JP4547941B2 - Method for simulating mechanical properties of composite material and apparatus for simulating mechanical behavior of composite material - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for simulating the mechanical properties of a composite material using a composite material model that reproduces the microscopic structure of the composite material having a matrix phase and a dispersed phase. The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for simulating mechanical properties of a composite material in a structure having another composite material having a base material surrounding the wire.

In recent years, various methods have been proposed for performing simulation by performing finite element analysis using a computer for a structure in which composite materials such as tires are combined.
Patent Documents 1 and 2 below propose a method of creating a finite element model of a microscopic structure of a composite material or a method of creating a three-dimensional finite element model for performing simulation by finite element analysis. FIG. 25 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of a microscopic image obtained by imaging the distribution of the matrix phase 100 and the dispersed phase 200 of the particulate filler in the composite material used for the tire. Patent Documents 1 and 2 propose that this microscopic image is used to quantify the degree of inhomogeneous dispersion of the disperse phase 200 composed of the particulate filler in the matrix phase and to create a finite element model using this. Has been. Specifically, the microscopic image is divided into vertical n × horizontal n (n is a natural number) regions, and the area ratio occupied by the dispersed phase 200 is obtained for each of the divided regions, and the average value or standard The degree of inhomogeneous dispersion of the dispersed phase 200 is quantified from the relationship between the deviation and the number of divisions n, and this is used to create a finite element model.

By the way, in the above finite element model creation method, a composite material having a simple structure in which a dispersed phase of a grain system is dispersed in a matrix phase is modeled. However, in reality, the dispersed phase is more complicated and in various forms. Is formed. For this reason, it has been extremely difficult to quantitatively evaluate the relationship between the microscopic structure of the dispersed phase and the parent phase and the mechanical behavior of the composite using the finite element models disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2. . For example, since the microscopic structure has complicated and diverse forms, it must be divided into finite elements according to various forms, but it is difficult to model according to such forms. It took a lot of time to create.

  In a structure such as a tire made of a plurality of composite materials, not only a rubber member in which carbon particles and silica particles are dispersed as a dispersed phase in a rubber material, but also a steel wire or the like is embedded as a reinforcing material. For this reason, a model of a rubber member having a dispersed phase dispersed in a matrix and a model of a wire surrounded by the rubber member are represented by one finite element model, and macro analysis of the mechanical behavior of the entire structure It was also difficult to efficiently perform all analyzes using a finite element model, from microanalysis to reproduce the microscopic structure of the dispersed phase and matrix. For this reason, there has been a problem that the relationship between the microscopic structure of the dispersed phase and matrix of the composite material and the mechanical behavior of the composite material in a structure such as a tire cannot be sufficiently analyzed.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-180002 JP-A-10-11613

  Therefore, in order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the present invention provides a composite material dynamic property simulation method and apparatus for simulating the mechanical behavior of a composite material having a three-dimensional microscopic structure of a dispersed phase and a matrix phase, Provided are a composite mechanical property simulation method and apparatus for simulating the mechanical behavior of a composite in a structure such as a tire.

To achieve the above object, the present invention provides a dynamic characteristic simulation method of the composite performed using a composite model which reproduces the microstructure of a composite material having a matrix phase and a disperse phase, the model generation The means can obtain the three-dimensional finite element of the shape model in which a plurality of three-dimensional finite elements are arranged adjacently and reproduce the three-dimensional shape of the composite material from an image obtained by photographing the microscopic structure of the composite material. based on the image information, and generating a composite model which reproduces the microscopic structure of the composite material by distributing the at least matrix portion and disperse phase portions in the finite element units, the analysis processing means, said model performing a finite element analysis of the mechanical properties by using the composite model generated by the generating means, have a, the captured image, the image der of particles in which the dispersed phase consists dispersed particles In the step of generating the composite material model, the model generation means obtains a centroid point of each particle group from the image, generates a centroid point extraction image describing the position of the centroid point, and This is the number of divisions when the point-extracted image is equally divided into a plurality of divided areas, and the number of equal divisions when at least one of the plurality of divided areas does not include the barycentric point is obtained. A histogram representing the frequency distribution of the divided area with respect to the density of the barycentric points in the divided area divided by (3) is obtained, and a plurality of points are distributed so as to be equal to the distribution of the histogram obtained in the equal number of divisions. Creating a dimensional image, creating a sphere of a certain radius centered on each of the plurality of points, forming a stereoscopic image in which the created spheres are dispersed and arranged; Association with the shape model a three-dimensional image, the distribution of the finite elements of the shape model in the position corresponding to the ball in the dispersed phase portions, characterized in that allocating the other portions in the parent phase moiety complex A method for simulating mechanical properties of a material is provided.

At that time, in the step of generating a composite model, for example, when equally dividing the centroid extracted image so as not to include the center of gravity in one of the divided areas even without least into a plurality of divided regions, the divided step a histogram representing a frequency distribution of the divided regions with respect to the density of the center of gravity in the area, used as an index representing the dispersion non-uniformity of the dispersed phase portions in the step of performing the finite element analysis, for generating the composite model The composite material model generated in (1) is used for the finite element analysis processing by the analysis processing means.

The plurality of three-dimensional finite elements are preferably three-dimensional finite elements having the same size in three directions orthogonal to each other .

Furthermore, the image acquisition means, is also preferred that have a, a step of acquiring an image obtained by photographing the microscopic structure of the composite.
When distributing the centroid points on the three-dimensional image , if the number of centroid points is a predetermined number or more in the distribution performed in each divided region, the centroid points are randomly arranged, and the number of centroid points Is smaller than a predetermined number, it is preferable that the barycentric points are randomly arranged in a limited local area of the divided area. The local region is, for example, a region that is randomly selected from candidate regions having a certain size.

  The matrix phase is made of, for example, a polymer material, and the dispersed phase is made of, for example, at least one of carbon and silica. Moreover, it is preferable that the composite material model has a boundary region portion that reproduces a boundary region existing between the matrix phase and the dispersed phase.

The present invention also relates to a composite material dynamic characteristic simulation apparatus using a composite material model that reproduces the microscopic structure of a composite material having a matrix phase and a dispersed phase, and a plurality of three-dimensional finite elements are adjacent to each other. The three-dimensional finite element of the shape model reproducing the three-dimensional shape of the composite material is at least in finite element units based on image information obtained from an image obtained by photographing the microscopic structure of the composite material. A model generation unit that generates a composite material model that reproduces the microscopic structure of the composite material by allocating to a matrix phase portion and a disperse phase portion, and dynamics using the composite material model generated by the model generation unit An analysis processing unit that performs finite element analysis of characteristics, and the captured image is an image of a particle group in which the dispersed phase is composed of dispersed particles, and the model generation unit is configured to convert the particle group from the image. Noso Each centroid point is obtained, a centroid point extraction image in which the position of the centroid point is written is generated, and the centroid point extraction image is divided into a plurality of divided areas. The equal number of divisions when the centroid point is not included in at least one divided region is obtained, and a histogram representing the frequency distribution of the divided region with respect to the density of the centroid points in the divided region divided by the equal division number is obtained. A three-dimensional image in which a plurality of points are dispersed so as to be equal to the distribution of the histogram obtained in the equal number of divisions, and a sphere having a constant radius centered on each of the plurality of points is created. Forming a three-dimensional image in which the plurality of created spheres are dispersedly arranged, associating the three-dimensional image with the shape model, and defining the finite element of the shape model at a position corresponding to the sphere Distributing the discrete phase portion, to provide mechanical characteristics simulation device of a composite material characterized by allocating the remaining portion in the parent phase portion.
Further, when the pre-SL model generation unit, obtained by equally dividing the centroid extracted image so as not to include the center of gravity in one of the divided areas even without least into a plurality of divided regions, before in the divided region Kikasane In the analysis processing unit that performs the finite element analysis, using the histogram representing the frequency distribution of the divided region with respect to the density of the center point as an index representing the dispersion non-uniformity of the dispersed phase portion, the composite generated by the model generation unit A composite material dynamic characteristic simulation apparatus is provided, wherein a material model is used for the finite element analysis processing by the analysis processing unit.
The plurality of three-dimensional finite elements are preferably three-dimensional finite elements having the same size in three directions orthogonal to each other.
Further, preferably that having a, an image obtaining unit for obtaining an image obtained by photographing the microscopic structure of the composite.

Furthermore, the present invention is a composite mechanical property simulation method for simulating the mechanical properties of a composite material in a structure having a first composite material having a matrix phase and a dispersed phase, and the overall analysis means comprises: A structure model in which the first composite material is discretized by a finite element as a uniform member without distinguishing between the matrix phase and the dispersed phase is created, and the material parameters of the first composite material are made uniform. An overall analysis step for performing finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of the entire structure including the first composite material, expressed by equivalent parameters as members, and a first partial analysis means comprising the dispersed phase and the parent phase In order to reproduce the microscopic structure of the composite material, a first partial analysis step for performing the mechanical property simulation method of the composite material of the present invention is included. In the first partial analysis step , the first part Analysis means Generated by the model generation step, the use of the composite model reproduces the microscopic structure of the composite, based on the result of the information of the finite element analysis obtained in the whole analysis step, the first Provided is a method for simulating mechanical properties of a composite material, characterized by performing finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of the composite material.

