Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Mathematics ITWMDo women work differently to men and does diversity have an impact on science? Dr. Isabel Michel and Dr. Jörg Kuhnert report on their experience from the joint development of the »MESHFREE« software and their collaboration on grid-free simulation projects at the Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Mathematics ITWM.
A Question of Personality
This Article Is Part of Our Book »Forscherinnen Im Fokus – Wir Schaffen Veränderung« (»Female Researchers in Focus – We Create Change«)
Jörg: Of course women do research differently to men. However, due to their cultural background, domestic team members also proceed differently than foreign team members, and engineers rely on different knowledge than mathematicians. From my point of view, the diversity of male and female research groups is an enrichment. So I hope that women are not treated differently than men here. In my opinion, the industry is also mindful and open-minded; professional expertise is what counts. That's why, fortunately, not everything goes over my desk as group leader. This is where the topic of compatibility and work-life balance comes in: Research and development can never really be predicted and expenses are difficult to plan. As deputy head of department, I am also responsible for employees, doctoral students, Master's students and project partners. This is another reason why I didn't take up the offer of mobile working. I want to clearly separate »work« and »life« in terms of space. This is certainly a question of personality, but in any case a personal decision that Fraunhofer respects in every case.
Isabel: We employ a lot of women at the institute; three out of ten people in our team are currently female, soon to be four out of eleven. Internally, gender is not an issue; everyone trusts in the quality and knowledge of the other person. Even in situations where we disagree, that is the only thing that matters. At the moment, for example, we are discussing how we can keep track of the software versions of »MESHFREE« or which of the many possible ways we can communicate in a structured way. There is an area of tension in the group, everyone has different priorities. When working with external parties, you almost exclusively meet men; as a woman, you have to make sure that you really convey your expertise. I can only speak for myself: As a reserved person, I found this more difficult at the beginning, but you gain self-confidence and self-image. Incidentally, this also applies to the choice between full-time and part-time, office or home office: I like to take advantage of the opportunities as they suit my life. Above all, however, I really enjoy creating innovations on the whiteboard in the team.
Victory on Points: High-Precision Simulation with »MESHFREE«
A car drives through a deep puddle and leaves visible marks on the people who were just waiting relaxed for »green«? Pedestrians love this trick! But it can also lead to critical or dangerous situations for drivers, or it is simply annoying if the car is affected. With the »MESHFREE« simulation software, this can be prevented during virtual construction. The solution is being developed and driven forward by a team led by Jörg and Isabel from the »Transportation Processes« department at the Fraunhofer ITWM. The Fraunhofer Institute for Algorithms and Scientific Computing SCAI and companies from various industries are also involved.
Digital simulation has been used successfully for many years to analyze the flow behavior of water. The results of the investigations are used in the development of a chassis, among other things. Until now, however, this has involved a great deal of effort: For the example with the puddle, a computational grid had to be created that depicted the entire outer surface of the vehicle with every structural detail. It was then necessary to model every movement of the car, the behavior of the water droplets and their interaction with the air flowing past – for every time step, i.e. for every distance between two calculated states!
The interaction of waves and a ship is a highly complex process. MESHFREE is used to simulate such processes and identify optimization potential at an early design stage.
Points Instead of Grids
Where and how far does the water from the puddle splash when a car drives through it at 20, 50 or 100 km/h? Is there aquaplaning? Does water penetrate into the bodywork and if so, how much and where? The »MESHFREE« software delivers high-precision results faster than these previous calculation grids. To do this, it relies on virtual points with which it maps dynamic processes such as free surfaces, moving geometries or large deformations.
In the »MESHFREE« simulation, a puddle therefore consists of many points. Each point receives specific information on material properties or geometry. This allows it to adapt independently to the dynamics of the flow – using the information from its neighboring points. The point cloud can also move with the speed of the vehicle, the water or the air flow. Thanks to the algorithm developed by the researchers, the water droplets can be tracked from their resting position in the puddle through the wave movements and the flight phase until they hit a vehicle component.
Universally Applicable
Many companies from the automotive industry, such as Porsche AG, already rely on »MESHFREE«. Because the software always uses the same solution algorithms and procedures for the calculation, flow properties of other materials such as steel, sand, air or combinations are also analyzed if required. The rollover of a vehicle on a sandy surface, the flow behavior during filling processes in the food or pharmaceutical industry or the prevention of flood disasters are just a few examples. For Isabel and her colleagues, this is also a motivator to continue developing the solution and to make the benefits of the software clearly understandable to potential customers. After all, they also want to provide answers for new applications, questions and problems – so that victory remains on points!