Case Study: The Boeing Company achieves faster, more accurate ISS attachment simulation with MSC.ADAMS

Boeing Makes the Connection to International Space Station

The Boeing Company needed a reliable way to verify the International Space Station’s segment-to-segment attachment interfaces, where expensive physical testing could only cover a small fraction of possible alignment conditions. Boeing turned to MSC Software and MSC.ADAMS to model complex contact geometries and simulate coarse and fine guide behavior, capture latches, and other interface mechanisms with greater confidence.

MSC Software implemented solid-to-solid contact modeling and contact optimization in MSC.ADAMS to reduce model development effort and improve stability and accuracy. The result was faster, more dependable simulations, including a ZIP nut failure model that dropped from five days of runtime in MSC.ADAMS V12 to under 20 minutes in MSC.ADAMS 2003 Beta, while also minimizing modeling errors and supporting successful interface validation.

The Boeing Company