Chapter 2

FEA and ANSYS

Chapter 2 - FEA and ANSYS

A. About the Company Training Manual

ANSYS, Inc. INTRODUCTION TO ANSYS - Part 1

– Developer of ANSYS family of
products
– Headquartered in Canonsburg, PA -
USA (south of Pittsburgh)

ANSYS Channel Partners

– Sales and support network for ANSYS
– Over 75 offices worldwide
– Local expertise for ANSYS consulting
and training

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…About the Company Training Manual

INTRODUCTION TO ANSYS - Part 1

ANSYS Support Coordinator (ASC)
– Contact for ANSYS at your company site
– Focal point for ANSYS correspondence; software updates, error
notices, newsletter and other mailings, etc.

For more information about ANSYS and the company:

– www.ansys.com
• Where you’ll find the Customer Portal
– On-line documentation
– Training manuals from other ANSYS courses

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Chapter 2 - FEA and ANSYS

B. About ANSYS Training Manual

ANSYS, Inc. Family of Products include the following: INTRODUCTION TO ANSYS - Part 1

• ANSYS – Advanced nonlinear mechanical

and multiphysics FEA solution capabilities

• ANSYS Workbench – Complete environment

for geometry modeling, mesh manipulation,
structural/thermal analysis, and optimization,
which is tightly integrated with CAD packages

• CFX – State-of-the-art CFD solvers,

including the coupled, parallel CFX-5 solver

• ICEM CFD – Powerful meshing tools with

general pre- and post-processing features,
including ICEM CFD for generating complex
CFD grids and AI*Environment for creating
with sophisticated structural FEA meshes
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INTRODUCTION TO ANSYS - Part 1

• ANSYS is a complete FEA software package used by engineers
worldwide in virtually all fields of engineering. Partial listing of the
capabilities:
– Structural
• Linear
• Nonlinear
– Material, Geometric, Contact
• Dynamics
– Modal, Harmonic, Transient Dynamic, Spectrum, Random Vibration
– Explicit Dynamics with ANSYS LS-DYNA
– Thermal
• Steady State and Transient
– Fluid (CFD, Acoustics, and other fluid analyses)
– Low- and High-Frequency Electromagnetics
– Coupled Field

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…About ANSYS Training Manual

• A partial list of industries in which ANSYS is used: INTRODUCTION TO ANSYS - Part 1

– Aerospace
– Automotive
– Biomedical
– Bridges & Buildings
– Electronics & Appliances
– Heavy Equipment & Machinery
– MEMS - Micro Electromechanical Systems
– Sporting Goods

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INTRODUCTION TO ANSYS - Part 1

• ANSYS Multiphysics - Provides the analysis industry's most comprehensive
coupled physics tool combining structural, thermal, CFD, acoustic and electromagnetic
simulation capabilities into a single software product.
• ANSYS Mechanical - Structural and Thermal analysis tool which includes a full
complement of nonlinear and linear elements, material laws ranging from metal to rubber,
and the most comprehensive set of solvers available.

• ANSYS Structural - Provides all the power of ANSYS nonlinear structural capabilities
-- as well as linear capabilities -- to deliver the highest quality, most-reliable structural
simulation results available.

• ANSYS Professional – Inexpensive, easy-to-use program for structural/thermal

analysis projects.

• ANSYS DesignSpace – An easy-to-use package that gives designers the tool to

conceptualize, design and validate ideas right on the desktop.

• ANSYS LS-DYNA – Meets design challenges by fusing LSTC’s LS-DYNA explicit

dynamic solver technology with the pre-/post-processing power of ANSYS software. This
powerful pairing helps engineers understand the elaborate combinations of nonlinear
phenomena found in crash tests, metal forging, stamping and catastrophic failures.
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• ANSYS Emag – Addresses the analysis needs of the low-frequency electromagnetics
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market.

Chapter 2 - FEA and ANSYS

…About ANSYS Training Manual

Workbench Modules: INTRODUCTION TO ANSYS - Part 1

• DesignModeler – Workbench application that provides modeling functions unique for simulation that
include detailed geometry creation, CAD geometry modification, and concept model creation tool.

• DesignXplorer – Works within the Workbench environment to perform Design Of Experiments (DOE)
analyses of any Workbench simulation, including those with CAD parameters.

• DesignXplorer VT – A robust Variational Technology solution that gives users a broader view of design
concepts providing complete FEA results for every design point.

• ANSYS Fatigue – Adds the capability to simulate performance under anticipated cyclic loading conditions
over anticipated product life span.

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INTRODUCTION TO ANSYS - Part 1

• Other products:
– ANSYS ICEM CFD – Provides sophisticated geometry acquisition, mesh
generation, post-processing and mesh optimization tools.
– ANSYS CFX – Suite of finite-volume-based Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD)
software, offered by CFX, an ANSYS, Inc. subsidiary including CFX-5, the best-in-class
CFD software.

– ANSYS ParaMesh – a tool that works directly on legacy models. The mesh, a
tessellated representation, can be parameterized and made to move almost as though it
were geometry, giving a legacy model incredible utility.

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C. What is FEA? Training Manual

• Finite Element Analysis is a way to simulate loading conditions on INTRODUCTION TO ANSYS - Part 1
a design and determine the design’s response to those
conditions.

• The design is modeled using discrete building blocks called

elements.

– Each element has exact equations Historical Note

that describe how it responds to a
certain load.
– The “sum” of the response of all
elements in the model gives the
total response of the design.
– The elements have a finite number
of unknowns, hence the name
finite elements.
• The finite element method of
structural analysis was created
by academic and industrial
researchers during the 1950s
and 1960s.
• The underlying theory is over
100 years old, and was the basis
for pen-and-paper calculations in
the evaluation of suspension
bridges and steam boilers.

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INTRODUCTION TO ANSYS - Part 1

• The finite element model, which has a finite number of unknowns,
can only approximate the response of the physical system, which
has infinite unknowns.
– So the question arises: How good is the approximation?

– Unfortunately, there is no easy

answer to this question. It depends
entirely on what you are simulating
and the tools you use for the
simulation. We will, however,
attempt to give you guidelines
throughout this training course.

Physical System F.E. Model

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…What is FEA? Training Manual

Why is FEA needed? INTRODUCTION TO ANSYS - Part 1

• To reduce the amount of prototype testing

– Computer simulation allows multiple “what-if” scenarios to be tested
quickly and effectively.

• To simulate designs that are not suitable for prototype testing

– Example: Surgical implants, such as an artificial knee

• The bottom line:

– Cost savings
– Time savings… reduce time to market!
– Create more reliable, better-quality designs

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Chapter 2 - FEA and ANSYS
D. Instructor Example Training Manual

INTRODUCTION TO ANSYS - Part 1

• Your instructor is going to do a simple example so you get a feel
for what you’re going to be learning.

• The instructor will do the example through the GUI without going
into any detail on how to generate the model.

• The example is of a cantilever beam with a load at the end.

• You will see that the deflection at the tip matches theory.
→ δ = PL3/3EI = (-100)*(103)/(3)*(30e6)*(1/12) = -0.013
Instructor cheat sheet:
/prep7 alls
mp,ex,1,30e6 d,node(0,0.5,0),uy
mp,nuxy,1,0.3 f,node(10,1,0),fy,-100
et,1,plane42 /solu
blc4,0,0,10,1 solve
amesh,all /post1
nsel,s,loc,x,0 plns,u,y
d,all,ux

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Chapter 2 - FEA and ANSYS

E. Workshop Training Manual

• Refer to your Workshop Supplement for instructions on: INTRODUCTION TO ANSYS - Part 1
W2 Introductory Workshop

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