Multiframe

Windows Version 10

Automation Manual

© Formation Design Systems Pty Ltd 1984 – 2007

License & Copyright
Multiframe Program
© 1985-2007 Formation Design Systems
Multiframe is copyrighted and all rights are reserved. The license for use is granted to
the purchaser by Formation Design Systems. As a single user license and does not
permit the program to be used on more than one machine at one time. Copying of the
program to other media is permitted for back-up purposes as long as all copies remain in
the possession of the purchaser.

Multiframe User Manual

© 1985-2007 Formation Design Systems
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted,
transcribed, stored in a retrieval system, or translated into any language in any form or by
any means, without the written permission of Formation Design Systems. Formation
Design Systems, reserve the right to revise this publication from time to time and to
make changes to the contents without obligation to notify any person or organization of
such changes.

DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY
Neither Formation Design Systems, nor the author of this program and documentation
are liable or responsible to the purchaser or user for loss or damage caused, or alleged to
be caused, directly or indirectly by the software and its attendant documentation,
including (but not limited to) interruption on service, loss of business, or anticipatory
profits. No Formation Design Systems distributor, or agent, or employee is authorized to
make any modification, extension, or addition to this warranty.

iii
Table of Contents
License & Copyright .........................................................................................................iii
Table of Contents ............................................................................................................... v
About this Manual .............................................................................................................. 7
Chapter 1 Introduction........................................................................................................ 9
Automation ....................................................................................................9
VBA ...............................................................................................................9
Object Models..............................................................................................10
Uses of Automation .....................................................................................10
What can’t I automate? ................................................................................10
Terminology.................................................................................................11
Speed............................................................................................................11
Code Samples ..............................................................................................11
Early and Late Binding ................................................................................12
Object Browser ............................................................................................13
Further Reading ...........................................................................................13
Chapter 2 The Multiframe Object Model ......................................................................... 15
Collections, Objects and Lists......................................................................15
Application Object .......................................................................................17
Preferences Object .......................................................................................17
Sections Library Object ...............................................................................17
Frame Object................................................................................................18
Nodes and Elements.....................................................................................19
Members ......................................................................................................19
Springs, Restraints and NodeMasses ...........................................................19
NodeLinkGroups .........................................................................................20
LoadCases and the Loading objects.............................................................20
GroupSets and Groups .................................................................................20
ProjectInfo ...................................................................................................21
The Analysis Objects ...................................................................................21
Results Hierarchy.........................................................................................21
Indices, Numbers and ID’s ..........................................................................22
Common Properties and Methods................................................................22
Arrays ..........................................................................................................24
Variant Parameters in Methods....................................................................24
Chapter 3 Getting Started ................................................................................................. 27
A Simple Macro...........................................................................................27
A Basic Multiframe Script ...........................................................................27
Creating a Portal Frame ...............................................................................28
Applying Loads............................................................................................31
Running an Analysis....................................................................................32
Units.............................................................................................................33
The Final Script ...........................................................................................33
Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame........................................................................................ 35
Frame Object................................................................................................35
Nodes ...........................................................................................................38
Elements.......................................................................................................43
Restraints .....................................................................................................53
Springs .........................................................................................................55
Node Linking ...............................................................................................57
Node Masses ................................................................................................60

v
 GroupSets.....................................................................................................63
Groups..........................................................................................................64
Members ......................................................................................................67
Project Details..............................................................................................71
Improving performance with lists................................................................72
Chapter 5 The Load Objects............................................................................................. 75
Load Cases...................................................................................................75
Node Loads ..................................................................................................78
Prescribed Displacements ............................................................................80
Element loads...............................................................................................81
Thermal Loads .............................................................................................85
Deleting Loads.............................................................................................87
Expression Parsing and Variants .................................................................88
Chapter 6 Automating Analysis ....................................................................................... 89
Linear Static Analysis..................................................................................90
Non-linear Static Analysis ...........................................................................90
Modal Analysis ............................................................................................92
Time History Analysis .................................................................................93
Chapter 7 Results Objects ................................................................................................ 95
The Results Object.......................................................................................95
Result Cases.................................................................................................96
Linear and Non-linear Results .....................................................................97
Modal Results ..............................................................................................98
Nodal Results...............................................................................................99
Element Results .........................................................................................101
Member Results .........................................................................................107
Chapter 8 Sections Library............................................................................................. 109
SectionsLibrary Object ..............................................................................109
SectionGroup Object..................................................................................111
Sections Object ..........................................................................................113
Chapter 9 Preferences and Units .................................................................................... 119
Sign Conventions.......................................................................................119
Units...........................................................................................................119
Chapter 10 Collections and Lists.................................................................................... 121
Collections .................................................................................................121
Lists............................................................................................................122
The Find Method .......................................................................................126
Chapter 11 User Interface............................................................................................... 127
Selection Object.........................................................................................127
Chapter 12 Examples...................................................................................................... 131
Reproducing Multiframes Data Window in Excel.....................................131
Reproducing Multiframes Result Window in Excel ..................................137
Customised Reporting using Word............................................................137
Appendix A Object Model Summary............................................................................. 141
Objects .......................................................................................................141
Enumerated Types .....................................................................................142
Index............................................................................................................................... 147

vi
 About this manual

About this Manual

This manual describes the Multiframe automation interface which lets you write macros,
scripts and programs to access data from Multiframe or to create and analyse models in
Multiframe. The manual provides a description of the objects, properties and methods
contained in the Multiframe Automation Interface. VBA code examples have been used
throughout the manual to demonstrate how best to use these objects.

Chapter 1 Introduction; This chapter provides an introduction to automation and many of

the general concepts needed to get started using VBA. It describes what can and can’t be
automated and provides a list of other resources that you may find useful in writing your
own macros and scripts.

Chapter 2 The Multiframe Object Model; Presents an overview of the Multiframe Object
model by describing each of the objects used within the model.

Chapter 3 Getting Started; Gets you started writing a simple script to automate
Multiframe. It is a simple series of exercises designed to introduce you to many of the
objects within the Multiframe object model.

Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame; Presents a detailed description of the objects used in
modelling the structure. This includes objects describing joints, elements, restraints,
joint linking and design members.

Chapter 5 The Load Objects; In this chapter the objects used for loading a structure are
discussed. Objects used for describing load cases and each of the individual loads are all
described in detail.

Chapter 6 Automating Analysis; This chapter describes the objects used to control and
execute and analysis.

Chapter 7 Results Objects; The results of analyses are available via the Multiframe
Object model and are accessed via a hierarchy of objects that are described in this
chapter.

Chapter 8 Sections Library; Describes the objects that represent sections, groups and the
sections library.

Chapter 9 Preferences and Units; Provides a description of the objects that control the
settings and units used within Multiframe.

Chapter 10 Collections and Lists; This chapter outlines the use of collections and lists to
manage groups of objects.

Chapter 11 User Interface; This chapter describes which items in the Multiframe user
interface can be controlled using Automation.

Chapter 12 Examples; A number of examples are presented that demonstrate using

Microsoft Word and Excel to control the Multiframe Automation Interface.

Page 7
 Chapter 1 Introduction

Chapter 1 Introduction
This chapter provides an introduction to automation, VBA and object models and their
use in writing macros for Multiframe. It discusses the applications that can be used to
access and control Multiframe and presents examples on how this can be done.

Automation
Automation is a term used to describe the ability of one application to control or access
data from another. Automation is a common feature in many Microsoft applications such
as Word and Excel. In fact, the macros in each of these applications are written using
automation. The automation interface in these applications gives a user access to a range
of objects that can be used to control the application and its data. For example, Microsoft
Word contains paragraph, word and font objects. In a similar way, Multiframe’s
automation interface contains node, element and load objects amongst others.

Multiframe provides support for automation via an interface that allows the user to create
a frame, perform an analysis and examine the results. While the Multiframe application
does not incorporate a facility for directly writing or recording macros, the automation
interface will allow users to develop macros for Multiframe in other applications.
Multiframe’s automation interface enables it to interact with many other applications that
support automation. This is very easily achieved in applications that provide a suitable
VBA macro-programming environment such as
• Microsoft Excel
• Microsoft Word
• Microsoft Access
• AutoCAD 2000
• MathCAD
Automation can also be used via many modern programming languages such as Visual
Basic, Visual C++, Java and even Compaq Visual Fortran. It is even supported by the
Windows Scripting Host, which can be used to automate applications directly from the
Windows environment.

For the technically inclined…

The core technology behind Multiframe is COM, Microsoft’s Common
Object Model. If you are familiar with COM you can use Multiframe’s
COM interface as you would the COM interface of any other program. It
can be accessed using VB, C++, C, Java or any other COM compatible
language.

VBA
Visual Basic for Applications, or simply VBA, is Microsoft’s application scripting
language. It is the language used to write macros within the entire Microsoft Office suite
and in other Microsoft products. It is also used within applications written by other
vendors such as AutoCAD and MathCAD. If you have experience in writing macros
within any of these products then you should be able to quickly adapt to writing macros
for Multiframe.

Page 9
Chapter 1 Introduction

VBA is the most readily available platform in which to write Multiframe macros as most
engineers have access to Microsoft Excel or Microsoft Word. It is also a relatively easy
environment in which to develop scripts, macros or small programs that exploit
automation. As such, this manual will concentrate of the use of VBA for the
development of macros for Multiframe. All examples presented in the manual will be
coded using VBA.

Object Models
The key to the use of VBA within all these different applications is that VBA is simply a
language for manipulating objects. Each application that uses VBA for scripting has its
own object model that is a unique set of objects that can be manipulated by the language.
If you are familiar with VBA then learning to write macros for another application only
involves learning that application’s object model. By mastering the use of VBA for
writing Multiframe macros you will also be able to quickly adapt to writing macros in
many other products.

Uses of Automation
Automation is a powerful tool that can be used to write anything from a simple macro to
a full windows application. In fact this is the technology that allows Multiframe to
directly generate reports in Microsoft word. Some examples of how this technology
could be employed are:
• A macro to manipulate the geometry of a selection in the Frame Window, for
example a mirror function.
• Generating customised reports in Microsoft Word
• Generating HTML reports using Microsoft Word
• Exporting data to a Microsoft Access database that could be used to manage
fabrication or perform a costing
• Writing a VB program to import or export a structure to other file formats or
programs
• Writing a script to find members with particular properties
• Writing Excel macros to automatically access design data from Multiframe
• Batch processing of analyses overnight using Windows Scripting
Each of these examples could be designed as a simple macro or with a sophisticated user
interface. Once familiar with VBA, it is an easy task to add dialogs and menus to your
automation scripts.

What can’t I automate?

The following parts of the Multiframe application and data structures can not be accessed
using the current Multiframe object model. This may change in future.

Page 10
 Chapter 1 Introduction

• Time History load cases and results.

• Design data and results.
• The Multiframe user interface (i.e. Windows, menus, toolbars etc.) except for
selections in the individual windows.

Terminology
The terminology used in the automation interface is slightly different to that used in the
Multiframe user program. Each nodal point in the structure is referred to as a Joint in the
program but as a Node in the automation interface. In addition, a Member in the
program is called an Element in the automation interface while a Member in the
automation interface is a Design Member in the program.

Another significant difference in the terminology is used to describe the Master-Slave

relationships. In the automation interface the Master Slave groups are referred to as
Node Link groups.

Speed
An important issue in automation programming is speed; automated scripts or macros
can be relatively slow when they require making calls between applications. There are a
number of techniques for helping to improve their performance, the most important of
which is to minimize the number of calls between applications. The Multiframe
automation interface has been designed to provide the advanced user with a number of
techniques for minimizing the number of calls across the interface. This includes using
collections and lists to add or modify a group of objects at once and the exchange of data
using arrays contained within VARIANT data types. Examples of these are given in
Chapter 10 Collections and Lists and in Chapter 12 Examples.

Code Samples
This manual features many example scripts to demonstrate how the objects, properties
and methods of the Multiframe Automation interfaced are used. Unless otherwise noted,
these scripts are written in VBA and were developed using either Microsoft Excel or
Microsoft Word. Most of the scripts in the manual can be executed by inserting the code
between the dashed lines in the following macro.
Sub Test()
'definition of app and frame objects
Dim mfApp As New Multiframe.Application
Dim myFrame As Multiframe.Frame
Set myFrame = mfApp.Frame

'Insert sample code here!!!

'----------------------------

'----------------------------
End Sub
Note that many of the scripts will require a suitable structure to be present within the
Multiframe application as they refer directly to particular nodes, elements or load cases.

Page 11
Chapter 1 Introduction

All the example code presented in this manual was written using the VBA editor
provided within Microsoft Office 2000. This code uses some features not available in
the version of VBA provided with earlier versions of Microsoft Office. One significant
difference is that the older version of VBA does not support the use of enumerated data
types which have been used throughout the Multiframe Object model. For this reason
we recommend the use of Microsoft Office 2000 products when writing VBA scripts.
However, scripts can still be written using Office 97 in which case enumerated values
must be replaced by their integer value. All the enumerated types, and their values, used
by the Multiframe Automation Model are listed in Appendix A of this document.

Early and Late Binding

To manipulate Multiframe using VBA scripting in another application it is necessary to
first create an instance of Multiframe Application object. This can be done using either
Early Binding or Late Binding. Late binding uses the CreateObject method to create an
instance of the Application object. For example, to create a new instance of Multiframe
using late binding:
Dim mfApp As Object
Set mfApp = CreateObject("Multiframe.Application")
When programming with VBA we recommend that you use Early Binding. It has many
advantages over late binding in that the code will execute faster, coding errors will be
detected at compile time and the Multiframe object model will be incorporated into the
intellisense features of the VB editor. To use early binding a reference to the Multiframe
object library must be added to your project. This is done using the Tools | References
command which brings up the following dialog:

Scroll down the list of available references until you find the Multiframe Object Library.
Select this item by clicking in the box to it’s left then click OK.

A new instance of Multiframe can now be created using early binding:

Dim mfApp as Multiframe.Application
Set mfApp = New Multiframe.Application
or more simply using the line
Dim mfApp = New Multiframe.Application
Irrespective of whether you are using Late or Early Binding, an instance of Multiframe
that is already open can be manipulated using the GetObject function:

Page 12
 Chapter 1 Introduction

Dim mfApp As Object

Set mfApp = GetObject(, "Multiframe.Application")
or preferably using
Dim mfApp As Multiframe.Application
Set mfApp = GetObject(, "Multiframe.Application")

Object Browser
Another advantage of using Early Binding is that you can use the Object Browser (View |
Object Browser), shown below, to examine the names, properties and methods of the
objects in the Multiframe Object library.

Further Reading
This aim of this manual is to describe the Multiframe automation interface and its use.
The manual does not aim to teach the reader how to program in VBA or any other
language. It is assumed that the reader is familiar with Visual Basic or VBA
programming or that you have access to materials on this topic. There are many books
available on VBA, particularly in relation to the Microsoft Office suite of products.
Some references and other resources that may be useful in helping you to learn VBA and
automation are:
• “Microsoft Excel 2000 Power Programming with VBA” by John Walkenbach, IDG
Books Worldwide, 1999
• A range of reference books on VBA programming with Word 2000, Excel 200 and
AutoCAD 2000 is published by Wrox Press, www.wrox.com
• http://msdn.microsoft.com/office/default.asp
• www.mvps.org
• News groups
microsoft.public.word.vba.beginners
microsoft.public.word.vba.general
microsoft.public.office.developer.vba

Page 13
 Chapter 2 The Multiframe Object Model

Chapter 2 The Multiframe Object

Model
The Multiframe object model is a hierarchy that represents the underlying data and
functions used in Multiframe. Most of the objects within the object model are used to
describe the structural model or frame. Other objects represent the structure of the
Sections Library and its associated groups and sections, or control the appearance of the
Multiframe user interface.
This chapter provides an overview of the Multiframe object model describing its
structure and the purpose of each object within the model.

Collections, Objects and Lists

When programming using VBA you manipulate objects that represent different aspects
of an application as defined by its object model. A schematic diagram of the entire
Multiframe object model is displayed in the diagram on the next page. It divides the
Multiframe application and the structural model into many distinct objects. These objects
may represent a single component of a model such a node, element or a load case. Other
objects within the model do not represent a physical part of the model but are used to
store settings or data such as the settings for a modal analysis or the results from an
analysis for a particular node.

Each Object contains Properties and Methods. The Properties are a number of variables
which store properties of the object such as name, length, weight etc. The actual type and
name of the properties are specific to each type of object. Methods are functions that you
can use to manipulate the object. These might include methods to Add, Delete or modify
values of the object.

A special type of object is a collection which is a container storing an ordered set of

objects of the same type. For example, the Elements collection in the Frame object
contains all of the Elements in the frame. Collections within the Multiframe object model
are named as the plural of the objects they contain. Most collections in Multiframe are
initially empty. The exception is the LoadCases collection that initially contains a
single object. All of the collections in Multiframe are 1-based i.e. the first item in the list
has an index of 1. Some care must be taken when programming in VBA as it can use
zero based collections and arrays in which the first item in the list has an index of zero.

Page 15
Chapter 2 The Multiframe Object Model

Application

Frame

Nodes (Node)

Elements (Element)

Springs (Spring)

Restraints (Restraint)

NodeMasses (NodeMass)

NodeLinkGroups (NodeLinkGroup)

Loadcases (Loadcase)

NodeLoads (NodeLoad)

NodePreDisps (NodePreDisp)

ElementLoads (ElementLoad)

ThermalLoads (thermalLoad)

Members (Member)

Results

LinearResults

NonlinearResults Resultcases (ResultCase)

ModalResults MemberResults

ElementResults
ProjectInfo
NodeResults
Analysis

LinearSettings

NonlinearSettings

ModalSettings

SectionsLibrary

SectionGroups (SectionGroup)

Sections (Section)

Materials (Material)

Preferences

Page 16
 Chapter 2 The Multiframe Object Model

Application Object
The root of the Multiframe object model is the Application object. All other objects
within the object model can be accessed either directly or indirectly via this object.

The application object provides direct access to three Multiframe objects as shown
below.

Application

Frame

SectionsLibrary

Preferences

The Application object contains a number of shortcuts to objects contained within the
frame. Both the load cases and results object for the current frame can be obtained
directly from the application.

Preferences Object
The preferences object provides access to settings within the Multiframe application that
control how data is presented. This includes the sign conventions used to display forces
and numerous methods for manipulating and accessing the units of measure. An
important method of the Preferences object is the GetUnit function that returns a string
containing the units name (e.g. mm, kN, ft) of a specified unit type. This is very useful
when presenting data or requesting input from a user as the units of measure can easily
be displayed. Note that all methods and properties in Multiframe automation use the
current units.

Sections Library Object

The section library that is currently open within the Multiframe application is available
via the SectionsLibrary object. As shown in the diagram below, it contains collections
of objects representing the groups, sections and materials contained in the library. These
objects can be used to add, delete or modify the section property data stored within the
library.

SectionsLibrary

SectionGroups (SectionGroup)

Sections (Section)

Materials (Material)

Page 17
Chapter 2 The Multiframe Object Model

This sections library object is accessed directly from the Application object using the
SectionsLibrary property. The SectionsLibrary object contains a collection of
SectionGroup objects. Each SectionGroup object in the collection corresponds directly
to a group of sections in the sections library. It contains the properties associated with a
group of sections as well as a collection of Section objects, each of which represents a
section stored within the group. A useful property of the SectionGroup object is the
SectionNames property. It returns a list of names of all the sections contained within
the group. It can be used to construct a user form or dialog containing a list of sections
from which the user may choose. This is much faster than individually accessing the
name of each section within the group

Each SectionGroup object contains a collection of Section objects representing each

section in the group. The Section object provides an interface to the properties of
section such as its name, dimensions, area, moments of area and section moduli. Rather
than navigating the hierarchy of the SectionsLibrary object, a more direct method of
accessing a section has been provided in the SectionsLibrary object. The GetSection
function takes two parameters that identify the group and section. These parameters may
be specified as either indices or names or even objects.

The SectionsLibrary object also contains a collection of Material objects that provides a
means for adding, deleting or editing materials in the library.

Frame Object
The Frame object represents a structural model within Multiframe. It encapsulates all of
the objects representing components of the model such as nodes, elements and restraints,
load cases and loads applied to the frame, and objects containing the results of any
analyses performed on the frame.

Frame

ProjectInfo

Nodes (Node)

Elements (Element)

Members (Member)

Restraints (Restraint)

Springs (Spring)

NodeMasses (NodeMass)

NodeLinkGroups (NodeLinkGroup)

LoadCases (LoadCase)

GroupSets (GroupSet)

Analysis

Results

Page 18
 Chapter 2 The Multiframe Object Model

This object can be accessed using the Frame property of the Application object, for
example:
Dim objFrame as Multiframe.Frame
…
Set objFrame = mfApp.Frame
The Frame object also contains the methods for Opening, Closing and Saving the frame
to disk.

Nodes and Elements

The geometry of a structure is defined by the position of its nodes and how they are
connected by elements. The nodes and elements in a frame can be accessed via the
Nodes and Elements collections of the Frame object. These collections contain Node
and Element objects representing each node and element within the structure. The Node
object contains the data that describes a joint in the frame. This includes its position,
orientation, label and whether it is pinned or rigid. The node object also provides
methods to return lists of objects associated with the node. For example, the Springs
method returns a list of all springs attached to a node.

The Element object provides access to data describing an individual element in a frame
such as its label, section, orientation, rigid end offsets and the nodes used to define its
ends. Other read only properties provide other information about the element such as its
length, slope, and the coordinates of its ends. The Element object also provides
functions that return lists of objects associated with an element such as all loads applied
to the element.

Methods are also provided with both the Node and Element objects to transform values
from their local coordinate system to the global coordinate system and vice versa.

Members
The Member object represents a single entity for the purpose of design. This may be a
single element or a group of elements linked together to form a single design member.
This object provides methods and properties for grouping or removing elements from a
design member, setting the section and orientation of the member, as well as properties
for describing the position, slope and length of the member.

Springs, Restraints and NodeMasses

A joint restraint applied to a model is described in the Multiframe Automation interface
as the Restraint object. Similarly, a joint spring and a joint mass are described within
the interface using the Spring and NodeMass objects. These objects contain the
properties of the different items in a frame such as the node to which the
spring/restraint/mass is applied or its index within the parent collection contained by the
Frame object.

Each of these objects includes a Label property that may be used to identify the item or
contain a string of user-defined information. This property is only available via the
automation interface and cannot be edited or viewed via the user interface of the current
version of Multiframe.

Page 19
Chapter 2 The Multiframe Object Model

NodeLinkGroups
The Master-Slave facility in Multiframe is described in the Multiframe automation
interface using node link groups. Each Master-Slave grouping is encapsulated within the
NodeLinkGroup object which provides a mechanism by which to control the name of
the group, nodes contained within the group, the master node and which degrees of
freedom are linked by the group.

LoadCases and the Loading objects

The LoadCase object represents a single load case within a model of a frame. This
object contains the properties that are used to access the name and type of the load case.
It also contains four collections, one for each of the loading types, which contain all of
the loads applied as part of this load case. The LoadCase object also contains a list of
load case factors which are only relevant if the load case is a combined load case.
Similarly, the accelerations associated with self-weight load cases are also stored within
the LoadCase object.

LoadCases (LoadCase)

NodeLoads (NodeLoad)

NodePreDisps (NodePreDisp)

ElementLoads (ElementLoad)

ThermalLoads (ThermalLoad)

The NodeLoad, NodePreDisp, ElementLoad or ThermalLoad objects describe each

of the different types of loads that can be applied to a model. As mentioned above, the
loading objects describing all of the loads applied within a load case are available via the
collections contained within the LoadCase object.

The NodeLoad and NodePreDisp objects described the force and prescribed
displacement loadings that may be applied to a node within the frame. These objects
provide details of which node the load is applied to, its magnitude, direction and well as
which coordinate system in which the load is applied.

The loads applied to an element are described by either the ElementLoad or

ThermalLoad objects. These objects describe the element to which the load is applied,
its magnitudes, direction and well as which coordinate system in which the load is
applied. Note that the ElementLoad object is used to describe both concentrated and
distributed loads applied to an element.

GroupSets and Groups

The GroupSet object represents a single group set defined in a model of a frame. This
object contains the properties that are used to access the name of the group set. It also
contains a collection of Group objects that define the groups contained with the group
set.

Page 20
 Chapter 2 The Multiframe Object Model

GroupSets (GroupSet)

Groups (Group)

The Group object represents a single group contained within a group set. This object has
properties to access the name and colour associated with the group as well as the lists of
the elements and nodes that define the group.

ProjectInfo
The ProjectInfo object contains properties for accessing details of the project and
designer such as the project title, project description, job ID, designers name, a version
number and the date the frame was last modified. This is the same data set by the
Properties dialog in Multiframe’s File menu.

The Analysis Objects

The analysis features of Multiframe are available via the Analysis object. This object
contains the flags indicating which analyses are to be performed, the settings for each of
the analyses and of course a method to perform the actual analysis.
Analysis

LinearSettings

NonlinearSettings

M odalSettings

The settings associated with each type of analysis that Multiframe can perform are
contained in separate objects. The LinearSettings object contains the setting required
by the linear analysis. However, this object has only been provided for consistency at
there are no setting required by the linear analysis at this stage. All the settings
associated with a nonlinear analysis are stored within the NonlinearSettings object,
while the parameters required to perform a modal or time history analysis are specified
using the ModalSettings and TimeHistorySettings objects. Note that while a time
history analysis can be performed via the automation interface, the time history loading
and results of time history analyses are not yet available.

Results Hierarchy
The results of analyses are stored in a hierarchy with the Results object at the top. As
shown below, this hierarchy divides the results from each type of analysis into separate
objects. The results from the linear analysis are contained within the LinearResults
object that in turn contains a collection of ResultCase objects, each of which corresponds
to the results for a particular load case. Each ResultCase object contains a collection of
NodeResult, ElementResult and MemberResult objects that provide an interface to
the results for each node, element or member in the frame. Similarly, the results of
nonlinear analyses are interfaced via the NonlinearResults object which also contains a
collection of ResultCases which correspond to each load case applied to the frame. Note
that each ResultCase exists irrespective of whether the case has been analysed or not. If
a case has been analysed then the Solved property of the ResultCase object returns a
value of true.

Page 21
Chapter 2 The Multiframe Object Model

Results

LinearResults
ResultCases (ResultCase)
NonlinearResults
NodeResults (NodeResult)
ModalResults
ElementResults(ElementResult)

MemberResults(MemberResult)

The results of a modal analysis are accessible via the ModalResults object. It contains a
collection of ResultCase objects representing each mode shape in the solution. The
ModalResults object also provides access to period and frequency of each mode shape.

No interface is currently available for the results from time history analyses.

The results for each node, element and member may be obtained directly by navigating
the hierarchy described above. An alternative technique is to use the GetResults
method of the respective Node, Element and Member objects.

Indices, Numbers and ID’s

Any object within the Multiframe automation model that is stored within a collection
will have an Index and a Number property. The index of the object represents the
position of the object in its parent collection. As the collections are ordered in the same
way items are numbered within Multiframe, the index is in fact the same as the number
of the object in the Multiframe user interface. If items are deleted from a frame, the
index of an object will always be updated accordingly.

The Number property of an object currently returns the number of the object as used
within Multiframes user interface. As this is the same as the items index, the Number
and Index property return the same value. Future versions of Multiframe may allow the
user to define the number of an item in which case the number need not be unique or part
of a continuous numbering scheme. For this reason it is suggest that the Number
properties is used when generating output such as reports.

Common Properties and Methods

A number of properties and methods of objects within the Multiframe Object Model are
common to many of the objects within the library. To avoid unnecessary repetition
within the manual, these common properties and methods are described below.

All of the objects that are used to model a structure, including the loading, share a
number of common properties and methods. These are summarized in the following
tables.

Property Type Description

Application Application Read Only. Returns a reference to the parent
application of the current object.
Frame Frame Read Only. Returns a reference to the Frame
containing the current object.

Page 22
 Chapter 2 The Multiframe Object Model

Property Type Description

Index Long Read Only. Returns the index of the current
object in its parent collection.
Label String Set/Get label associated with current object
Number Long Same as Index.

Method Returns Description

Delete Deletes the object from the frame.

The Index, Label and Number properties are specific only to objects that are contained
within collections. Objects that do not form a collection do not have these properties.
The Label object is sometimes replaced by a Name property in which case the Label
property is a hidden property that provides an alternative means of accessing the Name
property.

The Collections objects in the Multiframe Object Model also share a common property
and method as listed below.

Property Type Desciption

Count Long Read Only. Returns the number of objects in the
collection.

Method Returns Desciption

Item Object Returns an object from the collection.

These collections all have a method for adding a new object to the collection. However,
the naming of this method and the parameters required by the method are not standard
and vary depending upon the collection.

The List objects also have a number of common properties and methods that are
summarised below.

Property Type Desciption

Count Long Read Only. Returns the number of objects in the
list.
Unique Boolean Get/Set whether each object in the list is unique.

Method Returns Desciption

Add Adds an object(s) to the list.
Clear Removes all objects from the list.
Item Returns an object from the list.
Delete Deletes the items in the list from the frame.
Remove Removes an object(s) from the list.

A full description of using list objects is presented in Chapter 10.

Page 23
Chapter 2 The Multiframe Object Model

Arrays
All arrays used within the Multiframe automation interface are passed across the
interface as variants. This provides a lot of flexibility when passing an array to a method
or property as the array may be declared as either an array or a variant. However, when
an array of values is returned from a property or method of an object it is returned as a
variant. This means that the variable receiving the results must be declared as a variant.

Variant Parameters in Methods

Many methods in the Multiframe automation interface have parameters that are of
variant data type. In many cases these parameters are often used to pass arrays of values
such as an array of six boolean values representing the restrained degrees of freedom at a
node. In other cases they allow an object or a list of objects to be identified in many
different ways. A variant parameter identifying a single object will accept the integer
index of the item or the actual object. A common example is a variant parameter
representing a node. This parameter will accept an integer value of the nodes index or a
Node object. For example, the first parameter of the AddSpring method is a variant
specifying the node to which the spring is attached. This could be coded as
Dim mySpring as Multiframe.Spring
…
’Add spring to node 5 (by Index)
Set mySpring = myFrame.Spring.AddSpring(5,mfDOFx,12.5)
or
Dim mySpring as Multiframe.Spring
Dim myNode as Multiframe.Node
…
’Add spring to node 5 (by Object)
Set myNode = myFrame.Nodes(5)
Set mySpring = myFrame.Spring.AddSpring(myNode,mfDOFx,12.5)
A variant parameter representing a list of items will accept many different data types
that identify the list of objects. This may be a single integer index, an object, a list object
or even a collection of objects. A string containing a comma-delimited list of indices is
also valid and may include ranges specified with a dash (e.g. “1,2,5-7”). For example,
when a list of nodes is to be passed to a method, the variant parameter will accept a
single integer index, a Node object, a NodeList object, a Nodes collections, an array of
integer values of the nodes indices, or a string with a comma delimited list of nodes. For
example, the Loads method of the Nodes object returns all the nodal force loads applied
to the node. The Loads method has a single variant parameter specifying which load
cases are to be considered. The following code demonstrates the many different
parameters that may be passed to this function.

