Rapid Keyboard Assembly & Drop-Test CAE Analysis｜SimLab x Radioss

Software used : SimLab x Radioss

【 Background 】 

       The client in this project is a world-renowned keyboard design and manufacturing company. Because there are many derived models and variants of keyboards, the design cycle for each model is relatively tight. Every project must be completed within a limited time, not only meeting industrial design styling requirements but also achieving structural performance targets.

       By leveraging SimLab for fast keyboard meshing and Radioss for high-efficiency computation, Richin helps the customer quickly complete multi-step drop CAE analyses.

Keyboard CAE fast assembly and drop analysis (figure)

【 Solution 】

Challenges of full keyboard analysis:

1. Meshing
       Because the keyboard structure is relatively thin and light, many small reinforcing ribs are added to resist bending and even impact during drop events. The keycaps themselves also contain many fine geometric features, which together pose a major challenge for mesh generation.
 

2. Use of rubber materials
       The rebound behavior of the keys is achieved by small rubber structures. However, rubber materials are prone to instability in analysis, which may lead to incorrect or even diverging results.
 

3. Multi-step analysis from assembly to drop
       Before the drop, the keyboard needs a key assembly and positioning step, which in analysis terms is quasi-static behavior. Traditionally this might be handled by an implicit analysis, but implicit solvers can encounter convergence problems. The subsequent drop analysis, however, is an explicit analysis. Transitioning between the two requires considerable manual setup and debugging effort.

 

To address the above issues, our solution is as follows:

1. Meshing with SimLab
       SimLab is designed for handling extremely complex geometries, so meshing in this project was straightforward. In most cases, high-quality meshes can be obtained with almost no manual adjustment.
 

2. Radioss rubber material modeling
        Radioss provides multiple theoretical models for rubber materials and offers more stable behavior in analysis. During the project, no solver divergence occurred.
 

3. One-shot multi-step analysis with Radioss
       Radioss is highly efficient for quasi-static analyses. The entire process from assembly to drop is carried out using explicit analysis, and the pre-load assembly stage accounts for less than 20% of the total analysis time. This one-shot approach not only avoids setup errors and the risk of non-convergence in explicit analysis, but also greatly improves analysis efficiency and stabilizes development timelines.

【 Results 】

• The product passes the drop test.

• CAE verification time is reduced by 50%.

• Test cost is reduced by 80%.

【 Radioss -Tips#2 】One-shot setup for preload and impact analysis with Radioss

Further reading: Radioss product introduction