OFTBx — OpenFAST Extended Toolbox

OFTBx is a Python toolbox for building, organizing, and running OpenFAST wind turbine models programmatically.

The goal is to simplify repetitive OpenFAST workflows such as:

• Building reusable turbine models from .fst files
• Managing turbine objects
• Generating simulation sweeps
• Creating organized run directories
• Executing OpenFAST cases from Python

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Installation

Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/OFTBx.git
cd OFTBx

Install in editable mode:

pip install -e .

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Quick Start

1. Build a model from an OpenFAST .fst file

The model builder creates a reusable turbine model directory.

from OFTBx.builder import build_model_from_fst

model_path = build_model_from_fst(
    fst_path="data/IEA-15-240-RWT/OpenFAST/IEA-15-240-RWT-Monopile/IEA-15-240-RWT-Monopile.fst",
    model_name="iea15mw"
)

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2. Load a turbine object

Once the model has been built, create a Turbine object.

from OFTBx.builder import build_model_from_fst
from OFTBx.turbine import Turbine

# ------------------------------------------------------------
# 1. Build model (only once per turbine)
# ------------------------------------------------------------
model_dir = build_model_from_fst(
    fst_path="data/IEA-15-240-RWT/OpenFAST/IEA-15-240-RWT-Monopile/IEA-15-240-RWT-Monopile.fst",
    model_name="IEA15MW"
)

# ------------------------------------------------------------
# 2. Load turbine object
# ------------------------------------------------------------
turbine = Turbine(
    name="IEA15MW",
    model_path=model_dir
)

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3. Generate an inflow sweep

Create multiple OpenFAST simulation cases across a wind speed range.

from OFTBx.turbine import Turbine

turbine = Turbine(
    name="IEA15MW",
    model_path="models/IEA15MW"
)

# Create simulation directories
turbine.inflow_sweep(
    run_name="inflow_sweep",
    U_min=4,
    U_max=25,
    n=10
)

This generates a directory structure similar to:

runs/
└── inflow_sweep/
    ├── case_01/
    │   └── case.fst
    ├── case_02/
    │   └── case.fst
    ├── ...
    └── case_10/
        └── case.fst

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4. Run OpenFAST cases from Python

Execute previously generated cases programmatically.

from pathlib import Path
from OFTBx.turbine import Turbine

turbine = Turbine(
    name="IEA15MW",
    model_path="models/IEA15MW"
)

cases_dir = Path("runs/inflow_sweep")

case_dirs = sorted([
    d for d in cases_dir.iterdir()
    if d.is_dir() and (d / "case.fst").exists()
])

results = [None] * len(case_dirs)

for i, case_dir in enumerate(case_dirs):

    print(f"[RUN] {case_dir.name}")

    results[i] = turbine.run_case(
        case_dir,
        exe="openfast"      # or full executable path
    )

print("DONE")

---

Project Structure

Example project organization:

project/
│
├── data/
│   └── OpenFAST input files
│
├── models/
│   └── IEA15MW/
│
├── runs/
│   └── inflow_sweep/
│
└── scripts/
    └── simulation scripts

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Requirements

• Python 3.10+
• OpenFAST installed and accessible from terminal

Verify your OpenFAST installation:

openfast --version

If OpenFAST is not on your PATH, provide the full executable path:

turbine.run_case(
    case_dir,
    exe="/path/to/openfast"
)

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Roadmap

Planned / ongoing features:

• Batch execution utilities
• Parallel case execution
• Parametric studies
• Postprocessing tools
• Controller parameter sweeps
• Visualization utilities

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License

MIT License