Photoelastic Grain Solver v2.0: An updated tool for analysis of force measurements in granular materials

TL;DR

Photoelastic Grain Solver v2.0 is an improved open-source tool that enhances resolution, efficiency, and software architecture for analyzing force measurements in granular materials using photoelasticimetry.

Contribution

This update introduces significant structural and functional improvements to the existing software, supporting future development and broader accessibility.

Findings

Enhanced resolution and efficiency in force analysis

Improved software architecture for modularity

Support for ongoing development and training

Abstract

Photoelastic force imaging is an experimental technique whereby a birefringent granular material is imaged with a polariscope to characterize the internal stress state of a granular material. Photoelasticimetry is the only proven experimental technique that allows researchers to measure the shear and normal forces at every particle contact in a granular packing. In 2017, Kollmer et al. [Rev. Sci. Instrum. 88, 051808 (2017)] developed an open-source software to perform this analysis. Here, we present the next substantial update to this software package. The new version improves resolution and efficiency and substantially changes the software architecture. The structural changes better facilitate add-ons, modules, and future improvements to the performance, accessibility, and versatility of the tool. Besides updates to the core software, we introduce new infrastructure to support the ongoing development of software, documentation, and training materials. The full development team, software, and supporting resources are available at https://github.com/photoelasticity .