Femap v2021.1 has been released as of 12/11/20.
What’s New – here are some of the key changes after having read through the updates:
- If you import an invalid or incomplete Nastran file, the errors are handled differently, so that Femap won’t bind up for a period of time
- Faster entity picking using New Picking option under Preferences > Graphics.
- Mesh Control Explorer – this is a new dockable menu which will provide clarity on options for mesh propagation, visualization of slaved surfaces for solid meshing and/or mesh approaches on surfaces, and determining if curves are paired by a mesh approach and/or can be automatically paired based on proximity when mesh sizing. I played around with this by importing a thick solid that I’d normally tet mesh, slicing it arbitrarily, then meshing it, then playing around with the options in this pane. Seeing what “Show Slaved Surfaces” does is particularly enlightening. Check out videos 1 and 3 below for more example behavior.
- Lots of new MSC Nastran card support, especially in the way of SOL400 nonlinear and contact analysis.
Don’t forget to read the “What’s New” to see what changes will impact your own workflow. As always, you can read my recommended Femap upgrade process here.
Here are some videos that Siemens has published in support of this release, detailing the new features: