Imported Convection

Apply convection from an external comma separated values (.csv) file.

  1. In the Project Tree, open the Analysis Workbench Workbench.
  2. On the workbench toolbar, click Convection > Imported Convection.
    Imported convection dialog will open.
  3. Define units for Coordinates, Ambient temperature, and Convective heat transfer coefficient.
  4. Click Import from .csv. Browse to the desired .csv file in File Explorer and click Open.
  5. Information from the .csv file is posted at the bottom of Imported convection dialog to review. Click OK to create and map the load at specified points./parts.

Imported Convection CSV file format

The .csv file contains one header row and one or more additional data rows. Data values are as follows:

CSV file fields for Thermal steady state analysis
  • ID (optional) – Alphanumeric value. Used to identify a specific point.
  • X, Y and Z – Numeric values. Spatial location used to map convection to the nearest point on a face.
  • Ambient_temperature – Numerical value.
  • Convective_Heat_Transfer_coefficient –Numerical value.
  • Part_ID (optional) – Numerical value. ID of the part to map the convection. Mapping fails if the part with specified part ID is not present at the spatial location defined in X, Y and Z.
  • Part_Name (optional) - Alphanumeric value. Name of the part to map the convection. Mapping fails if the part with specified part name is not present at the spatial location defined in X, Y and Z.
Note: If both Part ID and Part Name are defined, Part name takes precedence.
Example CSV File for Thermal steady state analysis 
ID,X,Y,Z,Ambient_temperature, convective_Heat_Transfer_coefficient,Part_ID,Part_Name
1,216,417,40,100,40,15,square tube
2,216.975,417,40.0961,105,44,15,square tube
3,217.913,417,40.3806,110,46,15,square tube
CSV file fields for Thermal Transient analysis
  • ID (optional) – Alphanumeric value. Used to identify a specific point.
  • X, Y and Z – Numeric values. Spatial location is used to map convection to the nearest point on a face.
  • Ambient_temperature_i - This field is used for thermal transient analysis, where 'i' represents the specific time (in seconds) for which the ambient temperature is imported. Numerical value
  • Convective_Heat_Transfer_coefficient_i - This field is used for thermal transient analysis, where 'i' represents the specific time (in seconds) for which the convective heat transfer coefficient is imported. Numerical value.
    Note: CSV file may include ambient temperature and convective heat transfer coefficient data at multiple time points. If the file provides data for only a single time point, a uniform time function is assumed for the analysis. When data is available for two or more time points, interpolation is applied to estimate values for intermediate times. If the timespan of the thermal transient analysis extends beyond the range of provided time points in the csv, extrapolation is used, with the last two time points being used to project values beyond the available data.
  • Part_ID (optional) – Numerical value. ID of the part to map the convection. Mapping fails if the part with specified part ID is not present at the spatial location defined in X, Y and Z.
  • Part_Name (optional) - Alphanumeric value. Name of the part to map the convection. Mapping fails if the part with specified part name is not present at the spatial location defined in X, Y and Z.
    Note: If both Part ID and Part Name are defined, Part name takes precedence.
Example CSV File for Thermal Transient analysis
ID,X,Y,Z,Ambient_temperature_10, convective_Heat_Transfer_coefficient_10, Ambient_temperature_60, convective_Heat_Transfer_coefficient_60,Part_ID,Part_Name
1,216,417,40,100,40,200,60,15,square tube
2,216.975,417,40.0961,105,44,220,66,15,square tube
3,217.913,417,40.3806,110,46,230,69,15,square tube
In the above example, ambient temperature and convective heat transfer for times 10 and 60 seconds are defined.