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Index University of Alberta - ANSYS Tutorials

ANSYS is a general purpose finite element modeling package for numerically solving a wide variety of mechanical
Contributions problems. These problems include: static/dynamic structural analysis (both linear and non-linear), heat transfer and
fluid problems, as well as acoustic and electromagnetic problems. Most of these tutorials have been created using
Comments ANSYS 7.0, therefore, make note of small changes in the menu structure if you are using an older or newer version.
MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering
This web site has been organized into the following six sections.
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■ ANSYS Utilities
An introduction to using ANSYS. This includes a quick explanation of the stages of analysis, how to start
ANSYS Inc. ANSYS, the use of the windows in ANSYS, convergence testing, saving/restoring jobs, and working with
Pro/E.

■ Basic Tutorials
Copyright © 2001 Detailed tutorials outlining basic structural analysis using ANSYS. It is recommended that you complete
University of Alberta these tutorials in order as each tutorial builds upon skills taught in previous examples.

■ Intermediate Tutorials
Complex skills such as dynamic analysis and nonlinearities are explored in this section. It is recommended
that you have completed the Basic Tutorials prior to attempting these tutorials.

■ Advanced Tutorials
Advanced skills such as substructuring and optimization are explored in this section. It is recommended that
you have completed the Basic Tutorials prior to attempting these tutorials.

■ Postprocessing Tutorials
Postprocessing tools available in ANSYS such as X-sectional views of the geometry are shown in this
section. It is recommended that you have completed the Basic Tutorials prior to attempting these tutorials.
■ Command Line Files
Example problems solved using command line coding only, in addition to several files to help you to
generate your own command line files.
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Introduction ANSYS Utilities

Starting up ANSYS
An introduction to using ANSYS, including a quick explanation of the stages of analysis, how to start ANSYS, and
ANSYS Environment the use of the windows in ANSYS, and using Pro/ENGINEER with ANSYS.

ANSYS Interface
● Introduction to Finite Element Analysis
Convergence Testing
A brief introduction of the 3 stages involved in finite element analysis.

Saving/Restoring Jobs ● Starting up ANSYS

How to start ANSYS using windows NT and Unix X-Windows.
ANSYS Files

Printing Results ● ANSYS Environment

An introduction to the windows used in ANSYS
Working with Pro/E

● ANSYS Interface
An explanation of the Graphic User Interface (GUI) in comparison to the command file approach.
Index
● Convergence Testing
This file can help you to determine how small your meshing elements need to be before you can trust the
solution.
Contributions

Comments ● Saving/Restoring Jobs

Description of how to save your work in ANSYS and how to resume a previously saved job.
MecE 563

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● ANSYS Files
Definitions of the different files created by ANSYS.
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● Printing Results
Saving data and figures generated in ANSYS.
ANSYS Inc.
● Working with Pro Engineer
A description of how to export geometry from Pro/E into ANSYS.
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Two Dimensional Truss Basic Tutorials

Bicycle Space Frame
The following documents will lead you through several example problems using ANSYS. ANSYS 7.0 was used to
Plane Stress Bracket create some of these tutorials while ANSYS 5.7.1 was used to create others, therefore, if you are using a different
version of ANSYS make note of changes in the menu structure. Complete these tutorials in order as each tutorial will
Modeling Tools build on skills taught in the previous example.
Solid Modeling
● Two Dimensional Truss
Basic functions will be shown in detail to provide you with a general knowledge of how to use ANSYS. This
tutorial should take approximately an hour and a half to complete.
Index

● Bicycle Space Frame

Intermediate ANSYS functions will be shown in detail to provide you with a more general understanding of
Contributions how to use ANSYS. This tutorial should take approximately an hour and a half to complete.

Comments ● Plane Stress Bracket

MecE 563
Boolean operations, plane stress and uniform pressure loading will be introduced in the creation and analysis of
this 2-Dimensional object.
Mechanical Engineering
● Solid Modeling
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This tutorial will introduce techniques such as filleting, extrusion, copying and working plane orienation to
create 3-Dimensional objects.

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Effect of Self Weight Intermediate Tutorials

Distributed Loading
The majority of these examples are simple verification problems to show you how to use the intermediate techniques
NonLinear Analysis in ANSYS. You may be using a different version of ANSYS than what was used to create these tutorials, therefore,
make note of small changes in the menu structure. These tutorials can be completed in any order, however, it is
Solution Tracking expected that you have completed the Basic Tutorials before attempting these.
Buckling
● Effect of Self Weight
NonLinear Materials Incorporating the weight of an object into the finite element analysis is shown in this simple cantilever beam
example.
Dynamic - Modal

● Distributed Loading
Dynamic - Harmonic
The application of distributed loads and the use of element tables to extract data is expalined in this tutorial.
Dynamic - Transient
● NonLinear Analysis
Thermal-Conduction A large moment is applied to the end of a cantilever beam to explore Geometric Nonlinear behaviour (large
deformations). There is also an associated tutorial for an explanation of the Graphical Solution Tracking
Thermal-Mixed Bndry
(GST) plot.
Transient Heat
● Buckling
Axisymmetric
In this tutorial both the Eigenvalue and Nonlinear methods are used to solve a simple buckling problem.

● NonLinear Materials
Index The purpose of the tutorial is to describe how to include material nonlinearities in an ANSYS model.

● Dynamic Analysis
Contributions These tutorial explore the dynamic analyis capabilities of ANSYS. Modal, Harmonic, and Transient
Analyses are shown in detail.
Comments

● Thermal Examples
MecE 563
Analysis of a pure conduction, a mixed convection/conduction/insulated boundary condition example, and a
Mechanical Engineering transient heat conduction analysis.
University of Alberta ● Modelling Using Axisymmetry
Utilizing axisymmetry to model a 3-D structure in 2-D to reduce computational time.

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Springs and Joints Advanced Tutorials

Design Optimization
The majority of these examples are simple verification problems to show you how to use the more advanced
Substructuring techniques in ANSYS. You may be using a different version of ANSYS than what was used to create these tutorials,
therefore, make note of small changes in the menu structure. These tutorials can be completed in any order, however,
Coupled Field it is expected that you have completed the Basic Tutorials.
p-Element
● Springs and Joints
Element Death The creation of models with multiple elements types will be explored in this tutorial. Additionally, elements
COMBIN7 and COMBIN14 will be explained as well as the use of parameters to store data.
Contact Elements

● Design Optimization
APDL
The use of Design Optimization in ANSYS is used to solve for unknown parameters of a beam.

● Substructuring
Index
The use of Substructuring in ANSYS is used to solve a simple problem.

● Coupled Structural/Thermal Analysis

Contributions The use of ANSYS physics environments to solve a simple structural/thermal problem.

Comments
● Using P-Elements
MecE 563 The stress distribution of a model is solved using p-elements and compared to h-elements.

Mechanical Engineering ● Melting Using Element Death

Using element death to model a volume melting.
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● Contact Elements
Model of two beams coming into contact with each other.
ANSYS Inc.

● ANSYS Parametric Design Language

Design a truss using parametric variables.
 Copyright © 2001
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X-Sectional Results Postprocessing Tutorials

Advanced X-Sec Res
These tutorials were created to show some of the tools available in ANSYS for postprocessing. You may be using a
Data Plotting different version of ANSYS than what was used to create these tutorials, therefore, make note of small changes in the
menu structure. These tutorials can be completed in any order, however, it is expected that you have completed the
Graphical Properties Basic Tutorials.

● Viewing Cross Sectional Results

Index The method to view cross sectional results for a volume are shown in this tutorial.

● Advanced X-Sectional Results: Using Paths to Post Process Results

Contributions
The purpose of this tutorial is to create and use 'paths' to provide extra detail during post processing.

Comments ● Data Plotting: Using Tables to Post Process Results

The purpose of this tutorial is to outline the steps required to plot results using tables, a special type of array.
MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering ● Changing Graphical Properties

This tutorial outlines some of the basic graphical changes that can be made to the main screen and model.
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Creating Files Command Line Files

Features
The following files should help you to generate your own command line files.
Basic Tutorials
● Creating Command Files
Intermediate Tutorials
Directions on generating and running command files.
Advanced Tutorials
● ANSYS Command File Programming Features
PostProc Tutorials This file shows some of the commonly used programming features in the ANSYS command file language
known as ADPL (ANSYS Parametric Design Language). Prompting the user for parameters, performing
Radiation
calculations with paramaters and control structures are illustrated.

The following files include some example problems that have been created using command line coding.
Index

Basic Tutorials This set of command line codes are from the Basic Tutorial section.

Contributions
Intermediate Tutorials This set of command line codes are from the Intermediate Tutorial section.

Comments
Advanced Tutorials This set of command line codes are from the Advanced Tutorial section.
PostProc Tutorials This set of command line codes are from the PostProc Tutorial section.
MecE 563

Radiation Analysis A simple radiation heat transfer between concentric cylinders.

Mechanical Engineering

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Introduction Introduction
Starting up ANSYS
ANSYS is a general purpose finite element modeling package for numerically solving a wide variety of mechanical problems. These
ANSYS Environment problems include: static/dynamic structural analysis (both linear and non-linear), heat transfer and fluid problems, as well as acoustic and
electro-magnetic problems.
ANSYS Interface

Convergence Testing In general, a finite element solution may be broken into the following three stages. This is a general guideline that can be used for setting
up any finite element analysis.
Saving/Restoring Jobs

ANSYS Files 1. Preprocessing: defining the problem; the major steps in preprocessing are given below:
❍ Define keypoints/lines/areas/volumes
Printing Results
❍ Define element type and material/geometric properties

❍ Mesh lines/areas/volumes as required

Working with Pro/E
The amount of detail required will depend on the dimensionality of the analysis (i.e. 1D, 2D, axi-symmetric, 3D).

2. Solution: assigning loads, constraints and solving; here we specify the loads (point or pressure), contraints (translational and
Index
rotational) and finally solve the resulting set of equations.

3. Postprocessing: further processing and viewing of the results; in this stage one may wish to see:
Contributions
❍ Lists of nodal displacements

Comments ❍ Element forces and moments

❍ Deflection plots
MecE 563
❍ Stress contour diagrams

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Introduction Starting up ANSYS

Starting up ANSYS

ANSYS Environment

ANSYS Interface Starting up ANSYS

Convergence Testing
Large File Sizes
Saving/Restoring Jobs
ANSYS can create rather large files when running and saving; be sure that your local drive has space for it.
ANSYS Files

Printing Results Getting the Program Started

Working with Pro/E
In the Mec E 3-3 lab, there are two ways that you can start up ANSYS:

1. Windows NT application
Index 2. Unix X-Windows application

Windows NT Start Up
Contributions

Comments
Starting up ANSYS in Windows NT is simple:

MecE 563 ● Start Menu

● Programs
Mechanical Engineering
● ANSYS 5.7
University of Alberta ● Run Interactive Now

Unix X-Windows Start Up

ANSYS Inc.
Starting the Unix version of ANSYS involves a few more steps:

● in the task bar at the bottom of the screen, you should see something labeled X-Win32. If you don't see this minimized program,
Copyright © 2001 you can may want to reboot the computer, as it automatically starts this application when booting.
University of Alberta ● right click on this menu and selection Sessions and then select Mece.
● you will now be prompted to login to GPU... do this.
● once the Xwindows emulator has started, you will see an icon at the bottom of the screen that looks like a paper and pencil; don't
select this icon, but rather, click on the up arrow above it and select Terminal
● a terminal command window will now start up
● in that window, type xansys57
● at the UNIX prompt and a small launcher menu will appear.

● select the Run Interactive Now menu item.

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Introduction ANSYS 7.0 Environment

Starting up ANSYS
The ANSYS Environment for ANSYS 7.0 contains 2 windows: the Main Window and an Output Window. Note that this is somewhat different from the
ANSYS Environment previous version of ANSYS which made use of 6 different windows.
ANSYS Interface
1. Main Window
Convergence Testing

Saving/Restoring Jobs

ANSYS Files

Printing Results

Working with Pro/E

Index

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

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Copyright © 2001 Within the Main Window are 5 divisions:

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a. Utility Menu

The Utility Menu contains functions that are available throughout the ANSYS session, such as file controls, selections, graphic controls and
parameters.
 b. Input Lindow

The Input Line shows program prompt messages and allows you to type in commands directly.

c. Toolbar

The Toolbar contains push buttons that execute commonly used ANSYS commands. More push buttons can be added if desired.

d. Main Menu

The Main Menu contains the primary ANSYS functions, organized by preprocessor, solution, general postprocessor, design optimizer. It is from
this menu that the vast majority of modelling commands are issued. This is where you will note the greatest change between previous versions
of ANSYS and version 7.0. However, while the versions appear different, the menu structure has not changed.

e. Graphics Window

The Graphic Window is where graphics are shown and graphical picking can be made. It is here where you will graphically view the model in
its various stages of construction and the ensuing results from the analysis.

2. Output Window

The Output Window shows text output from the program, such as listing of data etc. It is usually positioned behind the main window and can de put to
the front if necessary.
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Introduction ANSYS Interface

Starting up ANSYS Graphical Interface vs. Command File Coding
ANSYS Environment
There are two methods to use ANSYS. The first is by means of the graphical user interface or GUI. This method follows the conventions
ANSYS Interface of popular Windows and X-Windows based programs.

Convergence Testing
The second is by means of command files. The command file approach has a steeper learning curve for many, but it has the advantage that
Saving/Restoring Jobs an entire analysis can be described in a small text file, typically in less than 50 lines of commands. This approach enables easy model
modifications and minimal file space requirements.
ANSYS Files

The tutorials in this website are designed to teach both the GUI and the command file approach, however, many of you will find the
Printing Results
command file simple and more efficient to use once you have invested a small amount of time into learning the code.
Working with Pro/E
For information and details on the full ANSYS command language, consult:

Index Help > Table of Contents > Commands Manual.

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

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Introduction
FEM Convergence Testing
Starting up ANSYS

ANSYS Environment

ANSYS Interface Introduction

Convergence Testing
A fundamental premise of using the finite element procedure is that the body is sub-divided up into small discrete regions known as finite
Saving/Restoring Jobs elements. These elements defined by nodes and interpolation functions. Governing equations are written for each element and these
elements are assembled into a global matrix. Loads and constraints are applied and the solution is then determined.
ANSYS Files

Printing Results The Problem

Working with Pro/E
The question that always arises is: How small do I need to make the elements before I can trust the solution?

What to do about it...

Index

In general there are no real firm answers on this. It will be necessary to conduct convergence tests! By this we mean that you begin with a
mesh discretization and then observe and record the solution. Now repeat the problem with a finer mesh (i.e. more elements) and then
Contributions compare the results with the previous test. If the results are nearly similar, then the first mesh is probably good enough for that particular
Comments
geometry, loading and constraints. If the results differ by a large amount however, it will be necessary to try a finer mesh yet.

MecE 563 The Consequences

Mechanical Engineering
Finer meshes come with a cost however: more calculational time and large memory requirements (both disk and RAM)! It is desired to
University of Alberta find the minimum number of elements that give you a converged solution.

Beam Models
ANSYS Inc.

For beam models, we actually only need to define a single element per line unless we are applying a distributed load on a given frame
member. When point loads are used, specifying more that one element per line will not change the solution, it will only slow the
calculations down. For simple models it is of no concern, but for a larger model, it is desired to minimize the number of elements, and thus
Copyright © 2001 calculation time and still obtain the desired accuracy.
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General Models
In general however, it is necessary to conduct convergence tests on your finite element model to confirm that a fine enough element
discretization has been used. In a solid mechanics problem, this would be done by creating several models with different mesh sizes and
comparing the resulting deflections and stresses, for example. In general, the stresses will converge more slowly than the displacement, so
it is not sufficient to examine the displacement convergence.
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Introduction
ANSYS: Saving and Restoring Jobs
Starting up ANSYS

ANSYS Environment

ANSYS Interface Saving Your Job

Convergence Testing
It is good practice to save your model at various points during its creation. Very often you will get to a point in the modeling where things
Saving/Restoring Jobs have gone well and you like to save it at the point. In that way, if you make some mistakes later on, you will at least be able to come back
to this point.
ANSYS Files

Printing Results To save your model, select Utility Menu Bar -> File -> Save As Jobname.db. Your model will be saved in a file called
jobname.db, where jobname is the name that you specified in the Launcher when you first started ANSYS.
Working with Pro/E

It is a good idea to save your job at different times throughout the building and analysis of the model to backup your work incase of a
system crash or other unforseen problems.
Index

Recalling or Resuming a Previously Saved Job

Contributions Frequently you want to start up ANSYS and recall and continue a previous job. There are two methods to do this:
Comments
1. Using the Launcher...
MecE 563 ❍ In the ANSYS Launcher, select Interactive... and specify the previously defined jobname.

❍ Then when you get ANSYS started, select Utility Menu -> File -> Resume Jobname.db .
Mechanical Engineering
❍ This will restore as much of your database (geometry, loads, solution, etc) that you previously saved.

University of Alberta 2. Or, start ANSYS and select Utitily Menu -> File -> Resume from... and select your job from the list that appears.

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Introduction
ANSYS Files
Starting up ANSYS

ANSYS Environment

ANSYS Interface Introduction

Convergence Testing
A large number of files are created when you run ANSYS. If you started ANSYS without specifying a jobname, the name of all the files
Saving/Restoring Jobs created will be FILE.* where the * represents various extensions described below. If you specified a jobname, say Frame, then the
created files will all have the file prefix, Frame again with various extensions:
ANSYS Files
frame.db
Printing Results
Database file (binary). This file stores the geometry, boundary conditions and any solutions.
Working with Pro/E
frame.dbb
Backup of the database file (binary).
frame.err
Error file (text). Listing of all error and warning messages.
Index frame.out
Output of all ANSYS operations (text). This is what normally scrolls in the output window during an ANSYS session.
frame.log
Contributions
Logfile or listing of ANSYS commands (text). Listing of all equivalent ANSYS command line commands used during the current
session.
Comments etc...
Depending on the operations carried out, other files may have been written. These files may contain results, etc.
MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering What to save?

University of Alberta When you want to clean up your directory, or move things from the /scratch directory, what files do you need to save?

● If you will always be using the GUI, then you only require the .db file. This file stores the geometry, boundary conditions and any
ANSYS Inc. solutions. Once the ANSYS has started, and the jobname has been specified, you need only activate the resume command to
proceed from where you last left off (see Saving and Restoring Jobs).
● If you plan on using ANSYS command files, then you need only store your command file and/or the log file. This file contains a
complete listing of the ANSYS commands used to get you model to its current point. That file may be rerun as is, or edited and
rerun as desired (Command File Creation and Execution).
Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta If you plan to use the command mode of operation, starting with an existing log file, rename it first so that it does not get over-
written or added to, from another ANSYS run.
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Introduction
Printing and Plotting ANSYS Results to a File
Starting up ANSYS

ANSYS Environment

ANSYS Interface Printing Text Results to a File

Convergence Testing
ANSYS produces lists and tables of many types of results that are normally displayed on the screen. However, it is often desired to save
Saving/Restoring Jobs the results to a file to be later analyzed or included in a report.

ANSYS Files 1. Stresses: instead of using 'Plot Results' to plot the stresses, choose 'List Results'. Select 'Elem Table Data', and choose what you
want to list from the menu. You can pick multiple items. When the list appears on the screen in its own window, Select 'File'/'Save
Printing Results
As...' and give a file name to store the results.
Working with Pro/E
2. Any other solutions can be done in the same way. For example select 'Nodal Solution' from the 'List Results' menu, to get
displacements.
3. Preprocessing and Solution data can be listed and saved from the 'List' menu in the 'Utility Menu bar'. Save the resulting list in the
same way described above.
Index

Plotting of Figures
Contributions There are two major routes to get hardcopies from ANSYS. The first is a quick a raster-based screen dump, while the second is a scalable
vector plot.
Comments

MecE 563 1.0 Quick Image Save

Mechanical Engineering
When you want to quickly save an image of the entire screen or the current 'Graphics window', select:
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● 'Utility menu bar'/'PlotCtrls'/'Hard Copy ...'.
● In the window that appears, you will normally want to select 'Graphics window', 'Monochrome', 'Reverse Video', 'Landscape' and
'Save to:'.
ANSYS Inc. ● Then enter the file name of your choice.
● Press 'OK'

This raster image file may now be printed on a PostScript printer or included in a document.
Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta 2.0 Better Quality Plots
The second method of saving a plot is much more flexible, but takes a lot more work to set up as you'll see...

Redirection

Normally all ANSYS plots are directed to the plot window on the screen. To save some plots to a file, to be later printed or included in a
document or what have you, you must first 'redirect' the plots to a file by issuing:

'Utility menu bar'/'PlotCtrls'/'Redirect Plots'/'To File...'.

Type in a filename (e.g.: frame.pic) in the 'Selection' Window.

Now issue whatever plot commands you want within ANSYS, remembering that the plots will not be displayed to the screen, but rather
they will be written to the selected file. You can put as many plots as you want into the plot file. When you are finished plotting what you
want to the file, redirect plots back to the screen using:

'Utility menu bar'/'PlotCtrls'/'Redirect Plots'/'To Screen'.

Display and Conversion

The plot file that has been saved is stored in a proprietary file format that must be converted into a more common graphic file format like
PostScript, or HPGL for example. This is performed by running a separate program called display. To do this, you have a couple of
options:

1. select display from the ANSYS launcher menu (if you started ANSYS that way)
2. shut down ANSYS or open up a new terminal window and then type display at the Unix prompt.

Either way, a large graphics window will appear. Decrease the size of this window, because it most likely covers the window in which you
will enter the display plotting commands. Load your plot file with the following command:

file,frame,pic

if your plot file is 'plots.pic'. Note that although the file is 'plots.pic' (with a period), Display wants 'plots,pic'(with a comma). You can
display your plots to the graphics window by issuing the command like

plot,n

where n is plot number. If you plotted 5 images to this file in ANSYS, then n could be any number from 1 to 5.

Now that the plots have been read in, they may be saved to printer files of various formats:
1. Colour PostScript: To save the images to a colour postscript file, enter the following commands in display:

pscr,color,2
/show,pscr
plot,n

where n is the plot number, as above. You can plot as many images as you want to postscript files in this manner. For subsequent
plots, you only require the plot,n command as the other options have now been set. Each image is plotted to a postscript file
such as pscrxx.grph, where xx is a number, starting at 00.

Note: when you import a postscript file into a word processor, the postscript image will appear as blank box. The printer
information is still present, but it can only be viewed when it's printed out to a postscript printer.

Printing it out: Now that you've got your color postscript file, what are you going to do with it? Take a look here for instructions
on colour postscript printing at a couple of sites on campus where you can have your beautiful stress plot plotted to paper,
overheads or even posters!

2. Black & White PostScript: The above mentioned colour postscript files can get very large in size and may not even print out on
the postscript printer in the lab because it takes so long to transfer the files to the printer and process them. A way around this is to
print them out in a black and white postscript format instead of colour; besides the colour specifications don't do any good for the
black and white lab printer anyways. To do this, you set the postscript color option to '3', i.e. and then issue the other commands as
before

pscr,color,3
/show,pscr
plot,n

Note: when you import a postscript file into a word processor, the postscript image will appear as blank box. The printer
information is still present, but it can only be viewed when it's printed out to a postscript printer.

3. HPGL: The third commonly used printer format is HPGL, which stands for Hewlett Packard Graphics Language. This is a compact
vector format that has the advantage that when you import a file of this type into a word processor, you can actually see the image
in the word processor! To use the HPGL format, issue the following commands:

/show,hpgl
plot,n

Final Steps

It is wise to rename these plot files as soon as you leave display, for display will overwrite the files the next time it is run.
You may want to rename the postscript files with an '.eps' extension to indicate that they are encapsulated postscript images. In a
similar way, the HPGL printer files could be given an '.hpgl' extension. This renaming is done at the Unix commmand line (the 'mv'
command).

A list of all available display commands and their options may be obtained by typing:

help

When complete, exit display by entering

finish
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
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Introduction
Finite Element Method using Pro/ENGINEER and ANSYS
Starting up ANSYS
Notes by R.W. Toogood
ANSYS Environment

ANSYS Interface
The transfer of a model from Pro/ENGINEER to ANSYS will be demonstrated here for a simple solid model. Model idealizations such as
shells and beams will not be treated. Also, many modeling options for constraints, loads, mesh control, analysis types will not be covered.
Convergence Testing These are fairly easy to figure out once you know the general procedures presented here.

Saving/Restoring Jobs
Step 1. Make the part
ANSYS Files
Use Pro/E to make the part. Things to note are:
Printing Results

Working with Pro/E

❍ be aware of your model units
❍ note the orientation of the model (default coordinate system in ANSYS will be the same as in Pro/E)
❍ IMPORTANT: remove all unnecessary and/or cosmetic features like rounds, chamfers, holes, etc., by suppressing them in Pro/E.
Too much small geometry will cause the mesh generator to create a very fine mesh with many elements which will greatly increase
Index your solver time. Of course, if the feature is critical to your design, you will want to leave it. You must compromise between
accuracy and available CPU resources.

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta

ANSYS Inc.

Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta
The figure above shows the original model for this demonstration. This is a model of a short cantilevered bracket that bolts to the wall via
the thick plate on the left end. Model units are inches. A load is applied at the hole in the right end. Some cosmetic features are located on
the top surface and the two sides. Several edges are rounded. For this model, the interest is in the stress distribution around the vertical
slot. So, the plate and the loading hole are removed, as are the cosmetic features and rounds resulting in the "de-featured" geometry shown
below. The model will be constrained on the left face and a uniform load will be applied to the right face.
Step 2. Create the FEM model
In the pull-down menu at the top of the Pro/E window, select

Applications > Mechanica

An information window opens up to remind you about the units you are using. Press Continue

In the MECHANICA menu at the right, check the box beside FEM Mode and select the command Structure.

A new toolbar appears on the right of the screen that contains icons for creating all the common modeling entities (constraints, loads,
idealizations). All these commands are also available using the command windows that will open on the right side of the screen or in
dialog windows that will open when appropriate.

Notice that a small green coordinate system WCS has appeared. This is how you will specify the directions of constraints and forces.
Other coordinate systems (eg cylindrical) can be created as required and used for the same purpose.

The MEC STRUCT menu appears on the right. Basically, to define the model we proceed down this menu in a top-down manner. Model
is already selected for you which opens the STRC MODEL menu. This is where we specify modeling information. We proceed in a top-
down manner. The Features command allows you to create additional simulation features like datum points, curves, surface regions, and
so on. Idealizations lets you create special modeling entities like shells and beams. The Current CSYS command lets you create or select
an alternate coordinate system for specifying directions of constraints and loads.
Defining Constraints

For our simple model, all we need are constraints, loads, and a specified material. Select

Constraints > New

We can specify constraints on four entity types (basically points, edges, and surfaces). Constraints are organized into constraint sets. Each
constraint set has a unique name (default of the first one is ConstraintSet1) and can contain any number of individual constraints of
different types. Each individual constraint also has a unique name (default of the first one is Constraint1). In the final computed model,
only one set can be included, but this can contain numerous individual constraints.

Select Surface. We are going to fully constrain the left face of the cantilever. A dialog window opens as shown above. Here you can give
a name to the constraint and identify which constraint set it belongs to. Since we elected to create a surface constraint, we now select the
surface we want constrained (push the Surface selection button in the window and then click on the desired surface of the model). The
constraints to be applied are selected using the buttons at the bottom of the window. In general we specify constraints on translation and
rotation for any mesh node that will appear on the selected entity. For each direction X, Y, and Z, we can select one of the four buttons
(Free, Fixed, Prescribed, and Function of Coordinates). For our solid model, the rotation constraints are irrelevant (since nodes of solid
elements do not have this degree of freedom anyway). For beams and shells, rotational constraints are active if specified.
For our model, leave all the translation constraints as FIXED, and select the OK button. You should now see some orange symbols on the
left face of the model, along with some text labels that summarize the constraint settings.

Defining Loads

In the STRC MODEL menu select

Loads > New > Surface

The FORCE/MOMENT window opens as shown above. Loads are also organized into named load sets. A load set can contain any
number of individual loads of different types. A FEM model can contain any number of different load sets. For example, in the analysis of
a pressurized tank on a support system with a number of nozzle connections to other pipes, one load set might contain only the internal
pressure, another might contain the support forces, another a temperature load, and more might contain the forces applied at each nozzle
location. These can be solved at the same time, and the principle of superposition used to combine them in numerous ways.

Create a load called "end_load" in the default load set (LoadSet1)

Click on the Surfaces button, then select the right face of the model and middle click to return to this dialog. Leave the defaults for the
load distribution. Enter the force components at the bottom. Note these are relative to the WCS. Then select OK. The load should be
displayed symbolically as shown in the figure below.

Note that constraint and load sets appear in the model tree. You can select and edit these in the usual way using the right mouse button.

Assigning Materials

Our last job to define the model is to specify the part material. In the STRC MODEL menu, select

Materials > Whole Part

In the library dialog window, select a material and move it to the right pane using the triple arrow button in the center of the window. In an
assembly, you could now assign this material to individual parts. If you select the Edit button, you will see the properties of the chosen
material.

At this point, our model has the necessary information for solution (constraints, loads, material).

Step 3. Define the analysis

Select

Analyses > New

Specify a name for the analysis, like "ansystest". Select the type (Structural or Modal). Enter a short description. Now select the Add
buttons beside the Constraints and Loads panes to add ConstraintSet1 and LoadSet1 to the analysis. Now select OK.

Step 4. Creating the mesh

We are going to use defaults for all operations here. The MEC STRUCT window, select

Mesh > Create > Solid > Start

Accept the default for the global minimum. The mesh is created and another dialog window opens (Element Quality Checks).
This indicates some aspects of mesh quality that may be specified and then, by selecting the Check button at the bottom, evaluated for the
model. The results are indicated in columns on the right. If the mesh does not pass these quality checks, you may want to go back to
specify mesh controls (discussed below). Select Close. Here is an image of the default mesh, shown in wire frame.
Improving the Mesh

In the mesh command, you can select the Controls option. This will allow you to select points, edges, and surfaces where you want to
specify mesh geometry such as hard points, maximum mesh size, and so on. Beware that excessively tight mesh controls can result in
meshes with many elements.

For example, setting a maximum mesh size along the curved ends of the slot results in the following mesh. Notice the better representation
of the curved edges than in the previous figure. This is at the expense of more than double the number of elements. Note that mesh
controls are also added to the model tree.
Step 5. Creating the Output file
All necessary aspects of the model are now created (constraints, loads, materials, mesh). In the MEC STRUCT menu, select

Run
This opens the Run FEM Analysis dialog window shown here. In the Solver pull-down list at the top, select ANSYS. In the Analysis list,
select Structural. You pick either Linear or Parabolic elements. The analysis we defined (containing constraints, loads, mesh, and
material) is listed. Select the Output to File radio button at the bottom and specify the output file name (default is the analysis name with
extension .ans). Select OK and read the message window.

We are now finished with Pro/E. Go to the top pull-down menus and select

Applications > Standard

Save the model file and leave the program.

Copy the .ans file from your Pro/E working directory to the directory you will use for running ANSYS.
Step 6. Importing into ANSYS
Launch ANSYS Interactive and select

File > Read Input From...

Select the .ans file you created previously. This will read in the entire model. You can display the model using (in the pull down menus)
Plot > Elements.

Step 7. Running the ANSYS solver

In the ANSYS Main Menu on the left, select

Solution > Solve > Current LS > OK

After a few seconds, you will be informed that the solution is complete.

Step 8. Viewing the results

There are myriad possibilities for viewing FEM results. A common one is the following:

General Postproc > Plot Results > Contour Plot > Nodal Solu

Pick the Von Mises stress values, and select Apply. You should now have a color fringe plot of the Von Mises stress displayed on the
model.

Updated: 8 November 2002 using Pro/ENGINEER 2001

RWT
Please report errors or omissions to Roger Toogood
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Two Dimensional Truss

Two Dimensional Truss
Bicycle Space Frame

Plane Stress Bracket

Modeling Tools Introduction

Solid Modeling
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 to solve a simple 2D Truss problem. This is the first of four introductory ANSYS tutorials.

Problem Description
Index

Determine the nodal deflections, reaction forces, and stress for the truss system shown below (E = 200GPa, A = 3250mm2).

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta

ANSYS Inc. (Modified from Chandrupatla & Belegunda, Introduction to Finite Elements in Engineering, p.123)

Copyright © 2001 Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

University of Alberta
1. Give the Simplified Version a Title (such as 'Bridge Truss Tutorial').

In the Utility menu bar select File > Change Title:

 The following window will appear:

Enter the title and click 'OK'. This title will appear in the bottom left corner of the 'Graphics' Window once you begin. Note: to get
the title to appear immediately, select Utility Menu > Plot > Replot

2. Enter Keypoints

The overall geometry is defined in ANSYS using keypoints which specify various principal coordinates to define the body. For this
example, these keypoints are the ends of each truss.

❍ We are going to define 7 keypoints for the simplified structure as given in the following table
coordinate
keypoint
x y
1 0 0
2 1800 3118
3 3600 0
4 5400 3118
5 7200 0
6 9000 3118
7 10800 0
(these keypoints are depicted by numbers in the above figure)

❍ From the 'ANSYS Main Menu' select:

Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Keypoints > In Active CS
 The following window will then appear:

❍ To define the first keypoint which has the coordinates x = 0 and y = 0:

Enter keypoint number 1 in the appropriate box, and enter the x,y coordinates: 0, 0 in their appropriate boxes (as shown
above).
Click 'Apply' to accept what you have typed.

❍ Enter the remaining keypoints using the same method.

Note: When entering the final data point, click on 'OK' to indicate that you are finished entering keypoints. If you first press
 'Apply' and then 'OK' for the final keypoint, you will have defined it twice!
If you did press 'Apply' for the final point, simply press 'Cancel' to close this dialog box.

Units
Note the units of measure (ie mm) were not specified. It is the responsibility of the user to ensure that a consistent set of units are
used for the problem; thus making any conversions where necessary.

Correcting Mistakes
When defining keypoints, lines, areas, volumes, elements, constraints and loads you are bound to make mistakes. Fortunately these
are easily corrected so that you don't need to begin from scratch every time an error is made! Every 'Create' menu for generating
these various entities also has a corresponding 'Delete' menu for fixing things up.

3. Form Lines

The keypoints must now be connected

We will use the mouse to select the keypoints to form the lines.

❍ In the main menu select: Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Lines > Lines > In Active Coord. The following window
will then appear:
❍ Use the mouse to pick keypoint #1 (i.e. click on it). It will now be marked by a small yellow box.

❍ Now move the mouse toward keypoint #2. A line will now show on the screen joining these two points. Left click and a
permanent line will appear.

❍ Connect the remaining keypoints using the same method.

❍ When you're done, click on 'OK' in the 'Lines in Active Coord' window, minimize the 'Lines' menu and the 'Create' menu.
Your ANSYS Graphics window should look similar to the following figure.
 Disappearing Lines
Please note that any lines you have created may 'disappear' throughout your analysis. However, they have most likely NOT been
deleted. If this occurs at any time from the Utility Menu select:

Plot > Lines

4. Define the Type of Element

It is now necessary to create elements. This is called 'meshing'. ANSYS first needs to know what kind of elements to use for our
problem:

❍ From the Preprocessor Menu, select: Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete. The following window will then appear:
 ❍ Click on the 'Add...' button. The following window will appear:

❍ For this example, we will use the 2D spar element as selected in the above figure. Select the element shown and click 'OK'.
You should see 'Type 1 LINK1' in the 'Element Types' window.

❍ Click on 'Close' in the 'Element Types' dialog box.

5. Define Geometric Properties

We now need to specify geometric properties for our elements:

❍ In the Preprocessor menu, select Real Constants > Add/Edit/Delete

❍ Click Add... and select 'Type 1 LINK1' (actually it is already selected). Click on 'OK'. The following window will appear:

❍ As shown in the window above, enter the cross-sectional area (3250mm):

❍ Click on 'OK'.
❍ 'Set 1' now appears in the dialog box. Click on 'Close' in the 'Real Constants' window.
6. Element Material Properties

You then need to specify material properties:

❍ In the 'Preprocessor' menu select Material Props > Material Models

❍ Double click on Structural > Linear > Elastic > Isotropic

 We are going to give the properties of Steel. Enter the following field:

EX 200000
❍ Set these properties and click on 'OK'. Note: You may obtain the note 'PRXY will be set to 0.0'. This is poisson's ratio and is
not required for this element type. Click 'OK' on the window to continue. Close the "Define Material Model Behavior" by
clicking on the 'X' box in the upper right hand corner.

7. Mesh Size

The last step before meshing is to tell ANSYS what size the elements should be. There are a variety of ways to do this but we will
just deal with one method for now.

❍ In the Preprocessor menu select Meshing > Size Cntrls > ManualSize > Lines > All Lines
 ❍ In the size 'NDIV' field, enter the desired number of divisions per line. For this example we want only 1 division per line,
therefore, enter '1' and then click 'OK'. Note that we have not yet meshed the geometry, we have simply defined the element
sizes.

8. Mesh

Now the frame can be meshed.

❍ In the 'Preprocessor' menu select Meshing > Mesh > Lines and click 'Pick All' in the 'Mesh Lines' Window

Your model should now appear as shown in the following window

Plot Numbering
To show the line numbers, keypoint numbers, node numbers...

● From the Utility Menu (top of screen) select PlotCtrls > Numbering...

● Fill in the Window as shown below and click 'OK'

 Now you can turn numbering on or off at your discretion

Saving Your Work

Save the model at this time, so if you make some mistakes later on, you will at least be able to come back to this point. To do this, on the
Utility Menu select File > Save as.... Select the name and location where you want to save your file.

It is a good idea to save your job at different times throughout the building and analysis of the model to backup your work in case of a
system crash or what have you.

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving

You have now defined your model. It is now time to apply the load(s) and constraint(s) and solve the the resulting system of equations.

Open up the 'Solution' menu (from the same 'ANSYS Main Menu').

1. Define Analysis Type

 First you must tell ANSYS how you want it to solve this problem:

❍ From the Solution Menu, select Analysis Type > New Analysis.

❍ Ensure that 'Static' is selected; i.e. you are going to do a static analysis on the truss as opposed to a dynamic analysis, for
example.

❍ Click 'OK'.

2. Apply Constraints

It is necessary to apply constraints to the model otherwise the model is not tied down or grounded and a singular solution will
result. In mechanical structures, these constraints will typically be fixed, pinned and roller-type connections. As shown above, the
left end of the truss bridge is pinned while the right end has a roller connection.

❍ In the Solution menu, select Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On Keypoints
❍ Select the left end of the bridge (Keypoint 1) by clicking on it in the Graphics Window and click on 'OK' in the 'Apply U,
ROT on KPs' window.

❍ This location is fixed which means that all translational and rotational degrees of freedom (DOFs) are constrained.
Therefore, select 'All DOF' by clicking on it and enter '0' in the Value field and click 'OK'.
 You will see some blue triangles in the graphics window indicating the displacement contraints.

❍ Using the same method, apply the roller connection to the right end (UY constrained). Note that more than one DOF
constraint can be selected at a time in the "Apply U,ROT on KPs" window. Therefore, you may need to 'deselect' the 'All
DOF' option to select just the 'UY' option.

3. Apply Loads

As shown in the diagram, there are four downward loads of 280kN, 210kN, 280kN, and 360kN at keypoints 1, 3, 5, and 7
respectively.

❍ Select Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Force/Moment > on Keypoints.

❍ Select the first Keypoint (left end of the truss) and click 'OK' in the 'Apply F/M on KPs' window.

❍ Select FY in the 'Direction of force/mom'. This indicate that we will be applying the load in the 'y' direction

❍ Enter a value of -280000 in the 'Force/moment value' box and click 'OK'. Note that we are using units of N here, this is
consistent with the previous values input.

❍ The force will appear in the graphics window as a red arrow.

❍ Apply the remaining loads in the same manner.

The applied loads and constraints should now appear as shown below.
4. Solving the System

We now tell ANSYS to find the solution:

❍ In the 'Solution' menu select Solve > Current LS. This indicates that we desire the solution under the current Load Step
(LS).
 ❍ The above windows will appear. Ensure that your solution options are the same as shown above and click 'OK'.

❍ Once the solution is done the following window will pop up. Click 'Close' and close the /STATUS Command Window..

Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

1. Hand Calculations

We will first calculate the forces and stress in element 1 (as labeled in the problem description).
2. Results Using ANSYS

Reaction Forces

A list of the resulting reaction forces can be obtained for this element

❍ from the Main Menu select General Postproc > List Results > Reaction Solu.

❍ Select 'All struc forc F' as shown above and click 'OK'
 These values agree with the reaction forces claculated by hand above.

Deformation

❍ In the General Postproc menu, select Plot Results > Deformed Shape. The following window will appear.

❍ Select 'Def + undef edge' and click 'OK' to view both the deformed and the undeformed object.
 ❍ Observe the value of the maximum deflection in the upper left hand corner (DMX=7.409). One should also observe that the
constrained degrees of freedom appear to have a deflection of 0 (as expected!)

Deflection

For a more detailed version of the deflection of the beam,

❍ From the 'General Postproc' menu select Plot results > Contour Plot > Nodal Solution. The following window will
appear.
❍ Select 'DOF solution' and 'USUM' as shown in the above window. Leave the other selections as the default values. Click
'OK'.
❍ Looking at the scale, you may want to use more useful intervals. From the Utility Menu select Plot Controls > Style >
Contours > Uniform Contours...

❍ Fill in the following window as shown and click 'OK'.

You should obtain the following.
❍ The deflection can also be obtained as a list as shown below. General Postproc > List Results > Nodal Solution select
'DOF Solution' and 'ALL DOFs' from the lists in the 'List Nodal Solution' window and click 'OK'. This means that we want
to see a listing of all degrees of freedom from the solution.
 ❍ Are these results what you expected? Note that all the degrees of freedom were constrained to zero at node 1, while UY was
constrained to zero at node 7.

❍ If you wanted to save these results to a file, select 'File' within the results window (at the upper left-hand corner of this list
window) and select 'Save as'.

Axial Stress

For line elements (ie links, beams, spars, and pipes) you will often need to use the Element Table to gain access to derived data (ie
stresses, strains). For this example we should obtain axial stress to compare with the hand calculations. The Element Table is
different for each element, therefore, we need to look at the help file for LINK1 (Type help link1 into the Input Line). From
Table 1.2 in the Help file, we can see that SAXL can be obtained through the ETABLE, using the item 'LS,1'

❍ From the General Postprocessor menu select Element Table > Define Table

❍ Click on 'Add...'
❍ As shown above, enter 'SAXL' in the 'Lab' box. This specifies the name of the item you are defining. Next, in the 'Item,
Comp' boxes, select 'By sequence number' and 'LS,'. Then enter 1 after LS, in the selection box

❍ Click on 'OK' and close the 'Element Table Data' window.

❍ Plot the Stresses by selecting Element Table > Plot Elem Table

❍ The following window will appear. Ensure that 'SAXL' is selected and click 'OK'

❍ Because you changed the contour intervals for the Displacement plot to "User Specified" - you need to switch this back to
"Auto calculated" to obtain new values for VMIN/VMAX.
Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Style > Contours > Uniform Contours ...
 Again, you may wish to select more appropriate intervals for the contour plot

❍ List the Stresses

■ From the 'Element Table' menu, select 'List Elem Table'

■ From the 'List Element Table Data' window which appears ensure 'SAXL' is highlighted

■ Click 'OK'
 Note that the axial stress in Element 1 is 82.9MPa as predicted analytically.

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.

Quitting ANSYS
To quit ANSYS, select 'QUIT' from the ANSYS Toolbar or select Utility Menu/File/Exit.... In the dialog box that appears, click on 'Save
Everything' (assuming that you want to) and then click on 'OK'.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Two Dimensional Truss

Space Frame Example
Bicycle Space Frame

Plane Stress Bracket

| Verification Example | | Preprocessing | | Solution | | Postprocessing | | Command Line |
Modeling Tools | Bicycle Example | | Preprocessing | | Solution | | Postprocessing | | Command Line |
Solid Modeling
Introduction

Index This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 to solve a simple 3D space frame problem.

Problem Description
Contributions
The problem to be solved in this example is the analysis of a bicycle frame. The problem to be modeled in this example is a simple bicycle
Comments frame shown in the following figure. The frame is to be built of hollow aluminum tubing having an outside diameter of 25mm and a wall
thickness of 2mm.
MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta

ANSYS Inc.

Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta

Verification
The first step is to simplify the problem. Whenever you are trying out a new analysis type, you need something (ie analytical solution or
experimental data) to compare the results to. This way you can be sure that you've gotten the correct analysis type, units, scale factors, etc.

The simplified version that will be used for this problem is that of a cantilever beam shown in the following figure:

Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

1. Give the Simplified Version a Title (such as 'Verification Model').

Utility Menu > File > Change Title

2. Enter Keypoints

For this simple example, these keypoints are the ends of the beam.

❍ We are going to define 2 keypoints for the simplified structure as given in the following table
coordinate
keypoint
x y z
1 0 0 0
2 500 0 0

❍ From the 'ANSYS Main Menu' select:

 Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Keypoints > In Active CS

3. Form Lines

The two keypoints must now be connected to form a bar using a straight line.

❍ Select: Preprocessor > Modeling> Create > Lines > Lines > Straight Line.

❍ Pick keypoint #1 (i.e. click on it). It will now be marked by a small yellow box.

❍ Now pick keypoint #2. A permanent line will appear.

❍ When you're done, click on 'OK' in the 'Create Straight Line' window.

4. Define the Type of Element

It is now necessary to create elements on this line.

❍ From the Preprocessor Menu, select: Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete.

❍ Click on the 'Add...' button. The following window will appear:

❍ For this example, we will use the 3D elastic straight pipe element as selected in the above figure. Select the element shown and
click 'OK'. You should see 'Type 1 PIPE16' in the 'Element Types' window.

❍ Click on the 'Options...' button in the 'Element Types' dialog box. The following window will appear:
 ❍ Click and hold the K6 button (second from the bottom), and select 'Include Output' and click 'OK'. This gives us extra force and
moment output.

❍ Click on 'Close' in the 'Element Types' dialog box and close the 'Element Type' menu.

5. Define Geometric Properties

We now need to specify geometric properties for our elements:

❍ In the Preprocessor menu, select Real Constants > Add/Edit/Delete

❍ Click Add... and select 'Type 1 PIPE16' (actually it is already selected). Click on 'OK'.

❍ Enter the following geometric properties:

Outside diameter OD: 25

Wall thickness TKWALL: 2

This defines an outside pipe diameter of 25mm and a wall thickness of 2mm.
 ❍ Click on 'OK'.

❍ 'Set 1' now appears in the dialog box. Click on 'Close' in the 'Real Constants' window.

6. Element Material Properties

You then need to specify material properties:

❍ In the 'Preprocessor' menu select Material Props > Material Models...

❍ Double click Structural > Linear > Elastic and select 'Isotropic' (double click on it)

❍ Close the 'Define Material Model Behavior' Window.

We are going to give the properties of Aluminum. Enter the following field:

EX 70000
PRXY 0.33
❍ Set these properties and click on 'OK'.

7. Mesh Size
❍ In the Preprocessor menu select Meshing > Size Cntrls > ManualSize > Lines > All Lines

❍ In the size 'SIZE' field, enter the desired element length. For this example we want an element length of 2cm, therefore, enter
'20' (i.e 20mm) and then click 'OK'. Note that we have not yet meshed the geometry, we have simply defined the element sizes.

(Alternatively, we could enter the number of divisions we want in the line. For an element length of 2cm, we would enter 25 [ie
25 divisions]).

NOTE
It is not necessary to mesh beam elements to obtain the correct solution. However, meshing is done in this case so that we can obtain
results (ie stress, displacement) at intermediate positions on the beam.

8. Mesh

Now the frame can be meshed.

❍ In the 'Preprocessor' menu select Meshing > Mesh > Lines and click 'Pick All' in the 'Mesh Lines' Window

9. Saving Your Work

 Utility Menu > File > Save as.... Select the name and location where you want to save your file.

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Define Analysis Type

❍ From the Solution Menu, select 'Analysis Type > New Analysis'.

❍ Ensure that 'Static' is selected and click 'OK'.

2. Apply Constraints

❍ In the Solution menu, select Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On Keypoints

❍ Select the left end of the rod (Keypoint 1) by clicking on it in the Graphics Window and click on 'OK' in the 'Apply U,ROT on
KPs' window.

❍ This location is fixed which means that all translational and rotational degrees of freedom (DOFs) are constrained. Therefore,
select 'All DOF' by clicking on it and enter '0' in the Value field and click 'OK'.

3. Apply Loads

As shown in the diagram, there is a vertically downward load of 100N at the end of the bar

❍ In the Structural menu, select Force/Moment > on Keypoints.

❍ Select the second Keypoint (right end of bar) and click 'OK' in the 'Apply F/M' window.

❍ Click on the 'Direction of force/mom' at the top and select FY.

❍ Enter a value of -100 in the 'Force/moment value' box and click 'OK'.

❍ The force will appear in the graphics window as a red arrow.

The applied loads and constraints should now appear as shown below.
 4. Solving the System

We now tell ANSYS to find the solution:

❍ Solution > Solve > Current LS

Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

1. Hand Calculations

Now, since the purpose of this exercise was to verify the results - we need to calculate what we should find.

Deflection:

The maximum deflection occurs at the end of the rod and was found to be 6.2mm as shown above.
 Stress:

The maximum stress occurs at the base of the rod and was found to be 64.9MPa as shown above (pure bending stress).

2. Results Using ANSYS

Deformation

❍ from the Main Menu select General Postproc from the 'ANSYS Main Menu'. In this menu you will find a variety of options,
the two which we will deal with now are 'Plot Results' and 'List Results'

❍ Select Plot Results > Deformed Shape.

❍ Select 'Def + undef edge' and click 'OK' to view both the deformed and the undeformed object.
 ❍ Observe the value of the maximum deflection in the upper left hand corner (shown here surrounded by a blue border for
emphasis). This is identical to that obtained via hand calculations.

Deflection

For a more detailed version of the deflection of the beam,

❍ From the 'General Postproc' menu select Plot results > Contour Plot > Nodal Solution.

❍ Select 'DOF solution' and 'USUM'. Leave the other selections as the default values. Click 'OK'.
❍ You may want to have a more useful scale, which can be accomplished by going to the Utility Menu and selecting Plot
Controls > Style > Contours > Uniform Contours

❍ The deflection can also be obtained as a list as shown below. General Postproc > List Results > Nodal Solution ... select
'DOF Solution' and 'ALL DOFs' from the lists in the 'List Nodal Solution' window and click 'OK'. This means that we want to
see a listing of all translational and rotational degrees of freedom from the solution. If we had only wanted to see the
displacements for example, we would have chosen 'ALL Us' instead of 'ALL DOFs'.
 ❍ Are these results what you expected? Again, the maximum deflection occurs at node 2, the right end of the rod. Also note that
all the rotational and translational degrees of freedom were constrained to zero at node 1.

❍ If you wanted to save these results to a file, use the mouse to go to the 'File' menu (at the upper left-hand corner of this list
window) and select 'Save as'.

Stresses

For line elements (ie beams, spars, and pipes) you will need to use the Element Table to gain access to derived data (ie stresses,
strains).

❍ From the General Postprocessor menu select Element Table > Define Table...

❍ Click on 'Add...'
❍ As shown above, in the 'Item,Comp' boxes in the above window, select 'Stress' and 'von Mises SEQV'

❍ Click on 'OK' and close the 'Element Table Data' window.

❍ Plot the Stresses by selecting Plot Elem Table in the Element Table Menu

❍ The following window will appear. Ensure that 'SEQV' is selected and click 'OK'

❍ If you changed the contour intervals for the Displacement plot to "User Specified" you may need to switch this back to "Auto
calculated" to obtain new values for VMIN/VMAX.
Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Style > Contours > Uniform Contours ...
 Again, select more appropriate intervals for the contour plot

❍ List the Stresses

■ From the 'Element Table' menu, select 'List Elem Table'

■ From the 'List Element Table Data' window which appears ensure 'SEQV' is highlighted

■ Click 'OK'

Note that a maximum stress of 64.914 MPa occurs at the fixed end of the beam as predicted analytically.

Bending Moment Diagrams

To further verify the simplified model, a bending moment diagram can be created. First, let's look at how ANSYS defines each
element. Pipe 16 has 2 nodes; I and J, as shown in the following image.
To obtain the bending moment for this element, the Element Table must be used. The Element Table contains most of the data for the
element including the bending moment data for each element at Node I and Node J. First, we need to obtain obtain the bending moment
data.

❍ General Postproc > Element Table > Define Table... . Click 'Add...'.

❍ In the window,
A. Enter IMoment as the 'User label for item' - this will give a name to the data
B. Select 'By sequence num' in the Item box
C. Select 'SMISC' in the first Comp box
D. Enter SMISC,6 in the second Comp box
E. Click 'OK'

This will save all of the bending moment data at the left hand side (I side) of each element. Now we need to find the bending
moment data at the right hand side (J side) of each element.

❍ Again, click 'Add...' in the 'Element Table Data' window.

A. Enter JMoment as the 'User label for item' - again, this will give a name to the data
B. Same as above
 C. Same as above
D. For step D, enter SMISC,12 in the second Comp box
E. Click 'OK'

❍ Click 'Close' in the 'Element Table Data' window and close the 'Element Table' Menu. Select Plot Results > Contour Plot >
Line Elem Res...

❍ From the 'Plot Line-Element Results' window, select 'IMOMENT' from the pull down menu for LabI, and 'JMOMENT' from the
pull down menu for LabJ. Click 'OK'. Note again that you can modify the intervals for the contour plot.
 Now, you can double check these solutions analytically. Note that the line between the I and J point is a linear interpolation.

❍ Before the explanation of the above steps, enter help pipe16 in the command line as shown below and then hit enter.

