Integrate PolyTex with TexGen

TexGen software, developed at the University of Nottingham, is an excellent tool for building mesoscale models of textile reinforcements and composites. PolyTex can be used as a third-party package via Python 3.9 with the latest TexGen release (3.13.x). This allows data and methods provided by PolyTex to be directly accessed by TexGen to build ideal models of woven textiles and textile composites. To do this, you should install the TexGen package without Python bundled. A brief description is given below.

Step 1: Download TexGen

Navigate to the TexGen download page on SourceForge.net and follow the steps shown in the figure below. Note that you need to download the release without Python bundled.

The TexGen file (texgen-Python39-3.13.1.exe) indicates that the current TexGen package supports only Python 3.9.

Step 2: Install Python 3.9

Go to the official website of Python: Download Python | Python.org and select the required Python version (Python 3.9). Here is the link to Python Release Python 3.9.13.

Step 3: Install TexGen

Install the TexGen package downloaded in Step 1. TexGen will automatically detect the installation of Python 3.9.

Step 4: Install PolyTex in the Python 3.9 Environment

PolyTex can be installed simply by executing:

pip install polytex==0.4.5

If multiple versions of Python are installed on your computer, specify the Python 3.9 installation directory in the pip command using the --target= option:

pip install polytex==0.4.5 --target=C:/Users/User/AppData/Local/Programs/Python/Python39/Lib/site-packages

Once the installation is complete, import PolyTex in the TexGen Python console:

import polytex

To test if the installation is successful, use the following code:

polytex.__author__
polytex.__version__

This should return the developer and version information of the installed PolyTex.

At this point, all functions and data in PolyTex can be accessed by TexGen to build models. For different fabric structures, different TexGen scripts are required. Examples are provided in the TexGen repository louisepb/TexGenScripts: Sample scripts to demonstrate TexGen scripting.

Step 5: Convert TexGen voxel model to OpenFOAM mesh

Geometrical models created by TexGen can be exported as a VTU Voxel File. This file format can then be converted to OpenFOAM meshes using PolyTex. An example script for this conversion process can be found at Convert the TexGen-generated vtu file to OpenFOAM polyMesh — PolyTex documentation.