HFSSAutoConfiguration

class pyedb.workflows.sipi.hfss_auto_configuration.HFSSAutoConfiguration(edb=None)

Automatic HFSS simulation configuration from EDB designs.

This class automates the process of configuring HFSS simulations including net grouping, cutout creation, port generation, and simulation setup.

Parameters:

edbEdb or None, optional

Existing EDB object instance. If None, a new instance will be created from the source path. The default is None.

Attributes:

ansys_versionstr

ANSYS Electronics Desktop version to use. The default is "2025.2".

grpcbool

Whether to use gRPC API mode. The default is True.

source_edb_pathstr

Path to the source EDB file.

target_edb_pathstr

Path where the configured EDB will be saved.

batch_group_folderstr

Folder path for storing batch group projects.

signal_netslist

List of signal net names to include in the simulation.

power_netslist

List of power net names.

reference_netstr

Name of the reference (ground) net.

batch_sizeint

Maximum number of nets per batch group. The default is 100.

batch_groupslist of BatchGroup

Configured batch groups for simulation.

componentslist of str

Component reference designators to include.

solder_ballslist of SolderBallsInfo

Solder ball configurations for components.

simulation_setupSimulationSetup

Global simulation settings.

extent_typestr

Cutout extent algorithm: "bounding_box", "convex_hull", or "conformal". The default is "bounding_box".

cutout_expansionstr or float

Cutout expansion margin. The default is "2mm".

auto_mesh_seedingbool

Enable automatic mesh seeding. The default is True.

port_typestr

Port type to create: "coaxial" or "circuit_port". The default is "coaxial".

create_pin_groupbool

Whether to create pin groups for circuit ports. The default is False.

Examples

Basic configuration:

>>> from pyedb import Edb
>>> config = HFSSAutoConfiguration()
>>> config.source_edb_path = "design.aedb"
>>> config.target_edb_path = "design_hfss.aedb"
>>> config.auto_populate_batch_groups()
>>> config.create_projects()

Configure with existing EDB:

>>> edb = Edb("design.aedb")
>>> config = HFSSAutoConfiguration(edb)
>>> config.signal_nets = ["DDR4_DQ0", "DDR4_CLK"]
>>> config.reference_net = "GND"
>>> config.add_solder_ball("U1", diameter="0.3mm", height="0.2mm")

Overview

Methods

auto_populate_batch_groups	Automatically create and populate batch groups from signal nets.
add_batch_group	Append a new BatchGroup to the configuration.
add_solder_ball	Append a new solder ball definition to the configuration.
add_simulation_setup	Create a SimulationSetup instance and attach it to the configuration.
group_nets_by_prefix	Group signal nets into disjoint batches while preserving differential pairs.
create_projects	Generate HFSS projects from configured batch groups.

Attributes

ansys_version
grpc
source_edb_path
target_edb_path
batch_group_folder
signal_nets
power_nets
reference_net
batch_size
batch_groups
components
solder_balls
simulation_setup
extent_type
cutout_expansion
auto_mesh_seeding
port_type
create_pin_group

Import detail

from pyedb.workflows.sipi.hfss_auto_configuration import HFSSAutoConfiguration

Attribute detail

HFSSAutoConfiguration.ansys_version: str = '2025.2'

HFSSAutoConfiguration.grpc: bool = True

HFSSAutoConfiguration.source_edb_path: str = ''

HFSSAutoConfiguration.target_edb_path: str = ''

HFSSAutoConfiguration.batch_group_folder: str = ''

HFSSAutoConfiguration.signal_nets: list = []

HFSSAutoConfiguration.power_nets: list = []

HFSSAutoConfiguration.reference_net: str = ''

HFSSAutoConfiguration.batch_size: int = 100

HFSSAutoConfiguration.batch_groups: list[BatchGroup] = []

HFSSAutoConfiguration.components: list[str] = []

HFSSAutoConfiguration.solder_balls: list[SolderBallsInfo] = []

HFSSAutoConfiguration.simulation_setup: SimulationSetup

HFSSAutoConfiguration.extent_type: str = 'bounding_box'

HFSSAutoConfiguration.cutout_expansion: float | str = '2mm'

HFSSAutoConfiguration.auto_mesh_seeding: bool = True

HFSSAutoConfiguration.port_type: str = 'coaxial'

HFSSAutoConfiguration.create_pin_group: bool = False

Method detail

HFSSAutoConfiguration.auto_populate_batch_groups(pattern: str | list[str] | None = None) → None

Automatically create and populate batch groups from signal nets.

