A robust asymmetrical contact algorithm for explicit solid dynamics

Abstract

We describe a novel algorithm for the robust approximation of elastic, inelastic, and frictional contact problems in explicit computations. The method is based on a master-slave concept and a predictor/corrector split of the dynamic update. In the predictor step, the bodies move ignoring all contact interactions; in the correction, the nodes that have penetrated a body are pushed back while correcting their velocities to preserve linear momentum and balance the kinetic energy. In contrast with existing predictor/corrector contact algorithms, no iterations nor global computations are required in the correction step. Moreover, thanks to the geometrical basis of the method, the choice of an artificial penalty parameter is avoided. The contact algorithm does not require the computation of the normal vectors at the contacting surfaces, making it especially useful for simulations that employ finite element and certain meshfree discretizations, and for the simulation of contact among bodies with non-smooth boundaries.

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