The present invention also simulates the mechanical properties of a composite material in a structure having a first composite material having a parent phase and a dispersed phase, and a second composite material having a wire and a base material surrounding the wire. A method of simulating mechanical properties of a composite material, wherein the base material of the second composite material is the first composite material, and an overall analysis unit distinguishes the base phase from the dispersed phase. And creating a structure model in which the first composite material and the second composite material are discretized by finite elements as uniform members without distinguishing between the wire and the base material, and The material parameters of the first composite material and the second composite material are expressed as equivalent parameters, each of which is a uniform member, and the mechanical characteristics of the entire structure including the first composite material and the second composite material Perform finite element analysis And body analysis step, the second part analyzing means, each of said wire and the base material to create a discretized wire model and the base material model a finite elements of the finite element analysis obtained in the whole analysis step Based on the information of the result, the second partial analysis step for performing finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of the second composite material, and the third partial analysis means include a microscopic structure of the dispersed phase and the matrix phase. To reproduce the mechanical property simulation method of the composite material according to the present invention , and in the third partial analysis step , the third partial analysis means includes the third partial analysis step. Based on the information of the result of the finite element analysis obtained in the second partial analysis step, using the composite material model reproduced in the model generation step and reproducing the microscopic structure of the composite material. 1. Power of composite material Providing mechanical properties simulation method of a composite material characterized by performing a finite element analysis of the characteristics.

At that time, in the second partial analysis step, the second partial analysis means performs the finite element analysis a plurality of times, and the configuration of the second composite material becomes more detailed as the number of finite element analysis increases. In the first finite element analysis, information on the result of the finite element analysis obtained in the overall analysis step is created by distinguishing the wire model reproduced in finite element and discretized by the finite element and the base material model surrounding the wire model. The finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of the second composite material is performed using the second composite material, and the second and subsequent finite element analyzes use the information of the result of the dynamic analysis processing one time before the analysis to determine the second composite material. It is preferable to perform a finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of the material.

  Further, the structure is a pneumatic tire, for example, the matrix phase of the first composite material is made of a polymer material, the dispersed phase is made of at least one material of carbon and silica, and the wire is a twisted cord And a textile cord, and the base material is made of a polymer material.

The present invention is a composite mechanical property simulation apparatus for simulating the mechanical properties of a composite material in a structure having a first composite material having a matrix phase and a dispersed phase, the matrix phase and the dispersed phase. A structure model in which the first composite material is discretized by a finite element as a uniform member without making a distinction is created, and the material parameter of the first composite material is expressed by an equivalent parameter using a uniform member. Te, the overall analysis section for performing a finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of the entire structure including the first composite material, in order to reproduce the microscopic structure of the dispersed phase and the matrix phase, the composite of the present invention A first partial analysis unit including a material mechanical property simulation device, wherein the first partial analysis unit reproduces the microscopic structure of the composite material generated by the model generation unit. Use composite material model The mechanics of the composite material, wherein the finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of the first composite material is performed by the analysis processing unit based on the information of the finite element analysis result obtained by the overall analysis unit A characteristic simulation apparatus is provided.

Furthermore, the present invention simulates the mechanical properties of a composite material in a structure having a first composite material having a matrix phase and a dispersed phase, and a second composite material having a wire material and a base material surrounding the wire material. The composite material dynamic characteristic simulation apparatus, wherein the base material of the second composite material is the first composite material without distinguishing between the base phase and the dispersed phase, and Creating a structural model in which the first composite material and the second composite material are discretized by finite elements as uniform members without distinguishing between the wire and the base material, and the first composite material and The material parameters of the second composite material are expressed as equivalent parameters, each of which is a uniform member, and a finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of the entire structure including the first composite material and the second composite material is performed. The overall analysis section; A wire rod model obtained by discretizing each of the wire rod and the base material with a finite element and a base material model are created, and the second composite material is based on information on a result of the finite element analysis obtained by the overall analysis unit. A second partial analysis unit that performs a finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of the composite material, and a third mechanical analysis device of the composite material according to the present invention for reproducing the microscopic structure of the dispersed phase and the matrix phase. A partial analysis unit, wherein the third partial analysis unit uses the composite material model, which is generated by the model generation unit and reproduces the microscopic structure of the composite material, and uses the second part A mechanical property simulation apparatus for a composite material, wherein the analysis processing unit performs a finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of the first composite material based on information on a result of the finite element analysis obtained by the analysis unit. I will provide a.

In the present invention, a shape model that reproduces the three-dimensional shape of a composite material is configured by using a plurality of three-dimensional finite elements of the same size arranged adjacent to each other in three directions orthogonal to each other, and this three-dimensional finite element Since the microscopic structure of the composite material is reproduced by assigning it to at least the parent phase part and the dispersed phase part in a finite element unit, the finite element of the mechanical properties using the composite material model reproducing the three-dimensional microscopic structure Analysis can be performed.
In addition, by using the captured images of the microscopic structure of the dispersed phase and matrix of the composite material, a composite material model that reproduces the three-dimensional microscopic structure is created, and finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of the composite material is performed. be able to.
In addition, after the overall analysis of the composite material is performed, the partial analysis of the composite material is performed using the overall analysis result, so that the dynamic behavior of the composite material in the structure can be reproduced.

Hereinafter, a method and apparatus for simulating mechanical properties of a composite material according to the present invention will be described in detail based on preferred embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1A shows a mechanical property simulation apparatus (hereinafter referred to as an apparatus) 10 of a rubber member of a tire that executes the method for simulating mechanical characteristics of a composite material of the present invention.

The apparatus 10 includes a CPU 10a that performs arithmetic processing for model creation in a finite element method, which will be described later, or arithmetic processing for finite element analysis, a ROM 10b that stores a procedure of arithmetic processing in the CPU 10a, and a procedure of arithmetic processing in the CPU 10a. The RAM 10c mainly stores a program stored in memory, stores a calculation result processed by the CPU 10a, and calls it as necessary. The device 10 is further connected to a keyboard 12 and a mouse 14 which are operation systems via a bus line 10d, and is connected to a display 16 and a printer 18.
The keyboard 12 and mouse 14 are used to instruct model creation in the finite element method and to set analysis conditions for finite element analysis.
The display 16 and the printer 18 are used for displaying a model to be created and displaying a result of finite element analysis.
Although not shown, it is connected to a storage device such as a hard disk via the bus line 10d.

FIG. 1B is a block diagram functionally showing the apparatus 10 having the configuration shown in FIG.
The apparatus 10 includes a model creation unit 20 that creates a model according to the finite element method in accordance with contents input by the operation system of the keyboard 12 and the mouse 14, and an analysis that performs finite element analysis using the created model. The unit 22 and the memory 24 for storing and holding the analysis result are formed.

Specifically, the model creation unit 20 is a part that creates a composite material model that reproduces the microscopic structure of a composite material having a matrix phase and a dispersed phase. The composite material model has a plurality of three-dimensional finite elements of the same size arranged adjacent to each other in three directions orthogonal to each other, and each finite element of the shape model reproducing the three-dimensional shape of the rubber member that is a composite material Is a finite element model in which the microscopic structure of the composite material is reproduced by assigning at least a parent phase portion and a dispersed phase portion in finite element units.
The analysis unit 22 performs a finite element analysis of the mechanical characteristics using the generated composite material model, processes the analysis result to obtain various distributions, supplies the distribution to the display 16 and the printer 18 and outputs them.
The apparatus 10 is configured as described above.
Hereinafter, the function of each of the above parts will be described while explaining the method for simulating the mechanical properties of the composite material of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a flow of a mechanical property simulation method using a rubber member of a tire in which carbon particles and silica particles are dispersed in a matrix made of a rubber material, which is executed by the apparatus 10 as described above.
As shown in FIG. 2, the method of simulating the dynamic characteristics of a rubber member creates a finite element model and performs finite element analysis.

First, a microscopic image of a test piece of a composite material (rubber member) is supplied to the apparatus 10 and acquired by the model creation unit 20 (step S10).
The microscopic image is an image of a rubber member in which dispersed phases such as carbon particles and silica particles are three-dimensionally dispersed in a matrix phase that is a polymer material as shown in FIG. This image is taken by, for example, TEM (transmission electron microscope) tomography.
Using the distribution of the dispersed phase in the photographed image as information, a finite element of a rubber member model (composite material model) is allocated to the dispersed phase portion and the parent phase portion as will be described later.

Next, the model creation unit 20 creates a three-dimensional finite element model based on the microscopic image subjected to image processing, and sets material constants (step S20).
Specifically, the three-dimensional finite element of the shape model that reproduces the three-dimensional shape of the rubber member by arranging a plurality of three-dimensional finite elements of the same size adjacent to each other in three directions orthogonal to each other is It is distributed to any one of a part, a dispersed phase part, and a boundary region part that reproduces a boundary region interposed between the matrix phase and the dispersed phase. The sorting is performed for each finite element for each finite element based on the pixel information (voxel information) of the image obtained in step S10. For example, the boundary region portion defines, as the boundary region portion, a region newly generated as a dispersed phase portion when expansion processing is performed on the dispersed phase portion.

FIGS. 3B and 3C show examples of processed images after image processing on one section of a captured three-dimensional image. In the example of FIG. 3B, the dispersed phases are cut and dispersed from each other, and in the example of FIG. 3C, the dispersed phases are not cut from each other and are in a connected state. 3 (b) and 3 (c), the black region represents the dispersed phase, the white region represents the parent phase, and the gray region represents the boundary region.
Such a microscopic structure of the dispersed phase and the matrix phase is arranged in the finite element model of the rubber member.
For example, if the rubber member to be reproduced has a rectangular parallelepiped shape, the finite element model of the rubber member is parallel to or perpendicular to the surface of the rectangular parallelepiped with respect to the rectangular parallelepiped having the same shape as the rubber member. A hexahedral solid element having a rectangular parallelepiped shape is created by equally dividing each. As a result, a shape model having a plurality of three-dimensional finite elements of the same size arranged adjacent to each other in three directions orthogonal to each other is created.