❍ Briefly read the ANSYS documentation which appears, pay particular attention to the Tables near the end of the document
(shown below).

Table 1. PIPE16 Item, Sequence Numbers, and Definitions for the ETABLE Commands

node I

name item e Definition

MFORX SMISC 1
Member forces
MFORY SMISC 2
 MFORZ SMISC 3 at the node
MMOMX SMISC 4 Member
MMOMY SMISC 5 moments at the
MMOMZ SMISC 6 node

Note that SMISC 6 (which we used to obtain the values at node I) correspond to MMOMZ - the Member moment for node I.
The value of 'e' varies with different Element Types, therefore you must check the ANSYS Documentation files for each
element to determine the appropriate SMISC corresponding to the plot you wish to generate.

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) of ANSYS. This problem can also been solved using the ANSYS
command language interface. To see the benefits of the command line clear your current file:

● From the Utility menu select: File > Clear and Start New
● Ensure that 'Read File' is selected then click 'OK'
● select 'yes' in the following window.

Copy the following code into the command line, then hit enter. Note that the text following the "!" are comments.

/PREP7 ! Preprocessor
K,1,0,0,0, ! Keypoint, 1, x, y, z
K,2,500,0,0, ! Keypoint, 2, x, y, z
L,1,2 ! Line from keypoint 1 to 2
!*
ET,1,PIPE16 ! Element Type = pipe 16
KEYOPT,1,6,1 ! This is the changed option to give the extra force and moment output
!*
R,1,25,2, ! Real Constant, Material 1, Outside Diameter, Wall thickness
!*
MP,EX,1,70000 ! Material Properties, Young's Modulus, Material 1, 70000 MPa
MP,PRXY,1,0.33 ! Material Properties, Major Poisson's Ratio, Material 1, 0.33
!*
LESIZE,ALL,20 ! Element sizes, all of the lines, 20 mm
LMESH,1 ! Mesh the lines
FINISH ! Exit preprocessor
/SOLU ! Solution
ANTYPE,0 ! The type of analysis (static)
!*
DK,1, ,0, ,0,ALL ! Apply a Displacement to Keypoint 1 to all DOF
FK,2,FY,-100 ! Apply a Force to Keypoint 2 of -100 N in the y direction
/STATUS,SOLU
SOLVE ! Solve the problem
FINISH

Note that you have now finished Postprocessing and the Solution Phase with just these few lines of code. There are codes to complete the
Postprocessing but we will review these later.

Bicycle Example
Now we will return to the analysis of the bike frame. The steps which you completed in the verification example will not be explained in great
detail, therefore use the verification example as a reference as required. We will be combining the use of the Graphic User Interface (GUI)
with the use of command lines.

Recall the geometry and dimensions of the bicycle frame:

Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

1. Clear any old ANSYS files and start a new file
Utility Menu > File > Clear and Start New
2. Give the Example a Title
Utility menu > File > Change Title

3. Defining Some Variables

We are going to define the vertices of the frame using variables. These variables represent the various lengths of the bicycle members.
Notice that by using variables like this, it is very easy to set up a parametric description of your model. This will enable us to quickly
redefine the frame should changes be necessary. The quickest way to enter these variables is via the 'ANSYS Input' window which was
used above to input the command line codes for the verification model. Type in each of the following lines followed by Enter.

x1 = 500
x2 = 825
y1 = 325
y2 = 400
z1 = 50

4. Enter Keypoints

For this space frame example, these keypoints are the frame vertices.

❍ We are going to define 6 keypoints for this structure as given in the following table (these keypoints are depicted by the circled
numbers in the above figure):

coordinate
keypoint
x y z

1 0 y1 0

2 0 y2 0

3 x1 y2 0

4 x1 0 0

5 x2 0 z1

6 x2 0 -z1

❍ Now instead of using the GUI window we are going to enter code into the 'command line'. First, open the 'Preprocessor Menu'
from the 'ANSYS Main Menu'. The preprocessor menu has to be open in order for the preprocessor commands to be recognized.
Alternatively, you can type /PREP7 into the command line. The command line format required to enter a keypoint is as
 follows:

K, NPT, X, Y, Z

where, each Abbreviation is representative of the following:

Keypoint, Reference number for the keypoint, coords x/y/z

For a more detailed explanation, type help k into the command line

For example, to enter the first keypoint type:

K,1,0,y1,0

into the command line followed by Enter.

As with any programming language, you may need to add comments. The exclamation mark indicates that anything following it
is commented out. ie - for the second keypoint you might type:

K,2,0,y2,0 ! keypoint, #, x=0, y=y2, z=0

❍ Enter the 4 remaining keypoints (listed in the table above) using the command line

❍ Now you may want to check to ensure that you entered all of the keypoints correctly:
Utility Menu > List > Keypoints > Coordinates only
(Alternatively, type 'KLIST' into the command line)

❍ If there are any keypoints which need to be re-entered, simply re-enter the code. A previously defined keypoint of the same
number will be redefined. However, if there is one that needs to be deleted simply enter the following code:

KDELE,#
 where # corresponds to the number of the keypoint.

In this example, we defined the keypoints by making use of previously defined variables like y1 = 325. This was simply used for
convenience. To define keypoint #1, for example, we could have alternatively used the coordinates x = 0, y = 325, z = 0.

5. Changing Orientation of the Plot

❍ To get a better view of our view of our model, we'll view it in an isometric view:

❍ Select Utility menu bar > PlotCtrls > Pan, Zoom, Rotate...'

■ In the window that appears (shown left), you

have many controls. Try experimenting with
them. By turning on the dynamic mode (click
on the checkbox beside 'Dynamic Mode') you
can use the mouse to drag the image,
translating and rotating it on all three axes.

■ To get an isometric view, click on 'Iso' (at the

top right). You can either leave the 'Pan,
Zoom, Rotate' window open and move it to
an empty area on the screen, or close it if
your screen is already cluttered.

6. Create Lines

We will be joining the following keypoints together:

 keypoint
line Again, we will use the command line to create the lines. The command format to create a straight line looks
1st 2nd like:

1 1 2 L, P1, P2
2 2 3 Line, Keypoint at the beginning of the line, Keypoint at the end of line

3 3 4 For example, to obtain the first line, I would write: ' L,1,2 '
4 1 4
Note: unlike 'Keypoints', 'Lines' will automatically assign themselves the next available reference number.
5 3 5

6 4 5

7 3 6

8 4 6

❍ Enter the remaining lines until you get a picture like that shown below.

❍ Again, check to ensure that you entered all of the lines correctly: type ' LLIST ' into the command line

❍ If there are any lines which need to be changed, delete the line by typing the following code: ' LDELE,# ' where #
corresponds to the reference number of the line. (This can be obtained from the list of lines). And then re-enter the line (note: a
new reference number will be assigned)

You should obtain the following:

7. Define the Type of Element
Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete > Add

As in the verification model, define the type of element (pipe16). As in the verification model, don't forget to change Option K6
'Include Output' to obtain extra force and moment output.

8. Define Geometric Properties

Preprocessor > Real Constants > Add/Edit/Delete

Now specify geometric properties for the elements

Outside diameter OD: 25

Wall thickness TKWALL: 2

9. Element Material Properties

To set Young's Modulus and Poisson's ratio, we will again use the command line. (ensure that the preprocessor menu is still open - if
not open it by clicking Preprocessor in the Main Menu)

MP, LAB, MAT, C0

 Material Property,Valid material property label, Material Reference Number, value

❍ To enter the Elastic Modulus (LAB = EX) of 70000 MPa, type: ' MP,EX,1,70000 '

❍ To set Poisson's ratio (PRXY), type ' MP,PRXY,1,0.33 '

10. Mesh Size

As in the verification model, set the element length to 20 mm

Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > ManualSize > Lines > All Lines

11. Mesh

Now the frame can be meshed.

❍ In the 'Preprocessor' menu select 'Mesh' > 'Lines' and click 'Pick All' in the 'Mesh Lines' Window

Saving Your Job

Utility Menu > File > Save as...

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving

Close the 'Preprocessor' menu and open up the 'Solution' menu (from the same 'ANSYS Main Menu').

1. Define Analysis Type

Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis... > Static

2. Apply Constraints

Once again, we will use the command line. We are going to pin (translational DOFs will be fixed) the first keypoint and constrain the
keypoints corresponding to the rear wheel attachment locations in both the y and z directions. The following is the command line
format to apply constraints at keypoints.

DK, KPOI, Lab, VALUE, VALUE2, KEXPND, Lab2, Lab3, Lab4, Lab5, Lab6
Displacement on K, K #, DOF label, value, value2, Expansion key, other DOF labels

Not all of the fields are required for this example, therefore when entering the code certain fields will be empty. For example, to pin the
 first keypoint enter:

DK,1,UX,0,,,UY,UZ

The DOF labels for translation motion are: UX, UY, UZ. Note that the 5th and 6th fields are empty. These correspond to 'value2' and
'the Expansion key' which are not required for this constraint. Also note that all three of the translational DOFs were constrained to 0.
The DOFs can only be contrained in 1 command line if the value is the same.

To apply the contraints to Keypoint 5, the command line code is:

DK,5,UY,0,,,UZ

Note that only UY and UZ are contrained to 0. UX is not constrained. Again, note that the 5th and 6th fields are empty because they are
not required.

❍ Apply the constraints to the other rear wheel location (Keypoint 6 - UY and UZ).
❍ Now list the constraints ('DKLIST') and verify them against the following:

If you need to delete any of the constraints use the following command: 'DKDELE, K, Lab' (ie 'DKDELE,1,UZ' would delete
the constraint in the 'z' direction for Keypoint 1)

3. Apply Loads

We will apply vertical downward loads of 600N at the seat post location (keypoint 3) and 200N at the pedal crank location (keypoint
4). We will use the command line to define these loading conditions.

FK, KPOI, Lab, value, value2

Force loads at keypoints, K #, Force Label directions (FX, FY, FZ), value1, value2 (if
req'd)
 To apply a force of 600N downward at keypoint 3, the code should look like this: ' FK,3,FY,-600 '

Apply both the forces and list the forces to ensure they were inputted correctly (FKLIST).

If you need to delete one of the forces, the code looks like this: 'FKDELE, K, Lab' (ie 'FKDELE,3,FY' would delete the force in the 'y'
direction for Keypoint 3)

The applied loads and constraints should now appear as shown below.

4. Solving the System

Solution > Solve > Current LS

Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

To begin Postprocessing, open the 'General Postproc' Menu

1. Deformation
Plot Results > Deformed Shape... 'Def + undef edge'
❍ You may want to try plotting this from different angles to get a better idea what's going on by using the 'Pan-Zoom-Rotate'
menu that was earlier outlined.
❍ Try the 'Front' view button (Note that the views of 'Front', 'Left', 'Back', etc depend on how the object was first defined).
❍ Your screen should look like the plot below:
2. Deflections

Now let's take a look at some actual deflections in the frame. The deflections have been calculated at the nodes of the model, so the
first thing we'll do is plot out the nodes and node numbers, so we know what node(s) we're after.

❍ Go to Utility menu > PlotCtrls > Numbering... and turn on 'Node numbers'. Turn everything else off.

❍ Note the node numbers of interest. Of particular interest are those nodes where the constraints were applied to see if their
displacements/rotations were indeed fixed to zero. Also note the node numbers of the seat and crank locations.

❍ List the Nodal Deflections (Main Menu > General Postproc > List Results > Nodal Solution...'). Are the displacements and
rotations as you expected?

❍ Plot the deflection as well.

General Postproc > Plot Results > (-Contour Plot-) Nodal Solution select 'DOF solution' and 'USUM' in the window
 ❍ Don't forget to use more useful intervals.

3. Element Forces

We could also take a look at the forces in the elements in much the same way:

❍ Select 'Element Solution...' from the 'List Results' menu.

❍ Select 'Nodal force data' and 'All forces' from the lists displayed.
❍ Click on 'OK'.
❍ For each element in the model, the force/moment values at each of the two nodes per element will be displayed.
❍ Close this list window when you are finished browsing.
❍ Then close the 'List Results' menu.

4. Stresses

As shown in the cantilever beam example, use the Element Table to gain access to derived stresses.

❍ General Postproc > Element Table > Define Table ...

 ❍ Select 'Add'
❍ Select 'Stress' and 'von Mises'
❍ Element Table > Plot Elem Table

❍ Again, select appropriate intervals for the contour plot

5. Bending Moment Diagrams

As shown previously, the bending moment diagram can be produced.

Select Element Table > Define Table... to define the table (remember SMISC,6 and SMISC,12)

And, Plot Results > Line Elem Res... to plot the data from the Element Table
Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML version,
copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...' and select
the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.

Quitting ANSYS
To quit ANSYS, select 'QUIT' from the ANSYS Toolbar or select 'Utility Menu'/'File'/'Exit...'. In the dialog box that appears, click on 'Save
Everything' (assuming that you want to) and then click on 'OK'.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Two Dimensional Truss

Plane Stress Bracket
Bicycle Space Frame

Plane Stress Bracket

| Verification Example | | Preprocessing | | Solution | | Postprocessing | | Command Line |
Modeling Tools | Bracket Example | | Preprocessing | | Solution | | Postprocessing | | Command Line |
Solid Modeling
Introduction

Index This tutorial is the second of three basic tutorials created to illustrate commom features in ANSYS. The plane stress bracket tutorial builds
upon techniques covered in the first tutorial (3D Bicycle Space Frame), it is therefore essential that you have completed that tutorial prior
to beginning this one.

Contributions
The 2D Plane Stress Bracket will introduce boolean operations, plane stress, and uniform pressure loading.
Comments
Problem Description
MecE 563

The problem to be modeled in this example is a simple bracket shown in the following figure. This bracket is to be built from a 20 mm
Mechanical Engineering
thick steel plate. A figure of the plate is shown below.
University of Alberta

ANSYS Inc.

Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta
This plate will be fixed at the two small holes on the left and have a load applied to the larger hole on the right.

Verification Example
The first step is to simplify the problem. Whenever you are trying out a new analysis type, you need something (ie analytical solution or
experimental data) to compare the results to. This way you can be sure that you've gotten the correct analysis type, units, scale factors, etc.

The simplified version that will be used for this problem is that of a flat rectangular plate with a hole shown in the following figure:
Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

1. Give the Simplified Version a Title

Utility Menu > File > Change Title

2. Form Geometry

Boolean operations provide a means to create complicated solid models. These procedures make it easy to combine simple
geometric entities to create more complex bodies. Subtraction will used to create this model, however, many other Boolean
operations can be used in ANSYS.

a. Create the main rectangular shape

Instead of creating the geometry using keypoints, we will create an area (using GUI)

Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Areas > Rectangle > By 2 Corners
 ■ Fill in the window as shown above. This will create a rectangle where the bottom left corner has the coordinates
0,0,0 and the top right corner has the coordinates 200,100,0.

(Alternatively, the command line code for the above command is BLC4,0,0,200,100)

b. Create the circle

Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Areas > Circle > Solid Circle
 ■ Fill in the window as shown above. This will create a circle where the center has the coordinates 100,50,0 (the center
of the rectangle) and the radius of the circle is 20 mm.

(Alternatively, the command line code for the above command is CYL4,100,50,20 )

c. Subtraction

Now we want to subtract the circle from the rectangle. Prior to this operation, your image should resemble the
following:
■ To perform the Boolean operation, from the Preprocessor menu select:
Modeling > Operate > Booleans > Subtract > Areas

■ At this point a 'Subtract Areas' window will pop up and the ANSYS Input window will display the following
message: [ASBA] Pick or enter base areas from which to subtract (as shown below)

■ Therefore, select the base area (the rectangle) by clicking on it. Note: The selected area will turn pink once it is
selected.

■ The following window may appear because there are 2 areas at the location you clicked.
■ Ensure that the entire rectangular area is selected (otherwise click 'Next') and then click 'OK'.

■ Click 'OK' on the 'Subtract Areas' window.

■ Now you will be prompted to select the areas to be subtracted, select the circle by clicking on it and then click 'OK'.

You should now have the following model:

(Alternatively, the command line code for the above step is ASBA,1,2)
3. Define the Type of Element

It is now necessary to define the type of element to use for our problem:

Preprocessor Menu > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete

❍ Add the following type of element: Solid (under the Structural heading) and the Quad 82 element, as shown in the above
figure.

PLANE82 is a higher order version of the two-dimensional, four-node element (PLANE42). PLANE82 is an eight noded
quadrilateral element which is better suited to model curved boundaries.

For this example, we need a plane stress element with thickness, therefore
❍ Click on the 'Options...' button. Click and hold the K3 button, and select 'Plane strs w/thk', as shown below.
 (Alternatively, the command line code for the above step is ET,1,PLANE82 followed by KEYOPT,1,3,3)

4. Define Geometric Properties

❍ As in previous examples Preprocessor menu > Real Constants > Add/Edit/Delete

❍ Enter a thickness of 20 as shown in the figure below. This defines a plate thickness of 20mm)

(Alternatively, the command line code for the above step is R,1,20)

5. Element Material Properties

❍ As shown in previous examples, select Preprocessor > Material Props > Material models > Structural > Linear >

Elastic > Isotropic

We are going to give the properties of Steel. Enter the following when prompted:

EX 200000
PRXY 0.3

(Alternatively, the command line code for the above step is MP,EX,1,200000 followed by MP,PRXY,1,0.3)

6. Mesh Size

To tell ANSYS how big the elements should be, Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > Manual Size > Areas > All Areas
 ❍ Select an element edge length of 25. We will return later to determine if this was adequate for the problem.

(Alternatively, the command line code for the above step is AESIZE,ALL,25,)

7. Mesh

Now the frame can be meshed.

❍ In the 'Preprocessor' menu select Meshing > Mesh > Areas > Free and select the area when prompted

(Alternatively, the command line code for the above step is AMESH,ALL)

You should now have the following:

 Saving Your Job
Utility Menu > File > Save as...

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving

You have now defined your model. It is now time to apply the load(s) and constraint(s) and solve the the resulting system of equations.

1. Define Analysis Type

❍ Ensure that a Static Analysis will be performed (Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis).

(Alternatively, the command line code for the above step is ANTYPE,0)

2. Apply Constraints

As shown previously, the left end of the plate is fixed.

❍ In the Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On Lines

❍ Select the left end of the plate and click on 'Apply' in the 'Apply U,ROT on Lines' window.

❍ Fill in the window as shown below.

 ❍ This location is fixed which means that all DOF's are constrained. Therefore, select 'All DOF' by clicking on it and enter '0'
in the Value field as shown above.

You will see some blue triangles in the graphics window indicating the displacement contraints.

(Alternatively, the command line code for the above step is DL,4,,ALL,0)

3. Apply Loads

❍ As shown in the diagram, there is a load of 20N/mm distributed on the right hand side of the plate. To apply this load:
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Pressure > On Lines

❍ When the window appears, select the line along the right hand edge of the plate and click 'OK'

❍ Calculate the pressure on the plate end by dividing the distributed load by the thickness of the plate (1 MPa).

❍ Fill in the "Apply PRES on lines" window as shown below. NOTE:

■ The pressure is uniform along the surface of the plate, therefore the last field is left blank.

■ The pressure is acting away from the surface of the plate, and is therefore defined as a negative pressure.
The applied loads and constraints should now appear as shown below.
 4. Solving the System
Solution > Solve > Current LS

Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

1. Hand Calculations

Now, since the purpose of this exercise was to verify the results - we need to calculate what we should find.

Deflection: The maximum deflection occurs on the right hand side of the plate and was calculated to be 0.001 mm - neglecting the
effects of the hole in the plate (ie - just a flat plate). The actual deflection of the plate is therefore expected to be greater but in the
same range of magnitude.

Stress: The maximum stress occurs at the top and bottom of the hole in the plate and was found to be 3.9 MPa.

2. Convergence using ANSYS

At this point we need to find whether or not the final result has converged. We will do this by looking at the deflection and stress at
particular nodes while changing the size of the meshing element.

Since we have an analytical solution for the maximum stress point, we will check the stress at this point. First we need to
find the node corresponding to the top of the hole in the plate. First plot and number the nodes

Utility Menu > Plot > Nodes

Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Numbering...

❍ The plot should look similar to the one shown below. Make a note of the node closest to the top of the circle (ie. #49)

❍ List the stresses (General Postproc > List Results > Nodal Solution > Stress, Principals SPRIN) and check the SEQV
(Equivalent Stress / von Mises Stress) for the node in question. (as shown below in red)
 The equivalent stress was found to be 2.9141 MPa at this point. We will use smaller elements to try to get a more
accurate solution.

❍ Resize Elements

a. To change the element size, we need to go back to the Preprocessor Menu

Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > Manual Size > Areas > All Areas
now decrease the element edge length (ie 20)

b. Now remesh the model (Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Areas > Free). Once you have selected the area and
clicked 'OK' the following window will appear:
 c. Click 'OK'. This will remesh the model using the new element edge length.

d. Solve the system again (note that the constraints need not be reapplied). ( Solution Menu > Current LS )

❍ Repeat steps 'a' through 'd' until the model has converged. (note - the number of the node at the top of the hole has most
likely changed. It is essential that you plot the nodes again to select the appropriate node). Plot the stress/deflection at
varying mesh sizes as shown below to confirm that convergence has occured.

Note the shapes of both the deflection and stress curves. As the number of elements in the mesh increases (ie - the element edge
length decreases), the values converge towards a final solution.

The von Mises stress at the top of the hole in the plate was found to be approximatly 3.8 MPa. This is a mere 2.5% difference
between the analytical solution and the solution found using ANSYS.
 The approximate maximum displacement was found to be 0.0012 mm, this is 20% greater than the analytical solution. However,
the analytical solution does not account for the large hole in the center of the plate which was expected to significantly increase the
deflection at the end of the plate.

Therefore, the results using ANSYS were determined to be appropriate for the verification model.

3. Deformation

❍ General Postproc > Plot Results > Deformed Shape > Def + undeformd to view both the deformed and the undeformed
object.

❍ Observe the locations of deflection.

4. Deflection
❍ General Postproc > Plot Results > Nodal Solution... Then select DOF solution, USUM in the window.
 ❍ Alternatively, obtain these results as a list. (General Postproc > List Results > Nodal Solution...)

❍ Are these results what you expected? Note that all translational degrees of freedom were constrained to zero at the left end
of the plate.

5. Stresses
❍ General Postproc > Plot Results > Nodal Solution... Then select Stress, von Mises in the window.
 ❍ You can list the von Mises stresses to verify the results at certain nodes
General Postproc > List Results. Select Stress, Principals SPRIN

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.

Bracket Example
Now we will return to the analysis of the bracket. A combination of GUI and the Command line will be used for this example.

The problem to be modeled in this example is a simple bracket shown in the following figure. This bracket is to be built from a 20 mm
thick steel plate. A figure of the plate is shown below.

This plate will be fixed at the two small holes on the left and have a load applied to the larger hole on the right.

Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

1. Give the Bracket example a Title
Utility Menu > File > Change Title

2. Form Geometry

Again, Boolean operations will be used to create the basic geometry of the Bracket.

a. Create the main rectangular shape

 The main rectangular shape has a width of 80 mm, a height of 100mm and the bottom left corner is located at coordinates
(0,0)

■ Ensure that the Preprocessor menu is open. (Alternatively type /PREP7 into the command line window)

■ Now instead of using the GUI window we are going to enter code into the 'command line'. Now I will explain the
line required to create a rectangle:

BLC4, XCORNER, YCORNER, WIDTH, HEIGHT

BLC4, X coord (bottom left), Y coord (bottom left), width, height

■ Therefore, the command line for this rectangle is BLC4,0,0,80,100

b. Create the circular end on the right hand side

The center of the circle is located at (80,50) and has a radius of 50 mm

The following code is used to create a circular area:

CYL4, XCENTER, YCENTER, RAD1

CYL4, X coord for the center, Y coord for the center, radius

■ Therefore, the command line for this circle is CYL4,80,50,50

c. Now create a second and third circle for the left hand side using the following dimensions:

parameter circle 2 circle 3

XCENTER 0 0

YCENTER 20 80

RADIUS 20 20

d. Create a rectangle on the left hand end to fill the gap between the two small circles.

XCORNER -20

YCORNER 20
 WIDTH 20

HEIGHT 60

Your screen should now look like the following...

e. Boolean Operations - Addition

We now want to add these five discrete areas together to form one area.

■ To perform the Boolean operation, from the Preprocessor menu select:

Modeling > Operate > Booleans > Add > Areas

■ In the 'Add Areas' window, click on 'Pick All'

(Alternatively, the command line code for the above step is AADD,ALL)
 You should now have the following model:

f. Create the Bolt Holes We now want to remove the bolt holes from this plate.

■ Create the three circles with the parameters given below:

parameter circle 1 circle 2 circle 3

WP X 80 0 0

WP Y 50 20 80

radius 30 10 10

■ Now select
Preprocessor > Modeling > Operate > Booleans > Subtract > Areas

■ Select the base areas from which to subract (the large plate that was created)
 ■ Next select the three circles that we just created. Click on the three circles that you just created and click 'OK'.

(Alternatively, the command line code for the above step is ASBA,6,ALL)

Now you should have the following:

3. Define the Type of Element

As in the verification model, PLANE82 will be used for this example

❍ Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete

❍ Use the 'Options...' button to get a plane stress element with thickness

(Alternatively, the command line code for the above step is ET,1,PLANE82 followed by KEYOPT,1,3,3)
 ❍ Under the Extra Element Output K5 select nodal stress.

4. Define Geometric Contants

❍ Preprocessor > Real Constants > Add/Edit/Delete

❍ Enter a thickness of 20mm.

(Alternatively, the command line code for the above step is R,1,20)

5. Element Material Properties

❍ Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Library > Structural > Linear > Elastic > Isotropic

We are going to give the properties of Steel. Enter the following when prompted:

EX 200000
PRXY 0.3

(The command line code for the above step is MP,EX,1,200000 followed by MP,PRXY,1,0.3)

6. Mesh Size

❍ Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > Manual Size > Areas > All Areas

❍ Select an element edge length of 5. Again, we will need to make sure the model has converged.

(Alternatively, the command line code for the above step is AESIZE,ALL,5,)

7. Mesh

❍ Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Areas > Free and select the area when prompted

(Alternatively, the command line code for the above step is AMESH,ALL)
 Saving Your Job
Utility Menu > File > Save as...

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving

You have now defined your model. It is now time to apply the load(s) and constraint(s) and solve the the resulting system of equations.

1. Define Analysis Type

❍ 'Solution' > 'New Analysis' and select 'Static'.

(Alternatively, the command line code for the above step is ANTYPE,0)

2. Apply Constraints
 As illustrated, the plate is fixed at both of the smaller holes on the left hand side.

❍ Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On Nodes

❍ Instead of selecting one node at a time, you have the option of creating a box, polygon, or circle of which all the nodes in
that area will be selected. For this case, select 'circle' as shown in the window below. (You may want to zoom in to select
the points Utilty Menu / PlotCtrls / Pan, Zoom, Rotate...) Click at the center of the bolt hole and drag the circle out so that
it touches all of the nodes on the border of the hole.

❍ Click on 'Apply' in the 'Apply U,ROT on Lines' window and constrain all DOF's in the 'Apply U,ROT on Nodes' window.

❍ Repeat for the second bolt hole.

3. Apply Loads
 As shown in the diagram, there is a single vertical load of 1000N, at the bottom of the large bolt hole. Apply this force to the
respective keypoint ( Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Force/Moment > On Keypoints Select a force in the y
direction of -1000)

The applied loads and constraints should now appear as shown below.

4. Solving the System

Solution > Solve > Current LS

Post-Processing: Viewing the Results

We are now ready to view the results. We will take a look at the deflected shape and the stress contours once we determine convergence
has occured.
1. Convergence using ANSYS

As shown previously, it is necessary to prove that the solution has converged. Reduce the mesh size until there is no longer
a sizeable change in your convergence criteria.

2. Deformation

❍ General Postproc > Plot Results > Def + undeformed to view both the deformed and the undeformed object.

The graphic should be similar to the following

❍ Observe the locations of deflection. Ensure that the deflection at the bolt hole is indeed 0.

3. Deflection

❍ To plot the nodal deflections use General Postproc > Plot Results > Contour Plot > Nodal Solution then select DOF
Solution - USUM in the window.
 ❍ Alternatively, obtain these results as a list. (General Postproc > List Results > Nodal Solution...)

❍ Are these results what you expected? Note that all translational degrees of freedom were constrained to zero at the bolt
holes.

4. Stresses
❍ General Postproc > Plot Results > Nodal Solution... Then select von Mises Stress in the window.
 ❍ You can list the von Mises stresses to verify the results at certain nodes
General Postproc > List Results. Select Stress, Principals SPRIN

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.

Quitting ANSYS
To quit ANSYS, click 'QUIT' on the ANSYS Toolbar or select Utility Menu > File > Exit... In the window that appears, select 'Save
Everything' (assuming that you want to) and then click 'OK'.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Two Dimensional Truss

Solid Model Creation
Bicycle Space Frame

Plane Stress Bracket

Modeling Tools Introduction

Solid Modeling
This tutorial is the last of three basic tutorials devised to illustrate commom features in ANSYS. Each tutorial builds upon techniques
covered in previous tutorials, it is therefore essential that you complete the tutorials in order.

Index The Solid Modelling Tutorial will introduce various techniques which can be used in ANSYS to create solid models. Filleting, extrusion/
sweeping, copying, and working plane orientation will be covered in detail.

Contributions Two Solid Models will be created within this tutorial.

Comments

MecE 563
Problem Description A
Mechanical Engineering
We will be creating a solid model of the pulley shown in the following figure.
University of Alberta

ANSYS Inc.

Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta
Geometry Generation
We will create this model by first tracing out the cross section of the pulley and then sweeping this area about the y axis.

Creation of Cross Sectional Area

1. Create 3 Rectangles
Main Menu > Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Create > Rectangle > By 2 Corners
BLC4, XCORNER, YCORNER, WIDTH, HEIGHT

The geometry of the rectangles:

 Rectangle 1 Rectangle 2 Rectangle 3
WP X (XCORNER) 2 3 8
WP Y (YCORNER) 0 2 0
WIDTH 1 5 0.5
HEIGHT 5.5 1 5

You should obtain the following:

2. Add the Areas

Main Menu > Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Operate > (-Boolean-) Add > Areas
AADD, ALL

ANSYS will label the united area as AREA 4 and the previous three areas will be deleted.

3. Create the rounded edges using circles

Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Create > (-Areas-) Circle > Solid circles
CYL4,XCENTER,YCENTER,RAD
 The geometry of the circles:

Circle 1 Circle 2
WP X (XCENTER) 3 8.5
WP Y (YCENTER) 5.5 0.2
RADIUS 0.5 0.2

4. Subtract the large circle from the base

Preprocessor > Operate > Subtract > Areas
ASBA,BASE,SUBTRACT

5. Copy the smaller circle for the rounded edges at the top
Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Copy > Areas

❍ Click on the small circle and then on OK.

❍ The following window will appear. It asks for the x,y and z offset of the copied area. Enter the y offset as 4.6 and then click
OK.
 ❍ Copy this new area now with an x offset of -0.5

You should obtain the following

6. Add the smaller circles to the large area.

Preprocessor > Operate > Add > Areas
AADD,ALL

7. Fillet the inside edges of the top half of the area

Preprocessor > Create > (-Lines-) Line Fillet

❍ Select the two lines shown below and click on OK.

❍ The following window will appear prompting for the fillet radius. Enter 0.1

❍ Follow the same procedure and create a fillet with the same radius between the following lines
8. Create the fillet areas

❍ As shown below, zoom into the fillet radius and plot and number the lines.
 Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Create > (-Areas-) Arbitrary > By Lines

❍ Select the lines as shown below

❍ Repeat for the other fillet

9. Add all the areas together

Preprocessor > Operate > Add > Areas
AADD,ALL
 10. Plot the areas (Utility Menu > Plot - Areas)

Sweep the Cross Sectional Area

Now we need to sweep the area around a y axis at x=0 and z=0 to create the pulley.

1. Create two keypoints defining the y axis

Create keypoints at (0,0,0) and (0,5,0) and number them 1001 and 1002 respectively. (K,#,X,Y,Z)

2. By default the graphics will now show all keypoints. Plot Areas

3. Sweep the area about the y axis

Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Operate > Extrude > (-Areas-) About axis

❍ You will first be prompted to select the areas to be swept so click on the area.

❍ Then you will be asked to enter or pick two keypoints defining the axis.

❍ Plot the Keypoints (Utility Menu > Plot > Keypoints. Then select the following two keypoints
❍ The following window will appear prompting for sweeping angles. Click on OK.
 You should now see the following in the graphics screen.

Create Bolt Holes

1. Change the Working Plane

By default, the working plane in ANSYS is located on the global Cartesian X-Y plane. However, for us to define the bolt holes, we
need to use a different working plane. There are several ways to define a working plane, one of which is to define it by three
keypoints.

❍ Create the following Keypoints

X Y Z
#2001 0 3 0
#2002 1 3 0
#2003 0 3 1
 ❍ Switch the view to top view and plot only keypoints.

2. Align the Working Plane with the Keypoints

Utility Menu > WorkPlane > Align WP with > Keypoints +

❍ Select Keypoints 2001 then 2002 then 2003 IN THAT ORDER. The first keypoint (2001) defines the origin of the working
plane coordinate system, the second keypoint (2002) defines the x-axis orientation, while the third (2003) defines the
orientation of the working plane. The following warning will appear when selecting the keypoint at the origin as there are
more than one in this location.

Just click on 'Next' until the one selected is 2001.

❍ Once you have selected the 3 keypoints and clicked 'OK' the WP symbol (green) should appear in the Graphics window.
Another way to make sure the active WP has moves is:
Utility Menu > WorkPlane > Show WP Status
 note the origin of the working plane. By default those values would be 0,0,0.

3. Create a Cylinder (solid cylinder) with x=5.5 y=0 r=0.5 depth=1 You should see the following in the graphics screen

We will now copy this volume so that we repeat it every 45 degrees. Note that you must copy the cylinder before you use boolean
operations to subtract it because you cannot copy an empty space.

4. We need to change active CS to cylindrical Y

Utility Menu > WorkPlane > Change Active CS to > Global Cylindrical Y
This will allow us to copy radially about the Y axis

5. Create 8 bolt Holes

Preprocessor > Copy > Volumes

❍ Select the cylinder volume and click on OK. The following window will appear; fill in the blanks as shown,
Youi should obtain the following model,
❍ Subtract the cylinders from the pulley hub (Boolean operations) to create the boltholes. This will result in the following
completed structure:
Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.

Problem Description B
We will be creating a solid model of the Spindle Base shown in the following figure.
Geometry Generation
We will create this model by creating the base and the back and then the rib.

Create the Base

1. Create the base rectangle

WP X (XCORNER) WP Y (YCORNER) WIDTH HEIGHT
0 0 109 102
2. Create the curved edge (using keypoints and lines to create an area)

❍ Create the following keypoints

X Y Z
Keypoint 5 -20 82 0
Keypoint 6 -20 20 0
Keypoint 7 0 82 0
Keypoint 8 0 20 0

You should obtain the following:

❍ Create arcs joining the keypoints
Main Menu > Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Create > (-Lines-) Arcs > By End KPs & Rad

■ Select keypoints 4 and 5 (either click on them or type 4,5 into the command line) when prompted.

■ Select Keypoint 7 as the center-of-curvature when prompted.

■ Enter the radius of the arc (20) in the 'Arc by End KPs & Radius' window

■ Repeat to create an arc from keypoints 1 and 6

(Alternatively, type LARC,4,5,7,20 followed by LARC,1,6,8,20 into the command line)

❍ Create a line from Keypoint 5 to 6

Main Menu > Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Create > (-Lines-) Lines > Straight Line
L,5,6

❍ Create an Arbitrary area within the bounds of the lines

 Main Menu > Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Create > (-Areas-) Arbitrary > By Lines
AL,4,5,6,7

❍ Combine the 2 areas into 1 (to form Area 3)

Main Menu > Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Operate > (-Booleans-) Add > Volumes
AADD,1,2

You should obtain the following image:

3. Create the 4 holes in the base

We will make use of the 'copy' feature in ANSYS to create all 4 holes

❍ Create the bottom left circle (XCENTER=0, YCENTER=20, RADIUS=10)

❍ Copy the area to create the bottom right circle (DX=69)

(AGEN,# Copies (include original),Area#,Area2# (if 2 areas to be copied),DX,DY,DZ)
 ❍ Copy both circles to create the upper circles (DY=62)

❍ Subtract the three circles from the main base

(ASBA,3,ALL)

You should obtain the following:

4. Extrude the base

Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Operate > Extrude > (-Areas-) Along Normal

The following window will appear once you select the area
 ❍ Fill in the window as shown (length of extrusion = 26mm). Note, to extrude the area in the negative z direction you would
simply enter -26.

(Alternatively, type VOFFST,6,26 into the command line)

Create the Back

1. Change the working plane

As in the previous example, we need to change the working plane. You may have observed that geometry can only be created in
the X-Y plane. Therefore, in order to create the back of the Spindle Base, we need to create a new working plane where the X-Y
plane is parallel to the back. Again, we will define the working plane by aligning it to 3 Keypoints.

❍ Create the following keypoints

X Y Z
#100 109 102 0
#101 109 2 0
#102 159 102 sqrt(3)/0.02

❍ Align the working plane to the 3 keypoints

Recall when defining the working plane; the first keypoint defines the origin, the second keypoint defines the x-axis
orientation, while the third defines the orientation of the working plane.
(Alternatively, type KWPLAN,1,100,101,102 into the command line)
2. Create the back area

❍ Create the base rectangle (XCORNER=0, YCORNER=0, WIDTH=102, HEIGHT=180)

❍ Create a circle to obtain the curved top (XCENTER=51, YCENTER=180, RADIUS=51)

❍ Add the 2 areas together

3. Extrude the area (length of extrusion = 26mm)

Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Operate > Extrude > (-Areas-) Along Normal
VOFFST,27,26

4. Add the base and the back together

❍ Add the two volumes together

Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Operate > (-Booleans-) Add > Volumes
VADD,1,2

You should now have the following geometry

Note that the planar areas between the two volumes were not added together.
 ❍ Add the planar areas together (don't forget the other side!)
Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Operate > (-Booleans-) Add > Areas
AADD, Area 1, Area 2, Area 3

5. Create the Upper Cylinder

❍ Create the outer cylinder (XCENTER=51, YCENTER=180, RADIUS=32, DEPTH=60)

Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Create > (-Volumes-) Cylinder > Solid Cylinder
CYL4,51,180,32, , , ,60

❍ Add the volumes together

❍ Create the inner cylinder (XCENTER=51, YCENTER=180, RADIUS=18.5, DEPTH=60)

❍ Subtract the volumes to obtain a hole

You should now have the following geometry:

Create the Rib

1. Change the working plane

❍ First change the active coordinate system back to the global coordinate system (this will make it easier to align to the new
coordinate system)
Utility Menu > WorkPlane > Align WP with > Global Cartesian

(Alternatively, type WPCSYS,-1,0 into the command line)

❍ Create the following keypoints

X Y Z
#200 -20 61 26
#201 0 61 26
#202 -20 61 30

❍ Align the working plane to the 3 keypoints

Recall when defining the working plane; the first keypoint defines the origin, the second keypoint defines the x-axis
orientation, while the third defines the orientation of the working plane.
(Alternatively, type KWPLAN,1,200,201,202 into the command line)

2. Change active coordinate system

We now need to update the coordiante system to follow the working plane changes (ie make the new Work Plane origin the active
coordinate)

Utility Menu > WorkPlane > Change Active CS to > Working Plane
CSYS,4

3. Create the area

❍ Create the keypoints corresponding to the vertices of the rib

X Y Z
#203 129-(0.57735*26) 0 0
#204 129-(0.57735*26) + 38 sqrt(3)/2*76 0

❍ Create the rib area through keypoints 200, 203, 204

 Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Create > (-Areas-) Arbitrary > Through KPs
A,200,203,204

4. Extrude the area (length of extrusion = 20mm)

5. Add the volumes together

You should obtain the following:

Quitting ANSYS
To quit ANSYS, select 'QUIT' from the ANSYS Toolbar or select 'Utility Menu'/'File'/'Exit...'. In the dialog box that appears, click on
'Save Everything' (assuming that you want to) and then click on 'OK'.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Effect of Self Weight

Effect of Self Weight on a Cantilever Beam
Distributed Loading

NonLinear Analysis

Solution Tracking Introduction

Buckling
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of the tutorial is to show the required steps to account for the weight of an
NonLinear Materials object in ANSYS.

Dynamic - Modal Loads will not be applied to the beam shown below in order to observe the deflection caused by the weight of the beam itself. The beam is
to be made of steel with a modulus of elasticity of 200 GPa.
Dynamic - Harmonic

Dynamic - Transient

Thermal-Conduction

Thermal-Mixed Bndry

Transient Heat

Axisymmetric

Index

Contributions

Comments
Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

MecE 563 1. Give example a Title

Utility Menu > File > Change Title ...
Mechanical Engineering /title, Effects of Self Weight for a Cantilever Beam

University of Alberta
2. Open preprocessor menu
ANSYS Main Menu > Preprocessor
/PREP7
 ANSYS Inc.
3. Define Keypoints
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Keypoints > In Active CS...
K,#,x,y,z

We are going to define 2 keypoints for this beam as given in the following table:
Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta
Keypoint Coordinates (x,y,z)
1 (0,0)
2 (1000,0)

4. Create Lines
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Lines > Lines > In Active Coord
L,1,2

Create a line joining Keypoints 1 and 2

5. Define the Type of Element

Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete...

For this problem we will use the BEAM3 (Beam 2D elastic) element. This element has 3 degrees of freedom (translation
along the X and Y axes, and rotation about the Z axis).

6. Define Real Constants

Preprocessor > Real Constants... > Add...

In the 'Real Constants for BEAM3' window, enter the following geometric properties:

i. Cross-sectional area AREA: 500

ii. Area moment of inertia IZZ: 4166.67
iii. Total beam height: 10

This defines a beam with a height of 10 mm and a width of 50 mm.

7. Define Element Material Properties

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Structural > Linear > Elastic > Isotropic

In the window that appears, enter the following geometric properties for steel:

i. Young's modulus EX: 200000

 ii. Poisson's Ratio PRXY: 0.3

8. Define Element Density

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Structural > Linear > Density

In the window that appears, enter the following density for steel:

i. Density DENS: 7.86e-6

9. Define Mesh Size

Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > ManualSize > Lines > All Lines...

For this example we will use an element edge length of 100mm.

10. Mesh the frame

Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Lines > click 'Pick All'

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Define Analysis Type
Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis > Static
ANTYPE,0

2. Apply Constraints
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On Keypoints

Fix keypoint 1 (ie all DOF constrained)

3. Define Gravity

It is necessary to define the direction and magnitude of gravity for this problem.

❍ Select Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Inertia > Gravity...

❍ The following window will appear. Fill it in as shown to define an acceleration of 9.81m/s2 in the y direction.
 Note: Acceleration is defined in terms of meters (not 'mm' as used throughout the problem). This is because the units of
acceleration and mass must be consistent to give the product of force units (Newtons in this case). Also note that a positive
acceleration in the y direction stimulates gravity in the negative Y direction.

There should now be a red arrow pointing in the positive y direction. This indicates that an acceleration has been defined in
the y direction.
DK,1,ALL,0,
ACEL,,9.8

The applied loads and constraints should now appear as shown in the figure below.
 4. Solve the System
Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

1. Hand Calculations

Hand calculations were performed to verify the solution found using ANSYS:

The maximum deflection was shown to be 5.777mm

2. Show the deformation of the beam

General Postproc > Plot Results > Deformed Shape ... > Def + undef edge
PLDISP,2
 As observed in the upper left hand corner, the maximum displacement was found to be 5.777mm. This is in agreement with the
theortical value.

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Effect of Self Weight

Application of Distributed Loads
Distributed Loading

NonLinear Analysis

Solution Tracking Introduction

Buckling
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0. The purpose of this tutorial is to explain how to apply distributed loads and use element
NonLinear Materials tables to extract data. Please note that this material was also covered in the 'Bicycle Space Frame' tutorial under 'Basic Tutorials'.

Dynamic - Modal A distributed load of 1000 N/m (1 N/mm) will be applied to a solid steel beam with a rectangular cross section as shown in the figure
below. The cross-section of the beam is 10mm x 10mm while the modulus of elasticity of the steel is 200GPa.
Dynamic - Harmonic

Dynamic - Transient

Thermal-Conduction

Thermal-Mixed Bndry

Transient Heat

Axisymmetric

Index

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta
 ANSYS Inc.

Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

1. Open preprocessor menu
Copyright © 2001 /PREP7
University of Alberta
2. Give example a Title
Utility Menu > File > Change Title ...
/title, Distributed Loading

3. Create Keypoints
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Keypoints > In Active CS
K,#,x,y

We are going to define 2 keypoints (the beam vertices) for this structure as given in the following table:

Keypoint Coordinates (x,y)

1 (0,0)
2 (1000,0)

4. Define Lines
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Lines > Lines > Straight Line
L,K#,K#

Create a line between Keypoint 1 and Keypoint 2.

5. Define Element Types

Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete...

For this problem we will use the BEAM3 element. This element has 3 degrees of freedom (translation along the X and Y
axis's, and rotation about the Z axis). With only 3 degrees of freedom, the BEAM3 element can only be used in 2D analysis.

6. Define Real Constants

Preprocessor > Real Constants... > Add...

In the 'Real Constants for BEAM3' window, enter the following geometric properties:

i. Cross-sectional area AREA: 100

 ii. Area Moment of Inertia IZZ: 833.333
iii. Total beam height HEIGHT: 10

This defines an element with a solid rectangular cross section 10mm x 10mm.

7. Define Element Material Properties

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Structural > Linear > Elastic > Isotropic

In the window that appears, enter the following geometric properties for steel:

i. Young's modulus EX: 200000

ii. Poisson's Ratio PRXY: 0.3

8. Define Mesh Size

Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > ManualSize > Lines > All Lines...

For this example we will use an element length of 100mm.

9. Mesh the frame

Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Lines > click 'Pick All'

10. Plot Elements

Utility Menu > Plot > Elements

You may also wish to turn on element numbering and turn off keypoint numbering

Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Numbering ...

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving
1. Define Analysis Type
Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis > Static
ANTYPE,0

2. Apply Constraints
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On Keypoints

Pin Keypoint 1 (ie UX and UY constrained) and fix Keypoint 2 in the y direction (UY constrained).

3. Apply Loads

We will apply a distributed load, of 1000 N/m or 1 N/mm, over the entire length of the beam.

❍ Select Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Pressure > On Beams
❍ Click 'Pick All' in the 'Apply F/M' window.
❍ As shown in the following figure, enter a value of 1 in the field 'VALI Pressure value at node I' then click 'OK'.
The applied loads and constraints should now appear as shown in the figure below.
 Note:

To have the constraints and loads appear each time you select 'Replot' you must change some settings. Select Utility Menu
> PlotCtrls > Symbols.... In the window that appears, select 'Pressures' in the pull down menu of the 'Surface Load
Symbols' section.

4. Solve the System

Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

1. Plot Deformed Shape
General Postproc > Plot Results > Deformed Shape
PLDISP.2

2. Plot Principle stress distribution

As shown previously, we need to use element tables to obtain principle stresses for line elements.
 1. Select General Postproc > Element Table > Define Table

2. Click 'Add...'

3. In the window that appears

a. enter 'SMAXI' in the 'User Label for Item' section
b. In the first window in the 'Results Data Item' section scroll down and select 'By sequence num'
c. In the second window of the same section, select 'NMISC, '
d. In the third window enter '1' anywhere after the comma

4. click 'Apply'

5. Repeat steps 2 to 4 but change 'SMAXI' to 'SMAXJ' in step 3a and change '1' to '3' in step 3d.

6. Click 'OK'. The 'Element Table Data' window should now have two variables in it.

7. Click 'Close' in the 'Element Table Data' window.

8. Select: General Postproc > Plot Results > Line Elem Res...

9. Select 'SMAXI' from the 'LabI' pull down menu and 'SMAXJ' from the 'LabJ' pull down menu

Note:

❍ ANSYS can only calculate the stress at a single location on the element. For this example, we decided to extract the stresses
from the I and J nodes of each element. These are the nodes that are at the ends of each element.

❍ For this problem, we wanted the principal stresses for the elements. For the BEAM3 element this is categorized as NMISC,
1 for the 'I' nodes and NMISC, 3 for the 'J' nodes. A list of available codes for each element can be found in the ANSYS
help files. (ie. type help BEAM3 in the ANSYS Input window).

As shown in the plot below, the maximum stress occurs in the middle of the beam with a value of 750 MPa.
Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Effect of Self Weight

NonLinear Analysis of a Cantilever Beam
Distributed Loading

NonLinear Analysis

Solution Tracking Introduction

Buckling
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to outline the steps required to do a simple nonlinear analysis of
NonLinear Materials the beam shown below.

Dynamic - Modal

Dynamic - Harmonic

Dynamic - Transient

Thermal-Conduction

Thermal-Mixed Bndry

Transient Heat

Axisymmetric

Index There are several causes for nonlinear behaviour such as Changing Status (ex. contact elements), Material Nonlinearities and
Geometric Nonlinearities (change in response due to large deformations). This tutorial will deal specifically with Geometric
Nonlinearities .
Contributions
To solve this problem, the load will added incrementally. After each increment, the stiffness matrix will be adjusted before increasing the
Comments load.

MecE 563
The solution will be compared to the equivalent solution using a linear response.
Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta

Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

 1. Give example a Title
ANSYS Inc.
Utility Menu > File > Change Title ...

2. Create Keypoints
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Keypoints > In Active CS
Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta We are going to define 2 keypoints (the beam vertices) for this structure to create a beam with a length of 5 inches:

Keypoint Coordinates (x,y)

1 (0,0)
2 (5,0)

3. Define Lines
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Lines > Lines > Straight Line

Create a line between Keypoint 1 and Keypoint 2.

4. Define Element Types

Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete...

For this problem we will use the BEAM3 (Beam 2D elastic) element. This element has 3 degrees of freedom (translation
along the X and Y axis's, and rotation about the Z axis). With only 3 degrees of freedom, the BEAM3 element can only be
used in 2D analysis.

5. Define Real Constants

Preprocessor > Real Constants... > Add...

In the 'Real Constants for BEAM3' window, enter the following geometric properties:

i. Cross-sectional area AREA: 0.03125

ii. Area Moment of Inertia IZZ: 4.069e-5
iii. Total beam height HEIGHT: 0.125

This defines an element with a solid rectangular cross section 0.25 x 0.125 inches.

6. Define Element Material Properties

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Structural > Linear > Elastic > Isotropic

In the window that appears, enter the following geometric properties for steel:
 i. Young's modulus EX: 30e6
ii. Poisson's Ratio PRXY: 0.3

If you are wondering why a 'Linear' model was chosen when this is a non-linear example, it is because this example is for
non-linear geometry, not non-linear material properties. If we were considering a block of wood, for example, we would
have to consider non-linear material properties.

7. Define Mesh Size

Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > ManualSize > Lines > All Lines...

For this example we will specify an element edge length of 0.1 " (50 element divisions along the line).

8. Mesh the frame

Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Lines > click 'Pick All'
LMESH,ALL

Solution: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Define Analysis Type
Solution > New Analysis > Static
ANTYPE,0

2. Set Solution Controls

❍ Select Solution > Analysis Type > Sol'n Control...

The following image will appear:

Ensure the following selections are made (as shown above)

A. Ensure Large Static Displacements are permitted (this will include the effects of large deflection in the results)

B. Ensure Automatic time stepping is on. Automatic time stepping allows ANSYS to determine appropriate sizes to
break the load steps into. Decreasing the step size usually ensures better accuracy, however, this takes time. The
Automatic Time Step feature will determine an appropriate balance. This feature also activates the ANSYS bisection
feature which will allow recovery if convergence fails.

C. Enter 5 as the number of substeps. This will set the initial substep to 1/5 th of the total load.

The following example explains this: Assume that the applied load is 100 lb*in. If the Automatic Time Stepping was
off, there would be 5 load steps (each increasing by 1/5 th of the total load):

■ 20 lb*in
■ 40 lb*in
■ 60 lb*in
■ 80 lb*in
■ 100 lb*in
 Now, with the Automatic Time Stepping is on, the first step size will still be 20 lb*in. However, the remaining
substeps will be determined based on the response of the material due to the previous load increment.

D. Enter a maximum number of substeps of 1000. This stops the program if the solution does not converge after 1000
steps.

E. Enter a minimum number of substeps of 1.

F. Ensure all solution items are writen to a results file.

NOTE
There are several options which have not been changed from their default values. For more information about these
commands, type help followed by the command into the command line.

Function Command Comments

Load Step KBC Loads are either linearly interpolated (ramped) from the one substep to another (ie -
the load will increase from 10 lbs to 20 lbs in a linear fashion) or they are step
functions (ie. the load steps directly from 10 lbs to 20 lbs). By default, the load is
ramped. You may wish to use the stepped loading for rate-dependent behaviour or
transient load steps.

Output OUTRES This command controls the solution data written to the database. By default, all of
the solution items are written at the end of each load step. You may select only a
specific iten (ie Nodal DOF solution) to decrease processing time.

Stress Stiffness SSTIF This command activates stress stiffness effects in nonlinear analyses. When large
static deformations are permitted (as they are in this case), stress stiffening is
automatically included. For some special nonlinear cases, this can cause divergence
because some elements do not provide a complete consistent tangent.

Newton Raphson NROPT By default, the program will automatically choose the Newton-Raphson options.
Options include the full Newton-Raphson, the modified Newton-Raphson, the
previously computed matrix, and the full Newton-Raphson with unsymmetric
matrices of elements.

Convergence CNVTOL
By default, the program checks the out-of-balance load for any active DOF.
Values

3. Apply Constraints
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On Keypoints
 Fix Keypoint 1 (ie all DOFs constrained).

