KeywordBlock object

The KeywordBlock object contains a representation of its model in the Abaqus input file format. You may edit the contents of the KeywordBlock to add solver functionality that is not supported by Abaqus/CAE. As a general rule, edits to the KeywordBlock object should be made as the last step prior to writing the actual Abaqus input file, thus avoiding possible conflicts with changes made using other MDB commands. The KeywordBlock object has no constructor. A KeywordBlock object is created when you create a model object. A model object contains only one KeywordBlock object.

The following topics are discussed:

Access
setValues(...)
insert(...)
replace(...)
synchVersions(...)
Members

Access

mdb.models[name].keywordBlock

setValues(...)

This method modifies the KeywordBlock object.

Required arguments

None.

Optional arguments

edited: A Boolean specifying whether this objects sieBlocks member has been edited. Setting edited=False will set the sieBlocks member to an empty tuple, thereby discarding all previous edits.

Return value

None.

Exceptions

None.

insert(...)

This method inserts a String at a specified position in the sieBlocks member.

Required arguments

position: An Int specifying the position in the sieBlocks member after which the new string will be inserted.
text: A String specifying the text to be inserted. The text represents an Abaqus input file keyword and its associated data

Optional arguments

None.

Return value

None.

Exceptions

IndexError.

replace(...)

This method replaces a String at a specified position in the sieBlocks member.

Required arguments

position: An Int specifying the position of the String to be replaced in the sieBlocks member.
text: A String specifying the text to be replaced. The text represents an Abaqus input file keyword and its associated data.

Optional arguments

None.

Return value

None.

Exceptions

IndexError.

synchVersions(...)

This method synchronizes, or merges, the edits made in this object with those made in the model using other scripting commands or the user interface. The synchVersions method updates the sieBlocks member. The sieBlocks member is empty prior to the first call to synchVersions. As a side effect, synchVersions sets lastSynchCount to the current value of the counter associated with the Mdb object, which is used to determine if synchronization is necessary.

Required arguments

storeNodesAndElements: A Boolean specifying whether the nodal coordinates and element connectivities (i.e. the data lines for the *NODE and *ELEMENT keyword blocks) are to be stored in the sieBlocks member. All other keywords and their data lines are always stored. The default value is True. If storeNodesAndElements is True, the size of the keywordBlock data will be similar to that of the input file. Since the KeywordBlock is stored in the Abaqus/CAE database, this will result in a larger database. It will also result in a slower execution of the synchVersions command. If storeNodesAndElements is False, the data lines are not stored in sieBlocks. Consequently, only set storeNodesAndElements=True if you wish to make changes to the *NODE or *ELEMENT data lines themselves. If your task is limited to reading nodal coordinates and element connectivities (i.e. not editing this information) then it is generally better to access this information from other parts of the Mdb.

Optional arguments

None.

Return value

None.

Exceptions

IndexError.

Members

The KeywordBlock object has the following members:

edited: A Boolean specifying whether the Keywords Editor has been used to change the model.
lastSynchCount: A Float specifying the value of the counter associated with the Mdb object at the most recent synchronization.
sieBlocks: A tuple of Strings specifying a sequence of Strings that is identical to the information written to the Abaqus input file. Each String in the sequence represents an Abaqus input file keyword along with the parameters and data lines associated with the keyword. A String can also be a comment in the input file. You initialize this data member by calling synchVersions. After you initialize the data member, you use calls to replace and insert to record your edits in the correct location. If the last call to synchVersions used the argument storeNodesAndElements=False, the entry for the keywords NODE and ELEMENT will contain only the keyword and its parameters, not the data lines.