Defining Point Probes

The point probe samples its input part at a set of coordinates in a region. Simcenter STAR-CCM+ allows you to create point probes individually or by reading coordinates from a table.

Simcenter STAR-CCM+ allows the creation of a point part from parent parts consisting of regions and boundaries only. The point location is specified by entering the coordinates of the point. A point tool is available to assist with positioning the point graphically. The point is represented in the scene by a sphere of constant radius in screen coordinates.

To create a point probe:

  1. Follow the general procedure outlined in the section, Defining Derived Parts General Workflow. Choose the menu option, New > Probe > Point...
  2. Specify the input parts, display option, and coordinate system as described in the section, Defining Derived Parts General Workflow.
    From the in-place dialog, you can use the point tool, which allows you to position the point visually. The Snap To Part option lets you select a part along which you can position the point (this action is essentially snapping to the bounding box of the part).
  3. In the Properties window or in-place dialog, specify the point x-, y-, and z-coordinates with respect to the specified coordinate system, using the Point property/group box.
    In the in-place dialog, you can activate Lock to fix the position of any coordinate or any combination of them.
  4. To monitor data on a moving mesh, activate Follow Motion in the Properties window.
    For more information on the available properties, see Point Probe Properties.
You can create multiple point probes in a single action from coordinates contained in a file table that is included in your simulation. This feature can be very useful when you want to create probes from hundreds, or perhaps thousands, of points. To create point probes from a table:
  1. Right-click the Derived Parts node and select Points from Table.
  2. In the Create point probes from table dialog:
    1. For the File Table, click Select to choose a table in the object selector.
    2. While column selections appear automatically for X Column, Y Column, and Z Column, you can change them as you see fit.
    3. Select Input parts as the sources of data for the points.
    4. Click OK.
    A new group folder node appears within the Derived Parts node.
  3. To highlight the original coordinates that you specified for the point probes, activate the Highlight Input Coordinates property of the group folder node.
    This setting can help you check whether any of the probes need modifications, such as transformation or scaling.
  4. If your simulation includes a moving mesh, you can have the points move in conjunction with their parent input parts. To do this, activate the Follow Motion property.
You can use reports to extract data from point probes. To extract data at point probes previously specified, create a report of the type Maximum or Minimum (see Statistical Reports). When the Smooth Values expert option in the Properties window of the report is selected, vertex values for the cell are interpolated to the point probe.