Book Image

Practical Finite Element Simulations with SOLIDWORKS 2022

By : Khameel B. Mustapha
Book Image

Practical Finite Element Simulations with SOLIDWORKS 2022

By: Khameel B. Mustapha

Overview of this book

SOLIDWORKS is a dominant computer-aided design (CAD) software for the 3D modeling, designing, and analysis of components. This book helps you get to grips with SOLIDWORKS Simulation, which is a remarkable and integral part of SOLIDWORKS predominantly deployed for advanced product performance assessment and virtual prototyping. With this book, you'll take a hands-on approach to learning SOLIDWORKS Simulation with the help of step-by-step guidelines on various aspects of the simulation workflow. You'll begin by learning about the requirements for effective simulation of parts and components, along with the idealization of physical components and their representation with finite element models. As you progress through the book, you'll find exercises at the end of each chapter, and you'll be able to download the geometry models used in all the chapters from GitHub. Finally, you’ll discover how to set up finite element simulations for the static analysis of components under various types of loads, and with different types of materials, from simple isotropic to composite, and different boundary conditions. By the end of this SOLIDWORKS 2022 book, you'll be able to conduct basic and advanced static analyses with SOLIDWORKS Simulation and have practical knowledge of how to best use the family of elements in the SOLIDWORKS Simulation library.
Table of Contents (15 chapters)
1
Section 1: An Introduction to SOLIDWORKS Simulation
6
Section 2: SOLIDWORKS Simulation with Shell and Solid Elements
10
Section 3: Advanced SOLIDWORKS Simulation with Complex Material and Loading Behavior

Getting started with analyzing beams and frames in SOLIDWORKS Simulation

In this section, we will demonstrate the use of the beam element with a practical case study that exemplifies a beam carrying multiple types of load.

Through this case study, you will become familiar with how to apply transverse concentrated forces and concentrated moments at a joint. You will also learn how to apply a distributed load on a beam segment. Finally, you will get to see how to extract shear force and bending moment diagrams (which are simulation results that are specific to beams/frames analysis).

Time for action – Conducting a static analysis of a beam with multiple loads

Problem statement

We will analyze the structural component that is loaded and supported as shown in Figure 3.5a. The beam is made of AISI 304 steel and has an S (American Standard) cross-section – S 120 x 12, which is the cross-sectional profile depicted in Figure 3.5b. Using SOLIDWORKS Simulation, we...