You can import external mesh files and synthesize the geometry using the Workbench External Model system or the model import option of Mechanical. When generating a geometry, supported geometric entities include solids, shells, as well as beam element-based bodies (that have an assigned cross-sectional definition). The resulting geometry is the culmination of the use of the implicit (angle-based tolerance) and explicit (based on node-based components in the file) methods that work in combination to synthesize geometry and create surfaces that enclose the mesh volume.

This feature supports data import of lines, shells, or solids or a mix of lines, shells, and solids. See the External Model Supported Element Types section for a list of the available element types for the Mechanical APDL common database (.cdb), NASTRAN, and ABAQUS file formats.

This feature supports all Mechanical analysis types. For the specific instructions to import a finite element mesh file using this tool, see the Creating and Configuring an External Model System section of the Workbench Help.