To build a cooling channel along a curve

After creating a curve that represents a cooling channel, the next step is to build beam elements along those curves.

1. Open the model.
2. Only display layers that contain cooling channel curves.
3. Click (Mesh tab > Mesh panel > Generate mesh).
4. Check mesh parameters and click Apply.

   A break in a channel can be very difficult to locate unless each channel is individually checked. The following steps outline how this is done.

5. Select the end node of a channel
6. Click (Mesh tab > Mesh Diagnostic > Connectivity) and then Show.
7. Verify that the channel is complete. A complete channel is connected all around the circuit.
8. Click (Mesh tab > Mesh Edit panel > Merge Nodes) to merge the end nodes of any broken channels.

Tip: As an alternative to using the Mesh Connectivity tool, assign an end element to a new layer and use the Expand option to display an excessive number of elements. The expand option will stop at either a break or the end of the channel. This option has the following advantages:

• Channels are assigned to separate layers and can be given a meaningful name.
• The workspace will become less cluttered as channels are moved to individual layers.