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Interacting with CAE Software
Simcenter STAR-CCM+ can interact with a wide range of other computer-aided engineering (CAE) software. This interaction includes import/export of mesh and solution data as well as coupling capabilities for multiphysics simulations.
File-Based Coupling (through Imported CAE Model)
File-based coupling is a method used to couple Simcenter STAR-CCM+ with another CAE code via external files stored in the computer memory.
Working with Abaqus
This section describes how to couple Simcenter STAR-CCM+ with Abaqus using file-based coupling.
Importing Abaqus Solution Data

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Interacting with CAE Software
Simcenter STAR-CCM+ can interact with a wide range of other computer-aided engineering (CAE) software. This interaction includes import/export of mesh and solution data as well as coupling capabilities for multiphysics simulations.
- File Import and Export
  Simcenter STAR-CCM+ allows you to import mesh and solution data from other CAE packages using files. You can also export such data from Simcenter STAR-CCM+ for use in external software.
- File-Based Coupling (through Imported CAE Model)
  File-based coupling is a method used to couple Simcenter STAR-CCM+ with another CAE code via external files stored in the computer memory.
  - What Is the Imported Models node?
    Every CAE model that is imported in the simulation is represented by a node within the Imported Models node. These imported CAE model nodes, located within the Imported Models node, provide an interface for file-based coupling.
  - Visualizing an Imported CAE Model
  - Understanding Data Mapping
    Mapping is the process of interpolating a set of data between two separate models. For example, pressure data from a fluid domain can be mapped onto the corresponding surface of a solid domain and used as a traction load.
  - Mapping STAR-CCM+ Solution Data to a CAE Model
    Solution data from a Simcenter STAR-CCM+ model can be mapped onto a CAE model for use with third-party CAE software.
  - Exporting Mapped Data
    Simcenter STAR-CCM+ solution data that has been mapped onto an imported CAE model can be exported from Simcenter STAR-CCM+ so that it can be used in an external CAE package. Data is exported from Simcenter STAR-CCM+ in text files that can be read by the respective CAE package.
  - Mapping and Exporting Transient Surface Data
    Simcenter STAR-CCM+ allows you to map transient surface data onto the surfaces of an imported transient model, and to export the mapped data to an external .trn or .mat (Matlab) file.
  - Importing CAE Solution Data
    In two-way coupling, a solution is obtained by sequentially running Simcenter STAR-CCM+ and a third-party code to obtain a complete solution. This may involve using Simcenter STAR-CCM+ to compute the traction load on a flexible structure caused by fluid flow, and a third-party code to compute the deflection of the structure and associated displacements and stresses. In order to carry out a two-way coupled simulation, not only do you need to map and export solution data from Simcenter STAR-CCM+, but you will also need to import solution data from the third-party software, and map it onto the Simcenter STAR-CCM+ model.
  - Mapping CAE Solution Data to a STAR-CCM+ Model
    In two-way coupling, data from the third-party CAE solution is used to specify boundary conditions in Simcenter STAR-CCM+.
  - Exchanging Heat Transfer Coefficients
  - Working with Specific CAE Products
  - Working with Abaqus
    This section describes how to couple Simcenter STAR-CCM+ with Abaqus using file-based coupling.
    - Preparing Data in Abaqus
      The Abaqus geometry data is imported from a standard ASCII-format Abaqus keyword input file (.inp). This data is for surfaces and volume elements that are defined in Abaqus. Surfaces are defined as a set of faces of 3D continuum elements and/or faces of shell elements. Volumes are defined as sets of 3D continuum elements. Simcenter STAR-CCM+ supports surface-to-surface and volume-to-volume mapping, and the meshes do not need to be conformal.
    - Importing Abaqus Solution Data
    - Exporting Data to Abaqus
      When the export action is executed, an Abaqus .inp file is produced that contains mapped data from the Simcenter STAR-CCM+ solution. This file is a standard ASCII-format keyword-driven Abaqus file.
  - Working with ANSYS
    This section describes how to couple Simcenter STAR-CCM+ with ANSYS using file-based coupling.
  - Coupling with NASTRAN
    You can couple Simcenter STAR-CCM+ with Nastran using file-based coupling, for fluid-structure interaction (FSI) applications. In an FSI file-based coupled analysis, Simcenter STAR-CCM+ solves for the fluid loads and Nastran solves for the response of the solid structure. You can export the field data computed in each code to external files that are then used in the partner code to set appropriate boundary conditions.
  - Working with TAITherm
    This section describes how to couple Simcenter STAR-CCM+ with TAITherm using file-based coupling.
  - Working with es-ice or pro-STAR
    The .dbs file format is commonly used to import a surface mesh. It can also be used to map solution data from pro-STAR or es-ice to Simcenter STAR-CCM+ by importing the file as a CAE model, rather than a surface mesh.
  - Working with Ensight
    You can use the export capabilities of Simcenter STAR-CCM+ to compare multiple solutions in one simulation. This approach involves saving the results of each run in a separate Ensight file and is only possible for boundaries and parts, not volumes.
  - Working with the STAR-CCM+ Boundary Data (.sbd) Format