  Each finite element in this shape model has a dispersed phase portion, a parent phase portion, and a boundary so that the dispersed forms of the dispersed phases substantially match based on the image information of the processed images such as FIGS. It is distributed to any one of the area portions. More specifically, a pixel (in the case of a three-dimensional image, voxel) of a processed image that has been subjected to appropriate resolution adjustment may be directly applied to a finite element. Material constants (Young's modulus, shear stiffness, and Poisson's ratio) that are determined according to the type of material of the dispersed phase are set for the distributed phase part, and the matrix phase depends on the type of rubber material of the parent phase. Material constants (Young's modulus, shear rigidity, and Poisson's ratio) are determined. In addition, a material constant (Young's modulus, shear rigidity, and Poisson's ratio) corresponding to the boundary region is set. For example, the Young's modulus of the boundary region portion is used in a range from an intermediate value between the Young's modulus of the mother phase portion and the Young's modulus of the dispersed phase portion to the Young's modulus value of the mother phase portion. Thus, a three-dimensional finite element model that reproduces the microscopic structure of the disperse phase and the parent phase composed of hexahedral solid elements having the same size of rectangular parallelepiped shape is created.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view in which a portion of the three-dimensional finite element model corresponding to the region S in FIG. In FIG. 4, the black area indicates a finite element distributed to the dispersed phase part, the white area indicates a finite element allocated to the parent phase part, and the gray area indicates a finite element allocated to the boundary area part. The reason why the hexahedral solid element having the same rectangular parallelepiped shape is used as the three-dimensional finite element model is that the model can be efficiently created using the photographed image. This is because a model can be created in a shorter time than when a microscopic structure is reproduced by dividing the mesh along the dispersion form of the dispersed phase, and the microstructure can be easily changed. In addition, it is easy to handle when obtaining a frequency distribution or an integrated distribution that serves as an index of the mechanical characteristics of the rubber member such as main strain and main stress described later.
In the finite element model, the number of the node constituting the finite element and the coordinate value corresponding to this number, and the combination of the number of the finite element itself and the number of the node in the finite element are set as model information. It is converted into an electronic file together with material constants.

Next, in the analysis unit 22, finite element analysis is executed under preset conditions (step S30).
For example, a stress-strain curve (SS curve) when a rubber member model that is a composite material model is pulled in one direction is calculated to obtain tensile rigidity (uniaxial tensile analysis). Alternatively, an SS curve is calculated when compression is applied to the rubber member model in one direction to obtain compression rigidity (single-axis compression analysis). Further, the stress and strain distribution in the rubber member model at that time is obtained, and the shear rigidity is obtained (shear analysis).
Since the rubber member model using the three-dimensional finite element model reproduces the microscopic structure of the dispersed phase and the parent phase, the movement of the dispersed phase and the parent phase is larger than that using the two-dimensional finite element model. The behavior of the rubber member can be substantially matched to the actual behavior without being restrained more than necessary.
For example, the finite element analysis that reproduces the mechanical behavior that gives a predetermined strain to the composite material is performed by giving a predetermined tensile strain by uniformly displacing the surface of the rubber member model of the three-dimensional finite element model.

FIGS. 5A and 5B are diagrams showing examples of analysis results when strain is applied to a rubber member model having a substantially cubic shape.
FIG. 5A shows a state before analysis, and FIG. 5B shows a state after analysis in which strain is applied only in the X direction in FIG. 5A.
A filler constituting a dispersed phase by setting a Young's modulus of 1.0 (MPa) and a Poisson's ratio of 0.5 as material constants of the rubber material constituting the matrix of the rubber member model shown in FIGS. 5 (a) and 5 (b). A Young's modulus of 10,000 (MPa) and a Poisson's ratio of 0.4 are set as material constants of the material, and the rubber material part has the material characteristics of non-compressed superelastic Neo-Hookean, while the filler material part Had linear elastic material properties. The number of finite elements is 32768, and the number of nodes is 35937.

  In addition to Neo-Hookean material properties, material properties such as Mooney-Rivlin, Ogden, Polynominal, Reduced Polynominal, Yeoh, Van Der Waals, Arruda-Boyce, Marlow, etc. may be used as the material properties of the rubber material. . Moreover, the Mullins effect in which stress is softened with deformation as observed in vulcanized rubber may be given to material properties. Thereby, the degree of deterioration of the rubber material can be reproduced.

  Next, in the analysis unit 22, from the analysis result of the finite element analysis, each of the mother phase interface part, the mother phase non-interface part (in the mother phase), the dispersed phase interface part, and the dispersed phase non-interface part (in the dispersed phase) A frequency distribution and a cumulative distribution of principal strain, principal stress and strain energy of the finite element group belonging to the part are created (step S40).

Note that whether each finite element belongs to the parent phase or the dispersed phase is already known at the time of creation of the finite element model, so that determination is not necessary. Needs to be determined and is determined.
FIGS. 6A to 6E are explanatory diagrams illustrating an example of determining a phase to which each finite element having a three-dimensional shape belongs. Whether a given element P is an interface part or a non-interface part is determined by, for example, one element of interest in an adjacent element group (hereinafter abbreviated as a neighboring element group) of the element of interest P to be determined. If there is a finite element having a phase different from P, the target element P is determined to belong to the interface.
For example, in FIG. 6A, the element of attention P is the mother phase (gray region), and all neighboring elements are also the mother phase (gray region). In this case, the target element P is determined to belong to the parent phase, that is, the non-interface portion. On the other hand, in FIG. 6B, only one element of the parent phase (gray region) is included in the neighborhood element group of the target element P, and the rest are all finite elements of the dispersed phase (white region). Therefore, in this case, it is determined that the target element P belongs to the interface portion.

  Here, it is possible to adjust the criterion for determining whether or not it belongs to the interface by the number of finite elements having different phases in the neighboring element group and the setting of the neighboring element group. For example, whether or not it belongs to the interface portion changes depending on the setting of whether the neighborhood element group is 6 neighborhood connection, 18 neighborhood connection, or 26 neighborhood connection for the target element P. As shown in FIG. 6C, the 6-neighbor connection is a connection method in which 6 elements among elements adjacent to the target element P are used as a neighborhood element group. As shown in FIG. 6D, the 8-neighbor connection is a connection method in which 18 elements among the elements adjacent to the element of interest P are neighboring elements. The 26-neighbor connection is shown in FIG. 6E. As described above, this is a connection method in which 26 of the elements adjacent to the element of interest P are neighboring elements.

FIG. 7A shows the logical sum of the mother phase interface portion and the mother phase non-interface portion, and the logical sum of the dispersed phase interface portion and the dispersed phase non-interface portion. It is the figure which showed the frequency distribution of the main strain. In FIG. 7A, since the distribution range of the main strain is wide, the logarithmic display is used.
In addition, when a finite element analysis is performed with respect to several rubber member models, it can compare about several rubber member models. This model may be a model of a rubber member using different types of materials, or a model of a rubber member using the same type of material and reproducing so that the microscopic structure of the dispersed phase and the parent phase are different. There may be. In the former, a difference in mechanical behavior between different materials can be clarified, and in the latter, a difference in mechanical behavior due to a difference in microscopic structure of the material can be clarified.

The integrated distribution is obtained from the following equation (1). Here, ρ is a frequency distribution function, which is a function representing the curve shown in FIG. X is a value of a parameter relating to mechanical behavior such as principal strain, principal stress, or strain energy, X _max represents a maximum value that can be taken by this parameter, and X _min represents a minimum value that can be taken by this parameter. FIG.7 (b) is a figure which shows an example of the cumulative distribution of the main stress calculated | required from Formula (1). In FIG. 7B, “No. 1”, “No. 2”, and “No. 3” indicate model identification numbers.

Next, in the analysis part 22, a dynamic behavior is evaluated from the created frequency distribution or integrated distribution (step S50).
For example, when comparatively evaluating the mechanical behavior in a plurality of models, it can be considered that the strength of the rubber member as a whole is lower as the number of finite elements having larger values of principal strain, principal stress, and strain energy is larger. Therefore, in the evaluation of the mechanical behavior, the number of finite element elements having large values of principal strain, principal stress, and strain energy is evaluated from the frequency distribution. For the determination of the number of finite elements having a large value, the determination is made not in the entire frequency distribution shown in FIG. 7A but in the skirt region where the value is large in the distribution shown in FIG. 7B. In order to facilitate, it is preferable to evaluate the dynamic behavior using the integrated distribution Q (X) obtained from the equation (1).

  In the case of the example shown in FIG. 7B, a model including many finite elements having a large principal stress value is No. 1 is a model with a large principal stress value and a small number of finite elements. 3. That is, no. No. 1 model has the lowest durability. It can be evaluated that the durability of model 3 is the highest. Thus, according to the cumulative distribution of each finite element with respect to the main strain, main stress, and strain energy obtained from the frequency distribution, the mechanical behavior of the rubber member can be easily evaluated.

Next, if there is any other necessary analysis (step S60; Yes), an analysis not executed in the uniaxial tensile analysis, compression analysis, or shear analysis is executed (step S70), and the main strain, main stress, etc. Frequency distributions or their integrated distributions are created (step S80), the dynamic behavior is evaluated based on these distributions, the evaluation results are output to the display 16 and the printer 18, and all the processes are completed.
If there is no other necessary analysis (step S60; No), all the processes are completed.

  Such model creation and finite element analysis may be realized by executing a computer program. In this case, for example, the computer program has a plurality of three-dimensional finite elements of the same size arranged adjacent to each other in three directions orthogonal to each other, and each finite model of the shape model reproducing the three-dimensional shape of the rubber member. A procedure for causing the CPU 10a of the computer to execute a process of generating a composite material model that reproduces the microscopic structure of the rubber member by distributing the elements into at least a matrix phase portion and a dispersed phase portion in units of finite elements, and storing the RAM 10c And a procedure for calling the generated composite material model from the RAM 10c and causing the CPU 10a to perform a finite element analysis of mechanical characteristics.

