Version 3.0

New features of QuickWave software version 3.0

Dear QuickWave Users,

With this letter we would like to introduce you to some developments that have taken place in the just released version 3.0 of QuickWave.

Version 3.0 features major changes in the software system and its visual side. These include switching to Qt multiplatform C++ application framework and much expanded 3D graphics based on OPEN GL library. These will allow much more flexibility in field display such as:

• combined hilltop / thermal displays,zoom function conveniently operated with a mouse wheel
• unrestricted rotation in 3D space (with possibility of restricting this to a selected 2D plane), also controlled with a mouse.
• Dialogues are now scalable.
• Toolbars are easily customised (with a possibility of moving or hiding groups of buttons, according to the user's preference).
• More menu operations are available via buttons.
• Similarly, the results displays are more flexible. "Simulation Log" window is scrollable and includes more detailed information about the simulation progress.

The above built-in displays are supplemented with a new 3D graphical tool named QViewer. Technically, QViewer is a stand-alone module operating on shape (*sh3) and field (*dmp, *ve3, *vi3) files exported by QW-Simulator. It is conveniently launched from QW-Simulator and included in the basic QW-3D licence. QViewer allows mesh, fields, and currents visualisation over sub-volumes, intersecting planes as well as over curved surfaces.

In order to facilitate effective data transfer from QW-Simulator to QViewer, as well as to other graphics post-processing tools, field and power envelopes over sub-volumes of the project are implemented. Thus, for example, the user interested in disspated power pattern over a small load may restrict the generation and saving of the power envelope to that load. This accelerates the envelope generation and reduces the size of data file.

There are major changes in geometry input facilities. Importing of SAT files is enhanced, for example, media labels will now be considered to simplify the import of inhomogeneous structures.

A feature awaited by many users are virutal contours for electric field integration. In the case of potential fields, such an integral has a physical meaning of voltage. The time-dependent integral is transformed into the frequency-domain and displayed by the FD-Probing postprocessing, in the same way as volatges and currents at lumped elements. The contours can be defined via UDOs from the new "contour" library.

New UDO language commands for inserting new media, assigning medium to an object and setting thermal media parameters, as well as several other ones, have been implemented.

AMIGO - Advanced Mesh Intelligent Generation Option - is another new and interesting feature. It is now under tests and will be released in the Autumn revision. AMIGO will excellently simplify the process of optimum mesh generation by:

• proposing basic cell size will be proposed based on user-defined wavelength resolution in the considered frequency band,
• optional automatic mesh refinement in higher-permittivity or permeability materials,
• automatic introduction of mesh snapping planes along edges or at vertices of elements defined by the user as "hard" – while at the same time ensuring smooth surface approximation for elements defined as "soft",
• cell size enforcement at each mesh snapping plane in either absolute terms (as in previous versions of the software) or in relative terms (through a refinement factor, with respect to basic cell size in the particular direction),
• proportional scaling of the mesh over the whole project, with a single mesh refinement factor.

The Autumn revision will also bring (within QW-BHM module) interfaces to external heat transfer software

Qt framework opens new possibilities of launching QW versions for operational systems other than Windows, and for LINUX in particular. Although the Linux version is not scheduled for the immediate future, interested users are encouraged to contact QWED. Your wishes in this regard will accelerate our work on Linux.

Last but not least, the above revolutionary changes in our graphical environment make us fully compatible with the most up-to-date hardware. In particular, we shall be able to react very quickly to the practical advent of new 64-bit processors and systems expected next year. Besides obvious advantages in speed, they will break the barrier of 2GB memory allocation imposed by the 32-bit compilers.


We hope you will enjoy those changes and are looking forward to your input.


QWED Team