2022 Readme

Local Simulation

• Importing STL files into Local Simulation on a Windows 7 Remote Desktop produces a crash. As a workaround, you can launch Local Simulation from a command line with the following command: tscon 1 /dest:console start "appname.exe modelfile.stl" where modelfile.stl is the name of the file to be imported. If this does not work, a more extensive procedure is as follows:

  Determine your remote desktop session ID

  1. At the Command prompt, type query session and press Enter.
     
  2. Find the ID number in the rdp-tcp row (typically 1 or 2).

  Create and run a batch file.

  1. In a text editor, create a two-line batch file (.bat) with the correct Session ID, Netfabb install directory, and STL file path. These elements are located as shown below:

     tscon <session ID> /dest:console 
     start "" "<Netfabb install directory>\SIM\appbase.exe" "<STL file path>" ""
     

     An example is as follows:

     tscon 1 /dest:console 
     start "" "C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Netfabb Ultimate 2020\SIM\appbase.exe" "c:\test\1.stl" ""
     

  2. Run the batch file as an administrator.
     Note: The batch file will end by logging you out of the remote desktop connection. Log back in to see the imported STL file in Simulation Utility.
  • For the Windows Remote Desktop, an additional possible workaround is to open Local Simulation on the server station and leave it open. When remoting in, this is less likely to trigger an immediate crash.
• Tivus projects with custom unicode coded PRM files that are transferred to new systems, or after changing the PRM library, will not import the custom PRM file. Users will have to re-import and reassign the custom PRM file.
• If users switch from multiple displays to a single display, dialog menus may appear off screen. To fix the issues reinstall Local Simulation.
• If a DED mesh preview is made and then the mesh settings are changed before solving, the Mesh in the preview will not match that observed in the simulation results.
• Closing the results Table in the DED workspace will turn off Warp by Displacement. Users can manually restore visual warping of the results from the Plot Settings menu.
• Local Simulation does not work if Netfabb is installed in a folder whose name contains international characters.
• When working with a part that contains "model" in the name, Local Simulation will crash when you perform a mesh preview or a solve. The error is caused because Local Simulation incorrectly writes multiple STL files to the *STLF keyword. As a workaround, rename the part so that it does not contain the text "model".
• Warning and error notifications are cleared from the list of toast notifications when a simulation is re-run.
• If a part level powder bed or DED model is run while a PRM generation process is in progress, critical warnings and error notifications for the PRM process are not shown. Warnings and errors for a PRM generation are available from the View Logs button within the Job Manager.
• If multiple PRM files are generated simultaneously, the Lack of Fusion, Hot Spot, and Interlayer temperature columns in the Processing Parameters Library can remain blank until the Local Simulation is closed and restarted.
• Some .SLDPRT files will not import the first time. If the user re-attempts the import it will work correctly.

Local Simulation

• The first time you solve from the command line, you may receive a message saying "'pan' is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file." As a workaround, edit the Path environment variable (Control Panel > System Properties > Environment Variables) to point to the bin directory of the Local Simulation installation (typically C:\Program Files\Autodesk\NetfabbSimulation 2022\Solver\bin).
• Be sure to set the environment variables in netfabb_sim_vars.sh according to your system. Refer to the Shell and Intel MKL Environment Variables section of the help for details about controlling the number of threads and the memory limit per thread. If these variables are not set in accordance with your system, a segmentation fault can occur.
• Under-constrained DED toolpaths will create under-constrained floating elements and incorrect results.