Autodesk HELIUS PFA 2019 Free Download
System requirements for Autodesk Helius PFA 2019
Supported Operating Systems
- Microsoft Windows 10, 8.1, 7 (64-bit)
- SLES 11 (64-bit)
- RHEL 6, 7 (64-bit)
Supported FEA Platforms
- Abaqus 2016, 2017
- ANSYS 18.0, 18.1, 18.2, 19.0 (not supported on RHEL or SLES)
- Autodesk Nastran 2018, 2018.1, 2018.2, 2019 (not supported on RHEL or SLES)
- Autodesk HELIUS PFA 2019 Free Download
System Requirements
- 64-bit processor
- 2 GHz CPU speed
- 8 GB main memory (RAM)
- 12 GB of free hard disk space
- Microsoft .NET Framework Version 2.0 (For Windows platforms only)
- Autodesk HELIUS PFA 2019 Free Download
Issue:
Helius PFA 2019 should work with Nastran In-CAD 2018 or 2019 as per the help documentation here. So how can Nastran In-CAD 2018 or 2019 be setup to work with Helius PFA 2019 or 2018, depending on the need of the user?
Autodesk HELIUS PFA 2019 Free Download
Environment:
Nastran 2018.0 to 2019
Solution:
There is a Nastran card HPFAFILESPEC. The “Parameters” option in Nastran In-CAD shows this parameter. The parameter for the card is the path to the folder which included Helius.dll.
Autodesk HELIUS PFA 2019 Free Download
However there is currently an issue where changing the setting for this card via the Nastran UI, does not have any effect.
Autodesk HELIUS PFA 2019 Free Download
To set Nastran In-CAD 20XX to use either Helius PFA 20XX, the path to Helius.dll needs to be changed within Nastran.ini.
For Nastran in-CAD 20XX, the default location for Nastran.ini is,
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Nastran In-CAD 20XX\System\Nastran
Autodesk HELIUS PFA 2019 Free Download
Open Nastran.ini using a software package such as notepad. The place either of the line below into the file depending on which version of Helius PFA is to be used. The default path to the location of Helius.dll is used in the examples below. Once the changes are made, save the file and restart Nastran In-CAD.
To use Helius PFA 20XX:
HPFAFILESPEC=C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Helius PFA 20XX\bin\nastran\20XX\
Autodesk HELIUS PFA 2019 Free Download
New Features and Enhancements
- Supported Platforms – Helius PFA has added support for Autodesk Nastran 2019, Autodesk Nastran In-CAD 2019, and ANSYS 18.2 & 19.0. This is part of a continuing effort to support the latest FEA platforms.
- Autodesk HELIUS PFA 2019 Free Download
- Multi-Filler Materials – Advanced Material Exchange now supports multi-filler materials.
- Temperature Interpolation Improvements – The Temperature Interpolation feature for Advanced Material Exchange has been improved to allow you to select either a tensile or compressive environment.Note: The syntax of the *SELECTEDENVIRONMENT HIN file keyword used to define the environment for temperature interpolation has changed. Refer to the Interpolation topic for more details.
- Bug Fixes – A number of bug fixes were implemented for this release. Refer to the ReadMe for a list of the specific improvements.
Review the ReadMe for more information about what is included in Helius PFA 2019.
Autodesk HELIUS PFA 2019 Free Download
Review the System Requirements for a list of supported platforms.
New Features and Enhancements
- Supported Platforms – Helius PFA has added support for Nastran In-CAD 2018.1 and 2018.2. This is part of a continuing effort to support the latest FEA platforms to allow an end-to-end workflow of Autodesk products for your composite material simulations.
- Bug Fixes – A number of bug fixes were implemented for the Helius PFA solver. Refer to the ReadMe for a list of the specific improvements.
Review the ReadMe for more information about what is included in Helius PFA 2018.3.
Autodesk HELIUS PFA 2019 Free Download
Review the System Requirements for a list of supported platforms.
New Features and Enhancements
- Supported Platforms – Helius PFA has added support for ANSYS 18.1. This is part of a continuing effort to support the latest FEA platforms.
- Bug Fixes – A number of bug fixes were implemented for the Helius PFA solver. Refer to the ReadMe for a list of the specific improvements.
Review the ReadMe for more information about what is included in Helius PFA 2018.2.
Review the System Requirements for a list of supported platforms.
New User Quick Start
In these short topics we introduce Helius PFA.
Watch the Quick Start Videos
These short videos take you through the basics of Helius PFA.
Autodesk HELIUS PFA 2019 Free Download
- Create a New Material – In this video we characterize a carbon/epoxy lamina using Composite Material Manager.
- Using the Plug-ins – Use the Plug-ins to add a composite material to your model.
- Execute the Analysis – Abaqus – Watch this video to learn how to run an Abaqus model from the command line.
- Execute the Analysis – ANSYS – Watch this video to learn how to run an ANSYS model from the command line.
- Interpret Your Results – Abaqus – Learn to create a contour plot of the discrete damage state in Abaqus.
- Interpret Your Results – ANSYS – Learn to create a contour plot of the discrete damage state in ANSYS.
- Interpret Your Results – Autodesk Nastran – Learn to create a contour plot of the discrete damage state in Autodesk Nastran.
Review the Quick Start Guides
Read through the Quick Start Guides to understand the steps required to use Helius PFA.
Autodesk HELIUS PFA 2019 Free Download
Do a Quick Start Tutorial
The Quick Start tutorials offer simple problems that introduce common steps in performing an analysis with Helius PFA.
| Create an Analysis Step and Define Field Outputs for Abaqus | |
| Create an Analysis Step and Define Solution Outputs for ANSYS | |
| Prepare a Nastran Input File for use with Helius PFA |
Apply What You Have Learned
Now that you have explored the basics, it is time to create your own simulations. The skills and processes learned in the Quick Start section will help you with your analyses.
