Script to aid in fatigue model setup using a flexbody

Ben Buchanan
Ben Buchanan
Altair Employee
edited April 2023 in Altair Exchange

Overview

In HyperWorks using the HyperMesh client this script automates part of the process to perform a fatigue analysis in OptiStruct.  It does the following steps:

  1. Calculates SR1, b1 and NC1 for the MATFAT card using user entered values for yield strength (YS) and ultimate tensile strength (UTS) for each material
  2. Removes everything from the model that is not required for the fatigue analysis (Assemblies, Beam Section Collectors, Cards, Contact Surfaces, Groups, Set Segments, Load Collectors, Load Steps, Systems, Tags, 0D and 1D elements, Empty Components, Unused Materials, Unused Properties)
  3. Creates element sets for each property
  4. Imports the needed_for_fatigue.fem file (attached here)
  5. Updates the following cards accordingly
    1. EL2PROP
    2. FATDEF
    3. ASSIGN
    4. TSTEP
  6. Includes event name in file names and saves files (fem and hm).

Usage/Installation Instructions

Tip: Use the flexbody_bus_fatigue.hm model attached to this project with this script as an example. This is a bus model with some materials marked as "not_interested" so that they will be excluded when using the following fatigue automation script.

 

Usage:

1) Run the script.

2) When the script is run the user is prompted to select the materials to be considered for the fatigue analysis.  Materials with "not_interested" in the material name will automatically be excluded. Then the following dialog opens to collect the rest of the user inputs:

image

 

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