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Learning Objectives
• Understand the basic concepts and general working of FEA.
• Understand how FEA helps ANSYS to solve the problems.
• Understand the advantages and limitations of FEA.
• Understand the types of analysis.
• Understand the important terms and definitions in FEA.
• Start a new file using the ANSYS Product Launcher window.
• Understand the ANSYS Output Window.
• Understand the Graphical User Interface (GUI) of ANSYS.
• Set the analysis preferences and units.
• Learn about the database and files in ANSYS.
• Learn about saving, resuming, and clearing database.
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 INTRODUCTION TO FEA
• The finite element analysis (FEA) is a computing technique that is used to obtain
approximate solutions to the boundary value problems in engineering.

• It uses a numerical technique called the finite element method (FEM) to solve
boundary value problems.

• FEA involves a computer model of a design that is loaded and analyzed for specific
results.

The concept of FEA can be explained with a small example

of measuring the perimeter of a circle, refer to Figure 1.

Figure 1 The Circle divided

into equal small segments
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• General Working of FEA

Better knowledge of FEA will help you build more accurate models. It will also help you
understand the backend working of ANSYS. Figure 2 shows a spring assembly that
represents a simple two-spring element model.

Figure 2 Representation of a two-spring assembly

These FEA terminologies are listed next.

• Stiffness Matrix
The following part represents the stiffness matrix (K):
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• Degrees of Freedom
Degrees of freedom is defined as the ability of a node to translate or transmit the load.

• Boundary Conditions
The boundary conditions are used to eliminate the unknowns in the system.

• Nodes, Elements, and Element Shapes

These concepts are discussed next.
• Nodes
Nodes are similar to the points in geometry and
represent the corner points of an element,
refer to Figure 3.
• Elements
An element shape is specified by nodes. An element Figure 3 A node and an
(triangular shaped) is shown in Figure 3.
element
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• Element Shapes
The following are the basic shapes of the elements:
• Point Element
A point element is in the form of a point and therefore has only one node.
• Line Element
A line element has the shape of a line or curve, therefore a minimum of two nodes are
required to define it, refer to Figure 4.

Figure 4 The line elements

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• Area Element
An area element has the shape of a quadrilateral or a triangle, therefore it requires a
minimum of three or four nodes to define it. Some area elements are shown in Figure 5.

Figure 5 The area elements

• Volume Element
A volume element has the shape of a hexahedron (8 nodes), wedge (6 nodes),
tetrahedron (4 nodes), or a pyramid (5 nodes). Some of the volume elements are shown
in Figure 6.
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Figure 6 The volume elements

• General Procedure of Conducting Finite Element Analysis

1. Set the type of analysis to be used.
2. Create the model.
3. Define the element type.
4. Divide the given problem into nodes and elements (mesh the model).
5. Apply material properties and boundary conditions.
6. Derive the element matrices and equations.
7. Assemble the element equations.
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8. Solve the unknown quantities at nodes.
9. Interpret the results.
• FEA through ANSYS
In ANSYS, the general process of finite element
analysis is divided into three main phases,
preprocessor, solution, and postprocessor, refer to
Figure 7.

• Preprocessor
The preprocessor is a program that processes the
input data to produce the output that is used as
input to the subsequent phase (solution), refer to
Figure 7.

Figure 7 FEA through ANSYS

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• Solution
Solution phase is completely automatic. The FEA software generates the element
matrices, computes nodal values and derivatives, and stores the result data in files.

• Postprocessor
The output from the solution phase (result data files) is in the numerical form and
consists of nodal values of the field variable and its derivatives.

• Effective Utilization of FEA

Some prerequisites for effective utilization of FEA from engineers and FEA software are
discussed next.
• Engineers
An engineer who wants to work with this tool should have sound knowledge of Strength
of Materials (for structural analysis), Heat Transfer, Thermodynamics (for thermal
analysis), and a good analytical/designing skill.
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• Software
The FEA software should be selected based on the following considerations:
1. Analysis type to be performed.
2. Flexibility and accuracy of the tool.
3. Hardware configuration of your system.

• FEA Software
There are variety of commercial FEA software packages available in market. Some of
the most popular and commercially available FEA software are as follows:

1. ANSYS
2. Adina
3. Abaqus
4. Hypermesh
5. NX Nastran
6. Cosmos
7. NISA
8. Marc
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9. Ls-Dyna
10. MSC/Dytran
11. Star-CD

 KEY ASSUMPTIONS IN FEA

There are four basic assumptions that affect the quality of the solution and must be
considered for finite element analysis. These are discussed next.