The above is the description of the method for simulating the mechanical characteristics of the tire rubber member shown in FIG.
In addition to the flow shown in FIG. 2, the present invention can perform a simulation along the flow shown in FIG.
FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the flow of the main part of the method for simulating the mechanical properties of the rubber member for tire. In the flow shown in FIG. 8, steps S21, S22, and S23 are used instead of steps S20 and S30 shown in FIG.

First, a rubber member to be analyzed is determined, a three-dimensional finite element model is created based on a microscopic image, and material constants are provisionally set (step S21). The temporarily set value is, for example, a known value of an existing material used as a dispersed phase.
Next, any one of uniaxial tension analysis, uniaxial compression analysis, and shear analysis is performed using the created three-dimensional finite element model. For example, the finite element analysis when a predetermined strain is applied to the composite material is performed by applying a predetermined tensile strain by uniformly displacing the tensile surface of the rubber member model of the three-dimensional finite element model.
As will be described later, the analysis in the finite element analysis is selected according to the test in which the test result is obtained for the rubber member to be analyzed. For example, when the test result of the uniaxial tensile test of the rubber member is obtained, uniaxial tensile analysis is performed (step S22).

Next, it is determined whether or not the analysis result matches the test result within an allowable range (step S23). If it is determined that the analysis result does not match (step S23; No), the process returns to step S21, and the temporary material constant is set again. Settings are made and finite element analysis is performed. In this way, the temporary setting of material constants and the finite element analysis are repeated until the analysis result matches the test result within an allowable range (step S23; Yes).
Thus, the process proceeds to step 40 shown in FIG. 2, and thereafter, the same processes as steps S40 to S90 are executed.

  In the above flow, material properties such as Neo-Hookean, Mooney-Rivlin, Ogden, Polynominal, Reduced Polynominal, Yeoh, Van Der Waals, Arruda-Boyce, Marlow, etc. are temporarily set in addition to the temporarily set material constants. You may include in object. Moreover, you may include the Mullins effect which stress is softened with a deformation | transformation which is observed with vulcanized rubber.

Further, the present invention can also perform a simulation along the flowchart shown in FIG.
The flowchart shown in FIG. 9 creates a histogram showing the non-uniformity of the dispersed phase from the photographed image, and uses this histogram to determine the microscopic structure of the dispersed phase and the parent phase. A method for creating a three-dimensional finite element model by allocating finite elements to at least a dispersed phase portion and a parent phase portion and simulating dynamic behavior will be described.

First, as in the flows shown in FIG. 2, the microscopic image of the specimen of the rubber member is a composite material is obtained is supplied (step S10). The microscopic image is an image of a rubber member in which a dispersed phase composed of particles such as carbon and silica is dispersed three-dimensionally in a matrix phase composed of a polymer material. This image may be, for example, a three-dimensional image taken by TEM (Transmission Electron Microscope) tomography, a scanning electron microscope (SEM), a transmission electron microscope (TEM), a scanning probe microscope (SPM), or the like. It may be a two-dimensional image taken using. The acquired image is subjected to predetermined image processing. The image processing is the same as step S10 shown in FIG.

Next, a spherical and circular approximate image is created from the microscopic image (step S11). When the microscopic image is a three-dimensional image, when the spherical approximate image is a two-dimensional image, a circular approximate image is created.
FIG. 10A is an example of a captured two-dimensional microscopic image. This image is an SEM observation image of a group of dispersed fine particles whose dispersed phase is made of silica, and has been subjected to black and white reversal processing. The various image processing described above is performed on this image, and based on the microscopic image after the image processing, a circular approximate image as shown in FIG. The

Next, a barycentric point image is created from the spherical and circular approximate images (step S12).
The center-of-gravity point image is an image in which the center of gravity (center point) of each sphere or circle in the created sphere, circular approximate image is plotted. FIG. 10C shows an example of a barycentric image created from the circular approximate image shown in FIG.

Next, the barycentric point image is equally divided (step S13).
In the case of a two-dimensional center-of-gravity point image, equal division is performed with n and m equal division numbers (n and m are natural numbers) in the vertical and horizontal directions of a rectangular image, respectively, and an n × m division is performed. A region is created. This equal division is repeated as will be described later, and the number of equal divisions is increased and divided equally each time it is repeated.
The number of barycentric points included in the divided areas thus divided is counted, the horizontal axis is the density of barycentric points obtained by dividing the number of barycentric points by the size of the dividing area, the vertical axis is the number of dividing areas, and A histogram representing the frequency distribution is created (step S14). Since this histogram is a graph showing the degree of non-uniformity of the dispersed phase, it can be said to be a non-uniformity histogram.

Next, in this non-uniformity histogram, it is determined whether or not there is even one divided area where the density of the center of gravity is 0 (step S15). If there is no divided area where the density of the center of gravity is 0, the process returns to step S13, and the equal number of divisions is set large. For example, the number of even divisions increases by a factor of two. That is, when the number of equal divisions is 3 in the vertical direction and 4 in the horizontal direction, the vertical direction 6 and the horizontal direction 8 are set.
In this way, steps S13 to S15 are repeated until there is one divided region where the density of the center of gravity is 0, and finally a non-uniformity histogram is determined (step S16).

As described above, until even one divided region where the density of the center of gravity is 0 exists, the number of uniform divisions is increased to subdivide the divided region because the density distribution of the dispersed phase becomes 0 and non-uniform. This is to determine the size of the region that reproduces the sex. In the actual rubber member, the form of the microscopic structure of the dispersed phase and the mother phase composed of fine particles such as silica is such that the group of fine particles is locally concentrated to form a dispersed phase, and the group of fine particles is completely There is a part that does not exist and forms a parent phase. In this embodiment, in order to reproduce a microscopic structure having non-uniformity in a form in which dispersed phases are locally concentrated in this way, the size at which the non-uniformity in the microscopic structure can be observed is determined by divided regions. It is about to try. Then, by performing the division in which the non-uniformity is observed and specifying the non-uniform form of the dispersed phase with the histogram, the non-uniformity of the dispersed phase can be evaluated.

FIG. 11A shows a state in which the barycentric point image is equally divided (1 μm equal division) into divided regions of a predetermined size, and FIG. 11B is a non-uniformity histogram at that time. As can be seen from FIG. 11 (b), the frequency of the center of gravity point division area at this time is zero. Therefore, the uniform division shown in FIG. 11A cannot evaluate the heterogeneity of the dispersed phase.
FIG. 11C shows a state in which the barycentric point image is equally divided (200 nm equal division) into smaller areas than the division of FIG. 11A, and FIG. 11D is a non-uniformity histogram at that time. . As can be seen from FIG. 11 (d), the frequency of the density area of the center of gravity at this time is approximately 18%, and the heterogeneity of the dispersed phase is evaluated by the equal division shown in FIG. 11 (c). It becomes possible.
Therefore, the distribution of the non-uniformity histogram indicating the non-uniformity is determined (step S16), and is defined as a non-uniform form in the photographed microscopic image. The distribution of the non-uniformity histogram and the number of equal divisions at this time are used as indexes characterizing the microscopic structure of the dispersed phase and the parent phase in the rubber member.
FIGS. 10A to 10C and FIG. 11 show the case where the captured image is a two-dimensional microscopic image, and it has been described along with this. However, in the case of a three-dimensional microscopic image, FIG. A three-dimensional spherical approximate image is created using a sphere from the three-dimensional microscopic image, the position of the center of gravity of the sphere is obtained, and a three-dimensional center of gravity image is created. Thereafter, the equal division in step 13 is performed in three directions. Histograms similar to those shown in FIGS. 11B and 11D are created by equally dividing n × m × l (n, m, and l are natural numbers) in the vertical, horizontal, and depth directions.

Next, using the determined non-uniformity histogram, the dispersed phase portion and the parent phase portion are assigned to the finite element of the created three-dimensional shape model (step S17).
Specifically, a three-dimensional point image in which a plurality of points are distributed and plotted so as to realize the created non-uniformity histogram is created, and a sphere with a certain radius around this point is created, A three-dimensional image in which a plurality of spheres are dispersed and formed is formed.
On the other hand, in order to reproduce the rubber member, a shape model constituted by arranging a plurality of hexahedral solid elements having a rectangular parallelepiped shape of the same size adjacent to each other in three orthogonal directions is created. The shape model and the three-dimensional image in which the spheres are dispersed are associated one-to-one, the finite element at the position corresponding to the sphere is distributed to the dispersed phase part, and the other part is the parent phase part It is distributed to. In addition to the dispersed phase portion and the parent phase, finite elements may be distributed including the boundary region portion.
Specifically, in a shape model reproducing a rubber member made up of a plurality of rectangular parallelepiped hexahedral solid elements of the same size arranged adjacent to each other in three orthogonal directions, the dispersion of these hexahedral solid elements The phase part and the mother part are distributed.
Note that, after the distribution, a boundary region portion may be separately formed so as to surround the dispersed phase portion. In this case, the boundary region portion can be set as a boundary region portion by newly expanding the dispersed phase portion so as to expand.

  The sorting is performed based on a three-dimensional point image in which a plurality of points are distributed and plotted so as to realize a non-uniformity histogram. Such a three-dimensional image in which a plurality of points are distributed and plotted is a correspondence between a large number of distribution patterns of the dispersed phase portion and the parent phase portion accumulated using the captured image and the non-uniformity histogram at this time. It can be created by using the correspondence that has been applied in advance.

Next, a material constant is set (step S18).
Specifically, a material constant (Young's modulus, shear rigidity and Poisson's ratio) determined according to the type of material of the dispersed phase is set in the distributed phase portion, and the mother phase rubber is set in the mother phase portion. Material constants (Young's modulus, shear rigidity, and Poisson's ratio) determined according to the type of material are set. When the boundary region portion is formed, material constants (Young's modulus, shear rigidity, and Poisson's ratio) corresponding to the boundary region portion are set.
The rubber member model, which is a three-dimensional finite element model created in this way, is subjected to various processes such as execution of finite element analysis in step 30 and subsequent steps shown in FIG.

