Automatic 3D solid modeling of axial flow pump

An automatic 3D solid modelling program used to model the axial-flow pump is put forward. This method takes the data file as interface between hydraulic-design software and 3D modelling software. Because they have the flexibility for representing blade surface, the discrete points are used to construct the blade profile with any style. Thus, characteristic blade lines that are in enough precision could be obtained. In this method, the hub is directly produced based on the secondary development tool, Pro/Toolkit, and the feature describing modeling technique. The blades are generated by: first, blending working face, back face, and characteristic blade lines; second, merging other faces. This method takes the flexibility and efficiency of Pro/Toolkit and results the implementation of a good program that has the property of applicability and high accuracy. It can be used to model axial-flow impeller with any type. An example of impeller solid model is given in this paper to demonstrate the feasibility of the method.