• Assumptions Related to Geometry

• Assumptions Related to Material Properties
• Assumptions Related to Boundary Conditions

 TYPES OF ANALYSIS
The following types of analysis can be performed in FEA software:

Assumptions Related to Fasteners

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• Structural Analysis
In structural analysis, first the nodal degrees of freedom (displacement) are calculated
and then the stress, strains, and reaction forces are calculated from the nodal
displacements, refer to Figure 8.

Figure 8 Types of structural analysis

• Thermal Analysis
Thermal analysis is used to determine the temperature distribution and related thermal
quantities.
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• Fluid Flow Analysis

This analysis is used to determine the flow distribution and temperature of a fluid.

 IMPORTANT TERMS AND DEFINITIONS

Some of the important terms and definitions used in FEA are discussed next.
• Strength
When a material is subjected to an external load, the system undergoes a deformation.
Inturn the material will offer a resistance against this deformation.

• Load
The external force acting on a body is called the load.

• Strength
The force of resistance offered by a body against the deformation is called stress.
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• Strain
When a body is subjected to a load (force), its length will change. The ratio of the
change in length to the original length of the member is called strain.

• Elastic Limit
The maximum stress that can be applied to a material without producing permanent
deformation is known as the elastic limit of the material.

• Ultimate Strength
The maximum stress that the material withstands when subjected to an applied load is
called its ultimate strength.

• Factor of Safety
The ratio of the ultimate strength to the estimated maximum stress in ordinary use (design
stress) is known as factor of saftey.
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• Lateral Strain
If a cylindrical rod is subjected to an axial tensile load, the length (l) of the rod will
increase (dl) and the diameter (φ) of the rod will decrease (dφ).

• Poisson’s Ratio
The ratio of lateral strain to the longitudinal strain is constant, within the elastic limit.

• Bulk Modulus
If a body is subjected to equal stresses along the three mutually perpendicular directions,
the ratio of the direct stresses to the corresponding volumetric strain is found to be a
constant for a given material, when the deformation is within a certain limit. This ratio is
called the bulk modulus and is denoted by K.

• Creep
At elevated temperatures and constant stress or load, many materials continue to
deform but at a slow rate. This behavior of materials is called creep.
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• Classification of Materials
• Materials are classified into three main categories: elastic, plastic, and rigid.

• In case of elastic materials, the deformation disappears on the removal of load.

• In plastic materials, the deformation is permanent.

• A rigid material does not undergo any deformation when subjected to an external load.

 INTRODUCTION TO ANSYS
ANSYS, developed by ANSYS, Inc., USA, is a dedicated Computer Aided Finite Element
Modeling and Finite Element Analysis tool. ANSYS is known as the standard in the field
of Computer Aided Engineering. The Graphical User Interface (GUI) of ANSYS enables
the user to work with 3-dimensional (3D) models and also generate results from them.
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 SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
• System unit: An Intel Pentium 4 or AMD 64, running Microsoft 2000
Professional Edition, Windows XP 32-bit, or Windows XP x64 on it.

• Memory: 512 MB of RAM is the minimum requirement for all applications.

However, for 64-bit systems, 1 GB of RAM is the minimum requirement.

• Disk drive: 2.2 GB Disk Drive space (Minimum recommended size).

• A DVD drive is required for the program installation.

• Graphics adapter: Graphics card compatible with the supported operating

systems, capable of supporting 1024x768 High Color (16-bit), and a 17-
inch monitor compatible with this type of graphics card.
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 GETTING STARTED WITH ANSYS
There are two modes to run the ANSYS program: Interactive mode and Batch mode.

• Starting a New File Using ANSYS Product Launcher Window

ANSYS Product Launcher is used to run the required ANSYS program or access a
modified ANSYS file. To run the ANSYS Product Launcher on the Windows system,
choose Start > All Programs > ANSYS 11.0 > ANSYS Product Launcher from the
taskbar menu, as shown in Figure 9; the ANSYS Product Launcher window will be
displayed, as shown in Figure 10.
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Figure 9 Starting ANSYS using the Figure 10 The ANSYS

ANSYS Product Launcher Product Launcher window
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The options in the ANSYS Product Launcher window are discussed next.
• Default Page of the ANSYS Product Launcher Window
The options in the default page of the ANSYS Product Launcher window are used to
specify the simulation environment, license, and the add-on modules, refer to Figure 11.

Figure 11 The options in the default page

• File Management Tab

The options in this tab are used to set the working directory and assign a name to a job.
The options in this tab are shown in Figure 12.
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Figure 12 The File Management tab

• Customization/Preferences Tab
The options in this tab are used to
customize the working environment
and are shown in Figure 13.

