Altair, developer of the popular HyperWorks computer-aided engineering software suite, today announced the official addition of RadTherm to the array of applications available through the HyperWorks Partner Alliance (HWPA). RadTherm heat-transfer software is a professional thermal simulation tool for comprehensive CAE analysis of both steady-state and transient-heat transfer conditions. RadTherm is equipped with a complete temperature-distribution and heat-rates solver for radiation, conduction and convection, allowing users to evaluate engineering design tradeoffs in the early stages of development and then optimize and validate the final product designs.

Altair HyperWorks customers can access RadTherm through the HWPA, a suite of third-party applications from HyperWorks partners that can be employed with the same units used to invoke HyperWorks software. The flexibility of these HyperWorks Units empowers users to deploy the largest and most complete suite of CAE applications available at no incremental cost and with no long-term commitment.

"In the automotive, aerospace, architectural and military communities, the RadTherm software package has become a popular thermal-management CAE tool for solving heat-transfer problems and producing comprehensive thermal-management solutions," said Keith Johnson, CEO of ThermoAnalytics, Inc. "RadTherm's Battery Thermal Electric module can perform coupled thermal-electrical analysis of a battery cell or pack for modeling realistic, time-varying loads and charges to optimize performance and battery life of electric vehicles. Each industry presents unique thermal challenges that can drastically influence the performance of a product, and ThermoAnalytics software was built to meet these challenges with both speed and accuracy."

RadTherm is a thermal modeling program that predicts the full heat-transfer solution for a component or full system. From the temperature or heat-rate results, users can modify the design and test the system's response to this change. RadTherm also includes the advanced modules 3D Solid Conduction, Battery Thermal Electric, and Human Thermal Comfort.

Automated integration with CFD allows the analyst to employ three-dimensional convection from all major CFD applications, while leveraging RadTherm's power for system-level transient analysis. RadTherm's speed and flexibility makes it an ideal complement to CFD, both as a precursor in the early design stages and as a full transient analysis for a time-varying simulation scenario.

"With RadTherm as well as CFD products like AcuSolve, SC/Tetra, and STREAM all available through the HyperWorks platform, Altair customers are equipped with an all-inclusive toolset for thermal management," said Antoine Poussier, vice president of Global Partner Programs at Altair. "It is this combination of broad simulation capabilities and on-demand accessibility that illustrates Altair's distinct value proposition and sets us apart as a leader in the CAE marketplace."

The HWPA strives to provide the most comprehensive offering of software applications across multiple relevant domains related to computer-aided engineering. The addition of RadTherm further enhances the flexibility of the HyperWorks Units and the overall value of Altair HyperWorks.