Feature suppression based CAD mesh model simplification

Dynamic simulation and high quality FEA mesh generation need the CAD mesh model to be simplified, that is, suppressing the detailed features on the mesh without any changes to the rest. However, the traditional mesh simplification methods for graphical models can not satisfy the requirements of CAD mesh simplification. In this paper, we develop a feature suppression based CAD mesh model simplification framework. First, the CAD mesh model is segmented by an improved watershed segmentation algorithm, constructing the region-level representation required by feature recognition. Second, the form features needing to be suppressed are extracted using a feature recognition method with user defined feature facility based on the region-level representation, establishing the feature-level representation. Third, every recognized feature is suppressed using the most suitable one of the three methods, i.e. planar Delaunay triangulation, Poisson equation based method, and the method for blend features, thus simplifying the CAD mesh model. Our method provides an effective way to make CAD mesh model simplification meet the requirements of engineering applications. Several experimental results are presented to show the superiority and effectivity of our approach.

Research highlights
► Complex CAD mesh models are simplified by feature recognition and suppression.
► A CAD mesh model is segmented into patches using an improved watershed method.
► User defined features can be recognized and suppressed.
► Three hole-filling methods are developed for various features suppression.