Figure 13 The Customization/Preferences tab

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• High Performance Computing Setup Tab
The options in this tab are used to launch and run ANSYS by sharing memory with
multiple processors, or run ANSYS with proper MPI configuration.

• The MFX - ANSYS/CFX Setup Tab

The options in this tab are used to run ANSYS and CFX with their proper licenses.

 ANSYS 11.0 OUTPUT WINDOW

The ANSYS 11.0 Output Window, shown in Figure 14, runs along with the ANSYS
Multiphysics Utility Menu window (ANSYS session).

It gives the information on how ANSYS interpreted the user’s input. The ANSYS 11.0
Output Window also receives text output from the program.
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Figure 14 The ANSYS 11.0 Output Window

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 ANSYS MULTIPHYSICS UTILITY MENU WINDOW
The Graphical User Interface (GUI) of ANSYS is shown in Figure 15. It is the easiest
way to communicate with the ANSYS program.

Figure 15 The ANSYS session

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• Utility Menu
In ANSYS, the menu bar is called as the utility menu. It contains the file control, plot, plot
control, and many other options. This menu is very important in ANSYS GUI.
• Conventions Used in the Utility Menu
The following are the conventions used in the utility menu, refer to Figure 16.

• Dialog Box

• Graphical Picking
• Submenu
• Action

Figure 16 Conventions used in the

Utility Menu
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• Main Menu
The Main Menu is arranged in a tree-like structure with various colors to indicate the
level of the tree structure, as shown in Figure 17.

Figure 17 The Main Menu

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• Graphics Area
In the graphics area, you can build the model, apply the load, show the results, and
postprocess the counters and graphs, refer to Figure 18.

Figure 18 The shortcut menu used to

adjust the graphics window properties
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• Standard Toolbar
It contains the most commonly used tools such as New Analysis, Open Analysis File,
Save Analysis, and so on. The Standard toolbar is shown in Figure 19.

Figure 19 The Standard toolbar

• ANSYS Command Prompt

The ANSYS command prompt allows you to enter the commands. The format of the
command will be displayed dynamically when you type it, as shown in Figure 20.
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Figure 20 The ANSYS Command Prompt

• Command Window Icon

This button is used to float the ANSYS command prompt, refer to Figure 21.

Figure 21 The floating ANSYS Command Window

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• Raise Hidden Icon

While working on ANSYS, sometimes the dialog box will hide behind the ANSYS
Utility Menu window, refer to Figure 22 and 23.

Figure 22 The hidden dialog box

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Figure 23 The raised dialog box

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• Reset Picking
This button is used to reset the picking menu and clear the selection in the graphic
Area, refer to Figure 24 and 25.

Figure 24 Model in which some Figure 25 The same model after

of the nodes are selected choosing the Reset Picking button
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• Contact Manager
This button is used to invoke the Contact Manager dialog box, as shown in
Figure 26.

Figure 26 The Contact Manager dialog box

• ANSYS Toolbar
This toolbar contains the shortcuts of the most frequently used commands and functions.
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• Model Control Toolbar

This toolbar contains the tools for panning, rotating, and zooming the model, refer to
Figure 27.

Figure 27 The Model Control toolbar

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• User Prompt Information

This is a prompt area. The instructions for the user will be displayed in this area.

• Current Settings
In this area, the current attribute settings are displayed such as material, element type,
real constant number, currently active coordinate system, and section number.

 SETTING THE ANALYSIS PREFERENCES

To set the analysis preferences, choose Preferences from the Main Menu; the
Preferences for GUI Filtering dialog box will be displayed, as shown in Figure 28.

• Disciplines
The disciplines are arranged according to the types of analysis that can be carried out
in ANSYS.
• Disciplines Options
The Discipline options area contains two types of solution methods for solving the
structural problems in ANSYS: h-Method and the p-Method Struct.
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Figure 28 The Preferences for GUI Filtering dialog box

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 UNITS IN ANSYS
Following are some of the quantities and their respective units used in this textbook.

Length = Millimeters (mm)

Mass = Kilogram (kg)
Time = Seconds (s)
Temperature = Celsius (oC)
Force = Newton (N)
Pressure = N/mm2
Stress = N/mm2

To set angular units for the variables, choose Parameters > Angular Units from the
Utility Menu; the Angular Units for Parametric Functions dialog box will be
displayed, as shown in Figure 29
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Figure 29 The Angular Units for Parametric Functions dialog box

 OTHER IMPORTANT TERMS RELATED TO ANSYS

The other important terms related to ANSYS, common options in ANSYS, and the working
of these options are discussed next.

• Dialog Boxes
Various options available in any ANSYS dialog box is given next.
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• Inputs to be Specified
The input to the ANSYS dialog box can be provided through text entry, check boxes,
radio button, option button, single selection list, multiple selection list, two columns
selection list, a tabbed box, or a tree structure, refer to Figure 30.

