Framework for automatic contact detection in a multibody system

The mechanical behavior of multibody systems can be modeled with several numerical methods. One can mention the Multibody Dynamics (MBD), the Finite Element Method (FEM), the Discrete Element Method (DEM) among others, which have the common feature of solving for the dynamics of a system of rigid/flexible bodies. In this context, the mechanical contact interaction between bodies has to be considered in the model. First, one needs to adopt a strategy to seek for contact occurrence and, when it is detected, to evaluate and include contributions into the mathematical model. However, handling contacts in such models is not a straightforward task, as they can be numerous (depending on the number of bodies considered in the model) and complex, due to the particularities in the geometric shape that each body presents, influencing in contact detection and in its inclusion, as a contribution into the model.