  In the method shown in FIG. 9, after a photographed image is once compiled into a non-uniformity histogram serving as an index representing the non-uniformity of the microscopic structure of the rubber member, the rubber member model is reproduced so that the histogram is reproduced. Distribution of the dispersed phase and the parent phase is performed for each finite element.

The present invention can also perform a simulation along the flowchart shown in FIG.
FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a flow performed in place of steps 10 and 20 in the flow shown in FIG.
Specifically, when a non-uniformity histogram serving as an index of the non-uniformity of the microscopic structure of the rubber member described above is set by an operator, the variance that reproduces the microscopic structure using the non-uniformity histogram A rubber member model, which is a finite element model of a rubber member, is created by determining a method for distributing the phase portion and the parent phase portion. The processing after creating the rubber member model is the same processing as that after step S30 shown in FIG.

First, a non-uniformity histogram serving as an index of non-uniformity of the microscopic structure of the rubber member is set by the operator (step S1).
For example, a non-uniformity histogram having a distribution as shown in FIG. Here, the non-uniformity histogram has a divided region in which the density of centroid points is zero.
In order to realize such a three-dimensional microscopic structure having a non-uniformity histogram, a centroid means the centroid of dispersed particles constituting a dispersed phase with respect to a plurality of three-dimensionally arranged rectangular parallelepiped divided regions. Point placement is performed.

First, a centroid placement method for each divided region is set based on information on the microscopic structure accumulated in advance by a microscopic image. For example, the centroid point placed in each divided region as shown in FIG. Is determined. FIG. 13B shows an example of a two-dimensional arrangement of the number of barycentric points to be arranged.
Based on the number of barycentric points, the barycentric points are arranged in a random arrangement in each of the three-dimensionally arranged divided regions. At this time, if the number of barycentric points is smaller than a predetermined number, random arrangement of barycentric points is executed only in a local area that is a part of the divided area. This local region is randomly selected from candidate regions of a certain size. Therefore, when the number of centroid points is smaller than the predetermined number, one local region is set, and centroid points are randomly arranged in the local region. 14 (a) to 14 (d) show examples of random arrangement by local regions. Note that the examples of FIGS. 14A to 14D are described using two-dimensional divided regions for easy understanding. FIG. 14A shows a random arrangement of the lower half area of the divided area as a local area, and FIG. 14B shows a random arrangement of the right half area of the divided area as a local area. FIGS. 14C and 14D are examples in which the upper half and the left half of the divided areas are randomly arranged as local areas. FIGS. 14A to 14D show a selection method in the case of selecting this half local region as a region where random placement of barycentric points is performed in a two-dimensional divided region for easy understanding. When similar random arrangement processing is performed in the three-dimensional divided region, six local regions are selected.
FIG. 13C shows the result of the random arrangement of the centroid points arranged based on the number of centroid points in the divided area shown in FIG.

Next, the distributed phase portion and the parent phase portion in the three-dimensional finite element model are sorted (step S2).
Specifically, a three-dimensional image is formed in which spheres with a certain radius centered on the center of gravity are dispersedly arranged. FIG. 13D shows a two-dimensional image of a sphere formed around the center of gravity shown in FIG. In FIG. 13D, since the display is two-dimensional, the sphere is a circle.
On the other hand, in order to reproduce the rubber member, a shape model constituted by arranging a plurality of hexahedral solid elements having a rectangular parallelepiped shape of the same size adjacent to each other in three orthogonal directions is created. The shape model and the three-dimensional image in which the spheres are dispersed are associated one-to-one, the finite element at the position corresponding to the inside of the sphere is assigned to the dispersed phase part, and the other part is the mother Sorted into phase parts. In addition to the dispersed phase portion and the parent phase, finite elements may be distributed including the boundary region portion.

Next, a material constant is set (step S3).
Specifically, a material constant (Young's modulus, shear rigidity and Poisson's ratio) determined according to the type of material of the dispersed phase is set in the distributed phase portion, and the mother phase rubber is set in the mother phase portion. Material constants (Young's modulus, shear rigidity, and Poisson's ratio) determined according to the type of material are set. When the boundary region portion is formed, material constants (Young's modulus, shear rigidity, and Poisson's ratio) corresponding to the boundary region portion are set.
The rubber member model, which is a three-dimensional finite element model created in this way, is subjected to various processes such as execution of finite element analysis in step 30 and subsequent steps shown in FIG.

In the flow shown in FIG. 12, when the number of centroid points is smaller than a predetermined number, the arrangement of the centroid points is limited to the local area that is a part of the divided area, so that the dispersed phase is locally concentrated. It is possible to reproduce an actual dispersion form having a microscopic structure with non-uniformity. FIG. 15 is an image created corresponding to FIG. 13D when the centroid points are uniformly arranged at random. The dispersion form shown in FIG. 15 is different from the actual dispersion form in which the dispersion is a uniform random dispersion and the dispersed phases are locally concentrated.

As described above, in the method shown in FIG. 12, by setting a desired non-uniformity histogram, it is possible to create a rubber member model having a microscopic structure of a dispersed phase and a parent phase that realizes this histogram.
In the above embodiment, the rubber material is a composite material to be reproduced. However, the present invention is not limited to the rubber member and is not particularly limited as long as it is a composite material having a dispersed phase and a matrix phase.

The above-mentioned method for simulating the mechanical properties of a composite material can further simulate what kind of mechanical behavior the composite material performs in a structure formed by combining the composite materials. For example, it simulates what kind of mechanical behavior a coating rubber member that coats a reinforcing material such as a belt coating rubber member in a tire performs in a tire, and also tread rubber member, side rubber member, bead filler rubber member or liner It is possible to simulate what kind of mechanical behavior a rubber member such as a rubber member performs in a tire.
This simulation calculation can be executed using the apparatus 10 shown in FIG.

FIG. 16 is a block diagram functionally showing the device 10 shown in FIG.
The apparatus 100 includes a model creation unit 120 that creates a model in the finite element method according to contents input by the operation system of the keyboard 112 and the mouse 114, and an analysis unit that performs finite element analysis using the created model. 122 and a memory 124 for storing and holding the analysis result are formed.

Specifically, the model creation unit 120 creates a tire overall model, a wire rod model, and a base material model using finite elements, and reproduces the microscopic structure of a composite material having a parent phase and a dispersed phase. This is the part for creating a composite material model. As described above, the composite material model has a plurality of three-dimensional finite elements of the same size arranged adjacent to each other in three directions orthogonal to each other, and each finite shape model that reproduces the three-dimensional shape of the composite material. This is a finite element model that reproduces the microscopic structure of a composite material by assigning elements to at least a parent phase portion and a dispersed phase portion in finite element units.
The analysis unit 122 performs finite element analysis of the mechanical characteristics using the generated various models, processes the analysis results to obtain various distributions, supplies them to the display 116 and the printer 118, and outputs them.
The apparatus 100 is configured as described above.
Hereinafter, the function of each of the above parts will be described while explaining the method for simulating the mechanical properties of the composite material of the present invention.

  FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing a flow of a tire dynamic characteristic simulation method executed by such an apparatus 100.

In the flow shown in FIG. 17, first, a tire overall model that is a finite element model is created (step S200).
Here, a portion composed of a rubber member such as a tread, a side and a bead filler, and a portion of a reinforcing material which is a composite material composed of a wire member such as a belt, a carcass and a bead and a rubber member surrounding the wire member are solidified. The whole tire model is created by discretizing the elements. That is, the model of the portion of the reinforcing material is discretized with solid elements as one uniform reinforcing material without distinguishing between the wire in the reinforcing material and the rubber material surrounding the wire. Alternatively, it may be discretized by shell elements or membrane elements.

FIG. 18A shows a partial perspective view of an example of the created tire overall model, and FIG. 18B shows a partial cross-sectional view of the tire overall model 30. The tire models shown in FIGS. 18A and 18B are truck / bus tire models.
As shown in FIG. 18A, the entire tire model 30 is a three-dimensional model, and is mesh-divided at unequal intervals in the tire circumferential direction. This is because, as will be described later, the finite element analysis using the entire tire model 30 is performed with high accuracy by finely dividing the portion that contacts the road surface. In the present invention, the mesh may be divided at equal intervals in the tire circumferential direction.

  As shown in FIG. 18 (b), the carcass model 32, which is a composite material model in the present invention, is a discrete discrete solid element as a uniform reinforcing material without distinguishing between a wire and a rubber material surrounding the wire. It has become. The solid element is, for example, a tetrahedral solid element, a pentahedral solid element, or a hexahedral solid element.

  In the examples of FIGS. 18A and 18B, a three-dimensional solid element is used. However, a two-dimensional model obtained by dividing a two-dimensional mesh in a cross-sectional shape as shown in FIG. Processing may be performed so as to perform three-dimensional analysis when performing element analysis. In this case, a triangular solid element or a rectangular solid element is used as the solid element.

Furthermore, the reinforcing material including the wire material such as the belt, the carcass, and the bead has the same material parameters (Young's modulus, shear rigidity and Poisson's ratio) as uniform members without distinguishing the wire material from the rubber member. This is expressed as a material parameter of the reinforcing material. Here, the equivalent parameter is a value obtained by calculating the stiffness constant (Young's modulus, shear stiffness) and Poisson's ratio of a composite material in which a wire is embedded in a base material at regular intervals using classical lamination theory. Accordingly, the material parameter of the reinforcing material is determined by the number and angle of the wire driven, the arrangement position in the thickness direction of the wire, the rigidity of the wire, the rigidity of the rubber material, and the like.
The material information of the material parameter of the reinforcing material is added to the model information in the created overall tire model, stored as an electronic file in the memory 124, and sent to the analysis unit 122.