4. Apply Loads
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Force/Moment > On Keypoints

Place a -100 lb*in moment in the MZ direction at the right end of the beam (Keypoint 2)

5. Solve the System

Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

The following will appear on your screan for NonLinear Analyses

This shows the convergence of the solution.

General Postprocessing: Viewing the Results
1. View the deformed shape
General Postproc > Plot Results > Deformed Shape... > Def + undeformed
PLDISP,1

2. View the deflection contour plot

General Postproc > Plot Results > Contour Plot > Nodal Solu... > DOF solution, UY
PLNSOL,U,Y,0,1
 3. List Horizontal Displacement
If this example is performed as a linear model there will be no nodal deflection in the horizontal direction due to the small
deflections assumptions. However, this is not realistic for large deflections. Modeling the system non-linearly, these
horizontal deflections are calculated by ANSYS.
General Postproc > List Results > Nodal Solution...> DOF solution, UX

Other results can be obtained as shown in previous linear static analyses.

Time History Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

As shown, you can obtain the results (such as deflection, stress and bending moment diagrams) the same way you did in previous
examples using the General Postprocessor. However, you may wish to view time history results such as the deflection of the object and the
step sizes of the load.

As you recall, the load was applied in steps. The step size was automatically determined in ANSYS

1. Define Variables
 ❍ Select: TimeHist Postpro > Define Variables > Add... > Nodal DOF results

❍ Select Keypoint 2 (Node 2) when prompted

❍ Complete the following window as shown to define the translational displacement in the y direction.

Translational displacement of node 2 is now stored as variable 2 (variable 1 being time)

2. Graph Results over time

❍ Select TimeHist Postpro > Graph Variables...

❍ Enter 2 (UY) as the 1st variable to graph (shown below)

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Effect of Self Weight

Graphical Solution Tracking
Distributed Loading

NonLinear Analysis

Solution Tracking Introduction

Buckling
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 This will act as an explanation of what the Graphical Solution Tracking plot is acutally
NonLinear Materials describing. An example of such a plot is shown below and will be used throughout the explanation.

Dynamic - Modal

Dynamic - Harmonic

Dynamic - Transient

Thermal-Conduction

Thermal-Mixed Bndry

Transient Heat

Axisymmetric

Index

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering 1. Title and Axis Labels

The title of the graph is really just the time value of the last calculated iteration. In this example, the time at the end of the
University of Alberta
analysis was set to 1. This can be changed with the Time command before the Solve command is issued. For more
information regarding setting the time value, and many other solution control option, see Chapter 8.5 of the Structural
Analysis Guide in the Help file.
 ANSYS Inc. The x-axis is labelled Cumulative Iteration Number. As ANSYS steps through non-linear analysis, it uses a
solver (Newton-Raphson, etc) that iterates to find a solution. If the problem is relatively linear, very few iterations will be
required and thus the length of the graph will be small. However, if the solution is highly non-linear, or is not converging,
many iterations will be required. The length of the graph in these cases can be quite long. Again, for more information about
Copyright © 2001 changing iteration settings, you can see Chapter 8.5 in the help file.
University of Alberta
The y-axis is labelled Absolute Convergence Norm. In the case of a structural analysis, which this graph is taken
from, this absolute convergence norm refers to non-normalized values (ie there are units associated with these values).
Some analyses use normalized values. In reality it doesn't really matter because it is only a comparison that is going on. This
is what will be explained next.

2. Curves and Legend

As can be guessed from the legend labels, this graph relates to forces and moments. These values are graphed because they
are the corresponding values in the solution vector for the DOF's that are active in the elements being used. If this graph
were from a thermal analysis, the curves may be for temperature.

For each parameter, there are two curves plotted. For ease of explanation, we will look at the force curves.

■ The F CRIT curve refers to the convergence criteria force value. This value is equal to the product of VALUE x
TOLER. The default value of VALUE is the square root of the sum of the squares (SRSS) of the applied loads, or
MINREF (which defaults to 0.001), which ever is greater. This value can be changed using the CNVTOL command,
which is discussed in the help file. The value of TOLER defaults to 0.5% for loads.

One may inquire why the F CRIT value increases as the number of iterations increases. This is because the analysis
is made up of a number of substeps. In the case of a structural example, such as this, these substeps are basically
portions of the total load being applied over time. For instance, a 100N load broken up with 20 substeps means 20,
5N loads will be applied consequtively until the entire 100N is applied. Thus, the F CRIT value at the start will be
1/20th of the final F CRIT value.

■ The F L2 curve refers to the L2 Vector Norm of the forces. The L2 norm is the SRSS of the force imbalances for all
DOF's. In simpler terms, this is the SRSS of the difference between the calculated internal force at a particular DOF
and the external force in that direction.

For each substep, ANSYS iterates until the F L2 value is below the F CRIT value. Once this occurs, it is deemed the
solution is within tolerance of the correct solution and it moves on to the next substep. Generally, when the curves peak this
is the start of a new substep. As can be seen in the graph above, a peak follow everytime the L2 value drops below the CRIT
value, as expected.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Effect of Self Weight

Buckling
Distributed Loading

NonLinear Analysis

Solution Tracking Introduction

Buckling
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 to solve a simple buckling problem.
NonLinear Materials
It is recommended that you complete the NonLinear Tutorial prior to beginning this tutorial
Dynamic - Modal

Buckling loads are critical loads where certain types of structures become unstable. Each load has an associated buckled mode shape; this
Dynamic - Harmonic
is the shape that the structure assumes in a buckled condition. There are two primary means to perform a buckling analysis:
Dynamic - Transient
1. Eigenvalue
Thermal-Conduction

Eigenvalue buckling analysis predicts the theoretical buckling strength of an ideal elastic structure. It computes the structural
Thermal-Mixed Bndry
eigenvalues for the given system loading and constraints. This is known as classical Euler buckling analysis. Buckling loads for
Transient Heat
several configurations are readily available from tabulated solutions. However, in real-life, structural imperfections and
nonlinearities prevent most real-world structures from reaching their eigenvalue predicted buckling strength; ie. it over-predicts the
Axisymmetric expected buckling loads. This method is not recommended for accurate, real-world buckling prediction analysis.

2. Nonlinear
Index
Nonlinear buckling analysis is more accurate than eigenvalue analysis because it employs non-linear, large-deflection, static
analysis to predict buckling loads. Its mode of operation is very simple: it gradually increases the applied load until a load level is
found whereby the structure becomes unstable (ie. suddenly a very small increase in the load will cause very large deflections). The
Contributions true non-linear nature of this analysis thus permits the modeling of geometric imperfections, load perterbations, material
nonlinearities and gaps. For this type of analysis, note that small off-axis loads are necessary to initiate the desired buckling mode.
Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta
 ANSYS Inc.

Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta

This tutorial will use a steel beam with a 10 mm X 10 mm cross section, rigidly constrained at the bottom. The required load to cause
buckling, applied at the top-center of the beam, will be calculated.

Eigenvalue Buckling Analysis

Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

1. Open preprocessor menu

/PREP7
2. Give example a Title
Utility Menu > File > Change Title ...
/title,Eigen-Value Buckling Analysis

3. Define Keypoints
 Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Keypoints > In Active CS ...
K,#,X,Y

We are going to define 2 Keypoints for this beam as given in the following table:

Keypoints Coordinates (x,y)

1 (0,0)
2 (0,100)

4. Create Lines
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Lines > Lines > In Active Coord
L,1,2

Create a line joining Keypoints 1 and 2

5. Define the Type of Element

Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete...

For this problem we will use the BEAM3 (Beam 2D elastic) element. This element has 3 degrees of freedom (translation
along the X and Y axes, and rotation about the Z axis).

6. Define Real Constants

Preprocessor > Real Constants... > Add...

In the 'Real Constants for BEAM3' window, enter the following geometric properties:

i. Cross-sectional area AREA: 100

ii. Area moment of inertia IZZ: 833.333
iii. Total Beam Height HEIGHT: 10

This defines a beam with a height of 10 mm and a width of 10 mm.

7. Define Element Material Properties

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Structural > Linear > Elastic > Isotropic

In the window that appears, enter the following geometric properties for steel:

i. Young's modulus EX: 200000

ii. Poisson's Ratio PRXY: 0.3
 8. Define Mesh Size
Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > ManualSize > Lines > All Lines...

For this example we will specify an element edge length of 10 mm (10 element divisions along the line).

9. Mesh the frame

Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Lines > click 'Pick All'
LMESH,ALL

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Define Analysis Type

Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis > Static
ANTYPE,0

2. Activate prestress effects

To perform an eigenvalue buckling analysis, prestress effects must be activated.

❍ You must first ensure that you are looking at the unabridged solution menu so that you can select Analysis Options in the
Analysis Type submenu. The last option in the solution menu will either be 'Unabridged menu' (which means you are
currently looking at the abridged version) or 'Abriged Menu' (which means you are looking at the unabridged menu). If you
are looking at the abridged menu, select the unabridged version.

❍ Select Solution > Analysis Type > Analysis Options

❍ In the following window, change the [SSTIF][PSTRES] item to 'Prestress ON', which ensures the stress stiffness matrix is
calculated. This is required in eigenvalue buckling analysis.
3. Apply Constraints
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On Keypoints

Fix Keypoint 1 (ie all DOF constrained).

4. Apply Loads
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Force/Moment > On Keypoints

The eignenvalue solver uses a unit force to determine the necessary buckling load. Applying a load other than 1 will scale
the answer by a factor of the load.

Apply a vertical (FY) point load of -1 N to the top of the beam (keypoint 2).
 The applied loads and constraints should now appear as shown in the figure below.

5. Solve the System

Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

6. Exit the Solution processor

Close the solution menu and click FINISH at the bottom of the Main Menu.
FINISH

Normally at this point you enter the postprocessing phase. However, with a buckling analysis you must re-enter the solution phase
and specify the buckling analysis. Be sure to close the solution menu and re-enter it or the buckling analysis may not function
properly.

7. Define Analysis Type

Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis > Eigen Buckling
ANTYPE,1

8. Specify Buckling Analysis Options

❍ Select Solution > Analysis Type > Analysis Options

 ❍ Complete the window which appears, as shown below. Select 'Block Lanczos' as an extraction method and extract 1 mode.
The 'Block Lanczos' method is used for large symmetric eigenvalue problems and uses the sparse matrix solver. The
'Subspace' method could also be used, however it tends to converge slower as it is a more robust solver. In more complex
analyses the Block Lanczos method may not be adequate and the Subspace method would have to be used.

9. Solve the System

Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

10. Exit the Solution processor

Close the solution menu and click FINISH at the bottom of the Main Menu.
FINISH

Again it is necessary to exit and re-enter the solution phase. This time, however, is for an expansion pass. An expansion pass is
necessary if you want to review the buckled mode shape(s).

11. Expand the solution

❍ Select Solution > Analysis Type > Expansion Pass... and ensure that it is on. You may have to select the 'Unabridged
Menu' again to make this option visible.

❍ Select Solution > Load Step Opts > ExpansionPass > Single Expand > Expand Modes ...
 ❍ Complete the following window as shown to expand the first mode

12. Solve the System

Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

1. View the Buckling Load

To display the minimum load required to buckle the beam select General Postproc > List Results > Detailed Summary.
The value listed under 'TIME/FREQ' is the load (41,123), which is in Newtons for this example. If more than one mode was
selected in the steps above, the corresponding loads would be listed here as well.
/POST1
SET,LIST

2. Display the Mode Shape

❍ Select General Postproc > Read Results > Last Set to bring up the data for the last mode calculated.

❍ Select General Postproc > Plot Results > Deformed Shape

Non-Linear Buckling Analysis
Ensure that you have completed the NonLinear Tutorial prior to beginning this portion of the tutorial

Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

1. Open preprocessor menu

/PREP7

2. Give example a Title

Utility Menu > File > Change Title ...
/TITLE, Nonlinear Buckling Analysis

3. Create Keypoints
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Keypoints > In Active CS
K,#,X,Y
 We are going to define 2 keypoints (the beam vertices) for this structure to create a beam with a length of 100 millimeters:

Keypoint Coordinates (x,y)

1 (0,0)
2 (0,100)

4. Define Lines
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Lines > Lines > Straight Line

Create a line between Keypoint 1 and Keypoint 2.

L,1,2

5. Define Element Types

Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete...

For this problem we will use the BEAM3 (Beam 2D elastic) element. This element has 3 degrees of freedom (translation
along the X and Y axis's, and rotation about the Z axis). With only 3 degrees of freedom, the BEAM3 element can only be
used in 2D analysis.

6. Define Real Constants

Preprocessor > Real Constants... > Add...

In the 'Real Constants for BEAM3' window, enter the following geometric properties:

i. Cross-sectional area AREA: 100

ii. Area Moment of Inertia IZZ: 833.333
iii. Total beam height HEIGHT: 10

This defines an element with a solid rectangular cross section 10 x 10 millimeters.

7. Define Element Material Properties

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Structural > Linear > Elastic > Isotropic

In the window that appears, enter the following geometric properties for steel:

i. Young's modulus EX: 200e3

ii. Poisson's Ratio PRXY: 0.3

8. Define Mesh Size

 Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > Lines > All Lines...

For this example we will specify an element edge length of 1 mm (100 element divisions along the line).
ESIZE,1

9. Mesh the frame

Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Lines > click 'Pick All'
LMESH,ALL

Solution: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Define Analysis Type

Solution > New Analysis > Static
ANTYPE,0

2. Set Solution Controls

❍ Select Solution > Analysis Type > Sol'n Control...

The following image will appear:

Ensure the following selections are made under the 'Basic' tab (as shown above)

A. Ensure Large Static Displacements are permitted (this will include the effects of large deflection in the results)

B. Ensure Automatic time stepping is on. Automatic time stepping allows ANSYS to determine appropriate sizes to
break the load steps into. Decreasing the step size usually ensures better accuracy, however, this takes time. The
Automatic Time Step feature will determine an appropriate balance. This feature also activates the ANSYS bisection
feature which will allow recovery if convergence fails.

C. Enter 20 as the number of substeps. This will set the initial substep to 1/20 th of the total load.

D. Enter a maximum number of substeps of 1000. This stops the program if the solution does not converge after 1000
steps.

E. Enter a minimum number of substeps of 1.

F. Ensure all solution items are writen to a results file.

Ensure the following selection is made under the 'Nonlinear' tab (as shown below)

A. Ensure Line Search is 'On'. This option is used to help the Newton-Raphson solver converge.

B. Ensure Maximum Number of Iterations is set to 1000

 NOTE
There are several options which have not been changed from their default values. For more information about these
commands, type help followed by the command into the command line.

3. Apply Constraints
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On Keypoints

Fix Keypoint 1 (ie all DOFs constrained).

4. Apply Loads
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Force/Moment > On Keypoints

Place a -50,000 N load in the FY direction on the top of the beam (Keypoint 2). Also apply a -250 N load in the FX
direction on Keypoint 2. This horizontal load will persuade the beam to buckle at the minimum buckling load.

The model should now look like the window shown below.
5. Solve the System
Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

The following will appear on your screen for NonLinear Analyses

 This shows the convergence of the solution.

General Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

1. View the deformed shape

❍ To view the element in 2D rather than a line: Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Style > Size and Shape and turn 'Display of
element' ON (as shown below).
❍ General Postproc > Plot Results > Deformed Shape... > Def + undeformed
PLDISP,1
❍ View the deflection contour plot
General Postproc > Plot Results > Contour Plot > Nodal Solu... > DOF solution, UY
PLNSOL,U,Y,0,1
Other results can be obtained as shown in previous linear static analyses.

Time History Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

As shown, you can obtain the results (such as deflection, stress and bending moment diagrams) the same way you did in previous
examples using the General Postprocessor. However, you may wish to view time history results such as the deflection of the object over
time.

1. Define Variables

❍ Select: Main Menu > TimeHist Postpro. The following window should open automatically.
 If it does not open automatically, select Main Menu > TimeHist Postpro > Variable Viewer

❍ Click the add button in the upper left corner of the window to add a variable.

❍ Double-click Nodal Solution > DOF Solution > Y-Component of displacement (as shown below) and click OK. Pick the
uppermost node on the beam and click OK in the 'Node for Data' window.
❍ To add another variable, click the add button again. This time select Reaction Forces > Structural Forces > Y-
Component of Force. Pick the lowermost node on the beam and click OK.

❍ On the Time History Variable window, click the circle in the 'X-Axis' column for FY_3. This will make the reaction force
the x-variable. The Time History Variables window should now look like this:
2. Graph Results over Time

❍ Click on UY_2 in the Time History Variables window.

❍ Click the graphing button in the Time History Variables window.

❍ The labels on the plot are not updated by ANSYS, so you must change them manually. Select Utility Menu > Plot Ctrls >
Style > Graphs > Modify Axes and re-label the X and Y-axis appropriately.
 The plot shows how the beam became unstable and buckled with a load of approximately 40,000 N, the point where a large
deflection occured due to a small increase in force. This is slightly less than the eigen-value solution of 41,123 N, which
was expected due to non-linear geometry issues discussed above.

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Effect of Self Weight

NonLinear Materials
Distributed Loading

NonLinear Analysis

Solution Tracking Introduction

Buckling
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of the tutorial is to describe how to include material nonlinearities in an ANSYS model. For
NonLinear Materials instance, the case when a large force is applied resulting in a stresses greater than yield strength. In such a case, a multilinear stress-strain relationship can
be included which follows the stress-strain curve of the material being used. This will allow ANSYS to more accurately model the plastic deformation of
Dynamic - Modal the material.

Dynamic - Harmonic

Dynamic - Transient

Thermal-Conduction

Thermal-Mixed Bndry

Transient Heat

Axisymmetric

Index

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering
For this analysis, a simple tension speciment 100 mm X 5 mm X 5 mm is constrained at the bottom and has a load pulling on the top. This specimen is
University of Alberta made out of a experimental substance called "WhoKilledKenium". The stress-strain curve for the substance is shown above. Note the linear section up to
approximately 225 MPa where the Young's Modulus is constant (75 GPa). The material then begins to yield and the relationship becomes plastic and
nonlinear.
ANSYS Inc.

Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

 Copyright © 2001 1. Give example a Title
University of Alberta Utility Menu > File > Change Title ...
/title, NonLinear Materials

2. Create Keypoints
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Keypoints > In Active CS
/PREP7
K,#,X,Y

We are going to define 2 keypoints (the beam vertices) for this structure to create a beam with a length of 100 millimeters:

Keypoint Coordinates (x,y)

1 (0,0)
2 (0,100)

3. Define Lines
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Lines > Lines > Straight Line

Create a line between Keypoint 1 and Keypoint 2.

L,1,2

4. Define Element Types

Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete...

For this problem we will use the LINK1 (2D spar) element. This element has 2 degrees of freedom (translation along the X and Y axis's)
and can only be used in 2D analysis.

5. Define Real Constants

Preprocessor > Real Constants... > Add...

In the 'Real Constants for LINK1' window, enter the following geometric properties:

i. Cross-sectional area AREA: 25

ii. Initial Strain: 0

This defines an element with a solid rectangular cross section 5 x 5 millimeters.

6. Define Element Material Properties

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Structural > Linear > Elastic > Isotropic

In the window that appears, enter the following geometric properties for steel:
 i. Young's modulus EX: 75e3
ii. Poisson's Ratio PRXY: 0.3

Now that the initial properties of the material have been outlined, the stress-strain data must be included.

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Structural > Nonlinear > Elastic > Multilinear Elastic
The following window will pop up.

Fill in the STRAIN and STRESS boxes with the following data. These are points from the stress-strain curve shown above,
approximating the curve with linear interpolation between the points. When the data for the first point is input, click Add Point to
add another. When all the points have been inputed, click Graph to see the curve. It should look like the one shown above. Then
click OK.

Curve Points Strain Stress

1 0 0
2 0.001 75
3 0.002 150
4 0.003 225
5 0.004 240
6 0.005 250
7 0.025 300
 8 0.060 355
9 0.100 390
10 0.150 420
11 0.200 435
12 0.250 449
13 0.275 450

To get the problem geometry back, select Utility Menu > Plot > Replot.
/REPLOT

7. Define Mesh Size

Preprocessor > Meshing > Manual Size > Size Cntrls > Lines > All Lines...

For this example we will specify an element edge length of 5 mm (20 element divisions along the line).

8. Mesh the frame

Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Lines > click 'Pick All'
LMESH,ALL

Solution: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Define Analysis Type

Solution > New Analysis > Static
ANTYPE,0

2. Set Solution Controls

❍ Select Solution > Analysis Type > Sol'n Control...

The following image will appear:

Ensure the following selections are made under the 'Basic' tab (as shown above)

A. Ensure Large Static Displacements are permitted (this will include the effects of large deflection in the results)

B. Ensure Automatic time stepping is on. Automatic time stepping allows ANSYS to determine appropriate sizes to break the load steps
into. Decreasing the step size usually ensures better accuracy, however, this takes time. The Automatic Time Step feature will
determine an appropriate balance. This feature also activates the ANSYS bisection feature which will allow recovery if convergence
fails.

C. Enter 20 as the number of substeps. This will set the initial substep to 1/20 th of the total load.

D. Enter a maximum number of substeps of 1000. This stops the program if the solution does not converge after 1000 steps.

E. Enter a minimum number of substeps of 1.

F. Ensure all solution items are writen to a results file. This means rather than just recording the data for the last load step, data for
every load step is written to the database. Therefore, you can plot certain parameters over time.

Ensure the following selection is made under the 'Nonlinear' tab (as shown below)

A. Ensure Line Search is 'On'. This option is used to help the Newton-Raphson solver converge.
 B. Ensure Maximum Number of Iterations is set to 1000

NOTE
There are several options which have not been changed from their default values. For more information about these commands, type help
followed by the command into the command line.

3. Apply Constraints
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On Keypoints

Fix Keypoint 1 (ie all DOFs constrained).

4. Apply Loads
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Force/Moment > On Keypoints

Place a 10,000 N load in the FY direction on the top of the beam (Keypoint 2).

5. Solve the System

Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

The following will appear on your screen for NonLinear Analyses

 This shows the convergence of the solution.

General Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

1. To view the element in 2D rather than a line: Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Style > Size and Shape and turn 'Display of element' ON (as shown
below).
2. View the deflection contour plot
General Postproc > Plot Results > Contour Plot > Nodal Solu... > DOF solution, UY
PLNSOL,U,Y,0,1
Other results can be obtained as shown in previous linear static analyses.

Time History Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

As shown, you can obtain the results (such as deflection, stress and bending moment diagrams) the same way you did in previous examples using the
General Postprocessor. However, you may wish to view time history results such as the deflection of the object over time.

1. Define Variables

❍ Select: Main Menu > TimeHist Postpro. The following window should open automatically.
 If it does not open automatically, select Main Menu > TimeHist Postpro > Variable Viewer

❍ Click the add button in the upper left corner of the window to add a variable.

❍ Select Nodal Solution > DOF Solution > Y-Component of displacement (as shown below) and click OK. Pick the uppermost node on the
beam and click OK in the 'Node for Data' window.
 ❍ To add another variable, click the add button again. This time select Reaction Forces > Structural Forces > Y-Component of Force. Pick
the lowermost node on the beam and click OK.

❍ On the Time History Variable window, click the circle in the 'X-Axis' column for FY_3. This will make the reaction force the x-variable.
The Time History Variables window should now look like this:

2. Graph Results over Time

❍ Click on UY_2 in the Time History Variables window.

❍ Click the graphing button in the Time History Variables window.

❍ The labels on the plot are not updated by ANSYS, so you must change them manually. Select Utility Menu > Plot Ctrls > Style > Graphs
> Modify Axes and re-label the X and Y-axis appropriately.
 This plot shows how the beam deflected linearly when the force, and subsequently the stress, was low (in the linear range). However, as the
force increased, the deflection (proportional to strain) began to increase at a greater rate. This is because the stress in the beam is in the
plastic range and thus no longer relates to strain linearly. When you verify this example analytically, you will see the solutions are very
similar. The difference can be attributed to the ANSYS solver including large deflection calculations.

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS. This problem
has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML version, copy and paste the code into
Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...' and select the file. A .PDF version is also available
for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Effect of Self Weight

Modal Analysis of a Cantilever Beam
Distributed Loading

NonLinear Analysis

Solution Tracking Introduction

Buckling
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to outline the steps required to do a simple modal analysis of the
NonLinear Materials cantilever beam shown below.

Dynamic - Modal

Dynamic - Harmonic

Dynamic - Transient

Thermal-Conduction

Thermal-Mixed Bndry

Transient Heat

Axisymmetric

Index

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563
Preprocessing: Defining the Problem
Mechanical Engineering

The simple cantilever beam is used in all of the Dynamic Analysis Tutorials. If you haven't created the model in ANSYS, please use the
University of Alberta
links below. Both the command line codes and the GUI commands are shown in the respective links.
 ANSYS Inc. Solution: Assigning Loads and Solving
1. Define Analysis Type
Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis > Modal
ANTYPE,2
Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta
2. Set options for analysis type:

❍ Select: Solution > Analysis Type > Analysis Options..

The following window will appear

❍ As shown, select the Subspace method and enter 5 in the 'No. of modes to extract'

❍ Check the box beside 'Expand mode shapes' and enter 5 in the 'No. of modes to expand'

❍ Click 'OK'

Note that the default mode extraction method chosen is the Reduced Method. This is the fastest method as it reduces the
system matrices to only consider the Master Degrees of Freedom (see below). The Subspace Method extracts modes for all
DOF's. It is therefore more exact but, it also takes longer to compute (especially when the complex geometries).

❍ The following window will then appear

For a better understanding of these options see the Commands manual.

 ❍ For this problem, we will use the default options so click on OK.

3. Apply Constraints
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On Keypoints

Fix Keypoint 1 (ie all DOFs constrained).

4. Solve the System

Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

1. Verify extracted modes against theoretical predictions

❍ Select: General Postproc > Results Summary...

The following window will appear

The following table compares the mode frequencies in Hz predicted by theory and ANSYS.
 Mode Theory ANSYS Percent Error

1 8.311 8.300 0.1

2 51.94 52.01 0.2

3 145.68 145.64 0.0

4 285.69 285.51 0.0

5 472.22 472.54 0.1

Note: To obtain accurate higher mode frequencies, this mesh would have to be refined even more (i.e. instead of 10
elements, we would have to model the cantilever using 15 or more elements depending upon the highest mode frequency of
interest).

2. View Mode Shapes

❍ Select: General Postproc > Read Results > First Set

This selects the results for the first mode shape

❍ Select General Postproc > Plot Results > Deformed shape . Select 'Def + undef edge'

The first mode shape will now appear in the graphics window.

❍ To view the next mode shape, select General Postproc > Read Results > Next Set . As above choose General Postproc >
Plot Results > Deformed shape . Select 'Def + undef edge'.

❍ The first four mode shapes should look like the following:
3. Animate Mode Shapes

❍ Select Utility Menu (Menu at the top) > Plot Ctrls > Animate > Mode Shape

The following window will appear

❍ Keep the default setting and click 'OK'
❍ The animated mode shapes are shown below.

■ Mode 1
■ Mode 2

■ Mode 3
 ■ Mode 4

Using the Reduced Method for Modal Analysis

This method employs the use of Master Degrees of Freedom. These are degrees of freedom that govern the dynamic characteristics of a
structure. For example, the Master Degrees of Freedom for the bending modes of cantilever beam are

For this option, a detailed understanding of the dynamic behavior of a structure is required. However, going this route means a smaller
(reduced) stiffness matrix, and thus faster calculations.

The steps for using this option are quite simple.

● Instead of specifying the Subspace method, select the Reduced method and specify 5 modes for extraction.

● Complete the window as shown below

Note:For this example both the number of modes and frequency range was specified. ANSYS then extracts the minimum number
of modes between the two.

● Select Solution > Master DOF > User Selected > Define

● When prompted, select all nodes except the left most node (fixed).

The following window will appear:

 ● Select UY as the 1st degree of freedom (shown above).

The same constraints are used as above.

The following table compares the mode frequencies in Hz predicted by theory and ANSYS (Reduced).

Mode Theory ANSYS Percent Error

1 8.311 8.300 0.1

2 51.94 52.01 0.1

3 145.68 145.66 0.0

4 285.69 285.71 0.0

5 472.22 473.66 0.3

As you can see, the error does not change significantly. However, for more complex structures, larger errors would be expected using the
reduced method.

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Effect of Self Weight

Harmonic Analysis of a Cantilever Beam
Distributed Loading

NonLinear Analysis

Solution Tracking Introduction

Buckling
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to explain the steps required to perform Harmonic analysis the
NonLinear Materials cantilever beam shown below.

Dynamic - Modal

Dynamic - Harmonic

Dynamic - Transient

Thermal-Conduction

Thermal-Mixed Bndry

Transient Heat

Axisymmetric

Index

Contributions

Comments We will now conduct a harmonic forced response test by applying a cyclic load (harmonic) at the end of the beam. The frequency of the
load will be varied from 1 - 100 Hz. The figure below depicts the beam with the application of the load.
MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta
 ANSYS Inc.

Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta

ANSYS provides 3 methods for conducting a harmonic analysis. These 3 methods are the Full , Reduced and Modal Superposition
methods.

This example demonstrates the Full method because it is simple and easy to use as compared to the other two methods. However, this
method makes use of the full stiffness and mass matrices and thus is the slower and costlier option.

Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

The simple cantilever beam is used in all of the Dynamic Analysis Tutorials. If you haven't created the model in ANSYS, please use the
links below. Both the command line codes and the GUI commands are shown in the respective links.

Solution: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Define Analysis Type (Harmonic)
Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis > Harmonic
ANTYPE,3

2. Set options for analysis type:

❍ Select: Solution > Analysis Type > Analysis Options..

The following window will appear

 ❍ As shown, select the Full Solution method, the Real + imaginary DOF printout format and do not use lumped mass approx.

❍ Click 'OK'

The following window will appear. Use the default settings (shown below).

3. Apply Constraints

❍ Select Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On Nodes

The following window will appear once you select the node at x=0 (Note small changes in the window compared to the
static examples):
 ❍ Constrain all DOF as shown in the above window

4. Apply Loads:

❍ Select Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Force/Moment > On Nodes

❍ Select the node at x=1 (far right)

❍ The following window will appear. Fill it in as shown to apply a load with a real value of 100 and an imaginary value of 0
in the positive 'y' direction
 Note: By specifying a real and imaginary value of the load we are providing information on magnitude and phase of the
load. In this case the magnitude of the load is 100 N and its phase is 0. Phase information is important when you have two
or more cyclic loads being applied to the structure as these loads could be in or out of phase. For harmonic analysis, all
loads applied to a structure must have the SAME FREQUENCY.

5. Set the frequency range

❍ Select Solution > Load Step Opts > Time/Frequency > Freq and Substps...

❍ As shown in the window below, specify a frequency range of 0 - 100Hz, 100 substeps and stepped b.c..
 By doing this we will be subjecting the beam to loads at 1 Hz, 2 Hz, 3 Hz, ..... 100 Hz. We will specify a stepped boundary
condition (KBC) as this will ensure that the same amplitude (100 N) will be applyed for each of the frequencies. The
ramped option, on the other hand, would ramp up the amplitude where at 1 Hz the amplitude would be 1 N and at 100 Hz
the amplitude would be 100 N.

You should now have the following in the ANSYS Graphics window

6. Solve the System

Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

We want to observe the response at x=1 (where the load was applyed) as a function of frequency. We cannot do this with General
PostProcessing (POST1), rather we must use TimeHist PostProcessing (POST26). POST26 is used to observe certain variables as a
function of either time or frequency.

1. Open the TimeHist Processing (POST26) Menu

Select TimeHist Postpro from the ANSYS Main Menu.

2. Define Variables
In here we have to define variables that we want to see plotted. By default, Variable 1 is assigned either Time or Frequency. In
our case it is assigned Frequency. We want to see the displacement UY at the node at x=1, which is node #2. (To get a list of
nodes and their attributes, select Utility Menu > List > nodes).

❍ Select TimeHist Postpro > Variable Viewer... and the following window should pop up.

❍ Select Add (the green '+' sign in the upper left corner) from this window and the following window should appear
❍ We are interested in the Nodal Solution > DOF Solution > Y-Component of displacement. Click OK.

❍ Graphically select node 2 when prompted and click OK. The 'Time History Variables' window should now look as follows
3. List Stored Variables

❍ In the 'Time History Variables' window click the 'List' button, 3 buttons to the left of 'Add'

The following window will appear listing the data:

4. Plot UY vs. frequency

❍ In the 'Time History Variables' window click the 'Plot' button, 2 buttons to the left of 'Add'

The following graph should be plotted in the main ANSYS window.

 Note that we get peaks at frequencies of approximately 8.3 and 51 Hz. This corresponds with the predicted frequencies of
8.311 and 51.94Hz.

To get a better view of the response, view the log scale of UY.

❍ Select Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Style > Graphs > Modify Axis

The following window will appear

❍ As marked by an 'A' in the above window, change the Y-axis scale to 'Logarithmic'

❍ Select Utility Menu > Plot > Replot

❍ You should now see the following

 This is the response at node 2 for the cyclic load applied at this node from 0 - 100 Hz.

❍ For ANSYS version lower than 7.0, the 'Variable Viewer' window is not available. Use the 'Define Variables' and 'Store
Data' functions under TimeHist Postpro. See the help file for instructions.

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Effect of Self Weight

Transient Analysis of a Cantilever Beam
Distributed Loading

NonLinear Analysis

Solution Tracking Introduction

Buckling
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to show the steps involved to perform a simple transient
NonLinear Materials analysis.

Dynamic - Modal

Dynamic - Harmonic

Dynamic - Transient

Thermal-Conduction

Thermal-Mixed Bndry

Transient Heat

Axisymmetric

Index

Contributions

Comments Transient dynamic analysis is a technique used to determine the dynamic response of a structure under a time-varying load.
MecE 563
The time frame for this type of analysis is such that inertia or damping effects of the structure are considered to be important. Cases where
Mechanical Engineering such effects play a major role are under step or impulse loading conditions, for example, where there is a sharp load change in a fraction
of time.
University of Alberta
If inertia effects are negligible for the loading conditions being considered, a static analysis may be used instead.

For our case, we will impact the end of the beam with an impulse force and view the response at the location of impact.
 ANSYS Inc.

Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta

Since an ideal impulse force excites all modes of a structure, the response of the beam should contain all mode frequencies. However, we
cannot produce an ideal impulse force numerically. We have to apply a load over a discrete amount of time dt.

After the application of the load, we track the response of the beam at discrete time points for as long as we like (depending on what it is
that we are looking for in the response).

The size of the time step is governed by the maximum mode frequency of the structure we wish to capture. The smaller the time step, the
higher the mode frequency we will capture. The rule of thumb in ANSYS is

time_step = 1 / 20f
where f is the highest mode frequency we wish to capture. In other words, we must resolve our step size such that we will have 20
discrete points per period of the highest mode frequency.

It should be noted that a transient analysis is more involved than a static or harmonic analysis. It requires a good understanding
of the dynamic behavior of a structure. Therefore, a modal analysis of the structure should be initially performed to provide
information about the structure's dynamic behavior.

In ANSYS, transient dynamic analysis can be carried out using 3 methods.

● The Full Method: This is the easiest method to use. All types of non-linearities are allowed. It is however very CPU intensive to
go this route as full system matrices are used.

● The Reduced Method: This method reduces the system matrices to only consider the Master Degrees of Freedom (MDOFs).
Because of the reduced size of the matrices, the calculations are much quicker. However, this method handles only linear problems
(such as our cantilever case).

● The Mode Superposition Method: This method requires a preliminary modal analysis, as factored mode shapes are summed to
calculate the structure's response. It is the quickest of the three methods, but it requires a good deal of understanding of the problem
at hand.

We will use the Reduced Method for conducting our transient analysis. Usually one need not go further than Reviewing the Reduced
Results. However, if stresses and forces are of interest than, we would have to Expand the Reduced Solution.

Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

The simple cantilever beam is used in all of the Dynamic Analysis Tutorials. If you haven't created the model in ANSYS, please use the
links below. Both the command line codes and the GUI commands are shown in the respective links.

Solution: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Define Analysis Type

❍ Select Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis > Transient

❍ The following window will appear. Select 'Reduced' as shown.

2. Define Master DOFs

❍ Select Solution > Master DOFs > User Selected > Define

❍ Select all nodes except the left most node (at x=0).

The following window will open, choose UY as the first dof in this window

For an explanation on Master DOFs, see the section on Using the Reduced Method for modal analysis.

3. Constrain the Beam

Solution Menu > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On nodes

Fix the left most node (constrain all DOFs).

4. Apply Loads

We will define our impulse load using Load Steps. The following time history curve shows our load steps and time steps. Note that
for the reduced method, a constant time step is required throughout the time range.

We can define each load step (load and time at the end of load segment) and save them in a file for future solution purposes. This is
highly recommended especially when we have many load steps and we wish to re-run our solution.

We can also solve for each load step after we define it. We will go ahead and save each load step in a file for later use, at the same
time solve for each load step after we are done defining it.

a. Load Step 1 - Initial Conditions

i. Define Load Step

We need to establish initial conditions (the condition at Time = 0). Since the equations for a transient dynamic
analysis are of second order, two sets of initial conditions are required; initial displacement and initial velocity.
However, both default to zero. Therefore, for this example we can skip this step.

ii. Specify Time and Time Step Options

■ Select Solution > Load Step Opts > Time/Frequenc > Time - Time Step ..
■ set a time of 0 for the end of the load step (as shown below).

■ set [DELTIM] to 0.001. This will specify a time step size of 0.001 seconds to be used for this load

step.
iii. Write Load Step File

■ Select Solution > Load Step Opts > Write LS File

The following window will appear

 ■ Enter LSNUM = 1 as shown above and click 'OK'

The load step will be saved in a file jobname.s01

b. Load Step 2

i. Define Load Step

■ Select Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Force/Moment > On Nodes and select the right
most node (at x=1). Enter a force in the FY direction of value -100 N.

ii. Specify Time and Time Step Options

■ Select Solution > Load Step Opts > Time/Frequenc > Time - Time Step .. and set a time of 0.001 for the
end of the load step

iii. Write Load Step File

Solution > Load Step Opts > Write LS File

Enter LSNUM = 2

c. Load Step 3

i. Define Load Step

■ Select Solution > Define Loads > Delete > Structural > Force/Moment > On Nodes and delete the load at
x=1.

ii. Specify Time and Time Step Options

 ■ Select Solution > Load Step Opts > Time/Frequenc > Time - Time Step .. and set a time of 1 for the end of
the load step

iii. Write Load Step File

Solution > Load Step Opts > Write LS File

Enter LSNUM = 3

5. Solve the System

❍ Select Solution > Solve > From LS Files

The following window will appear.

❍ Complete the window as shown above to solve using LS files 1 to 3.

Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

To view the response of node 2 (UY) with time we must use the TimeHist PostProcessor (POST26).

1. Define Variables

In here we have to define variables that we want to see plotted. By default, Variable 1 is assigned either Time or Frequency. In
our case it is assigned Frequency. We want to see the displacement UY at the node at x=1, which is node #2. (To get a list of
nodes and their attributes, select Utility Menu > List > nodes).
❍ Select TimeHist Postpro > Variable Viewer... and the following window should pop up.

❍ Select Add (the green '+' sign in the upper left corner) from this window and the following window should appear
❍ We are interested in the Nodal Solution > DOF Solution > Y-Component of displacement. Click OK.

❍ Graphically select node 2 when prompted and click OK. The 'Time History Variables' window should now look as follows
2. List Stored Variables

❍ In the 'Time History Variables' window click the 'List' button, 3 buttons to the left of 'Add'

The following window will appear listing the data:

3. Plot UY vs. frequency

❍ In the 'Time History Variables' window click the 'Plot' button, 2 buttons to the left of 'Add'

The following graph should be plotted in the main ANSYS window.

 A few things to note in the response curve

■ There are approximately 8 cycles in one second. This is the first mode of the cantilever beam and we have been able
to capture it.

■ We also see another response at a higher frequency. We may have captured some response at the second mode at 52
Hz of the beam.

■ Note that the response does not decay as it should not. We did not specify damping for our system.

Expand the Solution

For most problems, one need not go further than Reviewing the Reduced Results as the response of the structure is of utmost
interest in transient dynamic analysis.

However, if stresses and forces are of interest, we would have to expand the reduced solution.
 Let's say we are interested in the beam's behaviour at peak responses. We should then expand a few or all solutions around one
peak (or dip). We will expand 10 solutions within the range of 0.08 and 0.11 seconds.

1. Expand the solution

❍ Select Finish in the ANSYS Main Menu

❍ Select Solution > Analysis Type > ExpansionPass... and switch it to ON in the window that pops open.

❍ Select Solution > Load Step Opts > ExpansionPass > Single Expand > Range of Solu's

❍ Complete the window as shown below. This will expand 10 solutions withing the range of 0.08 and 0.11 seconds

2. Solve the System

Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

3. Review the results in POST1

Review the results using either General Postprocessing (POST1) or TimeHist Postprocessing (POST26). For
this case, we can view the deformed shape at each of the 10 solutions we expanded.

Damped Response of the Cantilever Beam

We did not specify damping in our transient analysis of the beam. We specify damping at the same time we specify our time & time steps
for each load step.

We will now re-run our transient analysis, but now we will consider damping. Here is where the use of load step files comes in handy. We
can easily change a few values in these files and re-run our whole solution from these load case files.

● Open up the first load step file (Dynamic.s01) for editing Utility Menu > File > List > Other > Dynamic.s01. The file should look
like the following..

/COM,ANSYS RELEASE 5.7.1 UP20010418 14:44:02 08/20/2001

/NOPR
/TITLE, Dynamic Analysis
_LSNUM= 1
ANTYPE, 4
TRNOPT,REDU,,DAMP
BFUNIF,TEMP,_TINY
DELTIM, 1.000000000E-03
TIME, 0.00000000
TREF, 0.00000000
ALPHAD, 0.00000000
BETAD, 0.00000000
DMPRAT, 0.00000000
TINTP,R5.0, 5.000000000E-03,,,
TINTP,R5.0, -1.00000000 , 0.500000000 , -1.00000000
NCNV, 1, 0.00000000 , 0, 0.00000000 , 0.00000000
ERESX,DEFA
ACEL, 0.00000000 , 0.00000000 , 0.00000000
OMEGA, 0.00000000 , 0.00000000 , 0.00000000 , 0
DOMEGA, 0.00000000 , 0.00000000 , 0.00000000
CGLOC, 0.00000000 , 0.00000000 , 0.00000000
CGOMEGA, 0.00000000 , 0.00000000 , 0.00000000
DCGOMG, 0.00000000 , 0.00000000 , 0.00000000

D, 1,UX , 0.00000000 , 0.00000000

D, 1,UY , 0.00000000 , 0.00000000
D, 1,ROTZ, 0.00000000 , 0.00000000
/GOPR

● Change the damping value BETAD from 0 to 0.01 in all three load step files.

● We will have to re-run the job for the new load step files. Select Utility Menu > file > Clear and Start New.
 ● Repeat the steps shown above up to the point where we select MDOFs. After selecting MDOFs, simply go to Solution > (-Solve-)
From LS files ... and in the window that opens up select files from 1 to 3 in steps of 1.

● After the results have been calculated, plot up the response at node 2 in POST26. The damped response should look like the
following

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Effect of Self Weight

Simple Conduction Example
Distributed Loading

NonLinear Analysis

Solution Tracking Introduction

Buckling
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 to solve a simple conduction problem.
NonLinear Materials
The Simple Conduction Example is constrained as shown in the following figure. Thermal conductivity (k) of the material is 10 W/m*C
Dynamic - Modal and the block is assumed to be infinitely long.

Dynamic - Harmonic

Dynamic - Transient

Thermal-Conduction

Thermal-Mixed Bndry

Transient Heat

Axisymmetric

Index

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta

Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

 ANSYS Inc.
1. Give example a Title

2. Open preprocessor menu

ANSYS Main Menu > Preprocessor
Copyright © 2001 /PREP7
University of Alberta
3. Create geometry
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Areas > Rectangle > By 2 Corners > X=0, Y=0, Width=1, Height=1
BLC4,0,0,1,1

4. Define the Type of Element

Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete... > click 'Add' > Select Thermal Mass Solid, Quad 4Node 55
ET,1,PLANE55

For this example, we will use PLANE55 (Thermal Solid, Quad 4node 55). This element has 4 nodes and a single DOF
(temperature) at each node. PLANE55 can only be used for 2 dimensional steady-state or transient thermal analysis.

5. Element Material Properties

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Thermal > Conductivity > Isotropic > KXX = 10 (Thermal conductivity)
MP,KXX,1,10

6. Mesh Size
Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > ManualSize > Areas > All Areas > 0.05
AESIZE,ALL,0.05

7. Mesh
Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Areas > Free > Pick All
AMESH,ALL

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Define Analysis Type
Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis > Steady-State
ANTYPE,0

2. Apply Constraints
For thermal problems, constraints can be in the form of Temperature, Heat Flow, Convection, Heat Flux, Heat Generation, or
Radiation. In this example, all 4 sides of the block have fixed temperatures.

❍ Solution > Define Loads > Apply

Note that all of the -Structural- options cannot be selected. This is due to the type of element (PLANE55) selected.

❍ Thermal > Temperature > On Nodes

❍ Click the Box option (shown below) and draw a box around the nodes on the top line.

The following window will appear:

 ❍ Fill the window in as shown to constrain the side to a constant temperature of 500

❍ Using the same method, constrain the remaining 3 sides to a constant value of 100

Orange triangles in the graphics window indicate the temperature contraints.

3. Solve the System

Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

1. Results Using ANSYS

Plot Temperature

General Postproc > Plot Results > Contour Plot > Nodal Solu ... > DOF solution, Temperature TEMP
 Note that due to the manner in which the boundary contitions were applied, the top corners are held at a temperature of 100. Recall
that the nodes on the top of the plate were constrained first, followed by the side and bottom constraints. The top corner nodes were
therefore first constrained at 500C, then 'overwritten' when the side constraints were applied. Decreasing the mesh size can
minimize this effect, however, one must be aware of the limitations in the results at the corners.

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Effect of Self Weight

Thermal - Mixed Boundary Example (Conduction/Convection/
Distributed Loading
Insulated)
NonLinear Analysis

Solution Tracking

Buckling Introduction
NonLinear Materials
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 to solve simple thermal examples. Analysis of a simple conduction as well a mixed conduction/
Dynamic - Modal convection/insulation problem will be demonstrated.

Dynamic - Harmonic The Mixed Convection/Conduction/Insulated Boundary Conditions Example is constrained as shown in the following figure (Note that the
section is assumed to be infinitely long):
Dynamic - Transient

Thermal-Conduction

Thermal-Mixed Bndry

Transient Heat

Axisymmetric

Index

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta

Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

 ANSYS Inc. 1. Give example a Title

2. Open preprocessor menu

ANSYS Main Menu > Preprocessor
/PREP7
Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta 3. Create geometry
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Areas > Rectangle > By 2 Corners > X=0, Y=0, Width=1, Height=1
BLC4,0,0,1,1

4. Define the Type of Element

Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete... > click 'Add' > Select Thermal Mass Solid, Quad 4Node 55
ET,1,PLANE55

As in the conduction example, we will use PLANE55 (Thermal Solid, Quad 4node 55). This element has 4 nodes and a single DOF
(temperature) at each node. PLANE55 can only be used for 2 dimensional steady-state or transient thermal analysis.

5. Element Material Properties

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Thermal > Conductivity > Isotropic > KXX = 10
MP,KXX,1,10

This will specify a thermal conductivity of 10 W/m*C.

6. Mesh Size
Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > ManualSize > Areas > All Areas > 0.05
AESIZE,ALL,0.05

7. Mesh
Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Areas > Free > Pick All
AMESH,ALL

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Define Analysis Type
Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis > Steady-State
ANTYPE,0

2. Apply Conduction Constraints

 In this example, all 2 sides of the block have fixed temperatures, while convection occurs on the other 2 sides.

❍ Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Thermal > Temperature > On Lines

❍ Select the top line of the block and constrain it to a constant value of 500 C

❍ Using the same method, constrain the left side of the block to a constant value of 100 C

3. Apply Convection Boundary Conditions

❍ Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Thermal > Convection > On Lines

❍ Select the right side of the block.

The following window will appear:

 ❍ Fill in the window as shown. This will specify a convection of 10 W/m2*C and an ambient temperature of 100 degrees
Celcius. Note that VALJ and VAL2J have been left blank. This is because we have uniform convection across the line.

4. Apply Insulated Boundary Conditions

❍ Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Thermal > Convection > On Lines

❍ Select the bottom of the block.

 ❍ Enter a constant Film coefficient (VALI) of 0. This will eliminate convection through the side, thereby modeling an
insulated wall. Note: you do not need to enter a Bulk (or ambient) temperature

You should obtain the following:

5. Solve the System

Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

1. Results Using ANSYS

Plot Temperature

General Postproc > Plot Results > Contour Plot > Nodal Solu ... > DOF solution, Temperature TEMP
Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Effect of Self Weight

Transient Thermal Conduction Example
Distributed Loading

NonLinear Analysis

Solution Tracking Introduction

Buckling
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 to solve a simple transient conduction problem. Special thanks to Jesse Arnold for the
NonLinear Materials analytical solution shown at the end of the tutorial.

Dynamic - Modal The example is constrained as shown in the following figure. Thermal conductivity (k) of the material is 5 W/m*K and the block is
assumed to be infinitely long. Also, the density of the material is 920 kg/m^3 and the specific heat capacity (c) is 2.040 kJ/kg*K.
Dynamic - Harmonic

Dynamic - Transient
It is beneficial if the Thermal-Conduction tutorial is completed first to compare with this solution.

Thermal-Conduction

Thermal-Mixed Bndry

Transient Heat

Axisymmetric

Index

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta
 ANSYS Inc.
Preprocessing: Defining the Problem
1. Give example a Title
Utility Menu > File > Change Title...
Copyright © 2001
/Title,Transient Thermal Conduction
University of Alberta
2. Open preprocessor menu
ANSYS Main Menu > Preprocessor
/PREP7

3. Create geometry
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Areas > Rectangle > By 2 Corners
X=0, Y=0, Width=1, Height=1
BLC4,0,0,1,1

4. Define the Type of Element

Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete... > click 'Add' > Select Thermal Mass Solid, Quad 4Node 55
ET,1,PLANE55

For this example, we will use PLANE55 (Thermal Solid, Quad 4node 55). This element has 4 nodes and a single DOF
(temperature) at each node. PLANE55 can only be used for 2 dimensional steady-state or transient thermal analysis.

5. Element Material Properties

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Thermal > Conductivity > Isotropic > KXX = 5 (Thermal conductivity)
MP,KXX,1,10
Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Thermal > Specific Heat > C = 2.04
MP,C,1,2.04
Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Thermal > Density > DENS = 920
MP,DENS,1,920

6. Mesh Size
Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > ManualSize > Areas > All Areas > 0.05
AESIZE,ALL,0.05

7. Mesh
Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Areas > Free > Pick All
AMESH,ALL

At this point, the model should look like the following:

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving
1. Define Analysis Type
Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis > Transient
ANTYPE,4

The window shown below will pop up. We will use the defaults, so click OK.
2. Set Solution Controls
Solution > Analysis Type > Sol'n Controls

The following window will pop up.

A) Set Time at end of loadstep to 300 and Automatic time stepping to ON.
B) Set Number of substeps to 20, Max no. of substeps to 100, Min no. of substeps to 20.
C) Set the Frequency to Write every substep.

Click on the NonLinear tab at the top and fill it in as shown

 D) Set Line search to ON .
E) Set the Maximum number of iterations to 100.

For a complete description of what these options do, refer to the help file. Basically, the time at the end of the load step is
how long the transient analysis will run and the number of substeps defines how the load is broken up. By writing the data at
every step, you can create animations over time and the other options help the problem converge quickly.

3. Apply Constraints

For thermal problems, constraints can be in the form of Temperature, Heat Flow, Convection, Heat Flux, Heat Generation, or
Radiation. In this example, 2 sides of the block have fixed temperatures and the other two are insulated.

❍ Solution > Define Loads > Apply

Note that all of the -Structural- options cannot be selected. This is due to the type of element (PLANE55) selected.

❍ Thermal > Temperature > On Nodes

❍ Click the Box option (shown below) and draw a box around the nodes on the top line and then click OK.
The following window will appear:
 ❍ Fill the window in as shown to constrain the top to a constant temperature of 500 K

❍ Using the same method, constrain the bottom line to a constant value of 100 K

Orange triangles in the graphics window indicate the temperature contraints.

4. Apply Initial Conditions

Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Initial Condit'n > Define > Pick All

Fill in the IC window as follows to set the initial temperature of the material to 100 K:

5. Solve the System

Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

1. Results Using ANSYS

Plot Temperature

General Postproc > Plot Results > Contour Plot > Nodal Solu ... > DOF solution, Temperature TEMP
Animate Results Over Time

❍ First, specify the contour range.

Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Style > Contours > Uniform Contours...

Fill in the window as shown, with 8 contours, user specified, from 100 to 500.
❍ Then animate the data.
Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Animate > Over Time...

Fill in the following window as shown (20 frames, 0 - 300 Time Range, Auto contour scaling OFF, DOF solution >
TEMP)
You can see how the temperature rises over the area over time. The heat flows from the higher temperature to the lower
temperature constraints as expected. Also, you can see how it reaches equilibrium when the time reaches approximately 200
seconds. Shown below are analytical and ANSYS generated temperature vs time curves for the center of the block. As can be seen,
the curves are practically identical, thus the validity of the ANSYS simulation has been proven.
Analytical Solution
 ANSYS Generated Solution

Time History Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

1. Creating the Temperature vs. Time Graph

❍ Select: Main Menu > TimeHist Postpro. The following window should open automatically.
 If it does not open automatically, select Main Menu > TimeHist Postpro > Variable Viewer

❍ Click the add button in the upper left corner of the window to add a variable.

