As of version 2025.1.4, batch files can be used to customize how you run HyperFEA and/or better integrate it into distributed computing environments. This includes (but is not limited to) services like AWS and Azure as well as in-house HPC clusters.
To run HyperFEA, all Zones in a project must be properly set up for Sizing. This means that each Zone:
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Has been organized into a Structure.
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Has been assigned a Design Property with all Sizing inputs fully defined.
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Has desired failure criteria activated in an assigned Analysis Property.
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Has been assigned a FEA Load Extraction Technique via Load Property.
Note
As of version 2025.1.4, HyperFEA can be run when some Zones are not completely set up. Those Zones will not be used by HyperFEA and warnings will be printed to the HyperFEA output console.
Incorporating Global FEA Constraints in to your HyperFEA iterations requires:
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Relevant FEM/Results Files must be added to the Project. For example, if implementing a Global Buckling Constraint, ensure that buckling load case(s) and corresponding results have been included.
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Manual FEA Constraints require displacements in the FEA results files for the Design Load Case of interest. Automated FEA Constraints require displacements AND element forces in the FEA results for the Design Load Case of interest.
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Stiffness Requirement Failure Mode must be added to the Analysis Property of any Zone that could be sized by the constraint.
This is the mechanism by which the local, Zone-level stiffness requirements are able to drive Sizing. See Stiffness Requirement Methods for more information on how the margin check(s) work.
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Set(s) should be created to collect any Zone that you would like the constraint to apply to. If a Set is provided, HyperX will only "look at" those Zones when enforcing Stiffness Requirements. For example, to drive out buckling modes by only sizing the stiffeners (not the skins) of a panel, create a Set of the bar elements in the panel.
Note
This step is required by the Manual Constraint approach. It is optional if using Automated Constraints.
There are additional setup steps required depending on the type of problem (displacement/rotation, buckling, frequency, or static moment) and the type of constraint (automated vs manual). This information can be found on either the Automated or Manual constraint page for each problem type.
The HyperFEA window is launched from the Run tab of the Ribbon:
Clicking this button results in a 'blank' HyperFEA window:
See HyperFEA Ribbon, Explained for an overview of each button seen on the screen, independent of steps in the workflow.
Next, click on "FEA Solver Setup". In the following form, click on "Toggle Batch Run Mode".
Now, instead of the path to the solver executable, you can set the path to the batch file you want to use.
You can also implement custom solver arguments similarly to how you would for a standard HyperFEA solver setup. HyperX will pass these arguments into the batch file when you start HyperFEA.
Note
While not explicitly required, these are the primary way of passing information from HyperX to the batch file.
For more information on the specific arguments available, see the sub-section below.
The HyperX install does not include any default batch files, so it is the user's responsibility to create their own. In this section, we will review an example batch file that runs HyperFEA for two rundecks at once to help you get started on creating your own.
Important
Batch files operate relative to your computing environment and Project setups. If you intend to use the following file as a starting point, make sure to update path names as necessary.
First, we need to review the setup of this sample Project. This Project contains two rundecks corresponding to UAM wings.
The batch file we specified for use in the last step is as follows:
@echo off
REM Loop through all command-line arguments (starting from %1, excluding %0)
for %%A in (%*) do (
echo Processing: %%A
REM Queue the rundeck
"{PATH_TO_SOLVER}" %%A
)
Note
Replace {PATH_TO_SOLVER} with the path you would use in the standard HyperFEA solver setup.
When HyperFEA starts, this file will receive arguments from HyperX (%* above). These are defined in the "Arguments" section of the "FEA Solver Setup" window (see last step). In this case, HyperX pass the rundeck names to the batch file which loops through to append them to the solver executable command. This will run HyperFEA on both rundecks simultaneously.
Clicking 'Start' on the HyperFEA window will reveal a few options, detailed in Step #6 here. After selecting one of those options, HyperFEA will run using the defined batch file to customize the solver executable command.