As documented on Wikipedia, "John Dalton FRS (6 September 1766 — 27 July 1844) was an English chemist, meteorologist, and physicist. He is best known for his pioneering work in the development of modern atomic theory, and his research into color blindness." So that was my assumption about how Project Dalton got its name when Product Line Manager, Brian Frank, approached me about placing a technology preview on Autodesk Labs. I assumed the colors provided as part of the analysis were the namesake ingredient. For the non-colorblind, you can see what I was going for in the original Project Dalton banner on the Autodesk Labs site.

As it turns out, the name actually comes from the "Dalton Highway near the Arctic Ocean and the Prudhoe Bay oil fields. It was built as a supply road to support the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System in 1974. It is named after James Dalton, a lifelong Alaskan and an engineer who supervised construction of the Distant Early Warning Line in Alaska and, as an expert in Arctic engineering, served as a consultant in early oil exploration in northern Alaska."

So Dalton was actually a means (the highway) to an end (the Alaska pipeline) — how fitting. Thank you Wikipedia — I stand corrected.

Project Dalton is our newest technology preview that allows designers and engineers to develop complex piping and ducting systems more quickly and with greater accuracy through the use of integrated simulation technology. Project Dalton is an integrated simulation tool that provides you with accurate results within the design environment. Unlike other flow analysis tools, the Dalton technology provides results while you design, guiding and informing you of the optimum solution during your design process.

Brian shared some of his notes with me:

• Flow analysis for distribution networks
• Solves for Velocity, Pressure, Temperature, Mass Flow Rate and Reynolds Number (ratio of inertial forces to viscous forces)
• Dependent on geometry of the distribution network (pipe length, diameter, type, joints, etc.)
• Standalone app based on industry standard input format (.pcf)

So take this technology preview for a spin and share your thoughts. You can reach us in a variety of ways:

Flow is alive in the lab.