TecDescription 360ex & Chorus 2023 R1 (2023.1.0.29657)

TecDescription 360 2023 R1 Release - Release Date: August 10, 2023
TecDescription 360 2023 R1 has all the features of TecDescription 360 2022 R2, plus support for high order elements! Highlights of high order element support are:
- Ability to read P2, P3, and P4 elements from CGNS, SZPLT, and VTU files.
- TecIO includes new APIs to write SZPLT files containing high order elements utilizing the new FEMixed Zone Type. CGNS node ordering is expected. See the CGNS documentation.
- High order elements are both selectively and recursively sub-divided, using the basis functions, to provide highly accurate results.
- Number of sub-divisions can be defined on a per-frame basis using new options in the Description Sidebar. Higher levels of sub-division provide more accurate results, but also require more RAM and processing time.


- Smaller output files. Many high order element codes export grids that are pre-subdivided. This drastically increases the size of the data on disk, even in areas of the simulation which may not be post-processed. By allowing TecDescription 360 to dynamically sub-divide the grid, only in areas of interest (region of an iso-surface or slice), your code can write less data. Each level of sub-division results in roughly 8 times the number of cells.
- 20.8x faster than ParaView with the same CGNS data. Descriptionting an iso-surface of Density takes 125.8 seconds with ParaView 5.10 and only 6.0 seconds with TecDescription 360. Furthermore, ParaView only sub-divides the surface data, meaning the iso-surfaces get no refinement. At 4-levels of sub-division TecDescription 360 takes only 65.5 seconds, which provides a more accurate result and is still nearly 2x faster!


- Higher levels of sub-division provide more accurate answers and are especially effective for line extractions (like velocity profiles seen here), streamtraces, and rendering of boundary surfaces.


- Lower levels of sub-division are generally adequate for qualitative Descriptions of iso-surfaces and slices. Higher levels of sub-division may be done, but it can be difficult to see the difference, so you may not want to pay for the extra accuracy.


Additional Updates & Features
- PyTecDescription 1.6.0: Mixed finite-element zone supported. High order finite-element support added. See the PyPI changelog for a full list of updates.
- CGNS data files output from CONVERGE CFD are now supported in TecDescription 360. Loading CONVERGE CGNS files may also be automated via a new PyTecDescription API: load_converge_cgns()
- Gouraud (smooth) shading now takes into account sharp angles between cells (creases) for improved rendering. The crease angle may be adjusted using the Edge Details dialog. To restore the 2022 R2 behavior, set the crease angle to zero.

Bug Fixes and Enhancements
- Fixed a licensing issue associated with network license servers combined with a load balancer. Client machines experienced a message stating, "The connection to your license server has been lost..." and then after 5-10 minutes, connection to the license server would be restored.
- Fixed an issue assigning solution time values to .vtu files. Time information in vtu data files identified by TimeValue is now read and used to properly assign solution time values when loaded into TecDescription 360.
- Fixed an issue where ASCII files wrote-out invalid variable sharing lists. If a user created a shared variable, then wrote out this variable along with additional variables, an error was given when attempting to load that file.
- Fixed a crash when extracting vortex cores for some Description3D files.
Python Version Support
TecDescription's Python support policy is to support the newest version of Python and the two previous versions. As of August 2023, we officially support Python 3.9, 3.10, and 3.11.


TecDescription 360is a suite of CFD visualization and analysis tools that can handle large data sets, automate workflows, and visualize parametric results. You'll be able to quickly make engineering decisions and communicate your results with integrated XY, 2D, and 3D Descriptionting. In 2017, TecDescription 360 was extended to include the ability to automate workflows with Python scripts (PyTecDescription), access data remotely (SZL Server) and explore a parametric design space (Chorus). These additional capabilities are built into 2017 and later releases of TecDescription 360. A parametric design space analysis tool, Chorus is included with TecDescription 360 and later versions. Chorus has a unique set of features that help scientists and engineers explore large data sets from multiple simulations, compare results and evaluate overall system performance. TecDescription Chorus helps engineers who run and generate many simulation or test data sets.
TecDescription 360 Tutorials
TecDescription, an operating company of Toronto-based Constellation Software, Inc. (CSI), is the leading independent developer of visualization and analysis software for engineers and scientists. CSI is a public company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX:CSU). CSI acquires, manages, and builds software businesses that provide mission-critical solutions in specific vertical markets.