Page 24
 Chapter 2 The Multiframe Object Model

Dim myLoads as Multiframe.NodeLoadList

Dim myLCs as New Multiframe.LoadCaseList
…
’Get all node loads on node 3 applied in the first load case
Set myLoads = myFrame.Nodes(3).Loads(1)

’Get all node loads on node 3 applied in the third load case
Set myLoads = myFrame.Nodes(3).Loads(myFrame.LoadCases(3))

’Get all node loads on node 3 in load cases 5 and 6 (using

array)
Set myLoads = myFrame.Nodes(3).Loads(Array(5,6))

’Get all node loads on node 3 in load cases 5 and 6 (using

list)
MyLCs.Add 5
MyLCs.Add 6
Set myLoads = myFrame.Nodes(3).Loads(MyLCs)

’Get all node loads on node 3 in any load case

Set myLoads = myFrame.Nodes(3).Loads(myFrame.LoadCases)

Page 25
 Chapter 3 Getting Started

Chapter 3 Getting Started

This chapter presents a simple tutorial that provides an introduction to writing VBA
scripts that interact with Multiframe. It develops a script for generating a simple portal
frame, creating the loading on the frame and performing a linear analysis. The intention
of this example is to provide a simple overview of how to automate Multiframe and
introduce some of the commonly used objects in the Multiframe object library.

A Simple Macro
It is not the aim of this manual to teach you how to write VBA scripts or macros. This
can be learnt from many texts available on VBA, or on many of the core Microsoft
Office products. Some assistance is also available from the online help provided with
applications supporting a VBA scripting environment. However, to help you on your
way we give a brief description of how to write a simple macro. To begin writing a
macro you must first open the VBA development environment. In the Microsoft Office
products this is generally performed via the Tools | Macro | Visual Basic Editor
command. Add the following text to the content of a file open within this window.
Sub Hello()

MsgBox "Hello World"

End Sub
To run this macro, locate the cursor within the code and select the command Run | Run
Sub/Userform from the main menu. You should see a simple dialog saying “Hello
World”.

A Basic Multiframe Script

To enable scripting of Multiframe within your VBA script you must first reference the
Multiframe Object Library in the Visual Basic environment. To do this, select the Tools |
References command from the main menu.

Page 27
Chapter 3 Getting Started

Search the list of items displayed in the resulting dialog and find the Multiframe 1.1
Object Library entry. To enable Multiframe simply click in the check box to its left and
then press OK to exit the dialog. If the reference is set up correctly you should get the
benefits of automatic assistance in the editor as you write your macros or scripts.
Amongst other things, this will automatically list the properties and methods of objects
as you write VBA code.

The VBA subroutine listed below is a simple script that uses Multiframe automation.
Type this script into the VBA programming environment.
Sub MyScript()
Dim mfApp As New Multiframe.Application
Dim myFrame As Multiframe.Frame

Set myFrame = mfApp.Frame

MsgBox myFrame.Name

End Sub
Before running this script, make sure Multiframe is running and a frame has been loaded
from disk. Now run this script from the VBA environment, it will display a dialog
containing the name of the file open in Multiframe.

Creating a Portal Frame

The remainder of this chapter concentrates on the development of simple model for a two
dimensional portal frame. The dimensions of the portal frame are shown in the
following diagram. The next sections describe how to build the geometry of the frame
by defining the nodes and elements that make up the frame. Each section after that then
extends the script by adding a new piece of code that defines the restraints, allocates
section sizes, applies loads and finally analyses the frame.

H2 = 5.5
H1= 5.0

W = 12.0

Each of these sections begins by introducing a small part of the Multiframe object model.
It then uses this in the development of the script for generating the portal frame. The
entire script for generating the portal frame is listed at the end of this chapter.

Page 28
 Chapter 3 Getting Started

Adding Nodes and Elements

The geometry of a frame is constructed by adding new nodes and elements to the frame.
These are created using the AddNode and AddElement methods of the Nodes and
Elements collections. The script shown below uses these methods and objects to create
the portal frame described above.
Sub CreatePortal()
Dim mfApp As New Multiframe.Application
Dim myFrame As Multiframe.Frame
Dim myNode as Multiframe.Node
Dim myEl as Multiframe.Element

‘Add nodes to frame

Set myNode = myFrame.Nodes.AddNode(0.0,0.0,0.0)
Set myNode = myFrame.Nodes.AddNode(0.0,5.0,0.0)
Set myNode = myFrame.Nodes.AddNode(6.0,5.5,0.0)
Set myNode = myFrame.Nodes.AddNode(12.0,5.0,0.0)
Set myNode = myFrame.Nodes.AddNode(12.0,0.0,0.0)

’Add Elements by joining nodes

Set myEl = myFrame.Elements.AddElement(1,2)
Set myEl = myFrame.Elements.AddElement(2,3)
Set myEl = myFrame.Elements.AddElement(3,4)
Set myEl = myFrame.Elements.AddElement(4,5)

End Sub
After the declaration of variables, the script creates the five nodes required to define the
portal frame. Each node is created via a single call to the AddNode method which
returns a reference to the object that represents the new node. This reference is assigned
to the myNode variable that is declared at the start of the script as a Node object. After
the nodes have been created, each of the elements representing the members of the portal
frame are created by calling the AddElement method, which, like the AddNode
method, returns a reference to the object representing the new element. This code
assumes that the new nodes are the only nodes in the frame as it requires the nodes be
numbered from 1 to 5.

It is not always necessary to create the nodes and then add elements as elements can be
created directly by specifying the coordinates at each end of the element. Hence, the
piece of code above could be refined to
Sub CreatePortal()
Dim mfApp As New Multiframe.Application
Dim myFrame As Multiframe.Frame
Dim myEl as Multiframe.Element

‘Create elements
Set myEl=myFrame.Elements.AddElement(0.0,0.0,0.0,0.0,5.0,0.)
Set myEl=myFrame.Elements.AddElement(0.0,5.0,0.0,6.0,5.5,0.)
Set myEl=myFrame.Elements.AddElement(6.0,5.5,0.,12.0,5.0,0.)
Set myEl=myFrame.Elements.AddElement(12.0,5.0,0.,12.0,0.,0.)

End Sub
which is far more efficient as it reduces the number of subroutine calls made to
Multiframe. When creating elements in this way, Multiframe determines if a node
already exists at the specified points and connects the element to the existing node.
Otherwise a new node is created to define the end of the element.

Page 29
Chapter 3 Getting Started

Properties of Elements
Each element within a structure is represented by an Element object. This object can be
used to modify the attributes of an element such as its label, end releases or section size.
All the Element objects representing the elements of a frame are contained within an
Elements collection in the Frame. The Elements collection is arranged in numerical
order such that element number 4 is the 4th element in the collection. A reference to the
object representing this element would be obtained from the collection as follows
Dim myEl as Multiframe.Element
Set myEl = mfApp.Frame.Elements(4)
All attributes of this element that can be set in Multiframe can also be accessed and
modified using the Element object. For example, the orientation and label of the
element could be set using the following two lines of code.
myEl.Orientation = 45 ‘Set orientation to 45 degrees
myEl.Label = ”Beam B2” ‘Set label
The section type associated with an element is set using the SetSection method of the
Element object. This method can take a number of different parameters that are used to
specify a section from the current sections library. The first and simplest method is to
specify the section by the number of the group and the number of the section within the
group. The section can also be specified by name, in which case the entire sections
library is searched in order to match the name of the section. Examples of each of these
methods are
Call myEl.SetSection(1,2)
Call myEl.SetSection(“310UB40”) ‘Australia
Call myEl.SetSection(“W40x480”) ‘United States
Call myEl.SetSection(“150x150x7x10”) ‘Japan
For the portal frame created above, the following piece of code is used to set the section
size of each element.

‘Set section size of each element

With mfApp.Frame
Call .Elements(1).SetSection(1, 1)
Call .Elements(2).SetSection(2, 1)
Call .Elements(3).SetSection(2, 1)
Call .Elements(4).SetSection(1, 1)
End With

In this code fragment, the section size is set by specifying the index of the group and
section. This allows the script to work with any sections library.

Applying Restraints
In Multiframe, restraints are not implemented as properties of a node. Instead, they are
considered as a separate entity that is associated with a particular node. In this way,
several restraints can be applied to a single node. This is reflected in the Multiframe
automation model in which each restraint applied to a node is represented by a separate
Restraint object. The object contains the attributes of a restraint such as the node to
which is applied and the degrees of freedom it restrains. All the restraints within a
structure are stored in the Restraints collection in the Frame object.

Page 30
 Chapter 3 Getting Started

A new restraint can be applied to a structure by adding a new object to the Restraints
collection using the AddRestraint method. This method takes two parameters; the first
parameter specifies the node at which the restraint is to be applied. The second
parameter specifies the degrees of freedom to be restrained. This parameter can take
many forms but the simplest means of identifying the restrained freedoms is using
constants representing common type of restrains. For the portal frame we are developing
in the example, we need to apply rigid restraints at the 1st and 5th node in the frame.
These restraints are added to the model using the following code.
Dim myRestraint as Multiframe.Restraint

With mfApp.Frame.restraints
Set myRestraint = .AddRestraint(1, mfRestraintFixed)
Set myRestraint = .AddRestraint(5, mfRestraintFixed)
End With

VBA and Office 97

The VBA language provided in Microsoft Office 2000 contains a number of
improvements to the version used within the Office 97 suite of products. A
significant difference is in the use of enumerated types. The Multiframe
automation interface uses many enumerated types to make programming
scripts much simpler when using the latest versions of VBA. However,
when programming using an older version of VBA, such as used in Office
97, the use of enumerated types is not supported and the enumerated
constants must be replaced with their integer value. The enumerated types
and their values are summarised in Appendix A of this document.

If you were using Office 97, the above script would need to be programmed
using a value of 2 instead of enumerated constant mfRestraintFixed. You
can also import the list of types from the Types module contained in the
Office 97 examples provided with Multiframe.

Applying Loads
A load case applied to a frame is represented within the Multiframe object model using
the Loadcase object. This object contains the attributes of a load case such as its name,
type, etc. It also contains several collections containing the loads applied in the load
case. All the load cases applied to a structure are stored in a Loadcases collection that
is contained within the Frame object. A new load case is added to a frame using the
AddCase method of this collection. This method takes two parameters that specify the
type and name of the load case.

The following code fragment is used in the portal frame script to define three load cases,
a self weight case, a live load case and a factored case that combines the first two cases.

Dim myLC as Multiframe.Loadcase

'Add load cases to frame

With mfApp.Frame.LoadCases
Call .Item(1).Delete
Set myLC = .AddCase(mflcSelfWeight, "Self Weight")
Set myLC = .AddCase(mflcStatic, "Live Load")
Set myLC = .AddCase(mflcCombined, "DL + 1.25*LL")
End With

Page 31
Chapter 3 Getting Started

Loads applied to elements within a model are represented by an ElementLoad object.

This object has properties representing the magnitude of the load and its position along
the element. All the element loads applied in a load case are contained in an
ElementLoads collection that is stored in the Loadcase object. New loads are added
to a load case by adding an item to this collection using the AddLoad method.

Dim myLoad as Multiframe.ElementLoad

'Define live loads

With mfApp.Frame.LoadCases(2) .ElementLoads
Set myload=.AddLoad(2,mfDOFy,mfLoadshapeUniform,-3.5,0,-3.5,0,False)
Set myload=.AddLoad(3,mfDOFy,mfLoadshapeLinear,-3.5,0,-1.5,0, False)
End With

A similar syntax is used to add other loads such as thermal, joint loads or prescribed
displacements.

The load case factors used to define a combined load case are also stored as properties of
the Loadcase object. They can be set using the Factor property of this object which,
unlike many properties, takes a single parameter that identifies the index of the load case
for which the load case factor is being set. In our portal frame example, this property is
used as follows.

'Set factors for combined load case

With mfApp.Frame.LoadCases(3)
.Factor(1) = 1#
.Factor(2) = 1.25
End With

This snippet of code defines the factors for the 3rd load case that is a combination of the
1st load case and 1.25 time the 2nd load case.

Running an Analysis
The frame currently open in Multiframe can be analysed using the Analysis object. This
object manages the setting for each of the different analyses, records which analyses are
to be performed, and executes the analysis. The following code fragment is used to
perform a linear analysis of the portal frame.
'Perform linear analysis
With mfApp.Frame.Analysis
.Linear = True
.Nonlinear = False
.Analyse
End With
This code accesses the Linear and Nonlinear properties of the Analysis object to set
which analyses are to be performed. The analysis is then executed within Multiframe by
calling the Analyse method.

Page 32
 Chapter 3 Getting Started

Units
In this example we have so far avoided the mention of which units we are using to
construct the frame. This has been deliberate as the units used when scripting the VBA
can be any unit supported within Multiframe. In fact, when working with the automation
interface, all values are specified using the current units set that is been used within the
application. The units may be interrogated or manipulated using the Preferences
object. The Units property of the Preferences object specifies the current unit set. This
may be set to one of predefined sets of units (Australian, Japanese, American, etc.) by
setting it to an enumerated value of type mfUnitSets. For example, the Japanese unit set
may be specified by setting

mfApp.Preferences.UnitSet = mfUnitsetJapanese

The specific units used with a unit set can be manipulated via the SetUnit method of the
Preferences object. This method takes two parameters; the first is an enumerated value
identifying the type of units (length, force, angle, etc) to be set. The second parameter is
a string that specifies the name of the units to be used. For example, to change the units
for length to feet would require the code
mfApp.Preferences.SetUnits(mfUnitLength,”ft”)
Allowable values of the unit names are those listed in Multiframe’s Units dialog for each
of the units types.

For the portal frame script, metric units have been adopted. This is done by inserting the
following piece of code at the start of the script following the declaration of variables.

'Set units
With mfApp.Preferences
.UnitSet = mfUnitsetAustralian
Call .SetUnit(mfUnitLength, "m")
Call .SetUnit(mfUnitForce, "kN")
End With

This short piece of code specifies to use the Australian unit set and then ensures that the
length and force units are set to metres and kilonewtons respectively.

The Final Script

In the preceding sections a script was developed for generating a simple portal frame.
Each section developed a separate piece of the script. All of these pieces combine into a
single script that is listed below.

Public Sub CreatePortal()

'Declare variables
Dim mfApp As New Multiframe.Application
Dim myLC As Multiframe.LoadCase
Dim myEl As Multiframe.Element
Dim myLoad As Multiframe.ElementLoad
Dim myRest As Multiframe.Restraint

'Set units
With mfApp.Preferences
.UnitSet = mfUnitsetAustralian
Call .SetUnit(mfUnitLength, "m")
Call .SetUnit(mfUnitForce, "kN")

Page 33
Chapter 3 Getting Started

End With

'Create elements forming portal frame

With mfApp.Frame.Elements
Set myEl = .AddElement(0#, 0#, 0#, 0#, 4#, 0#)
Set myEl = .AddElement(0#, 4#, 0#, 6#, 5.25, 0#)
Set myEl = .AddElement(6#, 5.25, 0#, 12#, 4#, 0#)
Set myEl = .AddElement(12#, 4#, 0#, 12#, 0#, 0#)
End With

'Set section type of each element

With mfApp.Frame
Call .Elements(1).SetSection(1, 1)
Call .Elements(2).SetSection(2, 1)
Call .Elements(3).SetSection(2, 1)
Call .Elements(4).SetSection(1, 1)
End With

'Apply restraints to base of columns

With mfApp.Frame.restraints
Set myRest = .AddRestraint(1, mfRestraintFixed)
Set myRest = .AddRestraint(5, mfRestraintFixed)
End With

'Add load cases to frame

With mfApp.Frame.LoadCases
Call .Item(1).Delete
Set myLC = .AddCase(mflcSelfWeight, "Self Weight")
Set myLC = .AddCase(mflcStatic, "Live Load")
Set myLC = .AddCase(mflcCombined, "DL + 1.25*LL")
End With

'Define live loads

With mfApp.Frame.LoadCases(2).ElementLoads
Set myLoad = .AddLoad(2, mfDOFy, mfLoadshapeUniform, -3.5, 0, -
3.5, 0, False)
Set myLoad = .AddLoad(3, mfDOFy, mfLoadshapeLinear, -3.5, 0, -1.5,
0, True)
End With

'Set factors for combined load case

With mfApp.Frame.LoadCases(3)
.Factor(1) = 1#
.Factor(2) = 1.25
End With

'Perform linear analysis

With mfApp.Frame.Analysis
.Linear = True
.Nonlinear = False
.Analyse
End With

End Sub

Page 34
 Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

This chapter describes the objects that are used to develop the structural model. These
include objects describing nodes, elements, restraints and springs. These object form
part of a hierarchy contained within the Frame object that encapsulates the objects
describing an entire structural model and its associated properties. This chapter does not
cover the objects for applying loads to the structural model which are described in
Chapter 5.

Frame Object
The Frame object is a very important object as it contains all the objects and collects
which describe the frame currently open within the Multiframe application. This includes
all elements used to model the geometry of the frame, the loading and the results of
analyses performed on the frame. The frame object is also responsible for managing the
storage and retrieval of the frame to file.

Frame

Nodes (Node)

Elements (Element)

Springs (Spring)

Restraints (Restraint)

NodeMasses (NodeMass)

NodeLinkGroups (NodeLinkGroup)

Loadcases (Loadcase)

Members (Member)

Results

ProjectInfo

Analysis

A summary of all the properties and methods of a Frame object are listed in the table
below.

Property Type Description

ActiveLoadcase LoadCase Get / Set the load case currently displayed
in the Multiframe application.
Analysis Analysis Read Only. Returns an object that manages
the analysis of the frame.
Application Application Read Only. Returns a reference to the
parent application.

Page 35
Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Property Type Description

Elements Elements Read Only. Returns a collection of all
elements in the frame.
FullName String Read Only. Returns the name and path of
the file to which the frame is saved.
LoadCases LoadCases Read Only. Returns a collection of all load
cases applied to the frame.
GroupSets GroupSets Read Only. Returns a collection of all
group sets defined within frame.
Members Members Read Only. Returns a collection of all the
frames design members.
Modified Boolean Read Only. Returns true if the sections
library has been modified and the changes
have not been saved to disk.
Name String Read Only. Returns the name of the file in
which the frame is saved.
NodeLinkGroup NodeLinkGroups Read Only. Returns a collection of all the
s node link groups applied to the frame.
NodeMasses NodeMasses Read Only. Returns a collection of all the
node masses applied to the frame.
Nodes Nodes Read Only. Returns a collection of all the
nodes in the frame.
Path String Read Only. Returns the directory path of
the file to which the frame is saved.
ProjectInfo ProjectInfo Read Only. Returns an object containing
the user definable properties of the frame.
Restraints Restraints Read Only. Returns a collection of all the
restraints in the frame.
Results Results Read Only. Returns an object that
encapsulates the results from the analysis of
the frame.
Selection Selection Read Only. Returns the selection is a
specified window.
Springs Springs Read Only. Returns a collection of all the
springs in the frame.

Method Returns Description

Close Close the frame currently open within the
application.
New Close the frame currently open within the
application.
Open Loads a frame from file.
Save Saves the frame to its original file.
SaveAs Saves the frame to a specified file.
SetSelection Set the selection in the specified window.

Page 36
 Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Properties
The geometry and topology of a structural model is defined by its nodes and elements.
All the nodes and elements in a frame are stored as collections of Node and Element
objects. These collections are referenced via the Nodes and Elements properties of the
Frame object. Boundary conditions are applied to the model in the form of springs,
restraints and the linking of nodal degrees of freedom. These are represented within the
object model as Spring, Restraint and NodeLinkGroup objects respectively. The
boundary conditions applied to frame are stored in collections of each of these objects
which are referenced via the Springs, Restraints and NodeLinkGroups properties of
the Frame object.

A joint mass attached to the model is defined by the NodeMass object. The
NodeMasses collection stores all the node masses applied to a frame. In
Multiframe4D, this collection can be referenced from the Frame object using the
NodeMasses property. An error message will be returned when trying to access this
collection in other versions of Multiframe. The application of Node, Spring, Element,
NodeLinkGroup and NodeMass objects in the modelling of a frame are described in
detail later in this chapter.

The loading applied to the frame is defined by the collection of LoadCases objects
associated with the frame. This collection, which is available via the LoadCases
property of the Frame object, defines each of the load cases applied to the frame. The
application of loads are described in detail in Chapter 5.

The Analysis property of the Frame object returns a reference to an Analysis object
that is responsible for the analysis of the frame. It stores the settings to be used in the
analysis, controls which analyses are to be conducted and performs the actual analysis of
the frame. A detailed description of this object is presented in Chapter 6. The results of
analyses are stored within the Results object. This is stored as part of the Frame object
and can be referenced via the Results property of this object. Chapter 7 describes the
Results object which contains a hierarchy of objects for accessing the results at each
node, element or design member within the frame.

The definition of a design member within the Multiframe object model is stored within a
Member object. All the design members within a frame are stored within a collection of
Member objects. This collection if referenced via the Members property of the Frame
object. The use of design members is described later in this chapter.

The Modified property is used to determine if the frame has been changed and needs to
be saved. This property returns a value of true if the frame has been altered. It will most
commonly be used conjunction with the methods to open and save the frame.

The details of the frame such as it title, description and name of the client are stored in a
ProjectInfo object. This object may be referenced via the ProjectInfo property of the
Frame object.

The three properties FullName, Name, and Path describe the location of the file to
which the frame is saved. The Path property contains the disk path of the file; the
Name property returns just the name of the file while the FullName property returns the
name of the file including the path.

Page 37
Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

The Selection property of the Frame object returns the selection within one of
Multiframes windows. This is a read only property that takes a single parameter that
identifies the window containing the desired selection. If no window is specified, the
selection in the window which is currently active within Multiframe is returned. The
selection is returned as a Selection object that is discussed in Chapter 10.

The ActiveLoadCase property provides a means of interacting with the Multiframe user
interface. This property references the load case that is displayed within Multiframes
windows.

Methods
A new frame is loaded into Multiframe using the Open method of the Frame object.
The following script demonstrates how to open a new frame using VBA and Microsoft
Excel. In this example the user is prompted to select the file to be opened via the File
Open dialog.
Dim Filename As String 'name of file to open
Dim Filter As String ‘filter for section library files

’Display open file dialog so user can pick new frame

Filter = "Sections Library (*.mfb),*.mfb”
With Application
Filename =.GetOpenFilename(Filter,, "Open Frame",,False)
End With

If Filename <> False ThenCall

mfApp.Frame.Open(Filename)
End If
In Microsoft Word this script would be slightly different as a different function is used to
display the File Open dialog.
’Display open file dialog so user can pick new frame
With Application.Dialogs(wdDialogFileOpen)
.Name = "*.mfb"
If (.Display = -1) Then

’Open new sections frame

Call mfApp.Frame.Open(.name,true)

End If
End With
The frame may be saved to file using the Save or SaveAs methods. The Save method
saves the frame using it’s current file name and path. The SaveAs method saves the
frame as a new file. It would be implemented within a script in a similar was to the
examples shown above for opening a frame.

The frame currently opened within Multiframe can be closed and a new frame created
using with the Close or New methods. Both these methods take a single Boolean
parameter that specifies if the existing frame is to be saved.

Finally, the SetSelection method sets the selection within a specified window. This
method is discussed in detail in Chapter 10.

Nodes
A node within a structure is represented by the Node object. This object encapsulates all
the properties of a node such as its position and orientation of the local axes. All the
nodes that form a structure are contained within the Nodes collection that is stored as
part of the Frame object.

Page 38
 Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Frame

Nodes (Node)

A summary of all the properties and methods of the Node object are listed in the table
below.

Property Type Description

Elements ElementList Read Only. Returns a list of all elements
connected to the node.
Masses NodeMassLi Read Only. Returns a list of all node masses
st attached to the node.
Orientation Variant Get/Set the orientation of the local nodal axes.
OrientX Double Get/Set the rotation about the x-axes that
specifies the orientation of the nodes local axes.
OrientY Double Get/Set the rotation about the y-axes that
specifies the orientation of the nodes local axes.
OrientZ Double Get/Set the rotation about the z-axes that
specifies the orientation of the nodes local axes.
Pinned Boolean Get/Set the whether the node is pinned or rigid.
Restraints RestraintList Read Only. Returns a list of all restraints applied
to the node.
Springs SpringList Read Only. Returns a list of all springs attached
to the node.
XYZ Variant Get/Set the position of the node.
X Double Get/Set the x-coordinate of the nodes position.
Y Double Get/Set the y-coordinate of the nodes position.
Z Double Get/Set the z-coordinate of the nodes position.
UserData Variant Get/Set user defined value stored with the node.
UserDataUnit mfUnitType Get/Set the units of the user defined value stored
s with the node.

Method Returns Description

GlobalToLocal Variant Transforms a vector of values from
global to local nodal coordinates.
Loads NodeLoadList Returns the loads applied to the node by
specified load cases.
LocalToGlobal Variant Transforms a vector of values from local
nodal coordinates to global coordinates.
PreDisps NodePreDispList Returns the prescribed displacements
applied to the node by specified load
cases.
Results NodeResult Returns the results at the node for a
specific analysis and load case.
GetUserData Variant Returns variant arrays containing the
values and units of the specified user
data fields.

Page 39
Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Method Returns Description

SetUserData Variant Sets the values and units of the specified
user data fields.

The Application, Frame, Number, Label and Index properties in addition to the
Delete method are common to many objects and are described in Chapter 2.

Creating Nodes
A node is added to a frame using the AddNode method of the Nodes collection. This
method has three parameters that specify the x, y and z coordinates of the node in the
global coordinate system. The y and z parameters are optional values and have a default
value of 0.0. The position of the node will be set using the current units of length that
are set within the Multiframe application. For example, the following demonstrates how
to add a node to a structure.
Dim myNode as Multiframe.Node
Dim xVar,yVar as Variant

’Set units to metres

Call mfApp.Preferences.SetUnit(mfUnitLength, "m")

’Add node at x=1,y=4,z=5

Set myNode = myFrame.Nodes.AddNode(1.0, 4.0, 5.0)
In this example, the script sets the unit lengths to metres before adding the node.

Adding nodes one by one can be tedious and very time consuming using automation. A
virtually unlimited number of nodes can be created using the AddNodes method of the
Nodes collection. This method also has three parameters corresponding the coordinates
in the global x, y and z directions, and returns a NodeList object containing each of the
nodes added to the structure. Each of the parameters to this method may be an array of
values, containing a value for each of the new nodes, or a single value that will be
applied to each of the new nodes. The parameters for the y and z parameters are optional
and have a default value of 0.0. This is very convenient when working on a 2D structure
or even a continuous beam as the redundant direction can be ignored. Some examples of
using the AddNodes method follow.
Dim myNodeList as New Multiframe.NodeList
Dim xVar,yVar as Variant

’Set units to metres

Call mfApp.Preferences.SetUnit(mfUnitLength, "m")

'Add nodes for a 3 element continuous beam 12 units long

Set myNodeList = myFrame.Nodes.AddNodes(Array(0.0, 4.0, 8.0,
12.0))

'Add nodes for a portal frame, 12 m wide, 4m/5.25m high

xVar = Array(0.0,0.0,6.0,12.0,12.0) ‘x coords
yVar = Array(0.0,4.0,5.25,4.0,0.0) ‘y coords
Set myNodeList = myFrame.Nodes.AddNodes(xVar, yVar)
A feature of Multiframe is that only a single node can exist at any point in space. When
adding a node to the structure, Multiframe will test for the existence of a node at the
specified location. If such a node exists, a new node will not be created, and the existing
node will be returned to the user instead.

Page 40
 Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Automatically create nodes when adding Elements.

When creating the geometry of a frame it is not necessary to specify the
individual nodes and then add elements by connecting the individual nodes.
A simpler method is to directly create elements by specifying the location of
its ends. In this case, nodes will automatically be added to the frame if a
node does not already exist at the specified location.

Properties
The Node object encapsulates the data describing a joint within a structural model.
These properties described the position of the node, the orientation of the nodes local
axes and if the node is pinned or rigid. The Node object also provides several other
properties that provide information about other items that are connected or associated
with the node such as springs, restraints and joint masses.

The position of a node in global space is specified using the x, y or z properties of the
Node object. These properties, which give the location of the node in each of the global
directions, are expressed in terms of the length units currently in use within the
Multiframe application. The coordinates of the node may also be referenced using the
xyz property that returns the position of the node as a variant containing an array of three
values.
Dim myNode as Multiframe.Node

’Get reference to node

Set myNode = myFrame.Nodes(21)

’Scale x coord of node by 4 times

myNode.x = myNode.x * 4.0

’Set position of node

myNode.xyz = Array(10.0,2.0,1.0)
The orientation of a node is controlled by the OrientX, OrientY, OrientZ properties of
the Node object. They define the rotations of the global axes that are combined to give
the orientation of the local nodal axes. To complement these three properties, the
Orientation property provides access to the same information as an array of three values.

The Pinned property of the Node object defines if a node as pinned or rigid. This
Boolean valued property is equal to true when the node is a pinned node.

A list of the springs attached to a node can be obtained using the Springs property of the
Node object. This read only property returns a SpringList object which references each
spring applied to the node. The springs attached to several nodes within a structure can
be determined using the Springs property of the NodeList object which returns a
SpringList object containing all the springs connected to any node contained within the
list of nodes.

Page 41
Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Dim myNodeList as New Multiframe.NodeList

Dim mySpringList as New Multiframe.SpringList

’Get all nodes connected to node 15

Set mySpringList = myFrame.Nodes(15).Springs

’Get all springs connected to nodes 1,2 and nodes 5 to 10

myNodeList.Add “1,2,5-10”
Set mySpringList = myNodeList.Springs

’Get all springs in frame

myNodeList.Clear
myNodeList.Add myFrame.Nodes
Set mySpringList = myNodeList.Springs
Similarly the Restraints and Masses properties return list of any restraints or node
masses attached to a node.

The UserData and UserDataUnits properties enable values other than those defined
within Multiframe to be stored with each node. These properties take a single parameter
identifying separate values to be stored with the node thus allowing any number of
values to be stored with each node. Furthermore, each value is stored as a variant data
type so that strings, numbers or even arrays may be stored with each user data entry. To
provide compatability of the user data with the handling of units within Multiframe the
type of units associated with each user data entry may be set using the UserDataUnits
property. By default each user data value is assumed to be dimensionless. A simple
example demonstrating these properties if shown below
Dim myNode as Multiframe.Node

’Get reference to node

Set myNode = myFrame.Nodes(21)

’Store user data values

myNode.UserData(1) = 12.5 ‘ number
myNode.UserData(2) = “ABC” ‘ string
myNode.UserData(3) = 6.0 ‘ Length value
myNode.UserDataUnits(3) = mfUnitsLength

msgbox “User Data 1 = ”+ myNode.UserData(1)

msgbox “User Data 2 = ”+ myNode.UserData(2)
msgbox “User Data 3 = ”+ myNode.UserData(3)
Note units conversions will only be applied to user data values represented as numbers.

