PVM IMPLEMENTATION OF THE SYMMETRICAL-GALERKIN METHOD

We report on initial progress towards a parallel virtual machine (PVM) implementation of the symmetric-Galerkin boundary integral method. We take advantage of software packages specifically designed to solve li near algebra problems on distributed memory parallel computers. In par ticular we use linear algebra routines from the ScaLAPACK, PBLAS and B LACS libraries. These routines assume a block cyclic decomposition of the matrix operands. The decomposition of the operands and its impact on the construction of the coefficient matrix are described. Computati onal results for solving the two-dimensional Laplace equation are pres ented. This program is being used to simulate the performance of a pro ximity sensor used in robotics and other applications. (C) 1997 Elsevi er Science Ltd.