Femap version 9.3 is the latest release of UGS’ robust pre and post processor for engineering finite element analysis (FEA). Femap is known for its tight integration with Nastran, in particular UGS’ own NX Nastran solver. This latest 
version of Femap continues a more than 20 year history of productivity and functionality improvements aimed directly at dedicated engineers and analysts. Every Femap release sees new advances in the user interface promoting ease of use, and version 9.3 is no exception. New icons and toolbars add greater flexibility to the modeling process in general, and an expanded Model Info tree encompasses ever more functionality at the top level. Significant new functionality in version 9.3 includes a new method of applying loads through data surfaces, a new composite layup modeling interface, and enhanced geometry manipulation tools.
New analysis functionality includes bolt preload modeling and support for rotor dynamics, a new dynamic design analysis method (DDAM) for shock spectrum analysis.
Further developments are described below.
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The user interface has been enhanced to include easier definition of composite laminates, and a new Layup Editor dialog has been created to allow laminates to be edited directly. As the laminate property data is edited, updated composite A, B, and D matrices are calculated and reported immediately in the Entity Info pane.
The new Layup Editor allows ply properties to be edited individually or collectively if so selected. Also, plies can be rotated or moved around the layup, and you can easily define symmetry for the laminate as a whole. Also, previous limitations on the number of plies that can be defined have been removed.
New Grouping functions associated with laminate modeling have also been created, e.g. element grouping by layup, to allow easier viewing and manipulation of the laminate plies. The data surface concept has been added in Femap 9.3.
This is powerful method of defining complex load definitions using one, two, or three-dimensional entities. The ability to map data from one analysis and apply it as input to a subsequent analysis has also been extended from the initial functionality introduced in version 9.2.
Access to data surfaces is through a new Data Surface pane, though simpler definitions can be accessed directly from the load generation dialogs allowing data surface definition for loading to be defined on the fly. Once defined, the Data Surface Editor can be used to directly access data points.
One-dimensional data surfaces can be defined as linear interpolations between two points or a number of points, or defined from multiple splined data points. When the data has been entered, Femap creates the data surface and presents it in the Data Surface Editor, which can be used to make further changes if necessary.
Once defined, the data surface can be used as the method of defining loading within the load creation dialog boxes later on.
Two dimensional data surfaces can be defined by inputting four point locations with data values – Femap will linearly interpolate between these points and create the data surface accordingly.
The ability to map data from one analysis and apply it as input to a subsequent analysis, initially introduced in version 9.2, has been extended in this release and can now handle more than just surface data.
The example shows pressure data from a solid model flow analysis being applied as a data surface to create loading for a subsequent structural analysis of the pipes themselves.
Other data surfaces that can be created include two- and three-dimensional types from spreadsheets. Data is interpolated linearly between the defined array of points.
It is also possible to create a data surface based on arbitrary 3D locations and data, and node and element ID surfaces can also be created.
A new Geometry Thicken command can be used to add thickness to surface geometry thereby creating solid geometry. 
Besides adding thickness to a surface, the Geometry Thicken capability can be used to add or remove material from a solid, e.g. increasing or decreasing wall thickness, or the size of a hole. It can be used in conjunction with other commands such as Boolean operations to split up solids to increase mesh control through the wall thickness for example.
Auto Boolean operations have been included in the Thicken Solid dialog.
This example uses Geometry Thicken to divide a solid wall to enforce a mesh comprising two elements through the thickness – the outer wall is partitioned using the Embed command.
In this release the Model Info tree has been enhanced to support the ability to create load and constraints directly. In this fashion Femap continues to provide an alternative method of working to the traditional selection of menu options. 
A new toolbar has been incorporated in the new release of Femap 9.3 that links directly to the directory that contains all the delivered API macros and executable files that ship with Femap.
User written API’s saved to this directory will automatically appear in the toolbar.
Also, the “Last Command” feature now supports commands that ran API executables in the previous command.