Methods
A list of loads applied to a node can be obtained using the Loads and PreDisps methods
of the Nodes object. These methods take a single parameter identifying the load cases
that are to be considered when compiling the list of loads. This parameter is optional,
and, if omitted, this method will return all the loads applied to the node as part of any
load case within the frame. The Loads and PreDisps methods return the list of loads as
NodeLoadList or NodePreDispList objects respectively. The flexibility of these
methods is demonstrated below

Page 42
 Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Dim myNode As Multiframe.Node

Dim myLoadList As New Multiframe.NodeLoadList
Dim myDispList As New Multiframe.NodePreDispList

'Get reference to node 5

Set myNode = myFrame.Nodes(5)

'Get all loads applied to node 5 in load case 1

Set myLoadList = myNode.Loads(1)

'Get all prescribed disps applied to node 5 in load case 3

Set myDispList = myNode.PreDisps(myFrame.LoadCases(3))

'Get all loads applied to node 5 in load cases 1 to 3 and 5

Set myLoadList = myNode.Loads("1-3,5")

'Get all loads applied to node 5 (all load cases)

Set myLoadList = myNode.Loads(myFrame.LoadCases)
The Results method of the Node object provides a means of directly accessing the
results at a node from a particular analysis, without navigating through the hierarchy of
the Results object. This method takes three parameters; the first is a variant parameter
identifying the load case for which the results are required, the second identifies the type
of analysis. The third parameter is redundant and has been included for future expansion
of the automation interface. The Results method returns a NodeResult object that
encapsulates access to the displacements and reactions at the node. This object is
described in detail in Chapter 7.

The Node object also provides two methods for transforming an array of values between
global and local nodal coordinates. These methods can transform arrays containing
either 3 or 6 values. The GlobalToLocal method, as the name suggests, transforms
values from the global coordinate system to the local nodal coordinates as defined by the
nodal orientation. Conversely, the LocalToGlobal method transforms values expressed
in the local nodal coordinates back to global coordinates. A typical application of
transforming values between coordinate systems is in transforming the reactions
(expressed in global coordinates) at a node with an inclined restraint to determine the
reactions normal to the restraint.
Dim myNode As Multiframe.Node
Dim r As Variant

Set myNode = myFrame.Nodes(1)

’Get vector of nodal reactions wrt global axes

r = myNode.Results(1, mfAnalysisStatic).Reactions

’Tranform reactions to local nodal axes

r = myNode.GlobalToLocal(r)

Elements
The Element object represents an element within a structure. This object encapsulates
all the properties of an element such as its position, section type, end releases and
orientation of the local axes. All the elements that form a structure are contained within
the Elements collection that is stored as part of the Frame object.

Frame

Elements (Element)

Page 43
Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

A summary of all the properties and methods of the Element object are listed in the table
below.

Properties Type Description

FlipSectionXX Boolean Get/Set whether the elements
section is flipped about its x-axis.
FlipSectionYY Boolean Get/Set whether the elements
section is flipped about its y-axis.
Length Double Read Only. Returns the length of
the element.
Member Member Read Only. Get the design member
to which the element is part of.
Node* Node/Variant Get/Set the node at a specified end
of the element.
Nodes NodeList Read Only. Returns a list of all
nodes connected to the element.
Offset* Variant Get/Set the rigid offsets at a
specified end of the element.
OffsetsLocal Boolean Get/Set whether the end offsets are
defined in local or global
coordinates.
Orientation Double Get/Set the orientation of the
element.
Releases* Variant Get/Set the releases at the ends of
the element.
Section Section/Variant Get/Set the section.
Slope Double Read Only. Get the slope of the
element.
SlopeXY Double Read Only. Get the slope of the
element in the X-Y plane.
SlopeZX Double Read Only. Get the slope of the
element in the Z-X plane.
SlopeZY Double Read Only. Get the slope of the
element in the Z-Y plane.
Type mfElementTyp Get/Set the type of the element.
e
UseDynamicSelfWeig Boolean Get/Set whether the self-weight of
ht the element is to be considered in
dynamic analyses.
UseShearAreaY Boolean Get/Set whether the shear deflection
in the local y-axis is to be
considered in an analysis.
UseShearAreaZ Boolean Get/Set whether the shear deflection
in the local z-axis is to be
considered in an analysis.
UseStaticSelfWeight Boolean Get/Set whether the self-weight of
the element is to be considered in
static analyses.
XYZ* Variant Read only. Returns the position of

Page 44
 Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Properties Type Description

a specified end of the element.
X* Double Read only. Returns the x-
coordinate of a specified end of the
element.
Y* Double Read only. Returns the y-
coordinate of a specified end of the
element.
Z* Double Read only. Returns the z-
coordinate of a specified end of the
element.
UserData Variant Get/Set user defined value stored
with the element.
UserDataUnits mfUnitType Get/Set the units of the user defined
value stored with the element.
*Denotes a property that takes a parameter specifying an end of the element.

Method Returns Description

GlobalToLocal Variant Transforms a vector of values from global
to local element coordinates.
Loads NodeLoadList Returns the loads applied to the element by
specified load cases.
LocalToGlobal Variant Transforms a vector of values from local
element coordinates to global coordinates.
Results ElementResult Returns the results at the element for a
specific analysis and load case.
SetSection Sets the section type of the element.
Subdivide ElementList Subdivides the element and returns a list of
the elements that form the original
element.
ThermalLoads ThermalLoadLis Returns the thermal loads applied to the
t element by specified load cases.
GetUserData Variant Returns variant arrays containing the
values and units of the specified user data
fields.
SetUserData Variant Sets the values and units of the specified
user data fields.

The Application, Frame, Number, Label and Index properties as well as the Delete
method are common to many objects and are described in Chapter 2.

Page 45
Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

A note on Properties
The properties of an object are most commonly used without any
parameters. However, properties may be defined to accept a parameter in
much the same way that a method accepts parameters. Unlike methods,
these properties can be directly set equal to a value. These types of
properties have been used in the Multiframe automation interface to provide
a simple means of accessing some properties. A common use is for the
properties of an element that pertain to a particular end of the element.
These are accessed via a single property of the Element object that accepts
a single parameter identifying an end of the element. One such example is
the rigid offsets at the end of an element; the offset at the first node can be
set using the following code

MyFrame.Elements(1).Offset(1)=Array(1.0,0.0,0.0)

Adding Elements
A new element is added to the frame using the AddElement method of the Elements
collection. This method accepts up to six parameters that specify either the nodes at each
end of the element or the x, y and z coordinates of the ends in the global coordinate
system. When adding the element via it’s end coordinates the position of the element
will be set using current units of length that are set within the Multiframe application. If
a node already exists at one or both of the specified end points, the element will
automatically be connected to the existing nodes. If an end point does not exist, a new
node will be created at that position. The coordinates of the ends can be specified in
three ways; the first uses only the first parameter of the AddElement method and
specifies the coordinates as an array of six values. The second method uses two
parameters and specifies the coordinates of each end as an array of three values. The
final method uses all six parameters and specifies each component of the end coordinates
separately. For example, the following demonstrates the different methods for adding an
element to a structure by specifying the coordinates at the end of the element.
Dim myEl as Multiframe.Element

’Set units to metres

Call mfApp.Preferences.SetUnit(mfUnitLength, "m")

With myFrame.Elements
‘Add element between (1,3,0) and (1,8,0)
Set myEl =.AddElement(1,3,0,1,8,0)

‘Add element between (1,8,0) and (7,9,0)

Set myEl =.AddElement(Array(1,8,0), Array(7,9,0))

‘Add element between (7,9,0) and (12,3,0)

Set myEl =.AddElement(Array(7,9,0,12,3,0))

End With
When adding an element between two nodes there are also a number of variations on
how the nodes are specified. In this case, the first two parameters can be any
combination of variant values representing a node within the model (i.e. the nodes index
or the nodes object). This is demonstrated in the following code.

Page 46
 Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Dim myEl as Multiframe.Element

’Set units to metres

Call mfApp.Preferences.SetUnit(mfUnitLength, "m")

With myFrame.Elements
’Add element between nodes 1 and 4
Set myEl =.AddElement(myFrame.Nodes(1), myFrame.Nodes(4))

’Add element between nodes 2 and 6

Set myEl =.AddElement(2,6)

End With
A number of elements can be created using the AddElements method of the Elements
collection. This method accepts up to six parameters which have the same meaning as
the parameters used by the AddElement method. However, each of these parameters
may be an array of values for each of the new elements, or a single value that will be
applied to each of the new elements.

Dim myElList as New Multiframe.ElementList

Dim xVar,yVar as variant

xVar = Array(0,0,0,-1,1,0,2,1,0)
yVar = Array(5,0,0,4,1,0,7,1,0)

With myFrame.Elements
‘Add element between (1,3,0) and (1,8,0)
Set myEl =.AddElements(xVar, yVar)

‘Add element between (1,8,0) and (7,9,0)

Set myEl =.AddElements(Array(1,8,0), Array(7,9,0))

‘Add element between points (7,9,0) and (12,3,0)

Set myEl =.AddElements(Array(7,9,0,12,3,0))

’Add element between nodes 1 & 4, 2 & 3, and 3 & 4

Set myEl =.AddElements(Array(1,2,3), Array(2,3,4))

’Add elements between nodes 1,2,3 and node 5

Set myEl =.AddElements(Array(1,2,3),myFrame.Nodes(5))

End With
In Multiframe only a single element can exist between two specific nodes. When adding
an element to the structure, Multiframe will test for the existence of an element between
the specified nodes and, if such an element exists, a new element will not be created.
Instead the existing element will be returned to the user by the AddElement or
AddElements methods.

Page 47
Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Properties
The section type and orientation of an element are referenced via the Section,
Orientation, FlipSectionXX, and FlipSectionYY properties of the Element object.
The Section property identifies the Section object that represents the section currently
allocated to the element. When setting the Section property, the new section can be
specified using a Section object or by its name. In this case Multiframe will search the
section library to locate a matching section. Additional functionality for setting the
section type is provided by the SetSection method described in the next section. The
orientation of the section, expressed in the current angle units, is controlled via the
Orientation property. For sections that are not double symmetric, the orientation
method is complemented by the FlipSectionXX, and FlipSectionYY properties that
provide a means of correctly positioning the section in relation to the element. When
these properties are set true, the orientation of the section will be flipped about the
specified axis. A simple example setting the section type and orientation of an element is
shown below.
Dim myEl as Multiframe.Element
Dim s as string

’Get reference to element 12

Set myEl = myFrame.Elements(12)

’Set section type using two different methods

myEl.Section = mfApp.SectionsLibrary.Groups(1).Sections(3)
myEl.Section = “610UB101”

’Set section orientation

myEl.Orientation = 45.0
myEl.FlipSectionXX = true
myEl.FlipSectionYY = false

’Notify user of elements section type

s = "Element: "+Str(myEl.Index)+” has section type
”+myEl.Section.Name
MsgBox s, vbOKOnly, "Multiframe"
The Type property of the Element object in an enumerated value of type
mfElementType. It controls the type of the element that may be set as standard
(mfEltypeStandard), tension only (mfEltypeTensionOnly), or compression only
(mfEltypeCompressionOnly).
Dim myEl as Multiframe.Element

’Set element at tension only

myFrame.Elements(6).Type = mfEltypeTensionOnly

’Set element at compression only

myFrame.Elements(8).Type = mfEltypeCompressionOnly
The length and slope of an element can be determined from the read-only properties
Length, Slope, SlopeXY, SlopeZX, and SlopeZY. The Length property returns the
length of the member in the current length units. Note the length of the member is
measured between end points defined by the end offsets and is NOT the distance
between the nodes defining the element. The four methods for returning the slope of the
member return a value in terms of the current angular units set within Multiframe. The
Slope method returns the slope of the member in the X-Y plane and corresponds the
slope of the elements displayed in the user interface. The other three slope methods
return the slope of the element in a specific plane. The SlopeXY returns the slope of the
member in the XY plane that is measured from the X to the Y-axes. Similar the
SlopeZX and SlopeZY properties return the slope of the element in the ZX and ZY
plane respectively, with the angle measured from the Z axis.

Page 48
 Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Dim myEl as Multiframe.Element

Dim s as string

’Get reference to element 10

Set myEl = myFrame.Elements(10)

’Notify user of elements slope in XY plane

s = "Slope of Element in XY plane is: "+Str(myEl.SlopeXY)
MsgBox s, vbOKOnly, "Element "+Str(myEl.Index)

’Notify user of elements slope in ZX plane

s = "Slope of Element in ZX plane is: "+Str(myEl.SlopeZX)
MsgBox s, vbOKOnly, "Element "+Str(myEl.Index)
Four properties of the Element object are flags used to control the analysis of the
element. The UseDynamicSelfWeight and UseStaticSelfWeight properties are
boolean properties controlling the inclusion of an elements mass in an analysis. When
UseStaticSelfWeight is set equal to true, the elements self-weight will be accounted for
in any self-weight load cases. Similarly, when the UseDynamicSelfWeight property is
set true, the elements mass will be considered when performing a modal or time history
analysis. The UseShearAreaY and UseShearAreaZ properties control whether or not
an elements shear deformation, about a particular axis, is to be accounted for in an
analysis. When set true, these properties indicate that an elements shear stiffness will be
considered in a static analysis of the structural model.

The moment releases at the end of an element are controlled using the Releases
property or the Element object. This property takes a single parameter that specifies an
end of the member and returns an array of six boolean values representing the release of
the end action in the direction of each degree of freedom. When a value in this array is
set true, a release is applied to the corresponding degree of freedom. As Multiframe only
supports the release of end moments, only the 3rd, 4th and 6th elements of this array are
significant. An example on using end releases follows.
Dim myEl as Multiframe.Element

’Get reference to element 9

Set myEl = myFrame.Elements(9)

’Set pinned ends at both ends of element

myEl.Releases(1)=Array(false,false,false,true.true,false)
myEl.Releases(2)=Array(false,false,false,true.true,false)
The rigid end offsets at the end of a member are encapsulated by Offset property of the
Element object. This property also takes a single parameter that specifies an end of the
member and returns an array of three values representing the offsets in each direction of
the axis system. The axis system in which the offset is applied is specified by the
OffsetsLocal property of the Element object. When this property is equal to true, the
offsets will be measured in the elements local coordinate system. Otherwise the offsets
are computed in the global coordinate system. Each component of the offsets is measured
in the current units of length set within Multiframe.

Page 49
Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Dim myEl as Multiframe.Element

With myFrame
’Apply offsets to both ends element 2
’Offsets applied 1 unit along length of member
.Elements(2).Offset(1) = Array(1.0,0,0) ‘start
offset
.Elements(2).Offset(2) = Array(-1.0,0,0) ‘end offset
.Elements(2).OffsetsLocal = true

’Apply offsets to start element 3

’Offset applied 1 unit in both global x and y directions
.Elements(3).Offset(1) = Array(1.0,1.0,0) ‘start offset
.Elements(3).OffsetsLocal = false
End With
The node at an end of an element is referenced by the Node property of the Element
object. This property takes a single parameter identifying an end of the element. This
property returns the Node object corresponding to the node, however a number of
alternative values can be used to set this property to a new value. In fact, this property
can be set using any variant value that can be interpreted as a node. This includes a Node
object, a nodes index within the frame or even it position. To complement the Node
property, the Nodes property returns a NodeList object containing all the nodes that
define the element.
Dim myEl as Multiframe.Element
Dim myNode1, mynode2 as Multiframe.Node

’Get reference to element 12

Set myEl = myFrame.Elements(12)

’Get reference to nodes at each end of member

Set myNode1 = myEl.Node(1) ‘Node at start of element
Set myNode2 = myEl.Node(2) ‘Node at end of element

’Move end of element lie between nodes 4 and 5

myEl.Node(1) = 4
myEl.Node(2) = 5

’Move node at element end to position (1.5,2.0,0.0)

myEl.Node(1) = Array(1.5,2.0,0.0)
Note when specifying a new end node by its coordinates, Multiframe will search for an
existing node and connect the element to that node. If a node does not exist at the
specified location, a new node will automatically be created.

The position of an elements end can be determined using the X, Y and Z properties of the
Element object which each return a single component of the ends position in global
coordinates. The XYZ property provides a faster method of accessing all three
components of an end position and returns the coordinates as an array of three values.
As with the Node property, each of the methods takes a single parameter identifying an
end of the element.

The UserData and UserDataUnits properties enable values other than those defined
within Multiframe to be stored with each element. These properties take a single
parameter identifying separate values to be stored with the element thus allowing any
number of values to be stored with each Element. Furthermore, each value is stored as a
variant data type so that strings, numbers or even arrays may be stored with each user
data entry. To provide compatability of the user data with the handling of units within
Multiframe the type of units associated with each user data entry may be set using the
UserDataUnits property. By default each user data value is assumed to be
dimensionless. A simple example demonstrating these properties if shown below

Page 50
 Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Dim myElement as Multiframe.Element

’Get reference to Element

Set myElement = myFrame.Elements(21)

’Store user data values

myElement.UserData(1) = 12.5 ‘ number
myElement.UserData(2) = “ABC” ‘ string
myElement.UserData(3) = 6.0 ‘ Length value
myElement.UserDataUnits(3) = mfUnitsLength

msgbox “User Data 1 = ”+ myElement.UserData(1)

msgbox “User Data 2 = ”+ myElement.UserData(2)
msgbox “User Data 3 = ”+ myElement.UserData(3)
Note units conversions will only be applied to user data values represented as numbers.

Finally, the Member property returns the Member object corresponding to the design
member of which the element is a part.

Methods
The SetSection method of the Element object is used to specify the section type of an
element. This method takes up to two parameters that specify the section and optionally
the group in which it is contained. The section can be identified in a number of ways;
the first is simply by the index of the section and the group in which it is contained. In
this case the group can be specified by its index within the sections library, its name or
by passing a SectionGroup object. The second method of setting the section is to use
it’s name. In this case no group is required and Multiframe will search the entire sections
library to locate the sections. The final way of setting the section type is to pass a
Section object. Some typical uses of this method are shown in the following code.
Dim myEl As Multiframe.Element
Dim mySection as Multiframe.Section

’Get reference to element 5

Set myEl = myFrame.Elements(5)

'Set section to the fourth section in the second group

Call myEl.SetSection(4,2)

'Set section to sixth section in the group named UB

Call myEl.SetSection(6,”UB”)

'Set section to section named 610UB101

Call myEl.SetSection(“610UB101”)

'Set section to fifth section in fourth group using section

object.
Set mySection = mfApp.SectionsLibrary.groups(4).Sections(5)
Call myEl.SetSection(mySection)
As the name suggests, the Subdivide method can be used to split an element into a
number of smaller elements. The method takes a single a single parameter that specifies
the proportions into which the element will be split. This parameter can be used in two
ways; if a single integer value is passed the element will be split into the specified
number of elements of equal length. Alternatively, the element may be split into arbitrary
size elements by passing an array containing the relative size of each of the subdivided
elements. For example;

Page 51
Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Dim myEllist As Multiframe.ElementList

’Split element 5 into 4 equal size elements

Set myEllist = myFrame.Elements(5).Subdivide(4)

’Split element 3 into 3 elements

’End quarters of the element will be made into separate
elements.
Set myEllist = myFrame.Elements(3).Subdivide(Array(1,2,1))
The Subdivide method returns an ElementList object containing the elements into
which the original element was split.

A list of loads applied to an element can be obtained using the Loads and
ThermalLoads methods of the Element object. These methods take a single parameter
identifying the load cases that are to be considered when compiling the list of loads.
This parameter is optional, and, if omitted, this method will return all the loads applied to
the element as part of any load case within the frame. The Loads and ThermalLoads
methods return the list of loads as ElementLoadList or ThermalLoadList objects
respectively. The flexibility of these methods is demonstrated below
Dim myEl As Multiframe.Element
Dim myLoadList As New Multiframe.ElementLoadList
Dim myThermLoadList As New Multiframe.ThermalLoadList

'Get reference to element 5

Set myEl = myFrame.Elements(5)

'Get all loads applied to element 5 in load case 1

Set myLoadList = myEl.Loads(1)

Add to list the loads applied in the load case named “Live
Loads”
myLoadlist.Add myEl.Loads(“Live Loads”)

'Get all thermal loads applied to element 5 in load case 3

Set myThermLoadList = myNode.PreDisps(myFrame.LoadCases(3))

'Get all loads applied to element 5 in load cases 1 to 3 and 5

Set myLoadList = myNode.Loads("1-3,5")

'Get all loads applied to element 5 (all load cases)

Set myLoadList = myNode.Loads(myFrame.LoadCases)
The Results method of the Element object provides a means of directly accessing the
results at a element from a particular analysis, without navigating through the hierarchy
of the Results object. This method takes three parameters; the first is a variant
parameter identifying the load case for which the results are required, the second
identifies the type of analysis. The third parameter is currently redundant and has been
included for future expansion of the automation interface. The Results method returns
an ElementResult object that encapsulates access to the elements actions and
displacements. This object is described in detail in Chapter 7.

The Element object also provides two methods for transforming an array of values
between global and local coordinates. These methods can transform arrays containing
either 6 or 12 values. The GlobalToLocal method, as the name suggests, transforms
values from the global coordinate system to the elements local coordinates as defined by
the its orientation. Conversely, the LocalToGlobal method transforms values expressed
in the elements local coordinates back to global coordinates. A typical application of
transforming values between coordinate systems is in transforming the displacements
(expressed in global coordinates) at a node to values expressed in terms of an elements
local coordinate system.

Page 52
 Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Dim myEl As Multiframe.Element

Dim r As Variant

’Get reference to element 1

Set myEl = myFrame.Elements(1)

’Get vector of nodal displacements wrt global axes

r = myEl.Node(1).Results(1, mfAnalysisStatic).Disps

’Tranform reactions to local element axes

r = myEl.GlobalToLocal(r)

Restraints
Each restraint applied to a node within a Multiframe structural model is represented by a
Restraint object. All of the restraints applied to the structural model are listed within a
Restraints collection that is stored as part of the Frame object.

Frame

Restraints (Restraint)

A summary of all the properties and methods of the Restraint object are listed in the
table below.

Property Type Description

Code Variant Read Only. Returns an array of values identifying
the restrained degrees of freedom applied by the
restraint.
DOF Boolean Get/Set whether a specific degree of freedom in
restrained.
Global Boolean Get/Set whether the restraint is applied in the
global or local nodal coordinate system.
Kind String Get/Set the kind of the element.
Node Node/Variant Get/Set the node to which the restraint is applied.
Type mfRestraintTyp Get/Set the type of restraint.
e

The Application, Frame, Number, Label and Index properties and the Delete method
are common to many objects and are described in Chapter 2.

Page 53
Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Restraining Nodes
A new spring can be attached to a node by calling the AddRestraint method of the
Restraints collection. This method has two parameters that specify the node to which
the restraint is to be attached and the degrees of freedom to be restrained. The node to
which the restraint is applied is passed as a variant parameter and so the node can be
identified using either its index or by using a Node object. The degrees of freedom to be
restrained at a node can be described in three ways. The simplest method is by name,
which allows standard restraints such as rollers, pinned, or rigid restraints to be applied
very easily. Standard restraints can also be identified by an enumerated value of type
mfRestraintType. The last technique allows each degree of freedom to be individually
restrained. The names and enumerated values describing the standard type of restraints
are described later in this section. The following code demonstrates the different
parameters that can be used when adding a restraint to a node.
Dim myRest As Multiframe.Restraint

With = myFrame.Restraints
’Add pinned restraint to node 1
Set myRest
=.AddRestraint(1,Array(True,True,True,False,False,False))

’Add roller restraint to node 2

Set myRest =.AddRestraint(2,mfRestraintPinnedxRoller)

’Add rigid restraint to node 3

Set myRest = .AddRestraint(3, "Rigid")
End With

Properties
The Node property of the Restraint object identifies the node to which the restraint is
attached. This property, which provides a reference to a Node object, may also be used
to change the node to which the restraint is applied. This property may be set equal to
any variant value that represents a node.

The degrees of freedom restrained by a restraint are specified via the Code property of
the Restraint object. This property is an array of six Boolean values, each value
corresponding to a degree of freedom at the node to be restrained. When an entry in the
array is set true, the corresponding degree of freedom will be restrained. A degree of
freedom can also be restrained via the DOF property. This property has a single
parameter of type mfDOF that specifies a degree of freedom and has a Boolean value of
true if that degree of freedom is restrained.

A number of standard restraints may be identified using an enumerated value of type

mfRestraintType or by name. These standard types of restraints are listed in the table
below. The Type property of the Restraint object is used to specify the type of restraint
using the enumerated value. This is complemented by the Kind property that specifies
the type of the restraint by name. Both of these properties may be used to set the type of
restraint.

Restraint Name mfRestraintType Value

Pinned mfRestraintPinned 1
Rigid mfRestraintFixed 2
x Roller mfRestraintPinnedxRoller 3
y Roller mfRestraintPinnedyRoller 4
z Roller mfRestraintPinnedzRoller 5

Page 54
 Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

x Guide mfRestraintRigidxRoller 6
y Guide mfRestraintRigidyRoller 7
z Guide mfRestraintRigidzRoller 8
mfRestraintRotational 9
mfRestraintUnknown 0

The Global property of a restraint determines if the restraint is applied in the global
coordinate system of the local coordinate system of the node to which the restraint is
applied. All nodes added within Multiframe are by default added in the local coordinate
system and it is advisable not to change this property from the value set by Multiframe.

Finding all the Restraints at a Node

All the restraints at a node can easily be obtained using the Restraints
property of the Node object. This property returns a RestraintList object
that contains a reference to every restraint applied to that node. The
Restraints property of a NodeList object extends this functionality and
returns a RestraintList containing all the restraints attached to any of the
nodes in the list.

This technique can be applied to determine the associate between many

other objects within the model.

Springs
A spring attached to a node within a structure is represented by a Spring object. This
object encapsulates all the properties of the spring such as its direction and stiffness. All
the springs utilised in a structural model are contained within the Springs collection
which can be referenced directly from the Frame object using the property of the same
name.

Frame

Springs (Spring)

A summary of the properties of the Spring object are listed in the table below.

Property Type Description

DOF mfDOF Get/Set the degree of freedom in which the spring
acts.
Global Boolean Get/Set whether the spring is directed in the
global or local nodal coordinate system.
Kind String Get/Set the kind of the spring.
Node Node/Variant Get/Set node to which the spring is attached.
Value mfRestraintTyp Get/Set the stiffness of the spring.
e

Page 55
Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

The Application, Frame, Number, Label and Index properties and the Delete method
are common to many objects and are described in Chapter 2.

Adding a Spring
A new spring can be attached to a node by calling the AddSpring method of the Springs
collection. This method has three parameters that specify the node to which the spring is
to be attached, the direction in which the spring acts and its stiffness. The node to which
the spring is attached is passed as a variant parameter and so the node can be identified
using either its index or by using a Node object. The second parameter is an enumerated
value of type mfDOF that identifies the degree of freedom in which the spring acts. The
final parameter specifies the stiffness of the spring in terms of the current units of spring
stiffness that are set within the Multiframe application. For example, the following code
demonstrates how springs may be added to a structure.
Dim mySpring as Multiframe.Spring

’Get springs collection

With myFrame.Springs

’Add vertical spring at node 2

Set mySpring = .AddSpring(2,mfDOFy,10.5)

’Add torsional spring at node 5

Set mySpring = .AddSpring(myFrame.Nodes(5),
mfDOFthetaz,0.25)

End With
A number of springs can be added in a single call to the automation interface using the
AddSprings method of the Springs collection. This method takes three parameters that
have the same meaning as those passed to the AddSpring method. However, each of the
parameters may be an array of values, containing a value corresponding to each new
spring, or a single value that will be applied to each of the new springs. Some examples
of how this method may be used are shown in the following script.
Dim mySpringList as New Multiframe.SpringList
Dim myNodeList as New Multiframe.NodeList
Dim stiffness as Variant
const DtoR = 3.14159/180.0 ‘Factor to convert
degrees to radians

With myFrame.Springs

'Add horizontal spring to node 5

Set mySpringList = .AddSprings(5,mfDOFx,5.75)

'Add springs to nodes 1 representing spring inclined at 60

degrees
stiffness= Array(5.0*cos(60*DtoR),5.0*sin(60*DtoR))
Set mySpringList =
.AddSprings(1,Array(mfDOFx,mfDOFy),stiffness)

'Add springs to nodes 1 to 10 and nodes 15 and 20

Set mySpringList = .AddSprings(“1-10,15,20”,mfDOFthetaZ,6.5)

End With

Properties
The Spring object encapsulates the data describing a joint spring within a Multiframe
structural model. This data, which includes information describing the node to which the
spring is attached, the direction of the spring and its stiffness, can be access via the
properties of this object.

Page 56
 Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

The Node property of the Spring object identifies the node to which the spring is
attached. This property, which provides a reference to a Node object, may also be used
to change the node to which the spring is applied. It can be set equal to any variant value
that can be used to identify a node.

The direction in which the spring acts is specified by the DOF property of the Spring
object. This property is an enumerated value of type mfDOF. Linear springs are applied
with a DOF of mfDOFx, mfDOFy or mfDOFz while torsional springs are specified
with a DOF of mfDOFthetax, mfDOFthetay or mfDOFthetaz. The axes to which
these degrees of freedom refer are specified by the Global property. This Boolean
property is set true then the spring is acting in the direction of the global coordinate axes.
If the Global property is false, the spring is directed along the local axes of the node to
which the spring is attached. The direction and axes may also be specified using the
Kind property. This property is a character string describing the direction of spring and
the axes to which the load is applied.

The stiffness of a spring is stored in the Value property of the Spring object. This
property describes the spring’s stiffness in terms of the spring or torsional spring units
currently set within the Multiframe application. An example of how these properties
may be changed is as follows
Dim mySpring as Multiframe.Spring

’Get reference to a spring

set mySpring = myFrame.Springs(1)

’Move spring to node 5

mySpring.Node = myFrame.Nodes(5)

’Set spring to have stiffness of 5 units applied in global y

direction
mySpring.DOF = mfDOFy
mySpring.Value = 5.0
mySpring.Global = true

’Change spring such that it acts in the local x direction

mySpring.Kind = ”kx’”

Node Linking
Joint linking or master/slave grouping in a model is represented using the
NodeLinkGroup object. This object encapsulates all the properties of the linked group
of nodes such as which degrees of freedom are linked, the linked nodes and the name of
the group. All the joint linking groups in a structural model are contained within the
NodeLinkGroups collection which can be referenced directly from the Frame object
using the property of the same name.

Frame

NodeLinkGroups (NodeLinkGroup)

A summary of all the properties and methods of the NodeLinkGroup object are listed in
the table below.

Property Type Description

Page 57
Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Property Type Description

DOF Boolean Get/Set whether a specific degree of freedom is
slaved.
Label String Get/Set name of the group.
MasterNod Boolean Get/Set the master node.
e
Nodes NodeList/Varia Get/Set the list of the linked nodes.
nt
LinkedDOF Variant Get/Set the slaved degrees of freedom.