❍ Select Nodal Solution > DOF Solution > Temperature (as shown below) and click OK. Pick the center node on the mesh,
node 261, and click OK in the 'Node for Data' window.
❍ The Time History Variables window should now look like this:
2. Graph Results over Time

❍ Ensure TEMP_2 in the Time History Variables window is highlighted.

❍ Click the graphing button in the Time History Variables window.

❍ The labels on the plot are not updated by ANSYS, so you must change them manually. Select Utility Menu > Plot Ctrls >
Style > Graphs > Modify Axes and re-label the X and Y-axis appropriately.

Note how this plot does not exactly match the plot shown above. This is because the solution has not completely converged.
To cause the solution to converge, one of two things can be done: decrease the mesh size or increase the number of substeps
used in the transient analysis. From experience, reducing the mesh size will do little in this case, as the mesh is adequate to
capture the response. Instead, increasing the number of substeps from say 20 to 300, will cause the solution to converge.
This will greatly increase the computational time required though, which is why only 20 substeps are used in this tutorial.
Twenty substeps gives an adequate and quick approximation of the solution.
Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Effect of Self Weight

Modelling Using Axisymmetry
Distributed Loading

NonLinear Analysis

Solution Tracking Introduction

Buckling
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 This tutorial is intended to outline the steps required to create an axisymmetric model.
NonLinear Materials
The model will be that of a closed tube made from steel. Point loads will be applied at the center of the top and bottom plate to make an
Dynamic - Modal analytical verification simple to calculate. A 3/4 cross section view of the tube is shown below.

Dynamic - Harmonic
As a warning, point loads will create discontinuities in the your model near the point of application. If you chose to use these types of
Dynamic - Transient
loads in your own modelling, be very careful and be sure to understand the theory of how the FEA package is appling the load and the
assumption it is making. In this case, we will only be concerned about the stress distribution far from the point of application, so the
Thermal-Conduction discontinuities will have a negligable effect.

Thermal-Mixed Bndry

Transient Heat

Axisymmetric

Index

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta
 ANSYS Inc.

Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta

Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

1. Give example a Title
Utility Menu > File > Change Title ...
/title, Axisymmetric Tube

2. Open preprocessor menu

ANSYS Main Menu > Preprocessor
/PREP7

3. Create Areas
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Areas > Rectangle > By Dimensions
RECTNG,X1,X2,Y1,Y2
 For an axisymmetric problem, ANSYS will rotate the area around the y-axis at x=0. Therefore, to create the geometry
mentioned above, we must define a U-shape.

We are going to define 3 overlapping rectangles as defined in the following table:

Rectangle X1 X2 Y1 Y2
1 0 20 0 5
2 15 20 0 100
3 0 20 95 100

4. Add Areas Together

Preprocessor > Modeling > Operate > Booleans > Add > Areas
AADD,ALL

Click the Pick All button to create a single area.

5. Define the Type of Element

Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete...

For this problem we will use the PLANE2 (Structural, Solid, Triangle 6node) element. This element has 2 degrees of
freedom (translation along the X and Y axes).

Many elements support axisymmetry, however if the Ansys Elements Reference (which can be found in the help file) does
not discuss axisymmetric applications for a particular element type, axisymmetry is not supported.

6. Turn on Axisymmetry
While the Element Types window is still open, click the Options... button.

Under Element behavior K3 select Axisymmetric.

7. Define Element Material Properties
Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Structural > Linear > Elastic > Isotropic

In the window that appears, enter the following geometric properties for steel:

i. Young's modulus EX: 200000

ii. Poisson's Ratio PRXY: 0.3

8. Define Mesh Size

Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > ManualSize > Areas > All Areas

For this example we will use an element edge length of 2mm.

9. Mesh the frame

Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Areas > Free > click 'Pick All'

Your model should know look like this:

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving
1. Define Analysis Type
Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis > Static
ANTYPE,0

2. Apply Constraints
❍ Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > Symmetry B.C. > On Lines

Pick the two edges on the left, at x=0, as shown below. By using the symmetry B.C. command, ANSYS automatically
calculates which DOF's should be constrained for the line of symmetry. Since the element we are using only has 2 DOF's
per node, we could have constrained the lines in the x-direction to create the symmetric boundary conditions.
❍ Utility Menu > Select > Entities

Select Nodes and By Location from the scroll down menus. Click Y coordinates and type 50 into the input box as shown
below, then click OK.
 Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On Nodes > Pick All

Constrain the nodes in the y-direction (UY). This is required to constrain the model in space, otherwise it would be free to
float up or down. The location to constrain the model in the y-direction (y=50) was chosen because it is along a symmetry
plane. Therefore, these nodes won't move in the y-direction according to theory.

3. Utility Menu > Select > Entities

In the select entities window, click Sele All to reselect all nodes. It is important to always reselect all entities once you've finished
to ensure future commands are applied to the whole model and not just a few entities. Once you've clicked Sele All, click on
Cancel to close the window.

4. Apply Loads
❍ Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Force/Moment > On Keypoints

Pick the top left corner of the area and click OK. Apply a load of 100 in the FY direction.
 ❍ Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Force/Moment > On Keypoints
Pick the bottom left corner of the area and click OK. Apply a load of -100 in the FY direction.

❍ The applied loads and constraints should now appear as shown in the figure below.

5. Solve the System

Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

1. Hand Calculations

Hand calculations were performed to verify the solution found using ANSYS:
 The stress across the thickness at y = 50mm is 0.182 MPa.

2. Determine the Stress Through the Thickness of the Tube

❍ Utility Menu > Select > Entities...

Select Nodes > By Location > Y coordinates and type 45,55 in the Min,Max box, as shown below and click OK.
 ❍ General Postproc > List Results > Nodal Solution > Stress > Components SCOMP

The following list should pop up.

❍ If you take the average of the stress in the y-direction over the thickness of the tube, (0.18552 + 0.17866)/2, the stress in the
tube is 0.182 MPa, matching the analytical solution. The average is used because in the analytical case, it is assumed the
stress is evenly distributed across the thickness. This is only true when the location is far from any stress concentrators, such
as corners. Thus, to approximate the analytical solution, we must average the stress over the thickness.

3. Plotting the Elements as Axisymmetric

Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Style > Symmetry Expansion > 2-D Axi-symmetric...

The following window will appear. By clicking on 3/4 expansion you can produce the figure shown at the beginning of this
tutorial.
 4. Extra Exercise

It is educational to repeat this tutorial, but leave out the key option which enables axisymmetric modelling. The rest of the
commands remain the same. If this is done, the model is a flat, rectangular plate, with a rectangular hole in the middle. Both the
stress distribution and deformed shape change drastically, as expected due to the change in geometry. Thus, when using
axisymmetry be sure to verify the solutions you get are reasonable to ensure the model is infact axisymmetric.

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Springs and Joints

Application of Joints and Springs in ANSYS
Design Optimization

Substructuring

Coupled Field Introduction

p-Element
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 5.7.1. This tutorial will introduce:
Element Death
● the use of multiple elements in ANSYS
Contact Elements ● elements COMBIN7 (Joints) and COMBIN14 (Springs)
● obtaining/storing scalar information and store them as parameters.
APDL

A 1000N vertical load will be applied to a catapult as shown in the figure below. The catapult is built from steel tubing with an outer
diameter of 40 mm, a wall thickness of 10, and a modulus of elasticity of 200GPa. The springs have a stiffness of 5 N/mm.
Index

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta

ANSYS Inc.

Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta
Preprocessing: Defining the Problem
1. Open preprocessor menu
/PREP7

2. Give example a Title

Utility Menu > File > Change Title ...
/title,Catapult

3. Define Element Types

For this problem, 3 types of elements are used: PIPE16, COMBIN7 (Revolute Joint), COMBIN14 (Spring-Damper) . It is therefore
required that the types of elements are defined prior to creating the elements. This element has 6 degrees of freedom (translation
along the X, Y and Z axis, and rotation about the X,Y and Z axis).
 a. Define PIPE16
With 6 degrees of freedom, the PIPE16 element can be used to create the 3D structure.
■ Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete... > click 'Add'

■ Select 'Pipe', 'Elast straight 16'

■ Click on 'Apply' You should see 'Type 1 PIPE16' in the 'Element Types' window.

b. Define COMBIN7
COMBIN7 (Revolute Joint) will allow the catapult to rotate about nodes 1 and 2.
■ Select 'Combination', 'Revolute Joint 7'

■ Click 'Apply'.

c. Define COMBIN14
Now we will define the spring elements.
■ Select 'Combination', 'Spring damper 14'

■ Click on 'OK'

In the 'Element Types' window, there should now be three types of elements defined.

4. Define Real Constants

Real Constants must be defined for each of the 3 element types.

a. PIPE16
■ Preprocessor > Real Constants > Add/Edit/Delete... > click 'Add'

■ Select Type 1 PIPE16 and click 'OK'

■ Enter the following properties, then click 'OK'

OD = 40
TKWALL = 10

'Set 1' will now appear in the dialog box

b. COMBIN7 (Joint)

Five of the degrees of freedom (UX, UY, UZ, ROTX, and ROTY) can be constrained with different levels of flexibility.
These can be defined by the 3 real constants: K1 (UX, UY), K2 (UZ) and K3 (ROTX, ROTY). For this example, we will
use high values for K1 through K3 since we only expect the model to rotate about the Z axis.

■ Click 'Add'
■ Select 'Type 2 COMBIN7'. Click 'OK'.
■ In the 'Real Constants for COMBIN7' window, enter the following geometric properties (then click 'OK'):
X-Y transnational stiffness K1: 1e9
 Z directional stiffness K2: 1e9
Rotational stiffness K3: 1e9
■ 'Set 2' will now appear in the dialog box.

Note: The constants that we define in this problem refer to the relationship between the coincident nodes. By having
high values for the stiffness in the X-Y plane and along the Z axis, we are essentially constraining the two coincident
nodes to each other.

c. COMBIN14 (Spring)
■ Click 'Add'

■ Select 'Type 3 COMBIN14'. Click 'OK'.

■ Enter the following geometric properties:

Spring constant K: 5

In the 'Element Types' window, there should now be three types of elements defined.

5. Define Element Material Properties

1. Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models
2. In the 'Define Material Model Behavior' Window, ensure that Material Model Number 1 is selected
3. Select Structural > Linear > Elastic > Isotropic
4. In the window that appears, enter the give the properties of Steel then click 'OK'.
Young's modulus EX: 200000
Poisson's Ratio PRXY: 0.33

6. Define Nodes
Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Create > Nodes > In Active CS...
N,#,x,y,z

We are going to define 13 Nodes for this structure as given in the following table (as depicted by the circled numbers in the figure
above):

Node Coordinates (x,y,z)

1 (0,0,0)

2 (0,0,1000)

3 (1000,0,1000)

4 (1000,0,0)
 5 (0,1000,1000)

6 (0,1000,0)

7 (700,700,500)

8 (400,400,500)

9 (0,0,0)

10 (0,0,1000)

11 (0,0,500)

12 (0,0,1500)

13 (0,0,-500)

7. Create PIPE16 elements

a. Define element type

Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Create > Elements > Elem Attributes ...

The following window will appear. Ensure that the 'Element type number' is set to 1 PIPE16, 'Material number' is set to 1,
and 'Real constant set number' is set to 1. Then click 'OK'.
b. Create elements
Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Create > Elements > (-Auto Numbered-) Thru Nodes
E, node a, node b

Create the following elements joining Nodes 'a' and Nodes 'b'.
Note: because it is difficult to graphically select the nodes you may wish to use the command line (for example, the first
entry would be: E,1,6).

Node a Node b
1 6
2 5
1 4
2 3
3 4
10 8
9 8
7 8
12 5
 13 6
12 13
5 3
6 4

You should obtain the following geometry (Oblique view)

8. Create COMBIN7 (Joint) elements

a. Define element type

Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Create > Elements > Elem Attributes
Ensure that the 'Element type number' is set to 2 COMBIN7 and that 'Real constant set number' is set to 2. Then click
'OK'

b. Create elements
When defining a joint, three nodes are required. Two nodes are coincident at the point of rotation. The elements that connect
to the joint must reference each of the coincident points. The other node for the joint defines the axis of rotation. The axis
would be the line from the coincident nodes to the other node.
Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Create > Elements > (-Auto Numbered-) Thru Nodes
 E,node a, node b, node c

Create the following lines joining Node 'a' and Node 'b'

Node a Node b Node c

1 9 11
2 10 11

9. Create COMBIN14 (Spring) elements

a. Define element type

Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Create > Elements > Elem Attributes
Ensure that the 'Element type number' is set to 3 COMBIN7 and that 'Real constant set number' is set to 3. Then click
'OK'

b. Create elements
Preprocessor > (-Modeling-) Create > Elements > (-Auto Numbered-) Thru Nodes
E,node a, node b

Create the following lines joining Node 'a' and Node 'b'

Node a Node b
5 8
8 6

NOTE: To ensure that the correct nodes were used to make the correct element in the above table, you can list all the elements
defined in the model. To do this, select Utilities Menu > List > Elements > Nodes + Attributes.

10. Meshing

Because we have defined our model using nodes and elements, we do not need to mesh our model. If we initially defined our
model using keypoints and lines, we would have had to create elements in our model by meshing the lines. It is the elements that
ANSYS uses to solve the model.

11. Plot Elements

Utility Menu > Plot > Elements
 You may also wish to turn on element numbering and turn off keypoint numbering

Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Numbering ...

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Define Analysis Type
Solution > New Analysis > Static
ANTYPE,0

2. Allow Large Deflection

Solution > Sol'n Controls > basic
NLGEOM, ON

Because the model is expected to deform considerably, we need to include the effects of large deformation.

3. Apply Constraints
Solution > (-Loads-) Apply > (-Structural-) > Displacement > On Nodes
 ❍ Fix Nodes 3, 4, 12, and 13. (ie - all degrees of freedom are constrained).

4. Apply Loads
Solution > (-Loads-) Apply > (-Structural-) > Force/Moment > On Nodes

❍ Apply a vertical point load of 1000N at node #7.

The applied loads and constraints should now appear as shown in the figure below.

Note: To have the constraints and loads appear each time you select 'Replot' in ANSYS, you must change some settings under
Utility Menu > Plot Ctrls > Symbols.... In the window that appears check the box beside 'All Applied BC's' in the 'Boundary
Condition Symbol' section.

5. Solve the System

Solution > (-Solve-) Current LS
SOLVE

Note: During the solution, you will see a yellow warning window which states that the "Coefficient ratio exceeds 1.0e8". This
warning indicates that the solution has relatively large displacements. This is due to the rotation about the joints.
Postprocessing: Viewing the Results
1. Plot Deformed Shape
General Postproc > Plot Results > Deformed Shape
PLDISP.2

2. Extracting Information as Parameters

In this problem, we would like to find the vertical displacement of node #7. We will do this using the GET command.

a. Select Utility Menu > Parameters > Get Scalar Data...

b. The following window will appear. Select 'Results data' and 'Nodal results' as shown then click 'OK'
c. Fill in the 'Get Nodal Results Data' window as shown below:

d. To view the defined parameter select Utility Menu > Parameters > Scalar Parameters...
 Therefore the vertical displacement of Node 7 is 323.78 mm. This can be repeated for any of the other nodes you are
interested in.

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Springs and Joints

Design Optimization
Design Optimization

Substructuring

Coupled Field Introduction

p-Element
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to introduce a method of solving design optimization
Element Death problems using ANSYS. This will involve creating the geometry utilizing parameters for all the variables, deciding which variables to use
as design, state and objective variables and setting the correct tolerances for the problem to obtain an accurately converged solution in a
Contact Elements minimal amount of time. The use of hardpoints to apply forces/constraints in the middle of lines will also be covered in this tutorial.

APDL
A beam has a force of 1000N applied as shown below. The purpose of this optimization problem is to minimize the weight of the beam
without exceeding the allowable stress. It is necessary to find the cross sectional dimensions of the beam in order to minimize the weight
of the beam. However, the width and height of the beam cannot be smaller than 10mm. The maximum stress anywhere in the beam cannot
Index exceed 200 MPa. The beam is to be made of steel with a modulus of elasticity of 200 GPa.

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta

ANSYS Inc.

Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta
Preprocessing: Defining the Problem
1. Give example a Title
 Utility Menu > File > Change Title ...
/title, Design Optimization

2. Enter initial estimates for variables

To solve an optimization problem in ANSYS, parameters need to be defined for all design variables.

❍ Select: Utility Menu > Parameters > Scalar Parameters...

❍ In the window that appears (shown below), type W=20 in the ‘Selection’ section

❍ Click ‘Accept’. The 'Scalar Parameters' window will stay open.

❍ Now type H=20 in the ‘Selection’ section
❍ Click ‘Accept'
❍ Click ‘Close’ in the ‘Scalar Parameters’ window.

NOTE: None of the variables defined in ANSYS are allowed to have negative values.

3. Define Keypoints
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Keypoints > In Active CS...
K,#,x,y

We are going to define 2 Keypoints for this beam as given in the following table:
 Keypoints Coordinates (x,y)
1 (0,0)
2 (1000,0)

4. Create Lines
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Lines > Lines > In Active Coord
L,1,2

Create a line joining Keypoints 1 and 2

5. Create Hard Keypoints

Hardpoints are often used when you need to apply a constraint or load at a location where a keypoint does not exist. For this case,
we want to apply a force 3/4 of the way down the beam. Since there are not any keypoints here and we can't be certain that one of
the nodes will be here we will need to specify a hardpoint

❍ Select Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Keypoints > Hard PT on line > Hard PT by ratio. This will allow us to
create a hardpoint on the line by defining the ratio of the location of the point to the size of the line

❍ Select the line when prompted

❍ Enter a ratio of 0.75 in the 'Create HardPT by Ratio window which appears.

You have now created a keypoint labelled 'Keypoint 3' 3/4 of the way down the beam.

6. Define Element Types

Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete...

For this problem we will use the BEAM3 (Beam 2D elastic) element. This element has 3 degrees of freedom (translation
along the X and Y axes, and rotation about the Z axis).

7. Define Real Constants

Preprocessor > Real Constants... > Add...

In the 'Real Constants for BEAM3' window, enter the following geometric properties: (Note that '**' is used instead '^' for
exponents)

i. Cross-sectional area AREA: W*H

ii. Area moment of inertia IZZ: (W*H**3)/12
 iii. Thickness along Y axis: H

NOTE: It is important to use independent variables to define dependent variables such as the moment of inertia. During the
optimization, the width and height will change for each iteration. As a result, the other variables must be defined in relation
to the width and height.

8. Define Element Material Properties

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Structural > Linear > Elastic > Isotropic

In the window that appears, enter the following geometric properties for steel:

i. Young's modulus EX: 200000

ii. Poisson's Ratio PRXY: 0.3

9. Define Mesh Size

Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > ManualSize > Lines > All Lines...

For this example we will specify an element edge length of 100 mm (10 element divisions along the line).

10. Mesh the frame

Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Lines > click 'Pick All'
LMESH,ALL

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Define Analysis Type
Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis > Static
ANTYPE,0

2. Apply Constraints
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On Keypoints

Pin Keypoint 1 (ie UX, UY constrained) and constrain Keypoint 2 in the Y direction.

3. Apply Loads
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Force/Moment > On Keypoints

Apply a vertical (FY) point load of -2000N at Keypoint 3

 The applied loads and constraints should now appear as shown in the figure below.

4. Solve the System

Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

Extracting Information as Parameters:

To perform an optimization, we must extract the required information.

In this problem, we would like to find the maximum stress in the beam and the volume as a result of the width and height variables.

1. Define the volume

❍ Select General Postproc > Element Table > Define Table... > Add...
 ❍ The following window will appear. Fill it in as shown to obtain the volume of the beam.

Note that this is the volume of each element. If you were to list the element table you would get a volume for each element.
Therefore, you have to sum the element values together to obtain the total volume of the beam. Follow the instructions
below to do this.

❍ Select General Postproc > Element Table > Sum of Each Item...

❍ A little window will appear notifying you that the tabular sum of each element table will be calculated. Click 'OK'

You will obtain a window notifying you that the EVolume is now 400000 mm2

2. Store the data (Volume) as a parameter

❍ Select Utility Menu > Parameters > Get Scalar Data...

❍ In the window which appears select 'Results Data' and 'Elem table sums'

❍ the following window will appear. Select the items shown to store the Volume as a parameter.
 Now if you view the parameters (Utility Menu > Parameters > Scalar Parameters...) you will see that Volume has been
added.

3. Define the maximum stress at the i node of each element in the beam

❍ Select General Postproc > Element Table > Define Table... > Add...

❍ The following window will appear. Fill it in as shown to obtain the maximum stress at the i node of each element and store
it as 'SMAX_I'.

Note that nmisc,1 is the maximum stress. For further information type Help beam3 into the command line

Now we will need to sort the stresses in descending order to find the maximum stress
 ❍ Select General Postproc > List Results > Sorted Listing > Sort Elems

❍ Complete the window as shown below to sort the data from 'SMAX_I' in descending order

4. Store the data (Max Stress) as a parameter

❍ Select Utility Menu > Parameters > Get Scalar Data...

❍ In the window which appears select 'Results Data' and 'Other operations'

❍ In the that appears, fill it in as shown to obtain the maximum value.

5. Define maximum stress at the j node of each element for the beam
 ❍ Select General Postproc > Element Table > Define Table... > Add...

❍ Fill this table as done previously, however make the following changes:
■ save the data as 'SMAX_J' (instead of 'SMAX_I')

■ The element table data enter NMISC,3 (instead of NMISC,1). This will give you the max stress at the j node.

❍ Select General Postproc > List Results > Sorted Listing > Sort Elems to sort the stresses in descending order.

❍ However, select 'SMAX_J' in the Item, Comp selection box

6. Store the data (Max Stress) as a parameter

❍ Select Utility Menu > Parameters > Get Scalar Data...

❍ In the window which appears select 'Results Data' and 'Other operations'

❍ In the that appears, fill it in as shown previously , however, name the parameter 'SMaxJ'.

7. Select the largest of SMAXJ and SMAXI

❍ Type SMAX=SMAXI>SMAXJ into the command line

This will set the largest of the 2 values equal to SMAX. In this case the maximum values for each are the same. However,
this is not always the case.

8. View the parametric data

Utility Menu > Parameters > Scalar Parameters

Note that the maximum stress is 281.25 which is much larger than the allowable stress of 200MPa

Design Optimization

Now that we have parametrically set up our problem in ANSYS based on our initial width and height dimensions, we can now solve the
optimization problem.

1. Write the command file

It is necessary to write the outline of our problem to an ANSYS command file. This is so that ANSYS can iteratively run solutions
to our problem based on different values for the variables that we will define.

❍ Select Utility Menu > File > Write DB Log File...

 ❍ In the window that appears type a name for the command file such as ‘optimize.txt’
❍ Click ‘OK’.

If you open the command file in a text editor such as Notepad, it should similar to this:

/BATCH
! /COM,ANSYS RELEASE 7.0 UP20021010 16:10:03 05/26/2003
/input,start70,ans,'C:\Program Files\Ansys Inc\v70\ANSYS\apdl\',,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,1
/title, Design Optimization
*SET,W , 20
*SET,H , 20
/PREP7
K,1,0,0,,
K,2,1000,0,,
L, 1, 2
!*
HPTCREATE,LINE,1,0,RATI,0.75,
!*
ET,1,BEAM3
!*
!*
R,1,W*H,(W*H**3)/12,H, , , ,
!*
!*
MPTEMP,,,,,,,,
MPTEMP,1,0
MPDATA,EX,1,,200000
MPDATA,PRXY,1,,.3
!*
LESIZE,ALL,100, , , ,1, , ,1,
LMESH, 1
FINISH
/SOL
!*
ANTYPE,0
FLST,2,1,3,ORDE,1
FITEM,2,1
!*
/GO
DK,P51X, , , ,0,UX,UY, , , , ,
FLST,2,1,3,ORDE,1
FITEM,2,2
!*
/GO
DK,P51X, , , ,0,UY, , , , , ,
FLST,2,1,3,ORDE,1
FITEM,2,3
!*
/GO
FK,P51X,FY,-2000
! /STATUS,SOLU
SOLVE
FINISH
/POST1
AVPRIN,0,0,
ETABLE,EVolume,VOLU,
!*
SSUM
!*
*GET,Volume,SSUM, ,ITEM,EVOLUME
AVPRIN,0,0,
ETABLE,SMax_I,NMISC, 1
!*
ESORT,ETAB,SMAX_I,0,1, ,
!*
*GET,SMaxI,SORT,,MAX
AVPRIN,0,0,
ETABLE,SMax_J,NMISC, 3
!*
ESORT,ETAB,SMAX_J,0,1, ,
!*
*GET,SMaxJ,SORT,,MAX
*SET,SMAX,SMAXI>SMAXJ
! LGWRITE,optimization,,C:\Temp\,COMMENT

Several small changes need to be made to this file prior to commencing the optimization. If you created the geometry etc. using
command line code, most of these changes will already be made. However, if you used GUI to create this file there are several
occasions where you used the graphical picking device. Therefore, the actual items that were chosen need to be entered. The code
'P51X' symbolizes the graphical selection. To modify the file simply open it using notepad and make the required changes. Save
and close the file once you have made all of the required changes. The following is a list of the changes which need to be made to
this file (which was created using the GUI method)

❍ Line 32 - DK,P51X, ,0, ,0,UX,UY, , , , ,

Change this to: DK,1, ,0, ,0,UX,UY,
 This specifies the constraints at keypoint 1

❍ Line 37 - DK,P51X, ,0, ,0,UY, , , , , ,

Change to: DK,2, ,0, ,0,UY,
This specifies the constraints at keypoint 2

❍ Line 42 - FK,P51X,FY,-2000
Change to: FK,3,FY,-2000
This specifies the force applied on the beam

There are also several lines which can be removed from this file. If you are comfortable with command line coding, you should
remove the lines which you are certain are not required.

2. Assign the Command File to the Optimization

❍ Select Main Menu > Design Opt > Analysis File > Assign

❍ In the file list that appears, select the filename that you created when you wrote the command file.

❍ Click ‘OK’.

3. Define Variables and Tolerances

ANSYS needs to know which variables are critical to the optimization. To define variables, we need to know which variables have
an effect on the variable to be minimized. In this example our objective is to minimize the volume of a beam which is directly
related to the weight of the beam.

ANSYS categorizes three types of variables for design optimization:

Design Variables (DVs)

Independent variables that directly effect the design objective. In this example, the width and height of the beam are the
DVs. Changing either variable has a direct effect on the solution of the problem.
State Variables (SVs)
Dependent variables that change as a result of changing the DVs. These variables are necessary to constrain the design. In
this example, the SV is the maximum stress in the beam. Without this SV, our optimization will continue until both the width and
height are zero. This would minimize the weight to zero which is not a useful result.
Objective Variable (OV)
The objective variable is the one variable in the optimization that needs to be minimized. In our problem, we will be
minimizing the volume of the beam.

NOTE: As previously stated, none of the variables defined in ANSYS are allowed to have negative values.

Now that we have decided our design variables, we need to define ranges and tolerances for each variable. For the width and
height, we will select a range of 10 to 50 mm for each. Because a small change in either the width or height has a profound effect
on the volume of the beam, we will select a tolerance of 0.01mm. Tolerances are necessary in that they tell ANSYS the largest
amount of change that a variable can experience before convergence of the problem.

For the stress variable, we will select a range of 195 to 200 MPa with a tolerance of 0.01MPa.

Because the volume variable is the objective variable, we do not need to define an allowable range. We will set the tolerance to
200mm3. This tolerance was chosen because it is significantly smaller than the initial magnitude of the volume of 400000mm3
(20mm x 20mm x 1000mm).

a. Define the Design Variables (width and height of beam)

■ Select Main Menu > Design Opt > Design Variables... > Add...

■ Complete the window as shown below to specify the variable limits and tolerances for the height of the beam.

■ Repeat the above steps to specify the variable limits for the width of the beam (identical to specifications for height)

b. Define the State Variables

■ Select Main Menu > Design Opt > State Variables... > Add...
 ■ In the window fill in the following sections
■ Select 'SMAX' in the ‘Parameter Name’ section.

■ Enter: Lower Limit (MIN = 195)

■ Upper Limit (MAX = 200)

■ Feasibility Tolerance (TOLER = 0.001)

c. Define the Objective Variable

■ Select Main Menu > Design Opt > Objective...

■ Select ‘VOLUME’ in the ‘Parameter Name’ section.
■ Under Convergence Tolerance, enter 200.

6. Define the Optimization Method

There are several different methods that ANSYS can use to solve an optimization problem. To ensure that you are not finding a
solution at a local minimum, it is advisable to use different solution methods. If you have trouble with getting a particular problem
to converge it would be a good idea to try a different method of solution to see what might be wrong.

For this problem we will use a First-Order Solution method.

❍ Select Main Menu > Design Opt > Method / Tool...

❍ In the ‘Specify Optimization Method’ window select ‘First-Order’
❍ Click ‘OK’
❍ Enter: Maximum iterations (NITR = 30), Percent step size SIZE = 100, Percent forward diff. DELTA = 0.2
❍ Click ‘OK’.

Note: the significance of the above variables is explained below:

NITR
Max number of iterations. Defaults to 10.
SIZE
% that is applied to the size of each line search step. Defaults to 100%
DELTA
forward difference (%) applied to the design variable range that is used to compute the gradient. Defaults to 0.2%

7. Run the Optimization

❍ Select Main Menu > Design Opt > Run...

❍ In the ‘Begin Execution of Run’ window, confirm that the analysis file, method/type and maximum iterations are correct.
❍ Click ‘OK’.
 The solution of an optimization problem can take awhile before convergence. This problem will take about 15 minutes and run
through 19 iterations.

View the Results

1. View Final Parameters

Utility Menu > Parameters > Scalar Parameters...

You will probably see that the width=13.24 mm, height=29.16 mm, and the stress is equal to 199.83 MPa with a volume of
386100mm2.

2. View graphical results of each variable during the solution

❍ Select Main Menu > Design Opt > Design Sets > Graphs / Tables...

❍ Complete the window as shown to obtain a graph of the height and width of the beam changing with each iteration

A. For the ‘X-variable parameter’ select ‘Set number’.

B. For the ‘Y-variable parameter’ select ‘H’ and ‘W’.
C. Ensure that 'Graph' is selected (as opposed to 'List')
 Now you may wish to specify titles for the X and Y axes

❍ Select Utility Menu > Plot Ctrls > Style > Graphs > Modify Axes...
❍ In the window, enter ‘Number of Iterations’ for the ‘X-axis label’ section.
❍ Enter ‘Width and Height (mm)’ for the ‘Y-axis label’.
❍ Click 'OK'
❍ Select Utility Menu > PlotCtrls

In the graphics window, you will see a graph of width and height throughout the optimization. You can print the plot by selecting
Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Hard Copy...
You can plot graphs of the other variables in the design by following the above steps. Instead of using width and height for the y-axis label
and variables, use whichever variable is necessary to plot. Alternatively, you could list the data by selecting Main Menu > Design Opt >
Design Sets > List... . In addition, all of the results data (ie stress, displacement, bending moments) are available from the General
Postproc menu.

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Springs and Joints

Substructuring
Design Optimization

Substructuring

Coupled Field Introduction

p-Element
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of the tutorial is to show the how to use substructuring in ANSYS.
Element Death Substructuring is a procedure that condenses a group of finite elements into one super-element. This reduces the required computation
time and also allows the solution of very large problems.
Contact Elements
A simple example will be demonstrated to explain the steps required, however, please note that this model is not one which requires the
APDL
use of substructuring. The example involves a block of wood (E =10 GPa v =0.29) connected to a block of silicone (E = 2.5 MPa, v =
0.41) which is rigidly attached to the ground. A force will be applied to the structure as shown in the following figure. For this example,
substructuring will be used for the wood block.
Index

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta

ANSYS Inc.

The use of substructuring in ANSYS is a three stage process:

Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta 1. Generation Pass
Generate the super-element by condensing several elements together. Select the degrees of freedom to save (master DOFs) and to
discard (slave DOFs). Apply loads to the super-element
 2. Use Pass
Create the full model including the super-element created in the generation pass. Apply remaining loads to the model. The solution
will consist of the reduced solution tor the super-element and the complete solution for the non-superelements.

3. Expansion Pass
Expand the reduced solution to obtain the solution at all DOFs for the super-element.

Note that a this method is a bottom-up substructuring (each super-element is created separately and then assembled in the Use Pass). Top-
down substructuring is also possible in ANSYS (the entire model is built, then super-element are created by selecting the appropriate
elements). This method is suitable for smaller models and has the advantage that the results for multiple super-elements can be assembled
in postprocessing.

Expansion Pass: Creating the Super-element

Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

1. Give Generation Pass a Jobname

Utility Menu > File > Change Jobname ...

Enter 'GEN' for the jobname

2. Open preprocessor menu

ANSYS Main Menu > Preprocessor
/PREP7

3. Create geometry of the super-element

Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Areas > Rectangle > By 2 Corners
BLC4,XCORNER,YCORNER,WIDTH,HEIGHT

Create a rectangle with the dimensions (all units in mm):

XCORNER (WP X) = 0
YCORNER (WP Y) = 40
Width = 100
Height = 100

4. Define the Type of Element

Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete...
 For this problem we will use PLANE42 (2D structural solid). This element has 4 nodes, each with 2 degrees of freedom
(translation along the X and Y axes).

5. Define Element Material Properties

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Structural > Linear > Elastic > Isotropic

In the window that appears, enter the following geometric properties for wood:

i. Young's modulus EX: 10000 (MPa)

ii. Poisson's Ratio PRXY: 0.29

6. Define Mesh Size

Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > Manual Size > Areas > All Areas ...

For this example we will use an element edge length of 10mm.

7. Mesh the block

Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Areas > Free > click 'Pick All'
AMESH,1

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Define Analysis Type

Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis > Substructuring
ANTYPE,SUBST

2. Select Substructuring Analysis Options

It is necessary to define the substructuring analysis options

❍ Select Solution > Analysis Type > Analysis Options

❍ The following window will appear. Ensure that the options are filled in as shown.
 ■ Sename (the name of the super-element matrix file) will default to the jobname.
■ In this case, the stiffness matrix is to be generated.
■ With the option SEPR, the stiffness matrix or load matrix can be printed to the output window if desired.

3. Select Master Degrees of Freedom

Master DOFs must be defined at the interface between the super-element and other elements in addition to points where loads/
constraints are applied.

❍ Select Solution > Master DOFs > User Selected > Define

❍ Select the Master DOF as shown in the following figure.

❍ In the window that appears, set the 1st degree of freedom to All DOF
4. Apply Loads
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Force/Moment > On Nodes

Place a load of 5N in the x direction on the top left hand node

The model should now appear as shown in the figure below.

5. Save the database

Utility Menu > File > Save as Jobname.db
SAVE

Save the database to be used again in the expansion pass

6. Solve the System

Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE
Use Pass: Using the Super-element
The Use Pass is where we model the entire model, including the super-elements from the Generation Pass.

Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

1. Clear the existing database

Utility Menu > File > Clear & Start New

2. Give Use Pass a Jobname

Utility Menu > File > Change Jobname ...
FILNAME, USE

Enter 'USE' for the jobname

3. Open preprocessor menu

ANSYS Main Menu > Preprocessor
/PREP7

Now we need to bring the Super-element into the model

4. Define the Super-element Type

Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete...

Select 'Super-element' (MATRIX50)

5. Create geometry of the non-superelement (Silicone)

Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Areas > Rectangle > By 2 Corners
BLC4,XCORNER,YCORNER,WIDTH,HEIGHT

Create a rectangle with the dimensions (all units in mm):

XCORNER (WP X) = 0
YCORNER (WP Y) = 0
Width = 100
Height = 40
 6. Define the Non-Superelement Type
Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete...

We will again use PLANE42 (2D structural solid).

7. Define Element Material Properties

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Structural > Linear > Elastic > Isotropic

In the window that appears, enter the following geometric properties for silicone:

i. Young's modulus EX: 2.5 (MPa)

ii. Poisson's Ratio PRXY: 0.41

8. Define Mesh Size

Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > Manual Size > Areas > All Areas ...

For this block we will again use an element edge length of 10mm. Note that is is imperative that the nodes of the non-
superelement match up with the super-element MDOFs.

9. Mesh the block

Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Areas > Free > click 'Pick All'
AMESH,1

10. Offset Node Numbering

Since both the super-element and the non-superelement were created independently, they contain similarly numbered nodes (ie
both objects will have node #1 etc.). If we bring in the super-element with similar node numbers, the nodes will overwrite existing
nodes from the non-superelements. Therefore, we need to offset the super-element nodes

Determine the number of nodes in the existing model

❍ Select Utility Menu > Parameters > Get Scalar Data ...
❍ The following window will appear. Select Model Data, For Selected set as shown.
❍ Fill in the following window as shown to set MaxNode = the highest node number

Offset the node numbering

❍ Select Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Elements > Super-elements > BY CS Transfer
❍ Fill in the following window as shown to offset the node numbers and save the file as GEN2
 Read in the super-element matrix
❍ Select Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Elements > Super-elements > From .SUB File...
❍ Enter 'GEN2' as the Jobname of the matrix file in the window (shown below)

❍ Utility Menu > Plot > Replot

11. Couple Node Pairs at Interface of Super-element and Non-Superelements

Select the nodes at the interface

❍ Select Utility Menu > Select > Entities ...

❍ The following window will appear. Select Nodes, By Location, Y coordinates, 40 as shown.
 Couple the pair nodes at the interface
❍ Select Preprocessor > Coupling / Ceqn > Coincident Nodes

Re-select all of the nodes

❍ Select Utility Menu > Select > Entities ...
❍ In the window that appears, click 'Nodes > By Num/Pick > From Full > Sele All'

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Define Analysis Type

Solution > New Analysis > Static
ANTYPE,0

2. Apply Constraints
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On Lines

Fix the bottom line (ie all DOF constrained)

3. Apply super-element load vectors

 ❍ Determine the element number of the super-element (Select Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Numbering...)

You should find that the super-element is element 41

❍ Select Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Load Vector > For Super-element

❍ The following window will appear. Fill it in as shown to apply the super-element load vector.

4. Save the database

Utility Menu > File > Save as Jobname.db
SAVE

Save the database to be used again in the expansion pass

5. Solve the System

Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

General Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

1. Show the Displacement Contour Plot

General Postproc > Plot Results > Contour Plot > Nodal Solution ... > DOF solution, Translation USUM
PLNSOL,U,SUM,0,1
Note that only the deformation for the non-superelements is plotted. This results agree with what was found without using
substructuring (see figure below).
Expansion Pass: Expanding the Results within the Super-element
To obtain the solution for all elements within the super-element you will need to perform an expansion pass.

Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

1. Clear the existing database

Utility Menu > File > Clear & Start New

2. Change the Jobname back to Generation pass Jobname

Utility Menu > File > Change Jobname ...
FILNAME, GEN

Enter 'GEN' for the jobname

 3. Resume Generation Pass Database
Utility Menu > File > Resume Jobname.db ...
RESUME

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Activate Expansion Pass

❍ Enter the Solution mode by selecting Main Menu > Solution or by typing /SOLU into the command line.

❍ Type 'EXPASS,ON' into the command line to initiate the expansion pass.

2. Enter the Super-element name to be Expanded

❍ Select Solution > Load STEP OPTS > ExpansionPass > Single Expand >Expand Superelem ...

❍ The following window will appear. Fill it in as shown to select the super-element.

3. Enter the Super-element name to be Expanded

❍ Select Solution > Load Step Opts > ExpansionPass > Single Expand > By Load Step...

❍ The following window will appear. Fill it in as shown to expand the solution.
 4. Solve the System
Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

General Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

1. Show the Displacement Contour Plot

General Postproc > Plot Results > (-Contour Plot-) Nodal Solution ... > DOF solution, Translation USUM
PLNSOL,U,SUM,0,1
Note that only the deformation for the super-elements is plotted (and that the contour intervals have been modified to begin at 0).
This results agree with what was found without using substructuring (see figure below).
Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Springs and Joints

Coupled Structural/Thermal Analysis
Design Optimization

Substructuring

Coupled Field Introduction

p-Element
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to outline a simple coupled thermal/structural analysis. A
Element Death steel link, with no internal stresses, is pinned between two solid structures at a reference temperature of 0 C (273 K). One of the solid
structures is heated to a temperature of 75 C (348 K). As heat is transferred from the solid structure into the link, the link will attemp to
Contact Elements expand. However, since it is pinned this cannot occur and as such, stress is created in the link. A steady-state solution of the resulting
stress will be found to simplify the analysis.
APDL

Loads will not be applied to the link, only a temperature change of 75 degrees Celsius. The link is steel with a modulus of elasticity of 200
GPa, a thermal conductivity of 60.5 W/m*K and a thermal expansion coefficient of 12e-6 /K.
Index

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta

ANSYS Inc.

Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta Preprocessing: Defining the Problem
According to Chapter 2 of the ANSYS Coupled-Field Guide, "A sequentially coupled physics analysis is the combination of analyses
from different engineering disciplines which interact to solve a global engineering problem. For convenience, ...the solutions and
procedures associated with a particular engineering discipline [will be referred to as] a physics analysis. When the input of one physics
analysis depends on the results from another analysis, the analyses are coupled."

Thus, each different physics environment must be constructed seperately so they can be used to determine the coupled physics solution.
However, it is important to note that a single set of nodes will exist for the entire model. By creating the geometry in the first physical
environment, and using it with any following coupled environments, the geometry is kept constant. For our case, we will create the
geometry in the Thermal Environment, where the thermal effects will be applied.

Although the geometry must remain constant, the element types can change. For instance, thermal elements are required for a thermal
analysis while structural elements are required to deterime the stress in the link. It is important to note, however that only certain
combinations of elements can be used for a coupled physics analysis. For a listing, see Chapter 2 of the ANSYS Coupled-Field Guide
located in the help file.

The process requires the user to create all the necessary environments, which are basically the preprocessing portions for each
environment, and write them to memory. Then in the solution phase they can be combined to solve the coupled analysis.

Thermal Environment - Create Geometry and Define Thermal Properties

1. Give example a Title

Utility Menu > File > Change Title ...
/title, Thermal Stress Example

2. Open preprocessor menu

ANSYS Main Menu > Preprocessor
/PREP7

3. Define Keypoints
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Keypoints > In Active CS...
K,#,x,y,z

We are going to define 2 keypoints for this link as given in the following table:

Keypoint Coordinates (x,y,z)

1 (0,0)
2 (1,0)

4. Create Lines
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Lines > Lines > In Active Coord
L,1,2
 Create a line joining Keypoints 1 and 2, representing a link 1 meter long.

5. Define the Type of Element

Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete...

For this problem we will use the LINK33 (Thermal Mass Link 3D conduction) element. This element is a uniaxial element
with the ability to conduct heat between its nodes.

6. Define Real Constants

Preprocessor > Real Constants... > Add...

In the 'Real Constants for LINK33' window, enter the following geometric properties:

i. Cross-sectional area AREA: 4e-4

This defines a beam with a cross-sectional area of 2 cm X 2 cm.

7. Define Element Material Properties

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Thermal > Conductivity > Isotropic

In the window that appears, enter the following geometric properties for steel:

i. KXX: 60.5

8. Define Mesh Size

Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > ManualSize > Lines > All Lines...

For this example we will use an element edge length of 0.1 meters.

9. Mesh the frame

Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Lines > click 'Pick All'

10. Write Environment

The thermal environment (the geometry and thermal properties) is now fully described and can be written to memory to be
used at a later time.
Preprocessor > Physics > Environment > Write

In the window that appears, enter the TITLE Thermal and click OK.
 11. Clear Environment
Preprocessor > Physics > Environment > Clear > OK

Doing this clears all the information prescribed for the geometry, such as the element type, material properties, etc. It does
not clear the geometry however, so it can be used in the next stage, which is defining the structural environment.

Structural Environment - Define Physical Properties

Since the geometry of the problem has already been defined in the previous steps, all that is required is to detail the structural variables.

1. Switch Element Type

Preprocessor > Element Type > Switch Elem Type

Choose Thermal to Struc from the scoll down list.

This will switch to the complimentary structural element automatically. In this case it is LINK 8. For more information on
this element, see the help file. A warning saying you should modify the new element as necessary will pop up. In this case,
only the material properties need to be modified as the geometry is staying the same.

2. Define Element Material Properties

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Structural > Linear > Elastic > Isotropic

In the window that appears, enter the following geometric properties for steel:

i. Young's Modulus EX: 200e9

ii. Poisson's Ratio PRXY: 0.3
 Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Structural > Thermal Expansion Coef > Isotropic

i. ALPX: 12e-6

3. Write Environment
The structural environment is now fully described.
Preprocessor > Physics > Environment > Write

In the window that appears, enter the TITLE Struct

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Define Analysis Type
Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis > Static
ANTYPE,0

2. Read in the Thermal Environment

Solution > Physics > Environment > Read

Choose thermal and click OK.

 If the Physics option is not available under Solution, click Unabridged Menu at the bottom of the Solution menu. This should
make it visible.

3. Apply Constraints
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Thermal > Temperature > On Keypoints

Set the temperature of Keypoint 1, the left-most point, to 348 Kelvin.

4. Solve the System

Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

5. Close the Solution Menu

Main Menu > Finish

It is very important to click Finish as it closes that environment and allows a new one to be opened without contamination.
If this is not done, you will get error messages.

The thermal solution has now been obtained. If you plot the steady-state temperature on the link, you will see it is a uniform 348 K,
as expected. This information is saved in a file labelled Jobname.rth, were .rth is the thermal results file. Since the jobname
wasn't changed at the beginning of the analysis, this data can be found as file.rth. We will use these results in determing the
structural effects.

6. Read in the Structural Environment

Solution > Physics > Environment > Read

Choose struct and click OK.

7. Apply Constraints
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On Keypoints

Fix Keypoint 1 for all DOF's and Keypoint 2 in the UX direction.

8. Include Thermal Effects

Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Temperature > From Therm Analy

As shown below, enter the file name File.rth. This couples the results from the solution of the thermal environment to
the information prescribed in the structural environment and uses it during the analysis.
 9. Define Reference Temperature
Preprocessor > Loads > Define Loads > Settings > Reference Temp

For this example set the reference temperature to 273 degrees Kelvin.

10. Solve the System

Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

1. Hand Calculations
Hand calculations were performed to verify the solution found using ANSYS:
 As shown, the stress in the link should be a uniform 180 MPa in compression.

2. Get Stress Data

Since the element is only a line, the stress can't be listed in the normal way. Instead, an element table must be created first.

General Postproc > Element Table > Define Table > Add

Fill in the window as shown below. [CompStr > By Sequence Num > LS > LS,1
ETABLE,CompStress,LS,1

3. List the Stress Data

 General Postproc > Element Table > List Elem Table > COMPSTR > OK
PRETAB,CompStr

The following list should appear. Note the stress in each element: -0.180e9 Pa, or 180 MPa in compression as expected.

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Springs and Joints

Using P-Elements
Design Optimization

Substructuring

Coupled Field Introduction

p-Element
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0. This tutorial outlines the steps necessary for solving a model meshed with p-elements. The
Element Death p-method manipulates the polynomial level (p-level) of the finite element shape functions which are used to approximate the real solution.
Thus, rather than increasing mesh density, the p-level can be increased to give a similar result. By keeping mesh density rather coarse,
Contact Elements computational time can be kept to a minimum. This is the greatest advantage of using p-elements over h-elements.

APDL
A uniform load will be applied to the right hand side of the geometry shown below. The specimen was modeled as steel with a modulus of
elasticity of 200 GPa.

Index

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta

ANSYS Inc.

Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta
Preprocessing: Defining the Problem
1. Give example a Title
Utility Menu > File > Change Title ...
/title, P-Method Meshing

2. Activate the p-Method Solution Options

ANSYS Main Menu > Preferences
/PMETH,ON

Select p-Method Struct. as shown below

3. Open preprocessor menu
ANSYS Main Menu > Preprocessor
/PREP7

4. Define Keypoints
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Keypoints > In Active CS...
K,#,x,y,z

We are going to define 12 keypoints for this geometry as given in the following table:

Keypoint Coordinates (x,y,z)

1 (0,0)
2 (0,100)
3 (20,100)
4 (45,52)
5 (55,52)
6 (80,100)
 7 (100,100)
8 (100,0)
9 (80,0)
10 (55,48)
11 (45,48)
12 (20,0)

5. Create Area
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Areas > Arbitrary > Through KPs
A,1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12

Click each of the keypoints in numerical order to create the area shown below.

6. Define the Type of Element

Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete...
 For this problem we will use the PLANE145 (p-Elements 2D Quad) element. This element has eight nodes with 2 degrees
of freedom each (translation along the X and Y axes). It can support a polynomial with maximum order of eight.

After clicking OK to select the element, click Options... to open the keyoptions window, shown below. Choose Plane
stress + TK for Analysis Type.

Keyopts 1 and 2 can be used to set the starting and maximum p-level for this element type. For now we will leave them as
default.

Other types of p-elements exist in the ANSYS library. These include Solid127 and Solid128 which have electrostatic
DOF's, and Plane145, Plane146, Solid147, Solid148 and Shell150 which have structural DOF's. For more information on
these elements, go to the Element Library in the help file.

7. Define Real Constants

Preprocessor > Real Constants... > Add...

In the 'Real Constants for PLANE145' window, enter the following geometric properties:

i. Thickness THK: 10

This defines an element with a thickness of 10 mm.

8. Define Element Material Properties

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Structural > Linear > Elastic > Isotropic

In the window that appears, enter the following geometric properties for steel:

i. Young's modulus EX: 200000

 ii. Poisson's Ratio PRXY: 0.3

9. Define Mesh Size

Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > ManualSize > Areas > All Areas...

For this example we will use an element edge length of 5mm.

10. Mesh the frame

Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Areas > Free > click 'Pick All'

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Define Analysis Type
Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis > Static
ANTYPE,0

2. Set Solution Controls

Solution > Analysis Type > Sol'n Controls

The following window will pop up.

 A) Set Time at end of loadstep to 1 and Automatic time stepping to ON
B) Set Number of substeps to 20, Max no. of substeps to 100, Min no. of substeps to 20.
C) Set the Frequency to Write every substep

3. Apply Constraints
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On Lines

Fix the left side of the area (ie all DOF constrained)

4. Apply Loads
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Pressure > On Lines

Apply a pressure of -100 N/mm^2

The applied loads and constraints should now appear as shown in the figure below.
 5. Solve the System
Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

1. Read in the Last Data Set
General Postproc > Read Results > Last Set

2. Plot Equivalent Stress

General Postproc > Plot Results > Contour Plot > Element Solu

In the window that pops up, select Stress > von Mises SEQV
The following stress distribution should appear.
3. Plot p-Levels
General Postproc > Plot Results > p-Method > p-Levels

The following distribution should appear.

Note how the order of the polynomial increased in the area with the greatest range in stress. This allowed the elements to
more accurately model the stress distribution through that area. For more complex geometries, these orders may go as high
as 8. As a comparison, a plot of the stress distribution for a normal h-element (PLANE2) model using the same mesh, and
one with a mesh 5 times finer are shown below.
 As one can see from the two plots, the mesh density had to be increased by 5 times to get the accuracy that the p-elements
delivered. This is the benefit of using p-elements. You can use a mesh that is relatively coarse, thus computational time will
be low, and still get reasonable results. However, care should be taken using p-elements as they can sometimes give poor
results or take a long time to converge.

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Springs and Joints

Melting Using Element Death
Design Optimization

Substructuring

Coupled Field Introduction

p-Element
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of the tutorial is to outline the steps required to use element death to model
Element Death melting of a material. Element death is the "turning off" of elements according to some desired criterion. The elements are still technically
there, they just have zero stiffness and thus have no affect on the model.
Contact Elements
This tutorial doesn't take into account heat of fusion or changes in thermal properties over temperature ranges, rather it is concerned with
APDL
the element death procedure. More accurate models using element death can then be created as required. Element birth is also possible, but
will not be discussed here. For further information, see Chapter 10 of the Advanced Guide in the ANSYS help file regarding element birth
and death.
Index
The model will be an infinitely long rectangular block of material 3cm X 3cm as shown below. It will be subject to convection heating
which will cause the block to "melt".
Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta

ANSYS Inc.

Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta
Preprocessing: Defining the Problem
1. Give example a Title
Utility Menu > File > Change Title ...
/title, Element Death

2. Open preprocessor menu

ANSYS Main Menu > Preprocessor
/PREP7

3. Create Rectangle
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Areas > Rectangle > By 2 Corners

Fill in the window with the following dimensions:

WP X = 0
WP Y = 0
Width = 0.03
Height = 0.03

BLC4,0,0,0.03,0.03

4. Define the Type of Element

Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete...

For this example, we will use PLANE55 (Thermal Solid, Quad 4node 55). This element has 4 nodes and a single DOF
(temperature) at each node. PLANE55 can only be used for 2 dimensional steady-state or transient thermal analysis.

5. Define Element Material Properties

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Thermal > Conductivity > Isotropic
In the window that appears, enter the following properties:
i. Thermal Conductivity KXX: 1.8

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Thermal > Specific Heat
In the window that appears, enter the following properties:
i. Specific Heat C: 2040

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Thermal > Density
In the window that appears, enter the following properties:
 i. Density DENS: 920

6. Define Mesh Size

Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > ManualSize > Areas > All Areas...

For this example we will use an element edge length of 0.0005m.

7. Mesh the frame

Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Areas > Free > click 'Pick All'

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Define Analysis Type
Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis > Transient

The window shown below will pop up. We will use the defaults, so click OK.

ANTYPE,4

2. Turn on Newton-Raphson solver

Due to a glitch in the ANSYS software, there is no apparent way to do this with the graphical user interface. Therefore, you
 must type NROPT,FULL into the commmand line. This step is necessary as element killing can only be done when the N-
R solver has been used.

3. Set Solution Controls

Solution > Analysis Type > Sol'n Controls

The following window will pop up.

A) Set Time at end of loadstep to 60 and Automatic time stepping to OFF.

B) Set Number of substeps to 20.
C) Set the Frequency to Write every substep.