New methods of projecting nodes have been added, nodes can now be projected onto a plane, or to a vector.
More controls have been added to the Merge Coincident Node options allowing more flexibility and better management of nodes and node numbering during merging.
Methods of group combinations have been enhanced with the introduction of Boolean functions within Group Operations. Groups of entities can created that add, combine, subtract entities of other groups. Groups can also be created that contain entities that exist in all selected groups, or only in one of the selected groups.
New entity picking methods have been added to the existing methods in the Entity Selection dialog boxes.
For example, for the coordinate method, entities can be selected above or below a value, between or outside of two values, and based on topology around a point, vector or plane independently for x, y, or z components.
Other options of picking include Around Point, Around Vector, and Around Plane.
Numerous minor enhancements have been made to the user interface only a small selection of which have been mentioned here.
A new toolbar for dockable panes is available to easily post and unpost panes to the screen.
Units have been added to the Geometry Scale Factor to clarify scale factor selection.
A new set of View Center and Rotate Center commands have been added that allow easier specification of center points for viewing and model rotation.
Many new icons have been introduced in various dialog boxes throughout Femap. These icons allow branching into other model definition dialogs to create entities that are likely to be needed for the current activity. 
For example, when creating element properties it is necessary to link the properties to a material definition – but what if you haven’t created the material when you are creating element properties? A new material definition icon now exists in the Element Property dialog to allow material creation on the fly.
Some often used functionality has been raised to more accessible menus, for example Show Thickness / Cross Section and Color With (element, property and material) has been added to the View Style drop down menu for easier access.
The allowable length of all titles has been increased.
In the File / Preferences dialog, the tabs have been rearranged into more than one row allowing easier selection.
Femap version 9.3 supports the modeling of bolt preloads. Bolt preloads can be used to model the effect that arises when components of an assembly are bolted together and when a specified torque translates into an axial bolt 
preload. Bolt preloads is a new capability in NX Nastran 5, now supported in Femap with an additional Bolt Preload loading option in the Model / Load menu and the Model Info tree.
The rotor dynamics capability is now supported by Femap in version 9.3. The solution data is set up in the Analysis Set Manager for modal and frequency response analysis, and the eigenvalue, damping, and frequency output is recovered and can easily be plotted in a Campbell diagram.
The rotor dynamics capability, updated in NX Nastran 5, supports single and multiple rotors, and fixed or rotating reference systems.
The dynamic design analysis method (DDAM), an analysis method in Nastran, is now supported by Femap 9.3. DDAM is a method of shock spectrum analysis largely employed by the US Navy that can be used to determine the dynamic response of a component on board a ship or vessel subjected to shock loading caused by a sudden movement of the vessel due to a phenomenon such as an underwater explosion.
A new dialog box has been created to allow the DDAM solution options to be defined, while another dialog allows DDAM coefficients to be specified, if not imported from an external file.
The DDAM analysis is set up through the Analysis Set Manager.
Further support for Nastran solvers includes:
Through the Group functionality, all contour styles (i.e. contours, criteria, beam diagrams, isosurfaces, section cuts, contour vectors etc.) can selectively be displayed or not, allowing Femap to display partial results on a model. 
This allows you to define where you wish to see the results while leaving the remainder of the model visible, but not contoured.
Support for the Patran neutral file has also been enhanced, and all geometric entities can be migrated from Patran into Femap, including named components or groups.
The facility to check element distortion using the Jacobian approach has been added.
Support for the 3Dconnexion Space Navigator devices has been improved.
The Femap material library has been extended to include over 240 material definitions.
Solver SupportFemap supports the following solvers:
Femap supports the following CAD and geometry formats:
Parasolid 18.1
ACIS 16
STEP AP 203
STEP AP 214
IGES 4.0-5.3
CATIA 4.1.9 to 4.2.4, CATIA V5 R17
I-DEAS 9m2
Pro/Engineer 16 -Wildfire 3
Solid Edge 19
Unigraphics 11-18 & NX 1-NX 4