Method Returns Description

AddNodes Adds nodes to the group.
RemoveNode Removes nodes from the group
s

In addition, the Application, Frame, Number and Index properties as well as the
Delete method are common to many objects and are described in Chapter 2.

Creating a linked group of Nodes

A new master/slave grouping is added to a frame using the AddGroup method of the
NodeLinkGroups collection. This method requires four parameters that specify the
name of the group, the nodes to be linked in the group, the master node and which
degrees of freedom are linked together by the group. The nodes in the group are
specified using a variant parameter and so any value representing a group of nodes can
be used to specify this list. Typically this will be either an array of indices or a NodeList
object. Similarly, the master node is also specified as a variant and as such can be
identified by any value representing a single node. The final parameter identifying the
slaved degrees of freedom is also a variant parameter but it must contain an array of six
Boolean values that correspond to each of the degrees of freedom. The entries in this
array should be set as true if the corresponding degree of freedom is to be restrained.
The AddGroup method returns the NodeLinkGroup object referencing the new group
added to the frame.

The following code demonstrates how to add a group of linked nodes to the frame. In
this example, all the nodes at y=4.5 are linked together to form a floor with rigid in-plane
behaviour.

Page 58
 Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Dim myGroup As Multiframe.NodeLinkGroup

Dim myNodeList As New Multiframe.NodeList
Dim dof(1 To 6) As Boolean

dof(1) = True
dof(2) = False
dof(3) = True
dof(4) = False
dof(5) = True
dof(6) = False

' Select all nodes in first floor which is at y=4.5

' by finding all nodes lying between y=4 and y=5
Set myNodeList = myFrame.Nodes.Find("y", 4, 5)

’ Create the linked group

’ The first node in the list is used as the master node
With myFrame.NodeLinkGroups
Set myGroup = .AddGroup("Floor 1", myNodeList,
myNodeList(1), dof)
End With

In this example to Find method of the Nodes collection is used to select the list of nodes
to be linked. The Find method is common to most collections and lists in the Multiframe
Object Model. It is used to find all the items in the collection or list with a property that
meets a specified criterion. In this instance, this method has been used to find all the
nodes with a y-coordinate lying between 4 and 5. The Find method is described in detail
in Chapter 10.

Properties
The Nodes property of the NodeLinkGroup object returns a NodeList object
containing each of the nodes in the linked group. This property can also be used to set
the nodes in the group and can be set equal to any value that represents one or more
nodes such as a NodeList object. The master node for the linked group is identified via
the MasterNode property. This property returns the Node object representing the
master node. This property can be used to set the master node and can be set equal to
any value used to represent a single node such as it’s index or a Node object.
Dim myGroup As Multiframe.NodeLinkGroup
Dim myNodeList As New Multiframe.NodeList

' Find all nodes in second floor which is at y=6.5

Set myNodeList = myFrame.Nodes.Find("y", 6.4, 6.6)

’ Reset nodes in the group

myFrame.NodeLinkGroups(“Floor 2”).Nodes = myNodeList
myFrame.NodeLinkGroups(“Floor 2”).MasterNode = myNodeList(1)
The degrees of freedom linked by the group can be identified via two properties of the
NodeLinkGroup object. The DOF property accepts a single parameter identifying a
nodal degree of freedom and returns true if that degree of freedom is linked. The
SlavedDOF property returns an array of six (6) Boolean values corresponding to each of
the nodal degrees of freedom. The entires in this array are set true if the corresponding
degree of freedom is linked by the group.

Page 59
Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Dim myGroup As Multiframe.NodeLinkGroup

Dim myNodeList As New Multiframe.NodeList

’ Reset nodes in group 2 to form rigid wall in XY plane

myFrame.NodeLinkGroups(2).DOF(1) = true
myFrame.NodeLinkGroups(2).DOF(2) = true
myFrame.NodeLinkGroups(2).DOF(3) = false
myFrame.NodeLinkGroups(2).DOF(4) = false
myFrame.NodeLinkGroups(2).DOF(5) = false
myFrame.NodeLinkGroups(2).DOF(6) = true

’ Set linked DOF in group named “Floor 2”

myFrame.NodeLinkGroups(“Floor 2”).LinkedDOF =
Array(1,0,1,0,1,0)
The name of the group is referenced via the Label property of the NodeLinkGroup
object.

Methods
Nodes may be added or removed from the linked group using the AddNodes and
RemoveNodes methods of the NodeLinkGroup object. These methods take a single
variant parameter that specifies the nodes to be added or removed from the group. A
simple example demonstrating the various parameters that can be passed to these
methods is shown below.
Dim mylist As New Multiframe.NodeList

mylist.Add "20-30"

With mfApp.Frame.nodeLinkGroups(1)
’Add nodes to linked group
Call .AddNodes(1) 'Add node by index
Call .AddNodes("2-9,12") 'Add nodes listed by index
Call .AddNodes(mfApp.Frame.Nodes(10)) 'Add node using node
object
Call .AddNodes(mylist) ‘Add nodes using list

‘Remove nodes from linked group

Call .RemoveNodes(1) 'By index
Call .RemoveNodes("2-9,12")
Call .RemoveNodes(mylist) 'Using a list of nodes

End With

Node Masses
In Multiframe4D, a joint mass attached to a node within a structure is represented by a
NodeMass object. This object encapsulates all the properties of the mass such the node
to which it is attached and the mass associated with each degree of freedom. All the
nodal masses in a structural model are contained within the NodeMasses collection that
can be referenced directly from the Frame object using the property of the same name.

Frame

NodeMasses (NodeMass)

A summary of all the properties and methods of the NodeMass object are listed in the
table below.

Page 60
 Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Property Type Description

Mass Double Get/Set the mass associated with a specific degree
of freedom.
Masses Variant Get/Set the masses at every degree of freedom.
Node Node/Variant Get/Set node to which the mass is attached.

The Application, Frame, Number, Label and Index properties as well as the Delete
method are common to many objects and are described in Chapter 2.

Adding Mass to a Node

A new joint mass is added to a frame using the AddMass method of the NodeMasses
collection. This method has two parameters that specify the node to which the mass is
attached and the mass applied to the node. Both of these parameters are of variant type.
As such, the node is identified by any value representing a single node. The masses
applied to the node are contained within an array of six values. Each entry in the array
corresponds to the mass applied in each of the degrees of freedom at the node. The
AddMass method returns a NodeMass object referencing the new joint mass added to
the frame. A simple example of adding a mass to a frame is shown below. It
demonstrates the different ways in which the parameters may be specified.
Dim myMass As Multiframe.NodeMass
Dim mass(1 To 6) As Double

’Setup values of masses in array

mass(1)=50.0
mass(2)=50.0
mass(3)=50.0
mass(4)=0.0
mass(5)=0.0
mass(6)=0.0

’ Add mass to nodes

With myFrame.NodeMasses
Set myMass = .AddMass(1,mass) ‘Add mass to node 1
Set myMass = .AddMass(myFrame.Nodes(2),mass) ‘Add mass to
node 2
Set myMass = .AddMass(3,Array(9,9,9,0,0,0)) ‘Add mass to
node 3
End With
A mass can be added to a number of nodes in a single call using the AddMasses method
of the NodeMasses collection. The first parameter to this method is the nodes to which
the mass will be added. This is a variant parameter so any value representing a single
node or a list of nodes will be accepted. The second parameter specifies the mass to be
added to each of the nodes identified by the first parameter. This parameter is the same
as that passed to the AddMass method described above. The AddMasses method
returns a NodeMassList containing references to each of the new joint masses added to
the frame. Some examples of how this method may be used as shown in the code below.

Page 61
Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Dim myMassList As New Multiframe.NodeMassList

Dim myNodeList As New Multiframe.NodeList
Dim mass(1 To 6) As Double

’Setup values of masses in array

mass(1)=25.0
mass(2)=25.0
mass(3)=25.0
mass(4)=0.0
mass(5)=0.0
mass(6)=0.0

’ Add mass to nodes

With myFrame.NodeMasses
‘Add mass to a single node
Set myMassList=.AddMasses(1,mass)
Set myMassList=.AddMasses(myFrame.Nodes(2),mass)

‘Add masses to several nodes

Set myMassList=.AddMasses(“3-5”,mass) ‘Nodes 3 to 5
myNodeList.Add “6-8”
Set myMassList=.AddMasses(myNodeList,mass) ‘Nodes 6 to 8

’Delete all node masses

myMassList.Clear
myMassList.Add myFrame.NodeMasses
myMassList.Delete

’ Add masses to all nodes in structure

Set myMassList=.AddMasses(myFrame.Nodes,mass)

End With
In this example, the Delete method of the NodeMassList object is used to remove all
node masses from the frame. In general this will be much faster than deleting each of the
individual node masses as only a maximum of three calls across the Multiframe
automation interface are required.
Properties
The Node property of the NodeMass object identifies the node to which the mass is
applied. This property, which provides a reference to a Node object, may also be used
to change the node to which the mass is attached.

The magnitude of the mass applied to a node can be referenced via two properties of the
NodeMass object. The Mass property accepts a single parameter identifying a nodal
degree of freedom and returns the magnitude of the mass associated with the specified
degree of freedom. The Masses property returns an array of six (6) values; each entry
in the array corresponds to the mass acting in each of the nodal degrees of freedom. An
example of how these properties would be used is shown in the following script.

Page 62
 Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Dim myMass As Multiframe.NodeMass

Dim mass as variant
Dim I as long

’ Scale all masses in frame by a factor of 3

For each myMass in myFrame.NodeMasses
mass = myMass.Masses
For i=1 to 6
mass(i) = mass(i)*3.0
Next
myMass.Masses = mass
Next

’Set z component of mass to zero in every mass in frame

For each myMass in myFrame.NodeMasses
myMass.Mass(mfDOFz) = 0.0
Next

GroupSets
Each group set defined for a structural model is contained by the GroupSets collection
stored within the Frame object. This collection is referenced via the GroupSets
property of the Frame object.

Frame

GroupSets (GroupSet)

The properties and method of the GroupSet object are summarised in the table below.

Property Type Description

Exclusive Boolean Get/Set the type of loading stored in the
load case.
Groups Groups Read Only. Returns reference to
collection of groups contained within this
group set.
Label String Get/Set the name of the load case.

The Application, Frame, Index and Index properties in addition to the Delete method
are common to many objects and are described in Chapter 2.

Each GroupSet object in this collection stores all the loads applied to the frame by that
load case. These loads are contained within one of four collections that store the joint
loads, prescribed displacements, elements loads or thermal loads.

GroupSets (GroupSet)

Groups (Group)

Page 63
Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Adding a group set

A new group set is defined within a frame using the AddSet method of the GroupSets
collection. This method has two parameters that specify the name of the group set and if
the set is to use exclusive grouping of members between the groups contained with the
set. The AddSet method returns a GroupSet object referencing the group set added to
the model. A simple example of defining a group set is shown below.
Dim mySet As Multiframe.GroupSet

’ Add mass to nodes

With myFrame.GroupSets
Set myMass = .AddSet(“Floors”,true)
End With

Properties
The name of a group set is referenced via the Label property of the GroupSet object
that stores the name of the set as a string.

The type of grouping allowed within the group set is obtained from the Exclusive
property of the GroupSet object. This property is a Boolean value which is equal to true
when exclusive grouping is to be applied to the groups within this set.

The Groups property provides access to the collection storing the groups defined within
the group set. The use and content of these objects and collections is described in
following sections of the chapter.

Groups
A groups of element and nodes within a group set is represented using the Group object.
This object encapsulates all the properties of the group such as the name and colour of
the group. The groups defined within a group set are contained within a Groups
collection that can be referenced directly from a GroupSet object using the property of
the same name.

A summary of all the properties and methods of the Group object are listed in the table
below.

Property Type Description

Color OLE_COLOR Get/Set the colour of the group.
Elements ElementList/Varia Get/Set the list of the grouped elements.
nt
GroupSet GroupSet Gets the parent group set in which the group is
contained.
Label String Get/Set name of the group.
Nodes NodeList/Variant Get/Set the list of the grouped nodes.

Method Returns Description

AddNodes Adds nodes to the group.
AddElements Adds elements to the group.
RemoveNodes Removes nodes from the group

Page 64
 Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Method Returns Description

RemoveElement Removes element from the group
s

In addition, the Application, Frame, Number and Index properties as well as the
Delete method are common to many objects and are described in Chapter 2.

Creating a Group
A new group is added to a group set using the AddGroup method of the Groups
collection. This method accepts three parameters that specify the name of the group, the
grouped nodes and the grouped elements. The nodes and elements in the group are
specified using a variant parameter and so any value representing a group of nodes or
group of elements can be used to specify these lists. Typically this will be either an array
of indices or a list object or can be omitted if the group is to be created with no content.
The AddGroup method returns the Group object referencing the new group added to the
frame.

The following code demonstrates how to add a group to the frame. In this example,
elements 1 to 5 are grouped together to
Dim myGroup As Multiframe.Group

’ Create the group in the floors group set

With myFrame.GroupSets(“Floors”)
Set myGroup = .AddGroup("Floor 1", ,“1-5”)
End With

Properties
The Nodes property of the Group object returns a NodeList object containing each of
the nodes in the group. This property can also be used to set the nodes in the group and
can be set equal to any value that represents one or more nodes such as a NodeList
object.
Dim myNodeList As New Multiframe.NodeList

' Find all nodes in second floor which is at y=6.5

Set myNodeList = myFrame.Nodes.Find("y", 6.4, 6.6)

With myFrame.GroupSets(“Floors”)
’ Reset nodes in the group
.Group(”Floor 1”).Nodes = myNodeList

’ Reset elements in the group

.Group(”Floor 1”).Elements = “1-6”
End With

Similarly, the Elements property of the Group object returns a ElementList object
containing each of the elements in the group. This property can also be used to set the
elements in the group and can be set equal to any value that represents one or more
elements such as a ElementList object.
With myFrame.GroupSets(“Floors”)
’ Reset elements in the group
.Group(”Floor 1”).Elements = “1-6”
End With

The colour of a group is referenced via the Color property of the Group object. The
property is of type OLE_COLOR.

Page 65
Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

With myFrame.GroupSets(“Floors”)
.Group(”Floor 1”).Colour = 255 ‘red
.Group(”Floor 2”).Colour = 16711680 ‘blue
.Group(”Floor 3”).Colour = 65280 ‘green
End With

The name of the group is referenced via the Label property of the Group object.

OLE_COLOR
The OLE_COLOR data type represents a colour as a BGR (Blue, Green,
Red) value. The OLE_COLOR value of a colour specified by its red, green
and blue components (each of which has a value from 0 - 255) is determined
using the following expression:

OLE_COLOR value = red + (green * 256) + (blue * 65536)

The OLE_COLOUR values of some common colours are as follows:

Black 0

Dark Grey 4210752

Grey 8421504

Light Grey 12632256

White 16777215

Red 255

Green 65280

Blue 16711680

Magenta 16711935

Cyan 16776960

Methods
Nodes may be added or removed from the group using the AddNodes and
RemoveNodes methods of the Group object. These methods take a single variant
parameter that specifies the nodes to be added or removed from the group. A simple
example demonstrating the various parameters that can be passed to these methods is
shown below.
Dim mylist As New Multiframe.NodeList

mylist.Add "20-30"

Page 66
 Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

With mfApp.Frame.GroupSets(“Floors”).Group(1)

’Add nodes to linked group

Call .AddNodes(1) 'Add node by index
Call .AddNodes("2-9,12") 'Add nodes listed by index
Call .AddNodes(mfApp.Frame.Nodes(10)) 'Add node using node
object
Call .AddNodes(mylist) 'Add nodes using list

‘Remove nodes from linked group

Call .RemoveNodes(1) 'By index
Call .RemoveNodes("2-9,12")
Call .RemoveNodes(mylist) 'Using a list of
nodes

End With
The manipulation of elements in a group in handled in a similar manner. Elements may
be added or removed from the group using the AddElements and RemoveElements
methods of the Group object. These methods take a single variant parameter that
specifies the elements to be added or removed from the group. A simple example
demonstrating the various parameters that can be passed to these methods is shown
below.
Dim mylist As New Multiframe.ElementList

mylist.Add "20-30"
With mfApp.Frame.GroupSets(“Floors”).Group(“Floor 1”)

’Add Elements to linked group

Call .AddElements(1) 'Add Element by index
Call .AddElements("2-9,12") 'Add Elements listed by index
Call .AddElements(mylist) 'Add Elements using list

‘Remove Elements from linked group

Call .RemoveElements(1) 'By index
Call .RemoveElements("2-9,12")
Call .RemoveElements(mylist) 'Using a list of elements

End With

Members
The Member object represents a design member within a structure. This object
encapsulates all the properties of a design member such as its position, length, slope,
section and orientation. All the members that are defined within a structure are
contained within the Members collection that is stored as part of the Frame object.

Frame

Members (Member)

A summary of all the properties and methods of the Member object are listed in the table
below.

Properties Type Description

Elements ElementList Get the list of elements that make
up the member.

Page 67
Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Properties Type Description

FlipSectionXX Boolean Get/Set whether the members
section is flipped about its x-axis.
FlipSectionYY Boolean Get/Set whether the members
section is flipped about its y-axis.
Length Double Read Only. Returns the length of
the member.
Node* Node/Variant Read Only. Returns the node at a
specified end of the member.
Nodes NodeList Read Only. Returns a list of all
nodes along the member.
Orientation Double Get/Set the orientation of the
member.
Section Section/Variant Get/Set the section.
Slope Double Read Only. Get the slope of the
member.
SlopeXY Double Read Only. Get the slope of the
member in the X-Y plane.
SlopeZX Double Read Only. Get the slope of the
member in the Z-X plane.
SlopeZY Double Read Only. Get the slope of the
member in the Z-Y plane.
XYZ* Variant Read only. Returns the position of
a specified end of the member.
X* Double Read only. Returns the x-
coordinate of a specified end of the
member.
Y* Double Read only. Returns the y-
coordinate of a specified end of the
member.
Z* Double Read only. Returns the z-
coordinate of a specified end of the
member.
*Denotes a property that takes a parameter specifying an end of the member.

Method Returns Description

GlobalToLoca Variant Transforms a vector of values from global
l to local member coordinates.
LocalToGloba Variant Transforms a vector of values from local
l member coordinates to global coordinates.
Results MemberResult Returns the results at the member for a
specific analysis and load case.
SetSection Sets the section type of the member.
Ungroup Ungroups the elements forming the design
member.

In addition, the Application, Frame, Number, Label and Index properties as well as
the Delete method are common to many objects and are described in Chapter 2.

Page 68
 Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Creating Members
A design member in Multiframe is a single element or a group of collinear connected
elements. Elements can be grouped together to form a design member using the Group
method of the Members object. This method requires a single parameter that specifies
the elements to be linked together. This is a variant parameter and so any value
identifying a list of elements will be acceptable such as an array of elements indices or an
ElementList object. A simple example demonstrating this method is shown below.
This example subdivides an element and then groups the resulting elements into a single
member.
Dim myElList As New Multiframe.ElementList
Dim myMbr As Multiframe.Member

’ Subdivide element
Set myElList = myFrame.Elements(1).Subdivide(5)

’Create design member from new elements forming the original

element
Call myFrame.Members.Group(myElList)

Properties
The section and its orientation within a member are referenced via the Section,
Orientation, FlipSectionXX, FlipSectionYY properties of the Member object. The
Section property identifies the Section object that represents the section currently
allocated to the member. When setting the Section property, the new section can be
specified using a Section object or by its name. In this case, Multiframe will search the
section library to locate a matching section. Additional functionality for setting the
section type is provided by the SetSection method described in the next section. The
orientation of the section, expressed in the current angle units, is controlled via the
Orientation property. For sections that are not double symmetric, the orientation
method is complemented by the FlipSectionXX, FlipSectionYY properties that provide
a means of correctly positioning the section in relation to the member. When these
properties are set true, the orientation of the section will be flipped about the specified
axis. An example on setting the section type and orientation is shown below.
Dim myMbr as Multiframe.Member
Dim s as string

’Get reference to member 12

Set myMbr = myFrame.Members(12)

’Set section type using two different methods

myMbr.Section = mfApp.SectionsLibrary.Groups(1).Sections(3)
myMbr.Section = “610UB101”

’Set section orientation

myMbr.Orientation= 45.0
myMbr.FlipSectionXX = true
myMbr.FlipSectionYY = false

’Notify user of elements section type

s = "Member "+Str(myMbr.Index)+” has section type
”+myMbr.Section.Name
MsgBox s, vbOKOnly, "Multiframe"
The position of a members end can be determined using the X, Y and Z properties of the
Member object which each return a single component of the ends position in global
coordinates. The XYZ property provides a faster method of accessing all three
components of an end position and returns the coordinates as array of three values. Each
of the methods takes a single parameter identifying an end of the member.

Page 69
Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

The length and slope of a member can be determined from the read-only properties
Length, Slope, SlopeXY, SlopeZX, SlopeZY. The Length property returns the length
of the member in the current length units. Note the length of the member is measured
between end points defined by the end offsets and is NOT the distance between the
nodes defining the member. The four methods for returning the slope of the member
return a value in terms of the current angular units set within Multiframe. The Slope
method returns the slope of the member in the X-Y plane and corresponds the slope of
the member displayed in the user interface. The other three slope methods return the
slope of the member in a specific plane. The SlopeXY returns the slope of the member
in the XY plane that is measured from the X to the Y-axes. Similar the SlopeZX and
SlopeZY properties return the slope of the member in the ZX and ZY plane respectively,
with the angle measured from the Z axis.
Dim myMbr as Multiframe.Member
Dim s as string

’Get reference to member 10

Set myMbr = myFrame.Members(10)

’Notify user of members slope in XY plane

s = "Slope of Member in XY plane is: "+Str(myMbr.SlopeXY)
MsgBox s, vbOKOnly, "Member "+Str(myMbr.Index)

’Notify user of members slope in ZX plane

s = "Slope of Member in ZX plane is: "+Str(myMbr.SlopeZX)
MsgBox s, vbOKOnly, "Member "+Str(myMbr.Index)
The elements that form a design member are referenced via the Elements property of
the Member object. This property returns an ElementList object that contains each of
the elements forming the member. Similarly, the Nodes property of the Member object
returns a list of all the nodes along the member.

Methods
The SetSection method of the Member object is used to specify the section type of a
member. This method takes up to two parameters that specify the section and optionally
the group in which it is contained. The section can be identified in a number of ways;
the first is simply by the index of the section and the group in which it is contained. In
this case the group can be specified by its index within the sections library, its name or
by passing a SectionGroup object. The second method of setting the section is to use
its name. In this case no group is required and Multiframe will search the entire sections
library to locate the sections. The final way of setting the section type is to pass a
Section object. Some typical uses of this method are shown in the following code.
Dim myMbr As Multiframe.Member
Dim mySection as Multiframe.Section

’Get reference to member 5

Set myMbr = myFrame.Members(5)

'Set section to the fourth section in the second group

Call myMbr.SetSection(4,2)

'Set section to sixth section in the group named UB

Call myMbr.SetSection(6,”UB”)

'Set section to section named 610UB101

Call myMbr.SetSection(“610UB101”)

'Set section to fifth section in fourth group using section

object
Set mySection = mfApp.SectionsLibrary.groups(4).Sections(5)
Call myMbr.SetSection(mySection)

Page 70
 Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

The Results method of the Member object provides a means of directly accessing the
results at a member, from a particular analysis, without navigating through the hierarchy
of the Results object. This method takes three parameters; the first is a variant
parameter identifying the load case for which the results are required, the second
identifies the type of analysis. The third parameter is redundant and has been included
for future expansion of the automation interface. The Results method returns an
MemberResult object that encapsulates access to the nodal displacements and reactions.
This object is described in detail in Chapter 7.

The Member object also provides two methods for transforming an array of values
between global and local nodal coordinates. These methods can transform arrays
containing either 6 or 12 values. The GlobalToLocal method, as the name suggests,
transforms values from the global coordinate system to the members local coordinate
system as defined by the members position and orientation. Conversely, the
LocalToGlobal method transforms values expressed in the member local coordinate
system back to global coordinates. A simple example is shown below.
Dim myMbr As Multiframe.Member
Dim r As Variant

’Get reference to member 1

Set myMbr = myFrame.Members(1)

’Get vector of nodal displacements wrt global axes

r = myNode.Results(1, mfAnalysisStatic).Reactions

’Tranform reactions to local member axes

r = myMbr.GlobalToLocal(r)
A design member that consists of several elements can be broken into design members
representing a single element using the Ungroup method of the Member object.

Project Details
The ProjectInfo object encapsulates the storage of data providing informative and
descriptive information about the frame such as its title, location designer and the client
for whom the work is been conducted.

Frame

ProjectInfo

A summary of all the properties and methods of the ProjectInfo object are listed in the
table below.

Property Type Description

Application Application Read Only. Returns a reference to the parent
application.
Building String Get/Set the name of the building.
Checker String Get/Set the name of the checker.
Client String Get/Set the name of the client.
Company String Get/Set the name of the company performing
the analysis and design.
Description String Get/Set a description of the frame.
Designer String Get/Set the name of the designer.

Page 71
Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Property Type Description

Frame String Read Only. Returns a reference to the parent
frame object.
JobID String Get/Set the ID of the job.
Keywords String Get/Set keywords describing the frame.
LastModifiedB String Read Only. Returns the user name of who
y last modified the file.
Notes String Get/Set any notes about the frame.
Revision Long Read Only. Revision of the frame.
Site String Get/Set the name of the site.
Title String Get/Set the title of the frame.
Version String Get/Set the user definable version of the
frame.

Properties
Most of the properties of the ProjectInfo object are user definable fields describing the
project and the people/organisations involved in the project. A simple example of how
to modify the project details is shown below.
With myFrame.ProjectInfo
.Company = "John Smith Design"
.Designer = "John Smith"
.Checker = "John Smith Jr"
.Title = "My Steel Building"
.JobID = "2001/196"
End With

Improving performance with lists

To improve the speed of your scripts, more than a single node or element can be added to
the frame at a time using the AddNodes and AddElements methods of the Nodes and
Elements collections. These methods can take arrays of parameters describing each of
the items to be added to the frame and return a list of the items added to the frame. For
example, the two nodes could be created with a single call to the Multiframe application
as follows
Dim myNodeList as New Multiframe.NodeList

With mfFrame.Nodes
Set myNodeList = .AddNodes(Array(0.0,5.0),Array(2.5,5.0),0)
End With
or
Dim objNodeList as New Multiframe.NodeList
Dim xArray(1 to 2) as double
Dim yArray(1 to 2) as double

Set objNodeList = myFrame.Nodes.AddNodes(xArray,yArray,0.0)

The first two parameters specify the x and y coordinates of the two nodes that will be
added to the frame. Note that the third parameter contains only a single scalar value for
the z coordinate; this value will be applied to all nodes added to the frame.

A further benefit of using lists is that the properties of the items can be set much more
readily. For example, if all the nodes added by the above code were to be pinned, then
this could be done using the line of code
myNodeList.Pinned = true

Page 72
 Chapter 4 Modelling the Frame

Of course adding nodes and then connecting them with elements is not necessary in the
Multiframe automation interface, elements can be added directly and the appropriate
nodes will be created automatically. A more efficient example of adding a small portal
frame might be coded as
Dim objElList as New Multiframe.ElementList
Dim x1,y1 as Variant
Dim x2,y2 as Variant
Dim width,hcol,hapex as Double

’Input width and height of portal frame here

width=12.5
hcol=4.5
hapex=6.2

’Create arrays with coordinates of element ends

x1 = Array(0.0,0.0,width/2,width) ‘Array with x coord
x2 = Array(0.0,width/2,width,width)
y1 = Array(0.0,hcol,hapex,hcol)
y2 = Array(hcol,hapex,hcol,0.0)

’ Create portal frame

With myFrame.Nodes
Set objNodeList = .AddElements(x1,y1,0.0,x2,y2,0.0)
End With
Although this discussion has concentrated on creating nodes and elements, most
collections within the Multiframe object model have method by which multiple items can
be created using a single subroutine call. A full description of list objects in presented in
Chapter 10.

Page 73
 Chapter 5 The Load Objects

Chapter 5 The Load Objects

This chapter describes the object hierarchy used to describe the loads applied to the
structure. This includes the objects and collections describing the individual loads
applied to nodes and elements as well as the load cases into which the loads are grouped.

Load Cases
Each load case applied to a structural model is contained by the LoadCases collection
stored within the Frame object. This collection is referenced via the LoadCases
property of the Frame object. Alternatively, this collection can be accessed directly
from the Multiframe Application object via its LoadCases property. The properties
and method of the LoadCase object are summarised in the table below.

Property Type Description

Acceleration Double Get/Set component of acceleration.
(Self weight load cases only)
Accelerations Variant Get/Set vector of accelerations.
(Self weight load cases only)
ElementLoads ElementLoads Read Only. Returns reference to
collection of element loads contained
within this load case.
Factor Double Get/Set factor for particular load case.
(Combined load cases only)
Factors Variant Get/Set load case factors.
(Combined load cases only)
LoadType mfLoadType Get/Set the type of loading stored in the
load case.
Name String Get/Set the name of the load case.
NodeLoads NodeLoads Read Only. Returns reference to
collection of nodal loads contained within
this load case.
PrescribedDisps NodePreDisps Read Only. Returns reference to
collection of prescribed displacements
contained within this load case.
ThermalLoads ThermalLoads Read Only. Returns reference to
collection of thermal loads contained
within this load case.
Type mfLoadCaseTy Get/Set the type of load case.
pe

The Application, Frame, Index and Index properties in addition to the Delete method
are common to many objects and are described in Chapter 2.

Load cases are categorized as static, combined or self-weight. While each of these is
defined by slightly different information, the LoadCase object is used to describe all
three types of cases. The type of a load case is defined when it is created and cannot be
changed. If the user accesses a property of the LoadCase object that is not relevant to
the type of the load case, an error will be returned.

Page 75
Chapter 5 The Load Objects

Each LoadCase object in this collection stores all the loads applied to the frame by that
load case. These loads are contained within one of four collections that store the joint
loads, prescribed displacements, elements loads or thermal loads.

LoadCases (LoadCase)

NodeLoads (NodeLoad)

NodePreDisps (NodePreDisp)

ElementLoads (ElementLoad)

ThermalLoads (ThermalLoads)

Properties
The name of a load case is referenced via the Name property of the LoadCase object
that stores the name of the load case as a string.

The type of a particular load case can be determined from the Type property of the
LoadCase object. This property is an enumerated value of type mfLoadCaseType
with values of mflcStatic, mflcSelfWeight and mflcCombined. Each of the different
load case types are described below. As noted above, this is a read only property as the
type of load case cannot be changed from that allocated when the load case was created.

The ElementLoads, NodeLoads, PrescribedDisps and ThermalLoads properties

provide access to the collections storing the applied loads. The use and content of these
collections is dependent upon the type of the load cases. This is described in subsequent
sections of the chapter.