Click on the NonLinear tab at the top and fill it in as shown

 D) Set Line search to ON .
E) Set the Maximum number of iterations to 100.

For a complete description of what these options do, refer to the help file. Basically, the time at the end of the load step is
how long the transient analysis will run and the number of substeps defines how the load is broken up. By writing the data at
every step, you can create animations over time and the other options help the problem converge quickly.

4. Apply Initial Conditions

Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Initial Condit'n > Define > Pick All

Fill in the IC window as follows to set the initial temperature of the material to 268 K:
5. Apply Boundary Conditions

For thermal problems, constraints can be in the form of Temperature, Heat Flow, Convection, Heat Flux, Heat Generation, or
Radiation. In this example, all external surfaces of the material will be subject to convection with a coefficient of 10 W/m^2*K and
a surrounding temperature of 368 K.

Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Thermal > Convection > On Lines > Pick All

Fill in the pop-up window as follows, with a film coefficient of 10 and a bulk temperature of 368.
The model should now look as follows:
 ❍ Solve the System
Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

Postprocessing: Prepare for Element Death

1. Read Results
General Postproc > Read Results > Last Set
SET,LAST

2. Create Element Table

Element death can be used in various ways. For instance, the user can manually kill, or turn off, elements to create the desired
effect. Here, we will use data from the analysis to kill the necessary elements to model melting. Assume the material melts at 273
K. We must create an element table containing the temperature of all the elements.

❍ From the General Postprocessor menu select Element Table > Define Table...
 ❍ Click on 'Add...'

❍ Fill the window in as shown below, with a title Melty and select DOF solution > Temperature TEMP and click OK.

We can now select elements from this table in the temperature range we desire.

3. Select Elements to Kill

Assume that the melting temperature is 273 K, thus any element with a temperature of 273 or greater must be killed to simulate
melting.

Utility Menu > Select > Entities

Use the scroll down menus to select Elements > By Results > From Full and click OK.
Ensure the element table Melty is selected and enter a VMIN value of 273 as shown.
Solution Phase: Killing Elements
1. Restart the Analysis
Solution > Analysis Type > Restart > OK

You will likely have two messages pop up at this point. Click OK to restart the analysis, and close the warning message. The
reason for the warning is ANSYS defaults to a multi-frame restart, which this analysis doesn't call for, thus it is just warning the
user.

2. Kill Elements

The easiest way to do this is to type ekill,all into the command line. Since all elements above melting temperature had been
selected, this will kill only those elements.

The other option is to use Solution > Load Step Opts > Other > Birth & Death > Kill Elements and graphically pick all the
melted elements. This is much too time consuming in this case.

Postprocessing: Viewing Results

1. Select Live Elements
Utility Menu > Select > Entities

Fill in the window as shown with Elements > Live Elem's > Unselect and click Sele All.
With the window still open, select Elements > Live Elem's > From Full and click OK.
2. View Results
General Postproc > Plot Results > Contour Plot > Nodal Solu > DOF solution > Temperature TEMP

The final melted shape should look as follows:

 This procedure can be programmed in a loop, using command line code, to more accurately model element death over time. Rather
than running the analysis for a time of 60 and killing any elements above melting temperature at the end, a check can be done after
each substep to see if any elements are above the specified temperature and be killed at that point. That way, the prescribed
convection can then act on the elements below those killed, more accurately modelling the heating process.

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Springs and Joints

Contact Elements
Design Optimization

Substructuring

Coupled Field Introduction

p-Element
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of the tutorial is to describe how to utilize contact elements to simulate how
Element Death two beams react when they come into contact with each other.

Contact Elements The beams, as shown below, are 100mm long, 10mm x 10mm in cross-section, have a Young's modulus of 200 GPa, and are rigidly
constrained at the outer ends. A 10KN load is applied to the center of the upper, causing it to bend and contact the lower.
APDL

Index

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta

ANSYS Inc.

Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

1. Give example a Title
Copyright © 2001 Utility Menu > File > Change Title ...
University of Alberta /title, Contact Elements

2. Open preprocessor menu

ANSYS Main Menu > Preprocessor
 /PREP7

3. Define Areas
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Area > Rectangle > By 2 Corners
BLC4,WP X, WP Y, Width, Height

We are going to define 2 rectangles as described in the following table:

Rectangle Variables (WP X,WP Y,Width,Height)

1 (0, 15, 100, 10)
2 (50, 0, 100, 10)

4. Define the Type of Element

❍ Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete...

For this problem we will use the PLANE42 (Solid, Quad 4node 42) element. This element has 2 degrees of freedom at each
node (translation along the X and Y).

❍ While the Element Types window is still open, click Options.... Change Element behavior K3 to Plane strs w/
thk as shown below. This allows a thickness to be input for the elements.

5. Define Real Constants

Preprocessor > Real Constants... > Add...
 In the 'Real Constants for PLANE42' window, enter the following geometric properties:

i. Thickness THK: 10

This defines a beam with a thickness of 10 mm.

6. Define Element Material Properties

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Structural > Linear > Elastic > Isotropic

In the window that appears, enter the following geometric properties for steel:

i. Young's modulus EX: 200000

ii. Poisson's Ratio PRXY: 0.3

7. Define Mesh Size

Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > ManualSize > Areas > All Lines...

For this example we will use an element edge length of 2mm.

8. Mesh the frame

Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Areas > Free > click 'Pick All'

9. Define the Type of Contact Element

❍ Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete...

For this problem we will use the CONTAC48 (Contact, pt-to-surf 48) element. CONTAC48 may be used to represent
contact and sliding between two surfaces (or between a node and a surface) in 2-D. The element has two degrees of freedom
at each node: translations in the nodal x and y directions. Contact occurs when the contact node penetrates the target line.

❍ While the Element Types window is still open, click Options.... Change Contact time/load prediction K7 to
Reasonabl T/L inc. This is an important step. It initiates a process during the solution calculations where the time
step or load step, depending on what the user has specified in the solution controls, incremements slowly when contact is
immenent. This way, one surface won't penetrate too far into the other and cause the solution to fail.
 It is important to note, CONTAC48 elements are created in the space between two surfaces prescribed by the user. This will be
covered below. As the surfaces approach each other, the contact element is slowly "crushed" until it's upper node(s) lie along the
same line as the lower node(s). Thus, ANSYS can calculate when the two prescribed surfaces have made contact. Other contact
elements, such as CONTA175, require a target element, such as TARGE169, to function. When using contact elements in your
own analyses, be sure to understand how the elements work. The ANSYS help file has plenty of useful information regarding
contact elements and is worth reading.

10. Define Real Constants for the Contact Elements

Preprocessor > Real Constants... > Add...

In the 'Real Constants for CONTAC48' window, enter the following properties:

i. Normal contact stiffness KN: 200000

CONTAC48 elements basically use a penalty approach to model contact. When one surface comes into "contact"
with the other, ANSYS numerically puts a spring of stiffness KN between the two. ANSYS recommends a value
between 0.01 and 100 times Young's modulus for the material. Since this "spring" is so stiff, the behaviour of the
model is like the two surfaces have made contact. This KN value can greatly affect your solution, so be sure to read
the help file on contact so you can recognize when your solution is not converging and why. A good rule of thumb is
to start with a low value of KN and see how the solution converges (start watching the ANSYS Output Window). If
there is too much penetration, you should increase KN. If it takes a lot of iterations to converge for a single substep,
you should decrease KN.

ii. Target length tolerance TOLS: 10

Real constant TOLS is used to add a small tolerance that will internally increase the length of the target. This is
useful for problems when node to node contact is likely to occur, rather than node to element edge. In this situation,
the contact node may repeatedly "slip" off one of the target nodes, resulting in convergence difficulties. A small
value of TOLS, given in %, is usually enough to prevent such difficulties.
 The other real constants can be used to model sliding friction, tolerances, etc. Information about these other constants can be
found in the help file.

11. Define Nodes for Creating Contact Elements

Unlike the normal meshing sequence used for most elements, contact elements must be defined in a slightly different
manner. Sets of nodes that are likely to come into contact must be defined and used to generate the necessary elements.
ANSYS has many recommendations about which nodes to select and whether they should act as target nodes or source
nodes. In this simple case, source nodes are those that will move into contact with the other surface, where as target nodes
are those that are contacted. These terms are important when using the automatic contact element mesher to ensure the
elements will correctly model contact between the surfaces. A strong understanding of how the elements work is important
when using contact elements for your own analysis.

First, the source nodes will be selected.

■ Utility Menu > Select > Entities...

Select Areas and By Num/Pick from the pull down menus, select From Full from the radio buttons and click OK.
Select the top beam and click OK. This will ensure any nodes that are selected in the next few steps will be from the
upper beam. In this case, it is not too hard to ensure you select the correct nodes. However, when the geometry is
complex, you may inadvertantly select a node from the wrong surface and it could cause problems during element
generation.

■ Utility Menu > Select > Entities...

 Select Nodes and By Location from the pull down menus, Y coordinates and Reselect from the radio buttons and
enter a value of 15 and click OK. This will select all nodes along the bottom of the upper beam.

■ Utility Menu > Select > Entities...

Select Nodes and By Location from the pull down menus, X coordinates and Reselect from the radio buttons and
enter values of 50,100. This will select the nodes above the lower beam.
■ Now if you list the selected nodes, Utility Menu > List > Nodes... you should only have the following nodes
remaining.
 It is important to try and limit the number of nodes you use to create contact elements. If you have a lot of contact
elements, it takes a great deal of computational time to reach a solution. In this case, the only nodes that could make
contact with the lower beam are those directly above it, thus those are the only nodes we will use to create the
contact elements.

■ Utility Menu > Select > Comp/Assembly > Create Component

Enter the component name Source as shown below, and click OK. Now we can use this component, Source, as a
list of nodes to be used in other functions. This can be very useful in other applications as well.
 Now select the target nodes.
Using the same procedure as above, select the nodes on the lower beam directly under the upper beam. Be sure to reselect
all nodes before starting to select others. This is done by opening the entity select menu, Utility Menu > Select > Entities...,
clicking the Also Select radio button, and click the Sele All button.
These values will be the ones you'll use.

■ Click the lower area for the area select.

■ The Y coordinate is 10
■ The X coordinates vary from 50 to 100.

When creating the component this time, enter the name Target.

IMPORTANT: Be sure to reselect all the nodes before continuing. This is done by opening the entity select menu, Utility
Menu > Select > Entities..., clicking the Also Select radio button, and click the Sele All button.

12. Generate Contact Elements

Main Menu > Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Elements > Elem Attributes

Fill the window in as shown below. This ensures ANSYS knows that you are dealing with the contact elements and the
associated real constants.
Main Menu > Preprocessor > Modeling> Create > Elements > Surf / Contact > Node to Surf

The following window will pop up. Select the node set SOURCE from the first drop down menu (Ccomp) and TARGET
from the second drop down menu (Tcomp). The rest of the selections remain unchanged.
At this point, your model should look like the following.

Unfortunately, the contact elements don't get plotted on the screen so it is sometimes difficult to tell they are there. If you wish, you
can plot the elements (Utility Menu > Plot > Elements) and turn on element numbering (Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Numbering >
 Elem/Attrib numbering > Element Type Numbers). If you zoom in on the contact areas, you can see little purple stars (Contact
Nodes) and thin purple lines (Target Elements) numbered "2" which correspond to the contact elements, shown below.

The preprocessor stage is now complete.

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Define Analysis Type
Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis > Static
ANTYPE,0

2. Set Solution Controls

❍ Select Solution > Analysis Type > Sol'n Control...

The following image will appear:

Ensure the following selections are made under the 'Basic' tab (as shown above)

A. Ensure Automatic time stepping is on. Automatic time stepping allows ANSYS to determine appropriate sizes to
break the load steps into. Decreasing the step size usually ensures better accuracy, however, this takes time. The
Automatic Time Step feature will determine an appropriate balance. This feature also activates the ANSYS bisection
feature which will allow recovery if convergence fails.

B. Enter 100 as the number of substeps. This will set the initial substep to 1/100 th of the total load.

C. Enter a maximum number of substeps of 1000. This stops the program if the solution does not converge after 1000
steps.

D. Enter a minimum number of substeps of 20.

E. Ensure all solution items are writen to a results file.

Ensure the following selection is made under the 'Nonlinear' tab (as shown below)

A. Ensure Maximum Number of Iterations is set to 100

 NOTE
There are several options which have not been changed from their default values. For more information about these
commands, type help followed by the command into the command line.

These solution control values are extremely important in determining if your analysis will succeed or fail. If you have too few
substeps, the contact nodes may be driven through the target elements before ANSYS "realizes" it has happened. In this case the
solution will resemble that of an analysis that didn't have contact elements defined at all. Therefore it is important to choose a
relatively large number of substeps initially to ensure the model is defined properly. Once everything is working, you can reduce
the number of substeps to optimize the computational time. Also, if the maximum number of substeps or iterations is left too low,
ANSYS may stop the analysis before it has a chance to converge to a solution. Again, leave these relatively high at first.

3. Apply Constraints
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On Lines

Fix the left end of the upper beam and the right end of the lower beam (ie all DOF constrained)

4. Apply Loads
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Force/Moment > On Nodes
 Apply a load of -10000 in the FY direction to the center of the top surface of the upper beam. Note, this is a point load on a
2D surface. This type of loading should be avoided since it will cause a singularity. However, the displacement or stress
near the load is not of interest in this analyis, thus we will use a point load for simplicity.

The applied loads and constraints should now appear as shown in the figure below.

5. Solve the System

Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

1. Open postprocessor menu
ANSYS Main Menu > General Postproc
/POST1
2. Adjust Graphical Scaling
Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Style > Displacement Scaling

Click the 1.0 (true scale) radio button, then click ok. This is of huge importance! I lost many hours trying to figure out why
the contact elements weren't working, when in fact it was just due to the displacement scaling to which ANSYS defaulted. If
you leave the scaling as default, many times it will look like your contact nodes have gone through the target elements.

3. Show the Stress Distribution in the Beams

General Postproc > Plot Results > Contour Plot > Nodal Solu > Stress > von Mises

4. Adjust Contour Scale

Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Style > Contours > Non-Uniform Contours

Fill in the window as follows:

This should produce the following stress distribution plot:

 As seen in the figure, the load on the upper beam caused it to deflect and come in contact with the lower beam, producing a
stress distribution in both.

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Springs and Joints

ANSYS Parametric Design Language (APDL)
Design Optimization

Substructuring

Coupled Field Introduction

p-Element
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to familiarize the user with the ANSYS Parametric Design
Element Death Language (APDL). This will be a very basic introduction to APDL, covering things like variable definition and simple looping. Users
familiar with basic programming languages will probably find the APDL very easy to use. To learn more about APDL and see more
Contact Elements complex examples, please see the APDL Programmer's Guide located in the help file.

APDL
This tutorial will cover the preprocessing stage of constructing a truss geometry. Variables including length, height and number of
divisions of the truss will be requested and the APDL code will construct the geometry.

Index

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering
Preprocessing: Use of APDL
University of Alberta

Shown below is the APDL code used to construct the truss shown above, using a length of 200 m, a height of 10 m and 20 divisions. The
following discussion will attempt to explain the commands used in the code. It is assumed the user has been exposed to basic coding and
ANSYS Inc. can follow the logic.

finish
/clear

Copyright © 2001 /prep7

University of Alberta
*ask,LENGTH,How long is the truss,100
*ask,HEIGHT,How tall is the truss,20
*ask,DIVISION,How many cross supports even number,2
DELTA_L = (LENGTH/(DIVISION/2))/2
NUM_K = DIVISION + 1
COUNT = -1
X_COORD = 0

*do,i,1,NUM_K,1

COUNT = COUNT + 1
OSCILATE = (-1)**COUNT

X_COORD = X_COORD + DELTA_L

*if,OSCILATE,GT,0,THEN
k,i,X_COORD,0

*else
k,i,X_COORD,HEIGHT

*endif

*enddo

KEYP = 0

*do,j,1,DIVISION,1
KEYP = KEYP + 1

L,KEYP,(KEYP+1)

*if,KEYP,LE,(DIVISION-1),THEN
L,KEYP,(KEYP+2)
*endif
*enddo

et,1,link1
r,1,100
mp,ex,1,200000
mp,prxy,1,0.3

esize,,1
lmesh,all

finish

1. *ASK Command
The *ASK command prompts the user to input data for a variable. In this case, *ask,LENGTH,How long is the
truss,100 prompts the user for a value describing the length of the truss. This value is stored under the variable
LENGTH. Thus in later parts of the code, LENGTH can be used in other commands rather than typing in 200 m. The 100
value at the end of the string is the default value if the user were to enter no value and just hit the enter key.

2. Variable Definition Using the "=" Command

ANSYS allows the user to define a variable in a few ways. As seen above, the *ASK command can be used define a
variable, but this is usually only used for data that will change from run to run. The *SET command can also be used to
define variables. For more information on this command, see the help file. However, the most intutitive method is to use
"=". It is used in the following manner: 'the variable you wish to define' = 'some arguement'. This argument can be a single
value, or a mathematical expression, as seen in the line defining DELTA_L

3. *DO Loops
Do-loops are useful when you want to repeat a command a known number of times. The syntax for the expression is *DO,
Par, IVAL, FVAL, INC, where Par is the parameter that will be incremented by the loop, IVAL is the initial value the
parameter starts as, FVAL is the final value the parameter will reach, and INC is the increment value that the parameter will
be increased by during each iteration of the loop. For example, *do,i,1,10_K,1 is a do-loop which increases the
parameter "i" from 1 to 10 in steps of 1, (ie 1,2,3...8,9,10). It is necessary to use a *ENDDO command at the end of the loop
to locate where ANSYS should look for the next command once the loop has finished. In between the *DO and *ENDDO,
the user can place code that will utilize the repetative characteristics of the loop.

4. *IF Statement
If-statements can be used as decision makers, determining if a certain case has occured. For example, in the code above
there is a statement: *if,OSCILATE,GT,0,THEN. This translates to "if the variable, OSCILATE, is greater than zero,
then...". Any code directly following the *if command will be carried out if the statement is true. If it is not true it will skip
to the *else command. This command is only used in conjunction with the *if command. Any code directly following the
*else command will be carried out when the original statement is false. An *endif command is necessary after all code in
the *if and *else sections to define an ending.

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

X-Sectional Results
Viewing X-Sectional Results
Advanced X-Sec Res

Data Plotting

Graphical Properties Introduction

This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to outline the steps required to view cross sectional results
Index (Deformation, Stress, etc.) of the following example.

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta

ANSYS Inc.

Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta
Preprocessing: Defining the Problem
1. Give example a Title
Utility Menu > File > Change Title ...
/title, Cross-Sectional Results of a Simple Cantilever Beam

2. Open preprocessor menu

ANSYS Main Menu > Preprocessor
/PREP7
 3. Create Block
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Volumes > Block > By 2 Corners & Z
BLC4,0,0,Width,Height,Length

Where: Width: 40mm

Height: 60mm
Length: 400mm

4. Define the Type of Element

Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete...

For this problem we will use the SOLID45 (3D Structural Solid) element. This element has 8 nodes each with 3 degrees of
freedom (translation along the X, Y and Z directions).

5. Define Element Material Properties

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Structural > Linear > Elastic > Isotropic

In the window that appears, enter the following geometric properties for steel:

i. Young's modulus EX: 200000

ii. Poisson's Ratio PRXY: 0.3

6. Define Mesh Size

Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > ManualSize > Global > Size
esize,20

For this example we will use an element size of 20mm.

7. Mesh the volume

Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Volumes > Free > click 'Pick All'
vmesh,all

Solution: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Define Analysis Type
Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis > Static
 ANTYPE,0

2. Apply Constraints
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On Areas
Fix the left hand side (should be labeled Area 1).

3. Apply Loads
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Force/Moment > On Keypoints
Apply a load of 2500N downward on the back right hand keypoint (Keypoint #7).

4. Solve the System

Solution > (-Solve-) Current LS
SOLVE

Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

Now since the purpose of this tutorial is to observe results within different cross-sections of the colume, we will first outline the steps
required to view a slice.

● Offset the working plane for a cross section view (WPOFFS)

● Select the TYPE of display for the section(/TYPE). For this example we are trying to display a section, therefore, options 1, 5, or
8 are relevant and are summarized in the table below.

Type Description Visual Representation

SECT Section display. Only the selected section is shown without any remaining
or (1) faces or edges shown
 CAP Capped hidden diplay. This is as though you have cut off a portion of the
or (5) model and the remaining model can be seen

ZQSL QSLICE Z-buffered display. This is the same as SECT but the outline of
or (8) the entire model is shown.

● Align the cutting plane with the working plane(/CPLANE)

1. Deflection

Before we begin selecting cross sections, let's view deflection of the entire model.

❍ Select: General Postproc > Plot Results > Contour Plot > Nodal Solu
 From this one may wish to view several cross sections through the YZ plane.

To illustrate how to take a cross section, let's take one halfway through the beam in the YZ plane

❍ First, offset the working plane to the desired position, halfway through the beam
Select: Utility Menu > WorkPlane > Offset WP by Increments
In the window that appears, increase Global X to 30 (Width/2) and rotate Y by +90 degrees

❍ Select the type of plot and align the cutting plane with the working plane (Note that in GUI, these two steps are combined)
Select: Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Style > Hidden-Line Options

Fill in the window that appears as shown below to select /TYPE=ZQSL and /CPLANE=Working Plane
As desired, you should now have the following:
 This can be repeated for any slice, however, note that the command lines required to do the same are as follows:

WPOFFS,Width/2,0,0 ! Offset the working plane for cross-section view

WPROTA,0,0,90 ! Rotate the working plane
/CPLANE,1 ! Cutting plane defined to use the WP
/TYPE,1,8
PLNSOL,U,SUM,0,1

Also note that to realign the working plane with the active coordinate system, simply use: WPCSYS,-1,0

2. Equivalent Stress

Again, let's view stresses within the entire model.

First we need to realign the working plane with the active coordinate system. Select: Utility Menu > WorkPlane > Align
WP with > Active Coord Sys (NOTE: To check the position of the WP, select Utility Menu > WorkPlane > Show WP
Status)

Next we need to change /TYPE to the default setting(no hidden or section operations). Select: Utility Menu > PlotCtrls >
Style > Hidden Line Options... And change the 'Type of Plot' to 'Non-hidden'

❍ Select: General Postproc > Plot Results > Contour Plot > Nodal Solu > Stress > von Mises
Let's say that we want to take a closer look at the base of the beam through the XY plane. Because it is much easier, we are
going to use command line:

WPOFFS,0,0,1/16*Length ! Offset the working plane

/CPLANE,1 ! Cutting plane defined to use the WP
/TYPE,1,5 ! Use the capped hidden display
PLNSOL,S,EQV,0,1

Note that we did not need to rotate the WP because we want to look at the XY plane which is the default). Also note that we
are using the capped hidden display this time.

You should now see the following:

3. Animation

Now, for something a little more impressive, let's show an animation of the Von Mises stress through the beam. Unfortunately, the
ANSYS commands are not as user friendly as they could be... but please bear with me.

❍ Select: Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Animate > Q-Slice Contours

❍ In the window that appears, just change the Item to be contoured to 'Stress' 'von Mises'

❍ You will then be asked to select 3 nodes; the origin, the sweep direction, and the Y axis. In the graphics window, select the
node at the origin of the coordinate system as the origin of the sweep (the sweep will start there). Next, the sweep direction
is in the Z direction, so select any node in the z direction (parallel to the first node). Finally, select the node in the back,
bottom left hand side corner as the Y axis.

You should now see an animated version of the contour slices through the beam. For more information on how to modify
the animation, type help ancut into the command line.
Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

X-Sectional Results
Advanced X-Sectional Results: Using Paths to Post Process
Advanced X-Sec Res
Results
Data Plotting

Graphical Properties

Introduction
Index
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to create and use 'paths' to provide extra detail during post
processing. For example, one may want to determine the effects of stress concentrators along a certain path. Rather than plotting the entire
contour plot, a plot of the stress along that path can be made.
Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta

ANSYS Inc.

Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta

In this tutorial, a steel plate measuring 100 mm X 200 mm X 10 mm will be used. Three holes are drilled through the vertical centerline of
the plate. The plate is constrained in the y-direction at the bottom and a uniform, distributed load is pulling on the top of the plate.
Preprocessing: Defining the Problem
1. Give the example a Title
❍ Utility Menu > File > Change Title ...

/title, Use of Paths for Post Processing

2. Open preprocessor menu

❍ ANSYS Main Menu > Preprocessor

/PREP7

3. Define Rectangular Ares

❍ Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Areas > Rectangle > By 2 Corners

BLC4,0,0,200,100

❍ Create a rectangle where the bottom left corner has the coordinates 0,0 and the width and height are 200 and 100
respectively.

4. Create Circles
❍ Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Areas > Circle > Solid Circle

cyl4,WP X,WP Y,Radius

❍ Create three circles with parameters shown below.

Parameters
Circle
WP X WP Y Radius
1 50 50 10
2 100 50 10
3 150 50 10

5. Subtract the Circles

❍ Preprocessor > Modeling > Operate > Booleans > Subtract > Areas

❍ First, select the area to remain (ie. the rectangle) and click OK. Then, select the areas to be subtracted (ie. the circles) and
click OK.

❍ The remaining area should look as shown below.

6. Define the Type of Element
❍ Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete...

❍ For this problem we will use the PLANE2 (Solid Triangle 6node) element. This element has 2 degrees of freedom
(translation along the X and Y axes).

❍ In the 'Element Types' window, click 'Options...' and set 'Element behavior' to Plane strs w/thk

7. Define Real Constants

❍ Preprocessor > Real Constants... > Add...

❍ In the 'Real Constants for PLANE2' window, enter a thickness of 10.

8. Define Element Material Properties

❍ Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Structural > Linear > Elastic > Isotropic

❍ In the window that appears, enter the following geometric properties for steel:
i. Young's modulus EX: 200000
ii. Poisson's Ratio PRXY: 0.3
 9. Define Mesh Size
❍ Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > ManualSize > Areas > All Areas...

❍ For this example we will use an element edge length of 5mm.

10. Mesh the Area

❍ Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Areas > Free > click 'Pick All'

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Define Analysis Type
❍ Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis > Static

ANTYPE,0

2. Apply Constraints
❍ Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On Lines

❍ Constrain the bottom of the area in the UY direction.

3. Apply Loads
❍ Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Pressure > On Lines

❍ Apply a constant, uniform pressure of -200 on the top of the area.

The model should now look like the figure below.

 4. Solve the System
❍ Solution > Solve > Current LS

SOLVE

Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

To see the stress distribution on the plate, you could create a normal contour plot, which would have the distribution over the entire plate.
However, if the stress near the holes are of interest, you could create a path through the center of the plate and plot the stress on that path.
Both cases will be plotted below on a split screen.

1. Contour Plot

❍ Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Window Controls > Window Layout

❍ Fill in the 'Window Layout' as seen below

❍ General Postproc > Plot Results > Contour Plot > Nodal Solu > Stress > von Mises

The display should now look like this.

 To ensure the top plot is not erased when the second plot is created, you must make a couple of changes.

❍ Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Window Controls > Window On or Off. Turn window 1 'off'.

❍ To keep window 1 visible during replots, select Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Erase Option > Erase Between Plots and
ensure there is no check-mark, meaning this function off.

❍ To have the next graph plot in the bottom half of the screen, select Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Window Controls >
Window Layout and select 'Window 2 > Bottom Half > Do not replot'.

2. Create Path

❍ General PostProc > Path Operations > Define Path > By Location

❍ In the window, shown below, name the path Cutline and set the 'Number of divisions' to 1000
 ❍ Fill the next two window in with the following parameters

Parameters
Path Point Number X Loc Y Loc Z Loc
1 0 50 0
2 200 50 0

When the third window pops up, click 'Cancle' because we only enabled two points on the path in the previous step.

3. Map the Stress onto the Path

Now the path is defined, you must choose what to map to the path, or in other words, what results should be available to the
path. For this example, equivalent stress is desired.

❍ General Postproc > Path Operations > Map onto Path

❍ Fill the next window in as shown below [Stress > von Mises] and click OK.
 ❍ The warning shown below will probably pop up. This is just saying that some of the 1000 points you defined earlier are not
on interpolation points (special points on the elements) therefore there is no data to map. This is of little concern though,
since there are plenty of points that do lie on interpolation points to produce the necessary plot, so disregard the warning.

4. Plot the Path Data

❍ General Postproc > Path Operations > Plot Path Item > On Geometry

❍ Fill the window in as shown below

The display should look like the following. Note, there will be dots on the plot showing node locations. Due to resolution
restrictions, these dots are not shown here.
 This plot makes it easy to see how the stress is concentrated around the holes.

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

X-Sectional Results
Data Plotting: Using Tables to Post Process Results
Advanced X-Sec Res

Data Plotting

Graphical Properties Introduction

This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to outline the steps required to plot Vertical Deflection vs.
Index Length of the following beam using tables, a special type of array. By plotting this data on a curve, rather than using a contour plot, finer
resolution can be achieved.

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta

ANSYS Inc.

Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta This tutorial will use a steel beam 400 mm long, with a 40 mm X 60 mm cross section as shown above. It will be rigidly constrained at
one end and a -2500 N load will be applied to the other.

Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

1. Give the example a Title
Utility Menu > File > Change Title ...
/title, Use of Tables for Data Plots
2. Open preprocessor menu
ANSYS Main Menu > Preprocessor
/PREP7

3. Define Keypoints
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Keypoints > In Active CS...
K,#,x,y,z

We are going to define 2 keypoints for this beam as given in the following table:

Keypoint Coordinates (x,y,z)

1 (0,0)
2 (400,0)

4. Create Lines
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Lines > Lines > In Active Coord
L,1,2

Create a line joining Keypoints 1 and 2

5. Define the Type of Element

Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete...

For this problem we will use the BEAM3 (Beam 2D elastic) element. This element has 3 degrees of freedom (translation
along the X and Y axes, and rotation about the Z axis).

6. Define Real Constants

Preprocessor > Real Constants... > Add...

In the 'Real Constants for BEAM3' window, enter the following geometric properties:

i. Cross-sectional area AREA: 2400

ii. Area moment of inertia IZZ: 320e3
iii. Total beam height: 40

This defines a beam with a height of 40 mm and a width of 60 mm.

7. Define Element Material Properties

 Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Structural > Linear > Elastic > Isotropic

In the window that appears, enter the following geometric properties for steel:

i. Young's modulus EX: 200000

ii. Poisson's Ratio PRXY: 0.3

8. Define Mesh Size

Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > ManualSize > Lines > All Lines...

For this example we will use an element edge length of 20mm.

9. Mesh the frame

Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Lines > click 'Pick All'

Solution Phase: Assigning Loads and Solving

1. Define Analysis Type
Solution > Analysis Type > New Analysis > Static
ANTYPE,0

2. Apply Constraints
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Displacement > On Keypoints

Fix keypoint 1 (ie all DOF constrained)

3. Apply Loads
Solution > Define Loads > Apply > Structural > Force/Moment > On Keypoints
Apply a load of -2500N on keypoint 2.

The model should now look like the figure below.

 4. Solve the System
Solution > Solve > Current LS
SOLVE

Postprocessing: Viewing the Results

It is at this point the tables come into play. Tables, a special type of array, are basically matrices that can be used to store and process data
from the analysis that was just run. This example is a simplified use of tables, but they can be used for much more. For more information
type help in the command line and search for 'Array Parameters'.

1. Number of Nodes

Since we wish to plot the verticle deflection vs length of the beam, the location and verticle deflection of each node must be
recorded in the table. Therefore, it is necessary to determine how many nodes exist in the model. Utility Menu > List > Nodes... >
OK. For this example there are 21 nodes. Thus the table must have at least 21 rows.

2. Create the Table

 ❍ Utility Menu > Parameters > Array Parameters > Define/Edit > Add

❍ The window seen above will pop up. Fill it out as shown [Graph > Table > 22,2,1]. Note there are 22 rows, one more than
the number of nodes. The reason for this will be explained below. Click OK and then close the 'Define/Edit' window.

3. Enter Data into Table

First, the horizontal location of the nodes will be recorded

❍ Utility Menu > Parameters > Get Array Data ...

❍ In the window shown below, select Model Data > Nodes

❍ Fill the next window in as shown below and click OK [Graph(1,1) > All > Location > X]. Naming the array parameter
'Graph(1,1)' fills in the table starting in row 1, column 1, and continues down the column.

Next, the vertical displacement will be recorded.

❍ Utility Menu > Parameters > Get Array Data ... > Results data > Nodal results

❍ Fill the next window in as shown below and click OK [Graph(1,2) > All > DOF solution > UY]. Naming the array
parameter 'Graph(1,2)' fills in the table starting in row 1, column 2, and continues down the column.
4. Arrange the Data for Ploting

Users familiar with the way ANSYS numbers nodes will realize that node 1 will be on the far left, as it is keypoint 1, node 2 will be
on the far right (keypoint 2), and the rest of the nodes are numbered sequentially from left to right. Thus, the second row in the
table contains the data for the last node. This causes problems during plotting, thus the information for the last node must be moved
to the final row of the table. This is why a table with 22 rows was created, to provide room to move this data.

❍ Utility Menu > Parameters > Array Parameters > Define/Edit > Edit
 ❍ The data for the end of the beam (X-location = 400, UY = -0.833) is in row two. Cut one of the cells to be moved (right
click > Copy or Ctrl+X), press the down arrow to get to the bottom of the table, and paste it into the appropriate column
(right click > Paste or Ctrl+V). When both values have been moved check to ensure the two entries in row 2 are zero. Select
File > Apply/Quit

5. Plot the Data

❍ Utility Menu > Plot > Array Parameters

❍ The following window will pop up. Fill it in as shown, with the X-location data on the X-axis and the vertical deflection on
the Y-axis.
❍ To change the axis labels select Utility Menu > Plot Ctrls > Style > Graphs > Modify Axes ...

❍ To see the changes to the labels, select Utility Menu > Replot

❍ The plot should look like the one seen below.

Command File Mode of Solution

The above example was solved using a mixture of the Graphical User Interface (or GUI) and the command language interface of ANSYS.
This problem has also been solved using the ANSYS command language interface that you may want to browse. Open the .HTML
version, copy and paste the code into Notepad or a similar text editor and save it to your computer. Now go to 'File > Read input from...'
and select the file. A .PDF version is also available for printing.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

X-Sectional Results
Changing Graphical Properties
Advanced X-Sec Res

Data Plotting

Graphical Properties Introduction

This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 This tutorial covers some of the methods that can be employed to change how the output to the
Index screen looks. For instance, changing the background colour, numbering the nodes, etc.

Since the purpose of this tutorial is not to build or analysis a model, please copy the following code and paste it into the input line below
Contributions the utility menu.

Comments
finish
MecE 563 /clear
/title, Changing Graphical Properties
Mechanical Engineering
/prep7
University of Alberta
K,1,0,0
K,2,100,0
L,1,2
ANSYS Inc.

et,1,beam3
r,1,100,833.333,10
mp,ex,1,200000
Copyright © 2001 mp,prxy,1,0.3
University of Alberta
esize,5
lmesh,all

finish
/solu

antype,0
dk,1,all,all
fk,2,fy,-100

solve
finish

You should obtain the following screen:

Graphical Options

1. Number the Nodes

Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Numbering...

The following window will appear:

From this window you can select which items you wish to number. When you click OK, the window will disappear and
your model should be numbered appropriately. However, sometimes the numbers won't show up. This could be because you
had previously selected a plot of a different item. To remedy this problem, select the same item you just numbered from the
Utility > Plot menu and the numbering will show up.

For instance, select the node numbering and plot the nodes. You should get the following:
 As shown, the nodes have been numbered. You can also see some other information that ANSYS is providing. The arrows
on the left and the right are the force that was applied and the resulting external reactive forces and moments. The triangles
on the left are the constraints and the coordinate triad is also visible. These extra symbols may not be necessary, so the next
section will show how to turn these symbols off.

2. Symbol Toggles
Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Symbols
This window allows the user to toggle many symbols on or off. In our case, there are no Surface or Body Loads, or Initial
Conditions, so those sections won't be used. Under the Boundary conditions section, click on None to turn off all the force
and reaction symbols.
 The result should be as follows:

3. Triad Toggle
Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Window Controls > Window Options
This window also allows the user to toggle many things on and off. In this case, it is things associated with the window
background. As shown in the window, the legend or title can be turned off, etc. To turn off the triad, select Not Shown from
the Location of triad drop down menu. The following output should be the result. Notice how it is much easier to
see the node numbers near the origin now.
4. Element Shape
Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Style > Size and Shape...
When using line elements, such as BEAM3, it is sometime difficult to visualize what the elements really look like. To aid in
this process, ANSYS can display the elements shapes based on the real constant description. Click on the toggle box beside
[/ESHAPE] to turn on element shapes and click OK to close the window.

If there is no change in output, don't be alarmed. Recall we selected a plot of just the nodes, thus elements are not going to
show up. Select Utility Menu > Plot > Elements. The following should appear.
 As shown, the elements are no longer just a line, but they have volume according to the real constants. To get a better 3-D
view of the model, you can change the view orientation.

5. View Orientation
Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Pan Zoom Rotate...
This window allows the user to rotate the view, translate the view and zoom. You can also select predefined views, such as
isometric or oblique. Basic rotating, translating and zooming can also be done using the mouse. This is very handy when
you just want to quickly change the orientation of the model. By holding the Control button on the keyboard and holding
the Left mouse button the model will translate. By holding the Control button on the keyboard and holding the Middle
mouse button the model will zoom or rotate on the plane of the screen. By holding the Control button on the keyboard and
holding the Right mouse button the model will rotate about all axis. Using these options, it's easy to see the elements in 3-
D.
6. Changing Contours
First, plot the deformation contour for the beam.

General Postproc > Plot Results > Contour Plot > Nodal Solution > DOF Solution > USUM

If the contour divisions are not appropriate, they can be changed.

Utility Meny > PlotCtrls > Style > Contours

Either Uniform or Non-uniform Contours can be selected. Under uniform contours, be sure to click on User specified if
you are inputing your own contour divisions. Under non-uniform contours, you can create a logarithmic contour division or
some similiar contour where uniform divisions don't capture the information you desire.

If you don't like the colours of the contour, those can also be changed.

Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Style > Colours > Contour Colours...
 The colours for each division can be selected from the drop down menus.

7. Changing Background Colour

Perhaps you desire to use a plot for a presentation, but don't want a black background.

Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Style > Colours > Window Colours...

Select the background colour you desire for the window you desire. Here we are only using Window 1, and we'll set the
background colour to white.
The resulting display is shown below. Notice how all the text disappeared. This is because the text colour is also white. If
there is information that needs to be added, such as contour values, this can be done in other graphic editors. To save the
display, select Utility Menu > PlotCtrls > Capture Image. Under the File heading, select Save As...
There are lots of other option that can be used to change the presentation of data in ANSYS, these are just a few. If you are looking for a
specific option, the PlotCtrls menu is a good place to start, as is the help file.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Creating Files
ANSYS Command File Creation and Execution
Features

Basic Tutorials Generating the Command File

Intermediate Tutorials
There are two choices to generate the command file:
Advanced Tutorials
1. Directly type in the commands into a text file from scratch. This assumes a good knowledge of the ANSYS command language and
PostProc Tutorials the associated options.
Radiation
If you know what some of the commands and are unsure of others, execute the desired operation from the GUI and then go to
File -> List -> Log File. This will then open up a new window showing the command line equivialent of all commands
entered to this point. You may directly cut and paste from here to a text editor, or if you'd like to save the whole file, see the next
Index
item in this list.
2. Setup and solve the problem as you normally would using the ANSYS graphic user interface (GUI). Then before you are finished,
enter the command File -> Save DB Log File This saves the equivalent ANSYS commands that you entered in the GUI
Contributions
mode, to a text file. You can now edit this file with a text editor to clean it up, delete errors from your GUI use and make changes
Comments
as desired.

MecE 563
Running the Command File
Mechanical Engineering
To run the ANSYS command file,
University of Alberta

● save the ASCII text commands in a text file; e.g. frame.cmd

● start up either the GUI or text mode of ANSYS
ANSYS Inc.

GUI Command File Loading

To run this command file from the GUI, you would do the following:
Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta ● From the File menu, select Read Input from.... Change to the appropriate directory where the file (frame.cmd) is
stored and select it.
● Now ANSYS will execute the commands from that file. The output window shows the progress of this procedure. Any errors and
warnings will be listed in this window.
● When it is complete, you may not have a full view of your structure in the graphic window. You may need to select Plot ->
 Elements or Plot -> Lines or what have you.
● Assuming that the analysis worked properly, you can now use the post-processor to view element deflections, stress, etc.
● If you want to fix some errors or make some changes to the command file, make those changes in a separate window in a text
editor. Save those changes to disk.
● To rerun the command file, you should first of all clear the current model from ANSYS. Select File -> Clear & Start
New.
● Then read in the file as before File -> Read Input from...

Command Line File Loading

Alternatively, you can also read in the command file right from the ANSYS command line. Assuming that you started ANSYS using the
commands...

/ansys52/bin/ansysu52

and then entered

/show,x11c

This has now started ANSYS in the text mode and has told it what graphic device to use (in this case an X Windows, X11c, mode). At this
point you could type in /menu,on, but you might not want to turn on the full graphic mode if working on a slow machine or if you are
executing the program remotely. Let's assume that we don't turn the menu mode on...

If the command file is in the current directory for ANSYS, then from the ANSYS input window, type

/input,frame,cmd

and yes that is a comma (,) between frame and cmd. If ANSYS can not find the file in the current directory, you may need to point it to
the proper directory. If the file was in the directory, /myfiles/ansys/frame for example, you would use the following syntax

/input,frame,cmd,/myfiles/ansys/frame

If you want to rerun a new or modified file, it is necessary to clear the current model in memory with the command

/clear,start

This full procedure of loading in command files and clearing jobs and starting over again can be completed as many times as desired.
ANSYS Command Groupings

ANSYS contains hundreds of commands for generating geometry, applying loads and constraints, setting up different analysis types and
post-processing. The following is only a brief summary of some of the more common commands used for structural analysis.

Category Command Description Syntax

Basic
k keypoint definition k,kp#,xcoord,ycoord,zcoord
Geometry

l straight line creation l,kp1,kp2

circular arc line larc,kp1,kp2,kp3,rad

larc
(from keypoints) (kp3 defines plane)

circular line creation

circle see online help
(creates keypoints)

spline spline line through keypoints spline,kp1,kp2, ... kp6

a area definition from keypoints a,kp1,kp2, ... kp18

al area definition from lines a,l1,l2, ... l10

v volume definition from keypoints v,kp1,kp2, ... kp8

va volume definition from areas va,a1,a2, ... a10

vext create volume from area extrusion see online help

vdrag create volume by dragging area along path see online help

Solid Modeling
rectng rectangle creation rectng,x1,x2,y1,y2
(Primitives)

block block volume creation block,x1,x2,y1,y2,z1,z2

cylind cylindrical volume creation cylind,rad1,rad2,z1,z2,theta1,theta2

sphere spherical volume creation sphere,rad1,rad2,theta1,theta2

prism
cone various volume creation commands see online help
torus
Boolean Operations aadd adds separate areas to create single area aadd,a1,a2, ... a9

creates new areas by glueing

aglue aglue,a1,a2, ... a9
(properties remain separate)

asba creat new area by area substraction asba,a1,a2

aina create new area by area intersection aina,a1,a2, ... a9

vadd
vlgue
volume boolean operations see online help
vsbv
vinv

et,number,type
Elements &
et defines element type may define as many as required; current type is set by
Meshing
type

type set current element type pointer type,number

r,number,r1,r2, ... r6
r define real constants for elements may define as many as required; current type is set by
real

real sets current real constant pointer real,number

mp,label,number,c0,c1, ... c4
mp sets material properties for elements may define as many as required; current type is set by
mat

mat sets current material property pointer mat,number

esize,size,ndivs
esize sets size or number of divisions on lines
use either size or ndivs

eshape controls element shape see online help

lmesh,line1,line2,inc
lmesh mesh line(s)
or lmesh,all

amesh,area1,area2,inc
amesh mesh area(s)
or amesh,all
 vmesh,vol1,vol2,inc
vmesh mesh volume(s)
or vmesh,all

Sets &
ksel select a subset of keypoints see online help
Selection

nsel select a subset of nodes see online help

lsel select a subjset of lines see online help

asel select a subset of areas see online help

nsla select nodes within selected area(s) see online help

select everything
allsel allsel
i.e. reset selection

dk,kp#,label,value
Constraints dk defines a DOF constraint on a keypoint
labels: UX,UY,UZ,ROTX,ROTY,ROTZ,ALL

d,node#,label,value
d defines a DOF constraint on a node
labels: UX,UY,UZ,ROTX,ROTY,ROTZ,ALL

defines (anti)symmetry DOF constraints on dl,line#,area#,label

dl
a line labels: SYMM (symmetry); ASYM (antisymmetry)

fk,kp#,label,value
Loads fk defines a
labels: FX,FY,FZ,MX,MY,MZ

f,node#,label,value
f defines a force at a node
labels: FX,FY,FZ,MX,MY,MZ
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Creating Files ANSYS Command File Programming Features

Features
The following ANSYS command listing, shows some of the commonly used programming features in the ANSYS command file language
Basic Tutorials known as ADPL (ANSYS Parametric Design Language). It illustrates:
Intermediate Tutorials
● entering parameters (variables)
Advanced Tutorials ● prompting the user for parameters
● performing calculations with paramaters; note that the syntax and functions are similar to FORTRAN
PostProc Tutorials
● control structures
Radiation ❍ if - then - else - endif

❍ looping

Index
This example file does not do anything really useful in itself besides generate keypoints along a line, but it does illustrate some of the
"programming features" of the ANSYS command language.

!
Contributions
/PREP7 ! preprocessor phase
Comments !
x1 = 5 ! define some parameters
MecE 563
x2 = 10
Mechanical Engineering *ask,ndivs,Enter number of divisions (default 5),5
!
University of Alberta
! the above command prompts the user for input to be entered into the
! variable "ndivs"; if only is entered, a default of "5" is used
!
ANSYS Inc. *IF,ndivs,GT,1,THEN ! if "ndivs" is greater than "1"
dx = (x2-x1)/ndivs
*DO,i,1,ndivs+1,1 ! do i = 1, ndivs + 1 (in steps of one)
x = x1 + dx*(i-1)
Copyright © 2001 k,i,x,0,0
University of Alberta *ENDDO
*ELSE
k,1,x1,0,0
k,2,x2,0,0
*ENDIF
!
/pnum,kp,1 ! turn keypoint numbering on
kplot ! plot keypoints
klist,all,,,coord ! list all keypoints with coordinates
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Creating Files Command Line Tutorials (Basic Tutorials)

Features
The following documents contain the command line code for the Basic Tutorials. ANSYS 7.0 was used to create all of these tutorials
Basic Tutorials

Intermediate Tutorials
Basic functions will be shown to provide you with a general knowledge of
Advanced Tutorials Two Dimensional Truss
command line codes.
PostProc Tutorials
Intermediate ANSYS functions will be shown in detail to provide you with a
Radiation
Bicycle Space Frame
more general understanding of how to use ANSYS.

Boolean operations, plane stress and uniform pressure loading will be

Plane Stress Bracket
Index
introduced in the creation and analysis of this 2-Dimensional object.

This tutorial will introduce techniques such as filleting, extrusion, copying

Solid Modeling
and working plane orienation to create 3-Dimensional objects.
Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta

ANSYS Inc.

Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Creating Files Command Line Tutorials (Intermediate Tutorials)

Features
The following documents contain the command line code for the Intermediate Tutorials. ANSYS 7.0 was used to create all of these
Basic Tutorials tutorials

Intermediate Tutorials

Advanced Tutorials
Incorporating the weight of an object into the
Effect of Self Weight finite element analysis is shown in this simple
PostProc Tutorials
cantilever beam example.
Radiation

The application of distributed loads and the use

Distributed Loading of element tables to extract data is expalined in
Index this tutorial.

A large moment is applied to the end of a

NonLinear Analysis cantilever beam to explore Geometric
Contributions Nonlinear behaviour (large deformations).
Comments
In this tutorial both the Eigenvalue and
MecE 563 Buckling Nonlinear methods are used to solve a simple
buckling problem.
Mechanical Engineering
The purpose of the tutorial is to describe how
University of Alberta
NonLinear Materials to include material nonlinearities in an ANSYS
model.

ANSYS Inc. This tutorial will explore the modal analyis

Dynamic Analysis - Modal
capabilities of ANSYS.

This tutorial will explore the harmonic analyis

Dynamic Analysis - Harmonic
capabilities of ANSYS.
Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta This tutorial will explore the transient analyis
Dynamic Analysis - Transient
capabilities of ANSYS.

Analysis of a pure conduction boundary

Thermal Examples - Pure Conduction
condition example.
Thermal Examples - Mixed Convection/Conduction/ Analysis of a Mixed Convection/Conduction/
Insulated Insulated boundary condition example.

Thermal Examples - Transient Heat Conduction Analysis of heat conduction over time.

Utilizing axisymmetry to model a 3-D structure

Modelling Using Axisymmetry
in 2-D to reduce computational time.
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Creating Files Command Line Tutorials (Advanced Tutorials)

Features
The following documents contain the command line code for the Advanced Tutorials. ANSYS 7.0 was used to create all of these tutorials
Basic Tutorials

Intermediate Tutorials
The creation of models with multiple elements types will be explored in
Advanced Tutorials
Springs and Joints this tutorial. Additionally, elements COMBIN7 and COMBIN14 will be
explained as well as the use of parameters to store data.
PostProc Tutorials

Radiation The use of Design Optimization in ANSYS is used to solve for unknown
Design Opimization
parameters of a beam.

Index Substructuring The use of Substructuring in ANSYS is used to solve a simple problem.

Coupled Structural/Thermal The use of ANSYS physics environments to solve a simple structural/
Contributions Analysis thermal problem.
Comments
The stress distribution of a model is solved using p-elements and
Using P-Elements
MecE 563
compared to h-elements.

Mechanical Engineering
Melting Using Element Death Using element death to model a volume melting.
University of Alberta

Contact Elements Model of two beams coming into contact with each other.

ANSYS Inc.
ANSYS Parametric Design
Design a truss using parametric variables.
Language

Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Creating Files Command Line Tutorials (Postproc Tutorials)

Features
The following documents contain the command line code for the Postproc Tutorials. ANSYS 7.0 was used to create all of these tutorials
Basic Tutorials

Intermediate Tutorials
The method to view cross sectional
Advanced Tutorials
Viewing Cross Sectional Results results for a volume are shown in this
tutorial.
PostProc Tutorials

Radiation The purpose of this tutorial is to create

Advanced X-Sectional Results: Using Paths to Post Process
and use 'paths' to provide extra detail
Results
during post processing.
Index
The purpose of this tutorial is to outline
Data Plotting: Using Tables to Post Process Results the steps required to plot results using
tables, a special type of array.
Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta

ANSYS Inc.

Copyright © 2001
University of Alberta
 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Creating Files Radiation Example

Features

Basic Tutorials

Intermediate Tutorials
Problem Description

Advanced Tutorials Radiation heat transfer between concentric cylinders will be modeled in this example. This is a general version of one of the verification
examples converted to metric units.
PostProc Tutorials

Radiation
ANSYS Command Listing

/PREP7
Index /TITLE, RADIATION HEAT TRANSFER BETWEEN CONCENTRIC CYLINDERS
ANTYPE,STATIC

Contributions ! this is a general version of VM125 converted to metric

Comments
rin=2*0.0254 ! inches to metres
MecE 563 rout=8*0.0254
ndiv=20
Mechanical Engineering
arc=360
University of Alberta emis1=0.7
emis2=0.5
T1=700 ! degrees C
ANSYS Inc.
T2=400
offset=273 ! to convert to degrees K
stefbolt=5.699*10**(-8) ! metric version

k,1,0,0 ! center of tube 1

Copyright © 2001 k,5,0,0 ! center of retort
University of Alberta
k,6,0,0,-1
k,7,1
k,8,0,0,1
circle,1,rin,6,7,arc,ndiv ! inner cylinder, generated clockwise
CIRCLE,5,rout,8,7,arc,ndiv ! outer cylinder; generated counter-clockwise

ET,1,LINK32,,,,,,,1 ! HEAT CONDUCTING BAR; SUPPRESS SOLUTION OUTPUT

R,1,1 ! UNIT CROSS-SECTIONAL AREA (ARBITRARY)

MP,KXX,1,1 ! CONDUCTIVITY of inner cylinder (arbitrary)

MAT,1
ESIZE,,1
csys,1 ! cylindrical coord system
lsel,s,loc,x,rin
LMESH,ALL
lsel,all

MP,KXX,2,1 ! CONDUCTIVITY of outer cylinder (arbitrary)

MAT,2
lsel,s,loc,x,rout
LMESH,all
lsel,all
csys,0 ! reset to rect coord system
FINISH

/AUX12
EMIS,1,emis1
EMIS,2,emis2
VTYPE,0 ! HIDDEN PROCEDURE FOR VIEW FACTORS
GEOM,1 ! GEOMETRY SPECIFICATION 2-D
STEF,stefbolt ! Stefan-Boltzmann constant
WRITE,VM125 ! WRITE RADIATION MATRIX TO FILE VM125.SUB
FINISH

/PREP7
DOF,TEMP
ET,2,MATRIX50,1,,,,,1 ! SUPERELEMENT (RADIATION MATRIX)
TYPE,2
SE,VM125 ! defines superelement and where its written to
TOFFST,offset ! TEMPERATURE OFFSET FOR ABSOLUTE SCALE
csys,1
nsel,s,loc,x,rout ! SELECT OUTER CYLINDER NODES
D,ALL,TEMP,T1 ! T1 = 273 + 700 DEG. K
nsel,all

nsel,s,loc,x,rin ! SELECT INNER CYLINDER NODES

D,ALL,TEMP,T2 ! T2 = 273 + 400 DEG. K
nsel,all
csys,0
FINISH

/SOLU
SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1
csys,1
nsel,s,loc,x,rin ! SELECT INNER CYLINDER NODES
/com
/COM,:) :) heat flow from inner to outer :) :)
/com
PRRSOL ! PRINT HEAT FLOW FROM INNER TO OUTER CYLINDER

nsel,all
nsel,s,loc,x,rout ! select outer cylinder nodes
/com
/COM,:) :) heat flow from outer to inner :) :)
/com
PRRSOL ! PRINT HEAT FLOW FROM OUTER TO INNER CYLINDER

FSUM,HEAT ! only from selected nodes !!!

nsel,all
*GET,Q,FSUM,0,ITEM,HEAT
*DIM,LABEL,CHAR,1,2
*DIM,VALUE,,1,3
LABEL(1,1) = 'Q(W/m) ' ! the 1 below is for unit length
numer=stefbolt*2*pi*rin*1*((offset+T1)**4-(offset+T2)**4)
exact=numer/(1/emis1+(rin/rout)*(1/emis2-1))
*VFILL,VALUE(1,1),DATA,exact
*VFILL,VALUE(1,2),DATA,Q
*VFILL,VALUE(1,3),DATA,ABS(Q/exact)
/COM
/COM,--------------- VM125 RESULTS COMPARISON --------------
/COM,
/COM, | TARGET | ANSYS | RATIO
/COM,
*VWRITE,LABEL(1,1),VALUE(1,1),VALUE(1,2),VALUE(1,3)
(1X,A8,' ',F10.1,' ',F10.1,' ',1F5.3)
/COM,-------------------------------------------------------
/COM,
FINISH
UNIX Applications

Editors
The are several editors available on the system. The first three mentioned below are text based, while
the remaining have a graphical user interface.

vi & emacs

The vi and emacs editors are very powerful, but have a steep learning curve. You will probably
require a tutorial/reference book to help you get started with either of these editors. The bookstore
and CNS carry such manuals. These editors have the advantage that most every UNIX system that
you'll come across will have them, so they are always available.

pico

A very simple editor that is sufficient for most work is pico. It is the same editor that is used in the
Pine mail package that you may have tried out with your Unix GPU account. To use pico to edit the
file test.dat, for example, one simply types pico test.dat at the UNIX prompt. In pico, the
commonly used editing commands are listed at the bottom of its screen. The ^ character represents
the control (Crtl) key. Some commonly used commands are:

Ctrl x
save and exit
Ctrl o
save, don't exit
Ctrl r
read an external file into the present file
Ctrl 6
mark text; press this key, then use the cursor keys to mark text
Ctrl k
cut text to a buffer or just delete it
Ctrl u
uncut text; puts the contents of the buffer at the cursor location

Note that the mouse and the delete and insert keys do not have any effect in pico, but the
backspace key does work normally.

nedit
nedit is a very simple to use, yet powerful X Windows editor. It features pull-down menus, multiple
file editing, undo, and block delimiting with the mouse. Very nice... check it out!