This method discovers signal nets, identifies reference nets, and groups nets by prefix patterns. It is a convenience wrapper around group_nets_by_prefix().

Parameters:

patternstr or list of str or None, optional

POSIX ERE prefix pattern(s) controlling which nets are grouped:

• None (default) - Auto-discovery mode: nets are clustered heuristically and split into chunks of size batch_size.

• str - Single string prefix pattern (automatically anchored: pattern + ".*").

• list of str - Each element becomes its own prefix pattern; one BatchGroup created per list entry, regardless of batch_size.

Notes

• Clears and repopulates batch_groups in-place

• Automatically identifies reference nets (typically GND variants)

• Opens and closes the EDB internally

Examples

Auto-discovery with automatic grouping:

>>> config = HFSSAutoConfiguration()
>>> config.source_edb_path = "design.aedb"
>>> config.auto_populate_batch_groups()
>>> len(config.batch_groups)
5

Group by specific prefixes:

>>> config = HFSSAutoConfiguration()
>>> config.source_edb_path = "design.aedb"
>>> config.auto_populate_batch_groups(["DDR4", "PCIe", "USB"])
>>> [g.name for g in config.batch_groups]
['DDR4', 'PCIe', 'USB']

HFSSAutoConfiguration.add_batch_group(name: str, nets: list[str] | None = None, *, simulation_setup: SimulationSetup | None = None) → BatchGroup

Append a new BatchGroup to the configuration.

Parameters:

namestr

Descriptive name for the group. Will also become the regex pattern when the group is built automatically.

netslist of str or None, optional

List of net names that belong to this batch. If None, an empty list is assumed and can be filled later. The default is None.

simulation_setupSimulationSetup or None, optional

Per-batch simulation settings. When None, the global self.simulation_setup is used. The default is None.

Returns:

BatchGroup

The freshly created instance (already appended to batch_groups) for further manipulation if desired.

Examples

>>> config = HFSSAutoConfiguration()
>>> group = config.add_batch_group("DDR4", nets=["DDR4_DQ0", "DDR4_CLK"])
>>> group.name
'DDR4'
>>> len(group.nets)
2

Add group with custom setup:

>>> setup = SimulationSetup(stop_frequency="30GHz")
>>> group = config.add_batch_group("PCIe", simulation_setup=setup)
>>> group.simulation_setup.stop_frequency
'30GHz'

HFSSAutoConfiguration.add_solder_ball(ref_des: str, shape: str = 'cylinder', diameter: str | float | None = None, mid_diameter: str | float | None = None, height: str | float | None = None) → SolderBallsInfo

Append a new solder ball definition to the configuration.

Parameters:

ref_desstr

Reference designator of the component to which the solder ball definition applies (e.g., "U1").

shapestr, optional

Geometric model used for the solder ball. Supported values are "cylinder", "sphere", "spheroid". The default is "cylinder".

diameterstr or float or None, optional

Nominal diameter. When None, HFSS auto-evaluates the value from the footprint. The default is None.

mid_diameterstr or float or None, optional

Middle diameter required only for spheroid shapes. Ignored for all other geometries. The default is None.

heightstr or float or None, optional

Ball height. When None, HFSS computes an appropriate value automatically. The default is None.

Returns:

SolderBallsInfo

The newly created instance (already appended to solder_balls). The object can be further edited in-place if desired.

Examples

Add cylinder solder balls:

>>> config = HFSSAutoConfiguration()
>>> config.add_solder_ball("U1", diameter="0.3mm", height="0.2mm")
>>> config.solder_balls[0].ref_des
'U1'

Add spheroid solder balls:

>>> config.add_solder_ball("U2", shape="spheroid", diameter="0.25mm", mid_diameter="0.35mm", height="0.18mm")
>>> config.solder_balls[1].shape
'spheroid'

HFSSAutoConfiguration.add_simulation_setup(meshing_frequency: str | float | None = '10GHz', maximum_pass_number: int = 15, start_frequency: str | float | None = 0, stop_frequency: str | float | None = '40GHz', frequency_step: str | float | None = '0.05GHz', replace: bool = True) → SimulationSetup

Create a SimulationSetup instance and attach it to the configuration.