Static Cases
A static load case is created by adding a load case to the LoadCases collection using the
AddCase method of this collection. When adding the load case it must be specified as a
load case of type mflcStatic. For example,
Dim myCase as Multiframe.LoadCase

Set myCase = MyFrame.Loadcases.AddCase(mflcStatic,”Live Load”)

As both of the parameters are optional, and the default type of load case is static, this
code could have been replace by
Dim myCase as Multiframe.LoadCase

Set myCase = MyFrame.Loadcases.AddCase()

myLoadCase.Name = “Live Load”
All of the loads forming part of this load case are stored in the NodeLoads,
NodePreDisps, ElementLoads and ThermalLoads collections. Loads may be added
or removed from this load case by adding or deleting loads in the appropriate collection.
Examples of adding each of the different loads are provided subsequent sections of this
chapter.

Self-Weight Cases
Adding a new load case of type mflcSelfWeight to the LoadCases collection creates a
self-weight load case.

Page 76
 Chapter 5 The Load Objects

Dim myCase as Multiframe.LoadCase

Set myCase = myFrame.Loadcases.AddCase(mflcSelfWeight,”Self

Weight”)
A self-weight load cases is defined by the accelerations applied in each of the global
directions. These values may be accessed via either the Acceleration or Accelerations
properties. The Acceleration property takes a single parameter identifying the global
direction and provides access to each of the individual components. For example
Dim accel as Double

‘Setting accelerations
myLoadCase.Acceleration(1) = 0.0 ‘Set x-component
myLoadCase.Acceleration(mfDOFy) = 0.0 ‘Set x-component

’ Accessing loadcase factors

accel = myLoadCase.Acceleration(3) ‘Get z-component
Alternatively the accelerations may be accessed via the Accelerations property which is
a variant property containing an array of 3 doubles, each value representing a component
of the acceleration.
Dim myAccels as Variant

’Set components of acceleration

myFrame.LoadCases(4).Accelerations = Array(0.0,-9.81,0.0)

’Get acceleration components

myAccels = myFrame.LoadCases(4).Accelerations
The ElementLoads collection of a self-weight load case contains the distributed loads
representing the self-weight of each element in the frame to which the self-weight is
applied. This collection is managed by the Multiframe application and is automatically
updated as the structure is changed. As such, loads cannot be added or removed from
this collection. In fact, no loads may be added to the other loading collections in this
type of load case and these will always remain empty.

Combined Cases
Adding a new LoadCase object of type mflcCombined to the LoadCases collection
creates a combined or factored load case.
Dim myLoadCase as Multiframe.LoadCase

Set myLoadCase = MyFrame.Loadcases.AddCase(mflcCombined,”DL +

LL”)
The factors for each of the static or self-weight load cases that are combined to define
this load case are specified using the Factor property of the LoadCase object. This
property takes a single variant parameter that identifies the load case to which the factor
is to be applied. This variant may be either the index of the load case, the name of the
load case or even another LoadCase object as demonstrated below
Dim factor as Double

’ Setting loadcase factors

myLoadCase.Factor(2) = 0.8 ‘By
index
myLoadCase.Factor(“Live Load”) = 1.5 ‘By name
myLoadCase.Factor(myFrame.LoadCases(2)) = 1.5 ‘By
LoadCase object

’ Accessing loadcase factors

factor = myLoadCase.Factor(2) ‘ By
index
factor = myLoadCase.Factor(“Live Load”) ‘ By
name
factor = myLoadCase.Factor(myFrame.LoadCases(2)) ‘ By object

Page 77
Chapter 5 The Load Objects

The load case factors may also be accessed via the Factors property of the LoadCase
object. This variant property returns an array of values representing the factors applied
to each load case contained within the frame. For example;
Dim myFactors as Variant

myFactors = myFrame.LoadCases(4).Factors ‘Get

factors
myFrame.LoadCases(4).Factors = Array(1.0,1.0,1.5) ‘Set
factors
The NodeLoads, NodePreDisps, ElementLoads and ThermalLoads collections of a
combined load case contain the factored loads from each of the load cases contributing to
the combined case. These collections are maintained by the Multiframe application with
loads been automatically updated when loading in one of the base load cases is changed.
As such, loads cannot be added or removed from these collections.

Node Loads
A NodeLoad object represents a force or moment load applied to a node within the
structure. All the nodal loads applied in a particular load case are stored in a
NodeLoads collection. These loads can be accessed via the NodeLoads property of
the LoadCase object. The properties and methods of the Node object are listed below.

Property Type Description

DOF mfDOF Get/Set the degree of freedom identifying the
direction in which the load is applied.
Global Boolean Get/Set whether the load is applied in global or
local axes.
Kind String Set/Get the direction and axes in which the load
is applied.
LoadCase LoadCase Read Only. Returns a reference to the load case
in which the load is applied.
Node Node/Variant Get/Set the node to which the load is applied.
Value Double Get/Set the magnitude of the load.

The Application, Frame, Number, Label and Index properties as well as the Delete
method are common to many objects and are described in Chapter 2.

Creating a Node Load

A nodal force loading is added to a load case using the AddLoad method of the
NodeLoads collection. The first parameter of this method accepts a variant value that
specifies the node at which the load is to be applied. This parameter may specify the
node by either its integer index or by using a Node object. The next two parameters are
optional and specify the direction of the load and it’s magnitude, which is set using the
current force or moment units set within the Multiframe application. The AddLoad
method returns a NodeLoad object that references the new load added to the structure.
For example, the following demonstrates how to add node loads to a structure.

Page 78
 Chapter 5 The Load Objects

Dim myLoad as Multiframe.NodeLoad

With myFrame.LoadCases(1)

’Add load of magnitude 10.5 units to node 12 in the x

direction
set myLoad = .NodeLoads.AddLoad(12,mfDOFx,10.5)

’Add load of magnitude 4.5 units to node 7 in the y

direction
set myLoad =.NodeLoads.AddLoad(myFrame.Nodes(7),2,4.5)

End With
The AddLoad method can also take an extra optional parameter that specifies if the load
is to be applied in the global or the local nodal coordinate system. By default, all node
loads are added in the local nodal coordinate system.

Groups of nodal forces can be created using the AddLoads method of the NodeLoads
collection. This method returns a NodeLoadList containing each of the loads added to
the frame. The parameters of this method correspond to the parameters of the AddLoad
method except that each parameter may be either an array, containing values for each of
the new loads, or a single value that will be applied to each of the new loads. Several
examples of how this method may be used are as follows:
Dim myLoads as New Multiframe.NodeLoadList
Dim myNodeLoads as Multiframe.NodeLoads
Dim myVar as Variant

’Get reference to node loads collection

set myNodeLoads = myFrame.LoadCases(1).NodeLoads

’Add a single load

set myLoads = myNodeLoads.AddLoads(12,mfDOFx,10.5)

’Add the same load at nodes 1,2 and 5

set myLoads = myNodeLoads.AddLoads(Array(1,2,5),mfDOFx,10.5)

’Add two loads at node 12

myVar=Array(mfDOFx, mfDOFy)
set myLoads = myNodeLoads.AddLoads(12,myVar,Array(7.5,5.5))

’Add two loads

set myLoads =
myNodeLoads.AddLoads(Array(4,5),myVar,Array(7.5,5.5))

’Add a single load to each node in frame

set myLoads = myNodeLoads.AddLoads(myFrame.Nodes,mfDOFx,2.75)
The first parameter of the AddLoads method is a variant parameter identifying the nodes
to which the loads are to be applied. This parameter may specify the nodes by an integer
index, an array of integer indices, a Node object, a NodeList, or a Nodes collection.

NodeLoad Properties
A nodal load can be modified via the NodeLoad object. This object has properties
describing the node to which the load is applied, the direction, magnitude and the axis to
which the loading is orientated.

The node at which the load is applied is identified by the Node property of the
NodeLoad object. This property returns the Node object corresponding the node at
which the load is applied. This property may be set to a new value using any variant
value representing a node.

Page 79
Chapter 5 The Load Objects

The DOF property controls the direction in which the load is applied. The property is an
enumerated value of type mfDOF. Nodal force loads are applied with a DOF set to
mfDOFx, mfDOFy or mfDOFz that describes the direction in which the load is applied.
Nodal moment loads are specified with a DOF of mfDOFthetax, mfDOFthetay or
mfDOFthetaz. The axes to which these degrees of freedom refer are specified by the
Global property. If this Boolean property is true then the load is applied in the direction
of the global coordinate axes. If the Global property is false, the load is directed along
the local nodal axes that are specified by the nodal orientation. The direction and axes of
the loading may also be specified using the Kind property. This property is a character
string describing the direction of loading and the axes to which the load is applied.

The magnitude of the load is stored in the Value property of the NodeLoad object. The
value of this property describes the magnitude in terms of the force or moment units
currently set within the Multiframe application. An example of how these properties
may be changed is as follows
Dim myLoad as Multiframe.NodeLoad

’Get reference to node load

set myLoad = myFrame.LoadCases(1).NodeLoads(4)

’Change load to 10.5 unit load applied in global z direction

myLoad.DOF = mfDOFz
myLoad.Value = 10.5
myLoad.Global = true

’Change direction such that load applied in local x direction

myLoad.Kind = ”Px’”

Prescribed Displacements
The NodePreDisp object represents a prescribed displacement applied to a node as part
of a load case. All the prescribed displacements applied in a particular load case are
stored in a NodePreDisps collection. These displacements can be accessed via the
PrescribedDisps property of the LoadCase object.

The NodePreDisp object is identical to the NodeLoad object except that the Value
property of the NodePreDisp object returns a displacement or rotation instead of a force
or a moment. The value of the displacement is specified in the current displacement or
angular displacement units. Similarly, new displacements are added to a load case using
the AddDisp or AddDisps methods of the NodePreDisps collection and these methods
have the same syntax as the AddLoad and AddLoads methods of the NodeLoads
collection. For example, the following code adds two prescribed displacements to the
first load case.
Dim myLoad as Multiframe.NodePreDisp
Dim myNode as Multiframe.Node

With myFrame.LoadCases(1)

’Add prescribed displacement of magnitude 7.5 units to node

12
set myLoad = .PrescribedDisps.AddDisp(12,mfDOFx,7.5)

’Add prescribed rotation of magnitude 0.5 about the z-axis

to node 7
set myNode = myFrame.Nodes(7)
set myLoad = .PrescribedDisps.AddDisp(myNode,6,0.5)

End With

Page 80
 Chapter 5 The Load Objects

Element loads
The ElementLoad object represents a point or a distributed load applied to an element
within the structure as part of a load case. All the Element loads applied by a particular
load case are stored in an ElementLoads collection within the LoadCase object. These
loads can be accessed via the ElementLoads property of the LoadCase object. The
properties and methods of the ElementLoad object are listed below.

Property Type Description

Dist1 Double Get/Set the position of the start of the load as
measured from the first node of the element.
Dist2 Double Get/Set the position of the end of the load as
measured from the second node of the element.
DOF mfDOF Get/Set the degree of freedom identifying the
direction in which the load is applied.
Element Element/Varia Get/Set the element to which the load is
nt applied.
Global Boolean Get/Set whether the load is applied in global or
local axes.
Kind String Set/Get the direction and axes in which the
load is applied.
LoadCase LoadCase Read Only. Returns a reference to the load case
in which the load is applied.
Shape mfLoadShape Get/Set
Value1 Double Get/Set the magnitude of load at the start of the
load.
Value2 Double Get/Set the magnitude of load at end of the
load.

The Application, Frame, Number, Label and Index properties as well as the Delete
method are common to many objects and are described in Chapter 2.

Adding a Point Load

An element point load is added to a load case using the AddPointLoad method of the
ElementLoads collection. The first parameter of this method specifies the element to
which the load is to be applied. The next parameter specifies the direction in which the
load is applied. This in an enumerated value of type mfDOF and has a default value of
mfDOFy. The next two parameters specify the magnitude and position of the load. The
values must be specified in the current force/moment and length units. The position of
the load is the distance of the load from the start of the element. The final parameter in
the AddPointLoad method specifies if the load is to be applied in the global or local
element coordinate system. By default, all element loads are applied in the elements
local coordinate system.

For example, the following code adds a point load to element number 12. The load is
applied as part of the third load case and is positioned 1.5 units from the start of the
element. It is directed parallel to the global y-axis and has a magnitude of 20 units.

Page 81
Chapter 5 The Load Objects

Dim myLoad as Multiframe.ElementLoad

With myFrame.LoadCases(1).ElementLoads

’Add downwards load of 20 units, 1.5 units from end of

member
set myLoad =.AddPointLoad(12,mfDOFy,-20.0,1.5,true)

End With
Remember that the units used in adding this load are those currently specified within the
application.

Adding a Distributed Load

A distributed load can be applied to an element using the AddLoad method of the
ElementLoads collection. This method takes 8 parameters, the first of which specifies
the element to which the load is to be applied. The next parameter specifies the direction
in which the load is applied. This in an enumerated value of type mfDOF and has a
default value of mfDOFy. The third parameter is an enumerated value of type
mfLoadShape that describes the shape of the loading. This enumerated type has values
corresponding to uniform (mfLoadshapeUniform), linear (mfLoadshapeLinear),
triangular (mfLoadshapeTriangular) and tri-linear (mfLoadshapeTriLinear) load
shapes.

The next four parameters specify the magnitudes (F1 and F2) and distances (Distance1
and Distance2) of the loads from either end of the member. These must be specified in
the current force/moment and length units. The interpretation of these quantities is
dependent upon the shape of load been added to the element. The definition of these
parameters for each type of load shape is shown in the diagram below. The parameters
not required by a particular load shape will be ignored.
Uniform distributed load

F1

Linearly distributed load

F1 F2

Triangular distributed load

F1

Tri-linear distributed load

F2
F1

Distance1 Distance2

Page 82
 Chapter 5 The Load Objects

The final parameter of the AddLoad method specifies if the load is to be applied in the
global or local element coordinate system. By default, all element loads are applied in
the elements local coordinate system.

The small script shown below demonstrates how the AddLoad method may be used to
add the different types of loads.
Dim myLoad as Multiframe.ElementLoad
Dim myElLoads as Multiframe.ElementLoads
Dim L as double

’Get reference to element loads collection

set myElLoads = myFrame.LoadCases(1).ElementLoads

With myElLoads

’Add uniformly distributed load

set myLoad
=.AddLoad(12,mfDOFy,mfLoadshapeUniform,1.5,bGlobal:=true)

’Add linearly varying distributed load

set myLoad =.AddLoad(12,3,mfLoadshapeLinear,1.5,0.5,2.5,0.5)

’Add triangular load

L = myFrame.Elements(5).Length
set myLoad
=.AddLoad(5,2,mfLoadshapeTriangular,1.5,0.5*L,true)

’Add tri-linear load

set
myLoad=.AddLoad(5,2,mfLoadshapeTriLinear,1.5,0.3*L,1.5,0.3*L)

End With
The AddLoad method can also be used to add a point load to an element by specifying
the shape of the load as mfLoadshapePoint. In this case, the magnitude is specified by
the parameter F1 while the loads position along the element is set using the Distance1
parameter. A simple example follows.
Dim load as Multiframe.ElementLoad
Dim myLoads as Multiframe.ElementLoads
Dim L as double

’Get reference to element loads collection

With myFrame.LoadCases(1).ElementLoads

’Add a global point load at mid point of element

L = myFrame.Elements(5).Length
set load
=.AddLoad(5,mfDOFz,mfLoadshapePoint,1.5,L/2,bGlobal:=true)

End With

Adding multiple loads

Multiple element loads can be created using either the AddPointLoads or AddLoads
methods of the ElementLoads collection. These methods return an ElementLoadList
containing each of the loads added to the collection. The parameters of these methods
correspond to the parameters of the AddPointLoad or AddLoad methods except that
each parameter may be either an array, containing values for each of the new loads, or a
single value that will be applied to each of the new loads. Several examples of how this
method may be used are as follows:

Page 83
Chapter 5 The Load Objects

Dim myList as New Multiframe.ElementLoadList

Dim myElLoads as Multiframe.ElementLoads
Dim myVar as Variant
Dim L as Double

’Get reference to Element loads collection

set myElLoads = myFrame.LoadCases(1).ElementLoads

With myElLoads

’Add a single load

set myList =.AddPointLoads(12,mfDOFy,-20.0,1.5,true)

’Add the same point load to elements 1,2 and 5

set myList =. AddPointLoads (Array(1,2,5), mfDOFz,-5.0,2.0)

’Add two loads at node 12

myVar = Array(mfDOFx, mfDOFy)
set myList
=.AddLoad(12,myVar,mfLoadshapeLinear,1.5,0.5,2.5,0.5)

End With
The first parameter of the AddPointLoads and AddLoads methods is a variant
parameter identifying the element to which the loads are to be applied. This parameter
may specify the elements by using an integer index, an array of integer indices, an
Element object, an Element List, or an Elements collection.

Element Load Properties

An element load can be modified via the ElementLoad object. This object has
properties describing the element to which the load is applied, the direction of the load,
the magnitude and the position of the load.

The element to which the load is applied is identified by the Element property of the
ElementLoad object. This property returns the Element object corresponding the
element at which the load is applied.

The DOF property controls the direction in which the load is applied. The property is an
enumerated value of type mfDOF. The axes to which these degrees of freedom refer are
specified by the Global property. If this Boolean property is true then the load is applied
in the direction of the global coordinate axes. If the Global property is false, the load is
directed along the local element axes that are specified by the direction and orientation of
the element. The direction and axes of the loading may also be specified using the Kind
property. This property is a character string describing the direction of loading and the
axes to which the load is applied.

The shape of an element load is specified by the Shape property of the element load that
is an enumerated value of type mfLoadShape. This enumerated type has values
corresponding to uniform, linearly varying, triangular and tri-linear distributed loads as
well as a value representing a concentrated point load. The magnitudes of the loads that
describe this shape of load are referenced by the Value1 and Value2 properties of the
ElementLoad object. Similarly, the two distances that may be used to describe a
particular shape of load as contained by the Dist1 and Dist2 properties the
ElementLoad object. The values of these properties are specified in terms of the current
force units (Value1, Value2) and in the current length units (Dist1, Dist2) as set within
the Multiframe application. An example of how these properties may be changed is as
follows

Page 84
 Chapter 5 The Load Objects

Dim myLoad as Multiframe.ElementLoad

’Get reference to node load

set myLoad = myFrame.LoadCases(1).ElementLoads(4)

’Change load to global distributed load applied in y-direction

myLoad.DOF = mfDOFy
myLoad.Shape = mfLoadshapeTriangular
myLoad.Value1 = 10.5
myLoad.Dist1 = myLoad.Element.Length/2.0
myLoad.Global = true

’Change direction such that load applied in local z direction

myLoad.Kind = ”Wz’”
The LoadCase, Frame and Application properties of the Element load object identify
its parent objects. These properties cannot be modified.

Thermal Loads
The ThermalLoad object represents a thermal load applied to the structure. All the
thermal loads applied in a particular load case are stored in a ThermalLoads collection
within the LoadCase object. These loads can be accessed via the ThermalLoads
property of the LoadCase object. The methods and properties of the ThermalLoad
object are summarised in the following table.

Property Type Description

Depth Double Get/Set the depth over which the temperature
gradient is applied.
DOF mfDOF Get/Set the degree of freedom identifying the
direction in which the load is applied.
Element Element/Varia Get/Set the element to which the load is
nt applied.
Kind String Set/Get the direction and axes in which the
load is applied.
LoadCase LoadCase Read Only. Returns a reference to the load case
in which the load is applied.
Tbottom mfLoadShape Get/Set the temperature at the bottom of the
element.
ThermalCoef Double Get/Set the thermal coefficient.
f
Ttop Double Get/Set the temperature at the top of the
element.

The Application, Frame, Number, Label and Index properties as well as the Delete
method are common to many objects and are described in Chapter 2.

Page 85
Chapter 5 The Load Objects

Creating a Thermal Load

A thermal loading is added to a load case using the AddLoad method of the
ThermalLoads collection. This first parameter of this method specifies the element to
which the load is to be applied. The next parameter specifies the direction of the thermal
gradient and takes an enumerated value of type mfDOF. Although this enumerated type
has six values, thermal loads can only be applied using the mfDOFy and mfDOFz
directions. The next two parameters are optional and specify the temperatures to be
applied at the top and bottom of the element. These values are set using the temperature
units set within the Multiframe application. The final two parameters are also optional
and specify the depth and thermal coefficient to be used for the load. If omitted, these
values default to the depth of the elements section and a thermal coefficient 11.7μc. For
example, the following code adds a thermal load to the first load case. The load applies a
temperature gradient in the direction of the elements local y-axis, with temperatures of
25 and 150 units at the top and bottom of the element.
Dim myLoad as Multiframe.ThermalLoad

’Add load of magnitude 10.5 units to node 12

set
myLoad=myFrame.LoadCases(1).ThermalLoads.AddLoad(12,mfDOFy,25,
150)
The AddLoad method can also take an extra optional parameter that specifies if the load
is to be applied in the global or the local nodal coordinate system. By default, all
Thermal Loads are added in the local nodal coordinate system.

Multiple thermal loads can be created using the AddLoads method of the
ThermalLoads collection. This method returns a ThermalLoadList containing each of
the loads added to the specified load case. Each parameter in the AddLoads method
may be either an array, containing values for each of the new load, or a single value that
will be applied to each new load. Several examples of how this method may be used are
as follows:
Dim myLoads as New Multiframe.ThermalLoadList
Dim myVar as Variant

’Get reference to thermal loads collection

With myFrame.LoadCases(1).ThermalLoads

’Add a single load

set myLoads =.AddLoads(12,mfDOFy,10.5,20.5)

’Add the same load at nodes 1,2 and 5

set myLoads =.AddLoads(Array(1,2,5),mfDOFy,-10,10)

’Add two loads at node 12

myVar=Array(mfDOFy, mfDOFz)
set myLoads =.AddLoads(12,myVar,Array(7.5,5.5),120.0)

’Add two loads

myVar=Array(4, 5)
set
myLoads=.AddLoads(myVar,myVar,Array(7.0,5.5),Array(9.5,5.6))

’Add a single load to each node in frame

set myLoads =.AddLoads(myFrame.Elements,2,-50,50,250,12.3)

End With
The first parameter of the AddLoads method is a variant parameter identifying the
element to which the loads are to be applied. This parameter may specify the elements
by an integer index, an array of integer indices, an Element object, an Element List, or
an Elements collection.

Page 86
 Chapter 5 The Load Objects

Thermal Load Properties

A thermal load can be modified via the ThermalLoad object. This object has properties
describing the element to which the load is applied, the direction ft the temperature
gradient, and the magnitude of the temperatures at each face of the element.

The element at which the load is applied is identified by the Element property of the
ThermalLoad object. This property returns the Element object corresponding the
element at which the load is applied.

The DOF property controls the direction in which the temperature gradient is applied.
The property is an enumerated value of type mfDOF. Although this enumerated type
has six permissible values, thermal loads may only be specified with values of mfDOFy
or mfDOFz that correspond to a temperature gradient applied in the directions of the
elements local y and z axes. The direction of the thermal loading may also be specified
using the Kind property. This property is a character string describing the direction in
which the load is applied.

The magnitudes of the temperatures at each face of the element are referenced by the
Ttop and Tbottom properties of the ThermalLoad object. The Ttop property specifies
the temperature on the face of the element lying in the positive plane of the local element
axis in which the thermal load is applied. Conversely, Tbottom is the temperature at the
face in the negative plane. The values of these properties are specified in terms of
temperature units currently set within the Multiframe application.

The Depth property of the ThermalLoad object specifies the depth over which
temperature gradient is applied. This is described using the current displacement units.
The thermal coefficient used to model the material in the thermal load is referenced via
the Coeff property that is expressed using the current units of thermal expansion

The LoadCase, Frame and Application properties of the thermal load object identify
its parent objects. These properties cannot be modified.

Deleting Loads
A load is deleted from the model by calling the Delete method of the object that
represents that load. For example
‘Delete a node load
MyFrame.LoadCases(1).NodeLoads(2).Delete

’Delete a prescribed displacement

MyFrame.LoadCases(2).PrescribedDisps(1).Delete

’Delete an element load

MyFrame.LoadCases(1).ElementLoads(5).Delete

’Delete a thermal load

MyFrame.LoadCases(1).ThermalLoads(2).Delete
Groups of loads may also be deleted from a frame using the Delete method of the list
objects associated with each of the different loading objects. The following example
uses the NodeLoadList object to delete all the loads attached to a particular node.
Dim myLoadList as New Multiframe.NodeLoadList
Dim myNode as Multiframe.Node

‘Delete all loads attached to node 6

Set myNode = MyFrame.Nodes(6)
Set myLoadList = myNode.Loads
myLoadList.Delete

Page 87
Chapter 5 The Load Objects

In this code, the Loads properties of the Node object return lists of all the loads applied
to node 6. The code is this example is unnecessarily long and can be reduced to a single
line as there is no real need to declare the NodeLoadList object. An improved example
that deletes all the loads applied to a specified node and element is as follows
‘Delete all loads attached to node 6
MyFrame.Nodes(6).Loads.Delete
MyFrame.Nodes(6).PreDisps.Delete

’Delete an loads applied to element 10

MyFrame.Elements(10).Loads.Delete
MyFrame.Elements(10).ThermalLoads.Delete

Note that loads will automatically be deleted from the frame when their parent node or
element is deleted.

Expression Parsing and Variants

The properties of the load objects that are real number values can sometimes be specified
using a string expression. This can occur when the value is set as a variant value such as
when setting the property of a list object or as a parameter in the AddLoads methods.
The expressions are evaluated using the same expression handling supported with many
of Multiframes dialogs. For the nodal loads objects, the expression evaluation will
support the additional variables describing the location of a node. Similarly, the element
load objects can evaluate expressions containing variables describing the properties of
the element to which they are applied. Some examples of how these expressions may be
used are as follows
Dim mylist as New Multiframe.NodeLoadList

With myFrame.LoadCases(1).NodeLoads

‘Add load proportional to height of node

Set mylist = .AddLoads(Array(1,4,7,10),mfDOFx,”2.5*Y”))

End With

’Set magnitude to be proportion to square root of nodes height

mylist.Value = ” 2.5*sqrt(Y)”

Refer to the Multiframe User Manual for a description of the expressions and variables
that can be evaluated by Multiframe.

Page 88
 Chapter 6 Automating Analysis

Chapter 6 Automating Analysis

The analysis of a structure is performed using the Analysis object that is referenced as a
property of the Frame object. This object manages the setting for each of the different
analyses, records which analyses are to be performed, and executes the analysis. A
summary of the properties of the Analysis object is listed below.

Property Type Description

Linear Boolean Get/Set whether a linear analysis is
to be performed.
LinearSettings LinearSettings Read Only. Returns reference to
object containing settings for linear
analysis.
Modal Boolean Get/Set whether a modal analysis is
to be performed.
ModalSettings ModalSettings Read Only. Returns reference to
object containing settings for modal
analysis.
Nonlinear Boolean Get/Set whether a non-linear
analysis is to be performed.
NonlinearSettings NonlinearSettings Read Only. Returns reference to
object containing settings for non -
linear analysis.
TimeHistory Boolean Get/Set whether a time history
analysis is to be performed.
TimeHistorySetting TimeHistorySetting Read Only. Returns reference to
s s object containing settings for time
history analysis.

Method Returns Description

Analyse Performs the analysis of the frame.

The Application and Frame properties are common to many objects and are described
in Chapter 2 of this manual.

The settings for each analysis are stored in the four objects; LinearSettings,
NonlinearSettings, ModalSettings and TimeHistorySettings, which are all accessible
from the Analysis object via properties of the same names.

Analysis

LinearSettings

NonlinearSettings

ModalSettings

Page 89
Chapter 6 Automating Analysis

The analyses to be performed are specified by the Linear, Nonlinear, Modal and
TimeHistory properties of the Analysis object. Each of the selected analyses will be
performed when the Analyse method is called.
Call MyFrame.Analysis.Analyse()
This method takes a single optional parameter to specify if the analysis is to perform a
three dimensional analysis. If this parameter is not specified or set equal to false,
Multiframe will automatically determine if the frame is suitable for a two dimensional
analysis and perform the analysis of the frame as a two dimensional structure.

The Application object also features an Analyse method that performs an analysis with
the current analysis settings.
Call mfApp.Analyse()

Linear Static Analysis

The settings for a linear static analysis are stored in the LinearSettings object. This
object is redundant, as it contains no methods or properties other than the Frame and
Application methods that identify its parent objects. The LinearSettings object has
been provided in the automation interface so that the objects and behaviour of the linear
static analysis are consistent with those for each of the other types of analysis.

To perform a static linear analysis of a structure, the Linear property of the Analysis
object must be set equal to true. If this property is not set true, a linear static analysis
will not be performed when the analysis is executed
myFrame.Analysis.Linear = true
Call myFrame.Analysis.Analyse()

Non-linear Static Analysis

The NonlinearSettings object encapsulates all the settings for a non-linear analysis
including which non-linear effects are to be considered, iteration tolerances and limits,
and which load cases are to be analysed. The properties of this object are summarised
below.

Property Type Description

AxialShortenin Boolean Get/Set whether axial shortening is
g to be considered in the analysis.
Increments Long Get/Set the number of load
increments to be used in the analysis.
LoadCases LoadCaseList/Variant Get/Set the load cases to be
considered by the non-linear
analysis.
MaxIterations Long Get/Set the maximum number of
iteration to be performed in each
load increment.
MinIterations Long Get/Set the minimum number of
iteration to be performed in each
load increment.
Norm mfConvergenceNorm Get/Set the norm to be used to
s measure convergence during the
analysis.
pBigDelta Boolean Get/Set whether P-Δ effects are to be
considered in the analysis.

Page 90
 Chapter 6 Automating Analysis

Property Type Description

pLittleDelta Boolean Get/Set whether P-δ effects are to be
considered in the analysis.
Reporting mfReportLevels Get/Set level of reporting.
TensionOnly Boolean Get/Set whether tension/compression
only members are to be considered in
the analysis.
Tolerance Double Get/Set iteration tolerance.

The Application and Frame properties are common to many objects and are described
in Chapter 2.

The non-linear effects to be considered in an analysis are set using a number of Boolean
properties that are set equal to true if the non-linear effect is to be modelled in the
analysis. Axial shortening effects are controlled using the AxialShortening property
while the P-δ and P-Δ effects are set using the pLittleDelta and pBigDelta properties
respectively. Tension and Compression only effect are activated using the TensionOnly
property.

The number of loading increments to be used in the analysis of a load case is specified
by the Increments property of the NonlinearSettings object. For each increment, the
minimum and maximum number of iterations is limited by the values of the
MinIterations and MaxIterations properties. The Tolerance property stores the
convergence tolerance to be used in the analysis that is tested using the convergence
norm identified by the Norm property. This property is an enumerated value of type
mfConvergenceNorms with values of mfConvergenceForce (1),
mfConvergenceDisplacememt (2) and mfConvergenceBoth (3). The level of
reporting is also specified by an enumerated property, Reporting, which is of type
mfReportLevels. This has values of mfReportingNone (1), mfReportingBrief (2),
mfReportingDetailed(3) and mfReportingFull(4).

The load cases to be analysed as part of the nonlinear analysis are specified using the
LoadCases property of the NonlinearSettings object. While this property returns a
LoadCaseList object listing the load cases to be analysed, it can be set using a variant
value representing a list of load cases.

