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Lab - Assignment - 1 Structural Finite Element Analysis

This document provides instructions for a finite element analysis lab assignment involving the stress analysis of a truss structure. Students are tasked with: 1) Designing an aluminum truss structure to support a 5kg mass 1m from a wall while withstanding lateral loads. 2) Creating a finite element model of the structure and performing an analysis to verify it will not fail. 3) Comparing the finite element results to hand calculations and writing a 5-7 page report communicating the structural analysis.

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130 views

Lab - Assignment - 1 Structural Finite Element Analysis

This document provides instructions for a finite element analysis lab assignment involving the stress analysis of a truss structure. Students are tasked with: 1) Designing an aluminum truss structure to support a 5kg mass 1m from a wall while withstanding lateral loads. 2) Creating a finite element model of the structure and performing an analysis to verify it will not fail. 3) Comparing the finite element results to hand calculations and writing a 5-7 page report communicating the structural analysis.

Uploaded by

essersou
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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MAE 456 FINITE ELEMENT ANALYSIS Truss Structure Stress Analysis LAB INSTRUCTIONS LAB ASSIGNMENT 1 Lab Objectives

Use rod elements in a Finite Element Analysis (FEA) to perform a deflection and strength analysis of an actual truss structure. Use modeling and FEA tools to input the structure, perform the analysis and visualize the results. Verify the correctness of the FEA results with hand calculations. Use the analysis to verify that the structure will not fail for the given failure criteria. Write-up a finite element stress analysis as an Engineering Report.

Lab Tasks
1. Design a spatial truss structure to hold a hanging 5 kg mass at a distance of 1 m from a wall. The structure can be pinned on the wall at any number of places, as long as they lie within the region identified in Figure 1. The structure must be capable of also handling a 10N lateral load as shown in Figure 1.
Make the structure as light as possible. Use any kind of aluminum and a safety factor of four on the yield strength. Create a CAD model of the structure.

1m

0.25 m X 0.25 m 10 N

Y 10 N X 5 kg

Only region where attachment points may be located

0.25 m 5 kg X 10 N Y

5 kg

Figure 1. Design requirements; top, front, right and oblique views

2. Perform simple hand calculations to have an idea of what magnitudes of stresses to expect. See sample calculations on-line. 3. Create the FEA model and solve.
Create an idealized FEA model using 3D lines to represent the truss members. Ignore details about the joints in your FEA model.

4. Compare the FEA results with your hand calculations. Correct the FEA or the hand calculations as required. 5. Calculate the mass of the structure. 6. Write a stress analysis report to communicate the results of the structural analysis. The report should include the following sections:
o o o o Summary (What is this report about? What kind of failures did you study? What were the conclusions?) Introduction (What was the objective of the assignment? What were the design requirements?) Description of design (including geometric and material information, and mass) Description of failure scenario and the FE model
Describe the actual physical boundary conditions (loads and restraints). Show the mesh and types of elements used Show how the restraints and loading conditions were applied.

Discussion of results of FE analysis


What levels of stress are predicted? Where are they highest? Did the stresses exceed the allowable stress? What is the safety factor for the given loads?

Description of verification of FE analysis


Did structure deflect in the expected way? Are restraint conditions maintained as intended? Perform check calculations for simplified structure. How close are the results of the FEA to the check calculations?

Conclusions (Will the structures fail? How heavy is the structure?)

Be sure there is no confusion about units. The report should be 5-7 pages long, having mostly figures and calculations. A template is provided on the course web page.

7. Submit your report electronically by emailing it to [email protected]. Due date/time: Feb. 1, 2012.

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