Autodesk HELIUS PFA 2019 Free Download
As you explore more of Helius PFA, remember to consult the following resources:
- User Guides (in-depth details for performing analyses with Helius PFA)
- Tutorials (detailed and thorough problems describing the use of Helius PFA)
- Example Problems (problems that demonstrate some of the capabilities of the software)
- Theory Manual (in-depth explanation of Multicontinuum Theory and how it is implemented in Helius PFA)
Follow the steps below to run an analysis with Helius PFA using Abaqus.
Autodesk HELIUS PFA 2019 Free Download
- Create a material with Composite Material Manager.Composite Material Manager is required to create Helius PFA-compatible composite materials. It is not used to create cohesive materials. Cohesive materials are defined using the Create Cohesive Material plug-in for Abaqus/CAE.A Helius PFA-compatible composite material cannot be created inside Abaqus/CAE or using an Abaqus keyword inside an input file. It can only be created using Composite Material Manager. By default, materials are saved to a specific materials directory in your home directory:%APPDATA%\Autodesk\Helius PFA 2019\Materialswhere %APPDATA% is the value of the environment variable named APPDATA.For additional information, refer to the Composite Material Manager User’s Guide.
- Create a finite element model in Abaqus/CAE or other general pre-processor.If a finite element model is created in Abaqus/CAE, a Helius PFA plug-in is used to define how the material created in the previous step is used in the model.If a model is created using a general pre-processor, the Abaqus input name must be modified to facilitate an analysis with Helius PFA.For additional information, refer to the User’s Guide for Abaqus.
- Use the command line program xStiff to modify the input file.xStiff inserts the required extraneous stiffness parameters into the section definition(s). An input file that has not been modified by xStiff will not be able to be solved. xStiff creates a new input file with ‘_xs’ appended to the input file name. Submit the ‘_xs’ input file to the Abaqus solver.
- Submit the input file to the Abaqus solver.The most convenient way to submit an analysis with Helius PFA is using the Abaqus Command Prompt. Additionally, an Abaqus input file that has been modified with xStiff can be imported into Abaqus/CAE and submitted within CAE.For additional information, refer to the User’s Guide for Abaqus.
Autodesk HELIUS PFA 2019 Free Download
ANSYS Quick Start Guide
Follow the steps below to run an analysis with Helius PFA using ANSYS.
- Create a material using Composite Material Manager.A Helius PFA-compatible material cannot be created inside ANSYS MAPDL or using an ANSYS command inside an input file. A Helius PFA material can only be created using Composite Material Manager. The material file must be saved in the Helius PFA material library. By default, materials are saved to a specific materials directory in your home directory:%APPDATA%\Autodesk\Helius PFA 2019\Materialswhere %APPDATA% is the value of the environment variable named APPDATA.For additional information, refer to the Composite Material Manager User’s Guide.
- Create a finite element model in ANSYS MAPDL or other general pre-processor.If a finite element model is created in ANSYS MAPDL, a Helius PFA plug-in is available to define how the material created in the previous step will be used in the model.ANSYS MAPDL must be launched under a specific environment for ANSYS to find the Helius PFA plug-ins. This is done with the Helius PFA for ANSYS APDL Launcher. The Launcher can be accessed from the desktop shortcut or under Autodesk in the Start menu.If a model is created using a general pre-processor, the ANSYS input file must be modified to facilitate an analysis with Helius PFA.For additional information, refer to the User’s Guide for ANSYS.
- Submit the model to the ANSYS solver.You can submit an analysis with Helius PFA through ANSYS MAPDL or using a command prompt. For additional information on submitting an analysis through MAPDL, refer to the ANSYS documentation. Use the information below to submit an analysis using a command prompt.For convenience, a batch file (ansys-helius.bat) is installed as part of the Helius PFA package. This file expedites the analysis submission procedure. The batch file is installed in the Helius PFA bin directory. Access to this batch file is made simple by opening the Autodesk Helius PFA 2019 Command Shell via the desktop or Start menu shortcut.For information regarding use of the Command Shell, refer to the User’s Guide for ANSYS.
- Autodesk HELIUS PFA 2019 Free Download
Nastran Quick Start Guide
Follow the steps below to run an analysis with Helius PFA using Autodesk Nastran.
- Create a material using Composite Material Manager.A Helius PFA-compatible material cannot be created using a pre-processor for Autodesk Nastran or using an Autodesk Nastran command inside an input file. A Helius PFA material can only be created using Composite Material Manager. The material file must be saved in the Helius PFA material library. By default, materials are saved to a specific materials directory in your home directory:%APPDATA%\Autodesk\Helius PFA 2019\Materialswhere %APPDATA% is the value of the environment variable named APPDATA.For additional information, refer to the Composite Material Manager User’s Guide.
- Create a finite element model with the Nastran Editor or other general pre-processor.After a model is created using the Editor or another general pre-processor, the Autodesk Nastran input file must be modified to facilitate an analysis with Helius PFA.For additional information, refer to the User’s Guide for Nastran.
- Submit the model to the Nastran solver.Submitting a Helius PFA model to the Nastran solver is no different than submitting a standard Autodesk Nastran model. You can submit directly from the command line or from within the Nastran Editor (Analysis > Run). You may use a standard Windows or Linux command prompt or the Command Shell installed with Helius PFA. Review the NASTRAN Command Line section of the Autodesk Nastran Reference Guide for specific syntax requirements.
Autodesk HELIUS PFA 2019 Free Download
