Abstract: An algorithm for the automated generation of density-changed three-dimensional all-hexahedral element meshes is developed based on the traditional grid-based method. Two kinds of technology, which are the construction of source points metric for refinement based on the local surface curvature and the refinement based on the local thickness of the model domain, are proposed. The rules and the templates of the meshes refinement for the automated generation of all-hexahedral ele-ment meshes are also presented. Conformal refinement of the local meshes is realized at the areas where small thickness and large curvature exist and the density of hexahedral meshes changed gradually, so all-hexahedral element meshes that are conformal refinement and of gradually changed density can be automatically generated. The effectiveness of the algorithm and quality of the mesh generation are demonstrated by using sev-eral complex examples.

Key words: Conformal refinement on the local meshes, Hexahedral element meshes, Surface curvature, Thickness of solid object