For more than 40 years, MSC.Software has been the world’s pioneer, leaderand premier provider of Virtual Product Development Software. For each ofthose 40 years, MSC.Software’s cornerstone product for helping make theprocess of Virtual Product Development a reality has been MSC.Nastran.

Our countless man years of collective Nastran development and engineeringexperience has given us technical ability, but it is with the input from our over1000 customers and 50,000 MSC.Nastran users which has helped shape thedevelopment of MSC.Nastran 2004 (available in August of 2003).

MSC.Nastran 2004 will prove to be the most comprehensive release ofMSC.Nastran to date. Users of MSC.Nastran 2004 can expect many newfeatures and enhancements that either improve their existing simulationcapabilities or expand simulation into new application areas. Some highlightsof these enhancements include:

CUSTOMER-DRIVEN PROJECTS AND ENHANCEMENTS:

You can’t move forward by standing still. To help you move forward so you canget the most from your simulations, MSC.Software has added over 30 newfeatures and about 120 customer-driven enhancements to MSC.Nastran 2004.These features concentrate on significantly improving existing functionality, aswell as providing additional items which broaden MSC.Nastran’s overallcapability. In addition, we have also made great strides in reducing the overallmemory and disk space requirements for running simulations. Some highlightsof the MSC.Nastran 2004 features include:

NEW CAPABILITIES FOR EXISTING APPLICATIONS:

Reduced Solution Time:

With the trend towards increasing model size, and more detailed modelingtechniques, comes longer analysis run times, which have to be reduced asmuch as possible to increase engineering design productivity. To be able tocomplete a simulation in a few hours would allow results to be evaluated anddocumented, with another possible re-evaluation, all within one day, ratherthan having to wait for a run to complete overnight. The focus with theAutomated Component Modal Synthesis (ACMS) capability has been todramatically improve solution speed within MSC.Nastran 2004.

The following chart (Fig. 1) shows the speed improvements comparing thesolution times of a 500,000 node model containing 1500 structural modesin v 2001 versus MSC.Nastran 2004.

CAPABILITIES• New capabilities for existing applications

– Reduced solution times

– Improved optimization speed

– Spot weld

– Acoustics

• New capabilities for new applications

– Implicit Nonlinear capabilities

– MSC.Nastran ADAMS integration

– Rotor Dynamics

– Stochastic analysis

BENEFITS• Additional areas that enhance the user

experience

– Extensive support from the MSC.Nastrancommunity

– Flexible solution deployment

– Scalable and integrated Virtual ProductDevelopment

PRODUCT LINEMSC.NastranMSC.Nastran

™ 2004

(Fig. 1)

Improved Optimization Speed:

Following the same theme, MSC.Nastan’s Optimization capability has been similarly enhanced. Simulations that used to take30 hours can now be completed in less than one business day allowing the evaluation of even more design variations while stillallowing a same day response.

The chart below (Fig.2) shows the results for a model with 2.2 Million DOF containing 162 excitation frequencies, 7 load cases,251 normal modes and 128 design variables was run in v70.7, 2001 and MSC.Nastran 2004.

Spot welds:

With the assembly of an overall system model, it is likely these days that the individual parts will come from disparatedesign groups or companies, and are likely to be meshed independently with varying mesh densities. The task of modifyingthese component models to allow congruent mesh matching (in order that the parts may be brought together) would beextremely cumbersome and time consuming. In MSC.Nastran 2004 several enhancements have been made to the spotweld capability to allow arbitrary connections to be made across components with differing mesh densities greatlyfacilitating the assembly of component models. Further, stochastic input has been added allowing random connectionfailure to be taken into consideration.

“The modeling of spot welds in trimmed body models had been a very time consuming task in thepast. With the joint development of CWELD together with MSC.Software, Volkswagen is able to saveup to 30% time, especially in exploring design changes.”

-- Jürgen HillmannBody Analysis and TestVolkswagen

(Fig. 2)

Acoustics:

Interior vehicle acoustics problems analyzed with previous versions of MSC.Nastran (2001) could be very time consuming dueto the coupling of the fluid mesh (air) with the structural mesh. With MSC.Nastran 2004 a new coupling matrix algorithm, thatidentifies the fluid structure interface, has been added drastically reducing run times while increasing the accuracy of results.