Next, finite element analysis 1 is performed (step S201).
In the finite element analysis 1, an internal pressure filling process and a load loading process are performed.
Specifically, in order to reproduce that the tire is rim assembled and the internal pressure filling is performed while moving the entire tire model 30 toward the road surface model which is a rigid plane prepared in advance, the entire tire model 30 is reproduced. While the predetermined contour portion (the portion corresponding to the rim contact area) around the bead is constrained under a certain condition, the contour portions located on both sides are forcibly displaced so as to correspond to the predetermined rim width. A process of applying pressure to the inner peripheral surface of the rear tire overall model 30 is performed.
Further, after this, the entire tire model 30 is brought into contact with the road surface model, and a load load process for generating a predetermined load or a predetermined deflection is performed.

FIG. 19 (a) shows a state immediately after the internal pressure filling process is performed in the tire overall model 30 shown in FIGS. 18 (a) and 18 (b).
By the internal pressure filling process, the side portion is recessed toward the inner side in the tire width direction (arrow direction).
FIG. 19B shows the state of the entire tire model 30 after the load application process. According to this, the tire overall model 30 is bent by the road surface model, and the side portion is convex outward (in the arrow direction) in the tire width direction.
Information on the analysis result calculated by the finite element analysis 1 is sent to the memory 124 and stored therein.
The analysis result information is the displacement of each node, the strain distribution and the stress distribution of each finite element in the overall tire model 30.
Step 200 and step 201 are steps for performing a finite element analysis of the entire tire, and correspond to the entire analysis step in the present invention.

  Next, the part of the tire for which detailed finite element analysis is desired is instructed and set by the operator (step S202). For example, a reinforcing member such as a belt member or a carcass member covered with a coating rubber member is set, or a rubber member such as a tread rubber member or a side rubber member made of a rubber material is set. It is determined whether the set member is a reinforcing member having a reinforcing material or a rubber member made of a rubber material. In the case of a reinforcing member, the following processing is performed. On the other hand, when the rubber member is set, the process proceeds to step S212 described later.

If the reinforcing member is set, then the wire model and the base material model are created in the model creation unit 120 (step S204).
That is, a wire material model and a base material model in which each of the wire material and the rubber member is discretized by a finite element are created for a reinforcing member having a wire material and a rubber material such as a carcass, a belt, and a bead.

FIG. 20 shows a carcass model 34 in which a part of the carcass model 32 in the overall tire model 30 shown in FIG.
The carcass model 34 includes a wire rod model 36 and a rubber member model 38.
The wire rod model 36 is obtained by dividing a cylindrical column having a constant cross-sectional shape into a plurality of solid elements by dividing the mesh along the circular shape. In parallel, a plurality of lines are arranged in parallel. On the other hand, the rubber member model 38 is arranged so as to surround each of the wire rod models 36 arranged in parallel at regular intervals, is divided into a plurality of solid elements by dividing the mesh, and the entire shape of the carcass model 34 is a sheet shape. It is said. In the example of FIG. 20, the carcass model 34 includes three wire rod models 36 and a rubber member model 38 that surrounds the wire rod models 36.

  Model information of the carcass model 34 composed of such a wire model 36 and a rubber member model 38 is created, and material parameters (Young's modulus, shear rigidity and Poisson's ratio) as a wire and material parameters (Young's modulus) as a rubber material , Shear rigidity and Poisson's ratio) are created, material information is added to the model information, stored as an electronic file in the memory 124, and sent to the analysis unit 122.

Next, finite element analysis 2 is performed (step S206).
That is, using the information of the result of the finite element analysis 1 performed in step S202, the finite element analysis of the dynamic characteristics of the carcass is performed using the carcass model 34.
Specifically, the displacement of each node in the entire tire model in the internal pressure filling process or the internal pressure filling process and the load loading process obtained in the finite element analysis 1 and stored in the memory 124 is extracted, and the displacement of this node is used. Thus, by giving displacement to the boundary in the carcass model 34, the displacement of each node, the distortion of each finite element, and the stress distribution in the carcass model 34 are calculated.
Information on the analysis result calculated by the finite element analysis 2 is sent to the memory 124 and stored therein.

Next, a detailed wire model and a detailed base material model are created in the model creation unit 120 (step S208).
That is, a detailed model in which the structure of the carcass is detailed as compared with the wire rod model 36 and the rubber member model 38 created in step S204 is created.
FIG. 21 shows a detailed model 40 in which the configuration of one wire rod of the carcass model 34 shown in FIG. 20 is modeled in more detail.
In the detailed model 40, in the cross-sectional shape of the wire, three strands are twisted at the center, nine strands are twisted at the periphery, 15 strands are twisted at the periphery, and finally, 1 strand is wound around the periphery. This is a faithful reproduction of the configuration of a wire wound in a spiral shape with a strand of book and the configuration in which a rubber material is arranged around and between the wires, and the overall shape forms a cylindrical shape. is doing. In other words, each element wire is modeled, and the structure of the wire rod model composed of the element wires is a twisted structure. In this case, the detailed model 40 also models the twisting pitch of the strands, the twisting direction, and the presence or absence of contact between the strands.

  Model information of the detailed model 40 composed of such a detailed wire model and a detailed rubber material model is created, and material parameters (Young's modulus, shear rigidity and Poisson's ratio) of each wire and material parameters (Young as a rubber material) Rate, shear stiffness, and Poisson's ratio), and material information is added to the model information, stored as an electronic file in the memory 124, and sent to the analysis unit 122.

Next, finite element analysis 3 is performed (step S210).
Here, the finite element analysis of the dynamic characteristics of the carcass is performed using the detailed model 40 using the information of the result of the finite element analysis 2 performed in step S206.
Specifically, the displacement of each node in the carcass model 34 obtained in the finite element analysis 2 and stored in the memory 124 is extracted, and the displacement in the detailed model 40 is given a displacement by using the displacement of this node. Then, the displacement of each node in the detailed model 40, the strain and stress distribution of each finite element are calculated.
Information on the analysis result calculated by the finite element analysis 3 is sent to the memory 124 and stored therein.
That is, as the number of analyzes increases as finite element analysis 2 → 3, the composition of the composite material is reproduced in more detail, and the wire model discretized with finite elements and the base material model surrounding this wire model are created separately. The finite element analysis of the dynamic characteristics of the carcass is performed using the information of the result of the finite element analysis that was performed one time before.
Steps S204 to S210 correspond to partial analysis steps in the present invention.
As described above, in the finite element analysis 2 and 3 in the partial analysis step, the finite element analysis is performed based on the information on the result of the finite element analysis obtained in the finite element analysis 1 in the overall analysis step.

22A and 22B show a detailed wire model 42 obtained by extracting only the wire portion in the detailed model 40, and the region A obtained by the finite element analysis 3 (FIGS. 18A and 18B). The maximum principal stress distribution at the time of the internal pressure filling process in (b) and FIGS. 19 (a) and 19 (b)) is indicated by the level of concentration. FIG. 22B shows the detailed wire rod model 42 shown in FIG.
M ₁ indicates the direction of the bending moment acting on the detailed wire rod model 42 due to the internal pressure due to the internal pressure filling.
According to the distribution of the maximum principal stress, it can be seen that, due to the internal pressure filling process, in the detailed wire model 42, there is compression in the wire direction (high density region in the figure) and tension (light density region in the figure), It can be seen that compression and tension occur so as to correspond to the direction of the bending moment M ₁ . In addition, each strand has a twisted structure, so that the circumferential position of the detailed wire model 42 is spirally changed. It can be seen that the maximum principal stress distribution changes depending on the circumferential position.

On the other hand, FIGS. 23A and 23B display the detailed wire rod model 42 and display the region A (FIGS. 18A and 18B and FIGS. 19A and 19B obtained by the finite element analysis 3). The maximum principal stress distribution when the load loading process is further performed after the internal pressure filling process in (b) is shown. FIG. 23B shows the detailed wire model 42 shown in FIG. 23A with the orientation changed.
M ₂ indicates the direction of the bending moment acting on the detailed wire rod model 42 due to the load.
According to this, the load application process, shows the main stress distribution that is different from the internal pressure filling process, it can be seen that the compression and tension is generated so as to correspond to the direction of the bending moment M _2. In addition, each strand has a twisted structure, so that the circumferential position of the detailed wire model 42 is spirally changed. It can be seen that the maximum principal stress distribution changes depending on the circumferential position.

These analysis results agree with the results qualitatively predicted from the direction of the bending moment acting by the internal pressure filling process and the load application process.
Therefore, the displacement of the node of the carcass model 32 at a desired position in the tire overall model 30 in the internal pressure filling process or the internal pressure filling process and the load loading process obtained in the finite element analysis 1 is taken out, and the displacement of this node is used. By giving displacement to the boundaries in the carcass model 34 and the detailed model 40, the distribution of the stress and strain of the carcass at a desired position can be quantitatively analyzed in detail up to the distribution in each strand.

Therefore, each position of the carcass model 32 in the overall tire model 30 is analyzed using the detailed model 40 and, for example, by examining the maximum principal stress distribution, the position having the lowest safety factor in view of physical properties such as the breaking strength of the strands. Thus, it is possible to develop a tire having excellent durability in which the strands are not broken while changing the twisted structure of the steel cord or the design specifications of the tire so as to ensure the safety factor at a predetermined level. It is also possible to know the possibility of cracking of the rubber material surrounding the steel cord strand from the strain distribution acting on the detailed base material model surrounding the detailed wire model 42.
Further, from the strain distribution of the rubber material model 38 between the adjacent wire models 36 in the detailed model 40, the level of strain acting on the rubber material between the steel cords can be known, and the crack of the rubber material located between the steel cords You can also know the possibility of occurrence.
In addition, since the finite element analysis is performed in stages like the entire tire model 30, the carcass model 34, and the detailed model 40, a model of the entire tire reflecting the configuration of the wire is accurately created to perform a detailed finite element analysis. As compared with the case of performing the above, the mechanical characteristics of the reinforcing material including the wire can be simulated with high accuracy in a short time.

