Engineering analysis + design software

Additional Information

See the adjacent Software Information links for general details regarding LUSAS software products and options.

LUSAS Programmable Interface

The LUSAS Programmable Interface (LPI) allows the customisation and automation of modelling and results processing tasks and creation of user-defined menu items, dialogs and toolbars as a means to access those user-defined resources. It can also be used for transferring data between LUSAS and other software applications, and to control other programs from within LUSAS Modeller, or control LUSAS Modeller from other programs.

With LUSAS LPI, any user can automate the creation of complete structures, either in LUSAS or from third-party software, carrying out design checks, optimising members and outputting graphs, spreadsheets of results and custom reports. Because everything carried out by a user is recorded in a LUSAS Modeller session file, anything that LUSAS can do can also be controlled by another application via the LUSAS Programmable Interface. This means that you can view and edit a recorded session, parameterise those commands, turn them into sub-routines, add loops and other functions to the scripts and create utilities, or a totally different application or program - using the proven core technology of LUSAS.

LPI languages and uses

By using any ActiveX compliant scripting language, such as VB.Net, C#, VBScript, C++, Python, Perl, JScript etc. to access LUSAS facilities and functionality, you can:

  • Create user-defined menu items, dialogs and toolbars 
  • Interrogate all aspects of a LUSAS model
  • Customise modelling operations
  • Create parameterised models
  • Automate repetitive tasks 
  • Import CAD geometry and properties
  • Make direct links to Microsoft Word / Excel, or other programs for import or export of data
  • Perform simple / codified design checks, and when used with automated iterative analysis, optimise structural member sizes and configurations, slab reinforcement quanties, etc.
  • Control other programs from LUSAS, and control LUSAS from other programs

LUSAS script files

In their simplest form script files are used to store a sequence of LUSAS commands for later playback. Some examples of use include the creation of start-up templates to pre-load the Attributes Treeview of the LUSAS Modeller user interface with selected attributes for a particular analysis; the setting of default mesh or material types, or preferred colour schemes; or defining specific model orientations for use when saving model views for use in reports.

When LUSAS is run, a session file is created recording each step of the model generation in Visual Basic Script (.VBS) - one of the most commonly used and easily understood languages. Editing of a session file can be used to define a similar model with new parameters. When the script is re-run in LUSAS, a new user-defined model can be easily and rapidly generated from the parameters defined. A Macro Recorder facility in LUSAS also provides the means to record a sub-set of commands for a task, for saving and re-use. User-generated scripts can be controlled by creating dialogs that may include parametric variables, check boxes, drop-downs etc.

Varied uses of scripts include reading of geometric data, such as column dimensions, section properties and span lengths / storey heights etc., from a spreadsheet to automatically build multi-span bridge or building models; rapid generation of parametrically-idealised wind farm base structures, or for automating the creation of numerous load combinations and envelopes; and for slicing through a model to create results for multiple loadcases, which can be automatically plotted on graphs and in reports.

A set of example scripts are provided in LUSAS to assist in the understanding of standard concepts including file handling, how to access LUSAS geometry / attribute data, and how to import / export data from / to Microsoft Word or Excel, or other programs.

Visual Basic, as well as JScript, Python and Perl are known as interpreted languages - meaning that there is no need for compilers to be used.

Component technology

The LUSAS Programmable Interface allows interfacing with other compatible Windows programs through a Component Object Model (COM) interface. This defines a set of rules by which two programs can communicate and allows controlling those programs as if they were part of LUSAS Modeller. LUSAS can also be used as a component of another system (running transparently if required) providing modelling capabilities, analysis solutions and results viewing and processing options for that application.

Examples include controlling external programs for inputting data into LUSAS, such as importing CAD geometry and properties for data sharing, as well as for exporting data for post-processing uses, such as exporting results into cells in a spreadsheet for additional calculations to be carried out. Typical uses of LUSAS as a component of another system include using LUSAS as a part of an automated BIM design system to allow customised design checks to be made within LUSAS before saving selected model / results data in a BIM platform, such as REVIT or Bentley.

LUSAS being used to provide results for a third-party application.

This more advanced customisation and use of LUSAS can make use of VB.NET, which (along with C# and C++ languages) requires compiling before use. However, the main benefit of using these languages over interpreted languages, such as VB Scripting, is that they are more powerful and provide standard plug-ins, controls and libraries of subroutines - avoiding the need to write them in-house.

Programmable Interface Architecture

LUSAS provides a .NET project template (also known as a plug-in), which can be customised by users to ‘interrogate’ LUSAS Modeller. This allows the exchange of design report data with particular Microsoft applications; the exchange of geometry design and results data with BIM platform software; and exchange of FE related and any customised data with third-party software applications.

Overall, LUSAS provides a rich programmable interface, with hundreds of programming interfaces (each having associated subroutines) that provide an LPI user with total control over all aspects of a LUSAS model - and not just for the attribute and geometric data. As an example, it is possible to use the interfaces to query a model and extract element results, perform design code-related calculations, and then either export those results into a spreadsheet format, or to make them available within LUSAS Modeller to enable contouring of those results using standard results processing and viewing facilities.

LUSAS Material Model Interface

In addition to the accessing and customising LUSAS Modeller via the LUSAS Programmable Interface, user-defined material models (written in Fortran) can be compiled and built into a customised LUSAS Solver executable by using the LUSAS Material Model Interface (LUSAS MMI).


Case study: Optimised steel dome modelling

FEA Korea wrote VB scripts to automatically model and optimise the members in a chosen steelwork dome arrangement on behalf of its client, Samsung Engineering and Construction. Roof types supported by the software wizard included a flat truss roof, a vaulted roof, and also circular, oblate, and elliptical domes.

Span lengths and dimensional data are user-defined for a chosen roof type. A preliminary LUSAS analysis is used to assign initial section properties for each member based upon a specified initial stress ratio. Optimisation target parameters are then defined. From user-defined values, loadings appropriate to the chosen design code are created and applied automatically to the relevant parts of the model. A stress check and a displacement check then take place to see if member sizes need to be increased from their initial sizes, prior to saving the resulting member sizes as a possible set for use. An iterative procedure than checks to see if any members can be reduced in size before saving a set of minimum member sizes as an optimum result.

For serviceability checks a model is automatically converted into one with elements suitable for either an eigen buckling analysis where buckling checks can be carried out for distributed, concentrated or user-defined loadings, or for one suitable for either a material, geometric, or material and geometric nonlinear analysis. Graphs, diagram plots, and reporting can be output for code-checked results, deflections, connections and many other results quantities.

Other case studies

Other case studies on which LUSAS scripting has been used to carry out automation and customisation include:

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Any modelling, design and analysis capabilities described are dependent upon the LUSAS software product, version and option in use.