Thread: Getting started with simulation

  1. #16
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    UK/Norway
    Posts
    485
    OK, so I should start learning a bit more physics and math than I allready know. Probably a bit more than what I will learn at high school.

    I guess I will have my hand full trying to get a grasp of c++ basic and the fundamental of fluid simulation itself, so accually building a simple engine myself.

    Does anyone happen to know a tutorial which accually guids you thrugh the making of a fluid simulation software of some kind? Or a good particle tutorial, I have seen some but it would be great to see a few more. I have seen the ones at gameDEV.

    Also, on last question. If I make the fluid particle based (the other might be that as well, I dont know) and than use inter particle collision to simulate it? I think that some 3d sofware does it this way.

  2. #17
    Fear the Reaper...
    Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Location
    Toronto, Ontario, Canada
    Posts
    625
    OK, so I should start learning a bit more physics and math than I allready know. Probably a bit more than what I will learn at high school.
    Yes, and probably more than you're likely to learn at university, too. PDEs are no walk in the park.
    Teacher: "You connect with Internet Explorer, but what is your browser? You know, Yahoo, Webcrawler...?" It's great to see the educational system moving in the right direction

  3. #18
    Registered User Draco's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2002
    Posts
    463
    As has been wisely said before, you need a LOT of advanced math and physics to make any type of fluid simulator. Don't feel like you should give up, but keep in mind that it's a subject of many doctorate degree studies. Something you haven't said is whether you want to write a fluid simulation that will be accurate, or just have good graphics. If you're looking for accuracy you need to look into the Finite Element Method. If not, you should look into how Maya does its liquids as the method is almost certainly different. Again, gain a lot of ground in at least math before you try to write your own simulator. It's more fun to jump in, but the preparation makes a world of difference.

  4. #19
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    UK/Norway
    Posts
    485
    Well, I dont intend to write something for scientific use, but I want to look really. You know, have a life like feeling. But my aim is to use if for computer graphics, so if the force of the fluid does not match really world...well, it does not matter as long as it looks good.

    I have started doing openGL, is that good for me, or is openGL not good for displaying this kind of stuff?

    I think I will make it particle based, as it looks a bit easyer, atleast the math side of it. Thank god for good research papers writen by clever people

    thanks

  5. #20
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Nov 2006
    Posts
    1

    Post CFD mathematics

    In order to answer your question on what you need to study to program something like Fluent.

    Fluent is what is referred to as a CFD (computational fluid dynamics) solver. It is in the most basic of terms approximating the Navier Stokes equation solutions using various iterative methods. I am a Mechanical Engineering student with an AOC in energy systems and being completely honest, the math is brutal.

    At the very least I would recommend Calculus up to Calculus III and Partial Differential equations study. You will also need a very thorough understanding of fluid mechanics and the ability to hand solve basic problems in order to understand the physical meaning of these solvers. This is one of the most complex mathematical fields I have yet to encounter and a college degree would be the best way to approach the subject.

    On the bright side, there are several very good open source solvers out there such as OpenFOAM and Phoenix. I would suggest taking the necessary courses and then reverse engineering some of the other solvers on the market. However, without being too negative most of the code used in even commercial solvers such as Fluent is grandfather code and really hasn't changed much as far as the brute mathematics involved. Most of the work in this field is done on optimization techniques and that question is better directed to a computer science or computer engineering major.

    Best of luck.
    Nick

Popular pages Recent additions subscribe to a feed

Similar Threads

  1. fork, execv, spawn, or something else?
    By DavidP in forum C++ Programming
    Replies: 8
    Last Post: 01-26-2009, 04:25 PM
  2. Celestial simulation
    By G4B3 in forum Game Programming
    Replies: 10
    Last Post: 12-08-2008, 06:00 PM
  3. Role of c++ in simulation software
    By CChakra in forum C++ Programming
    Replies: 9
    Last Post: 11-18-2008, 02:36 AM
  4. Help with time simulation assignment
    By rakan in forum C++ Programming
    Replies: 3
    Last Post: 10-31-2006, 11:39 AM
  5. How to get started?
    By anoopks in forum Linux Programming
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 01-14-2003, 03:48 AM