Windows Editors

Two other editors are available by starting up the Microsoft Windows emulator. From a UNIX
command window, type wabi or win.

NotePad: The first of these editors is called notepad and it is available in the Windows Accessories
folder. It uses a very small font and is only useful for editing small text files.

PFE: Another option is a powerful text editor called Programmer's File Editor. It is located in /usr/
local/winapps/pfe directory and it is called pfe.exe (look under the r: drive). Create an
icon for this program by using the New menu item in the Program Manager. This editor features undo
and allows you to edit multiple text files of any size and save them in a DOS or UNIX format.

Note that UNIX and DOS have different conventions for storing carriage returns in text files. Files
must be saved in a UNIX format if they are to be used by compilers and Matlab. Therefore, when
saving files in PFE, ensure that the UNIX option is selected: select Save As from the File menu,
and look at the option in the dialog box.

The appendix describes several customizations that you may want to consider for the PFE editor.
This editor is available as freeware for Windows on the winsite (also know as CICA) archive (see
FTP) so that you can obtain a copy for your computer at home.

Problems with File Names: Note that Windows editors cannot access files which do not comply to
the 8.3 file format used by DOS. For this reason, it is not possible to use the Windows editors to
directly edit some UNIX files. An easy work-around is to rename the file to a DOS-legal name. It
could then be edited, saved, and then renamed back to its original name.

Applications
 ANSYS

ANSYS is a general purpose finite element modeling package for numerically solving a wide variety
of mechanical problems. These problems include: static/dynamic structural analysis (both linear and
non-linear), heat transfer and fluid problems, as well as acoustic and electro-magnetic problems.

ANSYS can be run as a text mode program (the default startup mode) or as a true X-Windows
application. The text mode is useful for people who wish to simply submit batch command files to
perform an analysis or if they wish to work on projects at home, over a modem.

To start ANSYS, two methods are avialable:

1. Type xansys52 at the UNIX prompt and a small launcher menu will appear. Select the
Run Interactive Now menu item. Some scrolling of text will go by and then stop. Press
Enter to continue. A multi-windowed environment now appears from which to enter your
commands.

If the text used in ANSYS is a little too small for your taste, it can be changed in the little start-
up launcher menu that first appeared. From this menu, it is necessary to select the
Interactive ... item. Then choose GUI configuration. From the next dialog box
that appears, select your desired font size.
2. An alternate method to start ANSYS is to type ansys at the UNIX prompt. Some scrolling
text will go by and then stop. Press Enter to continue. Once this is done, you may enter
ANSYS commands. To start the X-Windows portion of the program, issue the following two
commands at the ANSYS prompt:

/show,x11c
/menu,on

A multi-windowed environment now appears from which to enter your commands.

ANSYS can create rather large files when running and saving, therefore it is advisable to start up
ANSYS in the /scratch directory, and then save/delete the appropriate files when you are done.

You many want to check out some detailed online ANSYS tutorials. If you've got some time, check
out the ANSYS Web page.

For further information on using ANSYS, see Dr. Fyfe.

Pro/Engineer

Pro/Engineer is a parametric 3D solid modeling and drafting software tool. Tutorials for Release 20
are available in the bookstore. A companion program, Pro/Mechanica, performs finite element
analysis, including static analysis, sensitivity studies, and design optimization. Pro/Mechanica can be
run integrated with Pro/E or in stand-alone mode.

If you've got some time, check out the Parametric Technology Corporation Web page. For more
information about this program, see Dr. Toogood.

Rampant

Rampant is a general purpose inviscid, laminar and turbulent flow modeling package.

To see a detailed enlargement of the ribbon flow on the car, click on the car figure.

If you've got some time and want to see some more beautiful pictures, like that shown above, check
out the Fluent Web page. For further information on this program, see Dr. Yokota.
 FORTRAN

The FORTRAN compiler is invoked by typing:

xlf [-options] filename.f

Normally no options are required. For learning about the compiler's many options, type the
command, xlf by itself. If your program code consists of many files and libraries, consider using a
make file to simplify the program's maintenance.

Note that the name of the FORTRAN program must have an extension of lower case 'f'; i.e. your file
must be named something like test.f and not test.for or TEST.F. If you compile a program
using the syntax xlf test.f, the name of the resulting executable will default to a.out (logical,
isn't it?). This program would be run by entering ./a.out. To change the executable's output name
to test, for example, we would compile the program in the following way:

xlf -o test test.f

To run this program, you now type, ./test. Note that the ./ preceding the name of the executable
can be omitted if the current directory '.' is in your path (this is changed in your .cshrc file; see
Configuration Files).

It is possible (and usually desirable) to have source code in multiple files. For example you might
have a main program and several subroutine files. These can be compiled and linked in one-step by:

xlf -o main main.f sub1.f sub2.f sub3.f

Sending compiler error messages to a file: If you want to send the compiler output, such as error
messages, to a file, you can do it by appending >& errorfile to the xlf command line. For
example:

xlf main.f sub1.f >& errorfile

will compile main.f and sub1.f and send any compiler output to the file errorfile.

Capturing program output: To send output from a program to a file instead of the screen (i.
e. redirecting it), execute the program as follows:

test > output

where test is the name of the executable, and output is the name of the file to which the output
will be sent. If the program normally prompts the user for input, the prompt will not appear on the
screen, because it too is being sent to the output file. The keyboard will still accept the input,
however. So, if you know when to enter data, and what data to enter, you can still run your program
this way.

MATLAB

Matlab is a general purpose programming and analysis package with a wealth of built-in numerical,
symbolic and plotting functions.

You will normally want to start Matlab from the X Windows screen to take advantage of the
graphical environment. Matlab is started from a terminal window by entering:

matlab

When started, Matlab displays its start-up logo and the usual Matlab prompt (>>) appears. Matlab
commands may then be issued from this prompt.

Normally you will want to be editing and running Matlab .m files. The most convenient method to do
this is to open up a second window (see X Windows) and run a text editor from this window. In this
way you will have one window to edit your .m files and the second window to run them from
Matlab. Be sure to save any edited files to disk before trying to run them from Matlab, as Matlab only
has the copy on disk available to it. Note that it is only necessary to save the file, and not actually exit
the editor. In that way it is quick to toggle back and forth between the Matlab and editor windows.

Note that the text .m files created on under DOS/Windows and UNIX environments have different
formats and will cause errors in Matlab if you try to run them in the other environment unless you
make the necessary conversions when copying them to/from your floppy disk (see Floppy Disks).

It is often necessary to save text output from a Matlab session for documentation purposes. This is
accomplished by means of the diary command. From the Matlab prompt, type:

diary filename

where filename is the name of the file where Matlab will echo all keyboard commands and all
ensuing text output from the program. Note that only the output from those commands that you issue
after the diary command will be written to this file. After you are finished writing all that you want to
this file, turn off the diary function with the diary off command. The resulting text file may then be
edited, printed and even imported into a word processor.

To obtain a PostScript printer file of a currently displayed graph in Matlab, you simply type:
 print -dps filename

where the switch dps specifies device PostScript and filename is the name of the file that the
PostScript printing commands will be written to. See the section on Printing regarding how one prints
PostScript files.

A great source of Matlab information and useful programs (*.m files) can be found by checking out
the Mathworks Web page.

Remote Access
You may gain access to this lab from other computers on campus or even at home by starting up a
telnet session (or via a remote login) to connect to one of the lab's workstations. The workstations are
named mec01.labs through to mec30.labs. Depending from where you are trying to access
these computers, you may need to enter the full address of these workstations which has the form
mecxx.labs.ualberta.ca (where xx is any workstation number from 01 to 30).

For example, if you were in another lab on campus with telnet capabilities, such as the labs in
Cameron and CAB, you could access workstation mec08 by entering the command:

telnet mec08.labs

You may also need to access another mecxx workstation from within the MecE 3-3 lab for such
purposes as printing and resetting a hung workstation. The rlogin command is useful for this purpose.
For example, you may login onto workstation 18 from any other workstation in the lab, by issuing the
command,

rlogin mec18

Avoid rlogins and telnets into mec12 unless you are having a PostScript file printed. Once the job is
completed, logout immediately as there are only 2 remote logins open to that workstation. Also avoid
rlogins to mec24 as it is a major file server for the network.

Note that if you are going to be remotely running an X Windows application, you must have an X
server running on your local machine. If you have logged in remotely from another X Windows
machine, you simply need enter the xhost hostname command to set this up. However if you have
logged in from a PC or MAC from another place on campus or at home, you will need to acquire and
run an X server program. One such program is available from CNS and is called Micro X-Win (it is
available in GSB room 240 for $20). It is a Windows based program and its emulation speed is good
when running locally on the fast network backbone on campus, but is very slow when running it over
a modem.
The other thing that you must do when running an X Windows application remotely is to tell the
remote workstation where the X output is to be sent. This is specified with the following command:

setenv DISPLAY location:0

where location is your current workstation name (hostname) or your local IP address. In this
command, note the upper case DISPLAY and the trailing :0 (zero).

E-Mail and the Internet

Having a GPU account means that you can send and receive E-Mail. If your CNS login id is jblow,
for example, then your E-mail address is [email protected]. The mecxx.labs
machines do not have an e-mail program on them, but GPU does. To use E-mail then, it is necessary
to rlogin or telnet to GPU. You can enter the mail program called pine, either through lynx, or by
typing pine at the prompt. Pine is based on the pico editor, and is easy to use and fairly self-
explanatory. For more information on using some of the services offered by the internet, see FTP,
newsgroups and WWW.

Printing
Printing is not performed by directly sending printing commands from a particular application. You
must first create ASCII text files or PostScript files and then use one of the procedures listed below.

Black & White Printing

Text Files: It is possible to print pure text files (ASCII), free of charge, to the printers located in the
small room just outside the main part of the computing lab. To do this, type,

lpr filename

where filename is the name of the text file to print. This file is printed in the small room, just
outside the main part of the lab, with an accompanying banner page with your username on it.

Do not send PostScript printer files to this printer!

Up-to-date printing instructions are found in the file: /usr/local/doc/printer.txt.

PostScript files: PostScript files are files in a special language that only certain printers can
understand. Many applications, such as ANSYS and Matlab have the capability to save pictures as
PostScript files. The laser printer in the little room outside Mec 3-3 is a PostScript printer. To use it,
telnet or rlogin to mec12 and type,
 lprps filename

where filename is the name of a PostScript file. Within one minute you must insert your copycard
(a library PhotoCard) in the machine beside the printer. If you fail to do so, your job (but not your
file) will be deleted. Prints are $0.20 per page.

To print from Windows applications in Wabi, you must print to a PostScript file and print it using this
procedure (see Wabi Printing).

Large PostScript Files: note that very large PostScript files will probably not print on this printer
due to the large transfer times required to copy the file to the printer. If you have problems with this
you will have to print the file elsewhere. One option is to consider the possibilities listed in the
section below on color printing.

Color PostScript Printing

Many applications can output color PostScript files to display results. There are two facilities on
campus for printing these files; both require encapsulated PostScript files (or eps files):

CNS Versatec Color Plotter: this facility permits output plot sizes from 8 1/2" X 11" to 33" X 44"
for a very reasonable price. From a GPU account login, issue the command:

plotpostscript filename.eps scale c

where filename.eps is the name of the PostScript eps file and scale is a scaling factor from 1
to 4 (a factor of 1 is for an 8 1/2" X 11" page and 4 is for a 33" X 44" poster). The c indicates the plot
is to be made in color. The plots are picked up and paid for in the General Services Building, room
240.

Education PostScript Color Printer: To use this service, you must use FTP to copy your eps file to
the IP address: 129.128.85.145 (see FTP). It is then necessary to call extension 5433 (on
campus) and tell them what file to print, the number of copies and whether or not you want the
printout on paper or overhead transparencies. The output is picked up and paid for in the basement of
the Education Building (Instructional Resource Center, room B-111).

For further information, see table of contents, getting started, or appendices.

 Two Dimensional Truss

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 to solve a simple 2D Truss problem. This is the first of four
introductory ANSYS tutorials.

Problem Description

Determine the nodal deflections, reaction forces, and stress for the truss system shown below. Note that
Young's Modulus, E, is 200GPa while the crass sectional area, A, is 3250mm2 for all of the elements.

(Modified from Chandrupatla & Belegunda, Introduction to Finite Elements in Engineering, p.123)

ANSYS Command Listing

! ANSYS command file to perform 2D Truss Tutorial (Chandrupatla p.123)
!
/title, Bridge Truss Tutorial
/PREP7 ! preprocessor phase
!
! define parameters (mm)
height = 3118
width = 3600
!
! define keypoints
!
K,1, 0, 0 ! keypoint, #, x, y
K,2, width/2,height
K,3, width, 0
K,4, 3*width/2, height
K,5, 2*width, 0
K,6, 5*width/2, height
K,7, 3*width, 0
!
! define lines
!
L,1,2 ! line connecting kpoint 1 and 2
L,1,3
L,2,3
L,2,4
L,3,4
L,3,5
L,4,5
L,4,6
L,5,6
L,5,7
L,6,7

!
! element definition
!
ET,1,LINK1 ! element type #1; spring element
R,1,3250 ! real constant #1; Xsect area: 3200 mm^2
MP,EX,1,200e3 ! material property #1; Young's modulus: 200 GPa

LESIZE,ALL, , ,1,1,1 ! specify divisions on unmeshed lines

LMESH,all ! mesh all lines
!
FINISH ! finish pre-processor
!
/SOLU ! enter solution phase
!
! apply some constraints
DK,1,ALL,0 ! define a DOF constraint at a keypoint
DK,7,UY,0
!
! apply loads
!
FK,1,FY,-280e3 ! define a force load to a keypoint
FK,3,FY,-210e3
FK,5,FY,-280e3
FK,7,FY,-360e3
!
SOLVE ! solve the resulting system of equations
FINISH ! finish solution

/POST1
PRRSOL,F ! List Reaction Forces
PLDISP,2 ! Plot Deformed shape
PLNSOL,U,SUM,0,1 ! Contour Plot of deflection
ETABLE,SAXL,LS, 1 ! Axial Stress
PRETAB,SAXL ! List Element Table
PLETAB,SAXL,NOAV ! Plot Axial Stress
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CBT/Truss/Truss.html

Two Dimensional Truss

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 to solve a simple 2D Truss problem. This is the first of four
introductory ANSYS tutorials.

Problem Description

Determine the nodal deflections, reaction forces, and stress for the truss system shown below. Note that Young's
Modulus, E, is 200GPa while the crass sectional area, A, is 3250mm2 for all of the elements.

(Modified from Chandrupatla & Belegunda, Introduction to Finite Elements in Engineering, p.123)

ANSYS Command Listing

! ANSYS command file to perform 2D Truss Tutorial (Chandrupatla p.123)
!
/title, Bridge Truss Tutorial
/PREP7 ! preprocessor phase
!
! define parameters (mm)
height = 3118
width = 3600
!
! define keypoints
!
K,1, 0, 0 ! keypoint, #, x, y
K,2, width/2,height
K,3, width, 0
K,4, 3*width/2, height
K,5, 2*width, 0
K,6, 5*width/2, height
K,7, 3*width, 0
!
! define lines
!
L,1,2 ! line connecting kpoint 1 and 2
L,1,3
L,2,3
L,2,4

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CBT/Truss/Truss.html

L,3,4
L,3,5
L,4,5
L,4,6
L,5,6
L,5,7
L,6,7

!
! element definition
!
ET,1,LINK1 ! element type #1; spring element
R,1,3250 ! real constant #1; Xsect area: 3200 mm^2
MP,EX,1,200e3 ! material property #1; Young's modulus: 200 GPa

LESIZE,ALL, , ,1,1,1 ! specify divisions on unmeshed lines

LMESH,all ! mesh all lines
!
FINISH ! finish pre-processor
!
/SOLU ! enter solution phase
!
! apply some constraints
DK,1,ALL,0 ! define a DOF constraint at a keypoint
DK,7,UY,0
!
! apply loads
!
FK,1,FY,-280e3 ! define a force load to a keypoint
FK,3,FY,-210e3
FK,5,FY,-280e3
FK,7,FY,-360e3
!
SOLVE ! solve the resulting system of equations
FINISH ! finish solution

/POST1
PRRSOL,F ! List Reaction Forces
PLDISP,2 ! Plot Deformed shape
PLNSOL,U,SUM,0,1 ! Contour Plot of deflection

ETABLE,SAXL,LS, 1 ! Axial Stress

PRETAB,SAXL ! List Element Table
PLETAB,SAXL,NOAV ! Plot Axial Stress

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

 3D Space Frame Example

Problem Description

The problem to be modeled in this example is a simple bicycle frame shown in the following figure. The frame is to be
built of hollow aluminum tubing having an outside diameter of 25mm and a wall thickness of 2mm for the main part of
the frame. For the rear forks, the tubing will be 12mm outside diameter and 1mm wall thickness.

ANSYS Command Listing

! Command File mode of 3D Bicycle Space Frame

/title,3D Bicycle Space Frame

/prep7 ! Enter the pre-processor

! Define Some Parameters

x1 = 500 ! These parameters are not required; i.e. one could

x2 = 825 ! directly enter in the coordinates into the keypoint
y1 = 325 ! definition below.
y2 = 400 ! However, using parameters makes it very easy to
z1 = 50 ! quickly make changes to your model!

! Define Keypoints

K,1, 0,y1, 0 ! k,key-point number,x-coord,y-coord,z-coord

K,2, 0,y2, 0
K,3,x1,y2, 0
K,4,x1, 0, 0
K,5,x2, 0, z1
K,6,x2, 0,-z1
! Define Lines Linking Keypoints

L,1,2 ! l,keypoint1,keypoint2
L,2,3
L,3,4
L,4,1
L,4,6
L,4,5
L,3,5 ! these last two line are for the rear forks
L,3,6

! Define Element Type

ET,1,pipe16
KEYOPT,1,6,1

! Define Real Constants

! (Note: the inside diameter must be positive)

R,1,25,2 ! r,real set number,outside diameter,wall thickness
R,2,12,1 ! second set of real constants - for rear forks

! Define Material Properties

MP,EX,1,70000 ! mp,Young's modulus,material number,value

MP,PRXY,1,0.33 ! mp,Poisson's ratio,material number,value

! Define the number of elements each line is to be divided into

LESIZE,ALL,20 ! lesize,line number(all lines),size of element

! Line Meshing
REAL,1 ! turn on real property set #1
LMESH,1,6,1 ! mesh those lines which have that property set
! mesh lines 1 through 6 in steps of 1
REAL,2 ! activate real property set #2
LMESH,7,8 ! mesh the rear forks

FINISH ! Finish pre-processing

/SOLU ! Enter the solution processor

ANTYPE,0 ! Analysis type,static

! Define Displacement Constraints on Keypoints (dk command)

DK,1,UX,0,,,UY,UZ ! dk,keypoint,direction,displacement,,,direction,direction
DK,5,UY,0,,,UZ
DK,6,UY,0,,,UZ

! Define Forces on Keypoints (fk command)

FK,3,FY,-600 !fk,keypoint,direction,force
FK,4,FY,-200

SOLVE ! Solve the problem

FINISH ! Finish the solution processor

SAVE ! Save your work to the database

/post1 ! Enter the general post processor

/WIND,ALL,OFF
/WIND,1,LTOP
/WIND,2,RTOP
/WIND,3,LBOT
/WIND,4,RBOT
GPLOT

/GCMD,1, PLDISP,2 !Plot the deformed and undeformed edge

/GCMD,2, PLNSOL,U,SUM,0,1

! Set up Element Table information

! Element tables are tables of information regarding the solution data
! You must tell Ansys what pieces of information you want by using the
! etable command:
! etable,arbitrary name,item name,data code number

! The arbitrary name is a name that you give the data in the table
! It serves as a reference name to retrieve the data later
! Use a name that describes the data and is easily remembered.

! The item name and data code number come off of the tables provided.

! Examples:

! For the VonMises (or equivalent) stresses at angle 0 at both ends of the
! element (node i and node j);

etable,vonmi0,nmisc,5
etable,vonmj0,nmisc,45

! For the Axial stresses at angle 0

etable,axii0,ls,1
etable,axij0,ls,33

! For the Direct axial stress component due to axial load (no bending)
! Note it is independent of angular location.

etable,diri,smisc,13
etable,dirj,smisc,15

! ADD OTHERS THAT YOU NEED IN HERE...

! To plot the data, simply type

! plls, name for node i, name for node j
! for example,

/GCMD,3, PLLS,vonmi0,vonmj0
/GCMD,4, PLLS,axii0,axij0

/CONT,2,9,0,,0.27
/CONT,3,9,0,,18
/CONT,4,9,-18,,18

/FOC,ALL,-0.340000,,,1

/replot

PRNSOL,DOF,
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CBT/Bike/Print.html

3D Space Frame Example

Problem Description

The problem to be modeled in this example is a simple bicycle frame shown in the following figure. The frame
is to be built of hollow aluminum tubing having an outside diameter of 25mm and a wall thickness of 2mm for
the main part of the frame. For the rear forks, the tubing will be 12mm outside diameter and 1mm wall
thickness.

ANSYS Command Listing

! Command File mode of 3D Bicycle Space Frame

/title,3D Bicycle Space Frame

/prep7 ! Enter the pre-processor

! Define Some Parameters

x1 = 500 ! These parameters are not required; i.e. one could

x2 = 825 ! directly enter in the coordinates into the keypoint
y1 = 325 ! definition below.
y2 = 400 ! However, using parameters makes it very easy to
z1 = 50 ! quickly make changes to your model!

! Define Keypoints

K,1, 0,y1, 0 ! k,key-point number,x-coord,y-coord,z-coord

K,2, 0,y2, 0
K,3,x1,y2, 0
K,4,x1, 0, 0
K,5,x2, 0, z1
K,6,x2, 0,-z1

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CBT/Bike/Print.html

! Define Lines Linking Keypoints

L,1,2 ! l,keypoint1,keypoint2
L,2,3
L,3,4
L,4,1
L,4,6
L,4,5
L,3,5 ! these last two line are for the rear forks
L,3,6

! Define Element Type

ET,1,pipe16
KEYOPT,1,6,1

! Define Real Constants

! (Note: the inside diameter must be positive)

R,1,25,2 ! r,real set number,outside diameter,wall thickness
R,2,12,1 ! second set of real constants - for rear forks

! Define Material Properties

MP,EX,1,70000 ! mp,Young's modulus,material number,value

MP,PRXY,1,0.33 ! mp,Poisson's ratio,material number,value

! Define the number of elements each line is to be divided into

LESIZE,ALL,20 ! lesize,line number(all lines),size of element

! Line Meshing
REAL,1 ! turn on real property set #1
LMESH,1,6,1 ! mesh those lines which have that property set
! mesh lines 1 through 6 in steps of 1
REAL,2 ! activate real property set #2
LMESH,7,8 ! mesh the rear forks

FINISH ! Finish pre-processing

/SOLU ! Enter the solution processor

ANTYPE,0 ! Analysis type,static

! Define Displacement Constraints on Keypoints (dk command)

DK,1,UX,0,,,UY,UZ ! dk,keypoint,direction,displacement,,,direction,direction
DK,5,UY,0,,,UZ
DK,6,UY,0,,,UZ

! Define Forces on Keypoints (fk command)

FK,3,FY,-600 !fk,keypoint,direction,force
FK,4,FY,-200

SOLVE ! Solve the problem

FINISH ! Finish the solution processor

SAVE ! Save your work to the database

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CBT/Bike/Print.html

/post1 ! Enter the general post processor

/WIND,ALL,OFF
/WIND,1,LTOP
/WIND,2,RTOP
/WIND,3,LBOT
/WIND,4,RBOT
GPLOT

/GCMD,1, PLDISP,2 !Plot the deformed and undeformed edge

/GCMD,2, PLNSOL,U,SUM,0,1

! Set up Element Table information

! Element tables are tables of information regarding the solution data
! You must tell Ansys what pieces of information you want by using the
! etable command:
! etable,arbitrary name,item name,data code number

! The arbitrary name is a name that you give the data in the table
! It serves as a reference name to retrieve the data later
! Use a name that describes the data and is easily remembered.

! The item name and data code number come off of the tables provided.

! Examples:

! For the VonMises (or equivalent) stresses at angle 0 at both ends of the
! element (node i and node j);

etable,vonmi0,nmisc,5
etable,vonmj0,nmisc,45

! For the Axial stresses at angle 0

etable,axii0,ls,1
etable,axij0,ls,33

! For the Direct axial stress component due to axial load (no bending)
! Note it is independent of angular location.

etable,diri,smisc,13
etable,dirj,smisc,15

! ADD OTHERS THAT YOU NEED IN HERE...

! To plot the data, simply type

! plls, name for node i, name for node j
! for example,

/GCMD,3, PLLS,vonmi0,vonmj0
/GCMD,4, PLLS,axii0,axij0

/CONT,2,9,0,,0.27
/CONT,3,9,0,,18
/CONT,4,9,-18,,18

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CBT/Bike/Print.html

/FOC,ALL,-0.340000,,,1

/replot

PRNSOL,DOF,

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

 Plane Stress Bracket

Verification Example
The first step is to simplify the problem. Whenever you are trying out a new analysis type, you need something (ie analytical
solution or experimental data) to compare the results to. This way you can be sure that you've gotten the correct analysis type,
units, scale factors, etc.

The simplified version that will be used for this problem is that of a flat rectangular plate with a hole shown in the following
figure:

ANSYS Command Listing

! Command File mode of 2D Plane Stress Verification

/title, 2D Plane Stress Verification

/PREP7 ! Preprocessor
BLC4,0,0,200,100 ! rectangle, bottom left corner coords, width, height
CYL4,100,50,20 ! circle,center coords, radius
ASBA,1,2 ! substract area 2 from area 1

ET,1,PLANE42 !element Type = plane 42

KEYOPT,1,3,3 ! This is the changed option to give the plate a
thickness

R,1,20 ! Real Constant, Material 1, Plate Thickness

MP,EX,1,200000 ! Material Properties, Young's Modulus, Material 1,

200000 MPa
MP,PRXY,1,0.3 ! Material Properties, Major Poisson's Ratio, Material
1, 0.3

AESIZE,ALL,5 ! Element sizes, all of the lines, 5 mm

AMESH,ALL ! Mesh the lines

FINISH ! Exit preprocessor

/SOLU ! Solution

ANTYPE,0 ! The type of analysis (static)

DL,4, ,ALL,0 ! Apply a Displacement to Line 4 to all DOF

SFL,2,PRES,-1 ! Apply a Distributed load to Line 2

SOLVE ! Solve the problem

FINISH

/POST1
PLNSOL,S,EQV
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CBP/Verif_Print.html

Plane Stress Bracket

Verification Example
The first step is to simplify the problem. Whenever you are trying out a new analysis type, you need something
(ie analytical solution or experimental data) to compare the results to. This way you can be sure that you've
gotten the correct analysis type, units, scale factors, etc.

The simplified version that will be used for this problem is that of a flat rectangular plate with a hole shown in
the following figure:

ANSYS Command Listing

! Command File mode of 2D Plane Stress Verification

/title, 2D Plane Stress Verification

/PREP7 ! Preprocessor
BLC4,0,0,200,100 ! rectangle, bottom left corner coords, width, height
CYL4,100,50,20 ! circle,center coords, radius
ASBA,1,2 ! substract area 2 from area 1

ET,1,PLANE42 !element Type = plane 42

KEYOPT,1,3,3 ! This is the changed option to give the plate a thickness

R,1,20 ! Real Constant, Material 1, Plate Thickness

MP,EX,1,200000 ! Material Properties, Young's Modulus, Material 1, 200000

MP,PRXY,1,0.3 ! Material Properties, Major Poisson's Ratio, Material 1,

AESIZE,ALL,5 ! Element sizes, all of the lines, 5 mm

AMESH,ALL ! Mesh the lines

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CBP/Verif_Print.html

FINISH ! Exit preprocessor

/SOLU ! Solution

ANTYPE,0 ! The type of analysis (static)

DL,4, ,ALL,0 ! Apply a Displacement to Line 4 to all DOF

SFL,2,PRES,-1 ! Apply a Distributed load to Line 2

SOLVE ! Solve the problem

FINISH

/POST1
PLNSOL,S,EQV

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

 Plane Stress Bracket

Introduction
This tutorial is the second of three basic tutorials created to illustrate commom features in ANSYS. The plane stress bracket
tutorial builds upon techniques covered in the first tutorial (3D Bicycle Space Frame), it is therefore essential that you have
completed that tutorial prior to beginning this one.

The 2D Plane Stress Bracket will introduce boolean operations, plane stress, and uniform pressure loading.

Problem Description

The problem to be modeled in this example is a simple bracket shown in the following figure. This bracket is to be built from a
20 mm thick steel plate. A figure of the plate is shown below.

This plate will be fixed at the two small holes on the left and have a load applied to the larger hole on the right.

ANSYS Command Listing

! Command File mode of 2D Plane Stress Bracket

/title, 2D Plane Stress Bracket

/prep7 ! Enter the pre-processor

! Create Geometry

BLC4,0,0,80,100
CYL4,80,50,50
CYL4,0,20,20
CYL4,0,80,20
BLC4,-20,20,20,60
AADD,ALL ! Boolean Addition - add all of the areas together

CYL4,80,50,30 ! Create Bolt Holes

CYL4,0,20,10
CYL4,0,80,10

ASBA,6,ALL ! Boolean Subtraction - subtracts all areas (other than 6)

from base area 6

! Define Element Type

ET,1,PLANE82
KEYOPT,1,3,3 ! Plane stress element with thickness

! Define Real Constants

! (Note: the inside diameter must be positive)

R,1,20 ! r,real set number, plate thickness

! Define Material Properties

MP,EX,1,200000 ! mp,Young's modulus,material number,value

MP,PRXY,1,0.3 ! mp,Poisson's ratio,material number,value

! Define the number of elements each line is to be divided into

AESIZE,ALL,5 ! lesize,all areas,size of element

! Area Meshing
AMESH,ALL ! amesh, all areas

FINISH ! Finish pre-processing

/SOLU ! Enter the solution processor

ANTYPE,0 ! Analysis type,static

! Define Displacement Constraints on Lines (dl command)

DL, 7, ,ALL,0 ! There is probably a way to do these all at once...

DL, 8, ,ALL,0
DL, 9, ,ALL,0
DL,10, ,ALL,0
DL,11, ,ALL,0
DL,12, ,ALL,0
DL,13, ,ALL,0
DL,14, ,ALL,0

! Define Forces on Keypoints (fk command)

FK,9,FY,-1000 !fk,keypoint,direction,force

SOLVE ! Solve the problem

FINISH ! Finish the solution processor

SAVE ! Save your work to the database

/post1 ! Enter the general post processor

/WIND,ALL,OFF
/WIND,1,LTOP
/WIND,2,RTOP
/WIND,3,LBOT
/WIND,4,RBOT
GPLOT

/GCMD,1, PLDISP,2 ! Plot the deformed and undeformed edge

/GCMD,2, PLNSOL,U,SUM,0,1 ! Plot the deflection USUM

/GCMD,3, PLNSOL,S,EQV,0,1 ! Plot the equivalent stress

/GCMD,4, PLNSOL,EPTO,EQV,0,1 ! Plot the equivalent strain

/CONT,2,10,0,,0.0036 ! Set contour ranges

/CONT,3,10,0,,8
/CONT,4,10,0,,0.05e-3

/FOC,ALL,-0.340000,,,1 ! Focus point

/replot

PRNSOL,DOF, ! Prints the nodal solutions

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CBT/Bracket/Print.html

Plane Stress Bracket

Introduction
This tutorial is the second of three basic tutorials created to illustrate commom features in ANSYS. The plane
stress bracket tutorial builds upon techniques covered in the first tutorial (3D Bicycle Space Frame), it is
therefore essential that you have completed that tutorial prior to beginning this one.

The 2D Plane Stress Bracket will introduce boolean operations, plane stress, and uniform pressure loading.

Problem Description

The problem to be modeled in this example is a simple bracket shown in the following figure. This bracket is to
be built from a 20 mm thick steel plate. A figure of the plate is shown below.

This plate will be fixed at the two small holes on the left and have a load applied to the larger hole on the right.

ANSYS Command Listing

! Command File mode of 2D Plane Stress Bracket

/title, 2D Plane Stress Bracket

/prep7 ! Enter the pre-processor

! Create Geometry

BLC4,0,0,80,100

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CBT/Bracket/Print.html

CYL4,80,50,50
CYL4,0,20,20
CYL4,0,80,20
BLC4,-20,20,20,60

AADD,ALL ! Boolean Addition - add all of the areas together

CYL4,80,50,30 ! Create Bolt Holes

CYL4,0,20,10
CYL4,0,80,10

ASBA,6,ALL ! Boolean Subtraction - subtracts all areas (other than 6) from ba

! Define Element Type

ET,1,PLANE82
KEYOPT,1,3,3 ! Plane stress element with thickness

! Define Real Constants

! (Note: the inside diameter must be positive)

R,1,20 ! r,real set number, plate thickness

! Define Material Properties

MP,EX,1,200000 ! mp,Young's modulus,material number,value

MP,PRXY,1,0.3 ! mp,Poisson's ratio,material number,value

! Define the number of elements each line is to be divided into

AESIZE,ALL,5 ! lesize,all areas,size of element

! Area Meshing
AMESH,ALL ! amesh, all areas

FINISH ! Finish pre-processing

/SOLU ! Enter the solution processor

ANTYPE,0 ! Analysis type,static

! Define Displacement Constraints on Lines (dl command)

DL, 7, ,ALL,0 ! There is probably a way to do these all at once...

DL, 8, ,ALL,0
DL, 9, ,ALL,0
DL,10, ,ALL,0
DL,11, ,ALL,0
DL,12, ,ALL,0
DL,13, ,ALL,0
DL,14, ,ALL,0

! Define Forces on Keypoints (fk command)

FK,9,FY,-1000 !fk,keypoint,direction,force

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CBT/Bracket/Print.html

SOLVE ! Solve the problem

FINISH ! Finish the solution processor

SAVE ! Save your work to the database

/post1 ! Enter the general post processor

/WIND,ALL,OFF
/WIND,1,LTOP
/WIND,2,RTOP
/WIND,3,LBOT
/WIND,4,RBOT
GPLOT

/GCMD,1, PLDISP,2 ! Plot the deformed and undeformed edge

/GCMD,2, PLNSOL,U,SUM,0,1 ! Plot the deflection USUM

/GCMD,3, PLNSOL,S,EQV,0,1 ! Plot the equivalent stress

/GCMD,4, PLNSOL,EPTO,EQV,0,1 ! Plot the equivalent strain

/CONT,2,10,0,,0.0036 ! Set contour ranges

/CONT,3,10,0,,8
/CONT,4,10,0,,0.05e-3

/FOC,ALL,-0.340000,,,1 ! Focus point

/replot

PRNSOL,DOF, ! Prints the nodal solutions

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

 Solid Model Creation

Introduction
This tutorial is the last of three basic tutorials devised to illustrate commom features in ANSYS. Each tutorial builds upon
techniques covered in previous tutorials, it is therefore essential that you complete the tutorials in order.

The Solid Modelling Tutorial will introduce various techniques which can be used in ANSYS to create solid models. Filleting,
extrusion/sweeping, copying, and working plane orientation will be covered in detail.

Two Solid Models will be created within this tutorial.

We will create a solid model of the pulley shown in the following figure.

We will also create a solid model of the Spindle Base shown in the following figure.
ANSYS Command Listing
Pulley Model

/PREP7

BLC4,2,0,1,5.5 ! Create rectangles

BLC4,3,2,5,1
BLC4,8,0,0.5,5

AADD,ALL ! Add the areas together

CYL4,3,5.5,0.5 ! Create circles

CYL4,8.5,0.2,0.2

ASBA,4,1 ! Subtract an area

AGEN,2,2,,,,4.6 ! Mirrors an area

AGEN,2,1,,,-0.5

AADD,ALL ! Adds all areas

LFILLT,22,7,0.1,, !Create a fillet radius of 0.1mm between

lines 30 and 7
LFILLT,26,7,0.1,,

AL,3,6,9 ! Creates fillet area (arbitrary area using

lines 9,10,11)
AL,10,11,14

AADD,ALL

! Sweep

K,1001,0,0,0 ! Keypoints
K,1002,0,5,0

VROTAT,3, , , , , ,1001,1002,360, , ! Sweep area 4 about axis formed by keypoints

1001 and 1002

K,2001,0,3,0
K,2002,1,3,0
K,2003,0,3,1

KWPLAN,1,2001,2002,2003 !Align WorkPlane with keypoints

CSYS,5 ! Change Active CS to Global Cartesian Y

CYL4,5.5,0,0.5, , , ,1 ! Create circle

VGEN,8,5, , , ,45, , ,0 ! Pattern the circle every 45 degrees

!Subtract areas

vsbv,all,5
vsbv,13,6
vsbv,all,7
vsbv,4,8
vsbv,all,9
vsbv,2,10
vsbv,all,11
vsbv,2,12

Spindle Base Model

/PREP7

BLC4,0,0,109,102 ! Create rectangle

K,5,-20,82 ! Keypoints
K,6,-20,20
K,7,0,82
K,8,0,20

LARC,4,5,7,20 ! Line arcs

LARC,1,6,8,20
L,5,6

AL,4,5,6,7 ! Creates area from 4 lines

AADD,1,2 ! Now called area 3

CYL4,0,20,10 ! Area 1
AGEN,2,1, , ,69 ! Mirrors area 1
AGEN,2,1,2, , ,62 ! Mirrors again
ASBA,3,ALL ! Subtracts areas

VOFFST,6,26 ! Creates volume from area

K,100,109,102,0 ! Keypoints
K,101,109,2,0
K,102,159,102,sqrt(3)/0.02

KWPLAN,-1,100,101,102 ! Defines working plane

BLC4,0,0,102,180 ! Create rectangle

CYL4,51,180,51 ! Create circle
AADD,25,26 ! Add them together

VOFFST,27,26 ! Volume from area

VADD,1,2 ! Add volumes

AADD,33,34,38 ! Add areas
AADD,32,36,37

CYL4,51,180,32, , , ,60 ! Create cylinder

VADD,1,3 ! Add volumes
CYL4,51,180,18.5, , , ,60 ! Another cylinder
VSBV,2,1 ! Subtract it

WPCSYS,-1,0 ! This re-aligns the WP with the global coordinate

system

K,200,-20,61,26 ! Keypoints
K,201,0,61,26
K,202,-20,61,30

KWPLAN,-1,200,201,202 ! Shift working plane

CSYS,4 ! Change active coordinate system

K,203,129-(0.57735*26),0,0 ! Keypoints
K,204, 129-(0.57735*26) + 38, sqrt(3)/2*76,0

A,200,203,204 ! Create area from keypoints

VOFFST,7,20, ! Volume from area

VADD, ALL ! Add it together
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CBT/Solid/Print.html

Solid Model Creation

Introduction
This tutorial is the last of three basic tutorials devised to illustrate commom features in ANSYS. Each tutorial
builds upon techniques covered in previous tutorials, it is therefore essential that you complete the tutorials in
order.

The Solid Modelling Tutorial will introduce various techniques which can be used in ANSYS to create solid
models. Filleting, extrusion/sweeping, copying, and working plane orientation will be covered in detail.

Two Solid Models will be created within this tutorial.

We will create a solid model of the pulley shown in the following figure.

We will also create a solid model of the Spindle Base shown in the following figure.

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CBT/Solid/Print.html

ANSYS Command Listing

Pulley Model

/PREP7

BLC4,2,0,1,5.5 ! Create rectangles

BLC4,3,2,5,1
BLC4,8,0,0.5,5

AADD,ALL ! Add the areas together

CYL4,3,5.5,0.5 ! Create circles

CYL4,8.5,0.2,0.2

ASBA,4,1 ! Subtract an area

AGEN,2,2,,,,4.6 ! Mirrors an area

AGEN,2,1,,,-0.5

AADD,ALL ! Adds all areas

LFILLT,22,7,0.1,, !Create a fillet radius of 0.1mm between lines 30

LFILLT,26,7,0.1,,

AL,3,6,9 ! Creates fillet area (arbitrary area using lines

AL,10,11,14

AADD,ALL

! Sweep

K,1001,0,0,0 ! Keypoints
K,1002,0,5,0

VROTAT,3, , , , , ,1001,1002,360, , ! Sweep area 4 about axis formed by keypoints 1001

K,2001,0,3,0
K,2002,1,3,0
K,2003,0,3,1

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CBT/Solid/Print.html

KWPLAN,1,2001,2002,2003 !Align WorkPlane with keypoints

CSYS,5 ! Change Active CS to Global Cartesian Y

CYL4,5.5,0,0.5, , , ,1 ! Create circle

VGEN,8,5, , , ,45, , ,0 ! Pattern the circle every 45 degrees

!Subtract areas

vsbv,all,5
vsbv,13,6
vsbv,all,7
vsbv,4,8
vsbv,all,9
vsbv,2,10
vsbv,all,11
vsbv,2,12

Spindle Base Model

/PREP7

BLC4,0,0,109,102 ! Create rectangle

K,5,-20,82 ! Keypoints
K,6,-20,20
K,7,0,82
K,8,0,20

LARC,4,5,7,20 ! Line arcs

LARC,1,6,8,20
L,5,6

AL,4,5,6,7 ! Creates area from 4 lines

AADD,1,2 ! Now called area 3

CYL4,0,20,10 ! Area 1
AGEN,2,1, , ,69 ! Mirrors area 1
AGEN,2,1,2, , ,62 ! Mirrors again
ASBA,3,ALL ! Subtracts areas

VOFFST,6,26 ! Creates volume from area

K,100,109,102,0 ! Keypoints
K,101,109,2,0
K,102,159,102,sqrt(3)/0.02

KWPLAN,-1,100,101,102 ! Defines working plane

BLC4,0,0,102,180 ! Create rectangle

CYL4,51,180,51 ! Create circle
AADD,25,26 ! Add them together

VOFFST,27,26 ! Volume from area

VADD,1,2 ! Add volumes

AADD,33,34,38 ! Add areas

AADD,32,36,37

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CBT/Solid/Print.html

CYL4,51,180,32, , , ,60 ! Create cylinder

VADD,1,3 ! Add volumes
CYL4,51,180,18.5, , , ,60 ! Another cylinder
VSBV,2,1 ! Subtract it

WPCSYS,-1,0 ! This re-aligns the WP with the global coordinate system

K,200,-20,61,26 ! Keypoints
K,201,0,61,26
K,202,-20,61,30

KWPLAN,-1,200,201,202 ! Shift working plane

CSYS,4 ! Change active coordinate system

K,203,129-(0.57735*26),0,0 ! Keypoints
K,204, 129-(0.57735*26) + 38, sqrt(3)/2*76,0

A,200,203,204 ! Create area from keypoints

VOFFST,7,20, ! Volume from area

VADD, ALL ! Add it together

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

 Effect of Self Weight on a Cantilever Beam

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of the tutorial is to show the required
steps to account for the weight of an object in ANSYS.

Loads will not be applied to the beam shown below in order to observe the deflection caused by the
weight of the beam itself. The beam is to be made of steel with a modulus of elasticity of 200 GPa.

ANSYS Command Listing

/Title, Effects of Self Weight
/PREP7

Length = 1000
Width = 50
Height = 10

K,1,0,0 ! Create Keypoints

K,2,Length,0

L,1,2

ET,1,BEAM3 ! Set element type

R,1,Width*Height,Width*(Height**3)/12,Height !** = exponent
MP,EX,1,200000 ! Young's Modulus
MP,PRXY,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio
MP,DENS,1,7.86e-6 ! Density

LESIZE,ALL,Length/10, ! Size of line elements

LMESH,1 ! Mesh line 1

FINISH
/SOLU ! Enter solution mode

ANTYPE,0 ! Static analysis

DK,1,ALL,0, ! Constrain keypoint 1
ACEL,,9.8 ! Set gravity constant

SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1
PLDISP,2 ! Display deformed shape
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/Density/Print.html

Effect of Self Weight on a Cantilever Beam

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of the tutorial is to show the required steps to
account for the weight of an object in ANSYS.

Loads will not be applied to the beam shown below in order to observe the deflection caused by the weight of
the beam itself. The beam is to be made of steel with a modulus of elasticity of 200 GPa.

ANSYS Command Listing

/Title, Effects of Self Weight
/PREP7

Length = 1000
Width = 50
Height = 10

K,1,0,0 ! Create Keypoints

K,2,Length,0

L,1,2

ET,1,BEAM3 ! Set element type

R,1,Width*Height,Width*(Height**3)/12,Height !** = exponent
MP,EX,1,200000 ! Young's Modulus
MP,PRXY,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio
MP,DENS,1,7.86e-6 ! Density

LESIZE,ALL,Length/10, ! Size of line elements

LMESH,1 ! Mesh line 1

FINISH
/SOLU ! Enter solution mode

ANTYPE,0 ! Static analysis

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/Density/Print.html

DK,1,ALL,0, ! Constrain keypoint 1

ACEL,,9.8 ! Set gravity constant

SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1
PLDISP,2 ! Display deformed shape

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

 Application of Distributed Loads

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0. The purpose of this tutorial is to explain how to apply distributed
loads and use element tables to extract data. Please note that this material was also covered in the 'Bicycle Space
Frame' tutorial under 'Basic Tutorials'.

A distributed load of 1000 N/m (1 N/mm) will be applied to a solid steel beam with a rectangular cross section as
shown in the figure below. The cross-section of the beam is 10mm x 10mm while the modulus of elasticity of the
steel is 200GPa.

ANSYS Command Listing

/title, Distributed Loading of a Beam
/PREP7

K,1,0,0 ! Define the keypoints

K,2,1000,0

L,1,2 ! Create the line

ET,1,BEAM3 ! Beam3 element type

R,1,100,833.333,10 ! Real constants - area,I,height

MP,EX,1,200000 ! Young's Modulus

MP,PRXY,1,0.33 ! Poisson's ratio

ESIZE,100 ! Mesh size

LMESH,ALL ! Mesh line

FINISH
/SOLU

ANTYPE,0 ! Static analysis

DK,1,UX,0,,,UY ! Pin keypoint 1

DK,2,UY,0 ! Roller on keypoint 2

SFBEAM,ALL,1,PRES,1 ! Apply distributed load

SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1

PLDISP,2 ! Plot deformed shape

ETABLE,SMAXI,NMISC, 1 ! Create data for element table

ETABLE,SMAXJ,NMISC, 3
PLLS,SMAXI,SMAXJ,1,0 ! Plot ETABLE data
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/Distributed/Print.ht...

Application of Distributed Loads

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0. The purpose of this tutorial is to explain how to apply
distributed loads and use element tables to extract data. Please note that this material was also covered in the
'Bicycle Space Frame' tutorial under 'Basic Tutorials'.

A distributed load of 1000 N/m (1 N/mm) will be applied to a solid steel beam with a rectangular cross section
as shown in the figure below. The cross-section of the beam is 10mm x 10mm while the modulus of elasticity of
the steel is 200GPa.

ANSYS Command Listing

/title, Distributed Loading of a Beam
/PREP7

K,1,0,0 ! Define the keypoints

K,2,1000,0

L,1,2 ! Create the line

ET,1,BEAM3 ! Beam3 element type

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/Distributed/Print.ht...

R,1,100,833.333,10 ! Real constants - area,I,height

MP,EX,1,200000 ! Young's Modulus

MP,PRXY,1,0.33 ! Poisson's ratio

ESIZE,100 ! Mesh size

LMESH,ALL ! Mesh line

FINISH
/SOLU

ANTYPE,0 ! Static analysis

DK,1,UX,0,,,UY ! Pin keypoint 1

DK,2,UY,0 ! Roller on keypoint 2

SFBEAM,ALL,1,PRES,1 ! Apply distributed load

SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1

PLDISP,2 ! Plot deformed shape

ETABLE,SMAXI,NMISC, 1 ! Create data for element table

ETABLE,SMAXJ,NMISC, 3
PLLS,SMAXI,SMAXJ,1,0 ! Plot ETABLE data

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

 ANSYS BASIC INTERMEDIATE ADVANCED POSTPROC. COMMAND PRINTABLE
UofA ANSYS Tutorial
UTILITIES TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS TUTORIALS LINE FILES VERSION

Creating Files Contact Element Example

Features
The ANSYS contact element CONTACT48 allows friction to be modelled as a normal force only or as a normal force and a shear force.
Basic Tutorials In this model there are two blocks, one above top of the other, with a small separation. The top block is cantilevered while the bottom
block is tied to ground. The top block experiences a load and comes into contact with the lower block.
Intermediate Tutorials

Advanced Tutorials This command file is also useful to demonstate the use of sets or selections to group nodes/keypoints or to select a single node/keypoint to
which boundary conditions will be applied.
PostProc Tutorials

Radiation

Index

Contributions

Comments

MecE 563

Mechanical Engineering

University of Alberta

/title,Sample of CONTACT48 element type

/prep7
ANSYS Inc.
RECTNG,0,10,0,2 ! define rectangular areas
RECTNG,2.5,7.5,2,4
aplot

Copyright © 2001 ! define element type

University of Alberta
ET,1,plane42,,,3,,2 ! element type 1, plane stress w/thick, nodal, strs out
type,1 ! activate element type 1
R, 1, 0.01 ! thickness 0.01
! define material properties

MP,EX, 1, 200e3 ! Young's modulus

MP,NUXY,1, 0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

MP,EX, 2, 20e3 ! Young's modulus (10 times less rigid!)

MP,NUXY,2, 0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

! meshing

esize,0.5 ! set meshing size

mat,1 ! turn on material set #1
real,1 ! real set #1
amesh,1 ! mesh area 1

esize,0.35
mat,2
amesh,2

/pnum,mat,1 ! turn on material color shading

eplot

ET,2,contac48,,1 ! defines second element type - 2D contact elements

keyo,2,7,1
r,2,20e3,,0.005,,10
TYPE,2 ! activates or sets this element type
real,2

! define contact nodes and elements

! first the contact nodes

asel,s,area,,2 ! select top area
nsla,s,1 ! select the nodes within this area
nsel,r,loc,y,1.99,2.01 ! select bottom layer of nodes in this area
cm,source,node ! call this group of nodes 'source'

! then the target nodes

allsel ! relect everything
asel,s,area,,1 ! select bottom area
nsla,s,1 ! select nodes in this area
nsel,r,loc,y,1.99,2.01 ! the top layer of nodes from this area
cm,target,node ! call this selection 'target'

gcgen,source,target,3 ! generate contact elements between defined nodes

finish
/solution
antype,stat,new

!Ground upper left hand corner of top block

ksel,s,loc,x,2.5
ksel,r,loc,y,4
dk,all,all,0

! Ground bottom nodes on bottom block

allsel
nsel,s,loc,y,0 ! when vmin = vmax (0 here), a small tolerance is used
d,all,all,0

! Give top right corner a vertical load

allsel
ksel,s,loc,x,7.5
ksel,r,loc,y,4
fk,all,fy,-100

allsel
time,1
nsubst,20,100
autots,on ! auto time stepping
pred,on ! predictor on
nropt,full,,on ! Newton-Raphson on
solve
finish
 NonLinear Analysis of a Cantilever Beam

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to outline the steps required to do a simple
nonlinear analysis of the beam shown below.

