Creating Battery (.tbm or .ebm) Files in Simcenter Battery Design Studio

In Simcenter Battery Design Studio, all the information about the battery is stored in the Text Battery Model file (.tbm). This information includes the physical description of the battery as well as the model parameters.

Simcenter STAR-CCM+ supports stacked cells and spirally wound cylindrical and prismatic cells.

For improved security, you can create an encrypted battery file. An encrypted battery file (an .ebm file) can be used in the same way as a .tbm file, but the file contents cannot be viewed or modified.

Creating a new battery cell

To create a new battery cell in Simcenter Battery Design Studio:

  1. In the Simcenter Battery Design Studio workspace, right-click the Batteries node on the left side of the window.
  2. In the context menu, click Add new Battery and then select the appropriate battery type.
    The default options for each battery type are:

    • LiIon Simple > LiIonSimple

      Creates a simple cell.

    • LiIon Spiral > LiIonSpiral

      Creates an idealized cell that you can use for modeling a cylindrical spiral cell. It is set up using the Distributed 3D model.

    • LiIon Stack > LiIonStack

      Creates a stacked cell.

    The new battery cell is added under the Batteries node and the corresponding battery definition window is displayed in the workspace. You can rename the battery and specify the appropriate configuration settings.

Building the battery file

Once you have configured the battery in Simcenter Battery Design Studio, you need to build the battery file. The build process recalculates the values displayed in the Report tab and writes the battery configuration information to a .tbm file.

To build the battery file:

  1. Under the Batteries node, right-click the battery that you want to build, and then select Build.


    When the build process is complete the message Build Successful is displayed. If any errors in the cell setup are detected, an error message is displayed.

Encrypting the battery file

If you want to distribute your battery file without the contents being exposed, you can encrypt the battery file. You must build the battery file as a .tbm file before you can create the encrypted battery file.

To encrypt the battery file:

  1. Under the Batteries node, right-click the battery that you want to encrypt, and then select Encrypt Cell.
    The Encrypt Options dialog appears:


  2. In the Output File box, specify the location and name of the encrypted file that you want to create.
  3. Click Encrypt.

    The encrypted battery file is added under the Batteries node and is saved to the specified location. You cannot modify the encrypted file; when you open the file in Simcenter Battery Design Studio you can only view the data sheet. If you want to modify the file contents, you need to make the appropriate changes in the .tbm file and then encrypt the file again.