A non-linear static analysis is performed by calling the Analyse method of either the
Analysis or Application objects provided the NonLinear property of the Analysis
object is set equal to true. As an example, consider the following code to perform a
nonlinear analysis.

Page 91
Chapter 6 Automating Analysis

Dim mySettings as Multiframe.NonlinearSettings

’Get reference to nonlinear analysis settings

Set mySettings = myFrame.Analysis.NonlinearSettings

’Specify nonlinear effect to be considered by analysis

mySettings.AxialShortening=false
mySettings.pLittleDelta=true
mySettings.pBigDelta=true

’Set parameters for nonlinear analysis

mySettings.Increments=10
mySettings.MinIterations = 1
mySettings.MaxIterations = 25
mySettings.Tolerance=0.001
mySettings.Norm=mfConvergenceBoth

'Select load cases to analyse

mySettings.LoadCases = myFrame.LoadCases

’Do the analysis

myFrame.Analysis.Nonlinear = true
Call myFrame.Analysis.Analyse()
For speed and efficiency, the above code starts by declaring a NonlinearSettings object
and then obtaining a reference to the settings for the current frame. The script then sets
the analysis to be performed using only the P-δ and P-Δ effects. The next block of code
then instructs the analysis to use 10 load increments, with a minimum of 1 and a
maximum of 25 iterations per increment. Each increment will be iterated to a tolerance
of 0.001 that is tested using both the force and displacement norms. The final line of
code executes the analysis of the frame.

Modal Analysis
A modal analysis is performed by setting the Modal property of the Analysis object
equal to true and then calling the Analyse method. The settings for a modal analysis are
contained within the ModalSettings object. This object has five properties that control
the analysis which are listed in the following table.

Property Type Description

DistributedMas Boolean Get/Set whether distributed masses
s are to be used in the analysis.
LumpedMass Boolean Get/Set whether lumped masses are
to be used in the analysis.
MaxIterations Long Get/Set the maximum number of
iterations to be performed in each
load increment.
Modes Long Get/Set the number of modes to be
computed by the analysis.
Scaling mfModalScaling Get/Set method used to scale modal
displacements.
(Added in Version 1.1)
Solver mfModalSolver Get/Set type of solver used to
perform modal analysis.
(Add in Version 1.1)
Tolerance Double Get/Set iteration tolerance.

Page 92
 Chapter 6 Automating Analysis

The Application and Frame properties, which are common to many objects in the
Multiframe Object model, are described in Chapter 2.

The Modes property is used to control the number of mode shapes determined by the
analysis. Each mode shape will be computed using a maximum number of iterations
specified by the MaxIterations property. The iteration of each load increment in the
analysis will be performed to the convergence tolerance set by the Tolerance property.
The other two properties of the ModalSettings object control the type of mass
distribution used in the analysis. If a lumped mass formulation is required, the
LumpedMass property must be set true, else a distributed mass formulation can be
employed by setting the DistributedMass property to true. Note that these two
properties are mutually exclusive, setting one of them equal to true will automatically set
the other property to false. The following script demonstrates how to perform a modal
analysis.
Dim mySettings as Multiframe.ModalSettings

’Get reference to modal analysis settings

Set mySettings = myFrame.Analysis.ModalSettings

’Specify settings for analysis

mySettings.Modes = 5
mySettings.Tolerance = 0.0001
mySettings.MaxIterations = 25
mySettings.LumpedMass = true

’Perform the analysis

myFrame.Analysis.Modal = true
Call myFrame.Analysis.Analyse
As in the previous example, the script obtains a reference to the object containing the
analysis settings that, in this case, is a ModalSettings object. The analysis is then set up
to compute 5 modes shapes, to a tolerance of 0.0001, using a maximum of 25 iterations
to compute each mode. A lumped mass formulation is selected for computing the mass
matrix for each element in the structure.

Time History Analysis

The support for Time history analyses via Multiframes automation interface is limited to
performing analyses. A time history analysis can be performed by setting the
TimeHistory property of the Analysis object to true. The settings for this analysis are
contained within the TimeHistorySettings object. This object contains only two
properties, as most parameters controlling a time history analysis are stored with each
Time history load case.

Property Type Description

DistributedMas Boolean Get/Set whether distributed masses
s are to be used in the analysis.
LumpedMass Boolean Get/Set whether lumped masses are
to be used in the analysis.

The Application and Frame properties, which reference the parent objects, are common
to most objects in Multiframe and are described in Chapter 2.

Page 93
Chapter 6 Automating Analysis

These two properties control the type of formulation to be used in computing the element
mass matrices. If a lumped mass formulation is required, the LumpedMass property
must be set true, else a distributed mass formulation can be employed by setting the
DistributedMass property to true. As with the modal settings, these properties are
mutually exclusive. The following script demonstrates how to perform a time history
analysis.
Dim mySettings as Multiframe.TimeHistorySettings

’Get reference to modal analysis settings

Set mySettings = myFrame.Analysis.TimeHistorySettings

’Specify settings for analysis

mySettings.DistributedMass = true

’Perform the analysis

myFrame.Analysis.TimeHistory = true
Call myFrame.Analysis.Analyse
Once again, the analysis settings are specified by firstly obtaining a reference to the
object containing the analysis settings. A distributed mass formulation is specified for
computing the mass matrix of each element in the structure.

Page 94
 Chapter 7 Results Objects

Chapter 7 Results Objects

This chapter describes the object hierarchy used to store the results from an analysis of a
structure. This hierarchy provides a means to access the results from Linear, Non-linear
or Modal analyses of the structure. The results of Time History analyses are not
accessible from the Multiframe automation interface.

The Results Object

All the results from the analysis of a frame are encapsulated within the Results object.
These results are stored as part of the Frame object hierarchy and are accessed using the
Results property of this object. Alternatively, this collection can be accessed directly
from the Multiframe Application object via the Results property. The methods and
properties of the Results object are summarised in the following tables.

Property Type Description

Applicatio Application Read Only. Returns reference to the parent
n application.
Frame Frame Read Only. Returns a reference to the parent
frame.
Linear LinearResults Read Only. Returns a reference to object storing
linear results.
Modal ModalResults Read Only. Returns a reference to object storing
modal results.
Nonlinear NonlinearResult Read Only. Returns a reference to object storing
s nonlinear results.

Method Returns Description

Case ResultCase Returns a reference to the ResultCase containing
the results of the specified analysis and load
case.
Solved Boolean Returns true if the results of a specified analysis
have been computed for the specified load case.

Properties
The Results object has three properties that provide access to the results of linear, non-
linear and modal analyses. Each of these sets of results is stored in separate objects as
shown in the diagram below.

Results

LinearResults
ResultCases (ResultCase)
NonlinearResults
NodeResults (NodeResult)
ModalResults
ElementResults (ElementResult)

MemberResults (MemberResult)

Page 95
Chapter 7 Results Objects

Each of the objects storing the results from the different types of analyses contains a
collection of ResultCase objects. Each ResultCase object stores the results for a
single load case or, in the case of the modal analysis, the results for a single mode shape.

Methods
The Case method of the Results object provides a means of obtaining the results for a
particular analysis without having to navigate the object hierarchy. This method takes
two parameters; the first is a variant parameter identifying the load case. For modal
analyses, this parameter identifies the index of the mode shape. The second parameter in
an enumerated value of type mfAnalysisType, that specifies the analysis for which the
results are required. This method returns a reference to a ResultCase object containing
the desired information.
Dim myResults As Multiframe.ResultCase

With myFrame.Results

'Get results for linear analysis of load case 3

Set myResults = .Case(3)

'Get modal results using Case method

Set myResults = .Case(3, mfAnalysisModal)

End With
The Results object provides another method to complement the Case method that
determines if the results for a particular case have been computed by an analysis. The
Solved method takes the same parameters as the Case method and returns a value of true
if the specified analysis has been performed. The above example could be recoded as
Dim myResults As Multiframe.ResultCase

With myFrame.Results

'Get results for linear analysis of load case 3

If (.Solved(3)) then
Set myResults = .Case(3)
End If

If (.Solved(3, mfAnalysisModal)) then

'Get modal results using Case method
Set myResults = .Case(3, mfAnalysisModal)
End If

End With

Result Cases
For any of the analyses performed by Multiframe, the ResultCase object encapsulates a
single set of data describing the displacements of a frame and the resulting actions within
its members. For a linear or non-linear static analysis, the ResultCase object contains
the results for the analysis of a single load case. A collection of ResultCase objects is
stored by each of the LinearResults and NonlinearResults objects, each item in these
collections corresponds directly to the results from the analysis of each load case applied
to the model. The modal analysis results, stored in the ModalAnalysis object, are also
contained within a ResultCases object. In this case, each item in the collection
corresponds to a single mode. The properties of the ResultCase object are listed below.

Property Type Description

Analysis mfAnalysisTyp Read Only. Returns the type of analysis
e used to generate the results.

Page 96
 Chapter 7 Results Objects

Property Type Description

Application Application Read Only. Returns a reference to the
parent application.
ElementResult ElementResult Read Only. Returns a reference to the
s s object that contains the results for the
elements in the frame.
Frame Frame Read Only. Returns a reference to the
parent frame object.
Index Long Read Only. Returns the index of the case.
MemberResult MemberResult Read Only. Returns a reference to the
s s object that contains the results for the
members in the frame.
Name String Read Only. Returns the name of the case.
NodeResults NodeResults Read Only. Returns a reference to the
object that contains the results for the nodes
in the frame.
Number Long Read Only. Same as Index property.
Solved Boolean Read Only. Returns true if the results for
this case have been solved for.

The results at each node in the frame are stored as a collection of NodeResult object.
Similarly the results for each element and member are stored in collections of
ElementResult and MemberResult objects. These three collections are reference from
the ResultCase object via the properties NodeResults, ElementResults and
MemberResults.

The Solved property of the ResultCase object is a Boolean property that returns true if
the results of this case have been computed.

Linear and Non-linear Results

The results of static linear analyses are accessed via the Linear property of the Results
object. This property returns a reference to a LinearResults object that contains the
results for the linear analysis of each load case. These results are stored in a
ResultCases collection object, with each item in the collection corresponding directly
to a load case applied to the structural model.

Property Type Description

Applicatio Application Read Only. Returns a reference to the parent
n application.
Cases ResultCase Read Only. Returns a reference to the object that
s contains results at the nodes, elements and members
in the frame.
Frame Frame Read Only. Returns a reference to the parent frame
object.

An identical structure is provided to access the results of non-linear static analyses. The
Nonlinear property of the Results object returns a reference of a NonlinearResults
object that contains a collection of ResultCase objects, each corresponding directly to
the load cases applied to the frame.

Page 97
Chapter 7 Results Objects

Dim myResults As Multiframe.ResultCase

With myFrame.Results

'Get results for linear analysis of load case 3

Set myResults = .Linear.Cases(3)

'Get same results using Case method

Set myResults = .Case(3, mfAnalysisStatic)

'Get nonlinear results for load case named "DL + LL

Set myResults=.Case("DL + LL", mfAnalysisStaticNonlinear)

End With
A ResultCase object for either a linear of non-linear analysis will exist for each load
case in the model irrespective of whether the case has been analysed. The Solved
property of the ResultCase object returns a value of true if the particular case has been
analysed and the results are available.

Modal Results
The results of a modal analysis are accessed via the Modal property of the Results
object. This property returns a reference to a ModalResults object that contains the
results for all the mode shapes computed by the analysis. The properties of the
ModalResults object are outlined in the table below.

Property Type Description

Application Application Read Only. Returns a reference to the parent
application.
Cases ResultCase Read Only. Returns a reference to the object
s that contains results at the nodes, elements
and members in the frame.
Frame Frame Read Only. Returns a reference to the parent
frame object.
Frequencies Variant Read Only. Returns an array containing the
natural frequencies computed by the modal
analysis.
Frequency Double Read Only. Returns the natural frequency of
the specified mode shape.
ModalMass Double Read Only. Returns the modal mass of the
specified mode shape.
NoOfModes Long Read Only. Returns the number of modes
computed by the modal analysis.
ParticipationFacto Double Read Only. Returns the participation factor
r of the specified mode shape for the specified
degree of freedom.
ParticipationRatio Double Read Only. Returns the participating mass
ratio of the specified mode shape for the
specified degree of freedom.

The modal displacements are stored in a ResultCases collection object; each item in the
collection corresponds to a single mode shape computed by the analysis. These results
are referenced as follows.

Page 98
 Chapter 7 Results Objects

Dim myResults As Multiframe.ResultCase

'Get modal results for mode shape 2

Set myResults = myFrame.Results.Case(2, mfAnalysisModal)

'And using the object hierarchy to get the same results

Set myResults = myFrame.Results.Modal.Cases(2)
The ModalResults object also encapsulates some extra information derived from the
analysis such as the number of mode shapes computed by the analysis and the frequency
of each mode shape. The number of modes actually computed by the modal analysis of
the frame is obtained from the NoOfModes property. For each of the computed mode
shapes, the natural frequency is available from the Frequency or Frequencies
properties of the ModalResults object. The Frequency property returns the natural
frequency of particular mode and requires a single parameter identifying the mode.
However, the frequencies of all mode shapes can be obtained directly by calling the
Frequencies property. This property returns a variant containing an array of
frequencies for each of the mode shapes.
Dim myResults As Multiframe.ResultCase
Dim freq as Double
Dim myVar as Variant

'Get modal results for mode shape 2

Set myResults = myFrame.Results.Case(2, mfAnalysisModal)

'And the frequency for this mode

freq = myResults.Modal.Frequency(2)

’And the same frequency from an array of all frequencies

myVar = myResults.Modal.Frequencies
freq = myVar(2)

Nodal Results
The NodeResult object encapsulates the results at a node for a particular analysis. The
properties of this object, which are all read-only, return the displacement of the node and
the resultant reactions. The properties of this object are listed in the table below.

Property Type Description

Analysis mfAnalysisTyp Read Only. Returns the type of analysis used
e to generate the results.
Displacement Double Read Only. Returns the displacement/rotation
* of the node in a specified degree of freedom.
Displacement Variant Read Only. Returns a vector containing the
s displacements/rotations in each of the nodes
degrees of freedoms.
dx, dy, dz Double Read Only. Returns the displacement of the
node along the x, y and z-axes respectively.
Node Node Read Only. Returns a reference to the node to
which the results apply.
Mx, My, Mz Double Read Only. Returns the component of the
reaction at the node acting about the x, y and
z-axes respectively.
Reaction* Double Read Only. Returns the reaction acting in a
specified degree of freedom.

Page 99
Chapter 7 Results Objects

Property Type Description

Reactions Variant Read Only. Returns a vector containing the
reactions acting in each of the nodes degrees
of freedoms.
ResultCase ResultCase Read Only. Returns a reference to the parent
Results Case containing these results.
Rx, Ry, Rz Double Read Only. Returns the component of the
reaction at the node acting along the x, y and
z-axes respectively.
Solved Boolean Read Only. Returns true if the results for this
case has been computed.
Thetax Double Read Only. Returns the rotation of the node
about the x-axis.
Thetay Double Read Only. Returns the rotation of the node
about the y-axis.
Theta Double Read Only. Returns the rotation of the node
about the z-axis.
*Denotes a property that takes a parameter specifying a nodal degree of freedom.

The Application and Frame properties are common to many objects and are described
in Chapter 2. The NodeResult object has no methods.

The NodeResult object can be obtained for a node even if the specified analysis has not
been performed. As such, the Solved property has been provided to determine if the
results are available. This property returns true if the results for the node are available
for the associated type of analysis. Trying to access many other properties of this object
will return and error if the results have not been solved for. As such, it is good
programming practice to determine if the results are available prior to accessing the other
properties of the NodeResult object.

The displacements at a node can be obtained in three different ways using the properties
of the NodeResult object. The appropriate means of access if often dependent upon the
script in which the values are used. The first technique for accessing the displacements
is via the individual properties representing the displacement in each degree of freedom.
The translation of the node is obtained via the properties dx, dy and dz while the
rotational displacements are specified by the properties thetax, thetay, thetaz. These
properties all return the displacement of the node in terms of the global coordinate
system.

The second method of accessing the displacements at a node is using the Displacement
property of the NodeResult object. This property returns the displacement for a
specified degree of freedom. The distinction of this member as a property and not a
method is purely academic since it is read only. However, it is a special type of property
that takes a single enumerated parameter identifying the degree of freedom.

Page 100
 Chapter 7 Results Objects

The final means of accessing the displacements is using the Displacements property.
This property returns a variant containing an array of six real numbers that are the
displacements for each degree of freedom at the node. This property is the fastest
method of accessing all the displacements at a node, as it only requires a single call to the
automation interface. The displacements returned by any of these properties is specified
in terms of either the displacement or rotation units currently in use by the Multiframe
application. The following example demonstrates the use of all three techniques of
accessing the displacements in determining the total distance moved by a node.
Dim myResult As Multiframe.NodeResult
Dim dist As Double
Dim i As Long
Dim myVar As Variant

’Get results at Node 5 for linear analysis of load case 1

Set myResult =
myFrame.Results.Case(1,mfAnalysisStatic).NodeResults(5)

’Test if results are solved

If (myResult.Solved) then

'(1)Compute distance moved by node

dist = myResult.dx ^ 2 + myResult.dy ^ 2 + myResult.dz ^ 2
dist = Sqr(dist)

'(2)Compute distance moved by node

dist = 0#
For i = 1 To 3
dist = dist + myResult.Displacement(i) ^ 2
Next
dist = Sqr(dist)

'(3)Compute distance moved by node

myVar = myResult.Displacements
dist = myVar(1) ^ 2 + myVar(2) ^ 2 + myVar(3) ^ 2
dist = Sqr(dist)

Endif
A similar interface is also provided to access the reactions at a node. The properties, Rx,
Ry, Rz and Mx, My, Mz return the reactions in each degree of freedom. Alternatively
the Reaction property returns the reaction for a specified degree of freedom while the
Reactions method returns an array of the reactions at the node. The values returned by
each of these properties is specified in terms of either the force or moment units currently
in use by the Multiframe application.

The Node property of the NodeResult object returns a reference to a Node object that
identifies the node to which the results apply.

The analysis used to generate the results can be determined from the Analysis property
of the NodeResult object. This property returns an enumerated value of type
mfAnalysisType.

Element Results
The actions and displacement of a single element resulting from an analysis are
represented in the automation interface by the ElementResult object. The properties of
this object, which are all read-only, are listed in the table below. The object also
provides methods for accessing the actions at any position along the element and for
constructing diagrams of the distribution of actions along the element. These properties
and methods are as follows;

Page 101
Chapter 7 Results Objects

Method Returns Description

CopyPlot Copy picture of action diagram to clipboard.
GetAction Double Get action at specific point along the element.
GetActions Variant Get action at a number of points along the element.
GetPlotLocation Variant Get locations along member from which the action
s diagram will be created.
MaxAction Double Get the maximum value of an action within an
element.
MaxActions Variant Get the maximum value of a number of actions.

Property Type Description

Analysis mfAnalysisTy Read Only. Returns the type of analysis used
pe to generate the results.
dx*, dy*, dz* Double Read Only. Returns the component of
displacement at the specified end of the
element acting along the x, y and z-axes
respectively.
Element Element Read Only. Returns a reference to the element
to which the results refer.
EndAction Double Read Only. Returns the end action acting in a
specified element degree of freedom.
EndActions Variant Read Only. Returns a vector containing the
reactions acting in each of the elements degrees
of freedoms.
EndDisp Double Read Only. Returns the
displacements/rotations of a specified element
degree of freedom.
EndDisps Variant Read Only. Returns a vector containing the
displacements/rotations in each of the elements
degrees of freedoms.
InCompressio Boolean Read Only. Returns true if the element is
n acting in axial compression.
InTension Boolean Read Only. Returns true if the element is
acting in axial tension.
My*, Mz* Double Read Only. Returns the component of the
reaction at the specified end of the element
acting about the elements y and z-axes
respectively.
Px* Double Read Only. Returns the component of the
reaction at the specified end of the element
acting along the elements x-axis.
ResultCase ResultCase Read Only. Returns a reference to the parent
Results Case containing these results.
Solved Boolean Read Only. Returns true if the results for this
case have been computed.
Thetax*, Double Read Only. Returns the rotation of the node
Thetay*, about the x, y and z-axes respectively.
Thetaz*

Page 102
 Chapter 7 Results Objects

Property Type Description

Tx* Double Read Only. Returns the component of the
reaction at the specified end of the element
acting about the elements x-axis.
Vy*, Vz* Double Read Only. Returns the component of the
reaction at the node acting along the y and z-
axes respectively.
*Denotes a property that takes a parameter specifying an end of the element

The Application and Frame properties are common to many objects and are described
in Chapter 2.

Properties
As for nodal results, the ElementResult object can be obtained for an element even if
the specified analysis has not been performed. As such, the Solved property has been
provided to determine if the results are available. This property returns true if the results
for the node are available for the associated type of analysis. Trying to access many
other properties of this object will return and error if the results have not been solved for.
As such, it is good programming practice to determine if the results are available prior to
accessing the other properties of the ElementResult object.

The displacements at the end of an element can be referenced using several properties of
the ElementResult object. The appropriate method will be determined by how the
value is used by the script. The first technique for accessing the displacements is via the
individual properties representing the displacement in each degree of freedom at the end
of the element. The translation of the element end is obtained via the properties dx, dy
and dz while the rotational displacements are specified by the properties thetax, thetay,
thetaz. Each of these properties takes a single parameter specifying an end of the
element and all return the displacement of the elements end in the elements local
coordinate system.

Another means of accessing the displacements at an end of an element is using the

EndDisp property of the ElementResult object. This property returns the displacement
for a specified degree of freedom. This property has two parameters that specify the end
of the element and the degree of freedom. If the first parameter is specified and correctly
identifies an end of the element, the second parameter identifies a degree of freedom and
must have a value in the range from 1 to 6 which represents each of the degrees of
freedoms at the elements end. If the first parameter is omitted or has a value of zero, the
second parameter identifies one of the elements local degrees of freedoms and must have
a value in the range from 1 to 12.

A third technique for accessing the displacements is using the EndDisps property. This
property returns a variant containing an array of real numbers containing either the
displacements for each degree of freedom at a specified end of an element or an array of
values for the displacements at all of the elements degrees of freedom. This property is
the fastest method of accessing all the displacements at the ends of an element, as it only
requires a single call to the automation interface to obtain the displacements of each of
the elements degrees of freedom.

The displacements returned by any of these properties is specified in terms of either the
displacement or rotation units currently in use by the Multiframe application. The
following example demonstrates the use of all three techniques of accessing the
displacements in determining the total distance moved by a node.

Page 103
Chapter 7 Results Objects

Dim myResult As Multiframe.NodeResult

Dim dist As Double
Dim i As Long
Dim myVar As Variant

’Get results at Node 5 for linear analysis of load case 1

Set myResult =
myFrame.Results.Case(1,mfAnalysisStatic).NodeResults(5)

’Test if results are solved

If (myResult.Solved) then

'(1)Compute distance moved by node

dist = myResult.dx ^ 2 + myResult.dy ^ 2 + myResult.dz ^ 2
dist = Sqr(dist)

'(2)Compute distance moved by node

dist = 0#
For i = 1 To 3
dist = dist + myResult.Displacement(i) ^ 2
Next
dist = Sqr(dist)

'(3)Compute distance moved by node

myVar = myResult.Displacements
dist = myVar(1) ^ 2 + myVar(2) ^ 2 + myVar(3) ^ 2
dist = Sqr(dist)

Endif
A similar interface is also provided to access the actions at the ends of the element. The
properties, Px, Vy, Vz and Tx, My, Mz return the actions at each end of the member.
These may also be returned by referencing a particular degree of freedom using the
EndActions property while the EndActions method returns an array of the end action at
a specified end of the element or an array of values for all of the elements degrees of
freedom. The values returned by each of these properties is specified in terms of either
the force or moment units currently in use by the Multiframe application.

Two properties of the ElementResult object allow the user to quickly determine if the
element is in tension or compression without worrying about sign conventions. The
InTension property will return true if the element is in axial tension while the
InCompression property returns a value of true if the element is in axial compression.

The Element property of the ElementResult object returns a reference to an Element

object that identifies the elements to which the results apply. The analysis used to
generate the results can also be determined using the Analysis property of the
ElementResult object, which returns an enumerated value of type mfAnalysisType.

Methods
The GetAction and GetActions methods of the ElementResult object provide access to
the displacements and actions along an element. The GetAction method returns the
value of a specified action or displacement at a specified location along the member.
The GetActions method extends this functionality and returns an array of values for the
action at a number of specified locations. For example, the following code demonstrates
how to determine the moments at quarter points along an element.

Page 104
 Chapter 7 Results Objects

Dim myResult As Multiframe.ElementResult

Dim myVar As Variant
Dim M1,M2,M3 as Double

’Get results for element 5 (linear analysis of load case 1)

Set myResult = myFrame.Elements(5).Results(1,mfAnalysisStatic)

’Test if results are solved

If (myResult.Solved) then

'Get actions at quarter points

M1 = myResult.GetAction(mfActionMz,0.25)
M2 = myResult.GetAction(mfActionMz,0.5)
M3 = myResult.GetAction(mfActionMz,0.75)

'Alternatively get actions at quarter points using single

call
myVar = myResult.GetActions(mfActionMz,Array(0.25,0.5,0.75))
M1 = myVar[1]
M2 = myVar[2]
M3 = myVar[2]

Endif
The maximum values of an action or displacement along an element can be obtained
using the MaxAction and MaxActions properties of the ElementResult object. The
MaxAction method returns the maximum value for a single action while the
MaxActions method is used to compute the maximum value of a list of actions. The
methods each take two parameters; the first specifies the action or actions to be
considered. The second parameter in an enumerated value of type mfSign that identifies
whether to maximum negative, positive or absolute value of the action is to be computed.
The following example demonstrates using these methods to compute the design actions
for an element

Page 105
Chapter 7 Results Objects

Dim myResult As Multiframe.ElementResult

Dim Mz,My,Vz,Vy,P as Double
Dim Actions(1 to 5) as long

’Get results for element 5 (linear analysis of load case 1)

Set myResult = myFrame.Elements(5).Results(1,mfAnalysisStatic)

’Test if results are solved

If (myResult.Solved) then

'Get design actions

Mz = myResult.MaxAction(mfActionMz, mfSignAbsolute)
My = myResult.MaxAction(mfActionMy, mfSignAbsolute)
Vy = myResult.MaxAction(mfActionVy, mfSignAbsolute)
Vz = myResult.MaxAction(mfActionVz, mfSignAbsolute)
P = myResult.MaxAction(mfActionPx, mfSignAbsolute)

'Alternatively get design actions using single call

Actions(1) = mfActionMz
Actions(2) = mfActionMy
Actions(3) = mfActionVy
Actions(4) = mfActionVz
Actions(5) = mfActionPx

myVar = myResult.MaxActions(Actions, mfSignAbsolute)

Mz = myVar[1]
My = myVar[2]
Vy = myVar[3]
Vz = myVar[4]
P = myVar[5]

Endif
The CopyPlot method provides a simple way of copying a graphic image of a specific
actions diagram to the Windows clipboard. This image can then be pasted directly into a
3rd party application. This method takes five parameters which specify inorder, the
action to be plotted, the width of the image in pixels, the height of the image in pixels, a
boolean value indicating if the maximum, minimum and end actions are to be displayed
on the diagram and lastly another boolean value indicating if a heading should be
included in the image. This heading includes the name of the load case, the number of
the element, the elements section, the name of the action and it’s units. The following
sample code shows how a bending moment diagram can be copied to the clipboard.
Dim myResult As Multiframe.ElementResult

’Get results for element 5 (linear analysis of load case 1)

Set myResult = myFrame.Elements(5).Results(1,mfAnalysisStatic)

’Test if results are solved

If (myResult.Solved) then

‘Copy Mz’ diagram to clipboard

myResult.CopyPlot(mfActionMz,400,200,true,true)

‘Build chart

Endif

Page 106
 Chapter 7 Results Objects

The locations of actions along the element used to construct a plot of an action such as a
bending moment or shear diagram can be obtained using the GetPlotLocations method
of the Element object. This function takes single parameter that specifies the action to
be plotted and returns an array containing the distances along the member at which the
action needs to be computed to construct the diagram of the specified action. This array
can be passed directly to the GetActions method to obtain to values of the actions at each
location in the plot. This information can then be used to construct a custom plot of the
data. The example that follows demonstrates how to construct a chart that plots the
bending moments along the major axis of an element.
Dim myResult As Multiframe.ElementResult
Dim Mz,My,Vz,Vy,P as Double
Dim vLocations as Variant

’Get results for element 5 (linear analysis of load case 1)

Set myResult = myFrame.Elements(5).Results(1,mfAnalysisStatic)

’Test if results are solved

If (myResult.Solved) then

'Get plot locations and actions

vLocations= myResult.GetPlotLocations(mfActionMz)
My = myResult.GetAction(mfActionMy, vLocations)

‘Build chart

Endif

Member Results
When designing members it is necessary to determine the actions acting upon the
member. Rather that require the actions be determined for the elements forming the
member, the automation interface provides a direct interface to the actions within a
design member via the MemberResult object. The properties and methods of this
object are the same as those for the ElementResult object except that the results apply
to a specific design member rather than element.

Page 107
 Chapter 8 Sections Library

Chapter 8 Sections Library

The Section, SectionGroup and SectionsLibrary objects and their associated lists and
collections represent the hierarchy of the sections library and assist in the manipulation
of this data. Each group of sections within the sections library is represented by a
SectionGroup object. The sections within each of the groups are stored as a collection
of Section objects. This object encapsulates and the information about a single section
such as its names and section properties. The sections library itself is managed via the
SectionsLibrary object that is responsible not only for storing the data but also for the
opening and saving a sections library within Multiframe.

SectionsLibrary

SectionGroups (SectionGroup)

Sections (Section)

Materials (Material)

SectionsLibrary Object
The sections library open within Multiframe is represented via the SectionsLibrary
object. This object contains a hierarchy of objects representing the groups, sections and
materials stored within the library. In addition, this object is responsible for managing
the loading and saving of the sections library to disk. The following tables list the
properties and methods of the SectionsLibrary object.

Property Type Description

Application Application Read Only. Returns a reference to the
parent application.
FullName String Read Only. Returns the file name and path
of the sections library.
Groups SectionGroups Read Only. Returns a reference to
collection of section groups stored in the
library.
Materials Materials Read Only. Returns a reference to
collection of materials contained in the
library.
Modified Boolean Read Only. Returns true if the sections
library has been modified and the changes
have not been saved to disk.
Name String Read Only. Returns the file name of the
sections library.
Path String Read Only. Returns the directory path of
the sections library.

Method Returns Description

GetSection Section Returns a reference to a specified section.
Open Loads a sections library from file.

Page 109
Chapter 8 Sections Library

Method Returns Description

Save Saves the sections library to its original
file.
SaveAs Saves the sections library to a specified
file.

