ANALYSIS OF THE CURRENT STATE AND DEVELOPMENT TRENDS OF COMPUTER-AIDED DESIGN SYSTEMS FOR FLOW MEASUREMENT INSTRUMENTS OF FLUID MEDIA

The article is a comprehensive study of the current state and development trends of computer-aided design (CAD) systems for measuring parameters of fluid media. The main focus is on the analysis of specialized software products for automated design of flow measurement systems and flow meters. The analysis of the functional capabilities of widely used CAD software products “Flowmeter”, Arian Flow CAD, Simcenter FloEFD is carried out and their advantages and disadvantages are highlighted. The ability of the software product to design variable differential pressure flow meters in accordance with the requirements of international standards ISO 5167 is highlighted as a separate criterion of analysis. The technological advantages of the products are considered, in particular, the presence of interactive interaction with the researcher and the ability to optimize the characteristics of the flow meter. An analysis of the functional capabilities of software packages based on CFD methods, including SolidWorks and Ansys Fluent, has been conducted. It has been noted that these software tools serve as effective supplementary instruments for investigating flowmeters of fluid media under non-standard installation conditions of metering units, as well as for extending the application range beyond the scope of existing standards, particularly ISO 5167. This includes both deviations in Reynolds number range and flowmeter types, as well as studies of flow behavior in flow conditioning devices and optimization of their design. A comparative table of the advantages and disadvantages of the reviewed software products has been compiled. A review of the latest technologies implemented in engineering product design systems has been carried out, with a focus on web technologies, cloud-based solutions, and artificial intelligence algorithms that contribute to enhancing the efficiency of automated design processes. The benefits of employing digital twins for predicting system behavior under real operating conditions have been examined, along with the use of cloud platforms to ensure accessibility, scalability, and integration of CAD systems with data management systems. The scientific novelty of the study lies in identifying the key development directions for CAD systems used in the design of flow and volume measurement instruments for fluid media, considering the requirements of modern standards, automation of design processes, and the implementation of adaptive modeling tools.