  Further, for a part of the coating rubber member in the detailed model 40 shown in FIG. 21, a finite element model of the coating rubber member (rubber) considering the microscopic structure of the dispersed phase made of carbon or silica and the matrix phase made of a polymer material. A member model) is created (step S212). For example, for the region R in FIGS. 20 and 21, a microscopic structure of a dispersed phase as shown in FIG. 24A is set and adjacent to three directions orthogonal to each other as shown in FIG. A rubber member model that reproduces the microscopic structure by creating a three-dimensional finite element of the same size arranged in multiple dimensions and allocating at least the parent phase part and the dispersed phase part in a finite element unit is created. Is done. The setting of the microscopic structure of the dispersed phase and the mother phase and the allocation of the finite elements are performed using the method of step S20 in FIG. 2, the method shown in FIG. 9, or the method shown in FIG. Therefore, description of model creation is omitted.

Next, finite element analysis 4 (three-dimensional micro analysis of rubber member) is performed (step S214). In this case, the displacement acting on the detailed base material model calculated in the finite element analysis 3 is given to the created rubber member model, and the simulation calculation of the mechanical behavior is performed. As the mechanical behavior, a stress distribution and a strain distribution in the created rubber member model are calculated. Further, the frequency distribution and the integrated distribution shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B are calculated. Thereby, it is examined whether there is no place where strain and stress are extremely concentrated due to the microscopic structure of the dispersed phase and the parent phase, or there is no place that leads to fracture.
Step S214 corresponds to the partial analysis step in the present invention.

Further, in step S203 in FIG. 17, if the set detailed analysis target is not a reinforcing member but a rubber member made of a rubber material, the process proceeds from step S203 to step S212, and the method of step S20 in FIG. A rubber member model that reproduces the microscopic structure of the dispersed phase and the parent phase is created using the method shown in FIG. 12 or the method shown in FIG. 12, and the finite element analysis 4 is performed (step S214).
Finally, the analysis results of the finite element analyzes 1 to 4 are output to the display 116 or the printer 118 (step S216).

  Thus, in the present invention, a micro analysis of a composite material that reproduces a micro structure in a structure from a macro analysis (overall analysis) that simulates the behavior of the entire structure such as a tire using a finite element model (details) Analysis), the shape of the structure and the material can be selected efficiently.

In the above-described embodiment, the internal pressure filling process and the load loading process are performed in the finite element analysis 1 (step S201). However, the entire analysis step corresponding to the finite element analysis 1 is performed by the internal pressure filling process and the load. The process used for various performance analysis may be performed without being limited to the load process. For example, in addition to the internal pressure filling process and the load application process, a process of rolling the entire tire model 30 in a straight traveling state to reproduce the straight traveling state, a process of rolling by giving a slip angle to reproduce a cornering traveling, water on the road surface A process of providing a film and rolling it over to reproduce the process leading to hydroplaning may be performed, or a process of running and vibrating on a protrusion or an uneven road surface to reproduce vibration and noise. The mechanical characteristics of the reinforcing material such as carcass, belt, and bead when simulating various performance tests of the tire can be simulated with high accuracy in a short time by processing in these various performance analyses.
Further, in the overall analysis step, a molding analysis process for analyzing a deformation process of the expanded raw tire model immediately before vulcanization from the raw tire model at the time of tire molding in the tire manufacturing stage may be performed. By the expansion process of the raw tire model at the time of molding, the mechanical characteristics of the reinforcing material such as the carcass, the belt, and the bead when the raw tire is expanded can be simulated with high accuracy in a short time.

  In the carcass model 34 and the detailed model 40, when analyzing the mechanical characteristics of the carcass end, the rigidity changes discontinuously at the end of the highly rigid wire, and the stress distribution and strain distribution change abruptly. Since the nonlinearity becomes strong, in the case of accurately simulating the mechanical characteristics, it is preferable to model as a carcass model a region that is five times the thickness of the carcass including the carcass in the thickness direction of the carcass. More specifically, it is preferable to model a region that is 10 times or less the thickness of the carcass from the viewpoint that a sufficient analysis result can be obtained efficiently. For example, in the case of the carcass model 34 shown in FIG. 20, a model having a thickness of 5 to 10 times in the thickness direction is created.

In the above description, the carcass, which is a reinforcing material, has been described as an example of a composite material. In addition to this, in addition to a composite material reinforced with a wire material such as a belt or a bead, a plurality of wire materials are combined in a textile shape. It may be a composite material. Further, the wire is not limited to a steel material but may be composed of an organic fiber material.
Furthermore, the simulation method of the present invention can be applied even when simulating the mechanical characteristics of a composite material that has a wire and a base material surrounding the wire and is embedded in a structure such as a building. it can.

  Although the method and apparatus for simulating mechanical properties of a composite material according to the present invention have been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various improvements and modifications are made without departing from the gist of the present invention. Of course.

(A) is a block diagram which shows the structure of the simulation apparatus which implements the mechanical property simulation method of the composite material of this invention, (b) is the block diagram which functionally demonstrated the apparatus shown to Fig.1 (a) It is. It is the flowchart which showed the flow of the mechanical property simulation method of the composite material of this invention. (A)-(c) is explanatory drawing explaining the microscopic structure of the dispersed phase in a composite material, and a parent phase. It is the enlarged view which displayed the three-dimensional finite element model created in this invention two-dimensionally. (A) And (b) is explanatory drawing explaining an example of the analysis process result obtained by the mechanical property simulation method of a composite material. (A)-(e) is explanatory drawing explaining determination of the phase to which each finite element in a finite element model belongs. (A) And (b) is a figure which shows the example of the analysis process result obtained in this invention. It is the flowchart which showed the principal part of the other flow in the mechanical property simulation method of the composite material of this invention. It is the flowchart which showed the principal part of the other flow in the mechanical property simulation method of the composite material of this invention. (A) is a diagram showing an example of a microscopic image of the captured composite, (b) is a diagram showing an example of a circular approximation image created from the image shown in photographed (a), (C) is a figure which shows the example of the gravity center image created from the circular approximate image of (b). (A) And (c) is a figure which shows the example of the equal division performed by the mechanical property simulation method of the composite material of this invention, (b) and (d) are the composite materials represented by equal division. It is a figure which shows the example of the histogram respectively corresponding to (a) and (c) showing the heterogeneous dispersion | distribution of a microscopic structure. It is the flowchart which showed the principal part of the other flow in the mechanical property simulation method of the composite material of this invention. (A)-(d) is explanatory drawing explaining distribution of a dispersed phase part and a parent phase part performed with the mechanical property simulation method of the composite material of this invention. It is explanatory drawing explaining distribution of a dispersed phase part and a parent phase part performed with the mechanical property simulation method of the composite material of this invention. It is a figure which shows the distribution arrangement | positioning of the dispersed phase part and mother phase part obtained when the dispersed phase part and the mother phase part are distributed at random. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the mechanical property simulation apparatus of the tire which implements the mechanical property simulation method of the composite material of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of the mechanical property simulation method of the tire which is an example of the mechanical property simulation method of the composite material of this invention. (A) And (b) is a figure explaining the finite element model created with the dynamic characteristic simulation method of the tire reinforcement shown in FIG. (A) And (b) is a figure which shows an example of the analysis result obtained by the mechanical property simulation method of the tire reinforcement shown in FIG. It is a figure explaining the finite element model created with the dynamic characteristic simulation method of the tire reinforcement shown in FIG. It is a figure explaining the finite element model created with the dynamic characteristic simulation method of the tire reinforcement shown in FIG. (A) And (b) is a figure which shows the other example of the analysis result obtained by the mechanical property simulation method of the tire reinforcement shown in FIG. (A) And (b) is a figure which shows the other example of the analysis result obtained by the mechanical property simulation method of the tire reinforcement shown in FIG. (A) And (b) is a figure explaining the preparation method of the composite material model which reproduced the microscopic structure of the composite material which has the parent phase and dispersed phase in this invention. It is a conceptual diagram which shows an example of the micro image which imaged distribution of the mother phase and the disperse phase in a composite material.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10,110 Mechanical characteristic simulation apparatus 20,120 Model creation part 22,122 Analysis part 24,124 Memory 30 Tire whole model 32,34 Carcass model 36 Wire material model 38 Rubber material model 40 Detailed model 42 Detailed wire material model

Claims (18)

