Beams From Lines
These tools enable the creation of 1D elements from surface lines, organizing them into components. They also offset/orient these elements based on the attached shell elements and calculating properties of these 1D elements from 3D solid or shell FE element sections.
Beams From Lines: Create
- Select all of the surface edges. This tool works on surface edges without free floating lines. Therefore, you need to mask or delete all of the free lines.
- From the menu bar, click to import the standard beam section from a .csv file. In this example the CSV format and the +Y axis of the beam will be aligned with the shell normal.
- Select Local as the System Type.
- Assign beam section to each system axis. If the axis does not need a beam, you can make the selection Unspecified.
- Click Create. A beam will be created with the correct beam section properties and type (CROD, CBAR, CBEAM) along each system axis.
Beams From Lines: Organize
- Create empty components in each system direction.
- Move the beams automatically to those components.
Beams From Lines: Update
Use this tool to update 1D element properties, change the orientation, or assign offset to existing BEAM elements. The offset and orientation is based on the attached shell element normal and shell element thickness.
Using the beam Update tool, beam sections can be automatically calculated from 3D solid or FE shell/beam models.
Beams From Lines: Display
- Click Pick.
- In the graphics area select a beam.
- Click Display to see the beam's property values.
- Click Clear and repeat the process for the next beam.