NEi Nastran
Developer(s) | NEi Software |
---|---|
Stable release | V10.2
/ 2013 |
Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) software | |
Website | www.NEiSoftware.com |
NEi Nastran was an engineering analysis and simulation software product of
History
The original
Improvements
In the late 1960s, Finite Element Analysis software was confined to running on expensive mainframe computers, and highly trained specialists were needed to apply the program. In this environment, the aerospace industry was the typical user because they had critical projects which could justify the resources FEA demanded. With improvements to the software and wider use of mainframes, FEA technology gradually spread to large corporations that could afford the huge investment in hardware, software, and a dedicated FEA staff. Usage spread from primarily aerospace and military applications to the automobile and maritime industries.
The microprocessor revolution and the advent of Personal Computers (PCs) in the 1980s brought tremendous improvements in computing power, significant reductions in computing costs, and the steady development of numerical methods and algorithms. In the mid-1980s, Noran Engineering recognized the long-term advantages and impact that the PC hardware revolution could have on the engineering analysis field and embarked on a project to significantly enhance and modernize the original NASTRAN code and port it to PCs.
The first commercial version of NEi Nastran for use on PCs was released in 1990. The new code had a number of changes in architecture and programming language compared to legacy Nastran written originally for mainframes. These differences were intended to take advantage of the dramatic changes in computer hardware taking place and provide the code with key strategic advantages for the new PC platform.[4] For example, since the cost of memory was dramatically reduced, it was feasible to perform many operations faster in memory that normally were only done on disk.
Present day
NEi Nastran V10.0 was released in May 2010. It incorporates over 85 customer-driven enhancements, including the following additions: nonlinear composite Progressive Ply Failure Analysis (PPFA), concrete material model, direct enforced motion, bolt preload, enhanced rigid element features, visualization support for various entities, automatic dynamic plots during nonlinear analysis, transparent max/min, and a new look and feel for its Editor tool.[5]
In August 2014, AutoDesk bought NEi Nastran, and the NEi Nastran technology is included in "Autodesk Nastran 2015", "Autodesk Nastran In-CAD 2015" and "Autodesk Simulation Mechanical 2015 R1".
External links
References
- ^ Design World Staff (March 11, 2008), "Analysis and Simulation Create Virtual Product Testing", Design World
- ^ http://www.3dcadworld.com/autodesk-acquires-nei-nastran-solver/ "AUTODESK ACQUIRES NEI NASTRAN SOLVER"
- ^ "NASA Technology", Www.nasa.gov, October 21, 2008
- ^ Livingstone, Paul (August 17, 2009), "Tying It All Together", R&D Magazine
- ^ Wong, Kenneth (June 24, 2010), "Looking Under the Hood of FEA Results with NEi Editor", Desktop Engineering