It is possible to read an existing ABAQUS input file (jobname.inp) into Patran. This is not a fully supported feature and must be invoked by setting a special parameter. This is done by editing the settings.pcl file and adding the following line:

pref_env_set_logical( "shareware_input_file", TRUE )

If this setting is set to TRUE, then an additional Action item will appear under the Analysis form called Read Input File. This file can exist in the installation, local or home directories.