NEW CAPABILITIES FOR NEW APPLICATIONS:

You use various solvers for various simulation applications. You probably are used to using MSC.Nastran for a very specificset of problems that you regularly encounter. What if MSC.Nastran’s capabilities were expanded to new application areas? Ifyou could use MSC.Nastran for applications outside what you are used to, you could use your existing MSC.Nastranexperience (and models) to broaden the scope of your simulations without leaving your familiar environment. To help you getmore out of your investment, MSC.Software has added several new capabilities to MSC.Nastran which expand its capabilitiesand improve its accuracy. Some of those enhancements are:

Implicit Nonlinear (SOL 600):

Normally, when it comes to structural problems that involve contact, large displacement or material nonlinearity, you have tolook outside MSC.Nastran to run your simulation. This usually creates the need for you to rework your finite element modeland "Convert" it into another format suitable for the solver you plan to use. Reworking the model is never without itschallenges. If you could simulate models containing 3D Contact or deformable-deformable and rigid-deformable structureswith basic nonlinear materials using MSC.Nastran inputs and outputs it would increase your efficiency by using a singlemodel format, eliminate model recreation and be much easier. By integrating some of the MSC.Marc™ technology intoMSC.Nastran 2004, you can now run these simulations without leaving the MSC.Nastran 2004 environment.

Nonlinear analysis oftop suspension housing

MSC.Nastran ADAMS Integration:

Including flexible bodies in MSC.ADAMS™ simulationsincreases the fidelity of your multi-body models and helpsyou understand how part deformations impact theperformance of your mechanical systems. In order for thisto occur, you need modal results from MSC.Nastran. WithMSC.Nastran 2001 this is done by running the specialDMAP alter mnfx.alt. The reduced matrices can then bewritten to an op2file which is then translated to a modalneutral file (mnf). Once you have the mnf file, it needs to beoutput to MSC.ADAMS. This process works, but isburdensome and time consuming. With MSC.Nastran 2004,the former DMAP alter is now integrated as part of thestandard solution sequences. MSC.Nastran 2004 can nowoutput the mnf file directly, completely avoiding the op2 filestep. By combining two of MSC.Software’s major simulationprograms you can not only be much more efficient, but alsoreduce the size of the mnf files directly in MSC.Nastran andmove the mnf files across platforms without problems allwithout a DMAP or superelement license.

Rotor Dynamics:

The analysis of structures that include rotating components have traditionallyrequired the use of in-house proprietary codes, or customized DMAP solutions withinMSC.Nastran. With MSC.Nastran 2004 a new rotor dynamic analysis capability hasbeen introduced to provide an easy-to-use standardized procedure for the analysis ofsuch structures. This standardization allows easier exchange of model data betweenin-house groups or external vendors. This new analysis capability allows gyroscopiceffects to be taken into consideration for multiple rotors, which may spin atdiffering rates.

Stochastic Analysis:

To further the simulation of reality, the field of stochastics allows the introduction of real life variables such as varying materialproperties, gauge thickness, or connector (spot weld) failure within the virtual product design process. The application of thismethodology by industry has shown that risk and cost of design can be reduced, while improving reliability of the finalcomponent. MSC.Nastran 2004 includes stochastic input variables for the random variation of Young’s moduli, plate thickness,and spot weld failure as input to stochastic design considerations within MSC.Robust Design™.

Comparison mnf file creation in MSC.Nastran 2001 and MSC.Nastran 2004

Model of Complex system

PSD Response Optimization:

To the automotive manufacture, passenger comfort is extremely important. To help understand how a vehicle’s Noise,Vibration and Harshness (NVH) response effects passenger comfort, Automotive manufactures and suppliers use PowerSpectral Density (PSD) methods to portray road roughness.

Physical testing techniques are used; however testing can be expensive and time consuming. Simulation techniques can beused to reduce time and minimize cost; however the sensitivity analysis of dependant variables tends to be a manuallyiterative process. What would dramatically improve the simulation process are optimization techniques that include PSDresponses. This would advance a vehicle design’s NVH behavior while reducing testing requirements, save on design costsand eliminate the trial and error approach to simulation. With MSC.Nastran 2004, we have included PSD responses in theOptimization routines. Using the adjoint method for sensitivity analysis, you can match road response test results, specifyresponse as an objective to be minimized, specify an upper limit to the response or to use in a synthetic response.