Properties
The three methods FullName, Name, and Path describe the location of the sections
library file. The Path property contains the disk path of the file, the Name property
returns the name of the file while the FullName property returns the name of the file
including the path.

The Modified property is used to determine if the library has been changed and needs to
be saved. This property returns a value of true if the sections library has been altered. It
will most commonly be used conjunction with the methods to open and save the library.

The SectionGroups and Materials properties return collections containing the groups
and material stored within the sections library.

Methods
A new library is loaded into Multiframe using the Open method of the SectionsLibrary
object. The following script demonstrates how to open a new sections library using
VBA and Microsoft Excel. In this example the user is prompted to select the library to
be opened via the File Open dialog.
Dim Filename As String 'name of file to open
Dim Filter As String ‘filter for section library files

’Display open file dialog so user can pick new library

Filter = "Sections Library (*.slb),*.slb”
With Application
Filename =.GetOpenFilename(Filter,, "Open Sections
Library",,False)
End With
If Filename <> False ThenCall
mfApp.SectionsLibrary.Open(Filename)
End If
In Microsoft Word this script would be slightly different as a different function is used to
display the File Open dialog.
’Display open file dialog so user can pick new library
With Application.Dialogs(wdDialogFileOpen)
.Name = "*.slb"
If (.Display = -1) Then

’Open new sections libray

Call mfApp.SectionsLibrary.Open(.name,true)

End If
End With
The sections library may be saved to file using the Save or SaveAs methods. The
Save method saves the library using it’s current file name and path. The SaveAs
method saves the library as a new file. It would be implemented within a script in a
similar was to the examples shown above for opening a library.

Page 110
 Chapter 8 Sections Library

The simplest way to access a section within the sections library is using the GetSection
method. This method provides a means of accessing a particular section without having
to navigate the object hierarchy of the sections library. This method can take up to two
parameters that identify the section and returns the Section object corresponding to the
specified section. The first parameter is generally used to identify the group containing
the section. This can be any variant value used to represent a group such as its number,
name or a SectionGroup object. The second parameter is also a variant value and is used
to identify the section. This may be the index of the section within the group, or it’s
name. The GetSection object may also be used with only a single parameter that
specifies the name of the section. In this case, the entire library will be searched to find a
section with a matching name. The many ways in which the GetSection method may be
used are demonstrated in the following code.
Dim mySection as Multiframe.Section
Dim myGroup as Multiframe.SectionGroup

Set mySection = mfApp.SectionsLibrary.GetSection(2,4)

Set mySection = mfApp.SectionsLibrary.GetSection(“UB”,4)
Set mySection = mfApp.SectionsLibrary.GetSection(“310UB40”)
Set mySection =
mfApp.SectionsLibrary.GetSection(“UB”,“310UB40”)

Set myGroup = mfApp.SectionsLibrary.SectionGroups(“UB”)

Set mySection = mfApp.SectionsLibrary.GetSection(myGroup,2)

SectionGroup Object
The SectionGroup object encapsulates a group of sections within the sections library.
These sections are stored within the SectionGroup object as a collection of Section
objects. The properties and methods of the SectionGroup object are listed below.

Property Type Description

Application Application Read Only. Returns a reference to the
parent application.
Index Long Read Only. Returns the index of the
group within the sections library.
Locked Boolean Read Only. Returns true if the group is
locked.
Name String Read Only. Returns the name of group.
Number Long Read Only. Same as Index.
SectionNames Variant Read Only. Returns an array containing
the names of all the sections in the group.
Sections Sections Read Only. Returns a reference to the
collection of the section in the group.
SectionsLibrar SectionsLibrary Read Only. Returns a reference to the
y parent sections library object.

Page 111
Chapter 8 Sections Library

Creating a new group

A new section group is added to a sections library using the AddGroup method of the
SectionGroups collection. This method accepts three parameters that specify the name
of the group, the shape of sections to be stored within the group and a Boolean parameter
that specifies if the default property fields for the specified shape are to be automatically
constructed by Multiframe. As property fields cannot be created or modified via the
automation interface, this last parameter should always be set equal to true. The shape of
the section to be contained within the group is specified as an enumerated value of type
mfSectionShape that has values for all of standard shapes supported within Multiframe.
Dim myGroup as Multiframe.SectionGroup
Dim myGroups as Multiframe.SectionGroups
Dim Name as String

’Get reference to collection of section groups

Set myGroups = mfApp.SectionsLibrary.Groups

' Prompt user to enter name for group.

Name = InputBox(“Enter name of group”,“Multiframe”,“New
Group”)

’ If name is valid than add new group to contain I-

sections
’ Default property fields for I-sections will be created
If (Len(Name)>0) then
Set myGroup = myGroups.AddGroup(Name,mfSectionI,true)
End If

The InputBox function is a VBA function that displays a dialog in which the user is
prompted to enter a text string.

Properties
The name of the group is interfaced via the Name property of the SectionGroup object.
This property is a string that can be up to 31 characters long. To be consistent with the
other Multiframe objects, the name of the group can also be referenced via the hidden
Label property of the SectionGroup object

The Locked property of a SectionGroup is a Boolean value that is set equal to true if
the group is locked and cannot be modified. This also excludes the modification of any
sections contained within the group.

The sections contained within this group are stored within a collection of Section
objects that is accessed via the Sections property of the SectionGroup object. A useful
property of the SectionGroup object is the SectionsNames property. It returns a list
of names of all the sections contained within the group. The names of the sections are
listed in the order in which they appear within the Sections collection contained within
this group. This method can be used to rapidly provide data to a user form or dialog
containing a list of groups from which the user may choose a section.

The SectionsLibrary and Application objects return the parent objects containing this
SectionGroup object.

Page 112
 Chapter 8 Sections Library

Sections Object
The Section object stores the data describing a single section within the sections library.
Most of the properties in this object provide access to all of the geometric properties of
the section that are used for analysis and design. Other properties store the sections
name, its shape and details of it symmetry. The properties of the Section object are
listed in the four tables shown below. The first two tables lists all the properties and
method of the Section object that do not directly access the section properties of the
section. The next table lists properties of the Section object that reference the
dimensions of the section while the final table lists the properties for accessing the
derived section properties of the section such as it’s area and moments of area.

Property Type Description

Application Application Read Only. Returns a reference to the
parent application.
Index Long Read Only. Returns the index of the section
in its parent group.
Name String Gets/Sets the name of the section.
Number Long Read Only. Same as Index.
SectionGroup SectionGroup Read Only. Returns a reference to the
parent group object.
SectionsLibrar SectionsLibrary Read Only. Returns a reference to the
y parent sections library object.
Shape mfSectionShape Read Only. Returns the shape of the
section.
SymmetricXX Boolean Read Only. Returns true if the section is
symmetric about the x axis.
SymmetricYY Boolean Read Only. Returns true if the section is
symmetric about the y axis.

Method Returns Description

Compute Computes the properties of the section
from its dimensions.
Delete Deletes the section from the library.
GetProperty Double Gets a section property.
SetProperty Sets a section property.

Property Description Enumerated Constant

B Width MfSectionPropB
b1 Secondary width MfSectionPropB1
b2 Tertiary width MfSectionPropB2
D Depth MfSectionPropD
d1 Secondary depth MfSectionPropD1
d2 Tertiary depth MfSectionPropD2
r1 Primary Radius mfSectionPropR1
r2 Secondary Radius mfSectionPropR2
taper Taper angle mfSectionPropTaper
tf Flange thickness mfSectionPropTf
tw Web thickness mfSectionPropTw

Page 113
Chapter 8 Sections Library

Property Description Enumerated Constant

t1 Additional thickness MfSectionPropT1
t2 Additional thickness MfSectionPropT2

Property Description Enumerated Constant

Area Gross area mfSectionPropArea
Asx Shear area in x-plane MfSectionPropAsx
Asy Shear area in y-plane MfSectionPropAsy
C Torsion Modulus mfSectionPropC
E Young’s Modulus mfSectionPropE
G Shear Modulus mfSectionPropG
H LRFD Polar property mfSectionPropH
Iu Moment of inertia about major MfSectionPropIu
principle axis
Iv Moment of inertia about minor mfSectionPropIv
principle axis
Ix Moment of inertia about major mfSectionPropIx
axis
Ixy Product of inertia mfSectionPropIxy
Iy Moment of inertia about minor mfSectionPropIy
axis
J Polar moment of Inertia MfSectionPropJ
Mass Nominal Mass mfSectionPropMass
Perimeter Length of perimeter mfSectionPropPerimeter
ru Radius of gyration about major mfSectionPropRu
principle axis
rv Radius of gyration about minor mfSectionPropRv
principle axis
rx Radius of gyration about major mfSectionPropRx
axis
ry Radius of gyration about minor mfSectionPropRy
axis
R0 Polar radius of inertia about MfSectionPropR0
shear centre
Sx Plastic Modulus about xx axis mfSectionPropSy
Sy Plastic Modulus about yy axis mfSectionPropSy
Su Plastic Modulus about major mfSectionPropSu
axis
Sv Plastic Modulus about minor mfSectionPropSv
axis
TanTheta Tangent of angle between mfSectionPropTanTheta
principle axes and section axes
Theta Angle between principle axes mfSectionPropTheta
and section axes
User1 User specified value MfSectionPropUser1
User2 User specified value MfSectionPropUser2
User3 User specified value MfSectionPropUser3
User4 User specified value MfSectionPropUser4

Page 114
 Chapter 8 Sections Library

Property Description Enumerated Constant

User5 User specified value MfSectionPropUser5
xc Position of centroid mfSectionPropXc
xp Position of plastic axis mfSectionPropXp
xs Position of shear centre mfSectionPropXs
yc Position of centroid mfSectionPropYc
yp Position of plastic axis mfSectionPropYp
ys Position of shear centre mfSectionPropYs
Zu1 Elastic modulus about the major MfSectionPropZu1
principle axis for portion of the
section in the positive v
direction
Zu2 Elastic modulus about the major MfSectionPropZu2
principle axis for portion of the
section in the negative v
direction
Zv1 Elastic modulus about the minor MfSectionPropZv1
principle axis for portion of the
section in the positive u
direction
Zv2 Elastic modulus about the minor MfSectionPropZv2
principle axis for portion of the
section in the negative u
direction
Zxb Elastic modulus about the major MfSectionPropZxb
axis for the bottom portion of
the section
Zxt Elastic modulus about the major MfSectionPropZxt
axis for the top portion of the
section
Zyl Elastic modulus about the minor MfSectionPropZyl
axis for the left hand portion of
the section
Zyr Elastic modulus about the minor MfSectionPropZyr
axis for the right hand portion of
the section

Note that the naming convention for the elastic and plastic section modulii do not follow
the naming convention generally adopted in the United States. In the Multiframe
automation interface, the elastic plastic modulus is denoted using a Z while the plastic
section modulus is denoted using an S.

Adding a new section

A new section may be added to a group using the AddSection method of the Sections
collection. This method takes up to ten parameters that specify the shape, name and
dimensions of the sections. The last four parameters are optional and specify additional
dimensions of the section that are only required by the more complicated section shapes.
An example of adding a new I section to the Frame group of the sections library is
demonstrated in the following code.

Page 115
Chapter 8 Sections Library

Dim mySection as Multiframe.Section

Dim Name as String

’Add new I section, 600 deep and 300 wide

With mfApp.SectionsLibrary.Groups(“Frame”).Sections
Set mySection
=.AddSection(mfSectionI,”600x300I”,600,300,10,10)
End With
A number of sections may also be added to a group within the section library using a
single call to the AddSections method. This method takes the same parameters as the
AddSection method except that the name and dimensions parameters may be arrays of
values with each entry in the array corresponding to a new section to be created. If only
a single value is specified for one of the parameters, this value will be adopted for all of
the sections to be created. The AddSections method returns a SectionList object
containing each of the new sections that have been added to the sections library.
Dim mySectList as Multiframe.SectionList
Dim Names(1 to 5) as string
Dim Widths(1 to 5) as double
Dim I as long

’ Generate names and width for sections

For I=1 to 5
Widths(I) = (I+1)*100.0
Names = “900x” & Str(Widths(I)) & ”I”
Next

’Add new I sections to Frame group

With mfApp.SectionsLibrary.Groups(“Frame”).Sections
Set mySectList =.AddSections(mfSectionI, Names,900,
Widths,8,12)
End With

Properties
The name of the section is referenced via the Name property of the Section object.
This property is a string that can be up to 31 characters long. The name of the section
can also be accessed via the hidden Label property of the SectionGroup object

The Shape property is an enumerated value of type mfSectionShape that identifies the
shape of the section. This enumerated type has values corresponding to each of the
standard section shapes supported within Multiframe.

The SymmetricXX and SymmetricYY are Boolean properties of the Section object and
return a value of true if the section is symmetric about the x or y axes respectively.
These properties are derived from the shape of the section but if the shape is non-
standard, the symmetry of the section will be determined from its section properties.

The SectionGroup, SectionsLibrary and Application objects return the parent objects
containing the Section object.

Methods
The section properties of the section can also be accessed via the GetProperty method
of the Section object. This method accepts a single parameter of type mfSectionProp
that identifies the property of the section to be returned. The values of the properties
may also be set using the SetProperty method. This method takes two parameters; the
first identifies that section property and the second the new value of the section property.

Page 116
 Chapter 8 Sections Library

The Compute method of the Section object calculates the section properties of the
section from its shape and dimensions. This method will generally be called after adding
a new section to the sections library. The example shown above for adding sections to
the Frame group would generally be extended to compute the properties of the section as
listed below.
Dim section as Multiframe.Section
Dim mySectList as Multiframe.SectionList
Dim Names(1 to 5) as string
Dim Widths(1 to 5) as double
Dim I as long

’Generate names and width for sections

For I=1 to 5
Widths(I) = (I+1)*100.0
Names = “900x” & Str(Widths(I)) & ”I”
Next

’Add new I sections to Frame group

With mfApp.SectionsLibrary.Groups(“Frame”).Sections
Set mySectList =.AddSections(mfSectionI, Names,900,
Widths,8,12)
End With

’Compute properties of new sections

With each section in mySectList
.Compute()
End With

Locked Groups
A sections group may be set as locked in which case the properties of the
group and the sections it contains cannot be modified. This prevents the
user from inadvertently modifying data within groups containing standard
sections.

Page 117
 Chapter 9 Preferences and Units

Chapter 9 Preferences and Units

The Preferences object provides access to settings that control the sign conventions and
units used to display and input quantities into the Multiframe user interface. These
settings also control the sign convention used within Multiframes automation interface
and so it is important when automating Multiframe to ensure that any input is expressed
with the current sign conventions and in the correct units. The properties and methods of
the preference object are summarised in the two tables that follow.

Property Type Description

Application Application Read Only. Returns a reference to the parent
application.
TensionPositiv Boolean Get/Set whether distributed masses are to be
e used in the analysis.
UnitSet mfUnitSets Get/Set whether lumped masses are to be used
in the analysis.

Method Returns Description

GetUnit String Returns the name of the specified unit.
SetUnit Sets the specified unit.

Sign Conventions
The sign convention for axial forces used within Multiframe application is identified by
the TensionPositive property of the Preferences object. When this property is set
true, all axial forces within the Multiframe user interface, and the automation interface,
will be displayed such that tensile forces have positive values and compressive forces
negative values.

Units
The Multiframe user interface allows the user to customise the units used to display and
input quantities into the application. The same units settings also govern the input and
output of values from the automation interface. The Preferences object provides
several methods and properties for working with units. The unit set used within
Multiframe to display quantities is specified by the UnitSet property. This is an
enumerated value of type mfUnitSets that has values corresponding to one of predefined
sets of units (Australian, Japanese, American, etc.). To use the American unit set, the
following line would be added to a script
mfApp.Preferences.UnitSet = mfUnitsetAmerican
The individual units within the unit set selected within the application may be
determined using the GetUnit method. This method is very useful in constructing VBA
forms or fields for inputting information as it provides a means of communicating the
current units of measure. The GetUnit method returns a string containing the
abbreviated name of the unit as specified by the single parameter of the method that
identifies the type of unit (length, force, angle, etc). The individual units of measure are
identified using an enumerated value of type mfUnitType. As an example, a string
containing the name of the current units of length would be obtained as follows
Dim s As String
s = mfApp.Preferences.GetUnit (Multiframe.mfUnitLength)

Page 119
Chapter 9 Preferences and Units

The units used within the current unit set can be changed using the SetUnit method of
the Preferences object. This method takes two parameters; the first is an enumerated
value of type mfUnitType that identifies the units to be changed. The second parameter
is a string that specifies the name of the units to be used. For example, to change the
units of length to feet would require the following line of code
mfApp.Preferences.SetUnits(mfUnitLength,”ft”)
Allowable values of the unit names for each of the unit types are those listed in
Multiframes Units dialog. A summary of the different units of measurement that can be
set within Multiframe is listed in the table below.

Unit Constant Value

Dimensionless value mfUnitNone 0
Length mfUnitLength 1
Angle mfUnitAngle 2
Displacement mfUnitDisplacement 3
Angular Displacement mfUnitAngularDisplacement 4
Force mfUnitForce 5
Moment mfUnitMoment 6
Force Per Unit Length mfUnitUdl 7
Stress mfUnitStress 8
Mass mfUnitMass 9
Mass Per Unit Length mfUnitMassPerLength 10
Area mfUnitArea 11
Moment of Inertia mfUnitInertia 12
Density mfUnitDensity 13
Elastic Modulus mfUnitModulus 14
Spring stiffness mfUnitSpring 15
Torsional Spring mfUnitTorsionSpring 16
Stiffness
Temperature mfUnitTemperature 17
Coefficient of Thermal mfUnitTemperatureCoeff 18
Expansion
Rotational Mass mfUnitRotationalMass 19
Velocity mfUnitVelocity 20
Acceleration mfUnitAcceleration 21
Warping Constant mfUnitWarping 22

Page 120
 Chapter 10 Collections

Chapter 10 Collections and Lists

This chapter describes the use of collection and list objects defined within the
Multiframe Automation Interface. List objects are an import class of object as they
provide a means of rapidly accessing and modifying data for a large group of objects
with only a small number of subroutine calls between Multiframe and the host
application used to automate Multiframe. A good understanding of the behaviour and
use of list objects will ensure that your scripts execute rapidly. The first two sections of
this chapter describe the properties and methods of collection and list objects. The final
section of this manual describes the Find method which is common to both list and
collection objects.

Collections
A collection within the Multiframe object model is a container for storing an ordered
group of objects. It is essentially the equivalent of an array within VBA but its
implementation has been encapsulated within an object. As such, it provides some
methods and properties for accessing the items within the collection. The contents of a
collection is not arbitrary, in fact its contents correspond directly to the components of a
structural model. As such, adding an item to a collection adds a corresponding
component the structure. For example, all the elements representing a frame are
contained within an Elements collection object stored within the Frame object. Adding
a new element to the frame is performed by adding a new element to the Elements
collection.

All collection objects have a number of common properties and methods for
manipulating their content. These are summarised in the tables below.

Property Type Description

Count Long Read Only. Returns a number of items in list.

Method Returns Description

Addxxxx Add objects to list
Find List Object Search items in list.
Item Object Returns item in list.

Collection Properties
Collection objects have a single property, Count, which returns the number of objects
contained within the collections.
Dim nEls as long

'Get number of elements in frame

nEls = mfApp.Frame.Elements.Count

’Tell user
MsgBox “Frame contains " & nEls & “ elements.”

Page 121
Chapter 10 Collections

Collection Methods
Each collection object has a method for adding new items to the frame. The name of this
method will vary from collection to collection but it will always begin with the word
Add. For example, a new spring is added to the frame using the AddSpring method of
the Springs collection. Most collections will also feature a method for adding multiple
objects to the frame. These methods are named as the plural of the method for adding a
single object to the frame. Continuing the previous example, a number of springs can be
added to a frame using the AddSprings method of the Springs collection. The add
methods associated with each collection are described earlier in this manual in the
section associated with the objects contained by the collection.

An object within the collection is returned via the Item method.

Dim nEls as long

'Get number of elements in frame

With mfApp.Frame.Elements

.Item(1).Orientation = 45

End With

The Find method of a collection object is used to search the items in the collection for
objects with properties matching a specified criterion. This method returns a list object
containing the items meeting the criteria. This last section of this chapter describes this
method in detail.

Lists
A drawback of using automation is that calls between the applications are relatively
slow. To ensure that your scripts run quickly it is important to reduce the number of
calls between the applications. In Multiframe we have introduced list objects that
provide a means of accessing and manipulating the properties a number of objects in a
single statement. List objects are similar to collections in that they store a number of
objects in an array. However, list objects can store an arbitrary group of objects while
collections store all the instances of a particular type of object. For example, the Nodes
collection provides a reference to all the nodes in a frame. An arbitrary subset of these
nodes can be stored using the NodeList object.

Each collection of objects in Multiframe has a corresponding list object that may be used
to store an arbitrary list of objects. All list objects have a number of common properties
and methods for manipulating their content. These are summarised in the tables below.

Property Type Description

Count Long Read Only. Returns a number of items in list.
Unique Boolean Get/Set whether an item can only appear in the list
once..

Method Returns Description

Add Add items to the list.
Clear Remove all items from the list.
Delete Delete all items in the list from the frame.
Find List Object Search items in list.

Page 122
 Chapter 10 Collections

Method Returns Description

Item Object Returns item in list.
Remove Remove items from the list.

The behaviour and use of these properties is described in detail in the following sections.
Each list object also has a number of properties that it inherits from the objects it
contains. These properties can be used to access the properties of each of the objects
contained within the list. For example, the NodeList object has Label, x, y, z and
Pinned properties that are used to access the properties of all the node objects contained
within the list. In general, list objects have most of the properties of the objects
contained within the list. The properties of individual list objects used in the Multiframe
object model are not described in detail within this manual. Instead, a general
description of how these properties are derived from the properties of the objects
contained in the list is provided in this chapter.

Declaring Lists
List objects differ from the other objects and collections in Multiframe object model, as
they do not have a direct representation within the Multiframe user interface. When
declaring a list object, a new instance must be created by declaring the object using the
New keyword. For example
Dim myList as New Multiframe.ElementList
Dim myOtherList as New Multiframe.NodeList

Properties
The list objects have just two properties that are common to all list objects. The Count
property of a list object returns the number of items in the list while the Unique property
determines if each item in the list must be unique. That is to say that any object can only
appear in the list once. If a list is set to contain only unique items then adding any items
to a list that are already in the list will have no effect and no error message will be
returned. Furthermore, if a list is set unique then all duplicate items will be removed
from this list. By default all items in a list are not required to be unique. A useful
application of a unique list is illustrated below in which the number of sections used in
the frame is computed.
Dim myElList As New Multiframe.ElementList
Dim mySectList As New Multiframe.SectionList

'Get list of all elements in frame

myElList.Add mfApp.Frame.Elements

'Get list of sections used by each element

mySectList.Add myElList.section

'Get list of sections used in Frame

mySectList.Unique = True

’Tell user how many sections used in the frame.

MsgBox mySectList.Count & " sections are used in the frame"

’Nullify objects
Set myElList = Nothing
Set mySectList = Nothing

Page 123
Chapter 10 Collections

In addition to the properties common to all lists, each list object has many of the same
properties as the objects it contains. However, these properties do not return a single
value but a variant containing an array of values, each array entry corresponding to the
value of the property for each item within the list. For example, the NodeList object has
x, y and z properties describing the location of the nodes in the list. Each property
returns an array of real number values representing the position of each node in the list.

The properties of a list may also be used to set the values of properties of objects
referenced by the list. In this case the property of the list can be set equal to a single
value, in which case the same value will be applied to all items within the list, or the
property can be set equal to an array of values that specifies a separate value for each
item in the list. In the following example, the x-coordinate of all nodes in a frame are
scales by a factor of 2.5. The script firstly extracts all the x-coordinates of each node
into an array. The values in this array are then multiplied by a factor of 2.5. This array
is then used to set the x-coordinates of the nodes in the list. The final line of the script
then sets the z-coordinate of all the nodes in the list to zero.
Dim myNodeList as New Multiframe.NodeList
Dim myVar as Variant

’Add all nodes in frame to a list of nodes

myNodeList.Add mfApp.Frame.Nodes

’Get x coordinates of nodes

myVar = myNodeList.x

’Scale x coords of nodes by factor of 2.5

For i=1 to Ubound(myVar)
myVar(i)= myVar(i)*2.5
Next

’Set coordinates of nodes

myNodeList.x = myVar
myNodeList.z = 0.0
This script execute much faster than one that loops over each node in the frame and sets
each coordinate separately as it significantly reduces the number of subroutine calls
made between Multiframe and the host application. This script requires only three (3)
inter application calls to retrieve and set the coordinates of the node. When compared to
the three (3) calls per node required when looping over the individual nodes in the frame
the savings in time are significant.

Methods
An item is added to a list using the Add method. By adding an item to a list we are
adding a reference to that item to the list. This should not be confused with the Add
methods of the collection objects that create new items within the frame. To
complement this method, the Remove method is used to remove items from the list.
These methods take one or more variant parameters that specify the items to be added to
the list. List of nodes, elements and other objects modelling the frame require only a
single parameter that identifies the items to be added or removed from the list. As it is a
variant value any value representing a single object or a number of objects contained by
the list would be valid. For example, the contents of an ElementList object could be
specified in any of the following ways

Page 124
 Chapter 10 Collections

Dim myElList as New Multiframe.ElementList

Dim myOtherList as New Multiframe.ElementList

’Add items to lists

myElList.Add 6 ‘Add element 6 to list
myElList.Add mfApp.Frame.Elements(2) ‘Add element using
element object
myOtherList.Add “1,2,5-10” ‘Add list of elements to list
myElList.Add myOtherList ‘Add another list

myElList.Clear ’Remove all elements from list

myElList.Add mfApp.Frame.Elements ‘Add entire collection

’Nullify objects
Set myElList = nothing
Set myOtherList = nothing
This example uses the Clear method of the list object. This method, which is common to
all list objects, removes all items from the list. List of items such as loads or sections
allow for two parameters to be used as part of the Add method in order to specify the
items to be added to the list. In these cases, the objects to be referenced by the list
cannot be referenced by only their index or number and require a second parameter to
specify a load case, section group or result type. The following code demonstrates how
to create list of element loads.

Dim myList as New Multiframe.ElementLoadList

With mfApp.Frame
’Add items to lists using loads index within a load case
myList.Add 6,2 ‘Add load 6 from load case 2
myList.Add “1-5”,2 ‘Add loads 1 to 5 from case 2
myList.Add “6-10”,”DL + LL” ‘Add loads from “DL+LL” case
myList.Add “1,5,9”,.LoadCases(1) ’Add loads from 1st case

’Add loads using objects

myList.Add .LoadCases(1).ElementLoads(2) ‘Add load using
load object
myList.Add .LoadCases(1).ElementLoads ‘Add collection of
loads

End With
All of the items in a list can be deleted from a frame using the Delete method of a list
object. Do not confuse this method with the Remove method that only removes a
reference to an object from the list. The following code uses list objects to delete all the
loads applied to a group of elements.
Dim myElList as New Multiframe.ElementList
Dim myLoadList as New Multiframe.ElementLoadList

’Create list of elements

myElList.Add “1-10”

’Get list of all loads applied to these elements

Set myLoadList = myElList.Loads

’Delete these loads

myLoadList.Delete
The Find method of a list object is used to search the items in the list for objects with
properties matching a specified criterion. This fianl section of the manual is dedicated to
this method.

Page 125
Chapter 10 Collections

The Find Method

The Find method is common to most collection and list objects available via the
Multiframe Object Model.

This method takes 3 parameters which identify the property to be

Example – Find pinned nodes

Dim myNodeList As New Multiframe.NodeList

'Find all pinned nodes

myNodeList.Add mfApp.Frame.Nodes.Find("Pinned", True)

Find all nodes with labels starting with ‘abc’

myNodeList.Clear
myNodeList.Add mfApp.Frame.Nodes.Find("Label", "abc*")

A slight more sophisticated script is shown below in which all the elements at a
particular height are obtained by firstly searching all the elements within a frame to find
those with the first end position at the specified height. The results from this query,
stored as an ElementList object, are then searched to find all elements that have their
second end positioned at the correct height. All the elements in the resulting list of
elements are then labelled as “Floor 1”.
Dim myElList As New Multiframe.ElementList

'Select all elements in first floor which is at y=5.0

Set myElList = myFrame.Elements.Find("y(1)", 4.9, 5.1)
Set myElList = myElList.Find("y(2)", 4.9, 5.1)
myElList.Label = “Floor 1”

’myEllist.Members.Label = “Floor 1”
Find using results
Dim myList As New Multiframe.MemberResultList

'Select all elements in first floor which is at y=5.0

With mfApp.Results.Case()
Set myList =.Find("y(1)", 4.9, 5.1)
Set myElList = myElList.Find("y(2)", 4.9, 5.1)
myElList.Label = “Floor 1”
End with

’myEllist.Members.Label = “Floor 1”

Page 126
 Chapter 11 User Interface

Chapter 11 User Interface

Multiframes automation interface also provides a small number of objects, properties and
methods for interacting with Multiframes user interface. This allows the user to interact
with the selections in each of Multiframes windows and to specify the load case that is
currently displayed within Multiframe.

This chapter describes the objects used to interact with Multiframes user interface. The
small number of properties and methods of objects used for modelling the frame that
provide interaction with the user interface are described elsewhere in this manual.

Selection Object
The automation interface can interact with the selection in any of Multiframes windows.
The selection is stored within a Selection object that encapsulates lists of the selected
items. For instance, the nodes contained within a selection are stored in a NodeList
object that is returned by the Nodes property of the Selection object. Similarly the
Elements property of the Selection object returns an ElementList containing each of
the selected elements.

The properties and methods of the Selection object are summarised in the tables below.

Property Type Description

Application Application Read Only. Returns a reference to the parent
application.
Elements Elementlist Get/Set list of elements contained in the selection.
Frame Frame Read Only. Returns a reference to the parent frame.
Members Memberlist Get/Set list of members contained in the selection..
Nodes NodeList Get/Set list of nodes contained in the selection.

Method Returns Description

Clear Deselects all items in the selection.
IsEmpty Boolean Returns true if no items are selected.

Using Selections
The implementation of selections within the automation interface is significantly
different to the other objects as a Selection object does not correspond directly to a
selection within Multiframe and, as such, is not represented within object hierarchy. The
advantage of this implementation is that many selections can be created, stored and
manipulated without any restrictions imposed by the Multiframe application. However,
the disadvantage is that a selection in a window is not automatically updated as items are
added or removed from lists within a Selection object.