    The Simcenter STAR-CCM+ Boundary Data (.sbd) file format is an internal Simcenter STAR-CCM+ format that allows you to exchange boundaries across different simulations. For boundaries that you choose, this binary file contains mesh information as well as selected scalar or vector solution data.
  - Working with the Visualization Toolkit (VTK) Format
    The VTK format is part of a system of visualization and computer graphics programming known as the Visualization Toolkit. The .vtk format itself is designed to present different types of data consistently. Two styles of this file format exist: legacy (serial) and XML-based. Simcenter STAR-CCM+ works with the first style, either binary or ASCII, to import surface data. VTK files are also used by the arbitrary probe derived part.
  - Coupling with RCAS
    RCAS (Rotorcraft Comprehensive Analysis System) is a Computational Structural Dynamics (CSD) tool for modeling rotor blades. Simcenter STAR-CCM+ allows you to import RCAS models for fluid-structure interaction analyses using file-based coupling. The RCAS model mesh and motion data are stored within the same file, with the standard CSD *.in format.
- Rotor Blade Aeroelasticity
  Rotor Blade Aeroelasticity (RBA) simulations model the aerodynamic performance of elastic rotor blades using displacement and twist data from external files. You can create these data files in multi-body dynamics software such as RCAS, CAMRAD-II, DYMORE, and FLIGHTLAB. Typical RBA applications include urban air vehicle rotors, wind turbines, and helicopter rotors.
- Simcenter STAR-CCM+ to Simcenter STAR-CCM+ Co-Simulation
  Simcenter STAR-CCM+ allows you to couple two running simulations together in a co-simulation analysis. The Simcenter STAR-CCM+ to Simcenter STAR-CCM+ co-simulation capability targets analyses involving conjugate heat transfer (CHT), fluid-structure interaction (FSI), and exchange of any scalar or vector fields across the coupled boundaries or regions.
- Simcenter Nastran Co-Simulation
  For fluid-structure interaction (FSI) analyses, you can couple Simcenter STAR-CCM+ and Simcenter Nastran in a co-simulation analysis.
- Simcenter Amesim Co-Simulation
  Simcenter STAR-CCM+ allows for two-way co-simulation with Simcenter Amesim, which is used for modeling dynamic systems.
- FMU Co-Simulation
  Simcenter STAR-CCM+ allows you to import Functional Mock-up Unit (FMU) models for co-simulation. An FMU is a time-dependent model, typically representing a dynamic network, that is written according to the Functional Mock-up Interface (FMI) standard. The FMI standard is a software-independent standard that provides an interface for coupling simulation software.
- Abaqus Co-Simulation
  The co-simulation technique can be used to solve complex fluid-structure interaction (FSI) problems by coupling Abaqus and Simcenter STAR-CCM+. Mechanical and/or thermal fields can be exchanged across the fluid-structure interface.
- GT-SUITE Co-Simulation
  Simcenter STAR-CCM+ allows for two-way co-simulation with GT-SUITE, a multiphysics simulation tool from Gamma Technologies. GT-SUITE provides a modeling framework for the design and analysis of engineering systems, such as engines, vehicles, and thermal-hydraulic networks.
- Reacting Channel Coupling
  The Reacting Channel Coupling feature provides the ability for exchange of data between three-dimensional Simcenter STAR-CCM+ and the one-dimensional Plug Flow Reactor which uses the CVODE solver. You can use the Reacting Channel co-simulation model in Simcenter STAR-CCM+ to solve reacting flow simulations in tubular heat exchangers with channels that are long and thin.
- Generic Launcher
  Simcenter STAR-CCM+ provides a generic launcher for external applications that allows you to launch any application or file at a specified time interval during a simulation.
- Co-Simulation API
  Simcenter STAR-CCM+ provides an Application Programming Interface (API) that allows you to write partner code that exchanges data with a running Simcenter STAR-CCM+ simulation. As the partner code can be part of any other application that supports linking to a flat C library, the co-simulation API extends the range of co-simulation scenarios possible with Simcenter STAR-CCM+.
- Data Mappers
  In Simcenter STAR-CCM+, data mappers allow you to interpolate field data available either on a source mesh or on a source table to a target mesh representation, so that the mapped fields can be used for applying boundary or volume conditions on the target mesh.
- Coordinate Cell Clustering
  Simcenter STAR-CCM+ allows you to group mesh cells into clusters, based on their position with respect to a specified coordinate system, and provides a field index for querying values based on cluster. You can create threshold reports based on these clusters of cells.

Importing Abaqus Solution Data

To import data from Abaqus, you must have access to an Abaqus installation. In the Import Data Options dialog for an Abaqus model, additional options are required in order to set up the import operation. The dialog shown in the example below is for importing Temperature data.

To set the additional options, do the following:

In the Abaqus Command text box enter the command you use to launch Abaqus, for example abq6141.
Typically this is based on your installation path for Abaqus. On Windows the command is abaqus.bat.
In the Load Step Name text box, enter the name of the step in the Abaqus analysis job for which you would like to import data.
The default name for the first load step in an Abaqus input file is Step-1.

When you click OK the data is imported into Simcenter STAR-CCM+. During this process Simcenter STAR-CCM+ launches Abaqus in the background. If you do not have access to an Abaqus installation, an error message is displayed.