In a paper titled "Road Response Optimization" by Wayne Nack and Dennis Schwerzler of General Motors Corporation,MSC.Nastran’s PSD Response Optimization with External Superelement techniques were used on a "test-bed" model with thefollowing characteristics:

When comparing the initial and final PSD plots as a functionof frequency, the objective, which corresponds to the areaunder these curves, has been reduced from 0.154 to0.130 in twenty design iterations.

To keep abreast of what's going on with MSC.Nastran, please visit http://www.mscnastran.com to subscribe to our emailNewsletter and participate in our Product Support Community.

Parameter Number

Grids 23K

Total Degrees of Freedom 137K

Degrees of Freedom inthe Residual

7K

Elements 37K

Subcases 2

Frequencies 61

Design Variables 9

Response Points 3

http://www.mscnastran.com

ADDITIONAL AREAS THAT ENHANCE THE USER EXPERIENCE

Support/Communities

When faced with challenging problems and deadline pressures, it is nice to know that our 40 years of experience insupporting MSC.Nastran is readily available by a number of different means. When you have questions, or need assistance,you can easily access the MSC.Nastran Product Support Community from the MSC.Software webpage(http://www.mscsoftware.com/support/prod_support/nastran).

Here you will find a Knowledge Base containing nearly 3000 helpful articles on various MSC.Nastran related topics and avibrant Discussion Forum where MSC.Nastran users worldwide can share solution tactics. Also located on this page isaccess to the worldwide telephone support numbers so no matter where you are, you can call one of our more than 50 fieldtechnical support engineers skilled in assisting you with your MSC.Nastran applications. This is also the location you go ifyou want to find out about upcoming training courses, find out about professional services, have suggested productenhancements, would like to share a story about one of your simulations or read some of the stories submitted by yourcollogues.

http://www.mscsoftware.com/support/prod_support/nastran

Flexible Solution Deployment:

When you purchase a piece of software, you license the right to use that software as much as you need, but what ifyour application needs change or grow? A truly flexible solution would be one that lets you solve Motion, Life, Comfort,Safety, Strength, Vibration, Manufacturing, Controls, Hydraulics, Noise, Heat, Crash and many other problems when andif you they arise. With this type of solution, you would be able to address any technical need that arose without havingto invest in additional software. If you were to use MSC.Nastran as part of our Virtual Product Development CampusLicense System, you would not only have the benefits of MSC.Nastran where & when you need them, but you have theability to use your tokens to access the world’s most comprehensive portfolio of simulation software.

A Virtual Product Development (VPD) Campus License provides you with the ability to take advantage of the breadth anddepth of MSC.Software's world-class simulation software portfolio within a flexible licensing system, allowing you to usewhatever simulation tools you want, whenever you need them.

Scalable/Integrated Virtual Product Development:

An Orchestra is made up of many different types of instruments. Alone each of them sounds nice, but it is when thevarious types of woodwinds, brass & percussion instruments work together that beautiful symphonies are performed.The various types of simulations you conduct are like the instruments in an orchestra, each valuable, but whenintegrated provide invaluable information, true Virtual Product Development. MSC.Software provides the mostcomprehensive set of simulation products. With MSC.Nastran 2004 we have begun to integrate those products. By helping to integrate your simulations with one another, you can achieve true Virtual Product Development.

MSC, MSC., the MSC[x]Software logo, Simulating Reality, MSC.ADAMS, MSC.Marc, MSC.Nastran, MSC.Robust Design and all other names of MSC.Software product and services referenced herein aretrademarks or registered trademarks of the MSC.Software Corporation in the United States and/or othercountries.

NASTRAN is a registered trademark of NASA. All other product names, brand names, or trademarks belong totheir respective owners.

© 2003 MSC.Software Corporation. All rights reserved.

To find your local MSC.Software office or to learn more about our company andour products, please contact:

Customer Care Center:

1 800 642.7437 (U.S. only)1 978 453.5310 (International)customer.care@mscsoftware.com

Worldwide Web - http://www.mscsoftware.comOn-line Purchases - http://www.engineering-e.com

Corporate:

MSC.Software Corporation2 MacArthur PlaceSanta Ana, California 92707 USATel: 1 714 540.8900Fax: 1 714 784.4056