4. Other Enhancements

4.1. CAD Support Updates

The following CAD support updates are available for the Mechanical APDL software:

Added support for –

  • NX 2412 (limited to Windows 10 and 11 Professional and Enterprise versions)

  • Parasolid 36.1 (Windows 10, Windows 11, and Linux)

Removed support for –

  • NX 2306 (on all operating systems)

  • Parasolid 35.1 (Windows 10, Windows 11, and Linux)

For more information, see Introduction to the Connection Functionality in the Connection User's Guide.

4.2. Element Face Components to Represent Surfaces

Element face (EFACE) components are now available in the Mechanical APDL product. These components represent surfaces using their combination of element IDs and corresponding aggregated bitmap face ID values. EFACE components use a compact format by default which significantly reduces memory usage. For more information, see CMBLOCK Command in the Programmer's Reference, CMLIST, and *VGET.

4.3. New Coded Database File Command

The following new coded database (CDB) file commands available:

  • /BLOCK – Notifies the program when block input starts and ends. This command may improve performance by enabling more efficient reading of the specified data.

4.4. Modified Coded Database File Commands

The following CDB file commands have been enhanced or otherwise modified:

  • EBLOCK – Defines a block of elements. EBLOCK now supports defining components.

  • NBLOCK – Defines a block of nodes. NBLOCK now supports defining components.

4.5. Element Single-Value Results Supported for SHELL281

The SHELL281 element type now supports single-value results. For more information, see Solution Output in the Element Reference.

4.6. Parameter Name Limit Increased to 240 Characters within Mechanical APDL

The maximum number of characters for all parameter names in Mechanical APDL has been raised to 240 characters. In the previous release, the maximum of 240 characters for parameter names was beta, with the exception of long tables.

For more information, see *SET, SUGET, and *DIM.

4.7. Component Names Support Special Characters

Component names now support a variety of special characters. For more information, see CM and CMGRP.