Abaqus
Encyclopedia
Abaqus FEA is a suite of software applications for finite element analysis and computer-aided engineering
Computer-aided engineering
Computer-aided engineering is the broad usage of computer software to aid in engineering tasks. It includes computer-aided design , computer-aided analysis , computer-integrated manufacturing , computer-aided manufacturing , material requirements planning , and computer-aided planning .- Overview...

, originally released in 1978. The name and logo of this software is derived from abacus and the Greek word, “abax” (ἄβαξ), meaning “board covered with sand”.

The Abaqus product suite consists of four core software products:
  1. Abaqus/CAE, or "Complete Abaqus Environment" (a backronym
    Backronym
    A backronym or bacronym is a phrase constructed purposely, such that an acronym can be formed to a specific desired word. Backronyms may be invented with serious or humorous intent, or may be a type of false or folk etymology....

     with an obvious root in Computer-Aided Engineering
    Computer-aided engineering
    Computer-aided engineering is the broad usage of computer software to aid in engineering tasks. It includes computer-aided design , computer-aided analysis , computer-integrated manufacturing , computer-aided manufacturing , material requirements planning , and computer-aided planning .- Overview...

    ). It is a software application used for both the modeling and analysis of mechanical components and assemblies (pre-processing) and visualizing the finite element analysis result. A subset of Abaqus/CAE including only the post-processing module can be launched independently in the Abaqus/Viewer product.
  2. Abaqus/CFD, a Computational Fluid Dynamics
    Computational fluid dynamics
    Computational fluid dynamics, usually abbreviated as CFD, is a branch of fluid mechanics that uses numerical methods and algorithms to solve and analyze problems that involve fluid flows. Computers are used to perform the calculations required to simulate the interaction of liquids and gases with...

     software application which is new to Abaqus 6.10
  3. Abaqus/Standard, a general-purpose Finite-Element analyzer that employs implicit integration scheme (traditional).
  4. Abaqus/Explicit, a special-purpose Finite-Element analyzer that employs explicit integration scheme to solve highly nonlinear systems with many complex contacts under transient loads.


The Abaqus products use the open-source scripting language Python
Python (programming language)
Python is a general-purpose, high-level programming language whose design philosophy emphasizes code readability. Python claims to "[combine] remarkable power with very clear syntax", and its standard library is large and comprehensive...

 for scripting and customization. Abaqus/CAE uses the fox-toolkit for GUI
Gui
Gui or guee is a generic term to refer to grilled dishes in Korean cuisine. These most commonly have meat or fish as their primary ingredient, but may in some cases also comprise grilled vegetables or other vegetarian ingredients. The term derives from the verb, "gupda" in Korean, which literally...

 development.

Applications

Abaqus is used in the automotive
Automotive industry
The automotive industry designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and sells motor vehicles, and is one of the world's most important economic sectors by revenue....

, aerospace
Aerospace
Aerospace comprises the atmosphere of Earth and surrounding space. Typically the term is used to refer to the industry that researches, designs, manufactures, operates, and maintains vehicles moving through air and space...

, and industrial products industries. The product is popular with academic and research institutions due to the wide material modeling capability, and the program's ability to be customized. Abaqus also provides a good collection of multiphysics
Multiphysics
Multiphysics treats simulations that involve multiple physical models or multiple simultaneous physical phenomena. For example, combining chemical kinetics and fluid mechanics or combining finite elements with molecular dynamics...

 capabilities, such as coupled acoustic-structural, piezoelectric, and structural-pore capabilities, making it attractive for production-level simulations where multiple fields need to be coupled.

Abaqus was initially designed to address non-linear physical behavior; as a result, the package has an extensive range of material models such as elastomer
Elastomer
An elastomer is a polymer with the property of viscoelasticity , generally having notably low Young's modulus and high yield strain compared with other materials. The term, which is derived from elastic polymer, is often used interchangeably with the term rubber, although the latter is preferred...

ic (rubberlike) material capabilities.

Here are some animated examples

Solution Sequence

Every complete finite-element analysis consists of 3 separate stages:
  • Pre-processing or modeling: This stage involves creating an input file which contains an engineer's design for a finite-element analyzer (also called "solver").
  • Processing or finite element analysis: This stage produces an output visual file.
  • Post-processing or generating report, image, animation, etc. from the output file: This stage is a visual rendering stage.


Abaqus/CAE is capable of pre-processing, post-processing, and monitoring the processing stage of the solver; however, the first stage can also be done by other compatible CAD software, or even a text editor. Abaqus/Standard, Abaqus/Explicit or Abaqus/CFD are capable of accomplishing the processing stage. Dassault Systemes also produces Abaqus for CATIA for adding advanced processing and post processing stages to a pre-processor like CATIA.

Solvers Comparison

The following is a comparison between the solver capabilities of Abaqus/Standard and Abaqus/Explicit.
Feature Common ABAQUS/Standard only ABAQUS/Explicit only
Element library Comprehensive no limits only elements appropriate for explicit solutions
Material models Comprehensive only yield models yield and fracture models
Solution methods Implicit Integration
needs solve multiple coupled equation
Using the K Matrix (F=KX)
Stable
explicit integration
step by step
using small time steps
sometimes not stable
Required Disk Space repetitive calculations likely
takes a lot of space
no repetitive calculation
normal
Types of Problems Linear:
non-linear:
Contact:
usual systems
Can solve
Can solve
Can solve if simple
Optimal under steady loads
Can solve
Optimal. even if highly non-linear
Optimal. even for complex and varying conditions
Optimal under transient loads like Impact, Pulse and Explosion

Notes:
The more complex the contacts become, the more repetitive calculations ABAQUS/Standard has to solve, and the more time and disk space needed; ABAQUS Explicit is the optimal choice in this case

Like static elements (see the picture,) dynamic elements, thermal elements and electrical elements

Steady, Static and Constant loads are the same. Transient loads include: quasi-static loads (slowly varying loads in which the effect of inertial is small enough to neglect) and dynamic loads (faster varying loads).

See also

  • ABAQUS, Inc
    ABAQUS, Inc
    Dassault Systèmes Simulia Corp. is an engineering simulation software vendor. Formerly known as ABAQUS Inc. and previously Hibbitt, Karlsson & Sorensen, Inc., , the company was founded in 1978 by Dr. David Hibbitt, Dr. Bengt Karlsson and Dr...

  • List of finite element software packages
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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