ABAQUS/Standard is a general-purpose analysis product that can solve a wide range of linear and nonlinear problems involving the static, dynamic, thermal, and electrical response of components. This product is the main subject of this guide.

ABAQUS/Explicit is a special-purpose analysis product that uses an explicit dynamic finite element formulation. It is suitable for short, transient dynamic events, such as impact and blast problems, and is also very efficient for highly nonlinear problems involving changing contact conditions, such as forming simulations. ABAQUS/Explicit is not specifically covered in this guide but is described in the companion publication Getting Started with ABAQUS/Explicit: Keywords Version. The basic format of the input file is the same for both analysis products. In addition, the output is similar for the two products, and ABAQUS/Viewer can be used to postprocess the results from either product.

ABAQUS/CAE (Complete ABAQUS Environment) is an interactive, graphical environment for ABAQUS. It allows models to be created quickly and easily by producing or importing the geometry of the structure to be analyzed and decomposing the geometry into meshable regions. Physical and material properties can be assigned to the geometry, together with loads and boundary conditions. ABAQUS/CAE contains very powerful options to mesh the geometry and to verify the resulting analysis model. Once the model is complete, ABAQUS/CAE can submit, monitor, and control the analysis jobs. The Visualization module can then be used to interpret the results.

Only the Visualization module of ABAQUS/CAE (ABAQUS/Viewer) is covered in this guide. If you want to learn how to use other aspects of ABAQUS/CAE but are unable to attend a seminar, you can obtain a copy of the ABAQUS/CAE training material.

ABAQUS/Viewer is the Visualization module of ABAQUS/CAE; it is an interactive, graphical postprocessor that supports all of the capabilities in the ABAQUS analysis products and provides a wide range of options for interpreting the results. ABAQUS/Viewer is discussed in this guide.

ABAQUS/Aqua is a set of optional capabilities that can be added to ABAQUS/Standard. It is intended for the simulation of offshore structures, such as oil platforms. Some of the optional capabilities include the effects of wave and wind loading and buoyancy. ABAQUS/Aqua is not discussed in this guide.

ABAQUS/Design is a set of optional capabilities that can be added to ABAQUS/Standard to perform design sensitivity calculations. ABAQUS/Design is not discussed in this guide.

ABAQUS/AMS is an optional capability that can be added to ABAQUS/Standard. It uses the automatic multi-level substructuring (AMS) eigensolver during a natural frequency extraction. ABAQUS/AMS is not discussed in this guide.

ABAQUS/Foundation offers more efficient access to the linear static and dynamic analysis functionality in ABAQUS/Standard. ABAQUS/Foundation is not discussed in this guide.

The ABAQUS Interface for MOLDFLOW translates finite element model information from a MOLDFLOW analysis to write a partial ABAQUS input file. The ABAQUS Interface for MOLDFLOW is not discussed in this guide.

The ABAQUS Interface for MSC.ADAMS allows ABAQUS finite element models to be included as flexible components within the MSC.ADAMS family of products. The interface is based on the component mode synthesis formulation of ADAMS/Flex. The ABAQUS Interface for MSC.ADAMS is not discussed in this guide.

ABAQUS provides the following translators: