Abaqus / CalculiX Input File Extension for VS Code

Language support for Abaqus and CalculiX (CCX) finite element analysis input files.

Features

Syntax Highlighting

Highlights the key elements of the Abaqus input file format:

• Comments — lines beginning with **
• Keywords — lines beginning with *, categorized by type:
  • Block keywords: *STEP, *PART, *INSTANCE, *ASSEMBLY
  • Analysis procedures: *STATIC, *DYNAMIC, *FREQUENCY, etc.
  • Material definitions: *ELASTIC, *PLASTIC, *DENSITY, etc.
  • Output requests: *OUTPUT, *NODE OUTPUT, *ELEMENT OUTPUT, etc.
• Parameters — KEY=VALUE pairs on keyword lines (e.g. NAME=Part-1, TYPE=C3D8R)
• Numbers — integer, decimal, and scientific notation values in data lines (e.g. 1.234E-5)

Code Folding

Two levels of folding are available:

Block folds — collapse entire sections bounded by explicit *END keywords:

• *STEP / *END STEP
• *PART / *END PART
• *INSTANCE / *END INSTANCE
• *ASSEMBLY / *END ASSEMBLY

Data folds — collapse the data lines beneath any keyword (e.g. *NODE, *ELEMENT, *ELASTIC, *BOUNDARY). The fold spans from the keyword line to the line before the next keyword.

Supported Solvers

Both Abaqus and CalculiX (CCX) are supported. The two formats are very similar. Since both solvers use the same file extensions, select the language mode manually via the status bar when needed.

Supported File Types

Abaqus Input File Format

Abaqus input files use a keyword-based format:

** This is a comment
*HEADING
 My FEA Model
*PART, NAME=Part-1
*NODE
      1,           0.,           0.,           0.
      2,           1.,           0.,           0.
*ELEMENT, TYPE=C3D8R, ELSET=Part-1-1
      1,      1,      2,      3,      4,      5,      6,      7,      8
*END PART
*ASSEMBLY, NAME=Assembly
*INSTANCE, NAME=Part-1-1, PART=Part-1
*END INSTANCE
*END ASSEMBLY
*MATERIAL, NAME=MyMaterial
*ELASTIC
 210000., 0.3
*DENSITY
 7.85E-9,
*STEP, NAME=Step-1, NLGEOM=YES
*STATIC
 0.1, 1.
*BOUNDARY
 Set-1, 1, 3
*END STEP

Abaqus vs CalculiX

CalculiX (CCX) was designed to be largely input-compatible with Abaqus. Most keyword syntax, data line formats, and block structures are identical. This document records the notable differences.

Output Requests

Both solvers support *NODE FILE / *EL FILE for binary results and *NODE PRINT / *EL PRINT for text results. The binary results for Abaqus are written to a .fil file, while CCX writes to a .frd file. Both use the .dat extension for text results, though the format is different.

Abaqus has an additional, output system that writes to the .odb output database (viewable in Abaqus Viewer / CAE). CalculiX has no equivalent:

Element Type Names

CCX element names generally follow Abaqus conventions (e.g. C3D8, S4, B31) with some extensions and omissions. Refer to the CCX documentation for the full supported element library.

Building from Source

Node.js is required.

npm install
node ./node_modules/typescript/bin/tsc -p ./

Press F5 in VS Code to launch the Extension Development Host for testing.

Packaging

node -e "require('@vscode/vsce').createVSIX({cwd: process.cwd()}).then(() => console.log('done')).catch(e => console.error(e))"

This produces a .vsix file that can be installed via Extensions: Install from VSIX in VS Code.