The VdmTools library from Visual Kinematics, Inc. provides a comprehensive mechanism for accessing data from the model input and solution results files of many important commercial MCAE and CFD simulation software systems. A uniform data model is mapped onto the data structure of all input and results data files (called libraries in VdmTools).

The net result being that VdmTools allows a single, consistent interface to finite element data from many sources. VdmTools also provides a "native" library format. A number of the file formats, particularly input files, may be written as well as read.

• Direct access to many industry standard file formats.
  • ABAQUS input files and .fil and .odb post data files
  • Ansys Inc. ANSYS input files and .rst, .rth, .rmg and .rfl result files
  • Ansys/AUTODYN results files
  • Ansys/CFX results files
  • Ansys/POLYFLOW mesh and solution files
  • Altair/HyperMesh ASCII files and H3D files
  • CEI/EnSight Casefile format
  • CGNS database
  • COMSOL sectionwise file
  • ESI/PAM-CRASH DAISY and ERF files
  • FEMAP Neutral file
  • Fluent mesh and data files, FIDAP neutral files
  • General Mesh Viewer file
  • IDEAS Universal files
  • LS-DYNA keyword input files and state and time history databases
  • MSC/MARC results files
  • NASTRAN Bulk Data files and Output2/XDB result files
  • MSC/NASTRAN .h5 result files
  • OBJ tesselation files
  • OpenFOAM databases
  • Patran neutral files
  • PERMAS result file
  • PLOT3D grid and function files
  • PTC/MECHANICA design studies
  • Samcef result files
  • STAR-CCM results files
  • STL ascii and binary tesselation files
  • Tecplot file format
  • Vtk legacy file format
  • VKI native HDF5 based file format
• Model data consists of node, element and coordinate system information. Element data includes connectivity and type, material and property IDs and user element ID. Node data includes coordinates and user node ID.
• Supported finite elements include lines, triangles, quadrilaterals, tetrahedra, pyramids, pentahedra or hexahedra which may be represented by linear, parabolic or cubic shape functions. Polyhedra and polygons, which are used in CFD solvers, are supported. High order p-elements are also supported through the PTC/MECHANICA interface module.
• Auxiliary model information.
  • Global properties
  • Element physical properties
  • Material properties
  • Function properties
  • Solution properties
  • Load, constraint, multipoint contraint, initial condition cases
  • Contact surfaces, analytic surfaces
  • Units
• State, history and reduced system matrix and vector results data supported.
• Results data may be maintained at node points, element centroids, element nodes or element integration points. Scalar, vector, six-dof, symmetric tensor (eg. stress/strain) and stress resultant data is supported.
• All libraries are treated as direct access even if written as sequential binary files (e.g. using FORTRAN sequential I/O). Data is accessed and coerced to memory resident data structures only upon request. This eliminates the need for global translation and data duplication and maximizes I/O operations.
• A number of file formats may be written as well as read. Currently supported file formats for writing include the following.
  • ABAQUS input file and .odb and .fil results file
  • ANSYS input file
  • CEI/EnSight Casefile format
  • CGNS data base
  • FLUENT Case and data file
  • IDEAS Universal file
  • LS-DYNA keyword input files
  • NASTRAN bulk data file and Output2 results file
  • Patran Neutral file
  • Tecplot file
  • VKI native HDF5 based file format