A method for simulating the mechanical properties of a composite material using a composite material model that reproduces the microscopic structure of the composite material having a matrix phase and a dispersed phase,
The model generation means arranges a plurality of three-dimensional finite elements adjacent to each other, and obtains the three-dimensional finite elements of the shape model that reproduces the three-dimensional shape of the composite material from an image obtained by photographing the microscopic structure of the composite material. Based on the obtained image information, generating a composite material model that reproduces the microscopic structure of the composite material by allocating at least a matrix phase portion and a dispersed phase portion in finite element units;
An analysis processing means performing a finite element analysis of mechanical characteristics using the composite material model generated by the model generation means,
The photographed image is an image of a particle group in which the dispersed phase is composed of dispersed particles,
In the step of generating the composite material model, the model generation means includes:
From each of the images, the center of gravity of each particle group is obtained, and a center-of-gravity point extraction image describing the position of the center of gravity is generated.
The number of divisions when this centroid point extracted image is equally divided into a plurality of divided regions, and the number of equal divisions when the centroid point is not included in at least one divided region of the plurality of divided regions,
Obtain a histogram representing the frequency distribution of the divided area with respect to the density of the barycentric points in the divided area divided by the equal number of divisions,
Create a three-dimensional image in which a plurality of points are dispersed so as to be equal to the distribution of the histogram obtained in the equal number of divisions, create a sphere of a certain radius centered on each of the plurality of points, Forming a three-dimensional image in which a plurality of created spheres are dispersed and arranged;
The stereoscopic image is associated with the shape model, the finite element of the shape model at a position corresponding to the sphere is assigned to the dispersed phase portion, and the other portion is assigned to the parent phase portion. A method for simulating mechanical properties of composite materials. Wherein in the step of generating a composite model, when equally dividing the centroid extracted image so as not to include the center of gravity in one of the divided areas even without least into a plurality of divided regions, the in the divided region centroid a histogram representing a frequency distribution of the divided regions with respect to the density of points, used as an index representing the dispersion non-uniformity of the dispersed phase portions,
Wherein in the step of performing a finite element analysis, wherein the composite model generated in the step of generating a composite model, the composite material according to claim 1 which is subjected the processing of the finite element analysis by the analysis means Method for simulating mechanical properties of The method for simulating mechanical properties of a composite material according to claim 1 or 2 , wherein the plurality of three-dimensional finite elements are three-dimensional finite elements having the same size in three directions orthogonal to each other. Furthermore, the image acquisition means, mechanical characteristics simulation method of a composite material according to any one of claims 1-3 that Yusuke steps, the of acquiring an image obtained by photographing the microscopic structure of the composite. When distributing the centroid points on the three-dimensional image , if the number of centroid points is a predetermined number or more in the distribution performed in each divided region, the centroid points are randomly arranged, and the number of centroid points No. is less than a predetermined number, mechanical properties simulation method of a composite material according to any one of claims 1 to 4 for random placement of the center of gravity is limited to a localized area of a portion of the divided region. 6. The method for simulating mechanical properties of a composite material according to claim 5 , wherein the local region is a region selected at random from candidate regions having a certain size. The method for simulating mechanical properties of a composite material according to any one of claims 1 to 6 , wherein the matrix phase is made of a polymer material, and the dispersed phase is made of at least one of carbon and silica. The composite material dynamic simulation method according to any one of claims 1 to 7 , wherein the composite material model includes a boundary region portion that reproduces a boundary region existing between the matrix phase and the dispersed phase. A device for simulating the mechanical properties of a composite material using a composite material model that reproduces the microscopic structure of the composite material having a matrix phase and a dispersed phase,
A plurality of three-dimensional finite elements are arranged adjacent to each other, and the three-dimensional finite elements of the shape model reproducing the three-dimensional shape of the composite material are converted into image information obtained from an image obtained by photographing the microscopic structure of the composite material. Based on a model generation unit that generates a composite material model reproducing the microscopic structure of the composite material by allocating at least a matrix phase portion and a dispersed phase portion in a finite element unit,
An analysis processing unit that performs finite element analysis of mechanical properties using the composite material model generated by the model generation unit,
The photographed image is an image of a particle group in which the dispersed phase is composed of dispersed particles,
The model generation unit
From each of the images, the center of gravity of each particle group is obtained, and a center-of-gravity point extraction image describing the position of the center of gravity is generated.
The number of divisions when this centroid point extracted image is equally divided into a plurality of divided regions, and the number of equal divisions when the centroid point is not included in at least one divided region of the plurality of divided regions,
Obtain a histogram representing the frequency distribution of the divided area with respect to the density of the barycentric points in the divided area divided by the equal number of divisions,
Create a three-dimensional image in which a plurality of points are dispersed so as to be equal to the distribution of the histogram obtained in the equal number of divisions, create a sphere of a certain radius centered on each of the plurality of points, Forming a three-dimensional image in which a plurality of created spheres are dispersed and arranged;
The stereoscopic image is associated with the shape model, the finite element of the shape model at a position corresponding to the sphere is assigned to the dispersed phase portion, and the other portion is assigned to the parent phase portion. An apparatus for simulating mechanical properties of composite materials. Before SL model generating unit,
When equally dividing the centroid extracted image so as not to include the center of gravity in one of the divided areas even without least into a plurality of divided regions, the frequency of the divided regions with respect to density before Kikasane center point in the divided region a histogram representing the distribution, used as an index representing the dispersion non-uniformity of the dispersed phase portions,
The analysis processing unit for performing pre-Symbol finite element analysis, the composite model generated by the model generation unit, the composite material according to claim 9 to be subjected to the processing of the finite element analysis by the analysis processing unit Mechanical property simulation device. The composite material dynamic characteristic simulation apparatus according to claim 9 or 10 , wherein the plurality of three-dimensional finite elements are three-dimensional finite elements having the same size in three directions orthogonal to each other. Further, mechanical characteristics simulation device of the composite material according to any one of the image acquisition means and, claims 9-11 that have a to acquire an image obtained by photographing the microscopic structure of the composite. A method for simulating mechanical properties of a composite material that simulates the mechanical properties of the composite material in a structure having a first composite material having a matrix phase and a dispersed phase,
The overall analysis means creates a structure model in which the first composite material is discretized by a finite element as a uniform member without distinguishing the parent phase and the dispersed phase, and the first composite material An overall analysis step of performing a finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of the entire structure including the first composite material, the material parameters being represented by equivalent parameters with a uniform member;
The first partial analysis means performs the dynamic property simulation method for a composite material according to any one of claims 1 to 8 , in order to reproduce a microscopic structure of the dispersed phase and the matrix phase. And a partial analysis step of
In the first partial analysis step , the first partial analysis means uses the composite material model that reproduces the microscopic structure of the composite material generated in the model generation step, and performs the overall analysis step. A dynamic property simulation method for a composite material, comprising performing a finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of the first composite material based on information on a result of the finite element analysis obtained in step (1). Mechanical properties of a composite material simulating the mechanical properties of the composite material in a structure having a first composite material having a matrix and a dispersed phase, and a second composite material having a wire and a base material surrounding the wire. A simulation method comprising:
The base material of the second composite material is the first composite material,
The overall analysis means uses the first composite material and the second composite material as uniform members without distinguishing between the matrix phase and the dispersed phase and without distinguishing between the wire and the matrix. A structure model discretized by a finite element is created, and the first composite material and the second composite material are expressed by equivalent parameters, each of which is a uniform member. An overall analysis step for performing a finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of the entire structure including the second composite;
The second partial analysis unit creates a wire model and a base material model obtained by discretizing each of the wire and the base material with a finite element, and based on information on a result of the finite element analysis obtained in the overall analysis step. A second partial analysis step for performing a finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of the second composite material,
The third partial analysis means performs the mechanical property simulation method for a composite material according to any one of claims 1 to 8 , in order to reproduce a microscopic structure of the dispersed phase and the matrix phase. And a partial analysis step of
In the third partial analysis step , the third partial analysis means uses the composite material model that reproduces the microscopic structure of the composite material generated in the model generation step, and A mechanical property simulation method for a composite material, comprising performing a finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of the first composite material based on information on a result of the finite element analysis obtained in the partial analysis step. In the second partial analysis step, the second partial analysis means performs the finite element analysis a plurality of times, and reproduces the configuration of the second composite material in more detail as the number of finite element analysis increases. In the first finite element analysis, the information of the result of the finite element analysis obtained in the overall analysis step is used in the first finite element analysis. Finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of the second composite material is performed, and in the second and subsequent finite element analyses, information on the result of the mechanical analysis processing of the previous analysis is used to determine the dynamics of the second composite material. The method for simulating mechanical properties of a composite material according to claim 14 , wherein finite element analysis of properties is performed. The matrix of the first composite material is made of a polymer material, the dispersed phase is made of at least one of carbon and silica, the wire is made of at least one of a twisted cord and a textile cord, and the matrix The method for simulating mechanical properties of a composite material according to any one of claims 13 to 15 , wherein is a pneumatic tire made of a polymer material. A composite mechanical property simulation apparatus for simulating the mechanical properties of a composite material in a structure having a first composite material having a matrix phase and a dispersed phase,
A structure model in which the first composite material is discretized by a finite element as a uniform member without distinguishing between the matrix phase and the dispersed phase is created, and the material parameters of the first composite material are made uniform. An overall analysis unit that performs finite element analysis of the mechanical characteristics of the entire structure including the first composite material, represented by equivalent parameters as members,
In order to reproduce the microscopic structure of the dispersed phase and the matrix phase, a first partial analysis unit including the composite mechanical property simulation apparatus according to any one of claims 9 to 12 is provided. And
The first partial analysis unit uses the composite material model that is generated by the model generation unit and reproduces the microscopic structure of the composite material, and uses the result of the finite element analysis obtained by the overall analysis unit. A composite material dynamic property simulation apparatus, wherein the analysis processing unit performs finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of the first composite material based on information. Mechanical properties of a composite material simulating the mechanical properties of the composite material in a structure having a first composite material having a matrix and a dispersed phase, and a second composite material having a wire and a base material surrounding the wire. A simulation device,
The base material of the second composite material is the first composite material,
The first composite material and the second composite material are discretized by finite elements as uniform members without distinguishing between the matrix phase and the dispersed phase and without distinguishing between the wire and the matrix. The first composite material and the second composite material are expressed by equivalent parameters in which the material parameters of the first composite material and the second composite material are respectively uniform members. An overall analysis unit for performing a finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of the entire structure including the material,
Based on the information of the result of the finite element analysis obtained by the overall analysis unit, a wire model and a base material model obtained by discretizing each of the wire and the base material with finite elements are used. A second partial analysis unit for performing finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of
A third partial analysis unit comprising the composite mechanical property simulation apparatus according to any one of claims 9 to 12 , in order to reproduce a microscopic structure of the dispersed phase and the matrix phase. And
The third partial analysis unit uses the composite material model that is generated by the model generation unit and reproduces the microscopic structure of the composite material, and uses the finite element analysis obtained by the second partial analysis unit. Based on the information of the result, a finite element analysis of the mechanical properties of the first composite material is performed by the analysis processing unit.

Images