Structure-Joint interaction

The most up-to-date structural design procedures take into account the mechanical interaction between the global structural model and its connections (rigid, semi-rigid or pinned) which generally makes the results more economic and realistic. However this approach requires a more complicated relationship between the joints and the structure and accordingly more serious modelling effort from the engineer. In the Consteel all the joint types can be defined freely or based on the global model geometry using the automatic identification tool, which examines the position of the connected members and the proper cross-sections and offer the possible joint types. After defining the joint it can place back to the global model and the appropriate connection stiffness can be automatically used in the global analysis, and a placed joint is always rechecked based on the current analysis results.

In order to place a joint to the global model click on the Place Joint () icon on the Structural members tab. One joint can be placed to several places in the model if these meet the geometrical requirements. The stiffness of the connection can also be taking into account during the analysis if desired. In order to do so click on the analysis parameters and put a tick to Apply connection stiffness. Rerun the analysis to the changes take place.