ABAQUS ANSYS

MSC.Marc Advanced FEA

Both model and results data can be imported from any of these codes when the Analysis Preference is set appropriately under Preferences | Analysis. Press the Import switch on the main form and set the Action to Read Results.

Universal File Both model and results data can be imported from a Universal file under File | Import. Set the Object to Model and the Source to Universal File. Select the appropriate file and press Apply. Although the Object is set to Model both model and results information will be imported if they exist in the file.

Fatigue results can also be output in Universal File format; set the keyword FEFTYPE to the value UNIVERSAL using the MENM module. SeeModifying the MSC.Fatigue Environment (MENM) (p. 1310).

MSC.Patran Database

You can share information from an existing MSC.Patran database and merge the model into your database. Under File | Import set the Object to Model and the Source to MSC.Patran DB. Select the appropriate database and press Apply.

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Model Manipulations. The following table described the various options available to you to manipulate your FE model and view the stress/strain results once they have been imported.

Additional help on any of these topics can be obtained online by pressing the F1 key with the cursor in the appropriate form.

Parameter Description

Group This is an important tool in MSC.Fatigue. It is necessary to specify a group which contains the nodes and/or elements for which you wish to perform a fatigue analysis. By default all elements and nodes are contained in the default_group. But if a reduced set of nodes/elements is needed or the model needs to be broken into more than one group for defining multiple combinations of materials and surface

finishes/treatments, then it will be necessary for you to create groups.

Creating a group is relatively straight forward. Supply a name and graphically select entities from the graphics screen or type them in the appropriate databox manually using the convention Node or Elem in front of any list of nodes or elements.

Vieiwport This pulldown menu allows you to create and manipulate multiple graphical viewports for advanced visualization. This is useful for looking at multiple views simultaneously or posting different groups into separate viewports.

Viewing This pulldown menu gives access to view manipulation tools such as zooming, panning, rotating, and translating the model. Most of this functionality is available from icon buttons on the main form which change the way the mouse is used in graphically manipulating the model. Pressing the middle mouse button and rolling the mouse in the graphics viewport will move the model.

Display This pulldown menu gives access to allow changes in the display attributes of the model. Again, many of these features are available from the button icons on the main form. Shading, hidden line mode, entity coloring, plotting and erasing are all accessed from this menu.

Preferences This pulldown menu allows you to set preferences. Everything from the FE analysis preference to how graphical picking works is set from this menu.

Tools: List This pulldown menu allows you to create and process lists of FEM or Geometry data.

Tools: Fatigue Utilities

Many of the MSC.Fatigue utility modules may be spawned from this pulldown menu including the loading, materials, and compliance function managers. Usage of these modules is explained in:

Material Management(Ch. 3),Loading Management(Ch. 4),Crack Growth(Ch. 7), andFatigue Utilities(Ch. 12).

Insight Control This pulldown is discussed in more detail as it pertains to postprocessing and the Insight Utility.

Finite Elements This is a utility to allow you to node and element attributes such as location, distance, coordinate systems, and associations.

Job Setup. Once the FE model and results have been imported, you are then ready to set up a fatigue analysis. With the MSC.Fatigue Pre&Post module you do this by pressing the Analysis switch on the main menu bar. This procedure it explained in detail inJob Setup(p. 21) andJob Control(p. 59).

Postprocessing. After the fatigue analysis is completed, you may import the results for graphical postprocessing or you may run one of MSC.Fatigue’s postprocessing modules for further interpretation of results and “what-if” studies. This is explained in detail in

Postprocessing Results(p. 72).

Coordinate Frames

This is a utility to allow you to create coordinate frames and modify, transform, and show attributes of coordinate frames. This utility is mainly for use if it becomes necessary to transform FE results to alternate coordinate systems.

Results / Insight These two utilities are described in more detail as they pertain to postprocessing fatigue results but are available for postprocessing the imported FE stress and strain results also.

XY Plot This utility allows you to create XY plots of data. The Results application and certain aspects of postprocessing fatigue results automatically create XY plots. This application allows you to manipulate those XY plots.

Parameter Description

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2.3 The MSC.Patran Environment

MSC.Fatigue is fully integrated into the MSC.Patran environment. It is assumed that the user has a working knowledge of MSC.Patran. The setup for a MSC.Fatigue job is accessed through the Tools pulldown menu by selecting MSC.Fatigue and then Main Interface from the Submenu.

Other items are available from the MSC.Fatigue pulldown but are described elsewhere in this guide.

The following operations are need to perform a successfully MSC.Fatigue job from within MSC.Patran once a model has been created and the FE analysis completed:

1. Open a database (under File menu). Import the FE model along with its results if necessary when starting from a new database. It is generally necessary that all model geometry and FE results be stored in the database.

2. Perform any model manipulations necessary such as creating groups, changing display styles or even viewing and manipulating the FE stress/strain results.

3. Set up the MSC.Fatigue job and submit the job for analysis. This consists of defining the three inputs to the fatigue analysis (material, loading, and geometry information).

4. Import the fatigue analysis results and postprocess them for in-depth understanding.

It is assumed that the user has a working knowledge of how to perform the first two operations.

The last two are described inJob Setup(p. 21),Job Control(p. 59), andPostprocessing Results(p. 72).

MSC.Patran

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2.4 Job Setup

When the Analysis switch is selected from MSC.Fatigue Pre&Post or MSC.Fatigue is selected from the Tools pull-down menu from MSC.Patran, the following form appears.

MSC.Fatigue

Jobname (32 chrs max) =

Title (80 chrs max) =

Job Control: These two buttons allow for job submission, monitoring, and aborting in addition to reading results into the database and inputting old, saved job parameters. SeeJob Control(p. 59), and Postprocessing Results(p. 72).

General Setup: This section allows the user to define the fatigue analysis type and specifics about the type of finite element results to use including choice of stress or strain, and stress units. SeeGeneral Setup Parameters(p. 22).

Module Drivers: On UNIX the external MSC.Fatigue modules can be driven in either a Motif interface (default) or in the original Mask form. The Motif interface is described throughout the document. For a description of the Motif and Mask interfaces, please refer toModule Operations(App. B). Windows machines use the native environment and this option is not available.

Info Res. Units:

Stress

Job description: Really part of the general setup parameters, these two widgets simply allow you to define a job name and give it a textual description.

Specific Setup: This section allows the user to define the specific fatigue parameters associated with each analysis type. These buttons display additional forms which may be different for the different analysis types.

SeeSolution Parameters(p. 25),Materials Information Form(p. 36), andLoading Information Form(p. 44).

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