Parameters:

meshing_frequencystr or float or None, optional

Driven frequency used during mesh generation. The default is "10GHz".

maximum_pass_numberint, optional

Maximum number of adaptive passes. The default is 15.

start_frequencystr or float or None, optional

Lower bound of the sweep window. The default is 0.

stop_frequencystr or float or None, optional

Upper bound of the sweep window. The default is "40GHz".

frequency_stepstr or float or None, optional

Linear step size for the frequency sweep. The default is "0.05GHz".

replacebool, optional

Placement strategy for the new setup:

• False - Append a per-batch setup by creating an auxiliary BatchGroup (name="extra_setup") whose simulation_setup points to the new object.

• True - Overwrite the global simulation_setup attribute of the current instance. The default is True.

Returns:

SimulationSetup

The newly created instance (already stored inside the configuration).

Examples

Create global setup:

>>> config = HFSSAutoConfiguration()
>>> config.add_simulation_setup(stop_frequency="60GHz", replace=True)
>>> config.simulation_setup.stop_frequency
'60GHz'

Create per-batch setup:

>>> config.add_simulation_setup(frequency_step="0.1GHz", replace=False)
>>> config.batch_groups[-1].name
'extra_setup'

HFSSAutoConfiguration.group_nets_by_prefix(prefix_patterns: list[str] | None = None) → dict[str, list[list[str]]]

Group signal nets into disjoint batches while preserving differential pairs.

This method organizes signal nets into batches based on prefix patterns, ensuring differential pairs (e.g., _P/_N, _M/_L) stay together.

Parameters:

prefix_patternslist of str or None, optional

POSIX ERE patterns that define the prefixes to be grouped. Example: ["PCIe", "USB"] → interpreted as ["PCIe.*", "USB.*"]. If None, patterns are derived heuristically from the data set.

Returns:

dict[str, list[list[str]]]

Keys are the original or generated pattern strings. Values are lists of batches; each batch is an alphabetically sorted list of net names. When prefix_patterns was supplied, the list contains exactly one element (the complete group); in auto-discovery mode, the list may contain multiple slices sized according to batch_size.

Notes

• Differential recognition strips the suffixes _[PN], _[ML], _[+-] (case-insensitive).

• The function updates the instance attribute batch_groups in place.

• Every net is assigned to exactly one batch.

• No batch contains only a single net; orphans are merged into the largest compatible group.

Examples

Explicit grouping:

>>> config = HFSSAutoConfiguration()
>>> config.signal_nets = ["PCIe_RX0_P", "PCIe_RX0_N", "USB3_DP", "DDR4_A0"]
>>> config.group_nets_by_prefix(["PCIe", "USB"])
{'PCIe': [['PCIe_RX0_N', 'PCIe_RX0_P']], 'USB': [['USB3_DP']]}

Auto-discovery with batching:

>>> config.batch_size = 2
>>> config.group_nets_by_prefix()
{'PCIe': [['PCIe_RX0_N', 'PCIe_RX0_P']], 'USB': [['USB3_DP']], 'DDR4': [['DDR4_A0']]}

HFSSAutoConfiguration.create_projects()

Generate HFSS projects from configured batch groups.

This method executes the complete workflow for each batch group including:

1. Copying source EDB to target location

2. Creating cutout with specified nets

3. Creating ports on components

4. Setting up simulation parameters

5. Saving configured project

When multiple batch groups exist, each group is processed into a separate project file stored in the batch_group_folder directory.

Notes

• For multiple batch groups, projects are saved in batch_group_folder

• Each batch can have custom simulation settings

• Automatically handles EDB session management

Examples

Create single project:

>>> config = HFSSAutoConfiguration()
>>> config.source_edb_path = "design.aedb"
>>> config.target_edb_path = "design_hfss.aedb"
>>> config.signal_nets = ["DDR4_DQ0", "DDR4_CLK"]
>>> config.reference_net = "GND"
>>> config.components = ["U1"]
>>> config.create_projects()

Create multiple batch projects:

>>> config = HFSSAutoConfiguration()
>>> config.source_edb_path = "design.aedb"
>>> config.auto_populate_batch_groups(["DDR4", "PCIe"])
>>> config.create_projects()
>>> # Creates projects in batch_groups/DDR4.aedb and batch_groups/PCIe.aedb