How to Restart a Mechanical Event Simulation
If the power goes out while your Mechanical Event Simulation is processing or the analysis is stopped
for any other reason, you can restart the simulation at the last
successfully completed time step by clicking on the "Resume" button on the analysis screen.
Scenario One: Accidental Interruption
Let us say that a Mechanical Event Simulation is running and the power goes
out without giving you a chance to perform a controlled shut-down. Accupak solver technology continually
stores restart information for just such an event.
In this scenario, you can attempt to restart the simulation by following
these steps:
- start up your computer;
- open FEMPRO;
- open the model file you wish to restart;
- use the "Tools:Options..." command sequence to access the "Options" screen;
- on the "Analysis" tab, make sure the "Automate Analysis" option is deactivated (i.e., not checkmarked) as shown in Figure 1
and then click on the "OK" button;
- use "Analysis:Perform Analysis..." to access the analysis screen; and
- click on the "Resume" button as shown in Figure 2.
ALGOR will then attempt to restart the Mechanical Event Simulation from the
restart files. In most cases, the Mechanical Event
Simulation will resume.
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Figure 1: Deactivating the "Automate Analysis" option. |
Scenario Two: The Controlled Shut-Down
It is also possible to stop a Mechanical Event Simulation and restart it
later. You may stop a Mechanical Event Simulation for any number of reasons. For
example, if you experience a power outage and have a backup power supply, stopping the analysis
before your power supply is exhausted increases the chances of
successfully restarting the simulation later. A Mechanical Event Simulation may
also be stopped to free the computer for other disk-intensive tasks, or to
restart the computer.
To stop a Mechanical Event Simulation, simply:
- Click on the "Stop" button on the analysis screen, which
is enabled whenever a Mechanical Event Simulation is being performed. Note:
It may
take some time for the processor to complete the current time step and save
the restart information.
You may then exit the analysis screen and ALGOR software. To restart
the analysis, simply follow all applicable steps outlined in the first
scenario.
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Figure 2: Using the "Resume" button to restart the analysis. |
Other Uses for the "Stop" and
"Resume" Options
The "Stop" and "Resume" options may also be used to
extend a Mechanical Event Simulation beyond its original event duration or to
resume a Mechanical Event Simulation with some different parameters.
After successfully
completing or stopping a Mechanical Event Simulation, the following properties
and parameters can be changed for a restart:
- event duration;
- density of any part;
- magnitude and duration of an existing load curve;
- magnitude and direction of gravity or centrifugal loads;
- duration of active range;
- any parameters associated with the equilibrium iterations;
- rayleigh damping parameters;
- parameters used to control automatic time-stepping (except capture rate);
and
- time-step size, if you are not using the automatic time-stepping scheme.
The results of a restart analysis are appended to the original output files -- or those from a prior
restart -- thus enabling you to produce data files spanning the entire analysis. You
may therefore wish to consider creating a model archive before changing
parameters. Keeping an archive will enable you to consider several solution branches.
For more information about restart options for a Mechanical Event Simulation, refer to the ALGOR User's Guide.
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