There are several causes for nonlinear behaviour such as Changing Status, Material Nonlinearities and Geometric
Nonlinearities (change in response due to large deformations). This tutorial will deal specifically with Geometric
Nonlinearities .

To solve this problem, the load will added incrementally. After each increment, the stiffness matrix will be adjusted
before increasing the load.

The solution will be compared to the equivalent solution using a linear response.

ANSYS Command Listing

/prep7 ! start preprocessor
/title,NonLinear Analysis of Cantilever Beam

k,1,0,0,0 ! define keypoints

k,2,5,0,0 ! 5" beam (length)

l,1,2 ! define line

et,1,beam3 ! Beam
r,1,0.03125,4.069e-5,0.125 ! area, izz, height of beam
mp,ex,1,30.0e6 ! Young's Modulus
mp,prxy,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

esize,0.1 ! element size of 0.1"

lmesh,all ! mesh the line

finish ! stop preprocessor

/solu ! start solution phase

antype,static ! static analysis

nlgeom,on ! turn on non-linear geometry analysis

autots,on ! auto time stepping

nsubst,5,1000,1 ! Size of first substep=1/5 of the total load, max #
substeps=1000, min # substeps=1
outres,all,all ! save results of all iterations

dk,1,all ! constrain all DOF on ground

fk,2,mz,-100 ! applied moment

solve

/post1
pldisp,1 ! display deformed mesh
PRNSOL,U,X ! lists horizontal deflections
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/NonLinear/Print.html

NonLinear Analysis of a Cantilever Beam

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to outline the steps required to do a
simple nonlinear analysis of the beam shown below.

There are several causes for nonlinear behaviour such as Changing Status, Material Nonlinearities and
Geometric Nonlinearities (change in response due to large deformations). This tutorial will deal specifically
with Geometric Nonlinearities .

To solve this problem, the load will added incrementally. After each increment, the stiffness matrix will be
adjusted before increasing the load.

The solution will be compared to the equivalent solution using a linear response.

ANSYS Command Listing

/prep7 ! start preprocessor
/title,NonLinear Analysis of Cantilever Beam

k,1,0,0,0 ! define keypoints

k,2,5,0,0 ! 5" beam (length)

l,1,2 ! define line

et,1,beam3 ! Beam
r,1,0.03125,4.069e-5,0.125 ! area, izz, height of beam
mp,ex,1,30.0e6 ! Young's Modulus
mp,prxy,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

esize,0.1 ! element size of 0.1"

lmesh,all ! mesh the line

finish ! stop preprocessor

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/NonLinear/Print.html

/solu ! start solution phase

antype,static ! static analysis

nlgeom,on ! turn on non-linear geometry analysis

autots,on ! auto time stepping

nsubst,5,1000,1 ! Size of first substep=1/5 of the total load, max # substeps=10
outres,all,all ! save results of all iterations

dk,1,all ! constrain all DOF on ground

fk,2,mz,-100 ! applied moment

solve

/post1
pldisp,1 ! display deformed mesh
PRNSOL,U,X ! lists horizontal deflections

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

 Buckling

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 to solve a simple buckling problem.

It is recommended that you complete the NonLinear Tutorial prior to beginning this tutorial

Buckling loads are critical loads where certain types of structures become unstable. Each load has an associated buckled
mode shape; this is the shape that the structure assumes in a buckled condition. There are two primary means to perform a
buckling analysis:

1. Eigenvalue

Eigenvalue buckling analysis predicts the theoretical buckling strength of an ideal elastic structure. It computes the
structural eigenvalues for the given system loading and constraints. This is known as classical Euler buckling
analysis. Buckling loads for several configurations are readily available from tabulated solutions. However, in real-
life, structural imperfections and nonlinearities prevent most real-world structures from reaching their eigenvalue
predicted buckling strength; ie. it over-predicts the expected buckling loads. This method is not recommended for
accurate, real-world buckling prediction analysis.

2. Nonlinear

Nonlinear buckling analysis is more accurate than eigenvalue analysis because it employs non-linear, large-
deflection, static analysis to predict buckling loads. Its mode of operation is very simple: it gradually increases the
applied load until a load level is found whereby the structure becomes unstable (ie. suddenly a very small increase in
the load will cause very large deflections). The true non-linear nature of this analysis thus permits the modeling of
geometric imperfections, load perterbations, material nonlinearities and gaps. For this type of analysis, note that
small off-axis loads are necessary to initiate the desired buckling mode.
This tutorial will use a steel beam with a 10 mm X 10 mm cross section, rigidly constrained at the bottom. The required
load to cause buckling, applied at the top-center of the beam, will be calculated.

ANSYS Command Listing

Eigenvalue Buckling

FINISH ! These two commands clear current data

/CLEAR

/TITLE,Eigenvalue Buckling Analysis

/PREP7 ! Enter the preprocessor

ET,1,BEAM3 ! Define the element of the beam to be buckled

R,1,100,833.333,10 ! Real Consts: type 1, area (mm^2), I (mm^4), height (mm)
MP,EX,1,200000 ! Young's modulus (in MPa)
MP,PRXY,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

K,1,0,0 ! Define the geometry of beam (100 mm high)

K,2,0,100

L,1,2 ! Draw the line

ESIZE,10 ! Set element size to 1 mm

LMESH,ALL,ALL ! Mesh the line

FINISH
/SOLU ! Enter the solution mode

ANTYPE,STATIC ! Before you can do a buckling analysis, ANSYS

 ! needs the info from a static analysis
PSTRES,ON ! Prestress can be accounted for - required
! during buckling analysis
DK,1,ALL ! Constrain the bottom of beam

FK,2,FY,-1 ! Load the top vertically with a unit load.

! This is done so the eigenvalue calculated
! will be the actual buckling load, since
! all loads are scaled during the analysis.
SOLVE
FINISH

/SOLU ! Enter the solution mode again to solve buckling

ANTYPE,BUCKLE ! Buckling analysis
BUCOPT,LANB,1 ! Buckling options - subspace, one mode
SOLVE
FINISH

/SOLU ! Re-enter solution mode to expand info - necessary

EXPASS,ON ! An expantion pass will be performed
MXPAND,1 ! Specifies the number of modes to expand
SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1 ! Enter post-processor

SET,LIST ! List eigenvalue solution - Time/Freq listing is the
! force required for buckling (in N for this case).
SET,LAST ! Read in data for the desired mode
PLDISP ! Plots the deflected shape

NonLinear Buckling

FINISH ! These two commands clear current data

/CLEAR

/TITLE, Nonlinear Buckling Analysis

/PREP7 ! Enter the preprocessor
ET,1,BEAM3 ! Define element as beam3

MP,EX,1,200000 ! Young's modulus (in Pa)

MP,PRXY,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

R,1,100,833.333,10 ! area, I, height

K,1,0,0,0 ! Lower node

K,2,0,100,0 ! Upper node (100 mm high)

L,1,2 ! Draws line

ESIZE,1 ! Sets element size to 1 mm

LMESH,ALL ! Mesh line

FINISH
/SOLU

ANTYPE,STATIC ! Static analysis (not buckling)

NLGEOM,ON ! Non-linear geometry solution supported
OUTRES,ALL,ALL ! Stores bunches of output
NSUBST,20 ! Load broken into 5 load steps
NEQIT,1000 ! Use 20 load steps to find solution
AUTOTS,ON ! Auto time stepping
LNSRCH,ON

/ESHAPE,1 ! Plots the beam as a volume rather than line

DK,1,ALL,0 ! Constrain bottom

FK,2,FY,-50000 ! Apply load slightly greater than predicted

! required buckling load to upper node
FK,2,FX,-250 ! Add a horizontal load (0.5% FY) to initiate
! buckling
SOLVE
FINISH

/POST26 ! Time history post processor

RFORCE,2,1,F,Y ! Reads force data in variable 2
NSOL,3,2,U,Y ! Reads y-deflection data into var 3
XVAR,2 ! Make variable 2 the x-axis
PLVAR,3 ! Plots variable 3 on y-axis

/AXLAB,Y,DEFLECTION ! Changes y label

/AXLAB,X,LOAD ! Changes X label
/REPLOT
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/Buckling/Print.html

Buckling

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 to solve a simple buckling problem.

It is recommended that you complete the NonLinear Tutorial prior to beginning this tutorial

Buckling loads are critical loads where certain types of structures become unstable. Each load has an associated
buckled mode shape; this is the shape that the structure assumes in a buckled condition. There are two primary
means to perform a buckling analysis:

1. Eigenvalue

Eigenvalue buckling analysis predicts the theoretical buckling strength of an ideal elastic structure. It
computes the structural eigenvalues for the given system loading and constraints. This is known as
classical Euler buckling analysis. Buckling loads for several configurations are readily available from
tabulated solutions. However, in real-life, structural imperfections and nonlinearities prevent most real-
world structures from reaching their eigenvalue predicted buckling strength; ie. it over-predicts the
expected buckling loads. This method is not recommended for accurate, real-world buckling prediction
analysis.

2. Nonlinear

Nonlinear buckling analysis is more accurate than eigenvalue analysis because it employs non-linear,
large-deflection, static analysis to predict buckling loads. Its mode of operation is very simple: it
gradually increases the applied load until a load level is found whereby the structure becomes unstable
(ie. suddenly a very small increase in the load will cause very large deflections). The true non-linear
nature of this analysis thus permits the modeling of geometric imperfections, load perterbations, material
nonlinearities and gaps. For this type of analysis, note that small off-axis loads are necessary to initiate
the desired buckling mode.

Copyright © 2002 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/Buckling/Print.html

This tutorial will use a steel beam with a 10 mm X 10 mm cross section, rigidly constrained at the bottom. The
required load to cause buckling, applied at the top-center of the beam, will be calculated.

ANSYS Command Listing

Eigenvalue Buckling

FINISH ! These two commands clear current data

/CLEAR

/TITLE,Eigenvalue Buckling Analysis

/PREP7 ! Enter the preprocessor

ET,1,BEAM3 ! Define the element of the beam to be buckled

R,1,100,833.333,10 ! Real Consts: type 1, area (mm^2), I (mm^4), height (mm)
MP,EX,1,200000 ! Young's modulus (in MPa)
MP,PRXY,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

K,1,0,0 ! Define the geometry of beam (100 mm high)

K,2,0,100

L,1,2 ! Draw the line

ESIZE,10 ! Set element size to 1 mm

LMESH,ALL,ALL ! Mesh the line

FINISH
/SOLU ! Enter the solution mode

Copyright © 2002 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/Buckling/Print.html

ANTYPE,STATIC ! Before you can do a buckling analysis, ANSYS

! needs the info from a static analysis
PSTRES,ON ! Prestress can be accounted for - required
! during buckling analysis
DK,1,ALL ! Constrain the bottom of beam

FK,2,FY,-1 ! Load the top vertically with a unit load.

! This is done so the eigenvalue calculated
! will be the actual buckling load, since
! all loads are scaled during the analysis.
SOLVE
FINISH

/SOLU ! Enter the solution mode again to solve buckling

ANTYPE,BUCKLE ! Buckling analysis
BUCOPT,LANB,1 ! Buckling options - subspace, one mode
SOLVE
FINISH

/SOLU ! Re-enter solution mode to expand info - necessary

EXPASS,ON ! An expantion pass will be performed
MXPAND,1 ! Specifies the number of modes to expand
SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1 ! Enter post-processor

SET,LIST ! List eigenvalue solution - Time/Freq listing is the
! force required for buckling (in N for this case).
SET,LAST ! Read in data for the desired mode
PLDISP ! Plots the deflected shape

NonLinear Buckling

FINISH ! These two commands clear current data

/CLEAR

/TITLE, Nonlinear Buckling Analysis

/PREP7 ! Enter the preprocessor
ET,1,BEAM3 ! Define element as beam3

MP,EX,1,200000 ! Young's modulus (in Pa)

MP,PRXY,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

R,1,100,833.333,10 ! area, I, height

K,1,0,0,0 ! Lower node

K,2,0,100,0 ! Upper node (100 mm high)

L,1,2 ! Draws line

ESIZE,1 ! Sets element size to 1 mm

LMESH,ALL ! Mesh line

FINISH
/SOLU

ANTYPE,STATIC ! Static analysis (not buckling)

NLGEOM,ON ! Non-linear geometry solution supported
OUTRES,ALL,ALL ! Stores bunches of output

Copyright © 2002 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/Buckling/Print.html

NSUBST,20 ! Load broken into 5 load steps

NEQIT,1000 ! Use 20 load steps to find solution
AUTOTS,ON ! Auto time stepping
LNSRCH,ON

/ESHAPE,1 ! Plots the beam as a volume rather than line

DK,1,ALL,0 ! Constrain bottom

FK,2,FY,-50000 ! Apply load slightly greater than predicted

! required buckling load to upper node
FK,2,FX,-250 ! Add a horizontal load (0.5% FY) to initiate
! buckling
SOLVE
FINISH

/POST26 ! Time history post processor

RFORCE,2,1,F,Y ! Reads force data in variable 2
NSOL,3,2,U,Y ! Reads y-deflection data into var 3
XVAR,2 ! Make variable 2 the x-axis
PLVAR,3 ! Plots variable 3 on y-axis

/AXLAB,Y,DEFLECTION ! Changes y label

/AXLAB,X,LOAD ! Changes X label
/REPLOT

Copyright © 2002 University of Alberta

 NonLinear Materials

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of the tutorial is to describe how to include material nonlinearities in an
ANSYS model. For instance, the case when a large force is applied resulting in a stresses greater than yield strength. In such a case, a
multilinear stress-strain relationship can be included which follows the stress-strain curve of the material being used. This will allow
ANSYS to more accurately model the plastic deformation of the material.

For this analysis, a simple tension speciment 100 mm X 5 mm X 5 mm is constrained at the bottom and has a load pulling on the top.
This specimen is made out of a experimental substance called "WhoKilledKenium". The stress-strain curve for the substance is
shown above. Note the linear section up to approximately 225 MPa where the Young's Modulus is constant (75 GPa). The material
then begins to yield and the relationship becomes plastic and nonlinear.

ANSYS Command Listing

finish
/clear

/prep7 ! Enter Preprocessor

k,1,0,0 ! Keypoints
k,2,0,100
l,1,2 ! Line connecting keypoints

ET,1,LINK1 ! Element type

R,1,25 ! Area of 25

MP,EX,1,75000 ! Young's modulus

MP,PRXY,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

TB,MELA,1,1,12, ! Create a table of 12 data points

! to map the stress-strain curve

TBPT,,.001,75 ! Data points

TBPT,,.002,150
TBPT,,.003,225
TBPT,,.004,240
TBPT,,.005,250
TBPT,,.025,300
TBPT,,.06,355
TBPT,,.1,390
TBPT,,.15,420
TBPT,,.2,435
TBPT,,.25,449
TBPT,,.275,450

ESIZE,5 ! Element size 5

LMESH,all ! Line mesh all lines

FINISH
/SOLU ! Enter solution phase

NLGEOM,ON ! Nonlinear geometry on

NSUBST,20,1000,1 ! 20 load steps
OUTRES,ALL,ALL ! Output data for all load steps
AUTOTS,ON ! Auto time-search on
LNSRCH,ON ! Line search on
NEQIT,1000 ! 1000 iteration maximum

ANTYPE,0 ! Static analysis

DK,1,all ! Constrain keypoint 1
FK,2,FY,10000 ! Load on keypoint 2

SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1 ! Enter post processor

/ESHAPE,1 ! Show element shape
PLNSOL,U,Y,0,1 ! Plot deflection contour

FINISH

/POST26 ! Enter time history

RFORCE,2,1,F,Y ! Reads force data in variable 2
NSOL,3,2,U,Y ! Reads y-deflection data into var 3
XVAR,2 ! Make variable 2 the x-axis
PLVAR,3
/AXLAB,Y,DEFLECTION ! Changes y label
/AXLAB,X,LOAD ! Changes X label
/REPLOT
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/NonLinearMat/Prin...

NonLinear Materials

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of the tutorial is to describe how to include material
nonlinearities in an ANSYS model. For instance, the case when a large force is applied resulting in a stresses
greater than yield strength. In such a case, a multilinear stress-strain relationship can be included which follows
the stress-strain curve of the material being used. This will allow ANSYS to more accurately model the plastic
deformation of the material.

For this analysis, a simple tension speciment 100 mm X 5 mm X 5 mm is constrained at the bottom and has a
load pulling on the top. This specimen is made out of a experimental substance called "WhoKilledKenium".
The stress-strain curve for the substance is shown above. Note the linear section up to approximately 225 MPa
where the Young's Modulus is constant (75 GPa). The material then begins to yield and the relationship
becomes plastic and nonlinear.

ANSYS Command Listing

finish
/clear

/prep7 ! Enter Preprocessor

k,1,0,0 ! Keypoints
k,2,0,100
l,1,2 ! Line connecting keypoints

ET,1,LINK1 ! Element type

R,1,25 ! Area of 25

Copyright © 2003 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/NonLinearMat/Prin...

MP,EX,1,75000 ! Young's modulus

MP,PRXY,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

TB,MELA,1,1,12, ! Create a table of 12 data points

! to map the stress-strain curve

TBPT,,.001,75 ! Data points

TBPT,,.002,150
TBPT,,.003,225
TBPT,,.004,240
TBPT,,.005,250
TBPT,,.025,300
TBPT,,.06,355
TBPT,,.1,390
TBPT,,.15,420
TBPT,,.2,435
TBPT,,.25,449
TBPT,,.275,450

ESIZE,5 ! Element size 5

LMESH,all ! Line mesh all lines

FINISH
/SOLU ! Enter solution phase

NLGEOM,ON ! Nonlinear geometry on

NSUBST,20,1000,1 ! 20 load steps
OUTRES,ALL,ALL ! Output data for all load steps
AUTOTS,ON ! Auto time-search on
LNSRCH,ON ! Line search on
NEQIT,1000 ! 1000 iteration maximum

ANTYPE,0 ! Static analysis

DK,1,all ! Constrain keypoint 1
FK,2,FY,10000 ! Load on keypoint 2

SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1 ! Enter post processor

/ESHAPE,1 ! Show element shape
PLNSOL,U,Y,0,1 ! Plot deflection contour

FINISH

/POST26 ! Enter time history

RFORCE,2,1,F,Y ! Reads force data in variable 2
NSOL,3,2,U,Y ! Reads y-deflection data into var 3
XVAR,2 ! Make variable 2 the x-axis
PLVAR,3
/AXLAB,Y,DEFLECTION ! Changes y label
/AXLAB,X,LOAD ! Changes X label
/REPLOT

Copyright © 2003 University of Alberta

Creation of the Cantilver Beam used in the Dynamic Analysis
Tutorials
This file shows the command line codes necessary to create the following cantilever beam in ANSYS.

/TITLE, Dynamic Analysis

/FILNAME,Dynamic,0 ! This sets the jobname to 'Dynamic'
/PREP7

K,1,0,0
K,2,1,0

L,1,2

ET,1,BEAM3

R,1,0.0001,8.33e-10,0.01

MP,EX,1,2.068e11
MP,PRXY,1,0.33
MP,DENS,1,7830

LESIZE,ALL,,,10
LMESH,1

FINISH
Close this window to return to the Dynamic Analysis Tutorials.
Creation of the Cantilver Beam used in the Dynamic Analysis
Tutorials
This file describes the GUI (Graphic User Interface) steps to create the following cantilever beam in ANSYS.

1. Open preprocessor menu

2. Give example a Title

Utility Menu > File > Change Title ...

3. Give example a Jobname

Utility Menu > File > Change Jobname ...

Enter 'Dynamic' for the jobname

4. Create Keypoints
Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Keypoints > In Active CS

We are going to define 2 keypoints (the beam vertices) for this structure as given in the following
table:

Keypoint Coordinates (x,y)

1 (0,0)
2 (1,0)

5. Define Lines
 Preprocessor > Modeling > Create > Lines > Lines > Straight Line

Create a line between Keypoint 1 and Keypoint 2.

6. Define Element Types

Preprocessor > Element Type > Add/Edit/Delete...

For this problem we will use the BEAM3 (Beam 2D elastic) element. This element has 3 degrees
of freedom (translation along the X and Y axis's, and rotation about the Z axis). With only 3
degrees of freedom, the BEAM3 element can only be used in 2D analysis.

7. Define Real Constants

Preprocessor > Real Constants... > Add...

In the 'Real Constants for BEAM3' window, enter the following geometric properties:

i. Cross-sectional area AREA: 0.0001

ii. Area Moment of Inertia IZZ: 8.33e-10
iii. Total beam height HEIGHT: 0.01

This defines an element with a solid rectangular cross section 0.01 m x 0.01 m.

8. Define Element Material Properties

Preprocessor > Material Props > Material Models > Structural > Linear > Elastic > Isotropic

In the window that appears, enter the following geometric properties for steel:

i. Young's modulus EX: 2.068e11

ii. Poisson's Ratio PRXY: 0.3

To enter the density of the material, double click on 'Linear' followed by 'Density' in the 'Define
Material Model Behavior' Window

Enter a density of 7830

Note: For dynamic analysis, both the stiffness and the material density have to be specified.

9. Define Mesh Size

Preprocessor > Meshing > Size Cntrls > ManualSize > Lines > All Lines...

For this example we will specify 10 element divisions along the line.

10. Mesh the frame

Preprocessor > Meshing > Mesh > Lines > click 'Pick All'

Close this window to return to the Dynamic Analysis Tutorials.

 Modal Analysis of a Cantilever Beam

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to outline the steps required to do a simple
modal analysis of the cantilever beam shown below.

ANSYS Command Listing

FINISH
/CLEAR

/TITLE, Dynamic Analysis

/PREP7

K,1,0,0 ! Enter keypoints

K,2,1,0

L,1,2 ! Create line

ET,1,BEAM3 ! Element type

R,1,0.0001,8.33e-10,0.01 ! Real Const: area,I,height

MP,EX,1,2.068e11 ! Young's modulus

MP,PRXY,1,0.33 ! Poisson's ratio
MP,DENS,1,7830 ! Density
LESIZE,ALL,,,10 ! Element size
LMESH,1 ! Mesh line

FINISH
/SOLU

ANTYPE,2 ! Modal analysis

MODOPT,SUBSP,5 ! Subspace, 5 modes
EQSLV,FRONT ! Frontal solver
MXPAND,5 ! Expand 5 modes

DK,1,ALL ! Constrain keypoint one

SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1 ! List solutions

SET,LIST

SET,FIRST
PLDISP ! Display first mode shape

ANMODE,10,0.5, ,0 ! Animate mode shape

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/Modal/Print.html

Modal Analysis of a Cantilever Beam

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to outline the steps required to do a
simple modal analysis of the cantilever beam shown below.

ANSYS Command Listing

FINISH
/CLEAR

/TITLE, Dynamic Analysis

/PREP7

K,1,0,0 ! Enter keypoints

K,2,1,0

L,1,2 ! Create line

ET,1,BEAM3 ! Element type

R,1,0.0001,8.33e-10,0.01 ! Real Const: area,I,height

MP,EX,1,2.068e11 ! Young's modulus

MP,PRXY,1,0.33 ! Poisson's ratio
MP,DENS,1,7830 ! Density

LESIZE,ALL,,,10 ! Element size

LMESH,1 ! Mesh line

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/Modal/Print.html

FINISH
/SOLU

ANTYPE,2 ! Modal analysis

MODOPT,SUBSP,5 ! Subspace, 5 modes
EQSLV,FRONT ! Frontal solver
MXPAND,5 ! Expand 5 modes

DK,1,ALL ! Constrain keypoint one

SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1 ! List solutions

SET,LIST

SET,FIRST
PLDISP ! Display first mode shape

ANMODE,10,0.5, ,0 ! Animate mode shape

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

 Harmonic Analysis of a Cantilever Beam

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to explain the steps required to perform
Harmonic analysis the cantilever beam shown below.

We will now conduct a harmonic forced response test by applying a cyclic load (harmonic) at the end of the beam.
The frequency of the load will be varied from 1 - 100 Hz. The figure below depicts the beam with the application of
the load.

ANSYS provides 3 methods for conducting a harmonic analysis. These 3 methods are the Full , Reduced and
Modal Superposition methods.
This example demonstrates the Full method because it is simple and easy to use as compared to the other two
methods. However, this method makes use of the full stiffness and mass matrices and thus is the slower and costlier
option.

ANSYS Command Listing

FINISH
/CLEAR

/TITLE, Dynamic Analysis

/PREP7

K,1,0,0 ! Enter keypoints

K,2,1,0

L,1,2 ! Create line

ET,1,BEAM3 ! Element type

R,1,0.0001,8.33e-10,0.01 ! Real Const: area,I,height

MP,EX,1,2.068e11 ! Young's modulus

MP,PRXY,1,0.33 ! Poisson's ratio
MP,DENS,1,7830 ! Density

LESIZE,ALL,,,10 ! Element size

LMESH,1 ! Mesh line

FINISH
/SOLU

ANTYPE,3 ! Harmonic analysis

DK,1,ALL ! Constrain keypoint 1

FK,2,FY,100 ! Apply force

HARFRQ,0,100, ! Frequency range

NSUBST,100, ! Number of frequency steps
KBC,1 ! Stepped loads

SOLVE
FINISH

/POST26

NSOL,2,2,U,Y, UY_2 ! Get y-deflection data

STORE,MERGE

PRVAR,2 ! Print data

PLVAR,2 ! Plot data
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/Harmonic/Print.html

Harmonic Analysis of a Cantilever Beam

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to explain the steps required to
perform Harmonic analysis the cantilever beam shown below.

We will now conduct a harmonic forced response test by applying a cyclic load (harmonic) at the end of the
beam. The frequency of the load will be varied from 1 - 100 Hz. The figure below depicts the beam with the
application of the load.

ANSYS provides 3 methods for conducting a harmonic analysis. These 3 methods are the Full , Reduced and
Modal Superposition methods.

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/Harmonic/Print.html

This example demonstrates the Full method because it is simple and easy to use as compared to the other two
methods. However, this method makes use of the full stiffness and mass matrices and thus is the slower and
costlier option.

ANSYS Command Listing

FINISH
/CLEAR

/TITLE, Dynamic Analysis

/PREP7

K,1,0,0 ! Enter keypoints

K,2,1,0

L,1,2 ! Create line

ET,1,BEAM3 ! Element type

R,1,0.0001,8.33e-10,0.01 ! Real Const: area,I,height

MP,EX,1,2.068e11 ! Young's modulus

MP,PRXY,1,0.33 ! Poisson's ratio
MP,DENS,1,7830 ! Density

LESIZE,ALL,,,10 ! Element size

LMESH,1 ! Mesh line

FINISH
/SOLU

ANTYPE,3 ! Harmonic analysis

DK,1,ALL ! Constrain keypoint 1

FK,2,FY,100 ! Apply force

HARFRQ,0,100, ! Frequency range

NSUBST,100, ! Number of frequency steps
KBC,1 ! Stepped loads

SOLVE
FINISH

/POST26

NSOL,2,2,U,Y, UY_2 ! Get y-deflection data

STORE,MERGE

PRVAR,2 ! Print data

PLVAR,2 ! Plot data

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

 Transient Analysis of a Cantilever Beam

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to show the steps involved to perform a
simple transient analysis.

Transient dynamic analysis is a technique used to determine the dynamic response of a structure under a time-
varying load.

The time frame for this type of analysis is such that inertia or damping effects of the structure are considered to be
important. Cases where such effects play a major role are under step or impulse loading conditions, for example,
where there is a sharp load change in a fraction of time.

If inertia effects are negligible for the loading conditions being considered, a static analysis may be used instead.

For our case, we will impact the end of the beam with an impulse force and view the response at the location of
impact.
Since an ideal impulse force excites all modes of a structure, the response of the beam should contain all mode
frequencies. However, we cannot produce an ideal impulse force numerically. We have to apply a load over a
discrete amount of time dt.

After the application of the load, we track the response of the beam at discrete time points for as long as we like
(depending on what it is that we are looking for in the response).

The size of the time step is governed by the maximum mode frequency of the structure we wish to capture. The
smaller the time step, the higher the mode frequency we will capture. The rule of thumb in ANSYS is

time_step = 1 / 20f

where f is the highest mode frequency we wish to capture. In other words, we must resolve our step size such that
we will have 20 discrete points per period of the highest mode frequency.

It should be noted that a transient analysis is more involved than a static or harmonic analysis. It requires a
good understanding of the dynamic behavior of a structure. Therefore, a modal analysis of the structure
should be initially performed to provide information about the structure's dynamic behavior.

In ANSYS, transient dynamic analysis can be carried out using 3 methods.

● The Full Method: This is the easiest method to use. All types of non-linearities are allowed. It is however
very CPU intensive to go this route as full system matrices are used.
 ● The Reduced Method: This method reduces the system matrices to only consider the Master Degrees of
Freedom (MDOFs). Because of the reduced size of the matrices, the calculations are much quicker. However,
this method handles only linear problems (such as our cantilever case).

● The Mode Superposition Method: This method requires a preliminary modal analysis, as factored mode
shapes are summed to calculate the structure's response. It is the quickest of the three methods, but it requires
a good deal of understanding of the problem at hand.

We will use the Reduced Method for conducting our transient analysis. Usually one need not go further than
Reviewing the Reduced Results. However, if stresses and forces are of interest than, we would have to Expand the
Reduced Solution.

ANSYS Command Listing

finish
/clear

/TITLE, Dynamic Analysis

/FILNAME,Dynamic,0 ! This sets the jobname to 'Dynamic'
/PREP7 ! Enter preprocessor
K,1,0,0 ! Keypoints
K,2,1,0
L,1,2 ! Connect keypoints with line

ET,1,BEAM3 ! Element type

R,1,0.0001,8.33e-10,0.01 ! Real constants

MP,EX,1,2.068e11 ! Young's modulus

MP,PRXY,1,0.33 ! Poisson's ratio
MP,DENS,1,7830 ! Density

LESIZE,ALL,,,10 ! Element size

LMESH,1 ! Mesh the line

FINISH
/SOLU ! Enter solution phase

ANTYPE, TRANS ! Transient analysis

TRNOPT,REDUC, ! reduced solution method

DELTIM,0.001 ! Specifies the time step sizes

!At time equals 0s

NSEL,S,,,2,11, ! select nodes 2 - 11
M,All,UY, , , ! Define Master DOFs
NSEL,ALL ! Reselect all nodes

D,1,ALL ! Constrain left end

F,2,FY,-100 ! Load right end

!*
!At time equals 0.001s
TIME,0.001 ! Sets time to 0.001 seconds
KBC,0 ! Ramped load step
FDELE,2,ALL ! Delete the load at the end
!*

!At time equals 1s

TIME,1 ! Sets time to 1 second
KBC,0 ! Ramped load step
!*

LSSOLVE,1,3,1 ! solve multiple load steps

FINISH
/POST26 ! Enter time history

FILE,'Dynamic','rdsp','.' ! Calls the dynamic file

NSOL,2,2,U,Y, UY_2 ! Calls data for UY deflection at node 2

STORE,MERGE ! Stores the data
PLVAR,2, ! Plots vs. time

!Please note, if you are using a later version of ANSYS,

!you will probably have to issue the LSWRITE command at the
!end of each load step for the LSSOLVE command to function
!properly. In this case, replace the !* found in the code
!with LSWRITE and the problem should be solved.
http://www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/Transient/Print.html

Transient Analysis of a Cantilever Beam

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to show the steps involved to
perform a simple transient analysis.

Transient dynamic analysis is a technique used to determine the dynamic response of a structure under a
time-varying load.

The time frame for this type of analysis is such that inertia or damping effects of the structure are
considered to be important. Cases where such effects play a major role are under step or impulse
loading conditions, for example, where there is a sharp load change in a fraction of time.

If inertia effects are negligible for the loading conditions being considered, a static analysis may be used
instead.

For our case, we will impact the end of the beam with an impulse force and view the response at the
location of impact.

Copyright 2003 - University of Alberta

http://www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/Transient/Print.html

Since an ideal impulse force excites all modes of a structure, the response of the beam should contain all
mode frequencies. However, we cannot produce an ideal impulse force numerically. We have to apply a
load over a discrete amount of time dt.

After the application of the load, we track the response of the beam at discrete time points for as long as
we like (depending on what it is that we are looking for in the response).

The size of the time step is governed by the maximum mode frequency of the structure we wish to
capture. The smaller the time step, the higher the mode frequency we will capture. The rule of thumb in
ANSYS is

time_step = 1 / 20f

where f is the highest mode frequency we wish to capture. In other words, we must resolve our step size
such that we will have 20 discrete points per period of the highest mode frequency.

It should be noted that a transient analysis is more involved than a static or harmonic analysis. It
requires a good understanding of the dynamic behavior of a structure. Therefore, a modal
analysis of the structure should be initially performed to provide information about the
structure's dynamic behavior.

In ANSYS, transient dynamic analysis can be carried out using 3 methods.

Copyright 2003 - University of Alberta

http://www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/Transient/Print.html

z The Full Method: This is the easiest method to use. All types of non-linearities are allowed. It is
however very CPU intensive to go this route as full system matrices are used.

z The Reduced Method: This method reduces the system matrices to only consider the Master
Degrees of Freedom (MDOFs). Because of the reduced size of the matrices, the calculations are
much quicker. However, this method handles only linear problems (such as our cantilever case).

z The Mode Superposition Method: This method requires a preliminary modal analysis, as
factored mode shapes are summed to calculate the structure's response. It is the quickest of the
three methods, but it requires a good deal of understanding of the problem at hand.

We will use the Reduced Method for conducting our transient analysis. Usually one need not go further
than Reviewing the Reduced Results. However, if stresses and forces are of interest than, we would have
to Expand the Reduced Solution.

ANSYS Command Listing

finish
/clear

/TITLE, Dynamic Analysis

/FILNAME,Dynamic,0 ! This sets the jobname to 'Dynamic'
/PREP7 ! Enter preprocessor
K,1,0,0 ! Keypoints
K,2,1,0
L,1,2 ! Connect keypoints with line

ET,1,BEAM3 ! Element type

R,1,0.0001,8.33e-10,0.01 ! Real constants

MP,EX,1,2.068e11 ! Young's modulus

MP,PRXY,1,0.33 ! Poisson's ratio
MP,DENS,1,7830 ! Density

LESIZE,ALL,,,10 ! Element size

LMESH,1 ! Mesh the line

FINISH
/SOLU ! Enter solution phase

ANTYPE, TRANS ! Transient analysis

TRNOPT,REDUC, ! reduced solution method

DELTIM,0.001 ! Specifies the time step sizes

!At time equals 0s

NSEL,S,,,2,11, ! select nodes 2 - 11
M,All,UY, , , ! Define Master DOFs
NSEL,ALL ! Reselect all nodes

D,1,ALL ! Constrain left end

F,2,FY,-100 ! Load right end

!*

Copyright 2003 - University of Alberta

http://www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/Transient/Print.html

!At time equals 0.001s

TIME,0.001 ! Sets time to 0.001 seconds
KBC,0 ! Ramped load step
FDELE,2,ALL ! Delete the load at the end
!*

!At time equals 1s

TIME,1 ! Sets time to 1 second
KBC,0 ! Ramped load step
!*

LSSOLVE,1,3,1 ! solve multiple load steps

FINISH
/POST26 ! Enter time history

FILE,'Dynamic','rdsp','.' ! Calls the dynamic file

NSOL,2,2,U,Y, UY_2 ! Calls data for UY deflection at node 2

STORE,MERGE ! Stores the data
PLVAR,2, ! Plots vs. time

!Please note, if you are using a later version of ANSYS,

!you will probably have to issue the LSWRITE command at the
!end of each load step for the LSSOLVE command to function
!properly. In this case, replace the !* found in the code
!with LSWRITE and the problem should be solved.

Copyright 2003 - University of Alberta

 Simple Conduction Example

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 to solve a simple conduction problem.

The Simple Conduction Example is constrained as shown in the following figure. Thermal conductivity (k) of the
material is 10 W/m*C and the block is assumed to be infinitely long.

ANSYS Command Listing

/title, Simple Conduction Example
/PREP7

! define geometry

length=1.0
height=1.0
blc4,0,0,length, height ! area - one corner, then width and height

! mesh 2D areas

ET,1, PLANE55 ! Thermal element only

MP,KXX,1,10 ! 10 W/mC
ESIZE,length/20 ! number of element sub-divisions/side
AMESH,ALL

FINISH
/SOLU

ANTYPE,0 ! STEADY-STATE THERMAL ANALYSIS

! fixed temp BC's

NSEL,S,LOC,Y,height ! select nodes on top with y=height
D,ALL,TEMP,500 ! apply fixed temp of 500C
NSEL,ALL
NSEL,S,LOC,X,0 ! select nodes on three sides
NSEL,A,LOC,X,length
NSEL,A,LOC,Y,0
D,ALL,TEMP,100 ! apply fixed temp of 100C
NSEL,ALL

SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1
PLNSOL,TEMP,,0, ! contour plot of temperatures
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/Conduction/Print.h...

Simple Conduction Example

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 to solve a simple conduction problem.

The Simple Conduction Example is constrained as shown in the following figure. Thermal conductivity (k) of
the material is 10 W/m*C and the block is assumed to be infinitely long.

ANSYS Command Listing

/title, Simple Conduction Example
/PREP7

! define geometry

length=1.0
height=1.0
blc4,0,0,length, height ! area - one corner, then width and height

! mesh 2D areas

ET,1, PLANE55 ! Thermal element only

MP,KXX,1,10 ! 10 W/mC
ESIZE,length/20 ! number of element sub-divisions/side
AMESH,ALL

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/Conduction/Print.h...

FINISH
/SOLU

ANTYPE,0 ! STEADY-STATE THERMAL ANALYSIS

! fixed temp BC's

NSEL,S,LOC,Y,height ! select nodes on top with y=height
D,ALL,TEMP,500 ! apply fixed temp of 500C
NSEL,ALL
NSEL,S,LOC,X,0 ! select nodes on three sides
NSEL,A,LOC,X,length
NSEL,A,LOC,Y,0
D,ALL,TEMP,100 ! apply fixed temp of 100C
NSEL,ALL

SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1
PLNSOL,TEMP,,0, ! contour plot of temperatures

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

 Thermal - Mixed Boundary Example (Conduction/
Convection/Insulated)

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 to solve simple thermal examples. Analysis of a simple conduction as
well a mixed conduction/convection/insulation problem will be demonstrated.

The Mixed Convection/Conduction/Insulated Boundary Conditions Example is constrained as shown in the

following figure (Note that the section is assumed to be infinitely long):

ANSYS Command Listing

/title, Simple Convection Example
/PREP7

! define geometry

length=1.0
height=1.0
blc4,0,0,length, height ! area - one corner, then width and height

! mesh 2D areas

ET,1, PLANE55 ! Thermal element only

MP,KXX,1,10 ! 10 W/mC
MAT,1
TYPE,1
ESIZE,length/20 ! number of element sub-divisions/side
AMESH,ALL

FINISH
/SOLU

ANTYPE,0 ! STEADY-STATE THERMAL ANALYSIS

! fixed temp BC's

NSEL,S,LOC,Y,height ! select nodes on top with y=height

D,ALL,TEMP,500 ! apply fixed temp of 500C
NSEL,ALL
NSEL,S,LOC,X,0 ! select nodes on three sides
D,ALL,TEMP,100 ! apply fixed temp of 100C
NSEL,ALL

! convection BC's

NSEL,S,LOC,X,length ! right edge

SF,ALL,CONV,10,100 ! apply fixed temp of 100C
NSEL,ALL

! Insulated BC's

NSEL,S,LOC,Y,0 ! bottom edge

SF,ALL,CONV,0 ! insulate edge
NSEL,ALL

SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1
PLNSOL,TEMP,,0, ! contour plot of temperatures
http://www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/cit/convection/print.html

Thermal - Mixed Boundary Example

(Conduction/Convection/Insulated)

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 to solve simple thermal examples. Analysis of a simple
conduction as well a mixed conduction/convection/insulation problem will be demonstrated.

The Mixed Convection/Conduction/Insulated Boundary Conditions Example is constrained as shown in

the following figure (Note that the section is assumed to be infinitely long):

ANSYS Command Listing

/title, Simple Convection Example
/PREP7

! define geometry

length=1.0
height=1.0
blc4,0,0,length, height ! area - one corner, then width and height

! mesh 2D areas

ET,1, PLANE55 ! Thermal element only

MP,KXX,1,10 ! 10 W/mC
MAT,1
TYPE,1
ESIZE,length/20 ! number of element sub-divisions/side

Copyright 2003 - University of Alberta

http://www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/cit/convection/print.html

AMESH,ALL

FINISH
/SOLU

ANTYPE,0 ! STEADY-STATE THERMAL ANALYSIS

! fixed temp BC's

NSEL,S,LOC,Y,height ! select nodes on top with y=height

D,ALL,TEMP,500 ! apply fixed temp of 500C
NSEL,ALL
NSEL,S,LOC,X,0 ! select nodes on three sides
D,ALL,TEMP,100 ! apply fixed temp of 100C
NSEL,ALL

! convection BC's

NSEL,S,LOC,X,length ! right edge

SF,ALL,CONV,10,100 ! apply fixed temp of 100C
NSEL,ALL

! Insulated BC's

NSEL,S,LOC,Y,0 ! bottom edge

SF,ALL,CONV,0 ! insulate edge
NSEL,ALL

SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1
PLNSOL,TEMP,,0, ! contour plot of temperatures

Copyright 2003 - University of Alberta

 Transient Thermal Conduction Example

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 to solve a simple transient conduction problem. Special thanks to
Jesse Arnold for the analytical solution shown at the end of the tutorial.

The example is constrained as shown in the following figure. Thermal conductivity (k) of the material is 5 W/
m*K and the block is assumed to be infinitely long. Also, the density of the material is 920 kg/m^3 and the
specific heat capacity (c) is 2.040 kJ/kg*K.

It is beneficial if the Thermal-Conduction tutorial is completed first to compare with this solution.

ANSYS Command Listing

finish
/clear

/title, Simple Conduction Example

/PREP7 ! Enter preprocessor

! define geometry
length=1.0
height=1.0
blc4,0,0,length, height ! area - one corner, then width and height

! mesh 2D areas

ET,1, PLANE55 ! Thermal element only

MP,Dens,1,920 ! Density
mp,c,1,2.040 ! Specific heat capacity
mp,kxx,1,5 ! Thermal conductivity
ESIZE,0.05 ! Element size
AMESH,ALL ! Mesh area

FINISH
/SOLU

ANTYPE,4 ! Transient analysis

time,300 ! Time at end = 300

nropt,full ! Newton Raphson = full

lumpm,0 ! Lumped mass approx off
nsubst,20 ! 20 substeps
neqit,100 ! Max no. of iterations = 100
autots,off ! Auto time search on
lnsrch,on ! Line search on
outres,all,all ! Output data for all substeps
kbc,1

! fixed temp BC's

NSEL,S,LOC,Y,height ! select nodes on top with y=height
D,ALL,TEMP,500 ! apply fixed temp of 500K
NSEL,ALL
NSEL,s,LOC,Y,0
D,ALL,TEMP,100 ! apply fixed temp of 100K
NSEL,ALL
IC,all,Temp,100 ! Initial Conditions: 100K

SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1 ! Enter postprocessor

/CONT,1,8,100,,500 ! Define a contour range
PLNSOL,TEMP ! Plot temperature contour
ANTIME,20,0.5,,0,2,0,500 ! Animate temp over time
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/TransCond/Print.html

Transient Thermal Conduction Example

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 to solve a simple transient conduction problem. Special thanks to
Jesse Arnold for the analytical solution shown at the end of the tutorial.

The example is constrained as shown in the following figure. Thermal conductivity (k) of the material is 5
W/m*K and the block is assumed to be infinitely long. Also, the density of the material is 920 kg/m^3 and the
specific heat capacity (c) is 2.040 kJ/kg*K.

It is beneficial if the Thermal-Conduction tutorial is completed first to compare with this solution.

ANSYS Command Listing

finish
/clear

/title, Simple Conduction Example

/PREP7 ! Enter preprocessor

! define geometry

length=1.0
height=1.0
blc4,0,0,length, height ! area - one corner, then width and height

Copyright © 2003 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/TransCond/Print.html

! mesh 2D areas

ET,1, PLANE55 ! Thermal element only

MP,Dens,1,920 ! Density
mp,c,1,2.040 ! Specific heat capacity
mp,kxx,1,5 ! Thermal conductivity
ESIZE,0.05 ! Element size
AMESH,ALL ! Mesh area

FINISH
/SOLU

ANTYPE,4 ! Transient analysis

time,300 ! Time at end = 300

nropt,full ! Newton Raphson = full

lumpm,0 ! Lumped mass approx off
nsubst,20 ! 20 substeps
neqit,100 ! Max no. of iterations = 100
autots,off ! Auto time search on
lnsrch,on ! Line search on
outres,all,all ! Output data for all substeps
kbc,1

! fixed temp BC's

NSEL,S,LOC,Y,height ! select nodes on top with y=height
D,ALL,TEMP,500 ! apply fixed temp of 500K
NSEL,ALL
NSEL,s,LOC,Y,0
D,ALL,TEMP,100 ! apply fixed temp of 100K
NSEL,ALL
IC,all,Temp,100 ! Initial Conditions: 100K

SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1 ! Enter postprocessor

/CONT,1,8,100,,500 ! Define a contour range
PLNSOL,TEMP ! Plot temperature contour
ANTIME,20,0.5,,0,2,0,500 ! Animate temp over time

Copyright © 2003 University of Alberta

 Modelling Using Axisymmetry

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 This tutorial is intended to outline the steps required to
create an axisymmetric model.

The model will be that of a closed tube made from steel. Point loads will be applied at the center of
the top and bottom plate to make an analytical verification simple to calculate. A 3/4 cross section
view of the tube is shown below.

As a warning, point loads will create discontinuities in the your model near the point of application. If
you chose to use these types of loads in your own modelling, be very careful and be sure to
understand the theory of how the FEA package is appling the load and the assumption it is making. In
this case, we will only be concerned about the stress distribution far from the point of application, so
the discontinuities will have a negligable effect.
ANSYS Command Listing
finish
/clear

/title, Axisymmetric Tube

/prep7
/triad,off ! Turns off origin triad marker

rectng,0,20,0,5 ! Create 3 overlapping rectangles

rectng,15,20,0,100
rectng,0,20,95,100

aadd,all ! Add the areas together

et,1,plane2 ! Define element type

keyopt,1,3,1 ! Turns on axisymmetry
mp,ex,1,200000 ! Young's Modulus
mp,prxy,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

esize,2 ! Mesh size

amesh,all ! Mesh the area

finish
/solu

antype,0 ! Static analysis

lsel,s,loc,x,0 ! Select the lines at x=0

dl,all,,symm ! Symmetry constraints
lsel,all ! Re-select all lines

nsel,s,loc,y,50 ! Node select at y=50

d,all,uy,0 ! Constrain motion in y
nsel,all ! Re-select all nodes

fk,1,fy,-100 ! Apply point loads in center

fk,12,fy,100

solve
finish

/post1
nsel,s,loc,y,45,55 ! Select nodes from y=45 to y=55
prnsol,s,comp ! List stresses on those nodes
nsel,all ! Re-select all nodes

/expand,27,axis,,,10 ! Expand the axisymmetric elements

/view,1,1,2,3 ! Change the viewing angle
/replot
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/Axisymmetric/Print....

Modelling Using Axisymmetry

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 This tutorial is intended to outline the steps required to create an
axisymmetric model.

The model will be that of a closed tube made from steel. Point loads will be applied at the center of the top and
bottom plate to make an analytical verification simple to calculate. A 3/4 cross section view of the tube is
shown below.

As a warning, point loads will create discontinuities in the your model near the point of application. If you
chose to use these types of loads in your own modelling, be very careful and be sure to understand the theory of
how the FEA package is appling the load and the assumption it is making. In this case, we will only be
concerned about the stress distribution far from the point of application, so the discontinuities will have a
negligable effect.

ANSYS Command Listing

finish
/clear

/title, Axisymmetric Tube

Copyright © 2003 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CIT/Axisymmetric/Print....

/prep7
/triad,off ! Turns off origin triad marker

rectng,0,20,0,5 ! Create 3 overlapping rectangles

rectng,15,20,0,100
rectng,0,20,95,100

aadd,all ! Add the areas together

et,1,plane2 ! Define element type

keyopt,1,3,1 ! Turns on axisymmetry
mp,ex,1,200000 ! Young's Modulus
mp,prxy,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

esize,2 ! Mesh size

amesh,all ! Mesh the area

finish
/solu

antype,0 ! Static analysis

lsel,s,loc,x,0 ! Select the lines at x=0

dl,all,,symm ! Symmetry constraints
lsel,all ! Re-select all lines

nsel,s,loc,y,50 ! Node select at y=50

d,all,uy,0 ! Constrain motion in y
nsel,all ! Re-select all nodes

fk,1,fy,-100 ! Apply point loads in center

fk,12,fy,100

solve
finish

/post1
nsel,s,loc,y,45,55 ! Select nodes from y=45 to y=55
prnsol,s,comp ! List stresses on those nodes
nsel,all ! Re-select all nodes

/expand,27,axis,,,10 ! Expand the axisymmetric elements

/view,1,1,2,3 ! Change the viewing angle
/replot

Copyright © 2003 University of Alberta

 Application of Joints and Springs in ANSYS

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 5.7.1. This tutorial will introduce:

● the use of multiple elements in ANSYS

● elements COMBIN7 (Joints) and COMBIN14 (Springs)
● obtaining/storing scalar information and store them as parameters.

A 1000N vertical load will be applied to a catapult as shown in the figure below. The catapult is built
from steel tubing with an outer diameter of 40 mm, a wall thickness of 10, and a modulus of elasticity
of 200GPa. The springs have a stiffness of 5 N/mm.

ANSYS Command Listing

/title, Catapult
/PREP7

ET,1,PIPE16 ! Element type 1

ET,2,COMBIN7 ! Element type 2
ET,3,COMBIN14 ! Element type 3

R,1,40,10 ! Real constants 1

R,2,1e9,1e9,1e9 ! Real constants 2
R,3,5, , , ! Real constants 3

MP,EX,1,200000 ! Young's modulus (Material 1)

MP,PRXY,1,0.33 ! Poisson's ratio (Material 1)

N, 1, 0, 0, 0 ! Node locations
N, 2, 0, 0,1000
N, 3,1000, 0,1000
N, 4,1000, 0, 0
N, 5, 0,1000,1000
N, 6, 0,1000, 0
N, 7, 700, 700, 500
N, 8, 400, 400, 500
N, 9, 0, 0, 0
N,10, 0, 0,1000
N,11, 0, 0, 500
N,12, 0, 0,1500
N,13, 0, 0,-500

TYPE,1 ! Turn on Element 1

REAL,1 ! Turn on Real constants 1
MAT,1 ! Turn on Material 1

E, 1, 6 ! Element connectivity
E, 2, 5
E, 1, 4
E, 2, 3
E, 3, 4
E,10, 8
E, 9, 8
E, 7, 8
E,12, 5
E,13, 6
E,12,13
E, 5, 3
E, 6, 4
TYPE,2 ! Turn on Element 2
REAL,2 ! Turn on Real constants 2

E, 1, 9, 11 ! Element connectivity
E, 2, 10, 11

TYPE,3 ! Turn on Element 3

REAL,3 ! Turn on Real constants 3

E,5,8 ! Element connectivity

E,8,6

/PNUM,KP,0 ! Number nodes

/PNUM,ELEM,1 ! Number elements
/REPLOT

FINISH
/SOLU ! Enter solution phase

ANTYPE,0 ! Static analysis

NLGEOM,ON ! Non-linear geometry on
NSUBST,5 ! 5 Load steps of equal size

D,3,ALL,0,,,4,12,13 ! Constrain nodes 3,4,12,13

F,7,FY,-1000 ! Load node 7

SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1

PLDISP,2
*GET,VERT7,NODE,7,U,Y
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CAT/Joints/Print.html

Application of Joints and Springs in ANSYS

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 5.7.1. This tutorial will introduce:

z the use of multiple elements in ANSYS

z elements COMBIN7 (Joints) and COMBIN14 (Springs)
z obtaining/storing scalar information and store them as parameters.

A 1000N vertical load will be applied to a catapult as shown in the figure below. The catapult is built from steel
tubing with an outer diameter of 40 mm, a wall thickness of 10, and a modulus of elasticity of 200GPa. The
springs have a stiffness of 5 N/mm.