To use a selection object, a new instance must first be created by declaring the selection
using the New keyword.
Dim mySelection as New Multiframe.Selection

Page 127
Chapter 11 User Interface

The current selection in one of Multiframes windows can be obtained using the
Selection property of the Frame object. This property has a single parameter that
identifies the window containing the desired selection. The Selection property is read-
only and so a selection can only be set using the SetSelection method of the Frame
object. The methods takes up to three parameters that specify the selection, a window in
which the selection is to be set, and an optional parameter specifying if the current
selection in the window is to be extended. By default the SetSelection will replace any
existing selection with the new selection. As an example of using the Selection object,
the following code demonstrates how to set the selection in the load window to be the
same as the selection in the Frame window
Dim mySelection as New Multiframe.Selection

’Get selection from Frame window

Set mySelection = myFrame.Selection(mfWinFrame)

’Set selection in Load window

Call myFrame.SetSelection(mySelection,mfWinLoad)

Properties
The Elements property of the Selection object returns an ElementList object
containing references to each of the elements in the selection. This property can be set
equal to any variant value representing either a single node or a list of nodes. The
following script illustrates many of the ways in which this property can be accessed.
Dim mySelection as New Multiframe.Selection
Dim myEllist as New Multiframe.ElementList

’Compose list of elements to be selected

myElList.Add “1-20”

’Set selection
mySelection.Elements = 1
mySelection.Elements = myEllist
mySelection.Elements = mfApp.Frame.Elements
mySelection.Elements = “1,3,5,7”

’Select nodes at end of elements

Set mySelection.Nodes = mySelection.Elements.Nodes

’Set selection in Frame window

Call myFrame.SetSelection(mySelection ,mfWinFrame)
In the Multiframe user interface, the selection of nodes and elements is synchronised
such that the nodes at the end of an element will automatically be selected when the
element is selected. This relationship is not enforced via the Selection object and must
be performed manually.

The Members and Nodes properties of the Selection object returns list objects that
contain references to each of the selected nodes and members. These properties behave
in the same way as the Element property and can be set equal to any variant values
representing a single or a group of nodes or members. A further example demonstrating
the use of the Selection object and the Nodes properties is listed below.

Page 128
 Chapter 11 User Interface

Dim mySelection as New Multiframe.Selection

Dim myNodeList as New Multiframe.Nodelist
Dim myNode as Multiframe.Node

’Get selection from Frame window

Set mySelection = myFrame.Selection(mfWinFrame)

’Get list of node contained in selection

myNodeList.Add (mySelection.Nodes)

’Refine selection to include only nodes that are pinned

For each myNode in myNodeList.Nodes
If (myNode.Pinned)
myNodeList.Remove myNode
Next
Next

’Set selection in Frame window

Call myFrame.SetSelection(mySelection ,mfWinFrame)

Methods
The Clear method of the Selection object removes all items from the selection. The
IsEmpty method returns true if the selection empty and contains no selected items.

Dim mySelection as New Multiframe.Selection

’Get selection from Frame window

Set mySelection = myFrame.Selection(mfWinFrame)

Test if anything is selected

If (mySelection.IsEmpty) Then
msgbox “Nothing is selected in Frame window”,,”MF Script”
End If

Page 129
 Chapter 12 Examples

Chapter 12 Examples
This chapter presents a number of examples demonstrating how Multiframe can interact
with other applications via VBA scripting. Many of the sample are designed to
demonstrate different means of manipulating the data. The simplest and slowest
techniques involve accessing the individual objects. However, these are the simplest to
understand and are a good starting point when learning the Multiframe Object Model.
More advance techniques that employ Multiframes list objects demonstrate the dramatic
improvement in speed that can be obtained by accessing the data in Multiframe for
number of objects at a time.

Reproducing Multiframes Data Window in Excel

This example demonstrates how to duplicate the contents of Multiframes Data window in
Microsoft Excel, each of the tables in the window is represented as a separate worksheet
in Excel. The spreadsheet associated with this example is distributed as part of the
Multiframe application and may be found in the /Automation
Samples/Excel/MFDataTable.xls located under the directory to which Multiframe was
installed.

The Excel workbook contains worksheets representing each of the tables within
Multiframes Data Window. Each of these worksheets contains a number of macros that
import the data from Multiframe and present the information in the spreadsheet. As
these macros are very similar for each table, this example will concentrate on the macros
for importing the Joints table into Excel. The Excel representation of this table is shown
in the diagram below.

This worksheet contains two buttons for importing the data from Multiframe. These call
different scripts that demonstrate two techniques for importing the data. The first and
simplest of these scripts accesses the properties of each node in turn. The execution of
this code will be very slow as six (6) calls between the two applications are required for
each node in the frame. The second script uses the list objects in Multiframe to extract
all the nodal data from Multiframe in a total of only six (6) calls across the automation
interface. For small frames, the difference in speed between the two subroutines is
small, in the order of a factor of two. For large frames, the difference in speed will be
dramatic and the slower of the subroutines will take a long time to execute. Each of
these scripts is described in more detail later in this section.

Page 131
Chapter 12 Examples

The Joints worksheet contains 5 subroutines; the first two subroutines are command
handlers for the two buttons that appear in that worksheet. The next subroutine stored
with the Joints worksheet is the SetupUnits subroutine. This subroutine is responsible
for setting the unit names displayed at the top of the table in row 5 of the spreadsheet.
'Set units in title of table
Private Sub SetupUnits(mfApp As Multiframe.Application)
Dim s As String

' Update Units in x,y,x columns

s = mfApp.Preferences.GetUnit(Multiframe.mfUnitLength)
Range("JointData").offset(0, 2).Value = s
Range("JointData").offset(0, 3).Value = s
Range("JointData").offset(0, 4).Value = s

'Update Units in orientation columns

s = mfApp.Preferences.GetUnit(Multiframe.mfUnitAngle)
Range("JointData").offset(0, 6).Value = s
Range("JointData").offset(0, 7).Value = s
Range("JointData").offset(0, 8).Value = s

End Sub
In this subroutine, the names of the length and angle units are obtained by calling the
GetUnit method of the Multiframe Preferences object. These values are used to set the
unit names in row 5 of the worksheet. The offset method of the Range object is used to
identify a cell, relative to the JointData range, into which each value is inserted. The
JointData range is a named range in the excel spreadsheet which contains the single cell
A5.

The subroutine GetNodalData_Slow, which is listed below, performs the insertion of

the nodal data from Multiframe into Excel.

Page 132
 Chapter 12 Examples

' Get Joints table

Public Sub GetNodalData_Slow()

Dim mfApp As Multiframe.Application

Dim Node As Multiframe.Node
Dim i As Long
Dim s As String
Dim orient As Variant

'Capture errors elegantly

On Error GoTo ErrorHandler

' Get current Multiframe application

Set mfApp = New Multiframe.Application

'Erase old data and set units in title

ClearTable ("JointData")
Call SetupUnits(mfApp)

' Write data to worksheet

i = 0
For Each Node In mfApp.Frame.nodes
i = i + 1
Range("JointData").offset(i, 0).Value = Node.Number
Range("JointData").offset(i, 1).Value = Node.label
Range("JointData").offset(i, 2).Value = Node.x
Range("JointData").offset(i, 3).Value = Node.xyz(2)
Range("JointData").offset(i, 4).Value = Node.z
If (Node.pinned) Then
s = "Pinned"
Else
s = "Rigid"
End If
Range("JointData").offset(i, 5).Value = s
orient = Node.Orientation
Range("JointData").offset(i, 6).Value = orient(1)
Range("JointData").offset(i, 7).Value = orient(2)
Range("JointData").offset(i, 8).Value = orient(3)
Next

'Set format of cells

With Range("JointData")
Range(.offset(1, 2), .offset(i, 8)).NumberFormat = gFormat
End With

ErrorHandler:
If (Err <> 0) Then
MsgBox Err.Description
End If

End Sub
The first executable line of this subroutine defines the mechanism for reacting to any
errors that may arise during the execution of the script. The next statements call
subroutines that firstly clear the table of any existing data and then update the names of
the units in the heading rows of the table using the SetupUnits subroutine described
above. The ClearTable subroutine, which is defined in Module1 of the VBA project,
takes a single parameter specifying a named range within the worksheet. It uses this
range to construct a region to be erased by firstly selecting the column beneath this range
down to the first empty cell. This selection is used to construct a range that contains the
first 20 columns of the worksheet which is then is cleared of it content.

Page 133
Chapter 12 Examples

'Clear the contents of a specified range

Public Sub ClearTable(ByVal marker As String)

'Select first cell of data in table

range(range(marker).offset(1, 0), range(marker).offset(1,
0)).Select

'Select first column of data

range(range(marker).offset(1, 0),
Selection.End(xlDown)).Select

'Clear contents of first 20 columns of data

range(Selection, Selection.offset(0, 20)).ClearContents

End Sub
The next group of lines in the script performs the exchange of data between Multiframe
and Excel. Rather than use a more traditional For/Next loop, a For Each loop provides
the mechanism to loop over all the nodes in the frame.
For Each Node In mfApp.Frame.nodes

Next
This type of loop has been used as it simplifies the syntax of the code inside the loop and
does no require a explicit call to reference the Node object. Inside this loop, the
properties of each node are extracted and placed in the appropriate cell of the worksheet.
This is performed by accessing cells relative to the range named JointData using the
offset property of Excels Range object.

The next small block of code in the script formats the data in the table. This is done by
specifying a value for the NumberFormat property of a Range object that contains all
the data in the 3rd through to the 9th column of the table.
'Set format of cells
With Range("JointData")
Range(.offset(1, 2), .offset(i, 8)).NumberFormat = gFormat
End With
The constant gFormat, defined in Module1 of the VBA project, specifies a real number
format to be used when displaying the tables in this workbook.
'Global real number format
Public Const gFormat As String = "##0.000"
By using a global constant, the format of real number can easily be changed throughout
the entire workbook with only a change to a single line of code.

A much faster subroutine for importing the data from Multiframe is listed below. This
subroutine utilised Multiframes list objects to significantly reduce the number of call
between Excel and Multiframe and this provides a significant reduction in the time it
takes to fill the table. The speed of the subroutine has also been improved by disabling
the refresh of excel while the data is been inserted and by using Excels Find and Replace
features to rapidly synthesis data into a presentable form.

Page 134
 Chapter 12 Examples

Public Sub GetNodalData_Fast()

Dim mfApp As Multiframe.Application

Dim myNodeList As New Multiframe.Nodelist
Dim TableData(1 To 9) As Variant
Dim nRows As Long

'Capture errors elegantly

On Error GoTo ErrorHandler

' Get current Multiframe application

Set mfApp = New Multiframe.Application

'Erase old data and set units in title

ClearTable ("JointData")
Call SetupUnits(mfApp)

'Extract nodal data to array

myNodeList.Add mfApp.Frame.nodes
TableData (1) = myNodeList.Number
TableData (2) = myNodeList.label
TableData (3) = myNodeList.x
TableData (4) = myNodeList.y
TableData (5) = myNodeList.z
TableData (6) = myNodeList.pinned
TableData (7) = myNodeList.OrientX
TableData (8) = myNodeList.OrientY
TableData (9) = myNodeList.OrientZ

'Disable refresh of worksheet

Application.ScreenUpdating = False

'Get number of rows of data

nRows = myFrame.nodes.Count

'Set format of cells

With Range("JointData")

'Insert raw data into table

With Range(.offset(1, 0), .offset(nRows, 8))
.Value =
Application.WorksheetFunction.Transpose(TableData)
End With

'Set cell format in table

Range(.offset(1, 2), .offset(nRows, 8)).NumberFormat =
gFormat

'Set joint type as "Pinned" or "Rigid"

Call
Range(.offset(1,5),.offset(nRows,5)).Replace("FALSE","Rigid")
Call
Range(.offset(1,5),.offset(nRows,5)).Replace("TRUE","Pinned")

End With

'Enable refresh of worksheet

Application.ScreenUpdating = True

ErrorHandler:
If (Err <> 0) Then
MsgBox Err.Description
End If

End Sub

Page 135
Chapter 12 Examples

Much of the code at the start and end of this subroutine is the same as described above
for the GetNodalData_Slow subroutine. It is only the part of the code that performs
that actual exchange of data between the two applications that is significantly different. It
is also much more complicated to understand due to the list objects and the use of variant
data types.

The subroutine works by firstly defining the variable TableData that is an array of
variants. Each variant in this array corresponds to a column in the table. The script then
forms a list of elements containing all the nodes in the frame
myNodeList.Add mfApp.Frame.nodes
This list is used to extract the properties of each node as an array of values. This data is
inserted into an element of the array TableData so that the TableData becomes
essentially a two dimensional array containing all the data to be inserted into the
worksheet.
TableData(1) = myNodeList.Number
TableData(2) = myNodeList.label
TableData(3) = myNodeList.x
TableData(4) = myNodeList.y
TableData(5) = myNodeList.z
TableData(6) = myNodeList.pinned
TableData(7) = myNodeList.OrientX
TableData(8) = myNodeList.OrientY
TableData(9) = myNodeList.OrientZ
The data is inserted into the worksheet by setting the Value property of a Range object
representing the entire table equal to TableData. As Excel inserts an array in a row wise
manner, it is necessary to first transform the data in TableData by transposing the rows
and columns.
'Insert raw data into table
With Range(.offset(1, 0), .offset(nRows, 8))
.Value = WorksheetFunction.Transpose(TableData)
End With
As the data flagging the nodes as pinned is inserted directly into the worksheet as a
boolean value it is necessary to transform the boolean values of TRUE and FALSE into
the more meaningful values of “Pinned” and “Rigid”. To perform this, the Replace
method of the Range object is used to firstly set all occurrences of the word FALSE in
the 6th column equal to “Rigid”. Similarly all the values of TRUE are replaced with the
value “Pinned”.
'Set joint type as "Pinned" or "Rigid"
Call
Range(.offset(1,5),.offset(nRows,5)).Replace("FALSE","Rigid")
Call
Range(.offset(1,5),.offset(nRows,5)).Replace("TRUE","Pinned")
Each of the other worksheets in the Excel workbook contains similar subroutines for
importing data from Multiframe and reproducing the other tables in Multiframes Data
Window. The structure of the subroutines is similar to those described above. As this
worksheet demonstrates how to access most of the data describing a frame it is a good
starting point when learning how to access information about a frame via the automation
interface.

Handling Errors
When writing any program it is a good practice to elegantly handle any
errors that may arise during the execution of the code. When writing scripts
in VBA the On Error command is used to specify the action to be taken
when an error occurs.

Page 136
 Chapter 12 Examples

In the subroutines presented above, the On Error command is used to

specify that in the event of an error, execution of the script will be redirect
to the label ErrorHandler. This label is at the very bottom of the
subroutines and is followed by three lines of code that firstly determine if an
error occurred and then report the error message to the user using the
standard message box dialog. It is important to test for an error, as these
three lines will be executed whenever the subroutines are executed
irrespective of whether and error occurred or not.

Reproducing Multiframes Result Window in Excel

Following on from the previous example, this example demonstrates how to duplicate
the contents of Multiframes Result window in Microsoft Excel. Each of the tables in this
window is represented as a separate worksheet in Excel. The spreadsheet associated with
this example is distributed as part of the Multiframe application and may be found in the
/Automation Samples/Excel/MFResultTable.xls located under the directory to which
Multiframe was installed.

The structure of the subroutines in this workbook is the same as those used in the
previous example. For a description of the VBA scripts you should refer to that
example.

Customised Reporting using Word

In this example, Microsoft Word is used to construct a printed report describing the
frame currently opened within Multiframe. The example is contained in the file
MFReport.doc which is distributed with Multiframe and can be found in the /Automation
Samples/Word directory under the file path to which Multiframe was installed.

The report is generated as a series of tables describing the elements of the structure, the
loading and, if available, the results. Each table in the report is generated by a separate
subroutine. These have been grouped into 4 modules within the VBA project. The
FrameTables module contains the subroutines for generating the tables describing the
structure, the LoadTables module contains those for reporting loads and the ResultTable
module encapsulates all the subroutines for outputting the results. The 4th module,
named Utilities, contains some utility subroutines used to create tables and format the
report.

The MFReport.doc document contains two buttons. The Generate Report button is used
to run the Generate Report

The GenerateReport subroutine is the main routine for compiling the report. It calls all
the subroutines for generating the individual tables within the report and is responsible
for creating the titles to the various sections of the report. This subroutine is also used to
set the values of some global variables that store the names of some commonly used
units, and for setting the contents of the headers and footers in the report.

Page 137
Chapter 12 Examples

All of the subroutines for generating a table within the report have the same structure and
use the same techniques for extracting the data from Multiframe and creating a table
containing that information. The InsertMbrGeomTable() subroutine, which is listed
below, is a typical example of these subroutines. This subroutine inserts a table
containing the properties of elements within the frame. It is written to minimise the
number of calls between Word and Multiframe by using the ElementList object. By
adding all the elements in the frame to an ElementList, the value of a single element
property can be obtained for each element in the frame in a single call to Multiframe.
These values are stored in a variant variable that contains an array of values, each value
corresponding to an element within the frame. The subroutine begins by obtaining all of
the data to be presented in the table and storing this data as in arrays declared as variants.

Page 138
 Chapter 12 Examples

Sub InsertMbrGeomTable()

Dim nEls As Long

Dim element, node1, node2 As Variant
Dim length, slope, orient As Variant
Dim SectionName, GroupName As Variant
Dim list As New Multiframe.ElementList
Dim myTable As Table
Dim i As Long

nEls = mfApp.Frame.Elements.Count
If (nEls > 0) Then

'Import data from Multfframe

list.Add mfApp.Frame.Elements
element = list.Number
node1 = list.NodeIndex(1)
node2 = list.NodeIndex(2)
SectionName = list.Section.Name
GroupName = list.Section.SectionGroup.Name
length = list.length
slope = list.slope
orient = list.Orientation

'Create new paragraph and insert headings for table

Call StartTable("Member", "Joint 1", "Joint 2", "Group", _
"Section", "Orientation", "Length",
"Slope")

'Insert tab delimited text that will form table

For i = 1 To nEls
Selection.InsertAfter element(i) & vbTab & _
Str(node1(i)) & vbTab & _
Str(node2(i)) & vbTab & _
GroupName(i) & vbTab & _
SectionName(i) & vbTab & _
Format(orient(i), gFormat) & vbTab
& _
Format(length(i), gFormat) & vbTab
& _
Format(slope(i), gFormat) & vbCr
Next

'Create table from tabbed text and set default style

Call CreateTable(myTable, 1)

'Add units to header row

With myTable.Rows(1)
.Cells(6).Range.InsertAfter vbVerticalTab + sAngle
.Cells(7).Range.InsertAfter vbVerticalTab + sLength
.Cells(8).Range.InsertAfter vbVerticalTab + sAngle
End With

Else
Call EmptyTableMessage("Members")
End If

End Sub
Rather than insert a table and set the contents of each cell in the table, the data is inserted
into the document as tab delimited text. This delimited text is then converted into a table.

Page 139
Chapter 12 Examples

Public Sub StartTable(ParamArray Titles() As Variant)

Dim s As String
Dim i As Long

With ActiveDocument.Content
'Create single paragraph to seperate table from title
.InsertParagraphAfter

'Create new paragraph for table

.InsertParagraphAfter

'Create string containing tab delimted headings for each

column
For i = 0 To (UBound(Titles()) - 1)
s = s & Titles(i) & vbTab
Next i
s = s & Titles(i) & vbVerticalTab

' Insert tab delimited text into document

.Paragraphs.Last.Range.InsertAfter s

End With

Public Sub CreateTable(otable As Table, nHeaderRows As Long)

With ActiveDocument.Content.Paragraphs.Last.Range
'Delete vertical tab on last line of text
.Characters.Last.Previous.Delete

' convert tabbed text into table

Set otable = .ConvertToTable(Separator:=vbTab)
End With

'Set style of table

Call SetStdTableStyle(otable, nHeaderRows)

End Sub

Page 140
 Appendix A Object Model Summary

Appendix A Object Model

Summary
This Appendix contains a listing of all the objects and constants defined in the
Multiframe Automation interface.

Objects
The objects defined with the Multiframe object model are summarised in the following
table. It lists each object and its associated collection and list objects.

Object Collection List

Analysis - -
Application - -
Element Elements ElementList
ElementLoad ElementLoads ElementLoadList
ElementResult ElementResults ElementResultList
Frame - -
Group Groups GroupList
GroupSet GroupSets GroupSetList
LinearResults - -
LinearSettings - -
LoadCase LoadCases LoadCaseList
Member Members MemberList
MemberResult MemberResults MemberResultList
ModalResults - -
ModalSettings - -
Node Nodes NodeList
NodeLinkGroup NodeLinkGroups NodeLinkGroupList
NodeLoad NodeLoads NodeLoadList
NodeMass NodeMasses NodeMassList
NodePreDisp NodePreDisps NodePreDispList
NodeResult NodeResults NodeResultList
NonlinearResults - -
NonlinearSettings - -
Preferences - -
ProjectInfo - -
Restraint Restraints RestraintList
ResultCase ResultCases ResultCaseList
Results - -
Section Sections SectionList
SectionGroup SectionGroups SectionGroupList
SectionsLibrary - -
Selection - -
Spring Springs SpringList
ThermalLoad ThermalLoads ThermalLoadList

Page 141
Appendix A Object Model Summary

TimeHistoryResults - -
TimeHistorySettings - -

Enumerated Types
All the enumerated type defined with the Multiframe Object Model and their values are
summarised below.

mfActionType
mfActionPx = 1 mfActionThetaZ = 24
mfActionVy = 2 mfActionTension = 25
mfActionVz = 3 mfActionCompression = 26
mfActionTx = 4 mfActionTensileStress = 27
mfActionMy = 5 mfActionCompressiveStress = 28
mfActionMz = 6 mfActionTensileMyStress = 29
mfActionPxStress = 7 mfActionCompressiveMyStress
mfActionVyStress = 8 = 30
mfActionVzStress = 9 mfActionTensileMzStress = 31
mfActionTxStress = 10 mfActionCompressiveMzStress
mfActionMyLeftStress = 11 = 32
mfActionMyRightStress = 12 mfActionBiaxialTensileStress =
mfActionMzTopStress = 13 33
mfActionMzBottomStress = 14 mfActionBiaxialCompressiveStre
mfActionPxMyLeftStress = 15 ss=34
mfActionPxMyRightStress = 16 mfActionMxGlobal = 35
mfActionPxMzTopStress = 17 mfActionMyGlobal = 36
mfActionPxMzBottomStress = 18 mfActionMzGlobal = 37
mfActionU = 19 mfActionWx = 38
mfActionV = 20 mfActionWy = 39
mfActionW = 21 mfActionWz = 40
mfActionThetaX = 22
mfActionThetaY = 23

mfAnalysisType
mfAnalysisStatic = 1 mfAnalysisTimeHistory = 3
mfAnalysisModal = 2 mfAnalysisStaticNonlinear = 4

mfConvergenceNorms
mfConvergenceForce = 1 mfConvergenceBoth = 3
mfConvergenceDisplacememt =
2

mfDOF
mfDOFx = 1 mfDOFthetax = 4
mfDOFy = 2 mfDOFthetay = 5
mfDOFz = 3 mfDOFthetaz = 6

mfElementType

Page 142
 Appendix A Object Model Summary

mfEltypeStandard = 1 mfEltypeCompressionOnly = 3
mfEltypeTensionOnly = 2

mfLoadCaseType
mflcStatic = 1 mflcSelfWeight = 3
mflcCombined = 2

mfLoadType
mfLoadUnknown = 0 mfLoadLiquidPressure = 7
mfLoadPermanent = 1 mfLoadEarthPressure = 8
mfLoadImposed = 2 mfLoadGroundWater = 9
mfLoadWind = 3 mfLoadMovement = 10
mfLoadSeismic = 4 mfLoadCombined = 11
mfLoadSnow = 5 mfLoadOther = 12
mfLoadPonding = 6

mfLoadShape
mfLoadshapePoint = 1 mfLoadshapeTriangular = 4
mfLoadshapeUniform = 2 mfLoadshapeTriLinear = 5
mfLoadshapeLinear = 3

mfModalScaling
mfModalScalingUnitDisp = 1 mfModalScalingUnitMass = 2

mfModalSolver
mfModalSolverSSI = 1 mfModalSolverJacobi = 2

mfReportLevels
mfReportingNone = 1 mfReportingDetailed = 3
mfReportingBrief = 2 mfReportingFull = 4

mfRestraintType
mfRestraintUnknown = 0 mfRestraintPinnedzRoller = 5
mfRestraintPinned = 1 mfRestraintRigidxRoller = 6
mfRestraintFixed = 2 mfRestraintRigidyRoller = 7
mfRestraintPinnedxRoller = 3 mfRestraintRigidzRoller = 8
mfRestraintPinnedyRoller = 4 mfRestraintRotational = 9

mfSectionProp
mfSectionPropMass = 1 mfSectionPropE = 6
mfSectionPropArea = 2 mfSectionPropG = 7
mfSectionPropIx = 3 mfSectionPropD = 8
mfSectionPropIy = 4 mfSectionPropB = 9
mfSectionPropJ = 5 mfSectionPropTf = 10

Page 143
Appendix A Object Model Summary

mfSectionPropTw = 11 mfSectionPropZvr = 40
mfSectionPropFy = 12 mfSectionPropXs = 41
mfSectionPropFu = 13 mfSectionPropYs = 42
mfSectionPropZxt = 14 mfSectionPropPerimeter = 43
mfSectionPropZxb = 15 mfSectionPropTanTheta = 44
mfSectionPropZyl = 16 mfSectionPropSpacing = 45
mfSectionPropZyr = 17 mfSectionPropR1 = 46
mfSectionPropRx = 18 mfSectionPropR2 = 47
mfSectionPropRy = 19 mfSectionPropIxy = 48
mfSectionPropSx = 20 mfSectionPropSu = 49
mfSectionPropSy = 21 mfSectionPropSv = 50
mfSectionPropIw = 22 mfSectionPropTaper = 51
mfSectionPropRz = 23 mfSectionPropUser1= 52
mfSectionPropAsx = 24 mfSectionPropUser2= 53
mfSectionPropAsy = 25 mfSectionPropUser3= 54
mfSectionPropD1 = 26 mfSectionPropUser4= 55
mfSectionPropD2 = 27 mfSectionPropUser5= 56
mfSectionPropB1 = 28 mfSectionPropXp = 57
mfSectionPropB2 = 29 mfSectionPropYp = 58
mfSectionPropXc = 30 mfSectionPropT1= 59
mfSectionPropYc = 31 mfSectionPropT2= 60
mfSectionPropTheta = 32 mfSectionPropR0= 61
mfSectionPropIu = 33 mfSectionPropH = 62
mfSectionPropIv = 34 mfSectionPropK1= 63
mfSectionPropRu = 35 mfSectionPropK2= 64
mfSectionPropRv = 36 mfSectionPropQf = 65
mfSectionPropZut = 37 mfSectionPropQw = 66
mfSectionPropZub = 38 mfSectionPropC = 67
mfSectionPropZvl = 39

mfSectionShape
mfSectionUnknown = 0 mfSectionCircularBar = 9
mfSectionI = 1 mfSectionSquareBar = 10
mfSectionChannel = 2 mfSectionC = 11
mfSectionEqualAngle = 3 mfSectionZ = 12
mfSectionUnequalAngle = 4 mfSectionUnsymI = 13
mfSectionTee = 5 mfSectionEqualAnglePA = 14
mfSectionRHS = 6 mfSectionUnequalAnglePA = 15
mfSectionSHS = 7 mfSectionDoubleAngle = 16
mfSectionTube = 8

mfSign
mfSignPositive = 1 mfSignAbsolute = 3
mfSignNegative = 2

mfSpringType
mfSpringStandard = 1 mfSpringCompressionOnly = 3
mfSpringTensionOnly = 2

Page 144
 Appendix A Object Model Summary

mfUnitSets
mfUnitsetAmerican = 1 mfUnitsetCanadian = 4
mfUnitsetAustralian = 2 mfUnitsetEuropean = 5
mfUnitsetBritish = 3 mfUnitsetJapanese = 6

mfUnitType
mfUnitNone = 0 mfUnitInertia = 12
mfUnitLength = 1 mfUnitDensity = 13
mfUnitAngle = 2 mfUnitModulus = 14
mfUnitDisplacement = 3 mfUnitSpring = 15
mfUnitAngularDisplacement = 4 mfUnitTorsionSpring = 16
mfUnitForce = 5 mfUnitTemperature = 17
mfUnitMoment = 6 mfUnitTemperatureCoeff = 18
mfUnitUdl = 7 mfUnitRotationalMass = 19
mfUnitStress = 8 mfUnitVelocity = 20
mfUnitMass = 9 mfUnitAcceleration = 21
mfUnitMassPerLength = 10 mfUnitWarping = 22
mfUnitArea = 11

mfWindow
mfWinActive = 0 mfWinResults = 4
mfWinFrame = 1 mfWinPlot = 5
mfWinData = 2 mfWinCalcsheet = 6
mfWinLoad = 3 mfWinReport = 7

Page 145
 Index

Index
ModalResults Object, 98
A
ModalSettings Object, 92
Analysis, 89 Multiframe Object Model, 15
Linear Static, 90
N
Modal, 92
Non-linear Static, 90 NodalResult Object, 99
Time History, 93 Node Object, 38
Analysis Object, 89 NodeLinkGroup Object, 57
Application Object, 17 NodeLoad Object, 78
NodeMass Object, 60
C
NodePreDisp Object, 80
Collections, 15 NonlinearResults Object, 97
E NonlinearSettings Object, 90

Early Binding, 12 O
Element Object, 43 Object Browser, 13
ElementLoad Object, 81 Objects, 15
ElementResult Object, 101 Analysis, 89
F Element, 43
ElementLoad, 81
Frame Object, 18, 35 ElementResult, 101
G Frame, 35
Groups, 64
Groups Object, 64 GroupSets, 63
GroupSets Object, 63 LinearResults, 97
L LinearSettings, 90
LoadCase, 75
Late Binding, 12 MemberResult, 107
LinearResults Object, 97 Members, 67
LinearSettings Object, 90 ModalResults, 98
Lists, 15 ModalSettings, 92
Load Cases NodalResult, 99
Combined, 77 Node, 38
Self-Weight, 76 NodeLinkGroup, 57
Static, 76 NodeLoads, 78
LoadCase Object, 75 NodeMass, 60
Loads NodePreDisp, 80
Deleting, 87 NonlinearResults, 97
Element loads, 81 NonlinearSettings, 90
Node Loads, 78 Preferences, 119
Prescribed Displacements, 80 ProjectInfo, 71
Thermal loads, 85 Restraints, 53
M ResultCase, 96
Results, 95
Member Object, 67 SectionGroup, 111
MemberResult Object, 107 Sections, 113
Methods SectionsLibrary, 109
Common, 22 Springs, 55
Delete, 23 ThermalLoad, 85
Item, 23

Page 147
Index

TimeHistorySettings, 93 Results Object, 95

OLE_COLOR, 66
S
P
SectionGroup Object, 111
Preferences Object, 17, 119 Sections Object, 113
ProjectInfo Object, 71 SectionsLibrary object, 17
Properties SectionsLibrary Object, 109
Count, 23 Sign Conventions, 119
Unique, 23 Spring Object, 55
Properties
T
Application, 22
Common, 22 ThermalLoad Object, 85
Frame, 22 TimeHistorySettings
Index, 22 Objects, 93
Label, 22 U
Number, 22
Units, 119
R
V
Restraint Object, 53
ResultCase Object, 96 VBA, 9
Results, 95

Page 148