Objective:
Learn how to use Boundary Conditions in a Static Analysis.
Procedure:
Boundary Conditions (BCs) can be thought of as the environment your part is in. They include Forces, Displacement Restraints, Heat Generation, Pressure, and more. All of the internal and external elements acting on your model. You need a minimum of two BCs to run a simulation. Depending on the BC, they are usually made up of a Boundary, a Vector, and a Frame. The image below shows the current options for BCs in nTop Platform.
Looking at the Brake Pedal example, we can identify what BCs we want to use in our Static Analysis. The force is where your foot would be pressing on and the displacement restraint is where the pedal is connected to another piece and fixed in place. A Displacement Restraint is usually required when forces are involved to ensure the part is fixed in space. Without it, the simulation wouldn't be able to run.
1. Create a Force BC:
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- Add a Force block to the workflow
- Insert the FE Boundary by Body into the Boundary input
- Set the Vector to (0,0,-600N). This represents a foot acting on the brake pedal head with a factor of safety.
The downward arrows represent the -600N of Force acting in the negative Z-direction over the entire brake pedal head. If you want more control over the direction of the force, you can edit it using the 'Frame' input.
2. Create a Displacement Restraint BC:
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- Add a Displacement Restraint block
- Insert the FE Boundary by Flood Fill selection into the Boundary input
Tip: If you left the input of DoFs, you would like to leave it unrestrained.
The red icons on the hole represent the restrained boundary.
And that’s it! You’ve successfully added boundary conditions to your part.
Are you still having issues? Contact the support team, and we’ll be happy to help!
Move on to the next article in this series and learn how to run a Simulation
Download the Example file:
- How can I create a Surface Mesh?
- How to Create an FE Mesh
- How to Create an FE Model
- How to Select Boundaries of an FE Mesh - FE Boundary by Body
- How to Select Boundaries of an FE Mesh - FE Boundary by Flood Fill
- How to Run a Static Analysis
- How to use Simulation Results to Create a Point Map or Field