This wrapper enables users to use Python to setup, solve, and post-process their simulation models. To enable APDL to be used with more modern object-oriented programs like Python, Ansys recently developed pyMAPDL. As users want to develop more complex workflows or utilize functions and libraries from others in their organization or simulation community, a more flexible coding language is needed. This means that any script users develop must be self-contained and can only be used to interact with the Mechanical solver. What is pyMAPDL and how does it differ from APDL?ĪPDL is akin to procedure coding languages like FORTRAN. For those wanting to learn the Workbench version of Ansys Mechanical, I would recommend the “ Ansys Mechanical Getting Started” training course. How is APDL different from Workbench?ĪPDL is a language that lets you add specific information into a solver, whereas Ansys Workbench is a platform that lets you coordinate and manage information between solvers and across projects. Especially for users who are comfortable working in code, APDL is a fast, efficient way to directly type in the command or function they need executed. Developing vertical applications for industry-specific problemsĪPDL provides users with a foundation for many sophisticated simulation features.By inserting a specific sequence of APDL instructions, users can augment the GUI’s functionality for tasks such as: Today, APDL commands continue to be highly popular, enabling users to customize their setup of the model or perform sophisticated post-processing operations in Ansys Mechanical. Today, APDL is primarily used to fine-tune settings in very complex simulations, where the desired interactions fall outside the scope of the standard GUI.

While APDL was the standard method of setting up models for many years, it required engineers to be trained on the myriad commands available and was enhanced with a more intuitive graphical user interface (GUI) in the early 2000s. Ansys was the first commercial simulation tool provider to offer users a versatile programming language to create parametric models for systemic analyses.ĪPDL has been around since the 1980s, initially developed by John Swanson to replace punch card instructions in mainframe computers with a simpler, easy-to-use language for personal computers.

APDL and MAPDL can be used for many tasks, ranging from creating geometries for analysis to setting up sophisticated solver settings for highly complex analyses. Mechanical APDL (MAPDL), a finite element analysis program, is driven by APDL. Ansys Parametric Design Language (APDL) is a powerful structured scripting language used to interact with the Ansys Mechanical solver.

PDF ansys apdl commands