General > Batch mode

CFturbo can be executed in batch mode to modify designs without any screen display and user interaction. This is essential for using CFturbo with optimization software.

Syntax

cfturbo.exe -batch <batch file> [-verbose] [-export <interface name>] [-log <log file>]

Example
CFturbo is installed in: Batch file is:	c:\Program Files\CFturbo 20xx.x\ c:\tmp\Example.cft-batch
"c:\Program Files\CFturbo 20xx.x\cfturbo.exe" -batch c:\tmp\Example.cft-batch

Options

-batch <batch file>	Enables CFturbo batch mode. <batch file> can either be a CFturbo batch file (.cft-batch) or a CFturbo project file (.cft).
-verbose	Display log output on the command line.
-export <interface name>	If CFturbo is started with a CFturbo project file in batch mode, an export interface can be selected like in the batch file.
-log <log file>	Use specified logfile for output

All other batch commands have to be defined in a "Batch file".

Batch file

The batch mode of CFturbo is controlled by an XML file *.cft-batch.
For a specific CFturbo project this file can be created via PROJECT | Batch mode/ Optimization.

Due to a close relation between the CFturbo file format (*.cft) and the batch mode format (*.cft-batch), only batch mode files created with the same version as your CFturbo file should be used. After an update of CFturbo a new batch mode file can be created and the needed adjustments can be done.

The resulting batch mode file contains all selected parameters of the CFturbo project as XML nodes supplemented by a short description and optional range definitions.

File structure:

<?xml version="1.0" standalone="yes"?>

[...]

</Updates>

[...]

</BatchAction>

[...]

</BatchAction>

</CFturboBatchProject>

</CFturboFile>

A batch mode file can contain multiple elements of the CFturboBatchProject-type, each of which is handling a specific CFturbo project.This allows the combination of multiple batch mode files into one batch mode file.

All XML-subelements are optional and can occur multiple times except for the Updates-block which must occur once per CFturboBatchProject-element.

The InputFile-attribute of the CFturboBatchProject-element specifies the path of the CFturbo project file.

Updates

The Updates block contains all selected parameters that should be modified during batch run. These can be simple scalar values, points or arrays. Each parameters has his own description for more easy navigation in the file, e.g. for optimization setup.

Some general remarks to the parameter update:

•Parameters are available for batch mode only if they can be modified in interactive design mode.
Examples:
- Impeller main dimensions, blade angles are available only if automatic calculation is disabled.
- Values for splitter blades are available when splitters are not geometrically linked to main blades.

•Parameters can be modified within the same constraints that exist in interactive design mode. Modifications that violate the constraints will be corrected automatically.

•All parameters of the Updates block with their new values after the batch run are saved in a resulting parameter file <name of batch file>.cft-res. The file structure is identical to the batch file *.cft-batch and allows a comparison between the desired and the realized parameter value which takes all restrictions into account.

Batch actions

Two different actions are available for further processing of the CFturbo projects loaded in batch mode. The BatchAction-element can occur multiple times, e.g. for exporting multiple parts of the geometry in different modelstates or saving an updated geometry.

•Export action

The Export-action is used to export the project data utilizing the export interfaces CFturbo supports. Export is performed according to the export settings saved in the CFturbo file. The ExportComponents subelement can be specified for export interfaces supporting components selection. For details about the supported selection options for the specific interface see Project | Export.

<WorkingDir>c:\Examples\Myexports\</WorkingDir>

<ExportInterface Type="Enum">General</ExportInterface>

</ExportComponents>

</BatchAction>

Attribute / Node	Value	optional	Description
Name	Export	no	Action name
WorkingDir	<existing path>	yes	Folder for exported files
BaseFileName	<filename>	yes	File name without extension
ExportInterface	e.g. "General"	no	Export interface to use. The following values are valid:
			ANSA AnsysMesher AutoCAD AutoGrid BladeGen Catia CFturboExchange CreoParametric DesignModeler DXF General GridPro Hexpress HyperMill IcemSTEP IGG Inventor	Neutral3D NX OpenFOAM PerformanceData Pointwise Report Simerics SimScale SolidWorks SpaceClaim StarCCM TetraVolMesh TurboGrid TurbomachineryCFD VistaTF ZW3D
ExportComponents	-	yes	Components to be exported. Take into account that only components supported by the export interface will be exported

•Save action

Is used for saving the CFturbo project after applying batch updates. It can also be used for the automatic conversion of CFturbo files created with older program versions.

<OutputFile>C:\Testing\Examples\Impeller\Pump1_new.cft</OutputFile>

</BatchAction>

Attribute / Node	Value	optional	Description
Name	Save	no	Action name
Desc	<string>	yes	Description of the modified file name
OutputFile	<existing path>	no	Specifies the path of the file save destination