Top 7 FloTHERM V11 Features – #4: FloMCAD Automation
Software can be described in two ways, what it does (functional) and how it does it (non-functional). As a software matures in terms of its functional capability it is often the case that more effort goes in to developing it’s non-functional strengths. We introduced ‘FloSCRIPT’ with V10, a scripting language to enable FloTHERM to be operated without the need for laborious manual interactions in the GUI. It has seen a rapid adoption by the FloTHERM userbase, enabling common and repeated tasks to be reduced to a press of a button. With V11, FloMCAD can now also be driven using FloSCRIPT.
FloMCAD enables MCAD data to be imported in all common native and neutral formats. Once imported the geometry can be prepared for an efficient thermal simulation. Sometimes this entails feature suppression, other times a swapping out of a part, or section of body, with an analogous simulation equivalent. The needs of a simulation model differ greatly from the needs of an MCAD model. Such geometry conversion into a modelling equivalent will always be a central part of the electronics cooling simulation process. The ability of FloSCRIPT to record a previous geometry conversion process, and to replay it on any update to that MCAD design, can save both time and frustration.
When we rolled out this functionality internally, prior to release, we created an Excel macro that enabled a tube geometry to be created in FloTHERM at a touch of a button, to showcase the technology. The Excel front end ran a VBA script that created a FloSCRIPT xml file and ran it in a FloTHERM session. The FloSCRIPT instructions created two cylinders, transferred them to FloMCAD, performed a Boolean subtract, voxelized the result then passed the geometry back to FloTHERM. After the demo to our AEs an incredulous voice from the back shouted “Burn him, burn him!”. It was very funny, well maybe you had to be there.. 🙂 Anyway, here’s what the demo looked like:
FloSCRIPT is revolutionising the way in which electronics thermal simulation can be further integrated into established design flows. Why not give it a go!
27th November 2015, Ross-on-Wye.
