Geometry accuracy?

    The value is highly dependent on the specific geometry and the scale of the features you want to capture. It should be smaller than the smallest important feature size. For example, for a vehicle simulation, you might want to resolve features on the scale of millimeters.

  • What is the difference between Geometry Refinement and Surface Refinement?

    Surface Refinement controls the maximum edge length of surface cells directly. Geometry Refinement provides a more automated way of refining the mesh based on geometric curvature and feature size, driven by geometry AI.

🐍 Python Example Usage

 
import flow360 as fl

geometry_refinement = fl.GeometryRefinement(
    name="fine_features_refinement",
    faces=[geometry["wing_surface"], geometry["fuselage_surface"]],
    geometry_accuracy=0.001 * fl.u.m,
    preserve_thin_geometry=True
)

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