ANSYS Command Listing

/title, Catapult
/PREP7

ET,1,PIPE16 ! Element type 1

ET,2,COMBIN7 ! Element type 2
ET,3,COMBIN14 ! Element type 3

R,1,40,10 ! Real constants 1

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CAT/Joints/Print.html

R,2,1e9,1e9,1e9 ! Real constants 2

R,3,5, , , ! Real constants 3

MP,EX,1,200000 ! Young's modulus (Material 1)

MP,PRXY,1,0.33 ! Poisson's ratio (Material 1)

N, 1, 0, 0, 0 ! Node locations
N, 2, 0, 0,1000
N, 3,1000, 0,1000
N, 4,1000, 0, 0
N, 5, 0,1000,1000
N, 6, 0,1000, 0
N, 7, 700, 700, 500
N, 8, 400, 400, 500
N, 9, 0, 0, 0
N,10, 0, 0,1000
N,11, 0, 0, 500
N,12, 0, 0,1500
N,13, 0, 0,-500

TYPE,1 ! Turn on Element 1

REAL,1 ! Turn on Real constants 1
MAT,1 ! Turn on Material 1

E, 1, 6 ! Element connectivity
E, 2, 5
E, 1, 4
E, 2, 3
E, 3, 4
E,10, 8
E, 9, 8
E, 7, 8
E,12, 5
E,13, 6
E,12,13
E, 5, 3
E, 6, 4

TYPE,2 ! Turn on Element 2

REAL,2 ! Turn on Real constants 2

E, 1, 9, 11 ! Element connectivity
E, 2, 10, 11

TYPE,3 ! Turn on Element 3

REAL,3 ! Turn on Real constants 3

E,5,8 ! Element connectivity

E,8,6

/PNUM,KP,0 ! Number nodes

/PNUM,ELEM,1 ! Number elements
/REPLOT

FINISH
/SOLU ! Enter solution phase

ANTYPE,0 ! Static analysis

NLGEOM,ON ! Non-linear geometry on

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CAT/Joints/Print.html

NSUBST,5 ! 5 Load steps of equal size

D,3,ALL,0,,,4,12,13 ! Constrain nodes 3,4,12,13

F,7,FY,-1000 ! Load node 7

SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1

PLDISP,2
*GET,VERT7,NODE,7,U,Y

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

 Design Optimization

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to introduce a method of solving design optimization
problems using ANSYS. This will involve creating the geometry utilizing parameters for all the variables, deciding which
variables to use as design, state and objective variables and setting the correct tolerances for the problem to obtain an accurately
converged solution in a minimal amount of time. The use of hardpoints to apply forces/constraints in the middle of lines will also
be covered in this tutorial.

A beam has a force of 1000N applied as shown below. The purpose of this optimization problem is to minimize the weight of the
beam without exceeding the allowable stress. It is necessary to find the cross sectional dimensions of the beam in order to
minimize the weight of the beam. However, the width and height of the beam cannot be smaller than 10mm. The maximum stress
anywhere in the beam cannot exceed 200 MPa. The beam is to be made of steel with a modulus of elasticity of 200 GPa.

ANSYS Command Listing

/prep7
/title, Design Optimization
*set,H,20 ! Set an initial height of 20 mm
*set,W,20 ! Set an initial width of 20 mm

K,1,0,0 ! Keypoint locations

K,2,1000,0
L,1,2 ! Create line
HPTCREATE,LINE,1,0,RATI,.75, ! Create hardpoint 75% from left side

ET,1,BEAM3 ! Element type

R,1,W*H,(W*H**3)/12,H,,,, ! Real consts: area,I (note '**', not '^'),
height
MP,EX,1,200000 ! Young's modulus
MP,PRXY,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

ESIZE,100 ! Mesh size

LMESH,ALL ! Mesh line

FINISH
/SOLU
ANTYPE,0 ! Static analysis

DK,1,UX,0 ! Pin keypoint 1

DK,1,UY,0
DK,2,UY,0 ! Support keypoint 2

FK,3,FY,-2000 ! Force at hardpoint

SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1
ETABLE,EVolume,VOLU, ! Volume of single element
SSUM ! Sum all volumes
*GET,Volume,SSUM,,ITEM,EVOLUME ! Create parameter 'Volume' for volume of beam

ETABLE,SMAX_I,NMISC,1 ! Create parameter 'SMaxI' for max stress at I

node
ESORT,ETAB,SMAX_I,0,1,,
*GET,SMAXI,SORT,,MAX

ETABLE,SMAX_J,NMISC,3 ! Create parameter 'SMaxJ' for max stress at J

node
ESORT,ETAB,SMAX_J,0,1,,
*GET,SMAXJ,SORT,,MAX

*SET,SMAX,SMAXI>SMAXJ ! Create parameter 'SMax' as max stress

LGWRITE,optimize,txt,C:\TEMP ! Save logfile to C:\Temp\optimize.txt

/OPT
OPANL,'optimize','txt','C:\Temp\' ! Assign optimize.txt as analysis file

OPVAR,H,DV,10,50,0.001 ! Height design variable, min 10 mm, max 50

mm, tolerance 0.001mm
OPVAR,W,DV,10,50,0.001 ! Width design variable, min 10 mm, max 50 mm,
tolerance 0.001mm
OPVAR,SMAX,SV,195,200,0.001 ! Height state variable, min 195 MPa, max 200
MPa, tolerance 0.001 MPa
OPVAR,VOLUME,OBJ,,,200 ! Volume as object variable, tolerance 200 mm^2

OPTYPE,FIRS ! First-order analysis

OPFRST,30,100,0.2, ! Max iteration, Percent step size, Percent
forward difference
OPEXE ! Run optimization

PLVAROPT,H,W ! Graph optimation data

/AXLAB,X,Number of Iterations
/AXLAB,Y,Width and Height (mm)
/REPLOT
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CAT/Optimization/Print....

Design Optimization

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to introduce a method of solving
design optimization problems using ANSYS. This will involve creating the geometry utilizing parameters for
all the variables, deciding which variables to use as design, state and objective variables and setting the correct
tolerances for the problem to obtain an accurately converged solution in a minimal amount of time. The use of
hardpoints to apply forces/constraints in the middle of lines will also be covered in this tutorial.

A beam has a force of 1000N applied as shown below. The purpose of this optimization problem is to minimize
the weight of the beam without exceeding the allowable stress. It is necessary to find the cross sectional
dimensions of the beam in order to minimize the weight of the beam. However, the width and height of the
beam cannot be smaller than 10mm. The maximum stress anywhere in the beam cannot exceed 200 MPa. The
beam is to be made of steel with a modulus of elasticity of 200 GPa.

ANSYS Command Listing

/prep7
/title, Design Optimization
*set,H,20 ! Set an initial height of 20 mm
*set,W,20 ! Set an initial width of 20 mm

K,1,0,0 ! Keypoint locations

K,2,1000,0
L,1,2 ! Create line
HPTCREATE,LINE,1,0,RATI,.75, ! Create hardpoint 75% from left side

ET,1,BEAM3 ! Element type

R,1,W*H,(W*H**3)/12,H,,,, ! Real consts: area,I (note '**', not '^'),height
MP,EX,1,200000 ! Young's modulus
MP,PRXY,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CAT/Optimization/Print....

ESIZE,100 ! Mesh size

LMESH,ALL ! Mesh line

FINISH
/SOLU

ANTYPE,0 ! Static analysis

DK,1,UX,0 ! Pin keypoint 1

DK,1,UY,0
DK,2,UY,0 ! Support keypoint 2

FK,3,FY,-2000 ! Force at hardpoint

SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1
ETABLE,EVolume,VOLU, ! Volume of single element
SSUM ! Sum all volumes
*GET,Volume,SSUM,,ITEM,EVOLUME ! Create parameter 'Volume' for volume of beam

ETABLE,SMAX_I,NMISC,1 ! Create parameter 'SMaxI' for max stress at I nod

ESORT,ETAB,SMAX_I,0,1,,
*GET,SMAXI,SORT,,MAX

ETABLE,SMAX_J,NMISC,3 ! Create parameter 'SMaxJ' for max stress at J nod

ESORT,ETAB,SMAX_J,0,1,,
*GET,SMAXJ,SORT,,MAX

*SET,SMAX,SMAXI>SMAXJ ! Create parameter 'SMax' as max stress

LGWRITE,optimize,txt,C:\TEMP ! Save logfile to C:\Temp\optimize.txt

/OPT
OPANL,'optimize','txt','C:\Temp\' ! Assign optimize.txt as analysis file

OPVAR,H,DV,10,50,0.001 ! Height design variable, min 10 mm, max 50 mm, to

OPVAR,W,DV,10,50,0.001 ! Width design variable, min 10 mm, max 50 mm, tol
OPVAR,SMAX,SV,195,200,0.001 ! Height state variable, min 195 MPa, max 200 MPa,
OPVAR,VOLUME,OBJ,,,200 ! Volume as object variable, tolerance 200 mm^2

OPTYPE,FIRS ! First-order analysis

OPFRST,30,100,0.2, ! Max iteration, Percent step size, Percent forwar
OPEXE ! Run optimization

PLVAROPT,H,W ! Graph optimation data

/AXLAB,X,Number of Iterations
/AXLAB,Y,Width and Height (mm)
/REPLOT

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

 Substructuring

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of the tutorial is to show the how to use substructuring in
ANSYS. Substructuring is a procedure that condenses a group of finite elements into one super-element. This reduces the
required computation time and also allows the solution of very large problems.

A simple example will be demonstrated to explain the steps required, however, please note that this model is not one
which requires the use of substructuring. The example involves a block of wood (E =10 GPa v =0.29) connected to a
block of silicone (E = 2.5 MPa, v = 0.41) which is rigidly attached to the ground. A force will be applied to the structure
as shown in the following figure. For this example, substructuring will be used for the wood block.

The use of substructuring in ANSYS is a three stage process:

1. Generation Pass
Generate the super-element by condensing several elements together. Select the degrees of freedom to save (master
DOFs) and to discard (slave DOFs). Apply loads to the super-element

2. Use Pass
Create the full model including the super-element created in the generation pass. Apply remaining loads to the
model. The solution will consist of the reduced solution tor the super-element and the complete solution for the
non-superelements.

3. Expansion Pass
Expand the reduced solution to obtain the solution at all DOFs for the super-element.

Note that a this method is a bottom-up substructuring (each super-element is created separately and then assembled in the
Use Pass). Top-down substructuring is also possible in ANSYS (the entire model is built, then super-element are created
by selecting the appropriate elements). This method is suitable for smaller models and has the advantage that the results
for multiple super-elements can be assembled in postprocessing.

ANSYS Command Listing

! Bottom-Up Substructuring

! GENERATION PASS - Build the superelement portion of the model

FINISH
/CLEAR, START
/FILNAME,GEN ! Change jobname

/PREP7

! Create Geometry
blc4,0,40,100,100 ! Creates rectangle

! Define material properties of wood section

ET,1,PLANE42 ! Element type
MP,EX,1, 10000 ! Young's Modulus
MP,PRXY,1,0.29 ! Poisson's ratio

! meshing
AESIZE,1,10, ! Element size
amesh,1 ! Mesh area

FINISH
/SOLU

ANTYPE,SUBST ! SUBSTRUCTURE GENERATION PASS

SEOPT,GEN,,2 ! Name = GEN and no printed output

NSEL,S,EXT ! Select all external nodes

M,ALL,ALL ! Make all selected nodes master DOF's
NSEL,ALL ! Reselect all nodes

NSEL,S,LOC,Y,140 ! Select the corner node

NSEL,R,LOC,X,0
F,ALL,FX,5 ! Load it

NSEL,ALL ! Reselect all nodes

SAVE ! Saves file to jobname.db

SOLVE ! GEN.SUB created
FINISH

! USE PASS
FINISH
/CLEAR
/FILNAME,USE ! Change jobname to use
/PREP7

! Create Geometry of non superelements

blc4,0,0,100,40 ! Creates rectangle

! Define material properties

ET,2,PLANE42 ! Element type
TYPE,2 ! Turns on element type 2
MP,EX,2, 2.5 ! Second material property set for silicon
MP,PRXY,2,0.41
! Meshing
AESIZE,1,10, ! Element size
mat,2 ! Turns on Material 2
real,2 ! Turns on real constants 2
amesh,1 ! Mesh the area

! Superelement
ET,1,MATRIX50 ! MATRIX50 is the superelement type
TYPE,1 ! Turns on element type 1
*GET,MaxNode,NODE,,NUM,MAX ! determine the max number of nodes
SETRAN,GEN,,MaxNode,GEN2 ! node number offset
SE,GEN2 ! Read in superelement matrix
NSEL,S,LOC,Y,40 ! Select nodes at interface
CPINTF,ALL ! Couple node pairs at interface
NSEL,ALL

FINISH

/SOLU
ANTYPE,STATIC ! Static analysis

NSEL,S,LOC,Y,0 ! Select all nodes at y = 0

D,ALL,ALL,0 ! Constrain those nodes
NSEL,ALL ! Reselect all nodes

ESEL,S,TYPE,,1 ! Element select

SFE,ALL,1,SELV,,1 ! Apply super-element load vector
ESEL,ALL ! Reselect all elements

SAVE
SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1 ! Enter post processing

PLNSOL,U,SUM,0,1 ! Plot deflection contour
FINISH

! EXPANSION PASS
/CLEAR ! Clear database
/FILNAME,GEN ! Change jobname back to generation pass jobname
RESUME ! Restore generation pass database

/SOLU ! Enter SOLUTION

EXPASS,ON,YES ! Activate expansion pass
SEEXP,GEN2,USE ! Superelement name to be expanded
EXPSOL,1,1, ! Expansion pass info
SOLVE ! Initiate expansion pass solution. Full
superelement solution written to GEN.RST
FINISH

/POST1
PLNSOL,U,SUM,0,1 ! Plot deflection contour
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CAT/Substructuring/Prin...

Substructuring

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of the tutorial is to show the how to use
substructuring in ANSYS. Substructuring is a procedure that condenses a group of finite elements into one
super-element. This reduces the required computation time and also allows the solution of very large problems.

A simple example will be demonstrated to explain the steps required, however, please note that this model is
not one which requires the use of substructuring. The example involves a block of wood (E =10 GPa v =0.29)
connected to a block of silicone (E = 2.5 MPa, v = 0.41) which is rigidly attached to the ground. A force will be
applied to the structure as shown in the following figure. For this example, substructuring will be used for the
wood block.

The use of substructuring in ANSYS is a three stage process:

1. Generation Pass
Generate the super-element by condensing several elements together. Select the degrees of freedom to
save (master DOFs) and to discard (slave DOFs). Apply loads to the super-element

2. Use Pass
Create the full model including the super-element created in the generation pass. Apply remaining loads
to the model. The solution will consist of the reduced solution tor the super-element and the complete
solution for the non-superelements.

3. Expansion Pass
Expand the reduced solution to obtain the solution at all DOFs for the super-element.

Note that a this method is a bottom-up substructuring (each super-element is created separately and then
assembled in the Use Pass). Top-down substructuring is also possible in ANSYS (the entire model is built, then

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CAT/Substructuring/Prin...

super-element are created by selecting the appropriate elements). This method is suitable for smaller models and
has the advantage that the results for multiple super-elements can be assembled in postprocessing.

ANSYS Command Listing

! Bottom-Up Substructuring

! GENERATION PASS - Build the superelement portion of the model

FINISH
/CLEAR, START
/FILNAME,GEN ! Change jobname

/PREP7

! Create Geometry
blc4,0,40,100,100 ! Creates rectangle

! Define material properties of wood section

ET,1,PLANE42 ! Element type
MP,EX,1, 10000 ! Young's Modulus
MP,PRXY,1,0.29 ! Poisson's ratio

! meshing
AESIZE,1,10, ! Element size
amesh,1 ! Mesh area

FINISH
/SOLU

ANTYPE,SUBST ! SUBSTRUCTURE GENERATION PASS

SEOPT,GEN,,2 ! Name = GEN and no printed output

NSEL,S,EXT ! Select all external nodes

M,ALL,ALL ! Make all selected nodes master DOF's
NSEL,ALL ! Reselect all nodes

NSEL,S,LOC,Y,140 ! Select the corner node

NSEL,R,LOC,X,0
F,ALL,FX,5 ! Load it

NSEL,ALL ! Reselect all nodes

SAVE ! Saves file to jobname.db

SOLVE ! GEN.SUB created
FINISH

! USE PASS
FINISH
/CLEAR
/FILNAME,USE ! Change jobname to use
/PREP7

! Create Geometry of non superelements

blc4,0,0,100,40 ! Creates rectangle

! Define material properties

ET,2,PLANE42 ! Element type
TYPE,2 ! Turns on element type 2

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CAT/Substructuring/Prin...

MP,EX,2, 2.5 ! Second material property set for silicon

MP,PRXY,2,0.41

! Meshing
AESIZE,1,10, ! Element size
mat,2 ! Turns on Material 2
real,2 ! Turns on real constants 2
amesh,1 ! Mesh the area

! Superelement
ET,1,MATRIX50 ! MATRIX50 is the superelement type
TYPE,1 ! Turns on element type 1
*GET,MaxNode,NODE,,NUM,MAX ! determine the max number of nodes
SETRAN,GEN,,MaxNode,GEN2 ! node number offset
SE,GEN2 ! Read in superelement matrix
NSEL,S,LOC,Y,40 ! Select nodes at interface
CPINTF,ALL ! Couple node pairs at interface
NSEL,ALL

FINISH

/SOLU
ANTYPE,STATIC ! Static analysis

NSEL,S,LOC,Y,0 ! Select all nodes at y = 0

D,ALL,ALL,0 ! Constrain those nodes
NSEL,ALL ! Reselect all nodes

ESEL,S,TYPE,,1 ! Element select

SFE,ALL,1,SELV,,1 ! Apply super-element load vector
ESEL,ALL ! Reselect all elements

SAVE
SOLVE
FINISH

/POST1 ! Enter post processing

PLNSOL,U,SUM,0,1 ! Plot deflection contour
FINISH

! EXPANSION PASS
/CLEAR ! Clear database
/FILNAME,GEN ! Change jobname back to generation pass jobname
RESUME ! Restore generation pass database

/SOLU ! Enter SOLUTION

EXPASS,ON,YES ! Activate expansion pass
SEEXP,GEN2,USE ! Superelement name to be expanded
EXPSOL,1,1, ! Expansion pass info
SOLVE ! Initiate expansion pass solution. Full superelement sol
FINISH

/POST1
PLNSOL,U,SUM,0,1 ! Plot deflection contour

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

 Coupled Structural/Thermal Analysis

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to outline a simple coupled thermal/structural
analysis. A steel link, with no internal stresses, is pinned between two solid structures at a reference temperature of 0 C (273
K). One of the solid structures is heated to a temperature of 75 C (348 K). As heat is transferred from the solid structure into
the link, the link will attemp to expand. However, since it is pinned this cannot occur and as such, stress is created in the
link. A steady-state solution of the resulting stress will be found to simplify the analysis.

Loads will not be applied to the link, only a temperature change of 75 degrees Celsius. The link is steel with a modulus of
elasticity of 200 GPa, a thermal conductivity of 60.5 W/m*K and a thermal expansion coefficient of 12e-6 /K.

Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

According to Chapter 2 of the ANSYS Coupled-Field Guide, "A sequentially coupled physics analysis is the combination
of analyses from different engineering disciplines which interact to solve a global engineering problem. For convenience, ...
the solutions and procedures associated with a particular engineering discipline [will be referred to as] a physics analysis.
When the input of one physics analysis depends on the results from another analysis, the analyses are coupled."

Thus, each different physics environment must be constructed seperately so they can be used to determine the coupled
physics solution. However, it is important to note that a single set of nodes will exist for the entire model. By creating the
geometry in the first physical environment, and using it with any following coupled environments, the geometry is kept
constant. For our case, we will create the geometry in the Thermal Environment, where the thermal effects will be applied.

Although the geometry must remain constant, the element types can change. For instance, thermal elements are required for
a thermal analysis while structural elements are required to deterime the stress in the link. It is important to note, however
that only certain combinations of elements can be used for a coupled physics analysis. For a listing, see Chapter 2 of the
ANSYS Coupled-Field Guide located in the help file.

The process requires the user to create all the necessary environments, which are basically the preprocessing portions for
each environment, and write them to memory. Then in the solution phase they can be combined to solve the coupled
analysis.

ANSYS Command Listing

finish
/clear

/title, Thermal Stress Example

/prep7 ! Enter preprocessor

k,1,0,0 ! Keypoints
k,2,1,0

l,1,2 ! Line connecting keypoints

et,1,link33 ! Element type

r,1,4e-4, ! Area
mp,kxx,1,60.5 ! Thermal conductivity

esize,0.1 ! Element size

lmesh,all ! Mesh line
physics,write,thermal ! Write physics environment as thermal
physics,clear ! Clear the environment

etchg,tts ! Element type

mp,ex,1,200e9 ! Young's modulus
mp,prxy,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio
mp,alpx,1,12e-6 ! Expansion coefficient
physics,write,struct ! Write physics environment as struct
physics,clear
finish

/solu ! Enter the solution phase

antype,0 ! Static analysis
physics,read,thermal ! Read in the thermal environment
dk,1,temp,348 ! Apply a temp of 75 to keypoint 1

solve
finish

/solu ! Re-enter the solution phase

physics,read,struct ! Read in the struct environment

ldread,temp,,,,,,rth ! Apply loads derived from thermal

environment
tref,273

dk,1,all,0 ! Apply structural constraints

dk,2,UX,0

solve
finish

/post1 ! Enter postprocessor

etable,CompStress,LS,1 ! Create an element table for link stress
PRETAB,CompStress ! Print the element table
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CAT/Coupled/Print.html

Coupled Structural/Thermal Analysis

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to outline a simple coupled
thermal/structural analysis. A steel link, with no internal stresses, is pinned between two solid structures at a
reference temperature of 0 C (273 K). One of the solid structures is heated to a temperature of 75 C (348 K). As
heat is transferred from the solid structure into the link, the link will attemp to expand. However, since it is
pinned this cannot occur and as such, stress is created in the link. A steady-state solution of the resulting stress
will be found to simplify the analysis.

Loads will not be applied to the link, only a temperature change of 75 degrees Celsius. The link is steel with a
modulus of elasticity of 200 GPa, a thermal conductivity of 60.5 W/m*K and a thermal expansion coefficient of
12e-6 /K.

Preprocessing: Defining the Problem

According to Chapter 2 of the ANSYS Coupled-Field Guide, "A sequentially coupled physics analysis is the
combination of analyses from different engineering disciplines which interact to solve a global engineering
problem. For convenience, ...the solutions and procedures associated with a particular engineering discipline
[will be referred to as] a physics analysis. When the input of one physics analysis depends on the results from
another analysis, the analyses are coupled."

Thus, each different physics environment must be constructed seperately so they can be used to determine the
coupled physics solution. However, it is important to note that a single set of nodes will exist for the entire
model. By creating the geometry in the first physical environment, and using it with any following coupled
environments, the geometry is kept constant. For our case, we will create the geometry in the Thermal
Environment, where the thermal effects will be applied.

Copyright © 2003 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CAT/Coupled/Print.html

Although the geometry must remain constant, the element types can change. For instance, thermal elements are
required for a thermal analysis while structural elements are required to deterime the stress in the link. It is
important to note, however that only certain combinations of elements can be used for a coupled physics
analysis. For a listing, see Chapter 2 of the ANSYS Coupled-Field Guide located in the help file.

The process requires the user to create all the necessary environments, which are basically the preprocessing
portions for each environment, and write them to memory. Then in the solution phase they can be combined to
solve the coupled analysis.

ANSYS Command Listing

finish
/clear

/title, Thermal Stress Example

/prep7 ! Enter preprocessor

k,1,0,0 ! Keypoints
k,2,1,0

l,1,2 ! Line connecting keypoints

et,1,link33 ! Element type

r,1,4e-4, ! Area
mp,kxx,1,60.5 ! Thermal conductivity

esize,0.1 ! Element size

lmesh,all ! Mesh line
physics,write,thermal ! Write physics environment as thermal
physics,clear ! Clear the environment

etchg,tts ! Element type

mp,ex,1,200e9 ! Young's modulus
mp,prxy,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio
mp,alpx,1,12e-6 ! Expansion coefficient
physics,write,struct ! Write physics environment as struct
physics,clear
finish

/solu ! Enter the solution phase

antype,0 ! Static analysis
physics,read,thermal ! Read in the thermal environment
dk,1,temp,348 ! Apply a temp of 75 to keypoint 1

solve
finish

/solu ! Re-enter the solution phase

physics,read,struct ! Read in the struct environment

ldread,temp,,,,,,rth ! Apply loads derived from thermal environment

tref,273

dk,1,all,0 ! Apply structural constraints

dk,2,UX,0

Copyright © 2003 University of Alberta

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solve
finish

/post1 ! Enter postprocessor

etable,CompStress,LS,1 ! Create an element table for link stress
PRETAB,CompStress ! Print the element table

Copyright © 2003 University of Alberta

 Using P-Elements

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0. This tutorial outlines the steps necessary for solving a
model meshed with p-elements. The p-method manipulates the polynomial level (p-level) of the finite
element shape functions which are used to approximate the real solution. Thus, rather than increasing
mesh density, the p-level can be increased to give a similar result. By keeping mesh density rather
coarse, computational time can be kept to a minimum. This is the greatest advantage of using p-elements
over h-elements.

A uniform load will be applied to the right hand side of the geometry shown below. The specimen was
modeled as steel with a modulus of elasticity of 200 GPa.
ANSYS Command Listing
finish
/clear

/title, P-Method Meshing

/pmeth,on ! Initialize p-method in ANSYS

/prep7 ! Enter preprocessor

k,1,0,0 ! Keypoints defining geometry

k,2,0,100
k,3,20,100
k,4,45,52
k,5,55,52
k,6,80,100
k,7,100,100
k,8,100,0
k,9,80,0
k,10,55,48
k,11,45,48
k,12,20,0

a,1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 ! Create area from keypoints

et,1,plane145 ! Element type

keyopt,1,3,3 ! Plane stress with thickness option
r,1,10 ! Real constant - thickness
mp,ex,1,200000 ! Young's modulus
mp,prxy,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

esize,5 ! Element size

amesh,all ! Mesh area

finish
/solu ! Enter solution phase

antype,0 ! Static analysis

nsubst,20,100,20 ! Number of substeps
outres,all,all ! Output data for all substeps
time,1 ! Time at end = 1

lsel,s,loc,x,0 ! Line select at x=0

dl,all,,all ! Constrain the line, all DOF's
lsel,all ! Re-select all lines

lsel,s,loc,x,100 ! Line select at x=100

sfl,all,pres,-100 ! Apply a pressure
lsel,all ! Re-select all lines

solve
finish

/post1 ! Enter postprocessor

set,last ! Select last set of data
plesol,s,eqv ! Plot the equivalent stress
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CAT/PElement/Print.html

Using P-Elements

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0. This tutorial outlines the steps necessary for solving a model
meshed with p-elements. The p-method manipulates the polynomial level (p-level) of the finite element shape
functions which are used to approximate the real solution. Thus, rather than increasing mesh density, the p-level
can be increased to give a similar result. By keeping mesh density rather coarse, computational time can be kept
to a minimum. This is the greatest advantage of using p-elements over h-elements.

A uniform load will be applied to the right hand side of the geometry shown below. The specimen was modeled
as steel with a modulus of elasticity of 200 GPa.

ANSYS Command Listing

finish
/clear

/title, P-Method Meshing

/pmeth,on ! Initialize p-method in ANSYS

Copyright © 2003 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CAT/PElement/Print.html

/prep7 ! Enter preprocessor

k,1,0,0 ! Keypoints defining geometry

k,2,0,100
k,3,20,100
k,4,45,52
k,5,55,52
k,6,80,100
k,7,100,100
k,8,100,0
k,9,80,0
k,10,55,48
k,11,45,48
k,12,20,0

a,1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 ! Create area from keypoints

et,1,plane145 ! Element type

keyopt,1,3,3 ! Plane stress with thickness option
r,1,10 ! Real constant - thickness
mp,ex,1,200000 ! Young's modulus
mp,prxy,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

esize,5 ! Element size

amesh,all ! Mesh area

finish
/solu ! Enter solution phase

antype,0 ! Static analysis

nsubst,20,100,20 ! Number of substeps
outres,all,all ! Output data for all substeps
time,1 ! Time at end = 1

lsel,s,loc,x,0 ! Line select at x=0

dl,all,,all ! Constrain the line, all DOF's
lsel,all ! Re-select all lines

lsel,s,loc,x,100 ! Line select at x=100

sfl,all,pres,-100 ! Apply a pressure
lsel,all ! Re-select all lines

solve
finish

/post1 ! Enter postprocessor

set,last ! Select last set of data
plesol,s,eqv ! Plot the equivalent stress

Copyright © 2003 University of Alberta

 Using P-Elements

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0. This tutorial outlines the steps necessary for solving a model meshed
with p-elements. The p-method manipulates the polynomial level (p-level) of the finite element shape functions
which are used to approximate the real solution. Thus, rather than increasing mesh density, the p-level can be
increased to give a similar result. By keeping mesh density rather coarse, computational time can be kept to a
minimum. This is the greatest advantage of using p-elements over h-elements.

A uniform load will be applied to the right hand side of the geometry shown below. The specimen was modeled as
steel with a modulus of elasticity of 200 GPa.

ANSYS Command Listing

finish
/clear

/title, Convection Example

/prep7 ! Enter the preprocessor

! define geometry

k,1,0,0 ! Define keypoints

k,2,0.03,0
k,3,0.03,0.03
k,4,0,0.03
a,1,2,3,4 ! Connect the keypoints to form area

! mesh 2D areas

ET,1,Plane55 ! Element type

MP,Dens,1,920 ! Define density

mp,c,1,2040 ! Define specific heat
mp,kxx,1,1.8 ! Define heat transfer coefficient

esize,0.0005 ! Mesh size

amesh,all ! Mesh area

finish
/solu ! Enter solution phase

antype,4 ! Transient analysis

time,60 ! Time at end of analysis

nropt,full ! Newton Raphson - full

lumpm,0 ! Lumped mass off
nsubst,20 ! Number of substeps, 20
neqit,100 ! Max no. of iterations
autots,off ! Auto time search off
lnsrch,on ! Line search on
outres,all,all ! Output data for all substeps
kbc,1 ! Load applied in steps, not ramped

IC,all,temp,268 ! Initial conditions, temp = 268

nsel,s,ext ! Node select all exterior nodes

sf,all,conv,10,368 ! Apply a convection BC
nsel,all ! Reselect all nodes
/gst,off ! Turn off graphical convergence monitor

solve
finish

/post1 ! Enter postprocessor

set,last ! Read in last subset of data
etable,melty,temp, ! Create an element table
esel,s,etab,melty,273 ! Select all elements from table above 273
finish

/solu ! Re-enter solution phase

antype,,rest ! Restart analysis
ekill,all ! Kill all selected elements
esel,all ! Re-select all elements

finish
/post1 ! Re-enter postprocessor
set,last ! Read in last subset of data
esel,s,live ! Select all live elements
plnsol,temp ! Plot the temp contour of the live elements
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/AT/BirthDeath/print.html

Using P-Elements

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0. This tutorial outlines the steps necessary for solving a model
meshed with p-elements. The p-method manipulates the polynomial level (p-level) of the finite element shape
functions which are used to approximate the real solution. Thus, rather than increasing mesh density, the p-level
can be increased to give a similar result. By keeping mesh density rather coarse, computational time can be kept
to a minimum. This is the greatest advantage of using p-elements over h-elements.

A uniform load will be applied to the right hand side of the geometry shown below. The specimen was modeled
as steel with a modulus of elasticity of 200 GPa.

ANSYS Command Listing

finish
/clear

/title, Convection Example

/prep7 ! Enter the preprocessor

! define geometry

k,1,0,0 ! Define keypoints

k,2,0.03,0
k,3,0.03,0.03
k,4,0,0.03
a,1,2,3,4 ! Connect the keypoints to form area

Copyright © 2003 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/AT/BirthDeath/print.html

! mesh 2D areas

ET,1,Plane55 ! Element type

MP,Dens,1,920 ! Define density

mp,c,1,2040 ! Define specific heat
mp,kxx,1,1.8 ! Define heat transfer coefficient

esize,0.0005 ! Mesh size

amesh,all ! Mesh area

finish
/solu ! Enter solution phase

antype,4 ! Transient analysis

time,60 ! Time at end of analysis

nropt,full ! Newton Raphson - full

lumpm,0 ! Lumped mass off
nsubst,20 ! Number of substeps, 20
neqit,100 ! Max no. of iterations
autots,off ! Auto time search off
lnsrch,on ! Line search on
outres,all,all ! Output data for all substeps
kbc,1 ! Load applied in steps, not ramped

IC,all,temp,268 ! Initial conditions, temp = 268

nsel,s,ext ! Node select all exterior nodes

sf,all,conv,10,368 ! Apply a convection BC
nsel,all ! Reselect all nodes
/gst,off ! Turn off graphical convergence monitor

solve
finish

/post1 ! Enter postprocessor

set,last ! Read in last subset of data
etable,melty,temp, ! Create an element table
esel,s,etab,melty,273 ! Select all elements from table above 273
finish

/solu ! Re-enter solution phase

antype,,rest ! Restart analysis
ekill,all ! Kill all selected elements
esel,all ! Re-select all elements

finish

/post1 ! Re-enter postprocessor

set,last ! Read in last subset of data
esel,s,live ! Select all live elements
plnsol,temp ! Plot the temp contour of the live elements

Copyright © 2003 University of Alberta

 Contact Elements

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of the tutorial is to describe how to utilize contact
elements to simulate how two beams react when they come into contact with each other.

The beams, as shown below, are 100mm long, 10mm x 10mm in cross-section, have a Young's modulus of 200
GPa, and are rigidly constrained at the outer ends. A 10KN load is applied to the center of the upper, causing it to
bend and contact the lower.

ANSYS Command Listing

finish
/clear

/title,Contact Elements
/prep7

! Top Beam
X1=0
Y1=15
L1=100
H1=10

! Bottom Beam
X2=50
Y2=0
L2=100
H2=10

! Create Geometry
blc4,X1,Y1,L1,H1
blc4,X2,Y2,L2,H2

! define element type

ET,1,plane42 ! element type 1

keyopt,1,3,3 ! plane stress w/thick
type,1 ! activate element type 1
R, 1, 10 ! thickness 0.01

! define material properties

MP,EX, 1, 200e3 ! Young's modulus

MP,NUXY,1, 0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

! meshing

esize,2 ! set meshing size

amesh,all ! mesh area 1

ET,2,contac48 ! defines second element type - 2D contact elements

keyo,2,7,1 ! contact time/load prediction
r,2,200000,,,,10
TYPE,2 ! activates or sets this element type
real,2 ! activates or sets the real constants

! define contact nodes and elements

! first the contact nodes

asel,s,area,,1 ! select top area
nsla,s,1 ! select the nodes within this area
nsel,r,loc,y,Y1 ! select bottom layer of nodes in this area
nsel,r,loc,x,X2,(X2+L2/2)! select the nodes above the other beam
cm,source,node ! call this group of nodes 'source'

! then the target nodes

allsel ! relect everything
asel,s,area,,2 ! select bottom area
nsla,s,1 ! select nodes in this area
nsel,r,loc,y,H2 ! select bottom layer of nodes in this area
nsel,r,loc,x,X2,(X2+L2/2)! select the nodes above the other beam
cm,target,node ! call this selection 'target'

gcgen,source,target,3 ! generate contact elements between defined nodes

finish
/solut
antype,0
time,1 ! Sets time at end of run to 1 sec
autots,on ! Auto time-stepping on
nsubst,100,1000,20 ! Number of sub-steps
outres,all,all ! Write all output
neqit,100 ! Max number of iterations

nsel,s,loc,x,X1 ! Constrain top beam

nsel,r,loc,y,Y1,(Y1+H1)
d,all,all
nsel,all

nsel,s,loc,x,(X2+L2) ! Constrain bottom beam

nsel,r,loc,y,Y2,(Y2+H2)
d,all,all
nsel,all

nsel,s,loc,x,(L1/2+X1) ! Apply load

nsel,r,loc,y,(Y1+H1)
f,all,fy,-10000
nsel,all

solve
finish

/post1
/dscale,1,1
/CVAL,1,20,40,80,160,320,640,1280,2560
PLNSOL,S,EQV,0,1
http://www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CAT/contact/print.html

Contact Elements

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of the tutorial is to describe how to utilize
contact elements to simulate how two beams react when they come into contact with each other.

The beams, as shown below, are 100mm long, 10mm x 10mm in cross-section, have a Young's modulus
of 200 GPa, and are rigidly constrained at the outer ends. A 10KN load is applied to the center of the
upper, causing it to bend and contact the lower.

ANSYS Command Listing

finish
/clear

/title,Contact Elements
/prep7

! Top Beam
X1=0
Y1=15
L1=100
H1=10

! Bottom Beam
X2=50
Y2=0
L2=100
H2=10

! Create Geometry
blc4,X1,Y1,L1,H1
blc4,X2,Y2,L2,H2

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! define element type

ET,1,plane42 ! element type 1

keyopt,1,3,3 ! plane stress w/thick
type,1 ! activate element type 1
R, 1, 10 ! thickness 0.01

! define material properties

MP,EX, 1, 200e3 ! Young's modulus

MP,NUXY,1, 0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

! meshing

esize,2 ! set meshing size

amesh,all ! mesh area 1

ET,2,contac48 ! defines second element type - 2D contact elements

keyo,2,7,1 ! contact time/load prediction
r,2,200000,,,,10
TYPE,2 ! activates or sets this element type
real,2 ! activates or sets the real constants

! define contact nodes and elements

! first the contact nodes

asel,s,area,,1 ! select top area
nsla,s,1 ! select the nodes within this area
nsel,r,loc,y,Y1 ! select bottom layer of nodes in this area
nsel,r,loc,x,X2,(X2+L2/2)! select the nodes above the other beam
cm,source,node ! call this group of nodes 'source'

! then the target nodes

allsel ! relect everything
asel,s,area,,2 ! select bottom area
nsla,s,1 ! select nodes in this area
nsel,r,loc,y,H2 ! select bottom layer of nodes in this area
nsel,r,loc,x,X2,(X2+L2/2)! select the nodes above the other beam
cm,target,node ! call this selection 'target'

gcgen,source,target,3 ! generate contact elements between defined nodes

finish
/solut
antype,0

time,1 ! Sets time at end of run to 1 sec

autots,on ! Auto time-stepping on
nsubst,100,1000,20 ! Number of sub-steps
outres,all,all ! Write all output
neqit,100 ! Max number of iterations

nsel,s,loc,x,X1 ! Constrain top beam

nsel,r,loc,y,Y1,(Y1+H1)
d,all,all
nsel,all

nsel,s,loc,x,(X2+L2) ! Constrain bottom beam

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nsel,r,loc,y,Y2,(Y2+H2)
d,all,all
nsel,all

nsel,s,loc,x,(L1/2+X1) ! Apply load

nsel,r,loc,y,(Y1+H1)
f,all,fy,-10000
nsel,all

solve
finish

/post1
/dscale,1,1
/CVAL,1,20,40,80,160,320,640,1280,2560
PLNSOL,S,EQV,0,1

Copyright © 2003 University of Alberta

 ANSYS Parametric Design Language (APDL)

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to familiarize the user
with the ANSYS Parametric Design Language (APDL). This will be a very basic introduction to
APDL, covering things like variable definition and simple looping. Users familiar with basic
programming languages will probably find the APDL very easy to use. To learn more about APDL
and see more complex examples, please see the APDL Programmer's Guide located in the help file.

This tutorial will cover the preprocessing stage of constructing a truss geometry. Variables including
length, height and number of divisions of the truss will be requested and the APDL code will
construct the geometry.

ANSYS Command Listing

finish
/clear

/prep7

*ask,LENGTH,How long is the truss,100

*ask,HEIGHT,How tall is the truss,20
*ask,DIVISION,How many cross supports even number,2

DELTA_L = (LENGTH/(DIVISION/2))/2
NUM_K = DIVISION + 1
COUNT = -1
X_COORD = 0

*do,i,1,NUM_K,1

COUNT = COUNT + 1
OSCILATE = (-1)**COUNT

X_COORD = X_COORD + DELTA_L

*if,OSCILATE,GT,0,THEN
k,i,X_COORD,0

*else
k,i,X_COORD,HEIGHT

*endif

*enddo

KEYP = 0

*do,j,1,DIVISION,1
KEYP = KEYP + 1

L,KEYP,(KEYP+1)

*if,KEYP,LE,(DIVISION-1),THEN
L,KEYP,(KEYP+2)
*endif
*enddo

et,1,link1
r,1,100
mp,ex,1,200000
mp,prxy,1,0.3

esize,,1
lmesh,all

finish
http://www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/cl/cat/apdl/apdl.html

ANSYS Parametric Design Language (APDL)

Introduction
This tutorial was completed using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to familiarize the user with
the ANSYS Parametric Design Language (APDL). This will be a very basic introduction to APDL,
covering things like variable definition and simple looping. Users familiar with basic programming
languages will probably find the APDL very easy to use. To learn more about APDL and see more
complex examples, please see the APDL Programmer's Guide located in the help file.

This tutorial will cover the preprocessing stage of constructing a truss geometry. Variables including
length, height and number of divisions of the truss will be requested and the APDL code will construct
the geometry.

ANSYS Command Listing

finish
/clear

/prep7

*ask,LENGTH,How long is the truss,100

*ask,HEIGHT,How tall is the truss,20
*ask,DIVISION,How many cross supports even number,2

DELTA_L = (LENGTH/(DIVISION/2))/2
NUM_K = DIVISION + 1
COUNT = -1
X_COORD = 0

*do,i,1,NUM_K,1

COUNT = COUNT + 1

Copyright 2003 - University of Alberta

http://www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/cl/cat/apdl/apdl.html

OSCILATE = (-1)**COUNT

X_COORD = X_COORD + DELTA_L

*if,OSCILATE,GT,0,THEN
k,i,X_COORD,0

*else
k,i,X_COORD,HEIGHT

*endif

*enddo

KEYP = 0

*do,j,1,DIVISION,1
KEYP = KEYP + 1

L,KEYP,(KEYP+1)

*if,KEYP,LE,(DIVISION-1),THEN
L,KEYP,(KEYP+2)
*endif
*enddo

et,1,link1
r,1,100
mp,ex,1,200000
mp,prxy,1,0.3

esize,,1
lmesh,all

finish

Copyright 2003 - University of Alberta

 Viewing X-Sectional Results

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to outline the steps required to view cross
sectional results (Deformation, Stress, etc.) of the following example.

ANSYS Command Listing

FINISH
/CLEAR

/Title, Cross-Sectional Results of a Simple Cantilever Beam

/PREP7

! All dims in mm
Width = 60
Height = 40
Length = 400

BLC4,0,0,Width,Height,Length ! Creates a rectangle

/ANGLE, 1 ,60.000000,YS,1 ! Rotates the display

/REPLOT,FAST ! Fast redisplay

ET,1,SOLID45 ! Element type

MP,EX,1,200000 ! Young's Modulus

MP,PRXY,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

esize,20 ! Element size

vmesh,all ! Mesh the volume

FINISH
/SOLU ! Enter solution mode

ANTYPE,0 ! Static analysis

ASEL,S,LOC,Z,0 ! Area select at z=0
DA,All,ALL,0 ! Constrain the area
ASEL,ALL ! Reselect all areas

KSEL,S,LOC,Z,Length ! Select certain keypoint

KSEL,R,LOC,Y,Height
KSEL,R,LOC,X,Width
FK,All,FY,-2500 ! Force on keypoint
KSEL,ALL ! Reselect all keypoints

SOLVE ! Solve
FINISH

/POST1 ! Enter post processor

PLNSOL,U,SUM,0,1 ! Plot deflection

WPOFFS,Width/2,0,0 ! Offset the working plane for cross-section view
WPROTA,0,0,90 ! Rotate working plane
/CPLANE,1 ! Cutting plane defined to use the WP
/TYPE,1,8 ! QSLICE display

WPCSYS,-1,0 ! Deflines working plane location

WPOFFS,0,0,1/16*Length ! Offset the working plane

/CPLANE,1 ! Cutting plane defined to use the WP
/TYPE,1,5 ! Use the capped hidden display
PLNSOL,S,EQV,0,1 ! Plot equivalent stress

!Animation
ANCUT,43,0.1,5,0.05,0,0.1,7,14,2 ! Animate the slices
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CPP/Slice/Print.html

Viewing X-Sectional Results

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to outline the steps required to view
cross sectional results (Deformation, Stress, etc.) of the following example.

ANSYS Command Listing

FINISH
/CLEAR

/Title, Cross-Sectional Results of a Simple Cantilever Beam

/PREP7

! All dims in mm
Width = 60
Height = 40
Length = 400

BLC4,0,0,Width,Height,Length ! Creates a rectangle

/ANGLE, 1 ,60.000000,YS,1 ! Rotates the display

/REPLOT,FAST ! Fast redisplay

ET,1,SOLID45 ! Element type

MP,EX,1,200000 ! Young's Modulus

MP,PRXY,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

esize,20 ! Element size

vmesh,all ! Mesh the volume

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CPP/Slice/Print.html

FINISH
/SOLU ! Enter solution mode

ANTYPE,0 ! Static analysis

ASEL,S,LOC,Z,0 ! Area select at z=0
DA,All,ALL,0 ! Constrain the area
ASEL,ALL ! Reselect all areas

KSEL,S,LOC,Z,Length ! Select certain keypoint

KSEL,R,LOC,Y,Height
KSEL,R,LOC,X,Width
FK,All,FY,-2500 ! Force on keypoint
KSEL,ALL ! Reselect all keypoints

SOLVE ! Solve
FINISH

/POST1 ! Enter post processor

PLNSOL,U,SUM,0,1 ! Plot deflection

WPOFFS,Width/2,0,0 ! Offset the working plane for cross-section view
WPROTA,0,0,90 ! Rotate working plane
/CPLANE,1 ! Cutting plane defined to use the WP
/TYPE,1,8 ! QSLICE display

WPCSYS,-1,0 ! Deflines working plane location

WPOFFS,0,0,1/16*Length ! Offset the working plane

/CPLANE,1 ! Cutting plane defined to use the WP
/TYPE,1,5 ! Use the capped hidden display
PLNSOL,S,EQV,0,1 ! Plot equivalent stress

!Animation
ANCUT,43,0.1,5,0.05,0,0.1,7,14,2 ! Animate the slices

Copyright © 2001 University of Alberta

Advanced X-Sectional Results: Using Paths to Post Process
Results

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to create and use 'paths' to provide extra detail during
post processing. For example, one may want to determine the effects of stress concentrators along a certain path. Rather than
plotting the entire contour plot, a plot of the stress along that path can be made.

In this tutorial, a steel plate measuring 100 mm X 200 mm X 10 mm will be used. Three holes are drilled through the vertical
centerline of the plate. The plate is constrained in the y-direction at the bottom and a uniform, distributed load is pulling on the
top of the plate.

ANSYS Command Listing

finish
/clear

/title, Defining Paths

/PREP7

! create geometry

BLC4,0,0,200,100
cyl4,50,50,10
cyl4,100,50,10
cyl4,150,50,10
asba,1,all
et,1,plane2,,,3 ! Plane element
R,1,10 ! thickness of plane
mp,ex,1,200000 ! Young's Modulus
mp,prxy,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

esize,5 ! mesh size

amesh,all ! area mesh

finish
/solu

! apply constraints
lsel,s,loc,y,0 ! select line for contraint application
dl,all,,UY ! constrain all DOF's on this face
allsel

! apply loads
allsel ! restore entire selection
lsel,s,loc,y,100
SFL,all,PRES,-2000/10 ! apply a pressure load on a line
allsel

solve ! solve resulting system of equations

finish

! plot results
/window,1,top ! define a window (top half of screen)
/POST1
PLNSOL,S,eqv,2,1 ! plot stress in xx direction (deformed and undeformed edge)
/window,1,off
/noerase

/window,2,bot ! define a window (bottom half of screen)

nsel,all ! define nodes to define path
nsel,s,loc,y,50 ! choose nodes half way through structure
path,cutline,2,,1000 ! define a path labeled cutline
ppath,1,,0,50 ! define endpoint nodes on path
ppath,2,,200,50
PDEF,,S,eqv,AVG ! calculate equivalent stress on path
nsel,all
PLPAGM,SEQV,200,NODE ! show graph on plot with nodes
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CPP/AdvancedX-SecRes...

Advanced X-Sectional Results: Using Paths to Post

Process Results

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to create and use 'paths' to provide
extra detail during post processing. For example, one may want to determine the effects of stress concentrators
along a certain path. Rather than plotting the entire contour plot, a plot of the stress along that path can be made.

In this tutorial, a steel plate measuring 100 mm X 200 mm X 10 mm will be used. Three holes are drilled
through the vertical centerline of the plate. The plate is constrained in the y-direction at the bottom and a
uniform, distributed load is pulling on the top of the plate.

ANSYS Command Listing

finish
/clear

/title, Defining Paths

/PREP7

! create geometry

BLC4,0,0,200,100

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University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CPP/AdvancedX-SecRes...

cyl4,50,50,10
cyl4,100,50,10
cyl4,150,50,10
asba,1,all

et,1,plane2,,,3 ! Plane element

R,1,10 ! thickness of plane
mp,ex,1,200000 ! Young's Modulus
mp,prxy,1,0.3 ! Poisson's ratio

esize,5 ! mesh size

amesh,all ! area mesh

finish
/solu

! apply constraints
lsel,s,loc,y,0 ! select line for contraint application
dl,all,,UY ! constrain all DOF's on this face
allsel

! apply loads
allsel ! restore entire selection
lsel,s,loc,y,100
SFL,all,PRES,-2000/10 ! apply a pressure load on a line
allsel

solve ! solve resulting system of equations

finish

! plot results
/window,1,top ! define a window (top half of screen)
/POST1
PLNSOL,S,eqv,2,1 ! plot stress in xx direction (deformed and undeformed edge)
/window,1,off
/noerase

/window,2,bot ! define a window (bottom half of screen)

nsel,all ! define nodes to define path
nsel,s,loc,y,50 ! choose nodes half way through structure
path,cutline,2,,1000 ! define a path labeled cutline
ppath,1,,0,50 ! define endpoint nodes on path
ppath,2,,200,50
PDEF,,S,eqv,AVG ! calculate equivalent stress on path
nsel,all
PLPAGM,SEQV,200,NODE ! show graph on plot with nodes

Copyright © 2003 University of Alberta

 Data Plotting: Using Tables to Post Process Results

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to outline the steps required to plot Vertical Deflection
vs. Length of the following beam using tables, a special type of array. By plotting this data on a curve, rather than using a contour
plot, finer resolution can be achieved.

This tutorial will use a steel beam 400 mm long, with a 40 mm X 60 mm cross section as shown above. It will be rigidly
constrained at one end and a -2500 N load will be applied to the other.

ANSYS Command Listing

finish
/clear

/title, Use of Tables for Data Plots

/prep7

elementsize = 20
length = 400

et,1,beam3 ! Beam3 element

r,1,2400,320e3,40 ! Area,I,Height
mp,ex,1,200000 ! Youngs Modulus
mp,prxy,1,0.3 ! Poisson's Ratio

k,1,0,0 ! Geometry
k,2,length,0

l,1,2

esize,elementsize ! Mesh size

lmesh,all ! Mesh

finish
/solu
antype,static ! Static analysis

dk,1,all ! Constrain one end fully

fk,2,fy,-2500 ! Apply load to other end

solve

finish
/post1

! Note, there are 21 nodes in the mesh. For the procedure below
! the table must have (#nodes + 1) rows

rows = ((length/elementsize + 1) + 1)

*DIM,graph,TABLE,rows,2,1 ! Creat a table called "graph"

! 22 rows x 2 columns x 1 plane

*vget,graph(1,1),node,all,loc,x ! Put node locations in the x direction

! in the first column for all nodes

*vget,graph(1,2),node,all,u,y ! Put node deflections in the y direction

! in the second column

*set,graph(2,1),0 ! Delete data in (2,1) which is for x = 400

! otherwise graph is not plotted properly

*set,graph(2,2),0 ! Delete data in (2,2) which is for UY @ x =

400
! otherwise graph is not plotted properly

*vget,graph(rows,1),node,2,loc,x ! Re-enter the data for x = 400, but at the end

*vget,graph(rows,2),node,2,u,y ! of the table

*vplot,graph(1,1),graph(1,2) ! Plot the data in the table

/axlab,x,Length ! Change the axis labels

/axlab,y,Vertical Deflection
/replot
University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CPP/DataPlotting/Print.h...

Data Plotting: Using Tables to Post Process Results

Introduction
This tutorial was created using ANSYS 7.0 The purpose of this tutorial is to outline the steps required to plot
Vertical Deflection vs. Length of the following beam using tables, a special type of array. By plotting this data
on a curve, rather than using a contour plot, finer resolution can be achieved.

This tutorial will use a steel beam 400 mm long, with a 40 mm X 60 mm cross section as shown above. It will
be rigidly constrained at one end and a -2500 N load will be applied to the other.

ANSYS Command Listing

finish
/clear

/title, Use of Tables for Data Plots

/prep7

elementsize = 20
length = 400

et,1,beam3 ! Beam3 element

r,1,2400,320e3,40 ! Area,I,Height
mp,ex,1,200000 ! Youngs Modulus
mp,prxy,1,0.3 ! Poisson's Ratio

k,1,0,0 ! Geometry
k,2,length,0

l,1,2

esize,elementsize ! Mesh size

Copyright © 2003 University of Alberta

University of Alberta ANSYS Tutorials - www.mece.ualberta.ca/tutorials/ansys/CL/CPP/DataPlotting/Print.h...

lmesh,all ! Mesh

finish
/solu

antype,static ! Static analysis

dk,1,all ! Constrain one end fully

fk,2,fy,-2500 ! Apply load to other end

solve

finish
/post1

! Note, there are 21 nodes in the mesh. For the procedure below
! the table must have (#nodes + 1) rows

rows = ((length/elementsize + 1) + 1)

*DIM,graph,TABLE,rows,2,1 ! Creat a table called "graph"

! 22 rows x 2 columns x 1 plane

*vget,graph(1,1),node,all,loc,x ! Put node locations in the x direction

! in the first column for all nodes

*vget,graph(1,2),node,all,u,y ! Put node deflections in the y direction

! in the second column

*set,graph(2,1),0 ! Delete data in (2,1) which is for x = 400

! otherwise graph is not plotted properly

*set,graph(2,2),0 ! Delete data in (2,2) which is for UY @ x = 400

! otherwise graph is not plotted properly

*vget,graph(rows,1),node,2,loc,x ! Re-enter the data for x = 400, but at the end

*vget,graph(rows,2),node,2,u,y ! of the table

*vplot,graph(1,1),graph(1,2) ! Plot the data in the table

/axlab,x,Length ! Change the axis labels

/axlab,y,Vertical Deflection
/replot

Copyright © 2003 University of Alberta