Figure 30 The Create Keypoints in Active

Coordinate System dialog box
• Action Buttons
The action buttons in the dialog box include OK, Apply, and Cancel.
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• Graphics Display
The graphics display options in ANSYS are used to change the geometry display, result
display, and graph display.

The Plot and PlotCtrls menus from the Utility Menu are used to control the display of
the objects, refer to Figure 31 and 32.

Figure 31 The Plot menu Figure 32 The PlotCtrls menu

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• Panning, Zooming, and Rotating the Model

In ANSYS, the front view is the default view and the Z axis is pointed normal to the
screen, refer to Figure 33.

Figure 33 Panning, Zooming, and Rotating the model

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• Dividing the Graphics Area

Sometimes, you need to divide the graphics area into two, three, or four parts, refer to
Figure 34.

Figure 34 The graphics area divided into four divisions

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• The Pan-Zoom-Rotate Dialog Box

The Pan-Zoom-Rotate dialog box is used to manipulate the view of the model on the
screen, refer to Figure 35.

Figure 35 The Pan-Zoom-Rotate dialog box

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• Graphics Picking
Graphics picking is used to locate or retrieve the entities like nodes and keypoints using
the left mouse button. In ANSYS, there are three types of graphics picking operations.
• Locational Picking
Locational picking is used to locate the coordinates of nodes and keypoints. Figure 36
shows the Create KPs on WP dialog box that is used for locational picking. The different
areas in this dialog box are discussed next.

• Pick Mode Area

The radio buttons in the pick mode area are used to pick or unpick an entity or a location.
• Picked Data
This area gives information about the workplane and the global cartesian coordinates of
the picked items.
• Keyboard Entry Options
This area is used to specify a known coordinate location during locational picking.
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Figure 36 The Create KPs on WP dialog box

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• Action Buttons Area

The buttons in this area have been discussed earlier.
• Retrieval Picking
Retrieval picking is used to pick the existing entities for operations such as applying loads,
meshing, applying degrees of freedom, and so on.

• Query Picking
Query picking is used to display the specified items from the database. There are two
types of query pickers, Model query picker and Results query picker and these are
explained next.
• Model Query Picker
The model query picker allows you to display the information about the picked entities,
refer to Figure 38 and 39.
• Results Query Picker
The results query picker allows you to review the results for specific points on the model.
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Figure 38 The Model Figure 39 The KLIST Command window

Query Picker dialog box
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• Using Mouse Buttons for Picking

You can use the mouse buttons for picking points/XY nodes in various ways that are
given next.
• The left mouse button is used to pick or unpick an entity.

• The middle mouse button is used to perform an action.

• The right mouse button is used to toggle between the pick and unpick
modes.

• ANSYS Database and Files

The ANSYS database and files are discussed next.

• Database
The ANSYS database is used to store the input and the result data in the memory.
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• Files
During the process of analysis, the ANSYS writes and reads several files. These
components of the file name are discussed next.

• Jobname
It is the name that is given in the ANSYS Product Launcher of ANSYS, refer to
Figure 40.

Figure 40 The Change Jobname dialog box

• Extension
In ANSYS, different file extensions are used to identify the contents of a file.
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• Saving the File

The save operation copies the database from memory to a file called the database file
(db). To save the file, choose the SAVE _DB button from the ANSYS Toolbar.

• Resuming the File

The resume operation restores the database from the db file into the memory. The
resume operation is used as an undo tool.

• Clearing the Database

This operation is used to clear the old database and start a new one. It is similar to
restarting ANSYS. To clear the database, choose File > Clear & Start New from the
Utility Menu; the Clear Database & Start New dialog box will be displayed, as shown
in Figure 41.
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Figure 41 The Clear Database and Start New dialog box

• Some Basic Steps in General Analysis Procedure

Every analysis involves some basic steps, which are as follows:
• Preliminary Decisions
A successful analysis of any geometry depends on accurate planning, which includes
taking the following decisions:
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• Analysis Type
• What to Model
• Element Type

• ANSYS Help
To invoke the help window, choose Help > Help Topics from the Utility Menu; the
Release 11.0 Documentation for ANSYS window will be displayed, as shown in
Figure 42.
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Figure 42 The Release 11.0 Documentation for ANSYS Window

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• Exiting ANSYS
To exit ANSYS, choose the QUIT button from the ANSYS Toolbar or choose File >
Exit from the Utility Menu; the Exit from ANSYS dialog box will be displayed, as
shown in Figure 43.

Figure 43 The Exit from ANSYS dialog box